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Path of War Expanded (PFRPG)

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The Path of War continues onward!

Inside the pages of this tome, your options for martial characters more than double! Within Path of War Expanded you will find more maneuvers, stances, and feats for your existing martial disciples as well as a host of new options! There are new classes, archetypes, martial traditions, and even the new class template that provides a way to use a single archetype for different character classes.

Path of War Expanded contains:

  • Three new base classes, from the ill-omened harbinger, to the psychic zealot, and finally the arcane mystic who all mix supernatural elements into their martial combat styles.
  • Nine new martial disciplines like Cursed Razor, Eternal Guardian, and Sleeping Goddess
  • A host of archetypes for the three original classes from Path of War and the three new classes from Path of War Expanded
  • Martial archetypes for core and psionic classes, including options for the Aegis, Dread, and Marksman classes from Ultimate Psionics
  • Class templates, which provides archetypes that work across multiple classes
  • Martial style feats for all the different disciplines, including those originally found in Path of War like Iron Tortoise and Solar Wind
  • More than a dozen new martial traditions
  • And new and optional rules and clarifications to martial combat that will take your martial characters to a whole new level!

Come and enjoy the spoils of battle with Path of War Expanded!

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An Endzeitgeist.com review

5/5 —

The massive expansion to Dreamscarred Press's Path of War-series clocks in at 181 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page ToC, 1 page editorial, 1 page SRD, 1 page advertisement, leaving us with a massive 176 pages of content, so let's take a look!

But wait, before we do, let me make one thing abundantly clear: I am aware that Path of War as a system is a divisive topic. I am very conflicted regarding the core book for it, a tendency I expressed in my review back then. I stand by *ALL* of these criticisms and have defended them, time and again, so let's get this out of the way first: If something fails the kitten-test, I consider that a needless flaw in the design; I consider infinite healing not to be a part of the core of the game, since only a few combos allow for it, often due to these combos being based on at least one badly designed piece of crunch. I will complain about that. Similarly, I will complain about Skills-for-attack-substitutions, since skills are MUCH easier to blast through the roof via spells, items, etc. I consider all of these problematic. You are entitled to have a different opinion. I don't tell you how to play, that a certain type of game-style is the "wrong" way or any such nonsense. I just depict what my subjective experience is regarding the material.

Before we dive into the analysis of this pdf, let me first make some things clear -I am not going to judge this pdf as per the power-level of the base game and instead take a look at it in the context of Path of War and its increased power-level -anything different would be rather ridiculous regarding an expansion to said system, after all. Conversely, this is not going to be a rehash of all my different takes on individual rules-decisions of Path of War that ultimately, to me, are unnecessary design-relics. If you're not familiar with the gripes I have with the base-system (and the opinions which diverged from mine on that, after all, I do not consider my reviews to be the only valid opinion!), you can read up on them in the extensive discussion on my site and certain boards. Hence, I will try to limit my complaining about these old gripes to a minimum, should I encounter them. Please, please read the above again, carefully - I'm not here to prescribe an opinion, I'm here to give my honest assessment.

All right, that out of the way, let's begin with the latest iteration of my favorite previously-released Path of War class, now revised...so what does the Harbinger do? Chassis-wise, the Harbinger, who gets d8, 4+Int skills, 3/4 BAB-progression, good fort- and will-saves and proficiency with simple and martial melee weapons, light armor and shields. The harbinger begins play with 5 maneuvers known, 3 of which can be readied and 1 stance, increasing this to 16 known, 10 readied and 7 stances at 20th level. Maneuvers may be chosen from Cursed Razor, Riven Hourglass, Scarlet Throne, Shattered Mirror and Veiled Moon. For my issues with the old disciplines, please check my reviews of those. I'll return to the new disciplines later. Harbingers can be considered the brooding anti-heroes, the dark bringers of woe and as such, contemplating10 minutes of negativity allows the harbinger to ready other maneuvers. In order to regain spent maneuvers in combat, Dark Claim is used - as a swift action, the harbinger can claim a creature in close range she can see - this lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1/2 her class level and a number of creatures equal to class level can be claimed at a given time. Whenever a creature claimed is reduced to 0 hit points, the harbinger recovers initiation modifier expended maneuvers, and when he claims a target, he also gets 1 expended maneuver back. It should be noted that a harbinger is aware of the precise location of a creature claimed, though not being able to see the creature still nets total concealment.

Now if you've been expecting an anti-kitten-test rant here, I have to disappoint you - maneuvers are not a limited resource and as such I'm perfectly fine with the option of a harbinger carrying around bags of kittens to claim and kill...why? Well, because they can also regain a maneuver as a standard action, which renders the whole shenanigans moot. If played smartly, a harbinger will not want for maneuvers, though they *can* run out of them, requiring the expenditure of actions.

First level harbingers add 1/2 their Int-mod to attack rolls, 10th level harbingers also add full Int-mod to damage rolls, offsetting their 3/4 BAB. I am NOT a fan of dual stats to any roll, but that is documented by now, alongside the obvious means to min-max the s*** out of such a set up, right? They also get +10 ft. competence bonus to movement rate, increasing this by a further +10 ft at 10th level and this bonus is applied before any other modifications due to load et al.

At 2nd level, the class gets Dark Focus - a kind of specialization on one discipline, which nets a +1 competence bonus to atk and damage, increasing these bonuses by a further +1 at 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter. The focus'd discipline's save DCs are also increased by +1, though this bonus does no longer increase, eliminating one of my two main complaints about the first iteration of the class.

6th level nets wither Advanced Study or Discipline Focus as a bonus feat; 10th level nets a second discipline and 14th level provides the option to spontaneously expend a maneuver readied to spontaneously perform a maneuver known from the Dark Focus'd discipline, though it has to have a level equal to or lower than the expended maneuver. Finally, 20th level makes all maneuvers known of the chosen disciplines count as readied in addition to the ones readied regularly.

At 3rd level, harbingers may 1/encounter (thankfully now defined in in-game time in Path of War, so no more complaints regarding that!) move up to her speed as a swift action, increasing this by +1/encounter at 9th and 15th level; however, at these very same levels, harbingers can also opt for fly speed, swim speed plus immunity to inhaled toxins, climb speed with bonuses to disarm and grapple OR the ability to teleport up to her speed as a move action - while the latter sounds like it is the most powerful of these, that would be a flawed assumption - the action economy versatility does somewhat balance these out, though teleport and flight remain clearly the stronger options. On a nitpicky side, though, I do believe that this short-range teleport ability does need to specify that it is a conjuration [teleport]-effect. Why? To maintain balance with existing mechanics that block teleportation-effects. Still, not a grievous oversight here.

At 4th level, the harbinger may initiate a readied strike as an immediate action once per encounter whenever she reduces a foe to 0 Hp or below, with the strike being required to have an initiation action of one standard action, +1/encounter use at 10th and 16th level. IT should also be noted that the target needs to be adjacent, which is an important restriction in my book. The limit helps to keep this in line and makes it a good resort when a harbinger needs an extra oomph. Now granted, this ability, while not looking like much on paper, is actually very powerful - seeing how, in many games, the GMs are not as adept at drawing out combats, these abilities may be considered very painful for a continuous micro-novaing through "small" encounters.

5th level provides a +2 bonus to AC and Ref when moving more than 10 ft. in a given round, rewarding alacrity - as does the 11th level ability, which allows for the movement of 1/2 movement as an immediate action 1/encounter. I like this ability per se, but does it have the capacity to waste e.g. attacks or spells executed against the harbinger? I assume no. This messing with the movement economy is not bad, but some clarification would be nice.

7th level nets magic aura at will, though, in a minor complaint, the SP's not italicized. At 8th level, creatures flanked by the harbinger and his allies take a -2 penalty to saves and skill-checks. 12th level adds no-save shaken to a creature claimed and 13th level provides something pretty cool as well: The harbinger provokes no more AoOs for movement from claimed foes. 17th level allows a harbinger, as a full-round action, to move up to his speed and initiate a strike at any given point of the movement, while 18th level lets them initiate strikes as an AoO (OUCH! - and yes, has a restriction regarding activation action of the strike!). 19th level...is imho OP. All maneuvers initiated by a harbinger ignore ALL immunities possessed by the targets. Still...notice something? The thematically unfitting ability that let you stand around as opposed to skirmish is gone!

I consider the harbinger to be the best Path of War-class and I *really* like it; minor gripes aside, it is a great base line even if you dislike Path of War to create your own skirmishing class.

Archetype-wise, the harbinger gets 3 options, the first of which would be the crimson countess. The Crimson Countess deals damage to creatures claimed - 1d4 at first, then 2d4 at 6th level, +1d4 every 4 levels thereafter. The ability per se is rather cool, though I have an issue with the damage being untyped - the lack of a means to negate the damage renders the character extremely potent against any threat that is short on HP and great on alternate damage-negation. This, theoretically, allows for very easy high-DR construct-slaying, for example. Applying a proper damage type would help here. At 2nd level, the crimson countess receives a pool of vitae points equal o the number of claimed targets, with a max storage capacity equal to the class level of the countess. The pool drops to 0 after 1 minute out of combat and the countess receives +1/2 vitae points as morale bonus to atk and damage rolls made via maneuvers, +2 when executed against claimed creatures. The ability also scales with levels, providing additional means of utilizing vitae, with further untyped damage equal to her class level to all claimed creatures as a move action, additionally potentially providing 1d6 hp per creature claimed - the healing may be none too much, but it still makes me think that my countesses would carry bags of kittens around for handy claim-kills and infinite personal healing. *sigh*

On the plus-side, the ability does provide an expansion of the recovery options (4 vitae for one counter or boost) available, with higher levels netting 8 vitae points forced teleportation (which should specify that the effect is a conjuration [teleport]-effect for the purpose of interaction with base rules) and a 6 vitae option to shove off half damage (or ability damage) to a target claimed creature - the latter can be extremely powerful, though the archetype actually prevents the worst of the ability's potential for OP abuse. The capstone provides a lethal 10 vitae save or die; make it and take damage ability.

On the awesome side, the class receives the powerful ability to turn into a big pool of blood and reform at 9th level, getting a bunch of unique benefits while in said form. This archetype, in a nutshell, replaces agility with reliable damage-output - though swift action movement is still here. I love the fluff of this glorious beast. The Crimson Countess actually will see some use in my game (ONLY as an NPC-class) with very minor tweaks and imho, this archetype plays radically different, with the minimum of vitae points putting player agenda and planning higher on the agenda than I would have expected. This is not a cookie-cutter archetype and it is fun - some minor tweaks can make it work even within my conservative preferred power frame, though the infinite healing and untyped damage represent two needless glitches in this one's frame.

The second archetype, the Ravenlord, receives a bird-exclusive animal companion with the harbinger's Int that shares in several class abilities; slaying it deals Constitution-damage to the harbinger and it acts upon his initiative and does not gain bonus tricks or share spells, but it does share dark focus, but not the benefits of the bonus feat granted at 6th level. Now the unique thing is that the ravenlord may have the companion execute maneuvers: At 3rd level, the raven can initiate strikes and counters, though only one of the pair may initiate a strike in a given round. The interesting component here would be that they also generate a small area of debuffing gloom whenever the OTHER executes a strike, allowing for a fluid (and EXCEEDINGLY fun) switching between roles and benefits. Also: They actually can be defended against by being designated in proper rules-terms - good, since the penalties are massive. At 13th level, the gloom lasts longer and eliminates insight and morale bonuses. I really like this archetype!

The third archetype for the harby would be the previously unreleased omen rider, who gains Medium Armor Proficiency as well as mounted Combat at 1st level and may replace a discipline with Piercing Thunder. Also at first level, he gains a spectral steed that can be called to his side 3 +initiation modifier times per day, dismiss it as a move action. The steed has 1/2 the rider's HP, the same AC and shares miss chances, immunities and resistances with the omen rider. What's a bit overkill in my book: "The spectral steed is not affected by effects that target an area, nor is it vulnerable to effects that do not deal hit point damage." - So no fireballing them? Meh. I get the design rationale behind the idea, as the steed is pretty fragile, but still. The steed has a 40 feet land speed, +10 ft every 2 levels to a maximum of 100 feet and can bear the rider's weight + 50 lbs. +10 lbs per omen rider level. It also learns to traverse swampy, sandy etc. terrain unimpeded at 3rd level, at 6th level it can walk on liquids as though they were firm ground; 9th level nets fly speed equal to land speed (and initiator level bonus on Fly checks) and 12th level lets the rider call his steed and have it arrive with him already mounted as an immediate action. The steed can make the movement for the omen rider for maneuvers requiring it and benefits gained are extended to both. At 5th level, the steed nets +2 to AC and Ref to itself and the rider, 20% miss chance when it has moved at least 20 feet and 10th level provides infinite running, with prolonged sprints ignoring fatigue..."Denn es reiten die Toten so schnell..." 8th level nets the omen rider or his steed the option to gain 2x HD temporary hit points when he reduces a claimed creature to 0 HP instead of recovering maneuvers. All in all, an interesting, unique mounted harby with great visuals.

Part II of my massive review is in the product discussion. See you there!

More fighting, more good!

5/5 —

I loved the original, and this gave me more combat and more awesome than i thought i would ever need for a game. the new maneuvers are cool, the editing is solid, and it just really makes for a great addition to a game thats always ready to throw in some initiators!

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Community Manager

Now available!

And worth every penny from what I've been able to glean so far.

What kind of archetypes are available for the core classes?

I've only had time to skim through it, so I don't want to go in depth on things I'm not sure of yet. I'm sure someone else will be answer your questions, soon, though.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
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Scavion wrote:
What kind of archetypes are available for the core classes?

I'll let one of the guys more familiar with the actual mechanics to chime in with more details, but the archetypes are:

Barbarian - Primal Disciple
Bard - Rubato
Fighter - Myrmidon
Monk - Monk of the Silver Fist
Paladin - Knight Disciple
Ranger - Ambush Hunter
Rogue - Hidden Blade
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Scavion wrote:
What kind of archetypes are available for the core classes?

So, seeing as I wrote most of the core class archetypes, I might as well be the one to summarize them:

Barbarian: Primal Disciple- A raging warrior that uses fighting styles passed down through her clan from her ancestors. Her ancestral insights allow her to recover from rage more easily and her use of Primal Fury, Piercing Thunder, Golden Lion and Thrashing Dragon makes the Primal Disciple a powerful, durable combatant that is not to be overlooked.

Bard: Rubato- The rubato is a bard who taps into the Primal Song and channels it in both life and war. Theories abound about the Primal Song, though most accept that it is an echo, a shard, of something even more
ancient and fundamental, but its power fuels these war singers and propels them to acts of incredible valor. Rubatos generate Tempo that they spend to augment their allies and their maneuvers and make use of the Mithral Current, Elemental Flux and Golden Lion disciplines in a whirlwind of dancing Fire, Acid, Electricity and Frost.

Figther: Myrmidon- The Myrmidon is a man's man of a fighter who spends grit to become a rough and tumble, ready to go adventurer who can overcome obstacles through sheer force of will. He has access to a variety of disciplines: Broken Blade, Golden Lion, Iron Tortoise, MithralCurrent, Piercing Thunder, Primal Fury, Scarlet Throne, Tempest Gale, and Thrashing Dragon, allowing the Myrmidon to fill a multitude of different fighting styles.

Monk: Monk of the Silver Fist- The Monk of the Silver Fist is from a mystical order of dedicated bodyguards. They sheathe their hands and feet in gauntlets that serve as both shield and sword with which they defend their charges. Those under the Mark of the Silver Fist will find themselves under the watchful protection of a powerful guardian who brutally punishes any foe who dares attack their charge. The Monks of the Silver Fist combine the powers of the disciplines of Iron Tortoise, Eternal Guardian and Mithral Current to become powerful off turn attackers and protectors.

Paladin: Knight Disciple- The Knight Disciple is a holy warrior who protects the innocent with a powerful Guardian's Shield and the Mark of Censure, which supernaturally limits the damage an enemy can do. Though they don't cast spells, their training gives them access to many unique abilities and the maneuvers they learn from the powerful Golden Lion, Iron Tortoise and Silver Crane disciplines make them excellent healers and protectors.

Ranger: Ambush Hunter- The Ambush Hunter Ranger works closely in concert with a specially trained animal companion, one who can utilize the very same maneuvers that the Ambush Hunter themselves can use. Ambush Hunters can learn from a number of disciplines based on their chosen ranger style, and when working in concert with their animal companion, are part of a fearsome and nearly unstoppable duo. Primal Fury is the discipline used by Ranger and Animal alike, while the ranger also gains use of Golden Lion and one of Broken Blade, Iron Tortoise, Piercing Thunder, Scarlet Throne, Solar Wind, Tempest Gale, or Thrashing Dragon depending on their combat specialization.

Rogue: Hidden Blade- The Hidden Blade rogue is a specialist in concealed weapons and stealthy maneuvering. They are so good with their use of concealed items that they can draw their blades faster than anyone else and even navigate the difficult extradimensional spaces that most adventurers use to store their items more easily. Their Gambits allow the Hidden Blade to take advantage of enemies' exposed weaknesses, and their specialization in Mithral Current, Veiled Moon, Thrashing Dragon and Broken Blade, Shattered Mirror, or Tempest
Gale makes the Hidden Blade a clever and slippery opponent.
Elricaltovilla wrote:
Scavion wrote:
What kind of archetypes are available for the core classes?

So, seeing as I wrote most of the core class archetypes, I might as well be the one to summarize them:

Barbarian: Primal Disciple- A raging warrior that uses fighting styles passed down through her clan from her ancestors. Her ancestral insights allow her to recover from rage more easily and her use of Primal Fury, Piercing Thunder, Golden Lion and Thrashing Dragon makes the Primal Disciple a powerful, durable combatant that is not to be overlooked.

Bard: Rubato- The rubato is a bard who taps into the Primal Song and channels it in both life and war. Theories abound about the Primal Song, though most accept that it is an echo, a shard, of something even more
ancient and fundamental, but its power fuels these war singers and propels them to acts of incredible valor. Rubatos generate Tempo that they spend to augment their allies and their maneuvers and make use of the Mithral Current, Elemental Flux and Golden Lion disciplines in a whirlwind of dancing Fire, Acid, Electricity and Frost.

Figther: Myrmidon- The Myrmidon is a man's man of a fighter who spends grit to become a rough and tumble, ready to go adventurer who can overcome obstacles through sheer force of will. He has access to a variety of disciplines: Broken Blade, Golden Lion, Iron Tortoise, MithralCurrent, Piercing Thunder, Primal Fury, Scarlet Throne, Tempest Gale, and Thrashing Dragon, allowing the Myrmidon to fill a multitude of different fighting styles.

Monk: Monk of the Silver Fist- The Monk of the Silver Fist is from a mystical order of dedicated bodyguards. They sheathe their hands and feet in gauntlets that serve as both shield and sword with which they defend their charges. Those under the Mark of the Silver Fist will find themselves under the watchful protection of a powerful guardian who brutally punishes any foe who dares attack their charge. The Monks of the Silver Fist combine the powers of the disciplines of Iron...

Thanks!

Take my money Dreamscarred Press!
Shadow Lodge

Glad to see this finished, love the myrmidon and hopefully I'll be able to change my fighter to one soon, piercing thunder will likely be her discipline of choice.

Also, to make sure: if and when an errata of this is released (I'm not saying it needs one, I've barely started to look at the PDF) the in progress download will be updated as well as this one right? Or should I be trying to bug someone at paizo to switch the work in progress download link to the finished product (even though the finished product is currently in the work in progress zip).

Will a print version of this be released any time soon?
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Coffee Demon wrote:
Will a print version of this be released any time soon?

April would be the soonest we have proof copies back from the printer for review.

But short answer: yes, depending on your definition of Soon. :)
Silver Crusade
Jeremy Smith wrote:
Coffee Demon wrote:
Will a print version of this be released any time soon?

April would be the soonest we have proof copies back from the printer for review.

But short answer: yes, depending on your definition of Soon. :)

What about a vey nice deluxe edition combining Path of War and Expanded?

The Zealot is super cool! Basically a Martial Vitalist. Kudos to that!

My personal favotite part of the book is the archetype section.

Mithril Current reminds me of the way Taki fights in Soul Caliber with her kodachi.
Scavion wrote:
Mithril Current reminds me of the way Taki fights in Soul Caliber with her kodachi.

We draw from a lot of different sources for inspiration, and it's nice to see how many different ways our material can be used. Glad to see you've found one you like.

About the Crimson Countess "Crimson Claim" ability. Is it a Bleed effect or does it work on Undead and Constructs as easily as living things?
Greylurker wrote:
About the Crimson Countess "Crimson Claim" ability. Is it a Bleed effect or does it work on Undead and Constructs as easily as living things?

It is not a Bleed effect. Despite the thematics, the Crimson Claim is essentially applied rage, laid heavy upon the one the Countess has Claimed. What she gets back out of the Claim - the Vitae later - could be said to be as much the satisfaction/vindication she gets from expressing that rage as it is something drawn from her victims. Even undead and constructs can be hurt, can feel pain, can be worn out and beaten down, and it's that vicious shredding fury that comes back and forms the Vitae - and blood - manipulated by the Countess.

4 people marked this as a favorite.

I second the call for PoW and PoW:E in one print compilation - and hopefully with any and all errata from at least PoW.

Reviewed here with my thoughts from a first reading. Overall, it seems like an extremely solid expansion (which I'd expect, given the amount of playtesting), so that's good. ^^
GM Rednal wrote:
Reviewed here with my thoughts from a first reading. Overall, it seems like an extremely solid expansion (which I'd expect, given the amount of playtesting), so that's good. ^^

Thanks for the read, and for taking time to leave a review!

I bought the path of war expanded (work-in-progress), will this be upgraded to Path of War Expanded? Or no?
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Oliver Veyrac wrote:
I bought the path of war expanded (work-in-progress), will this be upgraded to Path of War Expanded? Or no?

It was already updated - you should have received an update and your download should have been updated.

:)

Awesome, you are absolutely correct :) Thank you!
Sczarni

The archetypes and styyle feats have to be the best part, specially the Myrmidon -what a simple elegant solution-. Thou now I yearn for Initiating archetypes for Brawlers, Slayers, Bloodragers, and Swashucklers.
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Maps Subscriber

So... Aegis. The Initiator's Soul customizations... it reads as if you can select disciplines and maneuvers each time you re-customize the armor. Am I correct?
Frerezar wrote:
The archetypes and styyle feats have to be the best part, specially the Myrmidon -what a simple elegant solution-. Thou now I yearn for Initiating archetypes for Brawlers, Slayers, Bloodragers, and Swashucklers.

Those classes haven't been forgotten. Exactly how we'll be bringing them into the Path of War fold is still up in the air, but plans and discussions are being had.

apexut wrote:
So... Aegis. The Initiator's Soul customizations... it reads as if you can select disciplines and maneuvers each time you re-customize the armor. Am I correct?

That is correct.

Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Rysky wrote:
Jeremy Smith wrote:
Coffee Demon wrote:
Will a print version of this be released any time soon?

April would be the soonest we have proof copies back from the printer for review.

But short answer: yes, depending on your definition of Soon. :)

What about a vey nice deluxe edition combining Path of War and Expanded?

Still hoping for an answer to this one. I love my copy of Ultimate Psionics, but I have regrets about the books that got compiled into it. Also, AFAIK, Path of War still hasn't been reprinted with errata, has it?

Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Draeth Darkstar wrote:
Rysky wrote:
Jeremy Smith wrote:
Coffee Demon wrote:
Will a print version of this be released any time soon?

April would be the soonest we have proof copies back from the printer for review.

But short answer: yes, depending on your definition of Soon. :)

What about a vey nice deluxe edition combining Path of War and Expanded?
Still hoping for an answer to this one. I love my copy of Ultimate Psionics, but I have regrets about the books that got compiled into it. Also, AFAIK, Path of War still hasn't been reprinted with errata, has it?

It was mentioned in the previous thread (which might now be gone since the Work In Progress was turned off) that a decision on that hasn't been made yet and is going to be based upon demand for it. We may create a hardcover with both books, but a final decision has not yet been made.

I realize that's not really a yes or no, but it's because we don't have a firm yes or no answer to give right now.
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Jeremy Smith wrote:
Draeth Darkstar wrote:
Rysky wrote:
Jeremy Smith wrote:
Coffee Demon wrote:
Will a print version of this be released any time soon?

April would be the soonest we have proof copies back from the printer for review.

But short answer: yes, depending on your definition of Soon. :)

What about a vey nice deluxe edition combining Path of War and Expanded?
Still hoping for an answer to this one. I love my copy of Ultimate Psionics, but I have regrets about the books that got compiled into it. Also, AFAIK, Path of War still hasn't been reprinted with errata, has it?

It was mentioned in the previous thread (which might now be gone since the Work In Progress was turned off) that a decision on that hasn't been made yet and is going to be based upon demand for it. We may create a hardcover with both books, but a final decision has not yet been made.

I realize that's not really a yes or no, but it's because we don't have a firm yes or no answer to give right now.

Thank you for the quick response! Does Dreamscarred Press have polls or anything to track consumer demand, or is whining at you in product threads the closest we can get? :) Related, is there a newsletter or anything like that?

One way you might be able to measure (and generate) some demand is with the crowdfunding method. I know Onyx Path has been really really successful with their Kickstarter books, even on projects like compilation/update books that you might otherwise think would be against Kickstarter's "new venure" theme.
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Jeremy Smith wrote:
I realize that's not really a yes or no, but it's because we don't have a firm yes or no answer to give right now.

I'll buy it. But you likely already knew that. Mind you, I'll also buy POW:E softcover when/if available.

Just adding my very small anecdotal data point.
Draeth Darkstar wrote:
One way you might be able to measure (and generate) some demand is with the crowdfunding method. I know Onyx Path has been really really successful with their Kickstarter books, even on projects like compilation/update books that you might otherwise think would be against Kickstarter's "new venure" theme.

That's pretty much how Ultimate Psionics happened. It was DSP's first venture into Kickstarter and I'm not entirely sure that Jeremy has paid off his psychotherapist's bills from that yet. <Grin>

Obviously lessons have been learned. UP's big problem was that there were a billion very, very awesome stretch goals. So what started as "if we get $x pledges, we'll make a book" turned into "since we got $y pledges, we'll make a book, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and." It was a cripplingly complicated campaign and I'm honestly surprised it didn't hospitalize Jeremy.

So yeah, a Kickstarter for a unified book would be a good way to do this, but manpower is always something to be watched for.

Really, it's the escrow ability that'd be helpful at this point. Pre-orders suck because if you get (slightly) too few orders to justify the print run, you've got to process refunds. With KS, nobody gets billed unless a project is funded. I'd happily give DSP the cash in advance, but it'd suck for them if there wasn't enough interest.

Also, remember, Kickstarter takes a decent percentage, so there's the pesky impact on already razor-thin margins.

1st-party publishing is hard enough. 3rd-party publishing is brutal.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
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Draeth Darkstar wrote:

Thank you for the quick response! Does Dreamscarred Press have polls or anything to track consumer demand, or is whining at you in product threads the closest we can get? :) Related, is there a newsletter or anything like that?

One way you might be able to measure (and generate) some demand is with the crowdfunding method. I know Onyx Path has been really really successful with their Kickstarter books, even on projects like compilation/update books that you might otherwise think would be against Kickstarter's "new venure" theme.

It's very likely that a crowdfunding campaign would be the most likely way to gauge that interest, yes. But - there is literally months of work that would need to go into setting up a crowdfunding campaign so that we don't have another quagmire like what happened with Ultimate Psionics.

Even in hypothetical scenarios, I wouldn't expect a hardcover of both books out this year - we won't even have this book into softcover print until April or May and combining both books would require not just the job of putting them into one book, but incorporating all feedback from both books.

Hopefully that doesn't dampen any spirits - having people interested in a big book is definitely a good thing - I'm just trying to keep things realistic so folks don't wonder why it hasn't been announced or made available.

Is there an online errata for Path of War link somewhere?
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I wouldn't mind a compiled PoW+PoWE, but I'd be far more excited about a Path of War 3 book on a scale similar to PoWE.
Barachiel Shina wrote:
Is there an online errata for Path of War link somewhere?

No. There is planned errata for Path of War but it has not been released yet. An announcement will be made when it is.

Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
Anguish wrote:


1st-party publishing is hard enough. 3rd-party publishing is brutal.

Totally missed your comments between me making mine (and cross-checking what I was saying) and the OP!

Yeah, Ultimate Psionics going so far above our initial goals and us being a bit... naive in some assumptions was rough. I'm <b>still</b> shipping out some of the pending rewards. Thankfully, the bulk of rewards have all gone out, but it's still years later and I'm still in stuck in fulfillment because we overextended.

It honestly made me hate the success for quite some time. People who think we pocketed huge sums of money off that project have no idea. The project itself was a huge financial loss - the only saving grace was sales after the fact that have filled the gap to allow fulfillment to continue.

We definitely don't want a repeat of that - not for the backers and not for the team.

But Anguish, your continued support along the way was most definitely a bright spot in the darkness. Seriously. Thank you.

Dreamscarred Folks,

Forgive my confusion, but I'd like some clarification on the Mystic class ability "Blade Meditation".

The text reads: "Blade Meditation (Su): When a mystic finds that her martial power is beginning to wane or that few options remain available for use, she can pause in battle, drawing on her inner well of animus to reinvigorate her body and mind. As a full-round action, a mystic can spend one point of animus to grant herself all her remaining withheld maneuvers, then immediately expend them in a raging cadence of arcane power. As there are no remaining maneuvers to be granted, a new set of maneuvers is granted to the mystic at the end of her turn, as normal.

In addition, until the start of her next turn, creatures that target the mystic with melee attacks are engulfed in the explosion of energy, taking 1d6 points of damage of her active element’s associated energy type, plus an additional 1d6 points of damage for every two points of animus remaining in the mystic’s animus pool."

What exactly happens when the mystic "immediately expends maneuvers in a raging cadence"? Simply a new set of granted maneuvers? That's it? Or is some kind of damage missing from the text? If a new set of maneuvers would normally be granted at the end of a turn anyway, what good does this "cadence" effect do?

Or is the primary effect of this ability the defensive item from the description's second paragraph? I'm not seeing the point of spending a full round action to simply have enemies take a small amount of elemental damage on their attacks. Forgive my confusion, but I'm not seeing the tangible benefits of this ability. Thanks for any help.
Derron42 wrote:

Dreamscarred Folks,

Forgive my confusion, but I'd like some clarification on the Mystic class ability "Blade Meditation".

The text reads: "Blade Meditation (Su): When a mystic finds that her martial power is beginning to wane or that few options remain available for use, she can pause in battle, drawing on her inner well of animus to reinvigorate her body and mind. As a full-round action, a mystic can spend one point of animus to grant herself all her remaining withheld maneuvers, then immediately expend them in a raging cadence of arcane power. As there are no remaining maneuvers to be granted, a new set of maneuvers is granted to the mystic at the end of her turn, as normal.

In addition, until the start of her next turn, creatures that target the mystic with melee attacks are engulfed in the explosion of energy, taking 1d6 points of damage of her active element’s associated energy type, plus an additional 1d6 points of damage for every two points of animus remaining in the mystic’s animus pool."

What exactly happens when the mystic "immediately expends maneuvers in a raging cadence"? Simply a new set of granted maneuvers? That's it? Or is some kind of damage missing from the text? If a new set of maneuvers would normally be granted at the end of a turn anyway, what good does this "cadence" effect do?

Or is the primary effect of this ability the defensive item from the description's second paragraph? I'm not seeing the point of spending a full round action to simply have enemies take a small amount of elemental damage on their attacks. Forgive my confusion, but I'm not seeing the tangible benefits of this ability. Thanks for any help.

Blade Meditation resets your cycle of granted maneuvers back to the start. It also provides that small defensive benefit. It's a minor quality-of-life ability for folks who, for some reason, find themselves in a position where they'd rather reboot their cycle than work through it.

Prince of Knives wrote:
Derron42 wrote:

Dreamscarred Folks,

Forgive my confusion, but I'd like some clarification on the Mystic class ability "Blade Meditation".

The text reads: "Blade Meditation (Su): When a mystic finds that her martial power is beginning to wane or that few options remain available for use, she can pause in battle, drawing on her inner well of animus to reinvigorate her body and mind. As a full-round action, a mystic can spend one point of animus to grant herself all her remaining withheld maneuvers, then immediately expend them in a raging cadence of arcane power. As there are no remaining maneuvers to be granted, a new set of maneuvers is granted to the mystic at the end of her turn, as normal.

In addition, until the start of her next turn, creatures that target the mystic with melee attacks are engulfed in the explosion of energy, taking 1d6 points of damage of her active element’s associated energy type, plus an additional 1d6 points of damage for every two points of animus remaining in the mystic’s animus pool."

What exactly happens when the mystic "immediately expends maneuvers in a raging cadence"? Simply a new set of granted maneuvers? That's it? Or is some kind of damage missing from the text? If a new set of maneuvers would normally be granted at the end of a turn anyway, what good does this "cadence" effect do?

Or is the primary effect of this ability the defensive item from the description's second paragraph? I'm not seeing the point of spending a full round action to simply have enemies take a small amount of elemental damage on their attacks. Forgive my confusion, but I'm not seeing the tangible benefits of this ability. Thanks for any help.

Blade Meditation resets your cycle of granted maneuvers back to the start. It also provides that small defensive benefit. It's a minor quality-of-life ability for folks who, for some reason, find themselves in a position where they'd rather reboot their cycle than work through it.

Thank you Prince of Knives!! The two Path of War books are OUTSTANDING. Six cool, unique classes. 20 new disciplines, the majority of which are excellent ... love these books.

Do Mystics benefit from their own glyphs?!

Thanks!
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press

Print update: the first submission needed some revisions - those revisions were submitted and approved and proof copies have been ordered - they will ship to us for review. That normally takes about 2 weeks.
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Derron42 wrote:

Do Mystics benefit from their own glyphs?!

Thanks!

Yes.

The rule in Pathfinder is that you are always your own ally, "unless it wouldn't make sense or the result would be impossible." When dealing with design from Dreamscarred Press, you're just always your own ally; we'll use terms like 'other allies', 'adjacent allies' (you are not adjacent to yourself), or 'allies (other than you)' to indicate abilities that work on non-you friendlies.
2 people marked this as a favorite.

^

This is the kind of attention to detail that I truly appreciate. XD We argue about rules enough as it is, so trying to be clear about details like this really does help.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
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The print proof for Path of War Expanded was received and reviewed and a few things were discovered that required a revision. Most importantly, several images needed to be lightened up because they were nearly unrecognizable due to ink saturation into the paper. Given print copies aren't as easy to update as PDFs, we decided to submit for a revision to fix these issues. We also took the opportunity to fix a few typos and other minor items, since we were doing a revision anyway.

The revisions have already been submitted to the printer and we are awaiting the revision before we give the go-ahead on the prints so that we can get all preorders shipping.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
3 people marked this as a favorite.

The revised proof was approved and we've put in the order for the print run. :)

Sorry for the delays - we wanted to get it right, rather than get it fast.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press

Looks like copies arrived at the Paizo warehouse on Friday, but I imagine they have to get processed and worked into the normal shipping and order fulfillment process.

Progress!

Wait, am I reading this right? Print copies are available for purchase?

That's correct; color print copies are available right now and black and white copies are coming soon.
1 person marked this as a favorite.

Woot! Huzzah! Buying! And now for Akashic Mysteries!

...

Still have to wait. Curses.
Publisher, Dreamscarred Press
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Tectorman wrote:

Woot! Huzzah! Buying! And now for Akashic Mysteries!

...

Still have to wait. Curses.

The PDF of Akashic Mysteries should be ready next month. The print is likely not going to be ready until at least 2-4 weeks after the PDF is ready.

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