Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Ultimate Wilderness

Disappointed at the lack of playtesting regarding the Shifter.... solves a lot of issues down the line... fills a gap as the 'Nature Paladin'.... although whether or not thats how it comes out will be another matter.

The release date is November 2017; still plenty of time for playtesting, no? ;)

doc roc wrote:

Disappointed at the lack of playtesting regarding the Shifter.... solves a lot of issues down the line... fills a gap as the 'Nature Paladin'.... although whether or not thats how it comes out will be another matter.

The release date is November 2017; still plenty of time for playtesting, no? ;)

Paizo explicitly said there's no playtest this time round.

I'm still wondering how this will be distinguished from the Feral Hunter.....I wish they would start leaking more information....

All the Feral Hunter does it gets bonuses to an ability score, minor bonuses to a skill, or certain other very specific bonuses.

For starters, we know the Shifter begin with claws, which the feral hunter does not get. I would imagine these can become stronger/more powerful over levels.

Also, the example of being able to take on the traits of, or become an owlbear, makes me think the S%@~er will do more than just get a stat/skill bonus.

Without knowing more about the class, the only thing I can thing of is they might be able to mix and match abilities/powers from various shape-changing spells.

I am sure that the shifter will be focused on animals(and maybe magical beast). More then likely you will need archetypes for other creature types.

I am sure that the shifter will be focused on animals(and maybe magical beast). More then likely you will need archetypes for other creature types.

Sounds like a fair guess.

Yeah I just click the "Messageboards" button on the nav bar and can see everything. *shudder*

Focus is your friend :3

The shifter sounds promising so far, with claws from level 1, a patchwork of natural attacks and abilities later and wildshape just as alternative, not as focus. Finally a separation of shapechange and casting...

When it comes to archetypes, there is always something interesting in the Ultimate books - simply due to the high amount.

I don't expect too much from the feats, given the focus of the book and the rather limited flow of really new feats in RPG line books lately. But I might be wrong. Magic items, spells and companions are not so relevant to me.

The section about the First World sounds like a reprint, but the latest Campaign Setting book about this topic (The First World: Realm of the Fey) was stunningly evocative and informative, so repeating that content should be absolutely worth it players who didn't read the former book yet.

Weather, hazards, strange terrains - could be anything from lame to exciting, we will see.

I am interested to see what the fey touched hazards/terrain will be like.

'Nature Paladin'.... although whether or not thats how it comes out will be another matter.

Other than that it has potential!!

Would you consider Steve Irwin as a real life Nature Paladin. CRIECKEY!!!

Reprinting my statements here:

The shifter seems to be focusing on gaining natural attacks and creature limbs for special abilities. For instance, talons for regular damage, bear claws for damage and grab, wings for flight, fish tail for swimming, weasel fangs for damage and grab, tentacles for reach, etc. I don't think it will get spells, but it might receive different shifting abilities, similar to how a kineticist selects talents.

So... the shifter gets Wild Shape at Level 5... How do the other abilities fit in? Is it something it gets in addition of Wild Shape?

On a sidenote, is it a base class or a hybrid class?

Archetyping the shifter can open a lot of possibilities. If the base shifter is animal-focused, then any archetype that switches the creature type around would be neat. A shifter using limbs from aberrations, plants, vermins, magical beasts (like the Totemist from Magic of Incarnum), dragons, oozes (especially since blights were introduced in B6) and undead would be awesome :D If the base shifter uses limbs from more than one type, then archetypes could be focused on other types. For instance, a shfter could morph a limb into a longsword.

Again, I thought the Shifter wouldn't get Wild Shape... I can see trading abilities to enhance Wild Shape or whatever partial shifting ability the class might have.

Archetypes for the other classes can go in several directions:

- Barbarians, druids, oracles, hunters, rangers and witches, being nature-based classes, will probably get the lion's share of archetypes.
- Kineticists could get more talents... but I doubt that Wood would be expanded, since it was expanded in Golarion booklets :S
- I'd like to get options for companions, mounts, familiars and eidolons here. I feel like it isn't much explored.

So... the Wood element will be reprint so I heard... Ok :P

I was interested in Starfinder but the more I learned about it, the more I didn't like. But that is another subject all together and belongs in it's own section.

I can't wait to see what the shifter will be like, can't wait for kineticist wild talents(new and old), can't wait for first world, fey, and nature themed options and I can't wait for more animal companion, familiar, mount, etc. options.

I hope this book will finally have the fey based polymorph spells.

I also hope that it will reprint other polymorph spells that are not in hardcover books.

Somebody from the banquet confirmed fey polymorph spells and an ooze-based shifter option, so you'll finally get the Ultimate Intrigue you always wanted!

Well I am happy to hear about the fey polymorph spells.

While I'm interested to see the Shifter, I'm far more interested in the animal sidekick expansions, Fey Realm, new archetypes, and natural hazards. While I don't think it would require a lot of page count, I'm really hoping we get some expansion of topics for surviving in the wild and various related crafting and profession skills.

Expansions to the Downtime system related to wilderness structures, resources, and organizations would be great to see as well. Something along the lines of what Heroes of the Wild did but with more content.

Will there be any archetypes where your creature type changes? Like the few trickster archetype?

Stuff I am most excited about from greatest to least.

1)The Shifter class.

2)New polymorph spells.

3)More stuff for animal companions/mounts/familiars.

4)Fey/First World stuff.

5)Non-First World environment stuff.

6)Archetypes for certain classes.

7)Everything else.

I wonder if basic phytokinesis will be tweaked now that positive energy is a default association with the wood element. I'd like it if it could grant stabilize and vigor at-will, along with a bonus to Heal checks.

along with very minor shaping of plant growth.

along with very minor shaping of plant growth.

Well, basic phytokinesis does somewhat cover that with the pruning/gardening ability...

Hmm, since this book will have magical plants, I wonder if the wood element will get a talent involving creating them?

That is an interesting question about basic phytokinesis being tweaked. Stabilize would be useful, so would vigor, a minor bonus to heal checks, and/or minor plant growth would all be interesting.

I'm wandering what the new class will add to the excisting options of the feral hunter and a druid/ranger combo... what will be different i wonder :-)

I really hope the shifter gets shapeshifting at level 1. If you have to wait until level 4 or 5 like a druid, it's going to be lame.

Well they have stated they get claws at 1st so they get some amount of shapeshifting before Wildshape.

Well they have stated they get claws at 1st so they get some amount of shapeshifting before Wildshape.

It doesn't sound like what I and other people have been asking for in a level 1 shapeshifter.

Rysky wrote:

Well they have stated they get claws at 1st so they get some amount of shapeshifting before Wildshape.

It doesn't sound like what I and other people have been asking for in a level 1 shapeshifter.

Lots of people have been asking a bunch of different things involving a martial shapeshifter class but I don't think there's been anything coherent other than having shapeshifting.

Ah, the good old "what I ask for is what everyone is asking for".

Has it been confirmed they get wild shape in the first place ?
I was wondering if they would go more the route of an Eidolon....

Has it been confirmed they get wild shape in the first place ?

I was wondering if they would go more the route of an Eidolon....

They get an ability called Chimerical or something that might let them do something similar.

From my understanding the shifter has been confirmed to get Claws at 1st level, wild shape at 5th level, the ability to use different Animal foci(i think thats what they were called) such as bear and owl, and even combine various animals to gain other unique benefits such as owlbear.

I wonder if the claws will just be two attacks or will it be like a monk-like flurry of blows type mechanic. I wonder how many natural attacks you can have.

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I wonder if the claws will just be two attacks or will it be like a monk-like flurry of blows type mechanic. I wonder how many natural attacks you can have.

Ideally, I'd like a high level Shifter to be able to use all sorts of natural attacks, from the common bite and claw, to the less common gore, hoof, tentacle, wing, pincers, tail slap, sting, etc. Alternately, a high level Shifter might specialize on one bigger attack, and get iteratives with that bite (for instance), rather than a flurry of gore, bite, claw, claw, wing-buffet attacks, like a gargoyle on crack.

I'd also prefer if not every 1st level Shifter had to use claws. That seems kind of cookie-cutter, to me, so an alternative to be bite focused (wolf, alligator or shark-shifter!), or tail-slap/sting focused (scorpion-shifter!), or slam-focused (ape-shifter!), with a larger single attack instead of a pair of claw attacks, would be welcome.

please not another pile of teamwork feats...

please not another pile of teamwork feats...

The only way I could stand teamwork feats is if your party had it's own character sheet, separate from those of the PCs comprising said party, and the team abilities were 'paid for' by the party character (to represent stunts and tactics that the party has practiced together, but wouldn't necessarily be able to do with just anyone they ran into), and not the individual PCs.

But that's just insane and could lead to a book called Ultimate Teamwork, so forget it.

BigNorseWolf wrote:

please not another pile of teamwork feats...

The only way I could stand teamwork feats is if your party had it's own character sheet, separate from those of the PCs comprising said party, and the team abilities were 'paid for' by the party character (to represent stunts and tactics that the party has practiced together, but wouldn't necessarily be able to do with just anyone they ran into), and not the individual PCs.

But that's just insane and could lead to a book called Ultimate Teamwork, so forget it.

I've actually done this before.

It's pretty good for getting a group of no account, scurvy scallywags working together.

But erm... that's probably a discussion for a different topic.

Never liked teamwork feats. But "Ultimate Tactics" would make a better name then "Ultimate Teamwork".

I agree, I hope claws are not the only natural attack option at level one.

I assume they wouldn't be, just be one specific example, which matches the iconic's focus.

I admit personally I was hoping for something more along the lines of Wild Shape at level one, but having a limited number of options for the early levels. Like maybe you can only shapeshift into one form at level 1, which you choose at character creation.