Creative Director
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Jesk "Cracktooth" (Sandpoint area 18) is listed as a NG Human Male Half Orc Expert.
So he's a quarter-Orc? =p
He's actually a human. At one point he was a half orc, but half orcs are actually pretty rare in the Lost Coast region so we decided to switch him back to human. We just forgot to take out the Half-Orc part, alas.
He's actually a human. At one point he was a half orc, but half orcs are actually pretty rare in the Lost Coast region so we decided to switch him back to human. We just forgot to take out the Half-Orc part, alas.Jesk "Cracktooth" (Sandpoint area 18) is listed as a NG Human Male Half Orc Expert.
So he's a quarter-Orc? =p
So the important question is; are you getting paid for those 2 extra words? The quarter of a cent could come in handy.
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Now I don't know what to do..... STAP or RotR??!!! We will be finishing AoW next monday and I don't know which one to run next. The positive side of RotR is lvls 1-15 as high level play was a little too slow for our tastes. STAP has demo and the abyss though!!! Arghhh..... Paizo is killing me with good products before 4th edition. Now we have a time limit too!.. double arghh!!
Taking my player characters through the first goblin encounter now. Great stuff.
Now I don't know what to do..... STAP or RotR??!!! We will be finishing AoW next monday and I don't know which one to run next. The positive side of RotR is lvls 1-15 as high level play was a little too slow for our tastes. STAP has demo and the abyss though!!! Arghhh..... Paizo is killing me with good products before 4th edition. Now we have a time limit too!.. double arghh!!
Play ROTR. Everyone else is. You should too. This is more fun than shooting someone in the ass with a potato gun.
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Contributor
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Now we have a time limit too!.. double arghh!!
On the plus side, your books don't spontaneously combust when 4e comes out (at least, I don't think they do... that might be an announced feature of 4e, though... lol), so you'll be able to finish whichever AP you're on before you switch over. :)
I'm really looking forward to DMing RotRL... especially now that I know katana exist in Golarion! (sp. on world name?) :) Been reading through the adventure and it seems like it will be very fun.
Alas, Savage Tide must come first, as pirates, dinosaurs, and demons hold a special place in my heart. Oh, and there's also the fact we've already started STAP. We should finish "There Is No Honor" on Friday (yes, we're a little behind the times...)
Looking good. One problem that did jump out at me is Bruthazmus, on pages 44-45. He's got a 17 strength, but his bow is made for a +4 strength bonus (and does damage as such). His heavy flail is doing 1d10+6, perfect for a two-handed weapon used by someone with an 18 strength, but not for his 17 strength (which is what his attack bonus is based on). His ranged attack also looks low on the attack bonus (although it's right if he's using the +4 strength bow with a 17 strength- in that case, just his damage is high).
So, 17 or 18 strength for Bruth?
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Creative Director
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The easy fix is to just give him an 18 strength. Makes him a tiny bit tougher than he should be, probably, since he was built using the elite array (like all NPCs in Pathfinder), but that's probably ok. He probably once had an 18 STR and we reduced him for whatever reason while fiddling with his other stats.
Giving him an 18 is the best bet.
The easy fix is to just give him an 18 strength. Makes him a tiny bit tougher than he should be, probably, since he was built using the elite array (like all NPCs in Pathfinder), but that's probably ok. He probably once had an 18 STR and we reduced him for whatever reason while fiddling with his other stats.
Giving him an 18 is the best bet.
Thanks for the quick reply. I was probably going to bump him up to 18 anyway, as my PCs tend to be a bit tougher than standard.
A couple of nitpicking comments:
1)Why are all the people so fugly? The goblins and monsters look cool, but the NPCs look like someone has spent too much time watching Aeon Flux (the cartoon not the movie).
EDIT: I should say I was looking at the sandpoint section when making this comment, many of the other NPCs look fine.
2)Perhaps in the future could we get stat blocks that do not get split between columns? Obviously some are going to run long (see attic whisperer), but in most cases instead of going picture-stat block-text and making the stat block switch columns 1/2 way through, maybe adjust tthe format to make it work better on the page.
Nothing super huge, just some things that I found kind of bothersome.
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Contributor
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2)Perhaps in the future could we get stat blocks that do not get split between columns? Obviously some are going to run long (see attic whisperer), but in most cases instead of going picture-stat block-text and making the stat block switch columns 1/2 way through, maybe adjust tthe format to make it work better on the page.
We would love to be able to do this. We spent hours and hours and hours in the earliest stages of planning trying to think of ways to do this. In the end, until stat blocks shrink (oh please, 4e, let your stat blocks be shorter!) we're pretty much out of luck. :(
Well there is so much sweetness and praise on these boards for RotRL that I think I am getting a cavity.
Unfortunately, however, I am going to have to add to the chorus. It looks great, is feels great, and I like the story. My players are ready to go, though we are well into two other campaigns. I already have a beloved favorite campaign setting and dont want another, but I still like this.
Then, on top of a good product you add customer service! And a thoughtful, reasoned solution! Are you folks sure you are in this as a business?
For Example:
"Gary Teter wrote:
If we change the format of the PDF in the future for Pathfinder #1, you'll be able to re-personalize it and download it again without any hassles."
I know the 800 lb. gorilla has never behaved this way, but neither have most of the small publishers i have purchased from.
Thanks. IMO you deserve the praise you are getting.
I too must add my two cents.
I've not actually read the adventure yet - I'm trying hard to save that for the hardcopy - but I've read almost all of the supplemental material, and, just, WOW!
I love the old school feel with the new school sensibility. I'm currently DMing the Savage Tide for one group and playing in a high level game in another group, and right now I want to run this one too. I'm thinking I might volunteer my services for the high level group once we're done with the adventure we're in now as it should be wrapping up after this module. Unfortunately we only get to play once a month, so it will still be some time before I am really able to present it as an option.
Now I just need to figure out how to keep my head from exploding DMing two groups....
We would love to be able to do this. We spent hours and hours and hours in the earliest stages of planning trying to think of ways to do this. In the end, until stat blocks shrink (oh please, 4e, let your stat blocks be shorter!) we're pretty much out of luck. :(
I'm sorry, I don't think I stated my issue very clearly. It seems as alot of the monster entries are set up on the page:
Picture | 2nd 1/2
.......... | of stat
.......... | block
1st 1/2 | description
of stat . | text
block ... |
It seems to me that the problem isn't so much the length of the stat block for most of them (some are longer of course), but the problem is starting with the picture. If you started the 1st column with the stat block, it looks like you should be able to fit it all in the first column for most of them.
stat . | picture
block | text
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Creative Director
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Placing stat blocks has always been a problem in 3rd edition. They take up SO much room, and there's no rhyme or reason where they appear in text. Art, on the other hand, has rules as to when and where it can appear in the text.
We'll continue to try to make sure the stat blocks are easy as possible to read, but for now, the fact that 3rd edition stat blocks are so huge makes it an unfortunate evil. The delve format that WotC is using is one way to minimize the problem, but that ends up making adventures take up so much space that it damages the adventure's narrative, in my opinion. The adventure should speak to the plot and story of the adventure first.
As for the art itself... it's subjective. That's what art is. If you thought the art in the Sandpoint backdrop was ugly, all I can really do is shrug. I for one kind of agree... I'm not the biggest fan of the art in that section, but if I laid down an iron fist and dictated all of the art match my own tastes, that'd be bad. Good for those of you whose tastes match mine, bad for the rest.
Variation in art and art style is a good thing, even if that means that now and then some will not be to your taste, is what I'm saying, I guess.
I must ask.. Who did the art for Shalelu and the other portraits in the adventure section?
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Creative Director
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A lot of people are saying that they like the inclusion of the non-Wizards items. I am definitely not one of them. Of the top of my head there was the Thaumaturge class (no idea where from...), the Adept Summoner feat (Book of Fiends), the Bunyip, the Tentamort, and the Giant Hermit Crab (Tome of Horrors). I understand that there's a lot of material in these other books and it's nice to be able to showcase that talent. But you HAVE a section on monsters. If there isn't a monster that fits your needs in the SRD, you've got six slots to make one.
Sure, we could have made our own bunyips and tentamorts, but it's already been done. We reprinted all the material that was necessary to run them, in any event, so you don't need either of those books to run Burnt Offerings.
And for what it's worth, I chose to include the bunyip and the tentamort because, back in the day, they WERE D&D monsters from the 1st edition Fiend Folio; they were updated in Tome of Horrors for 3rd edition.
In any event, you can expect us to draw from other books fairly regularly, but again, we'll be reprinting all the rules you need so you don't HAVE to have access to those non-core books to run an adventure from Pathfinder. There's a lot of really cool, brilliant, and fun content out there, after all!
Well, as to stat blocks... have you considered going editionless and having the statblocks as a downloadable printable supplement? I know it is OGL (and I like that) but with a printalbe supplement I could write on it, then print it again if I want to run it again. Maybe add a small column in each stat to deduct HP from the creatures?
Just a thought.
Ahh, curses. It comes around to all of us who live outside of the United States - I just didn't expect it so soon.
I refer, of course, to the inclusion of the bunyip. To you in the USA, it is a colourful piece of foreign folklore. To us in Australia, there is simply no way we could ever take a bit of Aboriginal myth showing up in a fantasy setting seriously.
As I said, it happens to us all. I shudder to think especially of what central and eastern Europeans must go through!
I got mine this morning (in Canada)! Huzzuh for downloads!
I particularly like having the bestiary as a separate file. It's something I expect to continue to access after I've finished running the path, and being in its own document is quite convenient.
Thanks, Paizo, for the great product!
I got mine this morning (in Canada)! Huzzuh for downloads!
I particularly like having the bestiary as a separate file. It's something I expect to continue to access after I've finished running the path, and being in its own document is quite convenient.
Thanks, Paizo, for the great product!
Good point, you could even eventually print off your own "monster manual" by getting together all of the bestiaries.
Is it just me or does the Sand Point Devil's trample damage seems a bit excessive... (my guess is it is just a typo).
After looking this over I can say that this is a good quality product, and am excited to be running it in the future.
Yes, it's a mistake. I believe Brainiac has the correct stats here from earlier in the thread:
Funny typo I found in the Sandpoint Devil's stat block:
"Special Attacks...trample (2d6+126)"!
Holy cow! That's a lot of damage! :D
(It should be 2d6+16 for those following along at home.)
Great module. Wish I could start running it right now, but I'm doing the GameMastery modules first, which are just stellar. If you haven't picked up one of them, do yourself a favor and pick one, ANY ONE. You won't regret it.
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Just finished reading 'till the Glassworks scene, and gave a quick look to the whole package.
Best. Stuff. Ever.
The Paizo crew has delivered a critical hit. The separate pdf files are a good solution, as this gives us the possibility to print a Pathfinder bestiary compilation (or journal, or gazetteer, or else) with great ease.
Can't wait to finish reading. Can't wait to start playing it. Can't wait for issue #2.
You can already call me a Pathfinder addict.
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I already devoured the PDFs for this product as well as the Players Guide. Then yesterday I got the Print version in the Mail. Up to that point I was not sure I would want to buy Pathfinder except on an as-needed basis. Yes, I know I am a charter subscriber, that was an easy call since my Dungeon and Dragon Subs switched over...I was simply considering cancelling. The PDFs were great, and I love the material, but since I just started STAP, I wouldn't be using this material for quite some time.
But then the print version came along. WOW. I stayed up way too late last night re-reading both the Players Guide and Pathfinder #1 because the the hardcopy was too cool for words. Definately something to be proudly displayed on my gaming bookshelf!
Because opening a graphics-intensive 100-page PDF can cause slower machines (and PDAs) to come to a crawl, and because generally, we think, when you're opening the PDF (after your first read-through, anyway), you're probably looking for a specific article anyway.
Maybe we should set up a survey...
No. Don't change it. I agree it gives you the ability to pull what you need and not worry about the rest.
Well done.
I must have the King Midas curse in reverse. I am usually the last person on the planet to get Dungeon and Dragon mags despite my central Canada location (about 3 months after ship date usually) and it appears my ill luck is holding.
Aug 28th and I still haven't received a email stating my Pathfinder shipped and no PDF either.
It truly sucks to be me.
Grrrrr!
Mine finally arrived today, and after a quick glance, all I say is great job, a real top of the line product. (Now to spend the rest of the day reading it over.
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While I've had the pdf for a while, I've only skimmed it a bit--I hate reading something sizable on a monitor (hurray for print!!)--but I've gotten a favorable impression.
Yesterday, the print version arrived (again, hurray for print!!!)--so far, I'm quite impressed. That one goblin encounter (and anyone that's read it knows which one I mean) is creepy, disturbing and perfectly drives home how malicious and violent those little buggers are. Kudos, Paizo lads and lasses--I'm going to go back to reading it. :)
Just got the print copy yesterday. And I must say you've outdone yourself, James. I love the goblins even more than I ever thought I would.
I love the way you've written it and how you suggest using the goblin encounters to show off their insanity rather than put up a truly vicious fight.
I just have to quote this so all can see how awesome this is:
Goblins should really carry spare dogslicers, but they don't think that far ahead, and occasionally end up standing in front of a hero without a weapon. Stupid little freaks.
I can't wait to run this.