Respectable Hobbit's page

Thank you. Have a nice day.

One of the items in your order lists as Usually ships from our warehouse in 8 to 17 business days. Your order was placed 1/17/09 and today is the 13th business day so your order should ship within the next few days.

Also, by your count, Saturday is not a "business day." Is this correct?

This has been 'pending' for a couple weeks now. When is it going to ship? What's the delay?

I'm pretty sure she's Rushuna Tendo from the anime Grenadier. (in disguise!)

Saying "the queen is crazy" is a lazy justification.

Well, so long as you make it clear that Ileosa (or the entity controlling her) is truly insane, then I suppose it justifies anything she does. So the Gray Maidens really have nothing to do with the queen's jealousy and are just another means of asserting control of Korvosa?

I'm really not understanding the Gray Maidens, as described in Pathfinder #8. So, like any female villain, Queen Ileosa is jealous of other attractive females. A bit cliche, but so far so good.

So why is she taking strong, beautiful women from the Korvosan military? Heroic PCs and NPCs aside (who always have dazzlingly perfect hair even in the worst conditions!), women in the military and law enforcement are not likely to be stunningly beautiful or remain that way for very long. Not after a few years of working up a sweat swinging a sword every day and getting into fights. You'd think Ileosa's jealousy would be directed more towards noblewomen with whom she interacts regularly.

Then it says that women who don't pass "the Queen's examination for strength and beauty" are secretly killed. Why? Why summon women to serve you and then kill them because they didn't pass the test to be in your secret army? If they don't have the "strength and beauty" to be in the Gray Maidens, there should be no harm in letting them go before they have a chance to really learn anything.

And finally, if Ileosa is in fact a lesbian, wouldn't she rather have an army of attractive, loyal eye candy that serves only her? Rather than heavily scarred women who wear concealing steel helmets? Sabina is at least as attractive as Ileosa and is allowed to show it off. Any male ruler who has an eye for women wouldn't be content with just one hot chick in his employ (see King Eodred).

The Vancaskerikin family to me sounds like a combination of the names 'Vanderboren' and 'Smallcask' that appeared throughout several Dungeon APs. Someone at Paizo just likes the word 'cask.'

Even if Queen Ileosa was evil from the start, simply being inside her head (as a DM) for so long creates a sense of attachment. A lot moreso than I had with, say, Karzoug, who was absent for most of the adventure path. I'm not saying that Ileosa shouldn't die a horrible and well-deserved death at the hands of the PCs, just that every now and then I find myself secretly thinking to myself "if someone just took away her weapons and made her stand in the corner, she'd get better." And then moments later I snap back to reality.

Was she planning to murder the king before she became possessed? I thought she was just going to wait for him to die of old age, a la Anna Nicole. I'd like to know more about the nature of her possession, but I expect that will all be detailed when the PCs actually have to face her (I'm just reading Pathfinder 7 now).

It feels ironic to me that the more detailed an NPC is, the more I become attached to them and the less I want them to die. By the time I finish reading an adventure path, I'm more attached to the villains whose behind-the-scenes lives I've been following than my PCs. (I suppose it might help if I ever had players who could create interesting PCs) In RotRL my heart went out to folks like Nualia and Orik Vankaskerkin, who were really the victims of poor choices more than anything else. I'm starting to get that feeling with Ileosa, who doesn't seem like she was much more than a stupid, spoiled teenager before she opened "the wrong box" under Castle Korvosa. Oh well, just sharing thoughts.

Leovinous wrote:

The other hottie is the is what i am assuming is the paladin on page 71 named pos...nothing like crossbows and and short skirts...lol

Oh yes, that Justiciar (which I guess she is) is quite hot, too. She can totallc compete with the three hotties from Edge of Anarchy (the Queen, Sabina and Trinia).

I took one look at this blonde cowgirl and immediately thought of Ryusuna Tendo from Grenadier. And if that's the sort of anime that inspires the art design at Paizo, I... I don't know how I feel. o.O;;

(For the record, Ryusuna is one of my all-time favorite anime babes, but... GAH!! x.X)

It sounds like this creature... the Norn? Is tricking Lini into druidom. She sets the leopard on her to drive her companions away, then she tells Lini she "doesn't need them anymore." Sounds like faerie-seduction to me.

I should have had Bozal release it as a dying act, but I didn't think of it until it was too late. Bozal's been dead for several minutes now. The PCs have already examine the Apostolic Scrolls and made all their Knowledge checks, so they know how the Scrolls work. Plus, the rogue is currently trapped within the Dreams of Kyuss box in Bozal's room.

In "Champion's Belt," the PCs killed Bozal before he was able to release the ulgurstasta. Ugh. NEVER have a PC that does something "if reduced to fewer than 5 hit points." That almost never happens.

It's extremely unlikely that the PCs have the means to shut off the containment field on their own, according to the methods described in the sidebar on p. 60. They don't have a cleric powerful enough to make the turn check and caster check (there is no cleric, actually, only a paladin), and they certainly don't have access to any of the spells listed in the top bullet point. The only option, it looks like, is to go with the third bullet point, which sounds like it requires a lot of math headaches and having a Fiend Folio.

If I go with this third option, it could be several days before the ulgurstasta is released. The PCs still have to finish the rest of the tournament. The tournament could be over by the time the ulgurstasta is released, and the PCs certainly won't have access to the underground chambers of the area once the games are over. Plus, I really don't want to stretch out the game any longer than I have to. We've been stuck on this chapter for a few months because of delays, so I really want to move it to a finish as soon as possible.

Any ideas?

I believe the phrase you are looking for, if you do indeed want to go down that route, is "PIX PLZ!"

See? Staff your next booth at a con with hot female GMs in Acadamae uniforms and watch Pathfinder books fly off shelves!

That said, I sort of wish the school was a little more like Hogwarts and not so blatantly Lawful Evil. If I want to run adventures there, my PCs are either infiltrators or extremely unpopular students. Or I'm running an Evil campaign, which is a different beast entirely.

I wanna say the Acadamae uniforms pictured in the Guide to Korvosa are awesome. Nothing like school uniforms combined with fantasy elements to get me thinking of anime! The Acadamae seems a bit like Hogwarts... I'd describe it as "Hogwarts with a lot more devil-summoning and a lot less ice cream."

What's the weird half-cape thing that they have? I've just been calling it a half-cape. Does it have a more proper name? I kept thinking the black dude (a Shoanti?) in the one pic was wearing a skirt, until I realized all the uniforms have those capes.

Any chance that Senior GMs of the Pathfinder Society could get uniforms like that to wear at cons? Would definitely make a statement!

I guess I just don't see it that way. I can roleplay perfectly well without "complex issues."

"Why bother? Someone will take care of this, even if we don't. Let's find something more lucrative." an attitude which is neither heroic nor adventurous.

I would at least like to see some explanation as to why the powers of Good (deities, angels, etc) aren't involved as much in the day-to-day of Golarion as their counterparts seem to be. Did the forces of Good make some sort of an agreement to stay out of the affairs of the Prime, but got tricked by the forces of Evil, who violate the agreement frequently? I'd make me feel better if I knew that Zaphkiel and his crew were gnashing their teeth in frustration somewhere because they can't just go down and kick Asmodeus' church out of the Prime. And that explains why PCs are needed.

So I'm noticing that each issue of Pathfinder has a new iconic character on the cover. There's four iconics 'assigned' to each Adventure Path (given the pregens in the back of the book), but each Adventure Path six issues! Do the math and you can see where this is going. Is Paizo going to create new iconics for each cover indefinitely, or go back and use old ones? Or will they occasionally put a villain or an NPC on the cover?

After purchasing and reading through (glancing, in some cases) various Pathfinder projects, I can't help but notice that the Pathfinder Campaign Setting seems to be a place where evil often rampages unchecked. Tyrants routinely oppress the weak and create misery, people openly worship devils and evil powers, and cruelty seems common. I know a D&D world that's full of conflict and strife is better than a world where everything's peaceful, but I wonder if Pathfinder's overdoing it? Where are the bastions of good and the havens of peace, love, and safety in the world?

Note: Please don't take this as a complaint. I'm just trying to see how my opinion matches up with everyone else's.

Once you're a DM, you're kinda stuck being a DM. Most people want to play. I wish I could play through all the cool stuff coming out from Paizo and Wizards, but I'm mostly stuck DMing too.

I was a little confused when I saw Pathfinder Companion added to the product line. We've already got Pathfinder, Pathfinder Chronicles, and tons of other supporting products. Why add yet another line of books?

I saw this mini at D&D Experience last week. Here's something the picture DOESN'T tell you - you can pop off the base and put hapless adventurers inside! Very useful with the 4th edition gelatinous cube, who is a lot tougher than the 3rd edition version. This beastie slides down a dungeon hall, scooping up adventurers left and right! Love it.

Hey folks, that's my voice you heard giving the interview on the podcast. Thanks for listening! For what it's worth, Perkins and Girard were really great to talk to and were really patient with my amateurish interviewing skills. They really seemed like they were EXCITED about 4E, because it was something they were proud of, not just because it was something they wanted to sell. Having played a sample of 4E at the con, I'm pretty excited about it myself.

Please stay tuned for more of my interviews! Although you should really listen to the PEOPLE being interviewed and ignore my rambling, stuttering voice. :)

I love the goblin art in Burnt Offerings, especially the cover, but I only today realized that the signs in the street are for the Fatman's Feedbag and the Pixie's Kitten, and that they're appropriately placed in relation to the map.

Kudos.

-Amber S.

Stupid gobins. ;)

Is the book set in Yarth or Aerth? The back of the book says Aerth, but in the book they say Yarth. Anyone know where to find a map of Yarth? There must have been one for the Dangerous Journeys game.

I'm not sure what to call this. A new high? A new low? Of all the monsters I need mini's for, the gelatinous cube is probably at the bottom of my list.

Still, the mini looks cool. And at least now my gelatinous cubes won't have these strange number-shaped runes on them.

I happen to work in a customer service position (not for Wizards of the Coast). I can say what happened to you is fairly standard, if not generous. On any given day I answer about 100 emails and 10-20 snail mails, most of which ask a lot of the same questions. Even if the letter is very eloquently written, we have to follow procedure and send the proper form letter response. We just don't have time to write out a personal response to everyone, and we can't call up the central office (ie, the people who actually run the company) for every letter either.

I imagine that WotC is not as big as the company I work for, and they're in the middle of developing and launching a whole new product line, so they need all their attention focused on that. All the major decisions involved were probably made months ago, and it's very difficult for a big company to switch gears midstream. Even if they really liked your ideas, they can't do anything about it right now.

Noticing stuff like that just means you've been looking at it WAY too long... :)

Actually, I noticed a few things too, but I assumed some pieces of work are carefully designed and postured to keep the focus where the artist wants it. Realism doesn't always provide the image that the artist is trying to capture.

I personally don't like Seoni. With her red nose and goofy hair, she looks like a clown.

So why does everyone I know roll their eyes in disgust when they find out that Madam Eva is a hag? Was she important in the Ravenloft setting?

Something strikes me as interesting about the illustration of Seoni on the cover of Pathfinder 2, and no it's not her Cha 16 displayed up front and center. Look at her right leg. Doesn't it seem a little odd to you? Her foot is forward of her knee, and the musculature of her knee is all weird. It almost looks like her knee is bent backwards. The whole leg reminds me of a horse's foreleg, or a deer. The thick leg-warmers she's wearing certainly makes her foot look like it's got a hoof. And where's her other leg? It just seems to disappear. All of this, combined with her forward-thrust upper body and wonky posture make me think Mr. Reynolds was halfway through drawing a centaur when he got the assignment and just decided to switch gears.

Just 2 cents from an Art History major trying to put his degree to work. :P

So, what was Madam Eva in the original Ravenloft? And why should I care that she's a hag now?

I ran across some more questions while playing last night.

The map seems to indicate that the whole adventure takes place in an area of 2 square miles. That seems a little small. Is this correct?

Who is this Sir Urik? The book doesn't say what he's doing there. And why is the raven a holy symbol? It's a black bird and a omen of death, so it doesn't make sense to me that it would be a symbol of hope to these people.

The description of the Ivlis Marsh on page 50 doesn't say where the Sunsword is buried. The Fortunes of Ravenloft indicated that the Sunsword was there, so where is it?

I have never read any Ravenloft products, so I am thankfully unaware of all the changes that have been made. Castle Ravenloft is just a castle on a hill above a town in the Barony of Barovia. The valley is surrounded by mists that won't let the PCs leave until they beat Strahd, but they're not "The Mists of Ravenloft."

My players have never read any Ravenloft products, either. Trust me, they're already having a wonderful spooky time without me adding any Ravenloft-specific lore.

The fortune-teller in question is an Ôcchai ("Asian") woman who appears as an eternally-youthful girl but with a severe expression and a haunting stare. She dresses in voluminous black robes, carries a wand of burnt ashwood, and is always attended by a flock of ravens. I think she'll be sufficiently spooky for my players.

I am running this at home for my players. We're currently done with the zombie plague in town, and the PCs are on their way to see Madam Eva.

I want to replace Madam Eva with an important NPC from my own campaign world, who also happens to be a fortune-teller. This NPC is not a hag, not evil, and not really tied to the current adventure. She's just there to foreshadow events in my next campaign, which will be entirely my own story in my own world (something I haven't done for a long time).

Seeing how Madam Eva is a hag and has 2 other evil hag sisters in the adventure, which I assume the players will have to fight at some point, how will making this change effect the rest of the adventure?

Just read the recent novel by James Wyatt.

Can anyone tell what Rienne is supposed to be? Considering her anime-like style of fighting, I'm guessing she's a class from Book of Nine Swords, but I haven't read that book.

Lolth & Eilistraee seem to kill all the Drow gods in their little chest game.

After reading the section on the lizardfolks' lair, I'm not clear on a few things. For starters, what hook is there to get the PCs to go into the room with the eggs? Once the PCs have freed Marzena and the other hostages, there's no incentive for them to stick around (my PCs aren't quite as treasure-hungry as some). Also, the notes don't really say how Hishka the druid and Shukak the lizard king react to news about the green worms in the slain lizardfolk in room 6C.

And finally... what is a mangaroo tree?!

Once again, this is a dup threat. Sorry. Don't post here. Will some moderator please delete this thread? x_x

This has been great, guys. Thanks a lot. I'm gonna have to find a way to copy all these and preserve them. In the meantime, keep 'em coming. Like the last guy said, more one-liners and quick-witted quips would be good. Something my bard can whip out quickly during a battle or to lighten to mood during a tense negotiation.

And my bard's a girl, by the way. Baklunish immigrant to Keoland, likes to dress in pink and dye her hair with pink highlights. Refers to herself as a 'Professional Monster Hunter.'

Sorry about the double post. Delete this thread. x_x

I have a PC who is a bard-worshipper of Zagyg, who is, among other things, a god of humor. I need a repertoire of bad jokes for her to tell in any given situation. Really, really bad jokes that still fit the D&D setting. Long jokes. Short jokes. Dirty jokes. Clean jokes. Puns. Riddles. Physical gags (like 'pull my finger'). Schtick. Submit your bad jokes here!

I have a PC who's a bard of Zagyg, who is, among other things, a god of humor. I need her to have a repotoire of bad jokes to tell in any given situation. Really, really bad jokes that still fit the D&D setting. Long jokes. Short jokes. Dirty jokes. Clean jokes. Puns. Riddles. Physical gags (like 'pull my finger'). Schtick. Submit them here!

Okay, I just realized I have no effing clue what's happening in this comic. Seriously. It's not like I just started reading it; I've been a subscriber for over a year. Can someone PLEASE explain to me who these people are and what they're fighting about? And why did Downer spit out that chicken?

Zagyg!!!

I play female characters for a number of reasons. Usually when I'm making characters, female character concepts just pop into my head. I'd say I have a strong feminine side and I wondered if I was gay for a while (I'm not), but I also like cute things. Pink is one of my favorite colors. Playing a female makes me feel 'free.' I can be perky and pretty or grumpy and sarcastic, and it somehow just works better for me. I've played a few male characters, but the female characters were my favorites. I did once play a male half-elf who was actually gay and kept making passes at one of the other PCs. It was mostly just for laughs and to watch the other guy squirm, but he took it well. I play with a young, open-minded crowd, so there's lots of openness to cross-gender roleplaying and homosexuality. Also, most of my characters tend to be a little bit silly. There's the Baklunish female bard who dresses in pink cowgirl leathers and acts like a Japanese pop star. There's the female halfling cleric of Yondalla who thinks that apples are symbols of her diety's divine love.

I don't generally worry about playing females "right." I just play the character that's in my head. My opinion is that men and women are pretty much the same in every way that matters, and if we'd actually just stop to listen to each other, we'd understand each other a lot better. I don't talk in falsetto or anything. People occasionally mess up their pronouns, but no one actually forgets that my character is female.

Sweet! Keep it up.

I keep reading on the message boards that the Adventure Paths are designed for 6 players. Where is this information coming from? Was it in a news post or one of the magazines? Are all Dungeon adventures designed for 6 players or just the APs?