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KnightErrantJR's page

3,994 posts (4,681 including aliases). 30 reviews. Aliases: Ao, Overgod, BizarroPaizoFanNumber1, KnightErrantErikMonaDayVariant, Hulk, Freelance Columnist, Robert Bruce Banner, Not Hulk, Dungeon Master KEJR, Worldwound Ambassador Gutripper, Thammarazs Hovaraszk, GameMasterKEJR, This Space For Rent, AAD-42, Thindar Darkblood.

Profile | Recent Posts | Recent Reviews


Recent reviews by KnightErrantJR:



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RIP0033E
Feats 101 (PFRPG) PDF
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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Its not a bad product to take a look at.

If you aren't like me and tend to allow or disallow things on a pass/fail basis, but are willing to pick and choose what you want to put into your campaign, you will most likely be able to find a lot of use to you in this book. For me, I tend to like to say that a source is all in (perhaps with a few minor caveats) or just avoid the complication of adding a new source to the campaign.



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PZO1112
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary (OGL)
Hardcover: $39.99
PDF: $9.99
FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Another case of four stars not telling the whole story . . .

This book, like the core rulebook, is gorgeous. Not only that, but it has most of the OGL creatures in it, updated to the Pathfinder rules as well as some interesting and logical tweaks.

The only real gripe I have is that, while I understand why it was done, I didn't like that some classic creatures were turned into templated versions of the core version of the monster (I don't know you you need to have separate stats for heavy war horses, but it just doesn't sit right, to me, to have them be "advanced" horses, for example).

All of that having been said, call this one a 4.75, but I'm just too much of a pain to give up a five star review.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A great update to the 3.5 rules, with only a few speed bumps

Man, its hard to rate things like this on a five star scale. The production value to this thing is gorgeous. It looks better than any 3.5 book did, its that good.

Most of the rules changes are logical and streamline the game without changing too much too drastically, and the overall effect is a similar degree of drift as the difference between 3.0 and 3.5.

That having been said, there are still a few places where some changes seemed to be less about making the game run smoothly and more about addressing vocal segments of the gaming community (spiked chains anyone).

Overall, this is a beautiful book, and most of the changes are welcome and logical. If you were willing to give 3.5 a try after 3.0, this is probably a more logical and more streamlined change than that changeover was.



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PZO9402
Pathfinder Companion: Elves of Golarion (OGL)
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PDF: $6.99
FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A good book , but it feels like it could have had more . . .

I can't quite put my finger on it, but while I like this book, and I certainly think its worth the money, and there are even some nice RP hooks and elven eccentricities, like magical food, in the book, I think it felt more like fine tuning elves a little to fit in Golarion than really grabbing me and hitting a home run.

I wouldn't not have wanted a radically different approach to elves, but at the same time, I'm not sure what its missing, but its not quite "there."

Still, its a good book, worth the money, and gives you some nice RP "flair" to hang on a Golarion elf to personalize it to the setting, and I can't fault that.



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Star Wars RPG Gamemaster Screen
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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar As far as GM screens go, this one is great.

GM screens usually just have to look snazzy and conceal your notes and maybe your dice, and if they have some useful tables, its a bonus.

This is a solid screen made of good material, has useful tables, and looks nice. If you need a GM screen, you probably won't regret picking this one up.



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Star Wars RPG: Threats of the Galaxy Hardcover
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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar I might have almost given it a higher rating . . .

Its a bit rushed feeling, given that it was an early book in the system, but on the other hand, its pretty good for having some stat blocks on the fly if you need them.

Thugs, dark jedi, etc. that you may not have planned on your PCs running into are quick to find in here.

The downside to this is that it feels a little unorganized, there are a lot of stat block errors (nothing that really screws with CL, so its nothing that makes them unusable), and there really could have been more beast type threats included.

Overall, especially if you don't have a lot of Saga books and you also don't have a lot of time for making your own NPCs, its a good book to pick up, but you aren't going to learn a lot of obscure Star Wars lore from this one.



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Star Wars RPG—Saga Edition Core Rulebook Hardcover
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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Really pleased with this version of the Star Wars RPG

Much more so than the really detail oriented RCR version, this version is probably the best "level based" Star Wars offering you are going to see.

While I'm not always a fan of streamlined rules for skills or rules that gloss over logic a bit for the sake of action, to be honest, that all makes perfect sense for Star Wars. Luke could fly a T-16 back home, so of course he could fly an X-Wing and a Snowspeeder . . . he's a pilot.

Its a really fun system, and about the worst thing I can say is that its similar enough to other d20 games that its easy to accidentally think that some rules that apply to other d20 systems apply to this one as well.

Once you unlearn what you have learned, its a fun, fast system, especially compared to other d20 offerings.



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Pathfinder Chronicles: Guide to Absalom (OGL)
Print Edition: $17.99
PDF: $12.99
FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar With no hesitancy, pick this one up.

This book really, really made me want to run a campaign in Absalom. Lots of really interesting, internally consistent tid bits about Absalom.

A book this size can't be super detailed, but there is a whole lot more to this book than we have seen about the city before, including enough information to pretty much run an entire campaign just on the Isle of Kortos.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Really makes you want to play this campaign.

For some reason when I first heard the details of the Legacy of Fire Camapaign, it wasn't quite grabbing my attention. I can't say why not, it seemed solid enough.

Then I got this, and I suddenly really, really wanted to experience this campaign. This book does an excellent job of introducing the first scenario as well as the new region that the AP takes place in.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Some issues coming up in play.

Grandmaster Torch was popular when he first showed up, but this adventure seems to use him just to use him again, as he isn't in the same place or situation he was in originally, and can easily be mistaken for the guy that the PCs are suppose to bust.

Faction mission, if taken literally and if the PCs aren't looking for a specific instance to come up, but taking the mission at face value, can cause some PCs to read what they are suppose to do as committing major crimes, which is suppose to be discouraged and potentially treated the same as death.

Same faction mission frames the other PCs for the chaos caused and as agents of a foreign power, which seems to go against the "don't work against the other PCs" spirit, even if they don't immediately suffer consequences.

Finally, there is a bit of a lack of challenge in many of the encounters in the scenario.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Man, I really, really want to rank this higher . . .

Players had a blast in this one when it came to the roleplaying aspects, and the story was great, the mission made sense . . . but the challenge was way too easy, at least in Tier one with a group that was mixed between 1st and 2nd level.

Seriously, its a really good adventure, if you aren't quite as worried about if the PCs feel like they were in danger very often.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Fun to run, potential to trip up.

I've run this multiple times. Every time people have had a lot of fun with it, and its worked pretty well. That having been said, it takes a little "herding" on the GMs part to keep this from being an open ended nightmare, since there is a lot of potential for going off and a time sinking tangent that the GM will have to rule completely on the fly.

Still, given that it didn't take too much prodding to keep the groups I ran on track, I would say that means the adventure is compelling enough to keep people wanting to do what they are suppose to do and have fun doing it.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Okay, two sounds harsh, but . . .

I ran this one at a convention. On paper the adventure does actually sound pretty cool, but in execution, several of the room descriptions are confusing, with key parts of the descriptions in two different parts of the adventure.

On top of that, while it seems like the forshadowing chase scene in the beginning will be a nice way to add some depth, without any follow up, my players really felt that it was just thrown in so that the whole thing wouldn't be a dungeon crawl, especially since there was no follow up.

Finally, many of my players were immediately making fun of the "video gamisms" that were part of the scenario, which overshadowed any "Indy" feel that the traps had.

In the end, when I read through it, these things didn't jump out at me, but in practice, I can see where problems arise in this.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Focused and combat heavy, but intentionally so.

The adventure doesn't have a lot of RP built into in (though there is some if the PCs go out of their way to make it). On the other hand, the way the scenario is set up, it makes sense that the PCs will be fighting their way through this.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A great adventure, lots of fun to run

This adventure was a lot of fun. It showed off Absalom quite a bit, and provides plenty for the PCs to do, both RP and in combat.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A good scenario that has some potential pitfalls.

If this were only an adventure I would definitely give this four stars, but given that this is designed for PFS play, there are a few tricky things in the adventure.

One, having a RP encounter at the beginning is great. The set up is a wonderful chance for characters to develop their personalities and play up who they are without game stats. But given that it happens up front, it can be a potential time sink if the GM isn't paying attention to how long things are running, and it can be a bit of a bummer to tell the PCs to quit RP for time.

Spoiler:
The second issue is that this scenario has two faction points available, but unlike the previous one, both are spelled out in the faction hand outs, which immediately has the PCs looking under every rock and into every nook and cranny trying to get both points, and again, if the GM doesn't keep an eye on things, this can really eat up time.

Its a fun scenario, a GM just really need to worry about time (if he only has a typical 4 hour slot to run this in).



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A really solid example of what an organized play scenario should be.

There is one particularly tricky potential situation for a GM to deal with on the fly right at the beginning of the adventure, but if a GM thinks about how to potentially handle this curve (if it happens), the rest of the scenario is a fun adventure that is pretty well paced to run as a PFS event.



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Star Wars RPG: Jedi Academy Training Manual Hardcover
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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A Good Solid Sourcebook for Force Users

I wavered a bit. I may have given this one three or three and a half stars, but this was mainly due to the fact that the book is a bit on the thin side compared to some of the other Saga offerings, which strikes me as odd given the subject matter. That having been said, I think there is probably more per page that will be useful, so long as you are dealing with Force users in your campaign, than in some of the other sources.

Not only are there some really interesting powers (and well incorporated ones for some tricky EU powers), but the Force Regimens, basically training that you can undergo to give yourself a boost to some other aspect of your character or to give yourself a sort of Force psuedo power, if you have the time to practice, is great.

There are rules for Force spirits, training padawans, using different types of crystals in your lightsaber, and a bunch of new Force Traditions. Some of these have appeared before, but its kind of nice having them consolidated in a book about the Force, all in one place.

There are several new Dark Side related beasts, templates for Sith Abominations, NPC statblocks for Dark Side villains that, while used for iconic characters, could be modified pretty easily for an individual campaign's dark side villains.

Probably the most negative thing I could say about this book is that I'm not sure I need stats for Luke when he's 20th level, or other good Jedi characters, but I have to admit that in a way, its interesting to see the RP translation of characters that I've been reading or watching for years.

Overall, a pretty good buy. I just think I would have forked over the extra five buck for a larger tome, but maybe that's just me.



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Kobold Quarterly 9
Print Edition: $7.99
PDF: $5.99
FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Kobold Quarterly continues to be a consistent performer

If you like monsters in 3.5, right off the bat, this issue is golden for you. Really cool dinosaurs, creepy construct things, and skin bats. Seriously, its all useful one way or another.

If you aren't into 4E, the kitsune article is still a really interesting read if you haven't heard much about these creatures before, and can serve as a springboard for some RP ideas for GM and player alike.

While the ritual drugs and some of the bardic article didn't sell me 100%, those articles still had some really interesting and solid ideas, and the Maenad article actually put some interesting context to a race that I felt was just kind of dropped into the Expanded Psionics Handbook (not to mention, I'm looking forward to throwing a Maenad long flail as some poor unsuspecting PCs).

Heck, with all of that other stuff, I almost forgot Monte Cook's design column that started up, or the really awesome familiar article in the book as well.

All in all, this is definitely worth the money. And if all of the above doesn't sell you, the Dave Arneson interview, and especially the tribute pieces by other RPG luminaries, should push this over the edge.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A Good Adventure, But Be Careful

This adventure is really good. The story is fun, and you have some great NPCs that you will naturally be able to RP with the players. The setting is memorable, and the mission makes sense. I really liked the set up of the mission goals and wish that later adventures that do something similar had stayed with this formula (spoiler for GMs running this):

Spoiler:
This scenario has two potential faction award points, but unlike later adventures, only mentions one award in the actual faction handout, thus rewarding PCs that play their faction's interests out.

There is two potentially dangerous encounters in this adventure if you run this one as a tier 1 for 1st level characters, so be sure you have a handle on what you want to do to address this.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Very Good, Solid Adventure

This adventure has a good plot, memorable fights, a chance for some interesting roleplaying, interesting and memorable NPCs, and some evocative settings. A good adventure for both the Pathfinder Society or for anyone that just wants a solid one evening game session adventure.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Excellent Insprirational Material

Not only was this PDF a great source of inspiration for my campaigns, but its a great advertisement for Nick's upcoming Razor Coast products. Lot's of great ideas in this one, and very intuitively developed.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Great Sidetrek Adventure

I missed Sidetreks in Dungeon, despite the overall quality of the adventures, because smaller adventures that can be dropped into a night's play when the regular campaign isn't running is a staple for the gaming groups I've been a part of.

Not only is this a great, short adventure, but, like the Dajobas article, its a great advertisement for what Sinister Adventures is aiming for with its Razor Coast adventures.

Hope to see more like this in the future.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar A Great Resource for any Swashbuckler

This article has some great ideas in it. Not only do I want to adapt this to Pathfinder so I can see if bind and other options work with CMB, but I want to make up a rogue using a case of rapiers, for example.

I am interested to see the feats in actual play. They seem to work well, but sometimes new rules work unexpectedly in actual practice.

All in all, this was great, and I'm looking forward to trying some of this material out in my campaign.



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FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Great, open ended adventure to let your PCs run through

I really liked this one. Its not that the plot was full of twists and turns so much as events were properly and clearly linked to other events. The passage of time should be pretty easy to feel, and there are clear benchmarks for how this story progresses, while still leaving the the specifics really open ended for what the PCs can do to achieve these goals.

I have noticed that the fey of Golarion seem to be twisted little muppets, but I'm okay with that. Loved the new drakes as well. Glad I got this one, and I'll probably be ordering the physical copy from my local hobby shop soon.



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