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Now that judgements are out for first wave, can we share with people what we made? Or is it still hush hush? Thanks, I was trying to find by Google search for any discussion of the contest, but couldn't find it in forums or the PF2e discord.
Now that judgements are out for first wave, can we share with people what we made? Or is it still hush hush?
Is there a discussion page for the entries? I remember all the chatter going on during the old Superstar contests was one of my favorite things :)
Red Mantis Magic tells us You have learned limited divine magic from your Red Mantis training. You gain the Cast a Spell activity. You’re a prepared spellcaster, able to prepare two cantrips and one 1st-level spell each day. You prepare these spells from a Red Mantis assassin spellbook, similar to a wizard’s, containing three cantrips and two 1st-level spells. All the spells in your Red Mantis assassin spellbook, from this and later feats, must be either transmutation or illusion spells from the arcane spell list or a spell from the following list: clairaudience, clairvoyance, darkness, dimension door, modify memory, obscuring mist, paralyze, see invisibility, true strike. Regardless of their usual magical tradition, your Red Mantis assassin spells are divine spells, as are any Red Mantis focus spells you gain. So can they use any arcane spell wand, or just any wand that has their specific spells or arcane illusion/transmutation? Or no wands? Or Divine wands?
Suppose they Curl up on a prior round, can they Support the next round?
https://2e.aonprd.com/AnimalCompanions.aspx?ID=28 Not sure what's fluff and what's crunch. It can't make unarmed attacks, but the support benefit indicates it uses its plates. Does it do some sort of Sonic the Hedgehog spin? Or is it unable to support?
I'm looking to sneak up as close as possible to trap up the place. And I was wondering if setting up the snare while invisibile makes it 0 information you did something there, as opposed to some information when you do it visibly. It's definitely a bit of a bummer that it ends invisibility (I guess I was hoping that it was more like: fireball can cause immediate harm, even if you don't see anything in that space)
Say you put down a QDS in combat, is it clear you spent your turn trapping? And say you are invisible (level 2). Is it more hidden, or less hidden? Does it count as hostile for ending invisibility? I appreciate all replies, but especially those with citations!
I was going to buy it today but I didn't realize the expiration was in the morning! Dang darn gosh.
Coming back to post in support of the union!
Pathfinder 2 awoke me from slumber, and I'm excited to see this is going on too! Curious if I can be of aid.
This is very exciting. I never expected Pathfinder 2, since it seemed like the premise was a forever-edition in the 3.5 style, but I'm sure there have been a lot of lessons learned that can't be implemented in any other way than a new edition, and I look forward to seeing what the Paizo team creates.We have already seen which 'lessons' Paizo learned in Starfinder and unless they ALSO have learned the complete opposite lessons that doesn't look too good for PF2.0 I haven't played too much Starfinder, so I'm still getting over the vehicle learning curve, but that's something I don't expect much of in PF2 anyway. I didn't have any big problems with the class design (Solarion was interesting in concept, but Graviton mode felt quite underwhelming in comparison to Photon), or the way multiple attacks work now (as basically a natural Rapid Shot). I didn't have a huge love for wealth remaining a secondary exp track with leveled items, so I'm hoping to see that handled a little more differently.
This is very exciting. I never expected Pathfinder 2, since it seemed like the premise was a forever-edition in the 3.5 style, but I'm sure there have been a lot of lessons learned that can't be implemented in any other way than a new edition, and I look forward to seeing what the Paizo team creates.
It's a little too much. No reason for abilities to upgrade at certain levels. Magic Resistance especially should be avoided (Yuan-Ti are overtuned for PC use). Pan Pipes aren't tuned for PC use either. Maybe if it's 1/LR. Ramming is stronger than the Lizardfolk bite, but it's probably okay mechanically. I suppose it's power-spikey for low level monks to attack for 2d4 twice instead of 1d4 twice.
I don't see why you wouldn't limit it though, unless you want sorcerers to be able to refill all their spell slots given enough short rests.
Are you referencing Fey Ancestry here? The immunity to magical sleep and resistance vs. charms? Defensive abilities like that are different from active abilities. Proficiency is relatively easy to have, advantage (especially consistent advantage) is difficult. Advantage is roughly +5 in value. I can see how this might seem strange, but it's a very deliberate thing 5e does. Elves also have Keen Senses, which means skill proficiency in Perception. When they want to show a race as being exceptional at something, they give it pseudo-Expertise. That is, they can make that skill check using twice their proficiency bonus rather what they normally might get. But this is used for fringe cases. Dwarven Stonecunning gives them this bonus to History checks relating to stonework, for example. Races don't get this to common skills. An example of that for your races would be anthrozoomorphic rapport allowing them to add twice their proficiency bonus (instead of their normal proficiency bonus) when it comes to Animal Handling their type of critter, but not for Perception checks.
That's essentially all of them, until after level 10. If you want sorc points back on SR, it should be at least be a 1/LR thing, like the Wizard's Arcane Recovery.
Oh absolutely, they should not get more attacks than other martials, since their single attack is going to be stronger than another class's single attack. What do you think about the Paladin's Smite ability?
I actually think reflavoring the Paladin would hit those notes well, since between their class feature, and the Smite spells (which deal some extra damage and have some status condition), you're pretty close to the Magus.
True that small things like that you probably won't scent out, but I think some of those examples (ex. finding a specific paper in a stack) leans towards Investigation rather than Perception anyway. For awareness of enemies, the main use of perception, there's nearly always a scent. Hobgoblins don't have free sneak attack at all in Volo's. They have a feature called "Saving Grace" which is a short rest recharge ability to get a bonus on a failed d20 when you have nearby allies watching. I do highly recommend doing away with skill advantage coming from race, as opposed to free skill prof from race. Maybe we can look at refining them one at a time.
Whoops, I meant "Shocking Grasp", but I'm glad it made sense anyway. It certainly would be best for balance if they could not attack 3 times, since that's something special the Fighter gets to do (or the Berserker Barbarian pays a high price to do). Right out of the gate, this is a high damage class, hitting for 1d8 more than others (and preventing their reactions allows you to dodge aside). Have you seen the cantrip spells Booming Blade and Green-Flame Blade, which when cast allow you to immediately make a weapon attack roll with a magical rider? If so, what are your thoughts about how they would interact with a Magus class?
So, you've got hurdles. Touch attacks don't exist in 5e, not in the way they exist in 3.x. There's no Touch AC. There are melee spell attacks, that target the same AC as everything else. So here's an example to try to understand what you want better. Say the Magus is lvl 5. Cast Shocking Strike into a longsword, attack for 1d8 slashing + 2d8 lightning + Str.
Perception is probably the most used skill in the game, and essentially everything has a scent. I know that value is from the MM, but that doesn't mean it's PC appropriate. The MM monster races aren't meant to be reverse-engineered into PC races like that, because the values are nuts for PCs.
Kobolds are in the monster section of races in Volos, so they're not strictly balanced against PC races. Hence we see penalties. You've put up a lot of work. Here's a tip though, constant advantage/disadvantage to things is pretty rare in 5e, so I'd avoid sticking it onto races. Catfolk - Check out Tabaxi and use that as a base to build subraces for. At the least, Keen Scent isn't for PCs, free skill prof in Perception is. You've used short hand so I'm not sure what you consider claw attacks. Is it an upgraded damage die for Unarmed Strike? Changeling: Should be speed 30, or else there's an optimal non-hag parent choice. Hobgoblin: Refer to Volo's. +2d6 every turn is nuts. --- Okay, I'm happy to continue reviewing your work, but I think at this point my number one recommendation is to check out Volo's to get a sense of how other races are done. That should give you some solid perspective for revising.
Create Bonfire is a pretty cool spell to pick up if you're not concentrating on anything else, and pretty hard to use if you are.
Divine Soul is the latest iteration of Favored Soul, so you're right there. If they're invulnerable, I'd probably run or trash their lab or something. Another option is Grapple + Silence.
SmiloDan, the DC scales with proficiency bonus. The damage is a little better than cantrips, a little worse than Burning Hands (which is a very close comparison). If the ability feels too weak in damage, I'm not sure how allowing people to use it more often is going to help. If the situations where you can hit enough enemies with it for the damage to be good enough is rare, having it recharge on a d6 or at-will won't solve the core issue as experienced.
I'm not a huge fan of Kensei monk, because it feels like every other monk is "punch stuff, and unique abilities" while Kensei is "punch stuff and/or stab it". I was hoping for some cooler tricks. That said, I really like the book.
I agree that a good addition to Sorcs would be some freebie spells each level, such as a Cleric's Domain spells. For Dragonborn, how many targets should the breath weapon hit to be better than a weapon attack? At levels 1-5, it deals 2-12 (7 average) damage to X opponents, save half. A greatsword attack (let's say 1-4, since there is a level offset between Extra Attack at 5 and Breath scaling at 6) deals 5-15 (10 average) damage to 1 opponent (0 on miss, 5% to crit). So on average, if you catch 2 people in the breath and they fail save, you've done more average damage. If you hit 3 people and they all make the save, you've done equal damage. That seems about right to me. Of course, there's a lot that can be done to tilt the odds in the favor of weapon attacks. Class features and feats that apply to it, but not the breath weapon. That was some quick math, but if people are interested I'd be happy to find some time to make a spreadsheet of breath vs. weapons. Of course, that's just numbers. There's no measure besides personal for considering the utility of using breath to harm enemies just out of reach, to kill someone that's low and harm others at the same time, to target a vulnerability or to avoid a resistance (particularly when lacking magical weapons), to cause unavoidable damage to force a caster to roll concentration, or on the flipside the obvious power of stacking damage onto one target at a time. For Frenzy, proceed with caution. It is a very powerful ability. That said, if you do run it with short rests removing exhaustion stacks, I'd be curious to hear how it goes (and how often your party does short rests a day).
Augh, the internet ate my post! I'm going to redo it in brief: Dragonborn: They're fine, they could use darkvision but they're currently one of the 3 races in Core that lack it I believe. The Breath weapon adds an AOE option to characters that often lack one since they tend towards warrior classes. If I gave them a buff, it'd be a free social skill proficiency. Orcs: They're essentially Half-Orcs but with the very powerful Aggressive feature if you take out the Int penalty. I'd just reflavor half-orcs as orcs if you want 'em in. Frenzied Berserker:
Sorcerer:
Cool! How is it going? Hasn't gone yet, we have a roster of chars at lvl 10 we're swapping between to playtest things. I'm hoping Disguise Self and Invisibility will each be good for one crit a day.
They're pretty consistently +2 Cha, then +1 to a swing stat. I do like them though, I'm testing Glasya Tiefling with Assassin Rogue.
You glow in combat with dim light, so the Darkvision isn't quite as useful. Good for sneaking/exploring, of course.
That's one of the few things Black Hole has going for it, it's friendly to friendly meleers (and it gets better when you position enemies into multiple folk's threaten zones). @Tarik: Supernova is excellent. I expected it to be underwhelming and to go unbalanced into Photon powers but it's always been a high performing ability, crisping goblins and space pirates.
I don't think Dark Matter is worth it if you never go into graviton mode. There are certainly reasons to, on occasion, and it's fantastic to have when you do. But I think my Solarion will take one of the utility options, either Gravity Boost or Gravity Hold.
Eh, just get enhanced resistance or a thermal shield upgrade Yeah, that's what I've been talking about getting, but it's at the expense of using that feat for DR which seems to be the popular suggestion.
Fire Resistance mitigates the on-fire effect from laser crits. We face a lot of space goblins, probably due to the low number of options currently available. There's also the occasional pistol fire from space pirates, but it hasn't been as dangerous since they don't have the numbers for it, and KAC is naturally higher. My experience has gone a long way in showing me how useful the energy resist of Solar Armor would be, because lasers are popular in space.
It might be the lack of a Bestiary, but my Solarion keeps getting shot by lasers and set on fire. With his poor reflex save and lower EAC, I'm heavily considering picking Fire Resistance instead of DR, when I get to lvl 5. Is the item level of the Solar Weapon listed somewhere? I feel like I must've skimmed by it at some point, wondering for Fusions.
Our group only has 3 players, and we naturally came to cover the first two tiers as you've put them. We now have an AI doing the Science Officer role. My Solarion often starts combat trying to taunt the enemy as Captain and making a quick shot (with the penalty), then moving to Gunner full time.
Supernova definitely gets trickier with more friendlies in melee, while Black Hole gets better. Still, I think Black Hole should do something even if they make the save. Drag them half the distance at least.
So, a friend hopped in to guest star this session, and he wanted to play a Solarion so we copy-pasted mine and gave him Graviton stuff instead of Photon. Black Hole feels a lot worse than Supernova. Supernova wipes goblins, or hurts them a lot even if they save.
I think going forward, our group might buff Black Hole in some way, make it more reliable. Maybe remove the save, since after all you have to charge up so long to use it. Dark Matter didn't do anything for him because everyone had lasers, which also was unfortunate. Maybe things will get better when the Bestiary comes out, because right now Fire Resist looks better than DR.
It's good for some range, but certainly has shorter range than most ranged weaponry.
The challenge will be in running the Starship Combat and regular combat at the same time, because Starship Combat rounds are not 6 seconds. It would be a "breaktime for everyone else while the soldier fights the boarding party, then we return to the ship combat" situation.
Have you started a google doc or something to tabulate this data? There's certainly a lot, I'd be interested in seeing what you've already classified and contribute to that.
I'd spring for the Tactical Pike at melee lvl 1, reach is worth another 100cr.
Good point, activating the armor is vital but very easy to do after the first nuke, since Starship Combat turns are longer than normal combat rounds, it shouldn't interfere with your crew function. My interpretation was that you save vs. Radiation Poisoning for each round you are in an irradiated environment, regardless of whether you fail or succeed on prior saves.
So this is something my group struggled with, because the rules are pretty spread out. Hopefully we got it right, and this can help others. The section on radiation begins on p. 403, and continues into p. 404. Each round you are exposed to radiation, you are exposed to it as a poison, and make a Fort saving throw based on the level of radiation you are in, lest you progress down the Constitution Poison track on p. 415. Also on p. 415, note that upon initial exposure to radiation (or any type of poison), whether you make the save or not, you lose HP equal to the DC - 10. As written this bypasses Stamina. If you have failed 2 saves against Radiation (poison) and are Impaired in the Con Poison track, not only do you have -4 to Fort saves and some other stuff, but you also risk getting Radiation Sickness (DC 18), per p. 404. I believe each time your state deteriorates due to the poison effect, you risk catching Radiation Sickness again. We were confused for a while because all it said for Effect was that "Radiation sickness isn't contagious", but it's a Physical track Disease, which means p. 414 details the effects. Also very relevant and at least for us, easily missed, armor provides protection against radiation (poison). On p. 198, you'll see that all armor grants immunity against low levels of radiation, and offers a +4 bonus against higher levels. Level 7 and higher armor protects fully against medium radiation as well, and offers a +6 bonus against higher levels. So those nukes you launch in starship combat, just by virtue of dealing hit point damage by exposing those within to poison, might kill unarmored folks. Probably just the civilians though.
Right, it's hard to determine what happens. 1) I would think that it does not, because Starship combat doesn't present an immediate threat to the characters themselves. Does Stellar Mode activate if the building you're in is getting shelled, but you don't have any control over it? 2) Technically, Starship Combat is a form of combat, so Stellar Mode should activate. 3) Also technically, "Combat" as described on p. 238 is different from "Starship Combat" on p. 317. Starship Combat rounds don't represent 6 seconds as a Combat round does. That's the 1-2-3 of my thoughts on the matter. 3 sounds like rules lawyering, but it also lines up with your expectations of intent (also my expectations of intent).
Does Stellar Mode activate, and Sidereal Influence shut off when you're in Starship Combat? I want to say no, because you're not directly threatened, but I'm not actually sure.
My Solarion Icon is a video personality, of a religious themed heretic-purging vlog. I considered evangelizing as well, but decided it would be funnier if it was a bit he started believing was real.
How about a famous Conspiracy Theorist?
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I wanted to bring this up again since in the last playtest I brought up the notion of making an Ooze summoner that received alchemy extracts instead of a spell discipline. Now that the inventor has the option of a new pet class with a completely tech based minion that he has partial control over. I propose a version of the inventor that focuses on animating chemical compounds that gets a small ooze as a companion. It would work much in the same way as the Construct companion having its own form of overdrive that causes the ooze to destabilize and explode, likely dealing acid damage instead of fire. It would gain its own unique breakthroughs such as splitting, id intellect, morphic transformation into animals or objects. At higher levels it could even get transparency, paralysis, and engulf. Imagine coming into town riding into the alchemy exhibition astride gelatinous cube? You'd be the belle of the ball.
After reviewing the summoner a bit I had an idea. Actually, this was an idea I've had since 1e summoner, but I have a feeling it might work better with 2e.
I also considered the Humuculus as another option for the Alchemy Summoner, but the play test seems to consider constructs more appropriate for arcane magic. They would have to add Summon Construct on their formula list. Let me know what you think? Could this idea work? What changes would you make? Most importantly, would it be fun to play A Boy and His Blob?
I find myself extremely underwhelmed by the Magus's Striking Spell. It fails to be anywhere near as amazing as 1e Spell Strike and Spell Combat combined. Meanwhile, where Flurry of blows decreases two attacks to a single action and Double Slice negates the multi attack penalty fighting with two weapons, Striking spell doesn't feel any different than a normal wizard casting a spell and striking in the same round. Where 1e sacrificed a touch attack for the chance to get 15-20 crit range or x3 crit multiplier on a spell combined with the appropriate weapon damage in addition to strength, 2e requires you to attempt to attack twice. You need to have enough strength or dex to be able to hit the target and you need enough intelligence so you can also hit the target with the spell. Even if you do score a crit, there is a chance of not critting with the spell. Ultimately it makes spell casting less effective. I swear, if a player ever tries to cast magic missile into their sword they are dead to me.
For Striking Spell, it says "If your next action is to Cast a Spell that can target one creature or object, instead of casting as normal, you place its magic into one melee weapon you’re wielding or into your body to use with an unarmed attack." Does that mean you choose to cast magic missile through your strike since it also targets 1 creature? If so does that mean if the strike crits than the magic missile auto-crits since you don't roll attack or saving throw for that spell. Also, do you just cast the 1 missile or can you charge it with both with the 2 action missile (or 3 if hasted)?
There is a slight problem with the Spirit Sheath ability. It says the spirit sheath may only hold one weapon at a time and the weapon must be 1 Bulk or less. What good is Hammer Space if she can't store her Maul in her purse? And don't try to say that wasn't what what you were going for because I KNOW you are lying! Increase the storage to 2 Bulk or less. That's all we are asking.
I really could use some help clarifying the wording of a particular supplement. The Magic Tactics Toolbox included a new archetype for the witch called the Havocker, which at face value seems to be the heel to the hex healer (pun intended) trading hexes for kinetic blasting power. Upon first glance it seemed pretty balanced. Take away hexes, get kinetic blast, and every few levels get a new form blast. Not as powerful as kineticist, but with the proper application of feats and spells, could be more diverse.
The format for archetypes always includes a very clear description of what is being replaced at the bottom of the class ability's description. The name of the class ability would seem to imply that the witch's patron was being replaced by the element, but the line (bold-ed) above in the text impies the familiar is trading out abilities in this archetype. So what is different about the Havocker's familiar? Is it like the Winter Witch who may only choose a familiar that is comfortable with her chosen element? Does the witch, in choosing an element as her patron, not get a familiar? If so, where does she keep the spells she knows and how does she learn new ones? Did the author mean to write "This ability replaces the witch's patron" or "This ability replaces the witch's familiar" and clerical errors occurred before print? These are all theories, of course. I would really like to attempt this archetype, but before I put an emotional investment into this character I want to make sure I have covered all my bases so I can play without fear of rule-lawyering.Infernal is a precise and deliberate language and hell hath no fury like a pathfinder scorn'd.
What I like:
What it is missing:
The Vigilante Specializations are flavorful and each is unique. But like the Shaman, it would benefit from a few "universal talents". Having a Mount would be universally beneficial. Archetypical characters like the Lone ranger or Ghost Rider always had a trusty mount that provides transport and combat assistance. For that matter, the Vigilate could benefit from gaining a vehicle of some sort. Either a chariot or a magically propelled cart of some kind. The vehicle mechanism is so under used and would give the Skilled Driver and Expert Driver feats some use.
Concept-wise, the class was intriguing. I've always wanted a class that was more general in its abilities than the classic roles. Something that would fit an adventurer like Link from Legend of Zelda or Mario Jumpman Mario. So a single class that fills all four classic rp roles is an interesting turn and I wanted to explore its potential. I tried to think of an existing hero that would fit the archetype of the vigilante (other than the obvious) and my affinity for Nintendo characters brought me to Captain Falcon of the series F-Zero. So I gave it a shot. Granted, my original concept for him was a monk/rogue so it wasn't too hard to adjust his feats to fit the new class choice. Below is his stat block. Let me know what you think. Captain Falcon
*Edit: Falcon Punch is, naturally, Elemental Fist as gained through the Dragon Style feat tree.
We should begin by explaining how this forum will work.
I don't know how much of the actual game we will finish this week, but this will allow us to continue on even if we run out of time again.
The Pathfinders were investigating the recent destruction of Sheila Heidmarch's green house by a recent shipment of Angelic Guardians from Golemworks in Magnamar. After tracking down the creator of the golems, an artificer by the name of Chrysalis Black, they confront the alleged saboteur and a battle ensues. The quick use of deep slumber took Chrysalis Black out of commission early in the battle. This drew the wrath of his pet earth elemental (that he saved many year ago from being bound to a golem) that was hiding beneath the floor boards and burst through attacking the party. It took quite some effort, but he was eventually dispatched moments before Reemis returned with a contingent of guards to investigate the commotion. He appologizes for the trouble and informs the Pathfinders that Black has another place of business that he operates out of his Mother's old house. It is in the Naos district and it is known as the Doll House. He warns the PCs to be wary if they wish to confront Black. "If Black sent his simulacrum to confront you, it is likely that he already knows you have been here. There is something treacherous afoot and I fear you may have little time to waste!" This is a continuation of Sunday's scenerio since it was cut short. I'm a little new to this format of forum, but message board rp was my first rp game back in 96, so we should get the hang of it. (just doing a search for the codes for text format, embedding, and rolling dice, etc) So, let's get started with a Pathfinders in Pittsburgh Role call! |
