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Would you say that a group could run Council of Thieves after Hell's Vengeance as easily as HV after CoT?
Yes. Jade Regent is a good comparison. We assume that one takes place after Runelords, for example, but it can just as easily take place before with very little change to how Jade Regent plays out. It WOULD change how Runelords plays out a bit if you decided to later play Runelords. Likewise, if you play Hell's Vengeance first and then want to play Council later, some things will be different. I suspect we'll provide some advice on how to do that, just as we did for Runelords in Jade Regent.
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Dear James Jacobs, if you could modify a spells visual affect. Which would it be? My current favorite was from playing a recent module which included a crazed cat-person. Being an insane gnome myself, he taught me Furryball (Fireball but with exploding cats) and Kitten Glitter (Glitterdust).
Any spell cast by a cleric. I often modify them to match their faith's themes... particularly spells like unholy blight or chaos hammer. A Desna cleric who casts chaos hammer might well make it look like the targets were getting pounded by miniature falling stars, for example.
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James,
In the Pathfinder setting, to what extent are intelligent undead the same entity they used to be, and to what extent are they a new, malign entity that is based on the memories and personality of the original?
Intelligent undead are corruptions of their former selves. They recall their lives, for the most part, but are corrupted and hateful mockeries of those lives. That's a big part of the tragic nature (and thus evil nature) of undead. They're not generally brand new personalities from other sources—that sort of thing is more akin to possession, which is NOT undead (although some undead, like ghosts, can do this).
The Naga Aspirant archetype grants you Naga Shape (Su) at level 6. It notes that this functions in a similar manner to Shapechange. Nagas are aberrations, and none of the spells that Shapechange mimics handle aberrations or their abilities.
1. Are we to assume that any of the abilities that the spells that Shapechange can mimic, are fair game for this? For example Shapechange can mimic Beast Shape IV, which allows one to make use of grab if the form has it, or for instance darkvision (critical since you lose and vision abilities of your base form). I assume as with all polymorph effects the natural attacks of the form come with it, as stated in the transmutation/polymorph rules. This would of course be necessary for special abilities to be of use.
2. The Naga Shape spells out specific ability score changes as well as some other changes. It appears that these are granted due to size mostly. (Namely the following are granted: +4 size bonus to Strength and Constitution, a –2 penalty to Dexterity, and a +2 enhancement bonus to her natural armor bonus. She gains a +10 enhancement bonus to land speed and a bite attack that deals 1d6 points of damage )
3. The Naga Shape grants an enhancement bonus to natural armor. As a polymorphic effect, what natural armor would the shapechanger be coming with as typically you lose the natural armor, if any, of your base form? I am guessing this should just be a natural armor bonus and not an enhancement?
4. I assume it changes the type of the druid to Aberration?
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Hi James, in your home game would you allow a PC spellcaster to upgrade a magic item with a lesser ability to one with an improved or greater ability of the same name, (e.g., +1 shadow studded leather upgraded to +1 improved shadow studded leather), provided of course that they still meet all of the prerequisites? (In the example given, the only difference in prerequisites for crafting are the CLs.)
Would you allow a (non-spellcaster) PC to purchase just the upgrade without selling back the item and buying a new-and-improved version?
Finally, the same questions, but with upgrading from flaming to flaming burst?
Thanks for your insight. :)
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Creative Director
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The Naga Aspirant archetype grants you Naga Shape (Su) at level 6. It notes that this functions in a similar manner to Shapechange. Nagas are aberrations, and none of the spells that Shapechange mimics handle aberrations or their abilities.
1. Are we to assume that any of the abilities that the spells that Shapechange can mimic, are fair game for this? For example Shapechange can mimic Beast Shape IV, which allows one to make use of grab if the form has it, or for instance darkvision (critical since you lose and vision abilities of your base form). I assume as with all polymorph effects the natural attacks of the form come with it, as stated in the transmutation/polymorph rules. This would of course be necessary for special abilities to be of use.
2. The Naga Shape spells out specific ability score changes as well as some other changes. It appears that these are granted due to size mostly. (Namely the following are granted: +4 size bonus to Strength and Constitution, a –2 penalty to Dexterity, and a +2 enhancement bonus to her natural armor bonus. She gains a +10 enhancement bonus to land speed and a bite attack that deals 1d6 points of damage )
3. The Naga Shape grants an enhancement bonus to natural armor. As a polymorphic effect, what natural armor would the shapechanger be coming with as typically you lose the natural armor, if any, of your base form? I am guessing this should just be a natural armor bonus and not an enhancement?
4. I assume it changes the type of the druid to Aberration?
I'm not familiar with this archetype, actually... looks like it's from the Advanced Race Guide, in which case you'll need to address your question to the rules forum where that book is discussed so the Design Team will see it and it can be FAQed. Sorry; can't help.
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Creative Director
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Hi James, in your home game would you allow a PC spellcaster to upgrade a magic item with a lesser ability to one with an improved or greater ability of the same name, (e.g., +1 shadow studded leather upgraded to +1 improved shadow studded leather), provided of course that they still meet all of the prerequisites? (In the example given, the only difference in prerequisites for crafting are the CLs.)
Would you allow a (non-spellcaster) PC to purchase just the upgrade without selling back the item and buying a new-and-improved version?
Finally, the same questions, but with upgrading from flaming to flaming burst?
Thanks for your insight. :)
I absolutely would. It makes sense to be able to do upgrade an item like that.
I generally don't allow folks to just arbitrarily purchase more powerful magic items like that. I tend to provide my players with a list of available items, and if they want something beyond that generally have to track down a spellcaster or item creator who CAN build it and then pay them to do so and then wait until it's done.
So, a few questions this time.
What do you think of making the setting's singular worshipped god secretly evil and revealed as the final boss of a campaign?
As I build this monster, I am thinking of making an attack that has a random effect, in the form of the portal at its center opening to a random plane and porting stuff in. Thoughts on such an attack?
As you are a fan of Dark Souls, did you get a chance to play Demon's Souls? And if so, what did you think?
So what is the deal with Abrogail's face tattoo? Is there any meaning to it or is it just for decoration?
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Did you know that Voltaire drank 50 to 70 cups of coffee A DAY in the five months he was writing Candide?That sounds like an exaggeration.
Nope! Says it right here in this Cracked article (which may or may not be SFW, I'm not sure, just added a warning in case it is).
Do you think Mass Effect's...
...is superior from a storytelling perspective, that it fits with the series themes better?
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Did you know that Voltaire drank 50 to 70 cups of coffee A DAY in the five months he was writing Candide?That sounds like an exaggeration.Nope! Says it right here in this Cracked article (which may or may not be SFW, I'm not sure, just added a warning in case it is).
XVIII century coffee was nowhere equivalent of today's 'spresso. It was far weaker and frequently watered down and/or mixed with milk and cocao, so the result was a fraction of the strength of today's cup.
I can imagine he drunk an equivalent of 20-30 modern cups per day, which is something I've gotten close to once or twice...
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Creative Director
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I have a question about the current rules for alignment subtypes, since I know some rules have shifted over the years. The PRD says that outsiders retain alignment subtypes even if their actual alignment changes, and are affected by alignment based spells and effects as if they are both their subtype alignment and actual alignment.
There are at least two counterexamples in more recent work, however:
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
The Broken Soul Lillend in Bestiary 4 also had her alignment subtypes change, although as a template that is not quite the same as simply changing her worldview.
Are alignment subtypes now changed if the outsiders alignment changes, or are these exceptions to the rule, or are these errors in the APs?
Often we'll adjust things against the rules to make for a more interesting story. For the most part, when an outsider changes alignment, their fundamental physical and spiritual nature remains influenced by their source and thus they retain their alignment subtypes. There can be exceptions. Arueshalae is a great example, since she's all about redemption under the influence of a good deity and the aid of a party of mythc= adventurers. In that case, I very specifically broke the general rule on purpose to tell the story I wanted to tell. And the lillend in Serpent's Skull has been insane for thousands upon thousands of years, and has been living on the material plane for that time... her change in type is a result of that long-term condition. Another case of specifically breaking the rule.
AKA: Neither is an error.
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Creative Director
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So, a few questions this time.
What do you think of making the setting's singular worshipped god secretly evil and revealed as the final boss of a campaign?
As I build this monster, I am thinking of making an attack that has a random effect, in the form of the portal at its center opening to a random plane and porting stuff in. Thoughts on such an attack?
As you are a fan of Dark Souls, did you get a chance to play Demon's Souls? And if so, what did you think?
I think that'd piss off all the players in your group who want to or are playing characters of faith. If I were in that campaign, I'd be pretty devastated and annoyed and disappointed, and would probably not want to play in your next game, frankly.
A better choice would be to have the god in question be a single deity from a competing faith that the PCs are specifically not allowed to worship.
OR when you start the campaign, make sure that your players know that they can NOT play religious characters.
What you're proposing is a SIGNIFICANT change to the expectation. It's on par with telling the fighter in the group that once he hits 11th level, the weapon she's been focusing all her feats on until that point is in fact not a weapon, and will no longer be usable as a weapon going forward. It's disruptive and unfair to the player who's invested such a long time in building their character, and is a breach of the social contract between GM and player. Now... in a novel, something like this is fine... but it's worth remembering that you as the writer of a novel KNOW this going in and can build the deluded worshiper character so that when the revelation comes, it fits into that character's story arc and you can respond to it in the right way; you've known from the START this was where the character was going. Your players who play characters of faith do not know this.
Attacks that have random effects that randomly port things in from other planes can be fun, but can also get out of hand for you if the combat goes on and suddenly you have a huge number of diverse and different monsters to juggle in one combat.
Love the Dark Souls games, and have played Demon's Souls and loved it too. They're among my favorite video games.
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Creative Director
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Not a question. Sorry. ^_^
Never fear. You are forgiven! Awesome picture! Thanks!
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Creative Director
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So what is the deal with Abrogail's face tattoo? Is there any meaning to it or is it just for decoration?
We haven't yet statted her up, but I suspect it's more than just a decoration. I suspect that by this time next year... we'll all know more.
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Creative Director
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Did you know that Voltaire drank 50 to 70 cups of coffee A DAY in the five months he was writing Candide?That sounds like an exaggeration.Nope! Says it right here in this Cracked article (which may or may not be SFW, I'm not sure, just added a warning in case it is).
Do you think Mass Effect's...
** spoiler omitted **
...is superior from a storytelling perspective, that it fits with the series themes better?
It does fit the series theme. My preference are the other two endings though.
The Witcher 3 made over $207 Million in sales in its first two weeks on the market selling 4 million copies. When developers put out a great product consumers will back them up (just like they do Paizo).
CD PROJEKT RED co founder Marcin Iwiński's open letter to their fan base.
What is your honest opinion of the Pathfinder MMO?
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Creative Director
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Hi James Mightiest of the Rexes,
Who is the greatest chess Grandmaster on Golarion?
Which deity (or near deity) could take on Asmodeus in a game of chess?
Unrevealed... we generally don't nail these things down until we need to for a specific adventure or storyline.
Baphomet for certain. Calistria as well. Torag for absolute sure. There are more. Asmodeus is far from a tactical genius, and while he's an expert at the law and loopholes... he sometimes gets a bit too absorbed by the rules to be able to cope well against more creative thinkers.
So. Add Desna to that list.
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Creative Director
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The Witcher 3 made over $207 Million in sales in its first two weeks on the market selling 4 million copies. When developers put out a great product consumers will back them up (just like they do Paizo).
CD PROJEKT RED co founder Marcin Iwiński's open letter to their fan base.
What is your honest opinion of the Pathfinder MMO?
I'm QUITE enjoying Witcher 3 so far. I've quite enjoyed the first two games, so that's no surprise to me. The game is FAR from perfect... it's sexism and race blindness are areas where it could certainly learn a LOT from Dragon Age... but it's still a very fun and well-made game.
As for the Pathfinder MMO... PVP-oriented resource-management-focused MMOs are not really my thing. I much prefer story-based MMOs like Warcraft, Guild Wars II, The Old Republic, or Final Fantasy 14... and beyond THAT much prefer single-player CRPGs like Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Fallout, Witcher, or Pillars of Eternity.
Hello James of the Creative Carnivores,
What do you think of the writings of R. Scott Baker and Joe Abercrombie?
If you do not know of these writers, please explain how this gap in your fantasy literature exists.
-HB
Also not a Question (well, at least to start with) >'.'<
I heard from a colleague at work in "Fires of Creation" that Androids may not sleep:
Would they still need to rest? i.e. for spell refresh, but could they quietly stand watch instead? Or some sort of Half-On standby mode, due to not getting fatigued...
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It does fit the series theme. My preference are the other two endings though.Did you know that Voltaire drank 50 to 70 cups of coffee A DAY in the five months he was writing Candide?That sounds like an exaggeration.Nope! Says it right here in this Cracked article (which may or may not be SFW, I'm not sure, just added a warning in case it is).
Do you think Mass Effect's...
** spoiler omitted **
...is superior from a storytelling perspective, that it fits with the series themes better?
Why is that, if you don't mind my asking?
What are the deific obediences for Anubis, Sekhmet, Daikitsu, Bastet, and Wadjet?
Do you plan on releasing information about the deific obediences for these deities if you don't have the info for them?
I think that'd piss off all the players in your group who want to or are playing characters of faith. If I were in that campaign, I'd be pretty devastated and annoyed and disappointed, and would probably not want to play in your next game, frankly.
A better choice would be to have the god in question be a single deity from a competing faith that the PCs are specifically not allowed to worship.
OR when you start the campaign, make sure that your players know that they can NOT play religious characters.
What you're proposing is a SIGNIFICANT change to the expectation. It's on par with telling the fighter in the group that once he hits 11th level, the weapon she's been focusing all her feats on until that point is in fact not a weapon, and will no longer be usable as a weapon going forward. It's disruptive and unfair to the player who's invested such a long time in building their character, and is a breach of the social contract between GM and player. Now... in a novel, something like this is fine... but it's worth remembering that you as the writer of a novel KNOW this going in and can build the deluded worshiper character so that when the revelation comes, it fits into that character's story arc and you can respond to it in the right way; you've known from the START this was where the character was going. Your players who play characters of faith do not know this.
Attacks that have random effects that randomly port things in from other planes can be fun, but can also get out of hand for you if the...
That is something I hadn't fully considered and I definitely see your point here. The third question actually ties into things because I got the idea from Demon's Souls, being that the Old One is the god clerics worship to make miracles.
I can definitely see how a cleric might be a bit miffed that his god is actually evil. I might keep that card up my sleeve for if there are no faithful characters in the game.
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James. are there any plans do to a Cohorts and Companions book that focuses on classes that have companions as a class feature? I was very disappointed that cohorts and companions had nothing animal companions.
I liked the Construct Rider Arch type for the Alchemist I might consider playing on though since he would be a PFS character he would have to be a halfling. I also don't see any reason why a construct rider would have to limited to a horse pony or camel that's just lame your building a construct it should be able to be anything sized medium it might not be able to do what the creature it depicts does so why could'nt be a dragon looking construct or a mechanical bull looking construct. Picture a bull construct with the personality of the bull from the bugs bunny cartoons.
That would be a cool side kick for a halfling alchemist.
Sometimes I think the designers go out of their way to try to make certain archtypes unfun by putting in requirements that don't seem well thought out trying IMO to add artificial balance when it is not needed.
I shall now dismount my hobby horse and step down from my soap box.
I hope you are having a nice day Jame.
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I imagine Asmodeus would prefer games with hidden information, given his ability to Bluff and to lie/mislead without actually saying anything untrue.
So, with that in mind, what deities could take on Asmodeus in a game of poker?
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Don't know if you've discussed this yet but here it goes.
What is the percent chance of finding technological items in a settlement in Numeria using the minor, medium, and major magic items rules for settlements from the GMG?
As it stands I'm running a home game with a similar amount of tech and am wanting to incorporate it but want to get a feel for what percentage of special items in towns like these would actually be week to week.
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Creative Director
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Hello James of the Creative Carnivores,
What do you think of the writings of R. Scott Baker and Joe Abercrombie?
If you do not know of these writers, please explain how this gap in your fantasy literature exists.
-HB
I've not really read either. This gap in my fantasy literature exists because fantasy is not my primary literature of interest. I much prefer horror, and have spent the bulk of my leisure reading in that genre over the past 4 decades.
Hi James,
I was reading your response regarding the Witcher 3 above, and had a somewhat random thought. I absolutely agree that a greater amount of diversity, and a respect for gender issues is vital for inclusiveness, and, frankly, just the right thing to do.
That said, is there any room for homages to the roots of many of our shared tropes in the pulp fiction presentations of things like Howard's original Conan in modern fantasy storytelling? Be that RPGs, movies etc? I go back and forth on this issue, despite loving when truly inclusive works of art are made. (For instance, Mad Max: Fury Road).
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Creative Director
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Also not a Question (well, at least to start with) >'.'<
I heard from a colleague at work in "Fires of Creation" that Androids may not sleep:
** spoiler omitted **
Would they still need to rest? i.e. for spell refresh, but could they quietly stand watch instead? Or some sort of Half-On standby mode, due to not getting fatigued...
They do indeed still need to rest/sleep if they want to regain their spells and stuff.
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Creative Director
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It does fit the series theme. My preference are the other two endings though.Did you know that Voltaire drank 50 to 70 cups of coffee A DAY in the five months he was writing Candide?That sounds like an exaggeration.Nope! Says it right here in this Cracked article (which may or may not be SFW, I'm not sure, just added a warning in case it is).
Do you think Mass Effect's...
** spoiler omitted **
...is superior from a storytelling perspective, that it fits with the series themes better?Why is that, if you don't mind my asking?
** spoiler omitted **
Because the reapers are bad guys and I prefer seeing them either defeated or redeemed, not victorious.
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Creative Director
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What are the deific obediences for Anubis, Sekhmet, Daikitsu, Bastet, and Wadjet?
Do you plan on releasing information about the deific obediences for these deities if you don't have the info for them?
Those deific obediences are, at this point, undesigned. They will not be designed by me in this reply, either. We do not currently have plans to design their obediences; I'd rather focus on deities that are much more widely worshiped at this point than obscure old Osirion deities.
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Creative Director
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James. are there any plans do to a Cohorts and Companions book that focuses on classes that have companions as a class feature? I was very disappointed that cohorts and companions had nothing animal companions.
I liked the Construct Rider Arch type for the Alchemist I might consider playing on though since he would be a PFS character he would have to be a halfling. I also don't see any reason why a construct rider would have to limited to a horse pony or camel that's just lame your building a construct it should be able to be anything sized medium it might not be able to do what the creature it depicts does so why could'nt be a dragon looking construct or a mechanical bull looking construct. Picture a bull construct with the personality of the bull from the bugs bunny cartoons.
That would be a cool side kick for a halfling alchemist.Sometimes I think the designers go out of their way to try to make certain archtypes unfun by putting in requirements that don't seem well thought out trying IMO to add artificial balance when it is not needed.
I shall now dismount my hobby horse and step down from my soap box.
I hope you are having a nice day Jame.
We just did a Cohort book. No plans to do another one anytime soon. Animal Archive might be the book you're looking for?
I think you're overthinking the idea that designers deliberately try to make certain archetypes unfun, frankly. Especially since one person's fun isn't always the other's fun. And also... not EVERY SINGLE OPTION needs to be the best option for you. Or for player characters in general. There absolutely has to be options for NPCs. And frankly... even if we only designed two rules ever... one would be better than the other. The more we design and publish, the more we'll design things that someone doesn't like. It's kinda unavoidable.
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Creative Director
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I imagine Asmodeus would prefer games with hidden information, given his ability to Bluff and to lie/mislead without actually saying anything untrue.
So, with that in mind, what deities could take on Asmodeus in a game of poker?
I imagine Asmodeus is the first one to believe he's the best at games like this. And I imagine his pride is a significant character flaw.
Those deific obediences are, at this point, undesigned. They will not be designed by me in this reply, either. We do not currently have plans to design their obediences; I'd rather focus on deities that are much more widely worshiped at this point than obscure old Osirion deities.What are the deific obediences for Anubis, Sekhmet, Daikitsu, Bastet, and Wadjet?
Do you plan on releasing information about the deific obediences for these deities if you don't have the info for them?
Are you surprised that I read the list of deities that SCKnightHero listed and the only one that registered with my brain was the strangely misplaced, "Daikitsu?"
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Creative Director
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Hi James,
I was reading your response regarding the Witcher 3 above, and had a somewhat random thought. I absolutely agree that a greater amount of diversity, and a respect for gender issues is vital for inclusiveness, and, frankly, just the right thing to do.
That said, is there any room for homages to the roots of many of our shared tropes in the pulp fiction presentations of things like Howard's original Conan in modern fantasy storytelling? Be that RPGs, movies etc? I go back and forth on this issue, despite loving when truly inclusive works of art are made. (For instance, Mad Max: Fury Road).
There's absolutely room for homages like that. We do them all the time in Pathifnder. But they shouldn't be the norm, and they shouldn't exclude inclusivity.
Furthermore, in the video game industry today, the landscape is toxic and damaged and poisonous in a lot of ways. It's VERY important for video games to push inclusivity right now, so that we can move beyond the toxicity. And it's MOST important for big, powerful video game companies who release super popular games to do so.
AKA: The next GTA video game should feature a black gay man as the main character. The next Assassin's Creed game should feature an asian woman as the main character. And so on. Once the biggest games start being inclusive, the smaller games will follow suit and the entire industry will become healthier. At least, that's my hope.
They can all learn a HELL of a lot from Bioware in other words.
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Don't know if you've discussed this yet but here it goes.
What is the percent chance of finding technological items in a settlement in Numeria using the minor, medium, and major magic items rules for settlements from the GMG?
As it stands I'm running a home game with a similar amount of tech and am wanting to incorporate it but want to get a feel for what percentage of special items in towns like these would actually be week to week.
There is no percent chance. Technological items are INCREDIBLY polarizing, and giving raw numbers to force them into appearing would vex too many people. Each GM needs to decide if they appear or not, and since they're built using the same assumptions as magic items, once a GM decides they do appear, they should appear more or less equally with magic items.
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Are you surprised that I read the list of deities that SCKnightHero listed and the only one that registered with my brain was the strangely misplaced, "Daikitsu?"Those deific obediences are, at this point, undesigned. They will not be designed by me in this reply, either. We do not currently have plans to design their obediences; I'd rather focus on deities that are much more widely worshiped at this point than obscure old Osirion deities.What are the deific obediences for Anubis, Sekhmet, Daikitsu, Bastet, and Wadjet?
Do you plan on releasing information about the deific obediences for these deities if you don't have the info for them?
No... but I'm a bit weirded out that he put Daikitsu in there anyway.
Chances of us doing obediences for the Tian Xia deities is several orders of magnitude HIGHER than us doing Osirion deity obediences. And even then, not high.