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I just hope this minis line doesn't produce as much packaging trash as the first line did. >_> 
Now this is a blog! Thank you thank you thank you! I would love to see this become a regular feature. Love it! Thank you! Did I say thank you yet? I only ask because I know there will be a storm of posters wishing you had addressed other questions. But from this one poster...thanks for now! 
This is an exemplary guide to the zen archer monk archetype. I’m not praising my own work: what I mean is that I’m going to present a zen archer as an example, then put him through some high level challenges to show how the class runs and where it ends up. After the fights there’s some discussion and a guide, but I’m going to lead with examples to illustrate the way the zen archer works in play. That’s the plan: on with the show. *************************************************************** One would be a zen archer. Rain and shine since childhood, One has sat at the grotty feet of Ichi, his flea-ridden, novelty-bearded sensei, studying the way of the bow. He’s a slow learner, this One - but now, at last, he’s ready to go forth and bring monastic law (and monastic fleas) to the world. Many escapades and 19 levels later, One will be ennobled as Lord Ghostslayer and given stewardship of the Nine Kingdoms he calls home...but not yet, not yet. For the moment One is a 1st level human Zen Archer Qinggong monk, built with 20-point buy, and he looks like this: Spoiler:
Name: One. Race: Human. Class/Level: Zen Qinggong Monk 1. Favoured Bonus: H∞.
Age: 25. Height: 6’1”. Weight: 180lbs. Alignment: LN. Pointbuy: 14/14/14/7/17/7 = 20. Strength 14, Dexterity 14, Constitution 14, Intelligence 7, Wisdom 19, Charisma 7 Initiative +8
Speed 30
Traits: Exile, Resilient
Skills: Acrobatics +6 (1 rank, 3 class, 2 stat), Perception+8 (1 rank, 3 class, 4 stat), Stealth +6 (1 rank, 3 class, 2 stat) Gear (35gp): shortbow (30gp, 2lb), 20 arrows (1gp, 3lb), 20 blunt arrows (2gp, 3lb),
Kobolds quail before him. One improves well with age, though- here he is at 6th, primed to unleash hell: Spoiler:
Name: One. Race: Human. Class/Level: Zen Qinggong Monk 6. Favoured Bonus: H∞. Age: 30. Height: 6’1”. Weight: 180lbs.
Strength 14, Dexterity 14, Constitution 14, Intelligence 7, Wisdom 20 (22), Charisma 7 Initiative +8
Speed 50
Traits: Exile, Resilient
The Way of One:
Skills: Acrobatics +11, jump+37 (6 ranks, 3 class, 2 stat/6 class, 20 speed), Perception+15 (6 ranks, 3 class, 6 stat), Sense Motive+10 (1 rank, 3 class, 6 stat), Stealth +10 (5 ranks, 3 class, 2 stat) Gear (16,000gp): composite str14 longbow+2 (8600gp, 3lb), headband of wisdom+2 (4000gp), ring of protection+1 (2000gp), cloak of resistance+1 (1000gp), 2 potions of mage armour (100gp), 10 smoke arrows (100gp, 10lb), masterwork backpack (50gp, 4lb), 200 arrows (10gp, 30lb), 10 monk’s outfits (50gp, 10lb), 40 blunt arrows (4gp, 6lb), cold iron knuckles (2gp, 1lb), soap (1gp, 2lb), 83gp Encumbrance (light 66lb): 66lb Finally, here he is in his pomp at 20th: Spoiler:
Name: One. Race: Human. Class/Level: Qinggong Zen Monk 20. Favoured
Bonus: H∞. Age: 30. Height: 5’. Weight: 130lbs. Alignment: LN. Pointbuy: 14/14/14/7/17/7 = 20. Str 18 (24), Dex 18 (24), Con 14 (20), Int 7 (9), Wis 28 (34), Cha 7 Initiative +13
Speed 90, fly 40
Traits: Exile, Resilient
The Way of One:
Skills: Acrobatics +27, jump+71 (16 ranks, 3 class, 7 stat, 1 luck/20 class, 24 speed), Fly+17 (1 rank, 7 stat, 1 luck, 4 item, 4 man), Heal+16 (3 ranks, 12 stat, 1 luck), Knowledge Planar+20 (20 ranks, -1 stat, 1 luck), Perception+41 (20 ranks, 3 class, 12 stat, 1 luck, 5 item), Sense Motive+17 (1 rank, 3 class, 12 stat, 1 luck), Stealth +30 (19 ranks, 3 class, 7 stat, 1 luck) Gear (880,000gp): belt of physical perfection+6 & dwarvenkind (166,350gp, 1lb), tome of wisdom+4 (expended, 110,000gp), manual of strength+4 (expended, 110,000gp), manual of dexterity+4 (expended, 110,000gp), composite merciful str24 longbow+5 (73,100gp, 3lb, hardness 15, hp55), vest of armour+8 (64,000gp, 1lb), ring of protection+5 & counterspells (56,000gp; greater dispel 660gp), headband of wis+6 and int+2 (Know: Planar, 42,000gp, 1lb), ring of evasion & counterspells (31,000gp; greater dispel 660gp), greater bracers of archery (25,000gp), cloak of resistance+5 (25,000gp, 1lb), luckstone (20,000gp), broom of flying (17,000gp, 3lb), boots of speed (12,000gp, 1lb), bottle of air (7250gp, 1lb), ioun stone+1 armour (5000gp), eyes of the eagle (2500gp), handy haversack (2000gp, 5lb), 2 ioun torches (150gp), mwk backpack (50gp, 4lb), 300 arrows (15gp, 45lb), cold iron knuckle (2gp, 1lb), 2 weapon cords, 7gp In the haversack: 20 monk’s outfits (100gp, 20lbs), 2 holy waters (50gp, 2lb), 2 unholy waters (50gp, 2lb), 5 smoke arrows (50gp, 5lb), 40 blunt arrows (4gp, 6lb), soap (1gp, 2lb), waterskin (1gp, 4lb) Encumbrance (light 266lb): 67lb with broom. Encumbrance for broom (light 200lb): 194lb At this point One is ready to undertake the Trial of Beastmass , in which he must single-handedly defeat the seven toughest creatures fully detailed in the Bestiary, and do it within two days - that is, with only one rest. Uncommon resilience, extreme offensiveness and a dash of versatility - these are the qualities Beastmass requires. Can the Trial be overcome? Why would One even try? Well, he probably gets a Blue Peter badge or something (please excuse the in-joke for British readers). Anyway, some brief pre-match analysis, also known as ‘bits readers might disagree with’: Spoiler:
Perfect Stun : at 1st level One gains Perfect Strike, which ‘replaces Stunning Fist.’ At 11th level he qualifies for Stunning Fist and takes it. Now, monks get beefed-up versions of various feats, and Stunning Fist is a case in point. Monkhood gives extra stuns as well as an assortment of alternative effects, from fatigue to paralysis. When a zen archer monk takes the feat, does he treat it as a beefy monk feat - does he gain a use per level and the alternative effects?
It’s worth noting that the official online site links Perfect Strike’s replacement of Stunning Fist to the feat, not the class ability. This seems to suggest that zen archers have dormant beef-up class potential, which becomes active when the feat is taken. I’m going to make a judgement call here, though: I think the intention is that One gains a stun per level (as per the feat description) but not the alternate effects (as per the class text). This means that, when he eventually gains Ki Focus Bow, One can shoot stunning arrows but not paralysing ones. Do mark this guide for faq if you think this is a point worth clarifying. Ki Arrows : at 17th level One gains Ki Focus Bow, and treats ‘all arrows fired from his bow as if they were ki focus weapons, allowing him to use his special ki attacks as if his arrows were unarmed attacks.’ What is a special ki attack? The ki focus weapon quality gives a list, which ‘includes’ ki strike, Quivering Palm and Stunning Fist - but it doesn’t give a definition. This is a shame, because the new material gives us various feats that look like they might well be ki attacks, too. The use of ‘include’ does seem to leave room for additions, but it’s impossible to be sure. For example, several monk archetypes get a beefed-up feat as a straight replacement for Stunning Fist - are these ki attacks? Elemental Fist and Touch of Serenity both look likely candidates. Then too, Ultimate Magic describes ki powers in its treatment of the qinggong archetype - is an offensive ki power a ki attack? Again I’m going to make a judgement call here for the time being: I reckon the Stunning Fist substitute feats are ki attacks, because they replace a ki attack class ability. To avoid greyzoneness, though, I’m not going to use either Elemental Fist or Touch of Serenity in One’s build. Again, mark this guide for faq if you think a definition of kit attacks would be nice to have. Deadly Aim : on 07/08/11 Pathfinder released an errata to the effect that, when a monk uses Combat Expertise or Power Attack with flurry, he ‘uses his improved flurrying BAB to determine the effect of these feats.’ This applies equally to Deadly Aim. I’m incorporating this, although it’s worth noting that (a) it’s not a huge change (-2 attack/+4 damage at 20th), (b) it’s not necessarily advantageous to a monk, who doesn’t have attack bonusses out of the wahooly, and (c) it doesn’t change the outcome of any of the Beastmass fights. (I’ll also note that I think this is good errata, but that it’s liable to confuse people, since the monk’s flurrying base attack - +1 per level - isn’t laid out plainly on the monk’s class table, which is where many people will look for it. It would be good if this were made clearer in future printings or versions). Zen Vows : at 5th level One takes the vows of cleanliness and truth; at 15th level he adds the vow of fasting (‘a monk can take a vow at any level’). Can a zen archer have these? ‘A monk who takes a vow never gains the Still Mind class feature’: zen archers never gain it in the first place. Note, though, that the wording doesn’t say you have to have Still Mind to swap out, and in fact this is careful writing, because ‘any user of ki’ can take a vow - and other users, like the ninja, don’t have Still Mind either. So the zen archer falls into the same category as a ninja here; he doesn’t have Still Mind, and thus has nothing to lose when he avows himself. Gear : One has a vest of armour , since Pathfinder has no magic slot flavour restrictions: a robe, shirt or vest would fit the bill anyway. This allows him greater bracers of archery . He still misses out on armour and shield slots, of course. He also stacks up some secondary enchantments on their traditional slots, but he pays the 150% secondary rates. More controversially (in duel terms), One wears two rings of counterspells with greater dispels in them. PCs need magic items, beasts don’t, and at these levels, against at-will greater dispels , item nerf protection is mandatory. He pays for both the rings and spells as normal, of course, and the counterspells are gone for good when they’re expended. Qinggongness : In place of infinite Slow Fall, One takes barkskin for 1 ki; it lasts 3 hours 20 minutes a pop and gives a +5 natural armour enhancement. By default he simply uses this three times a day at noncombat intervals. He starts off 3 ki down each day to reflect this. He also has restoration (2 ki) in place of Wholeness of Body from 8th, and shadow walk (3 ki) in place of Timeless Body from 17th, though these don’t play much significance in the Trial. Skills : it won’t matter in the Trial, but I’ll just note here that items built on fly/overland flight give nice bonusses to the Fly skill, just as the spells do, though the items routinely forget to mention half the goodness. One’s broom of flying gives +8 (+4 for half caster level, +4 for good maneuverability). You have a maneuverability, it’s good, you get the bonus. Fight Rules : no one flees for good - the pride of monkdom and the Bestiary are at stake. Single d20s always result in 10, multiple d20s (like full attacks) go 10-11-9, 10-9-11, and repeat. Threats kick in when the percentages from hits (not misses) build up to 60% within or over rounds (eg. 12 basic /20x2 hits would offer one threat and confirmation). Strictly mathematically speaking, multiple 20x2 threats don’t produce exact 5% threat chances, apparently, but for a game guide I reckon a flat 5% per pip will do. If there’s a decisive close call I’ll flag it. Rough but simple... Or nearly so. One has Hammer the Gap, which adds a cumulative +1 damage to hits on a successful run of shots. This damage is critiplied, which means he does more damage on a critical if it occurs later on in his flurry routine. To keep this fair (and conservative), I’m going to add the following rider: if One crits during a full attack, it occurs on the first shot if he hits once or twice, the second shot if he hits three/four times, the third shot if he hits five/six times, and the fourth shot if he hits with seven or all eight attacks. One’s Attacks : it’ll save time to deconstruct these now. Throughout the trial, One either flurries with his bow or shoots as a standard action. He always uses Deadly Aim, and he has his merciful bow set to nonlethal by default. On the default flurry he activates his boots for haste (free action), spends 1 ki on unarmed arrow damage (swift action), uses Perfect Strike - which gives a 30% threat chance on one shot (actually 29.95%, apparently) - and attaches up to two Su or Ex abilities to the best shots - Quivering Palm and Stunning Fist. This is bow attack option no.5 on the 20th level sheet above. If he thinks stunning is better than raw damage he activates Mantis Style on his first turn, which takes up his swift action and so prohibits unarmed damage that round. If he’s limited to a standard shot, by default One uses Pinpoint Targetting, Improved Vital Strike, Perfect Strike, Quivering Palm (subsequently Stunning Fist), and spends one ki point again for unarmed damage. He doesn’t bother activating the boots on single shots. Mantis Style is again an option, if he has reason to prefer stunning to damage. Pinpoint Targetting means he can’t move in the same round, so he has to forgo it now and then. Pinpoint Targetting and the vital strike work together because the first is a standard attack action, and the second can be tagged on ‘when you use the attack action’ (which is to say, a standard action used for an attack). If they were both standard actions they wouldn’t combine, but as written they do. This is bow option no.2 on the 20th level zen archer above. Okay, buckle up, here we go.
Spoiler:
Perturbed by the trials ahead, One leaves bright and early to see a smart friend, a merman monk - but One is hardly smart himself, being minmaxed, and gets his days mixed up, departing on the first day of Beastmass itself. He’s cruising along through the sunbeamy sea on his trusty broom, taking nips of air from his bottle every four minutes, bow in hand, when he detects a disturbance in the currents and something vast hoves into view. Avast! It is the dread shoggoth, the first of One’s adversaries.
The ocean has 90’ visibility, and this is good for the shog (a nice charge distance) so we’ll use it as the start point. Everyone has smashing Perception, no one is surprised. The shog has +11 Initiative, but One goes first. Also the ocean is studded with tiny harmless jellyfish just where the fight occurs, so everything has normal concealment beyond 20’, which the shog ignores through tremorsense... though in fact One does too, courtesy of Improved Precise Shot. Also, One is half out of air when the fight kicks off: he has 20 rounds, and loses an extra round each time he attacks. The shoggoth is only a CR19, so we’re trying to stack some chips in its favour here. Ding-ding, round one: One doesn’t shoot, because the water imposes a minus 34 penalty on ranged attacks - bummer. He does ready his pinpoint vital shot when the ooze comes within 5’. Shog’s turn: it begins its Maddening Cacophony (free action), and charges 90’, trampling. One saves against the cacophony (on a 2), saves against the trample (on a 9) and evades. Is he engulfed? No, because he isn’t trampled - and even if he was (it’s a close save, after all) the shog would need to make a grapple check (as if Swallowing Whole), for which it requires a natural 20. In the meantime One’s readied shot goes off: it hits on a 2 and does 50 nonlethal after DR (oozes aren’t immune to nonlethal). The shoggoth is on 283 hp but immediately heals to 293hp (it’s only nonlethal damage, of course, but the distinction is irrelevant here). One acts immediately before it next round. Round two: One goes for the Full Monty flurry, haste and all. He hits seven times for 248 nonlethal damage after typeless DR. The shoggoth is immune to the Quivering Palm, the stun and the criticals that One would normally threaten, but it’s on 45hp. What else does it have up its soggy sleeve? Not enough. The shoggoth fast-heals 10 hp again, but the truth is it can’t hurt the monk. It needs natural 20s to slam or succeed on maneuvers. One saves against the cacophony and saves and evades the trample: we could rule that he fails a save against the latter, since it’s borderline, but he can survive it and won’t be engulfed. The shog can’t flee in this fight and has no ranged ability. Engulf is its trump, and since it’s none too bright, it’s going to fast-heal and try that again. One reduces it to unconscious primeval sludge in 3 rounds (conservatively) and kills it stone dead with a few more rounds of unmerciful flurries thereafter. 6 ki (including the day’s natural armour) and 2 charges of the boots of speed used, and the Quivering Palm wasted, but job done!
Spoiler:
One falls unconscious and wakes to find himself on his damp broom, in a charred cavern, 10’ by 10’ and 100’ high, lit by guttering candles. As he explores there is a sound like the shrieking of flensed souls and the towering balor appears in midair before him! The combatants are 10’ apart, One wins initiative, but we’ll say the demon gets a surprise round, because I don’t want Beastmass to come down to initiative. The Balor is big on brains, so we’ll say he’s done his homework on One, too, and we’ll do it for him now.
The balor is a SMACC - a Spellcaster on a Mighty Awesome Combat Chassis. He’s pretty offensive toe-to-toe, but his real strengths are his spell-likes - implosion, fire storm, at-will greater dispel and dominate , quickened telekinesis , and the CR17 marilith he can summon. Boojah! Actually, none of this is going to work on One and the balor knows it. The offensive spell-likes need 10s to go through One’s Spell Resistance (which equals success for the balor, per fight rules), but One then saves on a 2 against anything. Telekinesis fails against One’s AC, CMD and saves, and the marilith is a one-round road-bump - she can’t hit or grapple the monk barring natural 20s, and One’s flurry hits her seven times and crits once for 408 nonlethal damage, which doesn’t do wonders for her health. Worse, the balor knows it can’t touch One physically. It too needs natural 20s to succeed on all maneuver checks (telekinetic or otherwise), and ditto on attack rolls. It needs consecutive natural 20s to slay One with its vorpal weapons. If One was a normal monk he might take fire damage when flurrying, but that’s someone else’s problem. The balor can’t bullrush One off the broom, or sunder his bow, or disarm it, or telekinese it, or get One in a grapple where he can’t shoot and gets burned. The balor can’t even quick-telekinese itself a tower shield out of some conveniently handy steel plate, because it happens to know that One can shoot around total cover for 3 ki a round. So what can the demon do? Plan A: targetted greater dispels at will against One’s gear (area dispels won’t work on items). Per fight rules it’ll succeed against One’s SR and will easily succeed on dispel checks against the bow, belt and headband (on a 7, 6 and 2), which it has identified as One’s key items. Unfortunately, the balor also knows that One wears two rings which will automatically counter its first two greater dispels , but still, this plan has merit. It’d be better if the balor could sunder the suppressed bow, but that won’t be an option... curses... Plan B: if the balor can do 83 damage, it can use power word stun - no save - but it’s going to have the devil of a time doing that much damage. Finally - Plan C - the balor can just make full attacks, hoping for vorpal strikes. It gets seven chances a round, but the likelihood of getting consecutive 20s is miniscule. The balor goes for Plan A. The greater dispel bounces but one ring of counterspells is emptied. For pride’s sake, the demon uses quickened telekinesis to throw up a mass of cave rubble between One and itself, but the rubble is cover, not total cover, and the monk ignores it (Improved Precise Shot). Round One, One’s turn: he flurries. He hits five times, critting once, for 306 nonlethal. The balor saves against the stun (on a 9) but has 64hp remaining, and is unconscious unless it can stop One shooting next round, which it can’t (it can’t flee, has no healing or buffing to make teleport a viable temporary retreat and it can’t hide from the perceptive monk). Next round it gets porcupined and, some ki-less-, haste-less flurries thereafter, explodes in a blinding flash of demonic fire, but One saves against it (on a 6) and evades. 7 ki and 3 haste used so far...
Spoiler:
Again One passes out, but doesn’t wake to find himself free - he’s still in the cavern, though the candles have gone out and it appears altered when he explores, 60’ by 60’ by 60’. Maybe this is a different hellhole?
Anyway, bummer. He could turn ethereal or (possibly) shadow walk his way out of here, but instead he waits for his next Beastmass beast, meditating on his ioun torches . Suddenly a gate opens, its hinges weeping blood, and the indomitable force that is the pit fiend steps into the darkness. The combatants are 50’ apart, One has darkvision, but the devil wins initiative for real. Round One: the fiend may be the smartest beast in the Bestiary, so we’ll give it advanced knowledge. Like the balor, the pit fiend is a SMACC. Its combat chassis is less offensive but better defensively, and its spellcasting is superior - it has wish . It can also summon a CR16 horned devil, but it has no silver bullets that’ll shoot down zen archers. For starters, the fiend is (surprisingly) only Caster Level 18, and so needs a 12 to overcome One’s Spell Resistance. It’ll fail that check under fight rules, but then One will make all his saves on 2s anyway. The horned devil won’t hit and will go down in a round (Perfect Strike gives seven hits, with one crit, for 408 nonlethal). The fiend has some touch spells ( scorching ray and the initial portion of meteor swarm ) but the ranged touch attacks fail against both SR and AC; and like the balor, the fiend needs natural 20s to hit One with melee attacks or maneuvers. Its poison, disease and constrict are useless. So what can it do? Plan A: targetted dispels. It’s heard its demonic opposite tried this and failed, though. Damn those slightly cheesy rings! It could cast invisibility and a persistant image of itself to gain time, but the monk’s range mean the illusion will only buy off one bowshot, and the invisibility will fail as soon as the devil targets One’s attended items with a dispel. Plan B: wish for the worst. The fiend likes the second option. It wishes . Our zen archer plays by the book (rings aside), so ditto the beasts (initiative aside): the devil can do anything on the normal wish list. Destruction will do 35 damage on a save, the humble true strike more next round if the fiend survives that long, since it could then Vital bite for 57 (after One’s DR is applied) - but a chunk of damage is no good if the devil can’t follow up. Summon monster viii is nothing but a round of unhelpful flanking. Waves of exhaustion? The monk’s SR will nerf it, and anyway, the fiend happens to know One has restoration ; besides, he’d still be able to use his bow at a flat -2 penalty. Wind wall? The monk will just run into it, or fly into it, or shoot up the apertures at the top or bottom of the cylinder... (Point of law for zen archers to remember and mention in a non-confrontational manner if and when necessary: a wind wall has to be vertical. Not horizonal, not diagonal. The fiend could make it a cylinder or square, but not a cube or a cone. This means it can’t close off the top or bottom with arrow-negating wind. In the cave the bottom might be closed by rock, but there is likely a 10’ wide aperture at the top: were One up there, he’d be looking down a 90’ wind tunnel at the devil. For a 3rd level spell this is still a formidable obstacle to archers...but it’s not the 100% arrow-negator it’s sometimes presented as being.) ...But wait! The diabolical genius has a better plan - deeper darkness . As a devil it has See in Darkness. The monk may have darkvision, but he can only overcome supernatural darkness if he has daylight or the like - which he lacks - and despite appearances the pit fiend is horribly quiet (Stealth+28) and its spell-likes are silent. In deeper darkness it can throw quickened fireballs and get dispels off unseen while flying around. It can nerf One’s belt and for two rounds and he’ll be at -6 on all physical stats, which means -60 hp, -3 AC, saves and CMD, -2 bow attack and -3 damage; then it can take out his headband, for another -3 bow attack, Will, Perception and AC, and then ... Muahaha. The ioun torches wink out: the entire cavern goes utterly black. The devil flies up 30’, using Stealth, and ends its surprise round with a quickened fireball for the hell of it, but One evades (on a 2). One gets a reactive Perception check as the devil moves, or perhaps as the fireball pellet whirrs towards him; either way, his result (51) beats the fiend’s Stealth result (46 with distance): he has pinpointed its squares. Still Round One: One’s first turn. The fiend is 50’ away laterally and 30’ up. One can’t see it, but he knows the squares it occupies. He flurries. He spends 2 ki to ignore the total concealment miss chance for one round (swift action) and hits five times (because of Perfect Strike), critting once, for 254 nonlethal damage - a reduced figure, because he lacks the swift action to gain unarmed arrow damage and is also beyond Point Blank Shot range. (Note that there’s no rule to stop him using ki twice a round - what he lacks here are two swift actions). The fiend is down to 96 virtual hp, but it’s irrelevant, because One has Stunning Fist on the first arrow and the pit fiend needs a 16 to save. (It would need a 14 to beat Quivering Palm, were it available, though it wouldn’t die because its regeneration is still functioning this round). It’s stunned, with or without One’s Ability Focus or Mantis Style. He flurries again next round without hasting , rendering the fiend unconscious, then kills it with some hasteless, ki-less flurries, because his +5 bow overcomes Good DR. If you rule that he needs an actual Good weapon or spell to stop the regeneration, then he repeatedly coup-de-graces the unconscious form to a mulch of minus-whatever-you-like with his hundreds of arrows, eventually realises the regenerating gobbets need something more, pours holy water on the sizzling goujons, then flurries again. He’s used the boots of speed 4 out of 10 times, has used 5 of 20 Perfect Strikes, 5 of 21 Stunning Fists, and has expended 11 of 33 ki points.
Spoiler:
At last One is transported away from the Charred Caverns. He finds himself on a mossy bank, with the moon sailing overhead and a dark mountain lake winking at his feet... quite charming, really. But wait, what’s this? Warship-sized ripples arrow none-too-stealthily towards him and, as he draws his bow, a mighty two-headed drake breaks the surface, sending arcs of spray moonwards: lo! It is the tarn linnorm, and it means business. Everyone ignores the low light on attack rolls, no one is surprised, and One goes first - but that’s going to be dull, so let’s give the linnorm a turn because of its sheer awesomeness.
Round one: the linnorm may be the only creature in the Bestiary bar the tarrasque that has a realistic hope of sticking a combat maneuver on the zen monk: on a 17 it can grapple him. It still needs natural 20s to hit him on melee attacks, though, so the grapple would be a standard action with a minimal chance of success - and anyway, the cunning-but-brutish linnorm believes it has better options. As a full round action it raises its twin heads and breathes two titanic overlapping cones of acid, for 44d8 damage, with 4d6 Strength damage to follow next round...except there’s a DC32 Reflex save against each breath weapon, and One makes them on 5s and evades them both. One’s turn: he flurries. Five hits, one crit, for 306 nonlethal. The linnorn is on 79 virtual hp, but the opening arrows hit on 2s. The linnorm fails its Will save (it needs a 14), wouldn’t die if Quivering Palm were available (because it’s regenerating this round), but is stunned. One strikes it into unconsciousness next round without haste or a ki point and kills it soon thereafter, because his +5 bow overcomes cold iron DR, and so stops the beast regenerating (though you might rule he needs an actual cold iron weapon, in which case he eventually smacks the arrow-riddled drake with his knuckles). Its Curse of Death falls on One (DC29 Will) but he shrugs it off effortlessly, scratches at a monastic flea (their jump skills are most impressive) and settles down to supper. It’s only tofu, but he’s taken no damage all day so he rewards himself with an extra chunk.
Spoiler:
One wakes early and flies up to watch for trouble. He’s 100’ up on his broom, crosslegged, bow athwart his knees, when he perceives the dragon of dragons (well, at least of those fully detailed). The dawn skies are clear and our doughty archer isn’t caught unawares - he sees sun glancing off the gargantuan shining drake at 640’ (maximum sight distance 840’, the average for plains), and at that distance the gold perceives him only on a 20. For the first time we have a favourable surprise situation - though in actual play, in open settings, a hyper-perceptive zen archer can expect these fairly often. One even has the luxury of standing and waiting a round before attacking.
Surprise Round: One single shots. Distance gives him a -10 penalty, but Pinpoint Targetting negates every shred of scaly armour the gold has. It goes from AC39 to AC5 and One hits on a 2 for 59 nonlethal damage. The gold saves against death, but the monk wins initiative. Round 1: One single-shots again and this time he crits for 130. The dragon isn’t stunned and is on 188hp. The ancient’s turn. It roars, contorts its vast sinuous coils, and heals to 338 virtual hp ( heal gets it back 150 hp a time; it can cast the spell up to a dozen times). Impudent human! Still, the dragon is smart and its Beastmass quarry is somewhat pricklier than it anticipated. Having healed it sensibly considers its options. Let’s go through it, since One is going to win and it’s going to be a long and repetitive fight. The salient points are; A: One can always hit the gold. Even if it teleports away and buffs to AC51, the zen archer can use Pinpoint Targetting to take a shot a round against AC9, which he’ll make on a 2 at anywhere up to 640’; and he’ll crit with every other single shot, for 189 nonlethal every two rounds. If the dragon doesn’t buff but stays beyond Point Blank range, One can still flurry and hit five times (with Perfect Strike) at up to 110’, critting once, for 298 damage, or three times at up to 480’, using ki for range and doing 107 a round if he doesn’t crit, 172 if he does (50% chance on first such long distance flurry, 100% on second). B: The gold needs 17s to hit One in melee. Even if it teleports away and buffs, it can’t get a melee bonus greater than +39 and still needs 14s to hit. The gold’s breath weapons are also useless: One saves and evades the fire (on a 4) and makes the Fortitude save to entirely avoid the weakening breath (with a 7). (I think the Bestiary has an error on the ancient gold’s cone breath range, by the way; it should be 60’, not 120’). Combat maneuvers aren’t viable either (natural 20s needed); nor are offensive plane shifts (One saves on 2s). C: At some point in this long fight One is going to think about putting up Mantis Style. He’ll do less damage that round, but his stun DC will go up to 36 thereafter. The gold needs a 12 for that, will fail, fall out of the sky for a bit of damage, and will start the next turn prone and probably still within One’s vast range. Since this is a borderline fight-changing save, we’ll say the gold saves against every other stun once Mantis Style goes up, but the stunned rounds are still going to mess it up badly - not least because it reduces it to moving on the ground, while One hovers 100’ above it. D: The gold has basic dispel magics , which might circumvent One’s rings if you want to rule it that way, but the dragon only has a Caster Level of 15 with its true spells. This means it needs a 12 to nullify One’s belt, his most crucial item. The dragon might eventually nullify the bow for 2 rounds (it needs an 11, so it’ll take two castings to do this using the multiple d20 fight rule; it might quicken to cast twice in a round) and it can easily nerf the headband or broom - but these things aren’t crucial to One. He still bypasses the dragon’s DR/magic (his arrows are Supernaturally ki focus weapons, and gain that quality whenever he shoots) and he still hits with Pinpoint Targetting; he also hits with three attacks of his flurry at up to 160’ with his dispelled bow. E: The gold has antimagic field , which will take some sting out of One’s arrows, but if it uses this it can’t cast heal - which it has to do repeatedly and urgently, because One is always doing significant damage. F: The gold has up to 12 uses of heal ; 7 sixth level slots, 5 seventh level ones. This could keep it feeling moderately chipper for about 10 rounds at 150hp healing a pop, assuming it casts no quickened dispel magics . The thing is, this takes up the dragon’s rounds and slots, and One has 30 ki points post- barkskin and only needs one each round, to spend either on unarmed damage or on increased range. Eventually the dragon is reduced to cure moderate wounds if it wants to heal. Each cure heals 19hp, which doesn’t remotely counter One’s damage, and the dragon can’t quicken these, because it has run out of higher level slots. The gold’s only other significant ability is geas/quest . This is lethal - no save, and CL26 to counter Spell Resistance - but it has a 10 minute casting time. The upshot is that One looks like he might take his first Beastmass damage when the dragon dispels his broom, but actually the broom uses overland flight , which uses fly , which means the broom descends gracefully and the drop deals no harm. And that’s all the dragon has. One slays the earthbound gold with an arrow to the eye roundabout round 10 from 110’ altitude. He hasn’t used his boots of speed on the Pinpointed single shots, but he’s probably still used 5 of 10 hastes , 13 of 33 ki (including barkskin ), 10 of 20 Perfect Strikes, 10 of 21 Stunning Fists, and his Quivering Palm. Game on!
Spoiler:
How to kill angels? It ain’t easy, that’s for sure - and One is aware of that, because despite being on the thick side, he has Knowledge (Planar). He knows this is the Bestiary’s best shot at a win. The solar - a CR23 SMACC healer-buffer par excellance - is facing off against one measly 20th level human, so we’re not going to let it buff ahead of time. It will do that as soon as it feels threatened, though, because it’ll plane shift to Heaven, magic up to the hilt, then use miracle to plane shift back and wish to greater teleport to the battlefield. Buffed, it defeats One in a dozen rounds, courtesy of DR15/epic, regeneration 15, copious healing, holy aura (+4 all saves), limitless CL20 greater dispels , and the deadly downwards spiral of the power words blind, stun and kill. In short, One has to defeat the solar before it gets a standard action off.
One is transported to the angel’s earthly residence, which is a rustic cottage surrounded by heavenly gardens. The solar is tending its sunflowers. The monk approaches on his broom, flying through the earth 5’ under the angel’s vineyards, ethereal (3 ki) and unperceived, because although the angel’s true seeing spots ethereality, it doesn’t penetrate solid objects. One creeps about, making auditory Perception checks through a foot of earth to hear the solar’s secateurs (results of 51 are eventually good enough), then rises up close or adjacent to the solar (5’ step) and comes out of ethereality (dismissing is a standard action which doesn’t provoke. This is One’s surprise round). Everyone perceives everyone. One goes first. He activates Mantis Style and flurries. He hits only with the first three shots, doesn’t threaten, doesn’t do unarmed damage (no swift action left) and doesn’t overcome the angel’s epic DR, so that’s a paltry 66 nonlethal. The solar is still on 297 nonlethal hp, but it fails against the stun - it needs a 13 now the monk is making like a mantis. Since this is pretty borderline and a fight-changer I’m going to ignore fight rules and say the angel saves against every third stunning arrow. Solar’s turn. It’s stunned, but still regenerates to 312 hp. One’s turn. He flurries against a stunned AC40. With unarmed damage back online again, he hits four times (because of Perfect Strike) and crits once (50% chance from last round, 60% chance this round). That’s a better 196 nonlethal after epic DR, and the angel (116 virtual hp) is stunned for a second time: it still regenerates to 131hp. One’s turn - and in fact two failed stuns are all he needs. He flurries, hits four times, crits once, and does another 196 nonlethal after DR. The angel is unconscious on minus 65 virtual hp and regenerates to minus 50. One stops expending ki and haste, flurries the carcass awhile longer, then finally gets with the programme, pours unholy water on the divine remnants, flurries some more, rinses and repeats. ‘There can be only One,’ he murmurs contemplatively, as he takes the dead solar’s bow as a memento. (On the other hand, maybe the angel makes its second save. I think it’s slightly unlikely, but I’m no mathematician and if it does, that’s the only chance a solar requires. It 5’ steps back and vanishes, then reappears fully healed and buffed 12 rounds later, majestically ready to avenge the mortal’s insult. With a buffed AC of 49 and a Will save of +27 it beats the stun on a 9, heals damage almost as fast as One can inflict it (Pinpoint Targetting nets him one hit and one crit every two rounds against AC16 for an averaged 50 damage a round, after DR and regeneration) and once it dispels One’s belt it has him in range of the power words . Our doughty zen archer is stuffed.) We’ve still got the big guy for One to fight, though, so let’s get a breath of life in him and on with the show, eh?
Spoiler:
One has 1 charge of haste , 17 ki points, 6 Perfect Strikes and 8 stuns left for his last fight. He goes first. He flurries, he hits (openers on 2s), he stuns (the tarrasque needs a 20 to save). One spends the next few rounds pumping stunning flurries into the beast, followed by about 340 coup-de-grace vital-strike arrows, reducing the tarrasque to about minus 16,000 virtual hp (taking into account DR and regeneration, obviously), which gives him all the time he needs to shovel the machinegunned remains into four bags of holding he’s hired for the day, then turn ethereal (3 ki) and dump them out on the Ethereal Plane, where the beast drives all ghosts to extinction over the course of a decade, then starves into a permanent coma (because regeneration can’t heal starvation damage).
In recognition of his services to the multiverse, One the Zen Archer is awarded the title Lord Ghostslayer and stewardship of the Nine Kingdoms he calls home, where he lives happily ever after. So the solar was only a narrow victory. Still, One put on a rather good show, didn’t he? Can a wizard or cleric beat Beastmass? Can a paladin or barbarian? How many builds can do it without taking a single point of damage? Let’s look at why One does well, and then consider some build points. **************************************************************** 
Without nerfing spellcasters any? I've heard some suggestions, such as letting Fighters ignore some feat prerequisites or giving them more skill points, and I'd love to hear more. Personally, I really think it comes down to giving martial characters more versatility, not more power, as I feel that issues of versatility is where all the disparity comes from, but how does one go about doing this? I like that you put "supposed" in the title of this thread ;-D I have not really seen that disparity that is so often cited in any group I have played in based on class. If there was anything similar to that, it had nothing to do with the classes themselves, but was based on playstyle and the leaving out of factors/rules that limit the casters or allowing things like
Becket provided a lot of good input on why there may be this perceived disparity. I actually talked to my (primary) gaming group about this and they were just irritated by the notion of martials sucking or being inferior. In my opinion the martials don't need a fix. They have different roles and different ways to shine. The whole game is geared towards having both casters and martials working together, so it's good enough for me. I do agree with your idea about power not being an issue but versatility, though. Though I am fine with the way it is at the moment, this is certainly the one point that could be addressed (more skill points or such). I also like the idea of higher saving throws that was put forward by someone else. If someone wanted a "quick" fix it would probably be cool. Also I have seen (some time ago) someone propose that all spells have a casting time of at least full-round. That way casters are much less mobile and more in need of protection which in turn increases the importance of martials as body guards. Have fun, and I am interested in further ideas in this thread :-) 
Are there specific disparities or problems you are seeing?Yes. The issue I'm seeing all over the forums (just look at the Does Anybody Play a Fighter Thread) is a lack of things for martials to do. All they get is feats and a couple armor/weapon bonus, and all they can do on a turn is full attack. Martial characters can grapple, trip, bull rush or several other things. They can also employ nets, bolas and chains to control the battlefield. In fact there are dozens of feats which are designed specifically so that martial characters gain some battlefield control abilities. In a role-playing game they can taunt, cower or otherwise entice the bad guys to attack or not attack to gain some advantage. Some martial characters can hide and sneak and even disarm opponents or sunder their weapons. I'm sure I'm leaving options out, but that's a pretty good list of non-attack options right there. 
Ahem, that was supposed to say "spells or magic items." Did I mention I wrote it in 15 minutes? :) 
In the earliest days of the Pathfinder Society, Josh Frost and Nick Logue included the following section about characterization in the Guide to Organized Play. Spoiler:
A good way to bring your character to life is to ask yourself some questions about them. Or ask them. If they talk to you, go ahead and conduct a little interview using the following questions or others of your devising. Though not required, answering these questions can give you a clearer understanding of your character in a Society that appreciates well though out and well roleplayed characters.
1. Where were you born? When? How old are you? Were you born into opulence? Were you born behind a dung cart on a short break from another of your mother’s back-breaking work days? 2. Are your parents still alive? If not, when and how did they die? Does their present situation or the circumstances surrounding their death have any effect on your life choices? What is their legacy? Did they pass on a family curse? Was their fortune swindled away by a scurrilous villain? Were they nobles? Were they dirt poor? Were you ashamed of them? Were you proud of them? Were they ashamed of you? Were there secrets? Did your father have a strange signet ring that disappeared mysteriously when he died? Did your mother run a mage academy? Did people give you sidelong glances and mutter about your “real” father when you walked past them in the market? 3. Do you have any siblings or other extended family? How important are they to you? Do you love them? Hate them? A little of both? Are they dead? Are they missing? Are they cursed by an evil lich? Do they own a ship? Do they embarrass you? Do you embarrass them? Did they marry the love of your life? Do they steal? Were they crippled in an accident you caused? Blinded by a torturer because they wouldn’t give you up to the authorities? Do they hunt you in vengeance? 4. What is your favorite color? If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? If you had 100,000 gold pieces to spend, and you couldn’t buy anything even remotely useful, what would you spend it on? A menagerie of exotic animals? A magical pleasure barge? An ostentatious harpsichord? A personal chef who follows you around? A parcel of swamp land? A fossilized dire sloth? 5. Who do you hate? Who would you murder if you were sure you could get away with it and no one would ever find out? If you could erase one custom, invention, or practice from the face of existence, what would it be? Why? 6. Who do you love? What person would you sacrifice a thousand people to save? Why do you love them? Do they love you? Are you sure? 7. What do you look like? Are you stocky? Do you have huge jowls? A pug nose, broken from too many bar brawls? The thick forearms of a sailor? Spindly legs with knobby knees? A scar across your forehead? A facial tick? A lazy eye? Are you missing two fingers on your left hand? What happened to those other fingers? Are you bald? Do you have a braided beard with golden ornaments in it? Are you unnaturally tall? Are you an albino? Do you have particularly (and unsettlingly) sharp teeth? 8. What do you believe in? Do you have faith in a higher power? A god? A demon lord? If so which one? Are you a pragmatist? Do you believe people are born good? Evil? Do you believe in fate? Do you think people choose their own destiny? Do you believe peace is the answer to the world’s ills? Education? Conquest? Are you a patriot? What’s an ideal you hold on to? Compassion? Bravery? Righteousness? Power? How do you see yourself ? 9. Are you superior to others in your own mind? Are you unworthy of another’s love? Do you love yourself ? Do you hate yourself ? What are you afraid of most? What have you done that you are most ashamed of? What single deed makes you most proud? 10. How do you dress? Do you wear black satin doublets because they are slimming and hide the weight you put on since you left the monastery? Do you wear worn gray robes because you believe hiding your power is more important than showing off and inviting unwanted attention? Do you wear sparkling jewels and garish colors to make a splash wherever you roam? Do you favor the dress of your people, or scorn it? Why? 11. How do you talk? Do you stutter? Do you speak slowly, careful to phrase every sentence perfectly? Are you eloquent? Do you favor strange syntax, such as always referring to yourself in the third person? Do you speak softly, or are you especially boisterous? Do you have an accent? Do you grumble? Mutter? Prattle? Do you speak in a high pitch? A low growl? Do you only speak when spoken to? 12. What are your goals in life? Do you want to restore your family honor? Do you want to impress the woman of your dreams? Find your lost child? Find the secret of immortality? Write a poetic masterpiece worthy of passing down through the ages? Find your mother’s long lost sword? Now for the most important question: Why did you join the Pathfinder Society? The life of a Pathfinder is not one commonly chosen. Why did you choose it? Was it your destiny? Are you trying to prove something? Do you have a burning obsession with the past? A burning obsession with money? Do you do it because it drives the tavern wenches mad? Because it drives your parents crazy? Because somebody has to? Because life is the gods’ biggest joke and you plan to laugh your way through it? I imagine that, if more people looked through that list, we'd get fewer PC that were little more than an assemblage of class, race, and faction. 
It's. A. Wall. You can throw a grappling hook over it, you can hook your fingers over the lip, you can lean a ladder on it, etc. It's a wall. You can do anything to it you could with an ordinary wall. Stop over thinking it. The spell really doesn't do any of the things you guys mention. If it could, it would have said so. It's a vertical, invisible, nearly invulnerable WALL. Period. 
Knowledge (local) represents more than just "What do you know about the area you live in." It also represents your skill at learning about new regions QUICKLY, as well as just general information about local matters regardless of where you're at. By the same reasoning, Knowledge (nature) applies not just to the natural world you live in, but areas far beyond your homeland. Knowledge (religion) doesn't just apply to your own religion, but to ALL religions. And not only what you know about them, but how fast you can learn and dedcuce and make educated guesses about new stuff as you're introduced to it.
Diplomacy is actually the go-to skill for gathering rumors (in its new role as replacing the Gather Information skill). Knowledge (local) represents how much you know about local laws, rulers, locations, local traditions, local secrets, and the like. It's also about what you know about monsters of the humanoid type. In addition, it represents your skill at quickly absorbing and learning and knowing this kind of information about regions you visit; that's why there's no need to specialize in Knowledge (local) for specific regions. 
Spinning off a spun off thread* I was thinking of quirks that people have that make the social aspects more fun. Some that come to mind. Taldoran character calling Andoran, Cheliax and Galt "Our once and future colonies." Cheliaxian character referring to Andoran as "Our wayward brothers" or "Our latest conquest." Mwangi or Shoanti character "And they call me a savage?" Absalom born character who doesn't like wide open spaces. Ustalv characer (or forlorn elf) pulling a 'Chekov' "Yes, Aroden was from Ustalv." "I've seen this style of fighting, it was invented by elves." * Spoiler:
Dizzy yet?
For last year's competition I posted a list of 27 "auto-reject" topics for RPG Superstar. I'm linking them here just so these ideas are fresh in everyone's mind. These aren't really "auto-reject" topics, they're design traps to avoid when designing your item. We judges have to evaluate hundreds of items and narrow the field to just 32 competitors. If you put a target on your back and give us an easy excuse to reject your item, you've made a mistake. Read what's been done in previous competitions. Avoid these traps, pitfalls, auto-reject categories, whatever you want to call them. There's an incredible amount of advice online for this competition--use that advice to make your item better. There's advice to help you win, and advice to keep you from crashing and burning. And understand that there are wondrous items in the Core Rulebook that fall into these traps--and likewise understand that RPG Superstar isn't just "design an item that would be acceptable filler for a big book of magic items." To make it into the Top 32, your item has to be exceptional, not merely adequate. (I've moved #27 to the top of the list because it's the rule that breaks all rules. To quote myself, "Every single one of these 27 advice posts is here to help steer you away from mistakes that could make the judges reject your item. Going against that advice can be risky. But sometimes taking a risk is the way to get noticed, to make progress.") Below this list are some other handy links about the competition, submitting, writing, and design.)
One last bit of R1 advice: Include the Item's Name * Work on your item in a program that allows you to save. Save early, save often. When you're ready to submit your item, copy it from the most recent version of your saved file and paste it into the submission window. We've heard horror stories of people who compose their item in the submission window, and lose their submission due to a browser glitch, power failure, or accidentally closing the window. Don't let this happen to you! * Make sure you know how to post an item. Posting your submission works just like making a message board post--you can preview how your submission looks before you make that final decision to post. Use the preview function! Use it!!! * Work on several ideas, and submit the one you like the best. Variety can help your creativity. * Know the rules. You don't have to know all the rules, but read up on the stuff that's relevant to your item. If you're designing an item for cavaliers, make sure you've thoroughly read the cavalier class... * Read the judge and fan comments on previous Top 32 items to see why they were kept. If you have time, read the "Judges, please critique my item" threads to see why they were rejected. * Make sure your item doesn't exceed the word count limit for the round. Seriously--one word over and you're disqualified. Use the word count function in your typing program, they're all pretty close (Paizo uses Microsoft Word, FYI), and if you use the Preview button when you submit, it'll tell you the word count for your submission. If it's over the word count (300 for a wondrous item, including the item name and all the stat block info), edit it down. * Check your item for spelling and grammar errors. Then check it again. Then hit the Preview button. Then check it again. Then, if you're satisfied, hit Submit. * Submit something, even if you don't think it's very good, or if you don't think it's good enough. If you never actually submit an item, you have a 0% chance to win the competition. * Be ready for criticism and try to learn from it. * Remember the Paizo message board policies, especially unwritten Rule 0, "Don't be a jerk." * Read Seabyrn's thread about passive voice in writing. And, just for fun, here's my example from last year of an item submission that fails for many, many reasons. 
Please feed back in the Mapping Runeforge thread and tell me what you'd like to see! I am gonna keep plugging it until people post there. :) Runeforge is one of the coolest locations in the campaign, I think, and it has the least detailed maps (by necessity). I would be very pleased to give back to this community in the form of worthy battlemaps. Work starts in earnest at the end of this month. 
I've done some maps of the Sandpoint Town Hall, just to play with the GIMP and making Maps..... Hope they are useful to everyone...
Alright, here goes! Index a la Evil Lincoln: Town of Sandpoint
General
Artwork
Burnt Offerings
The Skinsaw Murders
The Hook Mountain Massacre
Fortress of the Stone Giants
Sins of the Saviors
Spires of the Xin-Shalast
Unknown but cool 
Seriously people, actually check the FAQ before you're necroing 2 year old threads.
Can a paladin do LoH with during combat when holding a sword and light shield? I believe so. A light shield allows spellcasters to use their hand to cast, and lets you carry an object; the only thing it actually prevents is wielding a weapon. Since lay on hands only requires you to touch someone, you could indeed use this ability while wearing a light shield.
1 person marked this as FAQ candidate.
4 people marked this as a favorite.
Ok, big followup post. First of all, apologies for letting this answer wait for a few days, I've been away from work dealing with a hospitalized cat, and I can only update the FAQ from inside the office and didn't want to have clarifications here but not in the FAQ (as that would cause even more confusion than the contradictory/out-of-date problems we've had between the two so far). * * * * * (Paraphrased) Does a creature with an automatic followup maneuver ability, like a wolf with its free trip, get to add extra attack bonuses to the free combat maneuver check? The general rule for combat maneuvers is: That second sentence means that if you're a creature that gets an automatic followup disarm, sunder, or trip on a successful attack roll, any extra bonuses to the normal attack roll apply to the free followup combat maneuver. It doesn't matter if the weapon is normally a "trip weapon" or not, you get the bonus.
(Which is nice, because it means we don't have to add in extra rules or exceptions for this sort of thing). (BTW, this also means if you're using a finesse weapon to make a disarm, sunder, or trip, you should use your Dex instead of Str when calculating your CMB for the check.) * * * * * I've updated the FAQ about trip weapon to reflect the clarifications in this blog. The update also includes a reference to this blog and a note that the FAQ has been revised to remove text that contradicts the rulings here. :) * * * * * Another minor clarification: You mention trip being used with weapons. Is that "weapons in general" or "trip weapons only?" I assume the latter, but I've heard arguments for the former from some people, who state that the trip weapon bonus is only that you can drop the weapon if you fail the check. Every time this blog entry says "weapon" instead of "trip weapon," it means "any weapon." In other words, you can make disarm, sunder, and trip checks with any weapon, and you apply your bonuses (enhancement bonus, Weapon Focus, and so on) to the disarm, sunder, or trip combat maneuver roll.
* * * * *
To answer your questions in order: Yes (in response to your non-question of "but now you can use all...").No. Perhaps you're taking a stab at your opponent's groin so they fall prone, or perhaps the dagger is just a distraction for your foot. Rather than publishing a huge list of weapons and what you can and can't do with them (most of which would be "well, I can see some circumstances where this would work, so it should be on the trip list"), we're allowing you to use weapons with trip maneuvers. As you start walking down that road, be sure to stop by the Inn of Should A Dagger Be Able To Harm Someone in Plate At All and Why Doesn't My +5 Deflection Bonus Protect Me From Swarms? The point of the special feature is you get an additional option (disarm weapons give a +2 bonus on disarm checks, trip weapons lets you drop your weapon on a bad trip combat maneuver instead of being tripped, etc.). * * * * * hmmm, hadn't even thought of that. Still I personally wouldn't mind seeing agile maneuvers become obsolete. It's always seemed unesicarily harsh having to take one feat to attack with your good stat and a second feat to use maneuvers with your good stat. I'd be quite comfortable if the game was more friendly to Dex-based characters and let you pick whether to use Dex or Str for things like combat maneuvers and attack rolls, but that's a separate discussion... * * * * * So... My monk has Weapon Focus (Unarmed Strike) and is wearing an Amulet of Mighty Fists +1. Does this mean he gets to add those two bonuses to other Combat Maneuvers such as Grapple? I'm gonna confer with Jason before I post an official answer about this one. * * * * * Now, time to ask for specific sources of the rules you're asking about:
1) Do you mean knockback from the Core Rulebook, or knockdown from the APG? Just checking. And (Maneuver) Strike Feats also don´t use the weapon-specific attack bonuses for the CMB? 2) Please clarify what "(Maneuver) Strike feats" you mean. We have a lot of things using that name now (Vital Strike, Kirin Strike, etc.)... 
For everyone waiting for someone to send you their number...just report the ones who played and leave a blank player entry in the reporting form. Enter a placeholder name and faction for the time being. It'll give you an error that the prestige isn't reported because there's no PFS number, but it will report the rest of the session fine (at least as far as I can tell from when I've done that.) For me, I report immediately after a session because I don't want to lose the information, don't want to forget, and I tell new players to check their prestige that evening, hoping that them seeing that their progress in the game actually shows up somewhere, and to give them an incentive to come back to Paizo's site. I have had issue with running games places where I wasn't the organizer and then waiting for them to report the games. I even volunteered to be the "scribe" of a home game I went to in another state since the host couldn't get the software to work right when he reported. So I have reported eight sessions for a homegame I wasn't really even involved in except for one day. I have run into the "player doesn't have a number yet" scenario, but if you give them a card and they never register, it still lets you report even if there's no account associated with that number. Their name in the "My Sessions" page just doesn't link anywhere. I feel like GM's and even moreso organizers need to get some incentive to report. For people who are running games but have little interest in playing, as is the case for some GMs and a lot of organizers, simply getting XP or loot in game doesn't really benefit them. I'm obviously not in a position to determine what is an acceptable solution, but I think it's one of the major shortcomings of the organizational structure as it now stands. I know that there was the original plan to allow organizers, GMs and even players to report their own events and I think this would solve some of the problem. If a player is into it, he should be able to report at least his own involvement, since he wouldn't know the rest of the table's numbers and such. I'd also like to see some sort of email notice be sent out to my players when one of their characters gets a scenario reported. This again brings them back to the site to see their progress, reminds them of the game they had a blast playing, and allows them to verify that everything was entered correctly. The lack of communication and recourse for non-reported sessions or errors might be a deterrent for some people. Ok, I've written way more than I intended to. Was I at least helpful? 
Kyle Baird (Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Adventure Path, Campaign Setting, Companion Subscriber), Tue, Sep 15, 2009, 01:19 PM Flag | List | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----- Deussu wrote:
If you have a +1 Composite longbow with a strenght bonus of +1, can you upgrade the strength bonus by paying the difference (100 gp per increase)? Josh, can we get an official answer on this? Seems like not being able to simply upgrade the strength bonus would be a huge penalty for ranged characters who manage to increase their character's strength. ex. Having a +2 Flaming Composite Longbow Mighty +2, and wanting a +2 Flaming Composite Longbow Mighty +3 would cost the character 8,350 gp! Joshua J. Frost, Tue, Sep 15, 2009, 02:39 PM Flag | List | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----- Upgrade by paying the difference. James Risner (Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Adventure Path, Campaign Setting, Companion, Modules Subscriber), Tue, Sep 15, 2009, 04:25 PM Flag | List | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----- Joshua J. Frost wrote:
Just to be sure, you are referring to both the Magical (+1 weapon to +2 weapon for 6000 gp) and the non-Magical (Masterwork Composite Longbow of +1 STR to +2 STR for 100 gp) are both available by paying the respective differences, 6000 gp and 100 gp? Joshua J. Frost, Tue, Sep 15, 2009, 05:11 PM Flag | List | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----- In the specific case of bows, yes. Ok, so I found this in the FAQ and it doesn't seem to have been contradicted anywhere but I wanted to ask a follow up question. Once you've paid the extra gold to have the Bow adjusted upwards in strength bonus, can it ever be downgraded again to have a lesser bonus? Would that cost an additional 100 gp? This situation could become necessary if you gain a Belt of Strength, have the bow adjusted for your new bonus, and then lose the belt during an adventure or need to sell it for whatever reason. Or if you wind up taking permanent ability damage that you can't afford to have repaired. 
Greetings Mortals-- Back in the ol' days, in a realm far, far away called Living Greyhawk, a player named Ken Jenks posted what was an epic diatribe about what he expected other players to be able to do when he sat down with them at the LG table. The post helped me during my LG days and it still haunts during some games as I remember what I should be doing and what I should be able to do. PFS and LG as similar, but not identical. Ken's point was excellent: at certain points within the PFS game, your character should be able to do certain things and handle certain encounters. Here is my updated version for Pathfinder Society Play. Ignore at your leisure...but if you can accomplish the stuff below, I bet you're a pretty good, balanced player. What I expect: After your first mod:
After your first mod, I expect you to have a Potion of Cure Light Wounds and have the foresight to mention to your traveling companions wherein it might be found on your body. The only person responsible for healing you is you. (When you have 2 PA, I expect you to get a Wand of CLW.) Everyone should be able to easily stabilize another party member. I expect you to have a way to deal damage at range: a ranged weapon, scrolls, wand or whatever. You should have a way to deal with swarms. Of course, alchemist flasks are the easiest, but you may want something else. You know and I know that PFS mods are swarming with swarms...find a solution that fits your character. I expect that you have a smokestick/fog effect and a way to create fire and light. Sure, a few tindertwigs and a sunrod or light spell. If you're prone to poisoning, I expect you to have antitoxin. I expect that melee characters will have a back up weapon and spellcasters have a backup spell component pouch/holy symbol in case something happens to the primary. After 2 chronicles, I expect every player to contribute to group healing...even if it's just handing off a Wand of CLW. Responsibility for your healing does *NOT* reside with any other character other than yourself. I expect you to be able to help in the healing...if the party happens to have a character who actively assumes the role, that is different. Never expect that it is someone else's job. At level 3:
I expect you to be able to play your character efficiently with whatever role you choose. I expect that you will do something to help the party every round even if it is just using the Aid Another action or casting Guidance. *ALWAYS DO SOMETHING.* I expect that you will be able to properly use the Delay and Ready actions to align your character with the actions of others. If you have a knowledge skill to identify a monster, I expect that you make that roll before you do anything else on your turn. Melee types: I expect you to have a magic weapon or a way to get your weapon magicked (have scrolls of Magic Weapon to pass out). I expect you to have a secondary weapons of cold iron and silver. I expect you to be able to overcome DR to slashing, piercing, and blunt. (My personal favorite is a silvered morningstar: silver, piercing, and bludgeoning.) I expect you to be able to deal non-lethal damage. Ranged types: I expect you to have a magic weapon or a way to get your weapon magicked (have scrolls of Magic Weapon to pass out). I expect you to have ammo of both cold iron and silver. I expect you to have a back up plan to handle close combat and overcoming DRs to slashing, piercing and blunt. Caster types: I expect you to have the beginnings of a spellcasting library in scroll form so that you can handle some of the different and random situations that might come up. I expect that you will have a solution to help the party deal with swarms and invisible foes...you are the best equipped to handle them, regardless of your class. Your library should have some spells that scale nicely on a scroll: Obscuring Mist, Ray of Enfeeblement, Comprehend Languages, Endure Elements, Faerie Fire, etc. I expect you to know how to use your basic spells in combat and have your spell descriptions in front of you *before* you cast the spell. I expect you to know how staple spells work: Magic Missle, Glitterdust, Spiritual Hammer, Grease...whatever your butter is, be able to spread it. I expect you to know how your area of effect spells may be placed...know what a cone looks like and the area effect of a Silence.
At level 5:
Every character should have the ability to fly...even if it's just a potion of fly. Sure, levitate works, so might spider climb. But have something. Nothing is more saddening than watching Thongar the Barbarian sulk because his prey took to the air. A prepped player should have a potion of fly so he could become *THONGAR*, Master of Airborne Pain and Suffering. Every character should have a way to both breathe and fight underwater. Learn the basics of underwater combat and have a solution ready. I expect you to be able to overcome magical darkness, like the effect from a drow or derro. I expect you will start building a nice utility scroll/potion collection to handle things that might happen or could face: Protection from Evil, Lesser Restoration, Remove Blindness, Cure Disease, Restoration, etc. Included in that collection should be elemental protection as well (Resist Energy, Prot Energy) for when you know you're walking into the Dragon's Lair. What else is in your collection?
At level 7:
I expect every character will have a few "get out of jail" cards at their disposal...some magic item that will get them out of a jam when something goes wrong. Potions of Fly and Gaseous Form work pretty well in this regard and are 'free' (2 PA). Have ways to save yourself from needing to spend 16 PA on Raise Dead. I expect that players will start sharing magical items with their companions, especially items that amplify abilities. "Mr. Mage, I have here a few scrolls of Enlarge Person and a pair of Pearls of Power 1. I like to be enlarged and if there is time in or before combat to make it happen, it would make me happy. I have potions of Enlarge Person as well if you don't have the chance." "Mr. Fighter, please wear this platinum ring...I'll wear it's companion and take some of your damage in the upcoming fight." "I have an old magical Cloak that I don't wear anymore...does anyone need it?" I expect players to have a Potion of Invisibility or a way to sneak effectively when needed. Yep, even those wearing 50lbs of Plate Mail should have a way to sneak. There are times when sneaking when is a reasonable and fun solution to an encounter...or sometimes one just needs another escape option. I expect all characters to begin to formulate a plan to tackle demons and devils, elementals and constructs, blobs and oozes. Each player needs to begin working on ways to bypass various DRs, SRs, and special defenses. I expect players to begin to think about solutions to being grappled or helping others who are grappled. Melee types should have easy access to a light weapon, casters easy access to magical solutions (scrolls of Grease, Freedom of Movement, etc.). At level 9:
Weak willed types: About now, I expect you to have solutions (or reasonable resistance) to mind influencing, mind control, and fear effects. At higher tiers, these are more prevalent and only YOU are responsible for being ready. I don't care if it's Iron Will, Improved Iron Will (or PFS faction shirt), Circles of Protection, or properly outfitted Wayfinders with Ioun Stones, find a solution. There is nothing worse than having the big beefy fighter turn against the party. I expect all players to have a plan to tackle demons and devils, elementals and constructs, blobs and oozes. Each player needs to have ways to bypass various DRs, SRs, and special defenses. After reading all that, I remember again the axiom from LG: about 10% of your gained wealth should go into consumables. Looking above, it still seems to be correct. Between spending PA and gold, about 10% of your income could be consumables. Ken ended his post with following (which I think is still poignant): "As you can see, I have high expectations. What are yours?" My characters aren't perfectly aligned with the above...but after typing this post, I'll begin to take steps to get more prepared. I expect a lot from my characters. Some of my characters, for roleplaying reasons, may or may not have some of the above...but I'll know that and accept that. In fact, I heartily accept and admire different expectations based on roleplayin. What about you? What do you expect? -Pain
I'd hope so... I've been asking for more swashbuckler options for over a year now, though, for what that's worth... And don't forget that we do more than those three hardcover rulebooks! And on top of that... you CAN do mobility builds using Pathfinder. I know, because I've got characters that do just that. In Rob McCreary's Kingmaker in Iobaria game, I'm playing a cleric of Desna who's a dual-starknife wielding melee type who is VERY good at being mobile. The Travel domain is just the start for her (not only does it grant a speed increase, but it also helps her ignore difficult terrain)—taking ranks in Acrobatics helps to avoid Attacks of Opportunity, and I'll eventually be delving into feats that help further with that type of build, like Fleet or a few others. And all that's JUST from the Core. In Erik Mona's just-started Kings of Absalom game, I'm playing a bard that's all about being a melee swashbuckler type fighter... with a Strength of 9. Despite that, she's doing 1d6+4 points of damage on a hit and has a +4 attack with her scimitar... at 1st level. That goes up to 1d6+6 and +6 to hit when she's using her bardic performance ability. All of this via a new archetype (the Dawnflower Dervish) from the upcoming "Inner Sea Magic"—a bard that's more focused not on spreading out the bonuses to allies but focusing them very strongly on herself. Feather step, a spell from the APG, helps her stay mobile in difficult terrain as well. Another great idea for a mobility build would be to build a rogue who's all about running around foes, getting into flank, and then hitting with a single sneak attack each round. Spring attack works GREAT here, since you can zip in, stab, and zip out. Combined with the Fleet feat and some other movement enhancement (using rogue tricks to get expeditious retreat, perhaps?), running in and doing sneak attacks each round would be pretty cool. The loss of your iterative attacks is kinda fine, since you're not as likely to hit with those anyway, and if you're not there to take full-attack responses in melee, you'll be around for a lot longer anyway. Being too obsessed with those iterative attacks is part of the problem; let them go and the rules will treat you well. So yeah. There's plenty of mobility-based options out there. Got a meeting now, so I can't really go into some cool prestige class and multiclass stuff, but I could if I wanted to. Whether or not those options satisfy you? Only you can say. They certainly satisfy my need and urge to play a mobile character. 
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Hey there folks, You cannot normally use a double weapon in one hand unless it is sized smaller than you. This feat allows you to get around that restriction. Jason Bulmahn
Frequently Unknown Rules (through post 465)
This is a list compiled by the users of http://paizo.com/paizo/messageboards. The contents are those items identified as rules that are often unknown or forgotten, whether these were rules new to Pathfinder, rules that had changed from D&D or SRD 3.5 to Pathfinder, or which have not changed, but are frequently unknown, missed or forgotten. This list avoids taking a position on subjects that are highly debated and irresolvable due to rules conflicts or ambiguity. On the other hand, items that come up frequently, but are easily answerable by a direct reading of the rules, are included, as are both positions if the distinction is easy to explain. It also does not attempt to comment on every possible change. In particular, for Spells and Feats, only those that are extremely common or have wide-ranging impact are included. The list is ordered by the type of change and then in by the order of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook chapters. Items that fall in multiple areas often appear in both. This list is an ongoing project and is unlikely to ever be complete. If you see something missing, add it.
Classes
Skills
Feats
Equipment
Additional Rules
Combat
Magic
Spells
Prestige Classes, Gamemastering, Environment, NPCs
Magic Items
Appendices and Monster Rules
Always like this, but frequently misplayed or not known previously Races
Classes
Skills
Feats
Equipment
Additional Rules
Combat
Magic
Spells
Prestige Classes, Gamemastering, Environment, NPCs
Magic Items
Appendices and Monster Rules
It’s the same between SRD and PF, but PF makes it confused 1. Reach weapons for small and medium creatures have a reach of 10 feet. Despite a diagram that says otherwise, they can still attack two squares on a diagonal.
It’s the same between SRD and PF, but PF makes it clear 1. Wizards with prestige classes only get 2 free spells when gaining a level of wizard, not when gaining a level of the prestige class.
Pending Resolution or More Complex than Can Be Dealt With Here
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I'll start. A Bard doesn't need the Perform skill. The only performances that require it are Countersong and Distraction. Inspire Courage et al don't mention it at all, and you don't even need to use your primary artform when using it. It was intentionally left ambiguous so bards didn't have to keep on playing their instrument while using the performances. It's a free action to continue the performance. 
I just checked the mods vs. tier and there is a mistake in the layout, you won't be able to play #02-11 at that point the PC will be higher than 5th level. I submit the amended which gets you to level 8:
In a podcast interview of Ryan Dancey he speaks on this topic. The 2000 OGL WAS a direct response to a direct competitor eating away at their marketshare (White Wolf with V:TM). The only way they could figure out how to steal momentum away from WW was via making their system "open source." This rationale is incorrect and I'm 99% sure I never said anything remotely like that. Can you quote a source? 
I trying to get some ideas here. I would like to know how some of you GMs out there introduce the Faction missions, just handing them out to the players feels unnatural and ruins the flow of the game, so I want to see how some of you do it.
Greetings Mortals-- (For a thought on how to be a better player, go here.) I am not the best judge on the planet. But I do think upon things a bit and I have been doing this silly game for a while. This post is for those who want to aspire to be something capable of the *Amazing* when they judge. There are a lot of things you just can't control when you judge (the depth of the mod itself, when your mod is played, the mood of the players that come, etc.) so I try to focus on things I can control....things to make the experience the best for my players. I consider each judging experience to be an opportunity to share something amazing with them. I like to give it my all and make it as fun and challenging as I can. Remember, each player can only experience a mod for the first time once...and that's an awesome responsibility. I feel the need to present the story and make it as memorable as possible. Sometimes I succeed, and I know it. I rejoice.
(This is a long post, I make no apologies for it. I'm pretty sure this list is still just a fraction of what good judges could do. Points are noted to give weight to certain concepts and ideas.) Thoughts are broken down by category: About the Mental State:
+2: For being awake and alert.
About Starting:
+0: For arriving at start time to begin setting up.
On Preparation:
+15: For reading the mod at least twice: once as a general reading, again for more detailed understanding. +10: For pre-researching the powers, spells, and abilities of the bad guys as to not interrupt game flow with looking up of stuff. I try to write out such things in the mod when I read the mod for the 2nd time. Sometimes, I print out the monsters directly from the online bestiary so I'll have copies to easily refer to rather than the book (I'll group them by tier or encounter as appropriate). +5: For pre-thinking (if you know the players in the group that you are running) of ways to customize and personalize the mod in advance. For me, I often run for a Luggish brute and a sour Sage and I make notes on how to screw with, uhm, I mean, "appreciate" them beforehand. +2: For having maps pre-drawn and ready to go. +2: For having the chronicles pre-signed and filled out (as appropriate) so you can get them out quickly should you be rushed for time at the end. +1: For having handouts, faction missions, and what not ready to go. +1: For having faction sheets for players to keep an take notes upon...for each player. +2: For having pre-gens and PFS numbers to hand out to new players. On the Setting:
+0: For reading the box text about the setting in the mod.
On Pacing:
+1: For finishing a mod within the time allotted.
Managing Players and the Table:
+100: For acknowledging that you're the one in charge and using that authority appropriately. It is your game to run and it is your party. +15: For clearly talking about your judging style and quirky rules when you start the mod. +10: For sharing your attention around the table so that all players have a chance to speak, act, and react. +10: For seeking opportunities for each player to shine. +5: For toning down the aggressive or loud player. "Would you mind dialing it back a bit?" usually works. +5: For encouraging the timid or quiet player, when appropriate. Some people need to be invited to participate. +5: For shooing away other players and distractions from your table. Feel free to pause and wait for the distraction to pass. I politely stare down anyone who comes and distracts me or my players. +5: For inviting a sleeping (really...it's happened) or disinterested player to leave your table. I like to ask them if the experience of PFS or the reward is the reason why they are there. If they answer "experience", I invite them to leave and enjoy the full experience at another time when they are rested (or mentally ready). If they answer "reward", I would give them a chronicle and gladly see them on their way (it's never happened, but I'd happily excuse a tired/unhappy player from my table). I would rather not have them drag down my table. I expect most players will perk up and re-engage when such a question and offer is made. In Combat:
+10: For efficiently managing initiatives, combat actions, and the bad guys in an encounter. +3: For describing combat effects and the combat beyond just rolling the dice. +3: For describing the bad guys as they appear when they show up in combat. Example: "You see a pair of medium humanoids. Both are dressed in leather and carry clubs. The second has a few javelins nearby." +3: For playing the bad guys within the realms of the intelligence/nature that they have. +2: For using good tactics against the party where appropriate. +5: For clearly describing terrain and environmental effects before and during a combat. +2: For having minis and tiles to tactically represent an encounter and allow players to visualize the combat. -3: For using cheetos or M&Ms to represent bad guys. +5 (Tier 1-2 only): For teaching and encouraging proper tactics in new players. +5 (Tier 3-4 and above): Allowing players to make tactical mistakes (or intentional roleplaying 'gaffes') and then helping them learn from those mistakes through experience. "No one is going to engage the caster? Interesting tactic, here's another fireball." +1: For prompting players when their turn is next so they can be ready to go. -3: For allowing slow players to overtly slow down the game. +1: For rolling in the open, for better to let the fates decide. +1: For helping players adjudicate cover and concealment as they decide their actions. "Okay, so you're firing an arrow from there...your target has cover." Be ready to help with appropriate rulings. +2: For being ready to provide appropriate information based on Identify Monster rolls. +2: For cheering for your players when they crit or do cool stuff. Pepper your combats with "Well struck!" and "Nicely done!" On Difficulty Level:
+5: For assessing (or just asking) how much of a challenge your table would like at the table. Deciding factors may include: # of players, average party level for the tier, your personal knowledge of the player's styles and preferences, understanding with the gameday or Con organizer, etc. +25: Adjusting the difficulty of the mod, when appropriate to the needs and wants of the party. Of course, it's unclear whether the Paizo Gods understand or approve of this, but I feel it's essential to a fun mod. -EleventyBillion: Adjusting the difficulty up wherein you kill a character or the party. You fail. Deaths should only happen via outright stupidity or just bad dice rolls: "Yep...I rolled it in front of you, a crit with the Great Axe from the raging Orc Barbarian. Then the '15' on the die to confirm. Sorry..." Don't ever up the difficult to an extent where players die unfairly. +5: Adjusting down the difficulty when you are playing with new players or a first level party. On Personalization:
+5: For RetConning your players chronicles (or using personal info) to customize and personalize events and reactions from NPCs into the adventure. A venture captain might make vague allusions to previously played successes (or failures) for the Pathfinder Society. Recurring NPCs (Miss Feathers, anyone) might follow up or react to previous events. The more customization, the more living and real the campaign feels. +10, each instance: For adding roleplaying notes and text to a character's chronicle at end of mod. The text shouldn't be anything that adds anything other than roleplaying or fun value, but opportunities for such should be sought and cherished. Examples might include: "Commissioned the Painter of Cassomir for a portrait of his Eidolon. Paid in gold." "Burnt down the remaining story of the proposed retirement home of VC Savarre." "Engaged in turpid (but unknown) activities with Miss Feathers behind closed doors. Paid in gold." I give every personalized hook that I can squeeze out of events and reactions from a mod. With Box Text:
+0: For reading the box text. +1: For reading the box text clearly and forcefully so players can really hear and feel it. +1: For repeating important box text and/or including additional flavor as you go. +2: For allowing appropriate knowledge checks during and after to enhance the players' knowledge. +1: For customizing and altering the box text as necessary to fit the mood or story you are telling. With Roleplaying:
+15: For being an active, alive proponent of roleplaying at your table. +3: For encouraging your players to describe their actions rather than just rolling dice. +1: For each time you say "yes" to a player's roleplaying idea. +2: For each time you say "OH HECKS YES" to a player's roleplaying idea. +5: For each time you demand and insist that the roleplayer enacts his idea or plan and then make it even better. +2: For giving proper and incidental bonuses to roleplaying within a mod. For instance, I will happily give props to those who use their craft/profession/perform in the mod to enhance the party's goals. For instance, if the party starts the mod sailing from Absalom to Sandpoint, I will give a bonus to profession (sailor) rolls for those PCs what wish to use it as their Day Job roll. +3: For delivering Faction Missions in a way that is interesting a appropriate. This link is a good resource. +10: For roleplaying with each player based on the *character* that they present rather than their class. Don't assume that Paladins are brave, Clerics should heal, and Rogues should sneak. React to the character, not what you think they should be doing. Deception:
+1: For realizing that players, often unintentionally, are metagamers and sometimes will do things out of character. +3: For keeping your players off balance and in a state of wonderment. This might include: asking to see a character's sheet and asking a random question about something, asking the party to roll d20s and write them down in front of you, taking a player aside and asking them what type of cheese they like best while pointing randomly at other party members. +3: For not putting down/drawing the combat map until combat is actually initiated or needed. Ask for a marching order, ask the players to describe their actions or their placement, but avoid the map until you really need it. Players are keyed to such things. +3: For putting down the map in non-combat situations or in situations when combat is not advisable...risky, but I believe in training the players to be honest. +3: For shushing or discouraging a metagamer at your table appropriately and politely. Do not let them ruin things for others. A reminder that "in-character knowledge and views are appropriate for making decisions" usually works. +5: For using your powers intelligently and usefully for the fun and spirit of the game to both befuddle and delight. +10: For making one encounter a mod seem so overwhelming and difficult that the players almost feel that they have no chance to overcome it. This could be just illusion or setting or description(or just the tough fight in the mod)...but give them a challenge and let them amaze you and accomplish the 'impossible' to win the day. Knowledge of Rules:
+20: For realizing that no one is expecting you to have all the rules mastered and on the tip of one's tongue at a moments notice. Please banish any such thoughts from your mind. +5: For really, really understanding the above and accepting that your players will not know everything either. +5: For working with your players and your handy rulebooks to rule correctly on matters. +10: For knowing when just to make a ruling and move on, for sometimes the wait is not worth the damage to the flow of the game. Remember, you are the guy in charge. You can make decisions and push things forward. -5: For being too proud to acknowledge a mistake. They *will* happen but sometimes the best response is "I screwed that up. Sorry, but do you mind if we move on? I'll do better next time." -5: For extended arguing with a player about a rules issue at the table. At the worst, take them aside and have the discussion away from the other players, but do *not* have a prolonged argument in front of other players. If the player persists in bad spirited comments, invite them to leave the table. +5: For asking your players about spells/powers/feats that they are using. *Absolutely* do this...sometimes they will be using the effect incorrectly or another player may have some insight as well. I sometimes ask players how they total up to their 'to hit' and damage rolls or their AC. Asking about such things promotes honesty, lest they called out and unable to explain the numbers they are using. Also, it's a good way to learn about different classes and abilities. "Oh, so my 26 to hit misses you, eh? I'm curious, what is getting your AC that high? [Player explains while I add it up in my head.] Nicely done...I'm going to have to try the same." Ending the Mod:
+5: For really tying up any loose ends, including making a full report back to the Venture Captain. +1: For ending before time so you have time to clean up and handle paperwork. +2: For filling out chronicles accurately. +1: For finishing up the sign in sheet and Prestige Awards sections...and turning it in. +10 again, because it's important: For adding roleplaying and story notes to the chronicle to help build a living, continuous feeling to the campaign. +5: For making a point to celebrate the key actions in the mod/fights that turned the tide or made a difference. "You, Lugg, did a good job of placing your character in the first fight. I couldn't get around your huge @## to get to the squishes. Nice work." "I would have won the 2nd fight if it wasn't for the Wizard having a scroll of fly!! Nice work, Wizard. I just had nothing to deal with the now flying *Thongar*, the Barbarian Master of Airborne Pain and Suffering." "Hey RogueyMcSneakSneak, way to scout out the bad guys for your team to go into the combat fully aware of what they were facing. Against perfect tactics, my guys were toast. Well done!" Feedback:
+5: For asking for feedback after the mod (or a few days after the mod when you can, some players like to ponder and stew upon things and you'll get a better response) to help you get better. +5: For taking notes for yourself on things you work upon or get better at. +5: For adding your comments and thoughts for me to add into this post. I appreciate it. So, there you go. One yahoo's thoughts on how to judge. -Pain p.s. My usual judging speech goes like this:
"Hi, I see that many of you are playing with me again, but, as a reminder, I'd like to go over my ground rules. First, please do not talk over me when I'm reading box text or describing the environment. It makes me sad to repeat myself. Second, I tend to talk quickly or slur when I'm really excited...if I'm talking and you're not understanding, please let me know so I can be more clear. Third, since you guys are experienced Pathfinders and since I play my bad guys with absolute and total tactical perfection (pause for laugh), I will not be going back to correct mistakes that I've made during combat unless they egregiously need to be fixed. By the same token, when you end your turn, I won't be going back to add something that you've missed...when you end your turn, be sure to be correct. Don't miss the Bless effect or the extra damage from the Bard Song. When you end your turn, you've ended your turn. Lastly, I'll let you know when your turn is coming up...please be ready to do your thing. Plan in advance. Oh yeah...let's have fun and roleplay. Any questions?" 
Or, what would you want to know before making a first PFS character, assuming players who are roughly familiar with PF and have done organized play campaigns for other game editions before. A handful of people that I'd played Living Greyhawk with back in the day (and myself) have been starting to talk about giving PFS a try and I'm hoping to soak up some of the established wisdom, if any, without discovering the hard way that paladins (or whatever) are much harder to play in PFS than you'd expect for whatever reason. To give you an idea of the kinds of things I mean, here are a few of the kinds of things I might have said to someone making a character for our particular region in LG: - Past the low levels, enemies that are subject to sneak attack, and to a slightly lesser degree critical hits, will be the exception. Ditto enemies subject to mind-affecting spells. - There's a lot going on in the plot for elves; other races will probably feel like second-class citizens. - There are some interesting opportunities for shifty/deceptive characters to do things. In turn this means there are interesting opportunities for smart but more forthright characters to interfere. - Undead are reasonably common, but undead that a cleric could actually turn are not. - Religions that have the most going on plotwise are X, Y, and Z. - Number/difficulty of typical encounters per day are such that spellcasters look better/worse than normal. Thanks for any insight offered!
Greetings Mortals-- I've been putting some thought into my experience with PFS play and how to make it better. I've been playing this silly game for a long time...I still suck-diddily-uck as a player, but I'm striving to get better. There is a lot to learn in this game and, believe it or not, you can get better. It takes thought and practice, and luckily for us, practice is part of the fun. If you're like me, you probably put a lot of thought into this game away from the table. That's why I read these boards. I like to get ideas to ponder when I'm away from the table. A thought: Your character's build is the least important part of what you can bring to the PFS gaming table. What is more important? Firstly, a player's (real life) charisma and ability to play as part of a team. Secondly, their ability to roleplay and respond to other players' roleplaying. Thirdly, their overall Pathfinder knowledge play skills and ability to apply them during a PFS mod. After all that, then the build of your character matters. Charisma:
Charisma, real life: For me, the best quality a player can bring to the table is being fun at the table. I like players who can show up on time and you can joke around with. At conventions, I appreciate players who can shower, introduce themselves at the table. and can make me laugh. I can happily play with a new player who knows nothing about the game...players with charisma can be taught, will work as a team, and accept help in making good play decisions. I like players who come to play and are respectful of the other players. Nobody likes to play with jerks...or attention hogs...or players who fall asleep during the mod...or players who don't pay attention. After all, the core of this game is cooperative social interaction. We should acknowledge that we play this game because of the social interactions and the randomness and unpredictability and fun of those interactions...if not, we could stay at home and play Civ IV until our eyes bleed. That's fun too, but I play PFS to meet and hang with others in a common pastime. How well that works depends on charisma, both mine and in my fellow players.
Roleplaying:
Roleplaying Ability: To be a topnotch player in this game, you have got to be able to roleplay. I don't mean having to talk in a funny voice or dress up in costume, but the ability to build a character and a concept then be able to enact that concept at the table. This game isn't about playing you, but playing the character. It's about reacting to situations as your character might react. It's about creating an interesting play concept then bringing that into the PFS module. You know what? Roleplaying becomes easier and funner the more roleplayers you have at the table. And when the judge can handle and magnify it as well, the game becomes much more fun. Being about to bounce off other characters and their personalities is a key ingredient. Luckily, the ability to roleplay effectively can be learned...but this is the toughest PFS skill to master. Awareness of Rules:
Awareness of current PF rules and Ability to play one's character effectively: You know how important flanking is? And how to do a 5' step? And how great Protection from Evil is against certain creatures? There are people who don't. There are players who don't carry any solutions to swarms when they enter dungeons. There are characters who don't know how to grapple or tumble. There are a lot of rules in this silly game and it takes time and experience to learn them all. Build:
The Build. It's surprising how little this really matters. We spend a lot of time on it because it's easy for new players to grasp onto and it's fun to think about, but, in the end, it's just not as important as the above. We probably all have seen a mutt build that is surprisingly effective in the hands of a good player. And, sadly, we've probably seen a beautifully concepted, right off the CharOps Board damage machine ruined in the hands of a novice. You can also have a strong build played intentionally and intelligently 'different' for the sake of roleplaying. You can have a DPR fiend played well by a attention hogging jerk that can ruin the fun for everyone else at the table. Most Pathfinder classes are designed to be at a certain power level and as long as you build within appropriate norms, it is likely that your Build will be of an appropriate power level for the game. My point: when you think about bringing more to the table and upping your game, there are lots of areas to work upon. Switching your weapon to a higher damage die is a step in a direction, but you might travel even further on the path of awesome by introducing yourself to everyone at the table. Or having a good backstory to your character that you weave into his motivations. Or have all your summoned monster stats on hand and ready to go *before* you cast the spell. On that note, this post is a great place to brush up on some good play tips. I might have a few more posts coming about this topic...and would love to hear the forum's thoughts on this. -Pain
An email I wrote to a new PFS GM who is looking to start up a play group about module selection and story arcs. Figured I'd share it with the larger community as well :) First of all I believe this is insight that I have gained with my experience and exposure to Pathfinder Society. I have not read or played all the modules, but based on the ones I have played these are my thoughts for starting up a new PFS Group that will help immerse everyone in this things which make Pathfinders Pathfinders. I strongly believe in getting the players based in Absalom. There are some good resources over at the Pathfinder Wiki for determining which mod is for which level and where it's located at. Part of their back story should include their training as Pathfinder initiates, which means a few years spent in Absalom minimum. I like to play up the fact with a new party that they have all been recently 'confirmed' as field ready Pathfinders. The Seeker of Secrets book gets into more detail about this, but it's awesome to get that party assembled for their first mission briefing and really have the Venture-Captain stress to them that this is their first test and the like. However, if for some reason you or your party starts to become smitten with another area of Golorian you can try and cherry-pick modules from that area instead. Absalom has the most however, and several that are set elsewhere may have you getting a mission brief in Absalom and then shipping off somewhere else in the Inner Sea. I'm going to break down the story connected modules to give you an idea how you can weave them together. Grand Master Torch - Grand Master Torch is a recurring NPC in at least 3 modules I can think of. He is an information broker and puppet master. Many GMs like having a recurring NPC that they can really develop a personality around. #1 - Silent Tide, #14 - The Many Fortunes of Grand Master Torch and #45 - Delirum's Tangle all feature GMT. There is some text in #45 which GMT references the help the Pathfinders gave him in #14. I have only actually run or played in #45 and I used it as the 1st Adventure to kick off my group in September. It's set in Absalom and I just skipped over the little text reference to the PCs having met Torch already and made that their 'first' meeting with him. Delirum's Tangle is a FANTASTIC module and I would highly recommend using it as part of an Absalom base. It takes place under the sewers of the city, features some very interesting skill based puzzle challenges for the party and the BBG (big bad guy) at the end is totally f%%&ing awesome. There is the small problem that it does feature a potentially party killing trap however. Depending on how you feel about that as a GM you may wish to avoid all together. I had a table of 4 players brand new to PFS and my best friend who was starting his 2nd character at level 1 and I fudged it in a dramatic fashion when it should have been a total party kill (TPK). Killing players on their first game isn't a good way to get them back to the table :) #1 Silent Tide is a very highly rated and fan favorite module which I have some how managed to never play or run, but it was the very first PFS module released and since people love it so much I assume it's flagship. The main reason I recommened #5 - Mists of the Mwangi to you over it was based on the fact that Mists just got the revised publishing under PFRPG rules instead of 3.5. There are supposed to be more official Season 0 conversions in the works but they are sort of on a 'when we can' schedule for the conversions. #14 - The Many Fortunes of Grand Master Torch takes place outside of Absalom in the nation of Qadira, other than that I can't tell you much about it. Blackros Museum - The Blackros Museum is becoming an iconic location within Absalom for Pathfinder adventures. There are now 3 modules set there, #5 - Mists of the Mwangi, #35 - Voice in the Void, and #02-11 The Penumbral Accords. #5 you now have in your hands, and it is a blast. There's undead, there's monkeys, there's evil mist, and it's all located in a simple map. #35 has the PCs returning to Museum, this time to the basement level. It's creepy and very cool. It'll probably blow the PCs minds, but I would save this for the 5th or 6th session you run, you don't want to burn them out on the Blackros or make it seem like everything bad happening in the world happens there :) #02-11 is a recent release that I plan to run but haven't yet, I've got it on my calendar for February though. This also takes place on the main floor of the Museum so it uses the exact same map as #5. Some people might find that a little cheesy, but I find it awesome. They know the location already so it's familiar and should be the same. There's no reason you couldn't run #02-11 before #35 but I feel like going to a different part of the same place helps break it up. I'd sprinkle these 3 mods in the first 8-9 sessions. Among the - There are two mods here #7 - Among the Living and #49 Among the Dead. They center around a cult of evil doers and are both set in Oppara the capital city of Taldor. Taldor is a short distance from Absalom and is one of the 5 factions player can be a part of. If you have Taldane faction PCs they will be excited for the chance to jouryny to the homeland. #7 features a lot of undead attacking an opera house. Good stuff. The zombies in it can hit a little hard so you might want to wait till they are 2nd or 3rd level. #49 should be run several sessions after #7, as there is some implication in the text that some time has passed between the two, but it also takes place in Oppara. #49 is very trap heavy and could be quite deadly. The Devil We Know - This is a 4 part series (#29, 30, 41 and 48) and has some really cool stuff going on for it. It's also set in Taldor, but this time in Cassomir which is their naval stronghold. This one can also be broken up and intermixed over several sessions. There are quiet a few modules set in Taldor as a whole and you could really get into a whole Taldor tour if you wanted breaking up 'Among the' and 'Devil' with a few other standalone modules set in Taldor. Parts 1 and 2 don't seem to be that connected on the surface and you fight the twin brother of the BBG from part 1 in part 2, but it's very easy for the PCs to even overlook this fact the way it is presented in the module. However, part 3 is very cool. It features some awesome puzzle solving stuff and was a lot of fun to run. I'm running part 4 this week and need to start reading and getting ready for it...hopefully it's cool. City of Strangers - There are 2 parts (#51 and 52) here and they actually should be run back to back. The last act of part 1 and the first act of part 2 are the same scene. These mods are really, really cool. They are very sandbox, the location is very cool and they are the lead in for the entire plot arch for Season 2. These take place very, very far from Absalom in the city of Kaer Maga which is a richly detailed city state in it's own right that is a wretched hive of scum and villainy ;) These modules introduce the players to the Shadow Lodge which are a group of Pathfinders who are splintering off on their own and feel that the Decemverite is out of touch and ineffective. This element can create serious questions and uncertainty for the PCs and I would only use them once the PCs firmly have their feet under them as Pathfinders, so you can pull that rug out from under them :) Before the Dawn - There are 2 parts (#02-01 and 02-02) which are the first two modules for Season 2, and they feature the Shadow Lodge as well as the Aspis Consortium as recurring baddies. I've only played 02-01 and plan to run 02-02 in February. Part 1 is also very sandbox/open ended and a lot of fun. Also meant to be played back to back as I understand it. I'm hoping to play part 2 next week so I haven't read it yet :). It also takes place very far from Absalom, this time in Bloodcove in the Mwangi Expanse. I would save these until after you've introduced the Shadow Lodge as a plot element. There are some other higher level story arcs as well, but for now are a little beyond the scope here. There are plenty of stand alone modules you can sprinkle in to give you the kind of flow you want. Some of the highlights for me include: #4 - Frozen Fingers of Midnight - Very cool mystery investigation and powerful magical device with a curse set in Absalom. Lots of fun.
Given a perfect world: #5, #4, #33, #35, #39, #29, #24, #7, #30, #6, #49, #41, #48, #51, #52, #02-11, #02-01, #02-02 The Aspis Consortium - Sadly this is a little bit of a missed opportunity. There was a module, #11 which is now retired from play where the Consortium was featured as an oppositional group to the Society. So potential reoccurring baddies. Part of #29 is 'working with' them for the mutual benefit of both organizations but now with #11 feels like a miss. They actually feature quite prominently in #02-01 but now the PCs don't really have the same exposure with the raid on the PCs from #11. There may be other modules where they feature prominently that I'm not aware of. Seasons Change - There are 3 seasons of play and each one means something slightly different. They are in part based off the publishing schedule of 2/month +4 at Gen Con (28/season). Modules 1 - 28 make up Season 0, 29 - 56 make up Season 1 and now in Season 2 they've gone to a #(Season)-(Number) format. You'll also notice in your Mists which was just republished they use #0-05. Season 0 was all published under the 3.5 rules, there was no Pathfinder Roleplaying Game yet. Season 1 marks the start of the PFPRG rules as well as each module having a possible 2 Prestige possible. Most Season 0 only have 1 possible, but there are a few exceptions here and there. Season 2 is the start of what is to be a season long (and probably longer) meta plot arc (the Shadow Lodge). Hopefully you find this helpful and not just me rambling incoherently. |
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