Stone Giant

Herbo's page

529 posts. Alias of Jess Emerson.




So now that the Star Wars beta information has started to circulate, I thought I'd toss this up.

What we know:

  • Set in the Rebellion Era
  • It will be released in three stages, with focused Jedi material coming last
  • Each release stage will be a complete game that will use the same core mechanics as the other stages, but with varying options.
  • It will use funky dice
  • The beta test rule book is listed as a "complete" game, with all the mechanics needed to run a game minus art and setting material.
  • The Beta Test book is $30

    What I am guessing/thinking:

  • The three stages of the new star wars game will likely vary the power level of starting characters in a similar fashion to the difference between Rogue Trader and Dark Heresy characters (Rank 1 RT = Rank 4 DH). So if someone were to make a starter Jedi Knight, they might be equal to a slightly advanced "normie."
  • They won't go completely down the Warhammer Fantasy 3rd edition road. I think they'll use funky dice and dice pool mechanics, but they probably won't dive into the action cards, career cards, tokens and such.
  • I think that FFG charging $30 for a beta test of the rules is rediculous...but it's Star Wars and people will pay. Luckily I made my Will save and avoided THE TRAP that Akbar warned me of :-)

    So what do you all think? Doom and Gloom? Rosey Happy Fun times? Something else entirely?

    Just to clarify where I'm coming from:
    I own WFRP 3rd Edition, and think it is a really fun system to play. That being said it is a labor of love to store and organize that game. I also enjoy the 40k games when I've had occaision to play them. In terms of star wars rpgs, I liked the Revised d20 (basically 3.5) Star Wars and didn't think Saga Edition was the cat's pajamas like many others did. I still enjoy the West End Games version of the game (Tatooine Manhunt, Scavenger Hunt, Isis Coordinates...brilliant!).


  • Nice to see some action on the Star Wars front in the game industry. FFG hasn't made any official announcements about a Star Wars rpg line, but they are going to be making a new board game and a new card game.

    Anyone have any thoughts or feelings about what FFG might be planning for the RPG? Or maybe they'll just keep the rpg license tied up and have no plans to provide a new RPG?

    I could see them going the WFRP 3rd edition route and make a new RPG game that is component driven versus yet another "traditional" RPG simply because they won't lure away WEG or WotC Star Wars rpg'ers very well with a d100 system such as they use for their 40k games.

    Then again, I am part of the super minority that actually gets a pretty big kick out of WFRP 3e (as well as continued love for Hogshead and Green Ronin versions of the game). So if Star Wars goes that route I'll probably bite (whilst continuing to play Star Wars as it was intended...d6 :-).


    I made a custom Pathfinder character sheet a few months back and it's worked out pretty well thus far in actual play. Feel free to nab it if it strikes your fancy.

    Herbo's Character Sheet


    There seems to be a high recurrence of "I like this," "I hate this," and blatant flame wars going on over in the Ultimate Combat Playtest Forums. The discussions, though sometimes interesting, are wholly counter productive. It makes it hard to actually read any actual playtesting over the background noise. I don't think everyone has realized what a rare gift it is that Paizo has opened the curtains to the public to have a chance to weigh in on the process. I think it is a service to the game community and would hate to see it go away due to the wankerish behavoir.

    I think playtests should be open to all, but some simple system should be employed to make sure that those posting in those forums are actually providing information Paizo (and the community) can use to improve the end product. If the alternate classes are broken, fundamentally flawed or simply no fun to play I'd rather read about it from firsthand playtest experience instead of 70 posts of "My great grandfather was a gunslinger and I am offended, yuck." Heck maybe the answer is mass deletions of threads that do not start out in the most useful/required format. Then it just becomes an issue of steering the conversation back to the propper thread topic instead of scrolling through a venom filled manifesto of how little Teddie from Wisconsin is canceling his Paizo subscriptions.

    Maybe I'm just being a big ol softy. I simply don't have as much time in my schedule for conducting playtests my self these days so I'd like to see results and hard evidence instead of history lessons over there. If it is nagging at me, it's gotta be driving you chaps up in Washington absolutely bananas (like Jason running around red faced chewing through pop cans and ripping out of his shirts like the Hulk).


    There will innevitably be many groups that shun direct ruling, to provide a flipside to all of the power-mad despots that have been set loose on the River Kingdoms thus far. So I thought it may be interesting to have a condensed spot where GM's can go to get some inspiration for "kingdom in the background" versions of this AP and the ruler's that will innevitably need to be thrust forward. If assassination comes along it would also be nice to have a safe haven in the boards to retreat to in order to provide replacements at a moment's notice.

    I don't necessarily think we should limit ourselves to NPC's as written but I'd like to shy away from rewriting the campaign scope to change Oleg into Aroden reborn (aka the Green Lantern as my group jokingly refers to him due to the art in the Absolam book..)

    Without further adieu...

    In our version of Kingmaker I re-wrote Garuum the Boggard into an encounter called "The Boggard Prince."

    Spoiler:
    Garuum the Boggard - aka Lord Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad (Romanian Kings have the most exquisitly long names...).

    Suited Kingdom Role(s) Ruler (if transformed), Councilor (if concealed or transformed), Spy Master (in any form)

    Biography
    It turns out that Garuum was once a snobbish son of a moderately influential family back in Brevoy named Ferdinand Viktor Albert Meinrad. At the tender age of 19 he set out with some men at arms to increase his family holdings in the Stolen Lands. While Here he proceeded to lean heavily on the few settlers and trappers his group came accross and generally behaved as though these wild and untamed lands were already his by birth-right. He typically killed the "inhuman" monsters he came accross on sight and cared little for the few men under his command as they fell one-by-one to the predations of the flora and fauna of the Green Belt.

    His life changed the day he came accross Elga Verniex aka The Old Beldame (Area J - Issue #32) bathing in the early morning waters of the Tuskwater. So horrified by her appearance, Ferdinand ordered his men to dispose of her else he might lose his breakfast. The Beldame, who was none too patient on a good day, reacted rather poorly to the assault and slaughtered the soldiers.

    She decided death was too good for a heart so callouse and full of hatred upon seeing the pathetic cowering creature before her. Elga told him that an inbred birthright alone would not make these broken lands bow as one to a spoiled fool. So she put a curse on him. He would be forced to walk the world in the guise of one of the many "monsters" that he slew in his campaign until he learned humility and temperence towards all thinking and feeling things that lived in the Stolen Lands. Only then would he regain his humanity that he so carelessly squandered. In a bit of cruelty on her part she also transformed his noble steed into a pittiful slurk.

    Thus Garuum the Boggard fled into the west where he found the boggard tribes of the Hooktongue Slough. Thinking that they would be easily impressed by his bravado and show of tactical force he challenged what he thought was a powerful Boggard to a duel. Little did he know "he" was a "she" and he was beaten quite soundly and run off into the swamps. Full of self pitty and disgust for what he had become he and Ubagub wandered the Slough for several years until the man that was Ferdinand began to ebb away and Garuum the Boggard was increasingly all there was.

    Eventually Garuum found himself in a wretched position in a large tribe in the Slough. Almost entirely given over to his boggard self, Garuum was resigned to his pathetic life of toil, mockery and beatings. 10 years passed and he found a certain degree of contentment in his life. In his limited free time he wandered the eastern Slough and Greenbelt with Ubagub and found that his ability to reason through problems kept him from being eaten by Trolls, savaged by monstrosities and he found many hidden things. Each night he would return to the tribe and receive his usual beatings and mockery.

    One day, nearly 15 years from the bestowing of his curse he began to have flashback memories of the day of his transformation. He also decided that he had grown quite wise in the way of the world. Surely he could rule a kingdom of monsters having spent enough time as one himself! So he saw his chance. The tribe had become increasingly discontent with their lack of success and power amongst Boggard-kind and laid most of this on the head of their current priest-king. So Garuum planned to ambush and defeat the chief and thus catapult his reputation and position...

    At this point Garuum's story merges with his published backstory for the most part. When the PC's encounter him he's very nearly suicidal and if the interaction goes well he may be spurred on towards an actual redemption. At the very least the party will gain the potential services of a very very sneaky creature that knows the paths and secret places of the eastern slough and green belt.

    In terms of game mechanics I have pretty much just hand-waved The Beldame's ability to poof-a-size Garuum into his current state. Additional work may need to be done if your players will be crying fowl at her lack of published ability to repeat said curse


    I was just reading the Andoran book and given that Kobolds infest Mount Kia I thought it might be fun to transplant Dragon Mountain there. By fun I mean spending countless hours I probably don't have trying to wish upon a star and convert the old 2nd edition monstrosity into something resembling a fun Pathfinder/3.5 romp. If I undertake this would anyone care to see the results or collaborate?

    I have found countless threads on just about every game community's messageboards about converting Dragon Mountain and which things were the most difficult but I've never seen any hard data to inspect other than literal translations which are problematic at best due to the huge paradigm shift between 2nd and the d20 editions of the game.

    So I am going to be the change I want to see in the world and promise to do this thing...eventually...<insert small print and loopholes here>

    Pathfinder deserves psionic monkeys and Dragon Mountain delivers the goods.


    So let me preface this by saying that my group of players and I have known each other for 10-15 years and we have had some good fun with D&D in its various incarnations. We are also unable to play as often as we used to so when we do get together we tend to play till the wee hours. It is at this point that the nerdy sarcasm and irreverence begins to flow. Here are a couple of 'gems' tossed around during Burnt Offerings.

    Refering to The Rusty Dragon as The Rusty Trombone, the Kaijitsus suddenly became the Daihatsus and they all drove three wheeled mini-wagons, Nualia was refered to as What's-her-nipples. As the evening progressed to the ultra late everyone in town began to take on pharmaceutical names Father Zantax etc.

    What have your players blurted out whilst hopped up on too much caffeine? Or am I the only DM to be saddled with a troop of horsetoothed jackholes for players?


    I like the idea of making the players choose whether or not to utilize sin magic in order to thwart the runelord of greed. However, I have been toying with the idea of adding some method for the pc's to discover a way to use the 'light' side of rune magic within the rune forge that incorporates the 7 virtues (temperence, chastity, humility, charity, diligence, patience and kindness). Has anyone else developed this idea any further, or does it seem like too large of a departure for the overall theme of the campaign?


    There seems to have been more QQ over the most recent installment of this fantastic AP than previous installments. I figure I would present the other side of the coin. There are groups that have fun with dungeon crawls and high level gaming. RotRL #5 is a fantastic upper level dungeon. Having said that I'd like to put my two cents on Pathfinder in general.

    Pathfinder is a tool for us GM's to put into our Nerd toobox. Any inconsistencies with the story continuity or mispellings of "the" as "teh" shouldn't be a reason to lay it down and throw up our hands and demand our 20 bucks back.
    I think it is a well agreed upon fact higher level adventures are hard to write for a general user-base. High level adventures require a very detailed and intimate knowledge of your party make-up as well as what your players are apt to do.
    Taking that into consideration, what we have in issue #5 is a fantastic main course for any of our RotRL campaigns. It is left to us as talented and brilliant GMs to adapt certain elements to our personal tastes. Sins of the Saviors and the adventure path as a whole provides a great environment and story for us all to tell together.

    If all I have to do is add "...up the stairs to a broad landing...", change a few NPC/Monster tactics and maybe replace 1 or 3 traps with something that I like better, then Pathfinder still saved me countless nights of sleep loss tryiing to craft an adventure of mine own.

    Hurray and Huzzah, as I for one am tickled prismatic over this adventure path as well as the current installment.