Creative Director
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If a PC manages to pass the test of the starstone or in some other manner become a deity through mythic rules or events, would it be safe to say that when said PC becomes a true god the official stance from you developers would be that they can no longer be used by a player except in the case of being worshiped by later characters.
Once you go from demigod to full deity, the game no longer supports your stats, so by definition at that point the PC is out of play.
Note that the Starstone doesn't make you a deity. Just a demigod.
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Creative Director
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Continuing on an author/book tangent, Have you read any of Tad Williams books? If so what do you think of them?
"Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" was the series that convinced George R.R. Martin that serious fantasy novels were possible and to make a go at A Song of Ice and Fire.
On top of that, his books have some of the best villains I have encountered in Fantasy. Johnny Dread, The Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles, Pyrates...all great antagonists. We seem to have mostly similar tastes in literature, so I think you would enjoy them.
I have not. I am intrigued.
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Creative Director
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I'm looking to give my Kami Lord the divine source mythic ability; by definition, a Kami Lord is basically a demigod, after all!
I ran into a problem rather quickly, however. Divine source grants the character the ability to cast one spell-like ability each day from any domains it possesses. How on earth do you write that on a stat block? 0_0
Would it be something like:
Spell-Like Abilities (20th; concentration +X)
1/day (cure light wounds, sun metal, or bless), (eagle's splendor, flaming sphere, or alter self), etc. etc.That looks ... kind of messy.
You don't have to give a monster divine source. In fact, it's better if you don't. Just give the demigod four domains and you're good to go.
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Creative Director
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In what sense? That they don't live in towns? That they live more violently or savagely? That they haven't developed certain metallurgy techniques or a system of writing yet? I'm not sure whether to depict them like this or like this.Rustic?Less civilized.
In the sense that they're nomadic. More like the second picture, but not totally feral.
I have not. I am intrigued.Continuing on an author/book tangent, Have you read any of Tad Williams books? If so what do you think of them?
"Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" was the series that convinced George R.R. Martin that serious fantasy novels were possible and to make a go at A Song of Ice and Fire.
On top of that, his books have some of the best villains I have encountered in Fantasy. Johnny Dread, The Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles, Pyrates...all great antagonists. We seem to have mostly similar tastes in literature, so I think you would enjoy them.
I'll second the recommendation. Tad Williams is great, and his Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series is among my absolute favorite books.
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Creative Director
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So they're like the Iceni, then?
I suppose that can work.
And remember... the REAL way they work in your campaign is how you decide they work, not us at Paizo. In the case of something like these guys whom we haven't detailed much and aren't likely to detail more in the near future... don't take our silence on the topic as a reason to stagnate your own game!
When you saw the Butterfly boss in Dark Souls, did you also think of Desna?
What's your favorite boss in the game?
How about John Bellairs? I, unlike you, am not a horror fan, but he writes spooky stuff that isn't just dark and icky all the time. He has a few adult fantasies, but The House with a Clock in its Walls and others in his YA series are fun reads.Haven't heard of him.
He's in Appendix N.
I recently tracked down a copy of The Face in the Frost and found it less scary than The House with the Clock in Its Walls and his other YA works. I think it's because his other series are set in the real world, and it's a lot scarier to picture creepy and uncanny things happening in a world that looks like the one you know than in a standard faux-medieval fantasy setting, where you're expecting monsters and dragons and wizards, etc. Then again, maybe I'm just harder to scare now than when I was reading JFic. I haven't read his YA books in many years, but I used to not be able to read them after dark because they creeped me out so much.
Which deities of the Inner Sea might favor churches with bell towers? I'm thinking Abadar, due to the desire to regulate hours for open and close of business. Anyone else?
Alright, I apologize if this was asked before, but after searching the threads, I was unable to find any real clarification. So, in regards to the summoner eidolon....
*pauses for dramatic effect*
In the section that states that the claws evolution can also be applied to an eidolon's limbs (legs) once, was this passage intended only for quadruped forms, or does this also apply to biped eidolons too?
Hey James,
Just wondering, canonically, is there anywhere in Golarion where druidic and monastic traditions intersect on a regular basis? I.e. where druids and monks interact (and perhaps there are even monastic traditions that incorporate druidic elements or vice versa)?
Its just that I've seen quite a few druid/monk multiclass PCs on the boards and I was wondering where might be a good place for such an individual to come from.
Cheers!
prototype00
Hi James
two things
1. have you ever ordered new/old rpgs,novel,comics,toys, etc and saved up all your boxs and had a night of total geek out opening stuff
2. what do you think is the best miniatue for cthulhu, i have the reaper bones one on order
thank you great one of the many teeth
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So they're like the Iceni, then?I suppose that can work.
And remember... the REAL way they work in your campaign is how you decide they work, not us at Paizo. In the case of something like these guys whom we haven't detailed much and aren't likely to detail more in the near future... don't take our silence on the topic as a reason to stagnate your own game!
I'll admit, it's less a genuine interest in the Velashu and more my quixotic search for a human nationality that will allow me to get away with using Welsh and ancient Brythonic naming conventions in a character. The naming conventions described in Humans of Golarion just don't seem to have room for names like Pwyll or Efrawg or Gwalchmai.
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Creative Director
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How about John Bellairs? I, unlike you, am not a horror fan, but he writes spooky stuff that isn't just dark and icky all the time. He has a few adult fantasies, but The House with a Clock in its Walls and others in his YA series are fun reads.Haven't heard of him.He's in Appendix N.
I recently tracked down a copy of The Face in the Frost and found it less scary than The House with the Clock in Its Walls and his other YA works. I think it's because his other series are set in the real world, and it's a lot scarier to picture creepy and uncanny things happening in a world that looks like the one you know than in a standard faux-medieval fantasy setting, where you're expecting monsters and dragons and wizards, etc. Then again, maybe I'm just harder to scare now than when I was reading JFic. I haven't read his YA books in many years, but I used to not be able to read them after dark because they creeped me out so much.
Which deities of the Inner Sea might favor churches with bell towers? I'm thinking Abadar, due to the desire to regulate hours for open and close of business. Anyone else?
Being in Appendix N increases the chances of me eventually reading his work quite a lot.
Bell towers are cool things to throw into city and town skylines, and as a result, you can see them in MOST religions that have presences in towns and cities. Not always, of course. But often.
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Creative Director
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Alright, I apologize if this was asked before, but after searching the threads, I was unable to find any real clarification. So, in regards to the summoner eidolon....
*pauses for dramatic effect*
In the section that states that the claws evolution can also be applied to an eidolon's limbs (legs) once, was this passage intended only for quadruped forms, or does this also apply to biped eidolons too?
Dunno. That's a good question for the rules forums and a FAQ.
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Creative Director
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Hey James,
Just wondering, canonically, is there anywhere in Golarion where druidic and monastic traditions intersect on a regular basis? I.e. where druids and monks interact (and perhaps there are even monastic traditions that incorporate druidic elements or vice versa)?
Its just that I've seen quite a few druid/monk multiclass PCs on the boards and I was wondering where might be a good place for such an individual to come from.
Cheers!
prototype00
Not really... druids and monks have a VERY different set of flavors and themes to them, and they don't really mix that much. I would say, canonically, a druid/monk would most likely be something like a hermit or a loner who's developed his/her own way of doing things.
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Creative Director
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Hi James
two things
1. have you ever ordered new/old rpgs,novel,comics,toys, etc and saved up all your boxs and had a night of total geek out opening stuff2. what do you think is the best miniatue for cthulhu, i have the reaper bones one on order
thank you great one of the many teeth
1) Nope. I tend to open my boxes immediately without waiting.
2) The Reaper bones one is pretty cool, but kinda tiny. The Horror Clix one is nice as well. I don't really have one that's an obvious favorite yet though.
1) Who is your favourite boss in Demons' Souls? (I am not sure if this has been asked before)
2) Who is the artist behind the Death Initiate drawing in the NPC Codex? My friend has the book, and not only were the stats good, I happened to also see a few nice artworks in it as a bonus.
One of my players asked me why Cayden doesn't have the liberation domain. I was stumped, why is Desna the only one with it, just for mechanical diversity?
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Creative Director
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1) Who is your favourite boss in Demons' Souls? (I am not sure if this has been asked before)
2) Who is the artist behind the Death Initiate drawing in the NPC Codex? My friend has the book, and not only were the stats good, I happened to also see a few nice artworks in it as a bonus.
1) Hmmm. The Dragon God, probably. Because it was super intimidating while being more of a puzzle than a throw-down fight.
2) Dunno. That's a question for the art staff.
1) Where do I find the art staff?
2) Does Ayrzul the Elemental Lord of Earth look anything like Dragon God, by chance?
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Creative Director
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Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. That been said I've had trouble finding any reference to the following:
First, when creating items that allow you to use metamagic feats the Pathfinder core book says "Using metamagic feats, the caster can place spells in items at a higher level than normal" pg.549. There are however some special abilities and feats that allow you to apply the benefit of a metamagic feat without changing the level of the spell (i.e. Healer's Blessing from the healing domain pg.44).
Can items be made using these "pseudo" feats without changing the level of the spell but still get the benefit? (i.e. wand of cure light empowered but only costing 750 gp)
Second, when using cooperative casting crafting (which is mentioned on pg.170 of the Ultimate Campaign book) to create items, can the character with the item creation feat have the person helping set the level requirements? For example say I have a Sorcerer 9th (with no item creation feats). Her cohort is a Wizard 7th with Craft Magic Arms and Armor. Thru Cooperative Casting Crafting can the Wizard still make armor with a +3 bonus (a 9th level requirement) by using the Sorcerer's level?
Thanks for any help!
Yah; for rules questions, the best place to go is over to the rules forums. There, folks can tag posts with a "FAQ" so that the rules team can track them and prioritize answers and all that... feel free to ask other questions here, but for the most part, I'll be defering rulebook questions to those boards. Questions about the world of Golarion are always welcome here though.
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Creative Director
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1) Where do I find the art staff?
2) Does Ayrzul the Elemental Lord of Earth look anything like Dragon God, by chance?
1) They don't often post on the boards, so there's not really a place to ask them directly. Posting on the NPC Codex product page is probably your best bet.
2) Nope.
Ah, that means I'll probably have to come up with a unique minion for Ayrzul instead of keeping my old design idea for him.
Don't know why, but I imagined Ayrzul looking like a dragon due to a mention of him possibly having been an undead crystal dragon.
Still keeping in line with the Fossilized King, why is there no mention of kobolds worshipping him? He seems to me like a fitting kobold deity.
Not really... druids and monks have a VERY different set of flavors and themes to them, and they don't really mix that much. I would say, canonically, a druid/monk would most likely be something like a hermit or a loner who's developed his/her own way of doing things.
Great! Sounds perfect for a PC then, special snowflake indeed!
prototype00
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I'm curious about the various different guils and factions in Golarion.
Will you cover where someoen might gain Monk training in the Inner Sea? Or what about places where Druids might be found?
Inner Sea magic gave us examples of some of the training grounds for Wizards/Sorcerers but I'd love to see more of that.
James, suppose someone in Golarion ascended, Starstone-wise or otherwise, to be the demigod of mathematics. Keziah Mason-wise. :)
- What domains and subdomains would you suggest for them?
- Additionally, would you be willing to suggest skills, feats and other options that would match up with this idea`:)
When you saw the Butterfly boss in Dark Souls, did you also think of Desna?
What's your favorite boss in the game?
I did!
Probably a tie between Queelag and Ceaseless Discharge and the Gaping Dragon.
I knew the Gaping Dragon would at least be a runner up.
Did you have a favorite Zone? Favorite NPC?
2) The Reaper bones one is pretty cool, but kinda tiny. The Horror Clix one is nice as well. I don't really have one that's an obvious favorite yet though.
Ugh, man, you say that now but have you tried to PAINT that Cthulhu bones? I *just* got done today. It took like an hour for each coat.
Cthulhu, you're fat. Sorry bro.
When you were playing the Witcher, what sort of skills did you focus on?
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4
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If a PC manages to pass the test of the starstone or in some other manner become a deity through mythic rules or events, would it be safe to say that when said PC becomes a true god the official stance from you developers would be that they can no longer be used by a player except in the case of being worshiped by later characters.Once you go from demigod to full deity, the game no longer supports your stats, so by definition at that point the PC is out of play.
Note that the Starstone doesn't make you a deity. Just a demigod.
Woah, woah, woah.
That's new!
Or rather I guess that's a new clarification. Since demigods are in effect still in the "playable" range, this means lots of exciting things for an eventual 'test of the starstone' module!
Color me excited!
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Creative Director
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Ah, that means I'll probably have to come up with a unique minion for Ayrzul instead of keeping my old design idea for him.
Don't know why, but I imagined Ayrzul looking like a dragon due to a mention of him possibly having been an undead crystal dragon.
Still keeping in line with the Fossilized King, why is there no mention of kobolds worshipping him? He seems to me like a fitting kobold deity.
Because he's neutral evil, and kobolds are lawful evil. Kobolds are more apt to worship devils and their kind... or worship dragons.
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Creative Director
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Hi James,
I have another question or two relating to Ayandamahla from Demons Revisited.
At CR 24, she is pushing very close to the apex of a nascent demon lord and similar creatures (infernal dukes like Lorthact at CR 25, etc.). In fact, compared with some of the other statted-up nascent lords (e.g. Ruthazek at CR 23 at the end of Serpent's Skull, or Nightripper and Yamasoth at CR 24), she is either equaling or exceeding them. Yet she doesn't actually appear to be one herself.
Why has she not tried to ascend to nascent lord status herself yet? Does she not want to for some reason? Is she trying but just hasn't had success so far, or is it something else? Wouldn't ascending to become a nascent demon lord not only raise her standing, but could provide the power boost she needs to be a greater threat to Sorshen if/when she revives?
Additionally, while she seems primarily concerned with Thassilon/Sorshen, does or did she ever have any interest in Azlant in general?
She's not a nascent demon lord, but she's VERY close to becoming one. What exactly triggers the cross over into nascent lord varies, but a significant part is WANTING to become a demon lord. Not all powerful demons want to be a demon lord.
She's not all that interested in Azlant.
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Creative Director
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I'm curious about the various different guils and factions in Golarion.
Will you cover where someoen might gain Monk training in the Inner Sea? Or what about places where Druids might be found?
Inner Sea magic gave us examples of some of the training grounds for Wizards/Sorcerers but I'd love to see more of that.
I've always considered monks to be faith-based characters, and as such they can receive training in any temple that caters primarily to their lifestyles. The church of Irori is a great place to start.
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Creative Director
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James, suppose someone in Golarion ascended, Starstone-wise or otherwise, to be the demigod of mathematics. Keziah Mason-wise. :)
- What domains and subdomains would you suggest for them?
- Additionally, would you be willing to suggest skills, feats and other options that would match up with this idea`:)
Keziah Mason, I would say, would be a CE god of witchcraft, portals, and mathematics.
I'd probably give her the domains of Chaos, Evil, Madness, and Void. And if she were a full deity instead of a demigod, I'd add Rune to her domains.
The big thing for a Keziah Mason style witch would be to take the Dimensional Occultist archetype from the Pathfinder Society Field Guide... I pretty much designed that archetype specifically for that type of character. And to take a ratling (from the first Jade Regent adventure) as a familiar.
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Creative Director
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When you saw the Butterfly boss in Dark Souls, did you also think of Desna?
What's your favorite boss in the game?
I did!
Probably a tie between Queelag and Ceaseless Discharge and the Gaping Dragon.
I knew the Gaping Dragon would at least be a runner up.
Did you have a favorite Zone? Favorite NPC?
Zone: Hmmmm... A LOT of contenders there, but probably the Painted World. Just love the whole layout of that place. And I should add Crossbreed Priscilla to my favorite boss list.
NPC: Queelag's sister! But Solaire was the one who helped me out the most in fights, so he's awesome too!
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Creative Director
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If a PC manages to pass the test of the starstone or in some other manner become a deity through mythic rules or events, would it be safe to say that when said PC becomes a true god the official stance from you developers would be that they can no longer be used by a player except in the case of being worshiped by later characters.Once you go from demigod to full deity, the game no longer supports your stats, so by definition at that point the PC is out of play.
Note that the Starstone doesn't make you a deity. Just a demigod.
Woah, woah, woah.
That's new!
Or rather I guess that's a new clarification. Since demigods are in effect still in the "playable" range, this means lots of exciting things for an eventual 'test of the starstone' module!
Color me excited!
Technically, all you need to do in order to be a demigod is be able to grant spells to those who worship you. And the lowest you can be and do that is level 1/tier 3. That's gonna be pretty rare, of course... but it does open up a new level of "fight the demigod" plotlines, which is cool!
When you play video games where you can make your own character, do you ever roll up versions of your tabletop characters? Or do you mainly roll up new ones? Do you use a similar name repeatedly?
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Creative Director
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When you play video games where you can make your own character, do you ever roll up versions of your tabletop characters? Or do you mainly roll up new ones? Do you use a similar name repeatedly?
I use "Shensen" for pretty much ALL my videogame characters. When I play a game where I need more than one name, I throw in other names from other characters I've played, such as Bezlarue, Tyralandi, Merisiel, Echo, Sasha, Ameiko, Lavinia, Rowyn, etc.
When you play video games where you can make your own character, do you ever roll up versions of your tabletop characters? Or do you mainly roll up new ones? Do you use a similar name repeatedly?I use "Shensen" for pretty much ALL my videogame characters. When I play a game where I need more than one name, I throw in other names from other characters I've played, such as Bezlarue, Tyralandi, Merisiel, Echo, Sasha, Ameiko, Lavinia, Rowyn, etc.
Do you try and stay true to her build, or mix it up some?
Note that the Starstone doesn't make you a deity. Just a demigod.
But every known starstone user is a full god. (Aroden, plus the three who passed the test.)
Did they all simply manage to make the leap from demigod to god? Or is it something like their demigods in the great scheme, but full gods local to Golarion (whereas Asmodeus, for instance, is also in Earth mythology.)