Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon (PFRPG)

4.00/5 (based on 8 ratings)
Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon (PFRPG)
Show Description For:
Non-Mint

Add Print Edition $12.99 $6.49

Add PDF $9.99

Non-Mint Unavailable

Facebook Twitter Email

A Perfect Night for a Curse!

Channel the power of the moon and turn the curse of lycanthropy into a potent blessing with Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon! Whether you were born with traces of bestial blood from a lycanthropic ancestor or you were bitten by a werewolf and have transformed into one completely, this volume contains everything you need to embrace the beast within and become a fearsome weapon against your enemies. Become a protector of the natural world as a scion of a werebear, revel in bloodshed with the wolf fighting style created by your ancestors, or find your calling in the witch practices of your werecrocodile forerunners. Even if you do not take directly after these bestial horrors of the night, there is much to learn from associating with them—as either ally or hunter. The choice is yours with Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon!

Inside this book, you’ll find:

  • Rules and information for the all-new skinwalker race—versatile humans distantly descended from lycanthropes, who have the power to take monstrous forms.
  • Eight unique skinwalker heritages to choose from, allowing characters to channel the power of such creatures as the mighty wereboar, cunning wererat, or brutal weretiger.
  • Tips, suggestions, and new ways to play a lycanthrope, hide your dreaded curse, and even find a cure for your affliction.
  • An in-depth examination of the lycanthropic transformation process, as well as a lunar calendar to track the phases of the moon on Golarion and ensure you don’t get caught off guard on the night of the next full moon.
  • New feats, spells, magic items, and rules options for characters from all walks of life— including the new lunar oracle mystery, transformative globes of moonlight, and mighty pelts that grant the powers of animals!

This Pathfinder Player Companion is intended for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can easily be incorporated into any fantasy world.

Written by Tim Akers, Adam Daigle, Neal Litherland, David N. Ross, and Tork Shaw.
Cover Art by Kieran Yanner.

Each monthly 32-page Pathfinder Player Companion contains several player-focused articles exploring the volume’s theme as well as short articles with innovative new rules for all types of characters, as well as traits to better anchor the player to the campaign.

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-578-5

Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:

Hero Lab Online
Fantasy Grounds Virtual Tabletop
Archives of Nethys

Product Availability

Print Edition:

Available now

Ships from our warehouse in 11 to 20 business days.

PDF:

Fulfilled immediately.

Non-Mint:

Unavailable

This product is non-mint. Refunds are not available for non-mint products. The standard version of this product can be found here.

Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at store@paizo.com.

PZO9439


See Also:

1 to 5 of 8 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | next > last >>

Average product rating:

4.00/5 (based on 8 ratings)

Sign in to create or edit a product review.

Watered Down Lycanthropes

2/5

Blood of the Moon is all about lycanthropes--“true” lycanthropes like werewolves, humans with lycanthropic ancestors (skinwalkers), and (I guess most broadly) creatures whose abilities are influenced by the waxing and waning of the moon. I can confess this has never been a concept that I’ve been particularly interested in, and I only bought the book because it contains some stuff for my Groetus-worshipping Oracle. On the other hand, I recognise the book definitely does fill a demand relating to the “big three” pop culture monsters: vampires, zombies, and werewolves.

We’ll start with the cover, which is downright awesome! I often think these Player Companion covers are better than many of the ones that went on the game’s main rulebook line. The inside-front-cover has capsule descriptions of the new “skinwalker” races introduced in the book: werebat-kin, werebear-kin, wererat-kin, wereshark-kin, wereboar-kin, weretiger-kin, werecrocodile-kin, and werewolf-kin. (Yes, I was a bit embarrassed to write that sentence). The inside back cover is a lunar calendar for the year 4713, and includes a new trait called “Child of the Moon” that gives a bonus to a particular skill depending on what phase the moon is currently in. I remember having a player in a campaign that took this for their PC, and it was kind of a pain always looking up what the phase of the moon was before rolling a simple skill check.

Most of the book is about the new race, skinwalkers, and the variations listed above. Skinwalkers are humans who are descendants of true lycanthropes and offer some of the flavour of true lycanthropes, relatively minor special abilities, and none of the risk of being feral murder-machines. For each of the eight variations of skinwalkers, the book devotes two pages of description, traits, and feats. Frankly, most are fairly forgettable in my opinion and I’m not convinced they’re a worthwhile addition to the game. And in contrast to the amazing cover, the interior artwork is stiff and even a bit goofy looking--who wants to play a werebat-kin as pictured on p. 8?

The book does devote some pages to true lycanthropes, with some interesting flavour and detail. There are also two pages of “lycanthropic gear”--alchemical items to help in fighting off lycanthropes, but also a pelt of the beast magic item that’s essentially a no-brainer for skinwalkers. Two pages of the book are devoted to “The Moon” in the broadest sense, and includes a new oracle mystery (“lunar”) that is quite detailed and very useful. (though I should note that one of the included revelations, Primal Companion, is a really OP option).

Overall, I’d rank Blood of the Moon as one of the lesser entries in the Player Companion line. Maybe it scratches an itch for some people, but throwing what’s essentially eight new races at the wall in one little book doesn’t really do justice to any of them; and I doubt, in terms of game mechanics and respect for game balance, they let players achieve what they really want.


Fantastic!

5/5

It'd be hard for me to say what I like about this book better than the other reviewers, so I will point you to the other reviews for this product for in-depth descriptions of what this book contains. I just want to let it be known that the Skinwalker is a great, versatile race that can do almost anything a PC is looking for, in one way or another. It's not overpowered by any means, there are very clearly-outlined fluff- and crunch-based drawbacks for having this versatility, but they only serve to enhance the race as a whole. Along with the race come various flavor-full traits and other options (feats, Magus Arcana, etc...) for PCs to use.
If you're looking for a Player's Companion to buy, I heartily recommend the Blood of the Moon.


4/5

I've reviewed this book over on RPGGeek.com.


Ring Side Report- Review of Pathfinder Player Companion-Blood of the Moon

5/5

Product- Pathfinder Player Companion- Blood of the Moon

Producer- Paizo

Cost- ~$13

Page Count-32

TL;DR- An excellent addition to the Player Companion line-97%

Summary- This book focuses on the “in-between” creatures called skinwalkers. These creatures are not quite were-creatures, but are not wholly human either. This book presents eight separate skinwalker races giving an rundown on where each might come from in the world, the background on their psychology and physiology, as well as a suite of powers and abilities for each one. In addition the book give ways to become a lycanthrope as well as some gear/items that each were-creature might need or you might need to combat them.

Art/Layout- This is the Pathfinder art we know and love. It’s well laid out and every skinwalker has a picture to show what they look like when they change. I thought the art was well done in this one. 5 /5

Story or “Fluff”- This one is fluff-tastic! Every skinwalker gets a full, well done rundown and their own section. You can make an extremely well rounded skinwalker from this book, and that is the sign of an excellent source book. Also the addition of how true were-creatures interact with the various skinwalker does give some surprising depth to the book. 2.25/2.5

Mechanics or “Crunch”- Each skinwalker gets a great section on its own mechanics and its own traits. Also there is a large section of skinwalker feats that any skinwalker would want. In addition, each skinwalker gets an associated class that gets its own powers. Mind you not every class can have powers/abilities in a 32 page book, but what’s there is done well. Even better, most of the class powers/abilities/features are not limited to skinwalkers! 2.25/2.5

Execution- This book was well executed. As a reader, I learned about a whole new sector of society and its background. It felt natural. Also, the background filled me in quite well. Each section is self contained, and nothing in the book feels like it was tacked on. Even the sections of complete fluff feel like they were needed. 5 /5

Final Thoughts -This is an excellent book. I enjoyed reading this from cover to cover. I want to play one of these confused, misunderstood monsters! And honestly, even if you don’t want to play a were-thing, the extra class options really make this a well done book on its own. 97%


Lots of lycanthropic flavour!

4/5

Read my full review on Of Dice and Pen.

Blood of the Moon is not a book that will be useful for every campaign. It’s a niche product and many campaigns will likely have limited use for it. However, people who want to add a touch of lycanthropic flavour to their campaign or just want the option of playing new races will find the book adds a lot of useful options and more importantly, flavour.


1 to 5 of 8 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | next > last >>
1 to 50 of 517 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | next > last >>
Webstore Gninja Minion

Announced! Cover image is a mockup and subject to change.

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Oh man.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber

Oh no.


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

:D


Looking forward to it. :)

Silver Crusade

13 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Nice. Looking forward to it. Though I also hope it's better then Blood of the Night.

-Kcinlive


I thought we might see this one eventually but I didn't think it was going to be this soon though.


Gorbacz wrote:
But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?

While I disagree that Blood of the Moon needs to be better than Blood of the Night (the latter was a very decent book in my opinion), this one does seem to have a more narrow focus. Where Blood of the Night tackled vampires, dhampirs, AND vampire hunters, Blood of the Moon seems to focus on the main monster and its two versions (natural and afflicted). That, I think, is a good choice for this book.

Dark Archive

Skinwalkers they going to be similair to Eberron shifters or pretty diffrent?


Yesss, one of my top Pathfinder wishes is being granted. I am so looking forward to this book!

"Skinwalker" is an unusual thematic choice for the "PC Lycanthrope" race. It will be interesting to see how it is set up.


Heine Stick wrote:
Gorbacz wrote:
But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?
While I disagree that Blood of the Moon needs to be better than Blood of the Night (the latter was a very decent book in my opinion), this one does seem to have a more narrow focus. Where Blood of the Night tackled vampires, dhampirs, AND vampire hunters, Blood of the Moon seems to focus on the main monster and its two versions (natural and afflicted). That, I think, is a good choice for this book.

Not quite true. It seems like this book will have an additional section: Skinwalkers, who seem to be a sort of lesser natural lycanthrope. Luckily though, all of these things (or at least the natural and afflicted lycans) are similar enough that I think it will be more tightly focused than Blood of the Night.


Matrix Dragon wrote:
Not quite true. It seems like this book will have an additional section: Skinwalkers, who seem to be a sort of lesser natural lycanthrope. Luckily though, all of these things (or at least the natural and afflicted lycans) are similar enough that I think it will be more tightly focused than Blood of the Night.

Ah. Guess I hadn't read the product description well enough after all. My bad.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

a playable lycanthropic race? interesting. Kind of wish they had gone a more eldritch horror route for skinwalker though, ala Dresden files.


Will be very happy to make a bear skinwalker.

Also kind of curious if a bear skinwalker can become a wereshark. ;)

Dark Archive

2 people marked this as a favorite.
MMCJawa wrote:
a playable lycanthropic race? interesting. Kind of wish they had gone a more eldritch horror route for skinwalker though, ala Dresden files.

Yes, Dresden's Skinwalkers are the most frightening boogeymen I've read about in a while.

I honestly prefer them that way.


5 people marked this as a favorite.
Zaister wrote:
Oh no.
Robert Brookes wrote:
Oh man.

Oh yeah

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Tirisfal wrote:
Zaister wrote:
Oh no.
Robert Brookes wrote:
Oh man.
Oh yeah

<3


1 person marked this as a favorite.

I have to say that aside from the skinwalkers, one of the things that I'm really looking forward getting some better rules for dealing with players who become afflicted lycanthropes. The only options currently seem to be either for the character to become an NPC (at least part of the time) or for him to get a free power boost.


So long as SKR gets to beat sense into the rest of "Paizo staff" I'll be all over this. I'm not a total lycanthrope junkie but his 3.5e treatment was such a fresh new take that the bar is set very high for them.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

This should be good. we got some followup to the request on playing lycanthropes just as we had for vampires so I will just say awesome! looking forward to it!

P.S. if suggestions are available for later race companions may I suggest something for the Android(and no I don't mean the phone).


Very nice!


Yay for werebeast races and more lycanthrope/therianthrope coverage! Hmm, between these guys, the kitsune, catfolk, and several other races from the ARG and elsewhere, there are a lot of beastfolk in the Pathfinder game. Not that I'm conmplaining!


I always loved werewolves...so I am completely happy to see this book coming down the line.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Dragon78 wrote:
I thought we might see this one eventually but I didn't think it was going to be this soon though.

It is coming out in Oct. What other month makes sense?

Dark Archive

Awesome!!!

Silver Crusade

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Zaister wrote:
Oh no.

bursts through the wall

OH YEAH!

I'm very curious where these skinwalkers are going and if this is going to have any further hints about Arcadia.(since, y'know, skinwalkers ;) )

edit-dammit Tirisfal!


Yes!

On my list NOW!

Scarab Sages

Pathfinder Maps Subscriber
zergtitan wrote:

This should be good. we got some followup to the request on playing lycanthropes just as we had for vampires so I will just say awesome! looking forward to it!

P.S. if suggestions are available for later race companions may I suggest something for the Android(and no I don't mean the phone).

Great idea. Anything to do with other planets.

Silver Crusade

Oh please oh please say they get powers from the pelts and skins of creatures


2 people marked this as a favorite.

I'm really curious about Paizo's take on the skin-walkers. Conveniently enough, I've been reading about the American Indian skin-walkers lately, and they're pretty interesting.

I'm especially interested in their supposed face-stealing abilities D:

Editor-in-Chief

11 people marked this as a favorite.
Gorbacz wrote:
But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?

I have two distinctly different responses to this, so I will offer them both:

First:

Blood of the Moon will have a distinctly different format than Blood of the Night. Every product is an experiment, a learning opportunity, and a stepping stone to a place of greater awesomeness.

The only people who get to stop learning and improving are dead.

Paizo, in general, does not employ the dead.

Second:

*Strangle Hands* ;)


Wait, did you just strangle some crawling hands?

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
Gorbacz wrote:
But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?

I have two distinctly different responses to this, so I will offer them both:

First:

Blood of the Moon will have a distinctly different format than Blood of the Night. Every product is an experiment, a learning opportunity, and a stepping stone to a place of greater awesomeness.

The only people who get to stop learning and improving are dead.

Paizo, in general, does not employ the dead.

Second:

*Strangle Hands* ;)

As you probably know, I believe that Blood of the Night was full of quality material ...

...
...
... that missed the audience by a mile. Folks wanted a dhampir book, they got a vampire book with some vampire hunters and dhampirs sprinkled on the top. So all I ask is for some consultancy with Paizo's Department of Expectations Management :)


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber

Next up: Blood of the Ooze and Flumphs of Golarion!


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Zaister wrote:
Next up: Blood of the Ooze and Flumphs of Golarion!

Lies, Kitsunes of Golarion is next!

...Yes, I know this probably isn't going to happen anytime soon, if ever. ;)

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4

F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
Gorbacz wrote:
But pleeeease make sure it's better than Blood of the Night, pwetty pwease?

I have two distinctly different responses to this, so I will offer them both:

First:

Blood of the Moon will have a distinctly different format than Blood of the Night. Every product is an experiment, a learning opportunity, and a stepping stone to a place of greater awesomeness.

The only people who get to stop learning and improving are dead.

Paizo, in general, does not employ the dead.

Second:

*Strangle Hands* ;)

I have two distinctly different responses to this, so I will offer them both:

First:

Frantic Wesley Schneider wrote:


Paizo, in general, does not employ the dead.

The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

More seriously, First:

Full-Frontal Wesley Schneider wrote:


Blood of the Moon will have a distinctly different format than Blood of the Night. Every product is an experiment, a learning opportunity, and a stepping stone to a place of greater awesomeness.

This statement above all others gives me the utmost confidence. Hopefully the layout has been improved to give a less "sparse" feeling. I did love the art in Blood of the Night, however, so it's a difficult position I'm in.

Second:

*gurgling noises*


YES!


3 people marked this as a favorite.

I... I don't understand what hormonal cycles and bodily functions add to the game...


Gorbacz wrote:

As you probably know, I believe that Blood of the Night was full of quality material ...

...
...
... that missed the audience by a mile. Folks wanted a dhampir book, they got a vampire book with some vampire hunters and dhampirs sprinkled on the top. So all I ask is for some consultancy with Paizo's Department of Expectations Management :)

Yea, the problem was essentially that players almost *never* get to run full vampires because of how powerful the template is, not to mention that most people become evil when they become vampires. It really wasn't the most useful thing to have in a "Player Companion" book even if the information on the various vampire types was pretty interesting and a good setup for the dhampire section.

Luckily, lycans aren't as OP or alignment restricted, so it is unlikely this book will have the same issue.


NOOOO! Why couldn't you have come out last year?? (Just past the halfway mark in 'Broken Moon')
Timing issues for me aside, this looks awesome.
I also am curious about Paizo's take on Skinwalkers, and how much Native American mythology will be incorporated into their design process.

Are there going to be suggestions for DMs on how to deal with a party afflicted with Lycanthropy? Advice besides the "You wake up the next day covered in blood" typicality would be helpful, especially if more than one PC has the affliction. For example:

Carrion Crown:
In my Carrion Crown game, four out of five PCs contracted the disease, right as one of the main fights of the module played out. This made for a tricky dynamic since the presence of one unafflicted PC demanded that I play out the events in round by round rather than narrating them. At the same time, I had to find a balance with the afflicted PC's players so they wouldn't just be sitting out until they were cured.

Contributor

Although I'm working on something similar (as a 3PP), I'm stoked about this book, too! WANT!

Contributor, RPG Superstar 2010 Top 4

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Robert Brookes wrote:
The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

DON'T TELL MR. SCHNEIDER THAT!

You're gonna get me benched!

All joking aside, if I'm working hard it's because of a deadline, not fatigue. If I finish this project TODAY, I am taking almost all of May off to be refreshed and ready for when June comes around, and there may be large outlines ready for assignment.

Off topic stuff about me-

Spoiler:
One reason I love to work for Paizo rather than a lot of 3rd party stuff, or doing my own Kickstarter, is because I actually enjoy structured outlines. Some freelancers prefer a lot of freedom. I actually appreciate structure that has some flexibility to it. I don't know if I am unique in that respect. Similarly I'd probably enjoy creating an outline for someone else.

As a side note, I liked Blood of the Night, and that isn't just ass-kissery to the Boss. I got some actual use out of it, and I enjoyed the ideas put forth. I really liked the expanded information on the jiang-shi, and the three dhampir bloodlines. I don't think it was a perfect book, but if I had to review it, I'd give it four stars.. because I got that much use (and reading pleasure) out of it. If I didn't review it was because when I review things I fear it looks biased. But I give Wes and Tork kudos for it. If this book can be even better, that is great too!

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4

4 people marked this as a favorite.
Jim Groves wrote:
Robert Brookes wrote:
The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

DON'T TELL MR. SCHNEIDER THAT!

You're gonna get me benched!

It's okay, we'll just tuck you into the easy-bake raise dead oven alongside the rest of the Paizo staff after the GenCon crunch. There's enough powdered diamond in there to resurrect you all. ;)

...man, has anyone coined the term Con Drain for a blog that covers Pathfinder conventions? Because it practically writes itself.

Contributor

4 people marked this as a favorite.
Jim Groves wrote:
Robert Brookes wrote:
The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

DON'T TELL MR. SCHNEIDER THAT!

You're gonna get me benched!

Jim, Paizo doesn't discriminate...even against the undead. Besides, undeath helps freelancers work longer hours. :)

Lantern Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4

4 people marked this as a favorite.
Christina Stiles wrote:
Jim Groves wrote:
Robert Brookes wrote:
The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

DON'T TELL MR. SCHNEIDER THAT!

You're gonna get me benched!

Jim, Paizo doesn't discriminate...even against the undead. Besides, undeath helps freelancers work longer hours. :)

Blood of the Night wasn't a Player Companion, it was an employee orientation manual!


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Christina Stiles wrote:
Jim Groves wrote:
Robert Brookes wrote:
The exception is Zombie Jim Groves, yes? I mean after the last couple of weeks of work, anyway, he's likely to be among the walking dead.

DON'T TELL MR. SCHNEIDER THAT!

You're gonna get me benched!

Jim, Paizo doesn't discriminate...even against the undead. Besides, undeath helps freelancers work longer hours. :)

And if your arm falls off while you're typing, well, that's what staplers are for!

Contributor

As a huge kitsune fan, I'll admit that this book is making me nervous. Although the theme is different (magical fox tricksters vs. humanoids descended from lycanthropes), the major game mechanic is the same; one humanoid transforms into another.

Its very possible that the kitsune could get completely sidelined by this product if the skinwalker race / template / option has too broad of a focus. For example, if you can pick to have the traits of any animal you want, plus the ability to transform into an appropriate animal via a feat or special ability or (gulp) baseline, then all of a sudden you can have a vixen skinwalker AND werefoxes AND kitsune all exist in the same world. And considering that one of those three humanoids only has three very brief articles talking about it, most of which are rehashes of itself, while the other has decades of RPG legacy and several manuals devoted to them (both 1PP and 3PP) then its pretty plain to see which of those three options is going to get sidelined.

I truly hope that when it comes time to write this book, efforts are made not to step on the toes of the kitsune race. Especially if no immediate plans exist to ever expand any further upon them.


One of the things I really love about Paizo is that they have been grounding creatures in "real world lore" as opposed to modern movie fancy.
I'm hoping that they draw from European lore as well as Native American with the skinwalkers....

Editor-in-Chief

5 people marked this as a favorite.
Gorbacz wrote:
Folks wanted a dhampir book, they got a vampire book with some vampire hunters and dhampirs sprinkled on the top. So all I ask is for some consultancy with Paizo's Department of Expectations Management :)

What's nice is that covering an idea once doesn't preclude us from covering it again in a different way--just look at how many different ways we've covered the various fiends. So if there's still demand for an ur-dhampir book, that's definitely something we'll consider.

Can you hear me complaining about doing ANOTHER book about the undead (and their happy families)? ;)

1 to 50 of 517 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | next > last >>
Community / Forums / Paizo / Product Discussion / Pathfinder Player Companion: Blood of the Moon (PFRPG) All Messageboards

Want to post a reply? Sign in.