Mike Lindner's page

If you just follow how PAO works it cannot be cast on an unwilling target in the first place.

Polymorph Any Object: This spell functions like greater polymorph, except that it changes one object or creature into another.

Greater Polymorph: This spell functions as polymorph except that it allows the creature to take on the form of a dragon or plant creature.

Polymorph: This spell transforms a willing creature into an animal, humanoid or elemental of your choosing; the spell has no effect on unwilling creatures, nor can the creature being targeted by this spell influence the new form assumed (apart from conveying its wishes, if any, to you verbally).

Neither Greater Polymorph nor Polymorph Any Object override the willing targets only proviso of Polymorph.

And now with the release of the Dungeoneer's Handbook, you can learn Dark Folk with the Dungeon Dweller trait.

Indeed, there is no PFS legal sign language. You can however spend a rank in Linguistics to learn how to read lips per the FAQ.

My first point is that the "reach" of conventions and game days is considerable but in my anecdotal experience tends to lure slightly different crowds.

I absolutely agree with this. I had been curious about tabletop role playing games for a long time, but never so much as to actually seek it out. Then I was at a local convention to play board games, wandered around, tried a couple RPGs when I had some extra time, and now here I am wearing a red shirt. Conventions can reach those who don't have RPG gamers in their existing social circles and who don't already go to game shops and such where they'd see such games being played.

Congrats LeDon!

Chris Mortika wrote:

CWheezy,

I admit that I am baffled. Six to ten hours of "super cool" role-playing, not worth doing because your character doesn't get a chance for an extra 10 - 20 gp at the end of it.

Hi Chris, I would advise you to do some research before making claims!

I just ran carrion hill, which was pretty fun! The gold reward was 6,758, which does seem like a lot.

If you are level 5, you could be playing in 3 5-9 scenarios, which would net you around 7700 gold! That is actually not 10-20 gold difference. If you are level 6 and play carrion hill, it actually becomes much worse, since 3 6-7 scenarios will net you around 9300 gold. I have found many modules to be fairly tough, and carrion hill was no exception, so playing up seems very risky when your gain is only around 1200 gold instead of playing up elsewhere.

You're comparison isn't really valid because you're assuming playing subtier 5-6 at level 5 which of course is going to be giving out more gold since it's balanced to also have level 6 characters there. Comparing to subtier 4-5 or a mix of that and subtier 5-6 would be a better exercise.

Edit: I pulled up the wealth by level table and the difference between levels 5 & 6 is 5,500 gp which means Carrion Hill is already providing well over the reward one would generally expect. Even if you allow for 15% of gold for disposable items, that's still over 400 gp extra.

So saying that modules do not provide appropriate rewards is demonstrably not true.

I'll likely be interested.

I completely disagree. That's the whole idea behind the Core Assumption. The Core Rulebook, the Pathfinder Society Field Guide, and the Guide to Organized Play are assumed to be at every table. Everything within them (with few exceptions) is legal for play. Not only do you needn't own them, you don't even have to bring them to a game. If you read the Guide to Organized Play, page 5, you'll see that "In order to utilize content from an Additional Resource (emphasis mine), a player must have a physical copy of the Additional Resource in question". Nowhere in the Guide does it say you must own or bring a copy of the Core Rulebook with you.

The very page of the Guide you referenced says:

Pathfinder Society Organized Play assumes that every player has the following resources.

• Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook
• Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Pathfinder Society Field Guide
• Guide to Pathfinder Society Organized Play (this document)

It says "has the following resources" not "has access to" or "has read."

Just a quick question to make sure I've got things right before I commit to an idea.

I recently re-rolled one of my first-level characters into an oracle. I then started to wonder if I could grab him a prestige class, so I poked around a bit and stumbled on the Divine Scion. The only stumbling block is the need to have a deity. Are oracles allowed to become divine scions in PFS play in specific, as long as they worship the god (in this case Nethys) they would be a scion of and fulfill all other needed criteria? (I'm quite aware this would be allowed in a home game, I just want to know the PFS ruling, hence why this section of the forums.)

Yes, you can do this.

To pick one thing I would change if I could: release three scenarios per month instead of two, and at least one of the three would always be tier 1-5.

Okay, I can't resist adding another: revamp the fame system for item availability. I love the idea that was presented for how prestige will be gained starting in season 5, but I'd prefer if item access was simply set by character level rather than fame.

Mike Lindner wrote:

The bugs start on the ceiling, thus negating their ability to charge. Allowing them to charge makes this far too deadly IMO. I assume that's the reason for putting them on the ceiling.

How would starting on the ceiling negate their ability to charge, given that it is a jump move?

The reasoning I used when I ran this (after backing up combat because using the falling charge would have been a TPK for sure) is that charging is a full round action involving moving towards the target and that doesn't exactly jive with just letting go of the ceiling and letting gravity do its thing.

Then I came up with a better argument: charging requires you to go to the nearest square where you can attack the target. If the bug is falling it is necessarily going to end up past the nearest square, since the nearest square would leave 5' between the bug and the ground. Trying to get around that by saying it is charging to the nearest square, then simply falling the remainder smells of arguing within the rules to defeat the rules - rather than using the rules in a way that keeps with common sense, that is, where you end up is where you charged to, and if that isn't valid space for a charge then you can't do it.

There's also the fact that, as I recall, the ceiling is more than 10' up, and so simply dropping to the ground means they have to make an acrobatics check to avoid falling damage and landing prone. Why do that when you have a climb speed and can just climb down the wall and attack that way?

... (b) easier to GM, like free full-size pdfs of maps from this month's scenarios.

Do I want full size maps I can get printed? Absolutely, yes, please, thank you, good day.

Do I want them restricted to only certain GMs? Oh heck no. Why make GMs with less experience do more work?

Personally I'd rather see full size maps than new art for a non-boss creature that'll be dead in 4 rounds of combat.

GMing 8 slots, but got my tickets for my 2 free slots! Bonekeep, here I come!

Playing in your free slots? Craziness!

Hmm, what is being offered on Saturday...

I registered for a total of 6 PFS events, including the Friday special and both parts of Ruins of Bonekeep (will drop out of part 2 if we advance in the special).

Really looking forward to RoB, I hear it can be extremely challenging!

Unlike last year the special this year will not have a second part that only certain tables will qualify for.

Any advice on how to handle the CR 5 encounter?

With the bugs' jump charge ability, they are deadly even on a surprise round charge. :(

Last time I ran it, the wight was killed before he could hit anyone. The Shadow got a hit off, but went down fast, too.

Potions of Bless Weapon, and spells that can affect undead, and, of course, the Cleric channeling positive to harm undead...

The bugs start on the ceiling, thus negating their ability to charge. Allowing them to charge makes this far too deadly IMO. I assume that's the reason for putting them on the ceiling.

Retirement is no longer a significant concept for PFS. While regular scenarios stop after level 11, there are Eyes of the Ten, modules, and adventure paths to continue progressing your character.

looking for a little PFS help. Verteran player that has been in the game for years (but not as active PFS members), a few buddies and myself are heading to origins in columbus for the convention. We all have PFS numbers and have signed up for a variety of games. I was looking for any advice on how we should go about looking for what games we should be in ? if its a higher level adventure for example the 12+ can you even join that ? or will they just have stock characters ? can you add a stock character to your pathfinder id after sitting at the table ? really looking on any tips to show up ready to play. Thanks (yes i downloaded all the guides and have gone through them. looking for more general tips.)

The next step for each of you that will be playing is to read the Guide to Pathfinder Society Organized Play.

Then, try to get a scenario schedule that will let you play scenarios where you can play your own characters rather than playing higher level stuff with pregens. That is, pick tier 1-5 or tier 1-7 scenarios.

Next, create some characters following the rules in the Guide referenced above.

Finally, go to Origins and have fun! Perhaps I'll see you there. :)

Mike Lindner wrote:

Adam Mogyorodi wrote:

Removing the curse also removes the item. You can't just remove the curse from the item and have a non cursed item.

Remove curse allows you to remove the item, but does not require you to do so immediately. You should be able to have remove curse cast so that you have the option to remove it at some point in the future, if need be. Of course if you remove it and reequip it you'll need another remove curse to take it off again.

Mike, the point of the item is, you can't have the benefit without the curse.

The item would still be evil. The remove curse would not affect the item at all. It also wouldn't affect the alignment aspect. All it means is that you have the option to remove it if you choose. That is the entire point of casting remove curse in this fashion.

Removing the curse also removes the item. You can't just remove the curse from the item and have a non cursed item.

Remove curse allows you to remove the item, but does not require you to do so immediately. You should be able to have remove curse cast so that you have the option to remove it at some point in the future, if need be. Of course if you remove it and reequip it you'll need another remove curse to take it off again.

A lot of people like myself are casual players, if part of the fun of the game is progressing a single character when you only get to play once a month or so, then it's going to be very frustrating to be forced to roll up a new character who it'd take three months of playing to get up to level two, and that's at the expense of a character we actually enjoy playing...

Certainly you could create a second character you'd enjoy playing. There can't be just one perfect character for you with everything else being pointless.

Maybe I missed something, but how does a successful use of sepia snake sigil or explosive runes end the scenario? How did we get from those spells to "Congratulations, here's your sheet"?

I'm looking at those spells and seeing a way to get past a guard that you were supposed to get past, but doing it without combat rounds. So what? How in the world does that end the scenario? I've gotten past lots of guards with lots of different PCs, and none of those scenarios would have gone any differently if we'd gotten past the guards by using those spells instead of with charm person or a round and a half of combat.

If a GM sees an example of a 3rd-level spell getting past a guard and their mind immediately goes to "what to do when a PC breaks the whole scenario", that GM has some baggage that needs to get resolved.

It wouldn't break most scenarios. Most of the time this spell wouldn't do much more to a scenario than a slumber hex witch, so go right ahead and use it. There are occasionally scenarios where disabling the right person would effectively end the scenario though. Those are the situations to look out for as a player and think about holding back.

When looking at spells or other abilities with potentially powerful effects it's always a good idea to keep in mind how those would impact not just the game mechanics (winning an encounter), but the play experience of everyone present as well.

Bob Jonquet wrote:

Like many other ways to potentially "break the mod" don't be surprised if/when you run across a GM that says, "Congratulations, you win. Here is your chronicle sheet. See ya in three hours for the next session."

My advice for society play is, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is and you should carefully consider what effect it might have on the GoodRightFun of everyone at the table, including the GM. YMMV

I would be very surprised if a GM kicked me out of a game for trying something different, and I would report them immediately to the PFS leadership for it, even if they offered to give me the Chronicle sheet.

Even if you get the rewards for the Chronicle, that is not the point of playing in the PFS. Playing is the point, and the chronicle rewards are not a worthwhile "consolation prize" for getting booted from a table just because a GM doesn't want to deal with an idea they haven't seen before, especially on the basis of how it might impact the remainder of the session.

You bring up the GoodRightFun of the rest of the table, but what about the GoodRightFun of the player whose only crime is playing their character according to the rules. There is a general assumption that the player hasn't read the adventure, so they don't know that this particular action will be game breaking, they're just doing something that makes tactical sense during the down time they were provided.
Planning ahead and preparing for the unknown is not a violation of any rules. PFS assumes the players will employ planning and tactics and use any and all resources they have at their disposal, and unless/until it is officially restricted, there is no excuse for kicking a player just because they are thinking ahead. If they start being a jerk about it, or ruining it for the rest of the players, then that is a violation of the rules, and by all means, kick them out, but do it for that reason, not because you just don't want to deal with their legal character.

It's not a matter of kicking someone off the table. It's a matter of saying "okay, you defeated the scenario. Good job. Here's your chronicle with all the rewards you earned. You have the congratulations of Venture Captain X." And then everyone else wishes they could actually play out the story as intended instead of having that opportunity ruined. Then as the player leaves, "In the future please be more respectful of the other players and the GM. Some of us want to enjoy the entire story and play experience."

Personally if this happened early enough in a session I would give the player their chronicle and offer a choice to the rest of the players. They can either: take a chronicle right then with appropriate rewards or we (everyone except the player who ended the scenario) act like the scenario-ending event didn't occur and play out the rest of the story. I'm not going to short change everyone else of the full experience, especially since you generally can't replay scenarios.

Lab_Rat wrote:

Extremely Rare cases:

Player has a disease/affliction that is not resolved. Ex: Baleful polymorph, disease that reduces ability score to 0

Quite often, I see games wrap up quickly because they took too long and things like diseases and conditions get overlooked a lot.

I've probably forgotten to resolve just as many diseases as I have actually resolved at the end of scenarios. I picked up a nice way of remembering to do so from another GM. When someone gets a disease or other affliction that is easily forgotten hand them a token, glass bead, or something else that will stand out as folks are wrapping up. It acts as a reminder that they still have something to do - get cured.

I think that every time I have run Veteran's Vault so far:

Except riffle scrolls can.

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Magic

Equipment: riffle scrolls (any spell augmented by the Silent Spell metamagic feat; price equals the spell's effective level x the caster's level x 25 gp);

Well the PRD is wrong in places too. Look at the tetori monk.

Bonus Feat: A tetori gains the following bonus feats: 1st level—Improved Grapple, 2nd level—Crushing Embrace, 6th level—Greater Grapple, 10th level—Twin Lock, 14th level—Choke Hold, 18th level—Backbreaker. These feats replace a monk's normal bonus feats.

Good luck finding some of those.

That correctly reflects the current printing of the book. The FAQ then fixes that here.

Nice find Seth! :)

According to Ultimate Equipment you can also make a tower shield out of Dragon Hide. That's a hardness of 10 as opposed to Darkwood's hardness 5.

Can you make a tower shield out of Living Steel? That's got hardness 15.

Living steel is not legal for PFS. It is however, awesome.

I would recommend greenwood if you're worried about having your tower shield be sundered.

Generally speaking the GM cannot award more than the listed amount of GP for the subtier played. There is one exception that I can think of and I believe that has a note right on the chronicle about it.

Simply change the GP gained to the listed maximum.

I would like to submit a feature request for the website. This is mainly to support organizers and players of PFS.

While I realize the effort required to implement and maintain this is non-trivial, I believe that providing the below tools and features on the website would put Paizo on a special level of community support. As the organized play campaign expands I believe that the level of excellence in tools to bring together local players should expand as well.

Today every local PFS group needs to solve the same basic problems of organizing, communicating across the group, scheduling scenarios, etc.

What I am thinking of is a way to create local PFS lodges within Paizo.com or some new domain. Each would provide a number of features accessible to members of that lodge.

• Each lodge would consist of a mini-site with basic features to create a cohesive community of local PFS gamers.
  
• Summary description for the lodge.
  
• Set a location for the lodge with the ability for general users to search for lodges by location. This allows folks who move, are traveling, or just getting interested in Pathfinder to find the lodge(s) near them.
  
• Ability for players to join one or more lodges.
  
• A message board that is not restricted to members of that lodge, but is separate from others to allow focused discussions within a local group.
  
• Better support for recurring events (referred to as REs below) with at least the ability to distinguish one particular meeting (physical get together) of that group from another while still tying them together. This may simply be some sort of meta-event that acts as an optional parent to existing events. Trying to reuse one event in the existing system means that eventually the event will no longer show up on the events page when it gets too old (I have seen this bug myself), and it also complicates trying to go back and correct any reporting issues since there would be a great many sessions all logged under that one event. The clone function is very nice, but I think this goes that one extra step towards awesome.
  
• Ability for players to opt-in to specific REs. This would not be signing up for specific scenarios on specific days, but for being a member of that group of players.
  
• A calendar view of all public events associated with that lodge, both recurring events and one off events.
  
• Tools for organizers of REs
  o Ability to set one or many individuals as the organizer for an event (RE or one-time, such as a convention).
  o Ability for all of an event's organizers to report sessions for that event rather than restricting reporting to only the individual who created the event.
  o Ability for a RE's organizers to see what scenarios are available for a given set of users - either all those who have signed up for that RE or a subset selected on the fly. This is the best and most important feature for me personally because it gives organizers the tools to ensure that they consistently offer up scenarios that will meet the needs of their players.
  
• Warhorn-like features that would allow players to sign up for specific scenarios at specific events, along with the event management tools to go with this. To me this is a nice to have feature that should be there at some point, but is not strictly necessary for the rest to be of great value.
  

I think one thing that will set this apart from facebook groups, warhorn sites, meetup groups, etc. is the low barrier to entry and the ability to drive new players to their local lodges. Every player is expected to register their PFS number on the website. Anyone logging in with a registered PFS number can be directed to their local lodge site by virtue of the fact that the events they play can be associated with that lodge (if there is one). This means you don't even have to search around or even be otherwise informed about its existence. The power of data ties it together. Yay data.

Like I said if you want recognition or boons, prizes it is best done at the local level, not corporately. Come to SCARAB and volunteer for me and I'll take care of you.

It is offensive to me that you are devaluing the work done to support the campaign because someone is earning a living doing it while simultaneously saying that your work is somehow more valuable because to do not get a pay check to do it.

Maybe I'm misreading your tone here, but I must disagree.

I don't think a local coordinators efforts are more valuable than those of a paid employee, but I don't think they are especially less valuable either. No local coordinator should ever be expected to spend even more of their own time, effort, and money to reward others for doing their part. This is a community where we are all mutually dependent on each other to be able to enjoy the game. Given that, I think that everyone has a responsibility to ensure the health of our gaming communities in whatever ways they can. Someone who is GMing every 4-6 games isn't "stepping up." They are simply doing their part.

Am I surprised and thankful when I go to a con and get a GM goodie bag? Yes, absolutely (and some have been truly amazing). But I do not expect it. Knowing that such things come from the organizer's personal resources means that I am fine with getting a sincere thank you from them. Give me tables of engaged and enjoyable players on top of it (with no drama :D) and you'll see me at the next con for sure.

I have been reading this thread steadily and have given more and more thought to it. As a local coordinator what I want more than shiny baubles as a thank you is better tools to organize game days. Help me by providing tools to show me what scenarios my local players have played vs. not. Help me to know when my local GMs are hitting their star milestones. Help me set up recurring events on the event listing.

As I type this I have an idea percolating in my mind... time to head over to the website feedback area and start writing I think.

Catprog wrote:

How do I assign the boon to a character?

Print the boon (see the link in the blog post above), then take it with you to a PFS game on or before May 5th. The GM will sign and initial it for you, and you can then apply it to one of your characters (your choice which).

And if you're feeling nice print out some extras for the other players too.

Aklo is not Aboleth. There are lots of languages that do not appear on the lists available for PCs including a great number of race-specific languages. You won't see a Pathfinder walking around speaking Thriae for example. You might just see one speaking Dark Folk though now that the dungeon dweller trait is legal from the Dungeoneer's Handbook. Yay!

Just hand-wave the will save (failing it) for story purposes.

I think the only questionable part of not choosing is whether you should then be able to fill those traits in with something that was not a legal option for the character at the time but now is (and how do you really verify that).

For example if I see that there is a "People of the Cinderlands" book slated to come out in six months and I'm making a Shoanti character today, can I opt to not select any traits and add them later once I see what's in that book? How about feats, favored class options, or spells known (for a spontaneous caster)?

If I am GMing and see Amirian, female barbarian 10, using Shoanti-specific traits and feats when People of the Cinderlands was only recently added to the additional resources, then this looks like the player did a character rebuild, not that they simply didn't select these options for 9 levels of play. How do I audit this character? Do I just say "sure, okay, whatever"?

To me the simplest solution is that all such options are not optional. As others have pointed out, you can choose something that provides your character with no mechanical benefit.

Fame is not specific to a faction. If you switch factions your fame does not change, it carries over with you.

If you were to switch from Grand Lodge to Lantern Lodge you will need to spend the 3 prestige per character level at the time of the switch. You would then need to spend 10 more PP on the Master prestige award (assuming you have at least 40 fame). Then you would either have to use the free faction change before Aug 14 or once again pay 3 prestige per character level to switch back to Grand Lodge.

If you have at least one pawn set and haven't thrown away all the bits of extra cardboard you could cut those up into small strips with a utility knife. Then glue them onto the bottom of the paper minis and they fit in the same bases.

Note that this idea is untested and comes with no guarantee. Not liable for fingers severed or glued.

Congratulations!

If you want to focus on the more story-oriented scenarios it's very helpful to read the product review and comment threads before purchasing. They will help you tell which scenarios are more story based vs. meat grinder dungeon dives.

Checking out the PFS GM Discussion forum for any threads on the scenario in question would also be productive. Plus there's the GM shared prep thread there which becomes more awesome by the day.

If the devs wanted the character to have the feat, then they would have given the character the feat. There are lots of examples of this, including how Zen Archers get Perfect Strike, Weapon Focus, Point Blank Master, and Weapon Specialization for free. Reflexive Shot is not Snap Shot and does not count as a Snap Shot for feat prerequisites. Likewise, Flurry of Blows is not the same as Rapid Shot.

The second diagonal is not a threatened square. There is no attack of opportunity.

I believe that infusions only last 24 hours. See the preserving flask from Ultimate Equipment. This is how to get your infusions to last indefinitely.

Looks like you don't take the -4 to the grapple check when you first hit with the rope dart. The -4 from Hamatula strike is only when attempting to deal damage with the impaling weapon. That means you have an even better chance of impaling them initially and you don't take the penalty when trying to tie them up, either.

I've always wanted to use the rope dart in a build. This is the most creative use I've seen for it. I'm going to have to make a note of this build and try it in my next game.

Humanoid creatures without two free hands attempting to grapple a foe take a –4 penalty on the combat maneuver roll.

The -4 is not from Hamatula Strike.

Hmm. I reread Greater Grapple and it seems the move action grapple check is when you maintain the grapple, implying only on subsequent rounds. Some GMs might interpret that as not being possible in the round you initiated the grapple with Hamatula Strike. Anyone else see it that way or am I reading too much into it?

Greater Grapple

You receive a +2 bonus on checks made to grapple a foe. This bonus stacks with the bonus granted by Improved Grapple. Once you have grappled a creature, maintaining the grapple is a move action. This feat allows you to make two grapple checks each round (to move, harm, or pin your opponent), but you are not required to make two checks. You only need to succeed at one of these checks to maintain the grapple.

After having grappled the creature using a standard action, you can then maintain the grapple as a move action (making another CMB check with a +5 bonus [and the -4 for not having ones hands free] as normal for maintaining a grapple). Upon doing so you can choose the pin action rather than dealing damage.

Lingering Performance is good since your uses of archaeologist's luck don't increase as you level. That combined with the spells that end a performance to provide a benefit is especially nice. I went with Extra Performance on my archaeologist which I now believe was a bad decision.

The rest of the feats I took were flavor stuff. I would recommend taking the trap spotter rogue talent if you intend to fill that role - a role the archaeologist can fill exceptionally well.

What if there were some scenarios that were ONLY available to like 4&5 star people ever? Not like the EX ones that will eventually be available, but ones that will never be released to the general public?

There are plenty of areas that do not have a 4 or 5 star GM, particularly as PFS continues to expand worldwide. The single EX scenario per year is enough effort (Paizo development time) spent on exclusive content IMO.

I am certainly not against rewards for GM stars though. Having any new PFS-specific PDFs such as the Field Guide free for 4-5 star GMs does seem like a good idea to me. The audience is small enough it shouldn't cost Paizo too much in lost sales while providing a nice reward for those who will get lots of benefit from it.

Just record the additional gold spent on the next chronicle you receive. Simply mark it as "spent insufficient gold on ammo in the past XX gp". Simple, easy, and quick.

Run as written, but out of combat do a coin flip or roll high/low per charge. Having a UMD modifier of zero isn't going to do all that much because you probably won't get more than a few charges out of the wand (if that) before you lose access for 24 hours.

I made a Dwarf Inquisitor about a month ago, and have played three modules with him. Next time I play he will be level 2, but as far as I understand, you can make ANY changes to a character before he reaches level 2.

I've decided I don't really like the Inquisitor class, and I have a much better character concept for a Human Ranger. The concept would even necessitate changing factions. Basically I would be changing everything about the character. Can I still apply my prestige points and other stuff I gained over the three modules worth of play to the ranger character and treat the inquisitor as if he never existed? Or, is it too late for that?

Thanks!

You can change everything you want. You will keep the prestige you earned. The only caveat is that if you bought consumable stuff and used it you will not get a refund for that - either gold or prestige.

I had some experience with darkness in games before even starting PFS play. This is why every character i make either has a everburning torch or the ioun stone. This was a unique scenari when i played it at 4-5 though. Not only was there 2are blobs of darkness covering the room. But a stinking cloud from a summoned dretch as well. Even with my everburning torch, the stinking cloud really had us scrambling. I immediately took the gust of wind spell after playing this so i have some way to stop it if it happens again. IIRC stinking cloud is a creation effect so not subject to dispel magic.

Keep in mind that everburning torch and ioun torch won't do anything against a darkness or deeper darkness spell. There are other threads that explain all the details better than I can repeat here.

Quote:

increase the chance of mission failure, rather than the rate of death? If scenarios included an option that gave out reduced PP, Gold and/or XP if certain conditions were not met (The hostage not saved, the PCs arrested after losing the final battle, etc.)...

We already have that, its just that players refuse to run away when the challenge is too much for them. Gamers, by their nature, want to "win" as was stated above. When players seem to be over-matched and are deciding what to do, I often hear the GM say that running away is an option, but I have never seen that option taken. That would be a failed mission, and might involved lower gold, fame/prestige, and may even a loss of the XP award depending on how far into the scenario they progressed.

It's also good to ask oneself if there is a particular time pressure to fight that fight right then and there. Run away, heal up, prepare a little, even rest if you can, and come back with better tactics. Sure the enemy will be expecting you but it's still better than going down fighting. Fight smarter not deader.

I see too many people equate retreat with cowardice. "But I'm a hero/holy warrior/whatever, I can't back down." Does your code or god really honor stubborn failure more than delayed success? Really?