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I have realized that my previous post, here lack a question and sound more like a statement.
So the intended question was: do you feel that a spell that give already a good number of benefits is balanced in giving the possibility to use the Extend metamagic feat on first and second level spells for free?
My main problem is that the secondary effect of a round/level spell can extend (no pun intended) other spells for hours. I would consider it a decent power taken alone, it seem excessive when added to a good number of alternate benefits.
I am too strict?
Maybe my problem is that I think that getting metamagics effects for free* is one of the mains reasons why a lot of people feel that spellcaster are too powerful.
*at the cost some gp.
If a spell is already pretty good, no, it's not balanced to let you extend it for free.
Sorry, it is evident that my being heavily involved in a discussion with my players has the secondary effect of making my posts confused.
I am speaking about Blessing of fervor. The spell has several benefits, the last one say:
"Each round for the duration of this spell, each of your allies can choose one of the following bonuses for that round at the beginning of its turn (their choice).
...
Cast a single spell of 2nd level or lower as if it were an enlarged, extended, silent, or still spell."
Silent and still aren't a problem, enlarged is manageable.
Giving out Extended for free (even if limited to 2nd level spells) seem a big boon.
I am too strict thinking that that make the spell unbalanced?
I know Airships are rare in Golarion and I could potentially put one anywhere I choose, but I was wondering where a party of adventurers might "find one" if they were looking for one.
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James, how many of the setting questions asked of you could be answered by a simple search using the Ennie winning PathfinderWiki?
James, how many of the setting questions asked of you could be answered by a simple search using the Ennie winning PathfinderWiki?
I detect a certain degree of leading in this question, but I think a lot of them are more specialized anyway.
I know Airships are rare in Golarion and I could potentially put one anywhere I choose, but I was wondering where a party of adventurers might "find one" if they were looking for one.
IANJJ, but two things come to mind:
- a quasi-functional piece of Shory technology, discovered in the ruins of one of their cities, could be (or be converted into) an airship of some kind.
- you could find one build by gnomes, anywhere there are large numbers of gnomes. Brastlewark in Cheliax or Whistledown in Varisia come to mind, but Gogpodda in the Steaming Sea seems like a particularly awesome/likely place to find such a thing.
Creative Director
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I have realized that my previous post, here lack a question and sound more like a statement.
So the intended question was: do you feel that a spell that give already a good number of benefits is balanced in giving the possibility to use the Extend metamagic feat on first and second level spells for free?
My main problem is that the secondary effect of a round/level spell can extend (no pun intended) other spells for hours. I would consider it a decent power taken alone, it seem excessive when added to a good number of alternate benefits.
I am too strict?
Maybe my problem is that I think that getting metamagics effects for free* is one of the mains reasons why a lot of people feel that spellcaster are too powerful.
*at the cost some gp.
If a spell is already pretty good, no, it's not balanced to let you extend it for free.
Sorry, it is evident that my being heavily involved in a discussion with my players has the secondary effect of making my posts confused.
I am speaking about Blessing of fervor. The spell has several benefits, the last one say:
"Each round for the duration of this spell, each of your allies can choose one of the following bonuses for that round at the beginning of its turn (their choice).
...
Cast a single spell of 2nd level or lower as if it were an enlarged, extended, silent, or still spell."
Silent and still aren't a problem, enlarged is manageable.Giving out Extended for free (even if limited to 2nd level spells) seem a big boon.
I am too strict thinking that that make the spell unbalanced?
Whether or not your'e too strict is not something I can answer, since I'm not in your group.
Since all four of those metamagic feats only add +1 level to the spell, they are equally potent as far as the rules care, though... If you think Extended is too good to give out compared to the other three... then you should also reconsider whether or not Extend Spell should modify spells by only +1 level as well.
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There's a certain amount of crossover in the Enemies of the Faith lists for Shelyn and Calistria.But Shelyn would also likely have some problems with those who reduce sexuality to a business transaction, wouldn't she?
Probably not. Certainly not on a "SEND THE INQUISITORS" level of things.
If there was some slavery-type stuff going on though, with unwilling prostitution elements, she would. But then, so would Calistria.
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I know Airships are rare in Golarion and I could potentially put one anywhere I choose, but I was wondering where a party of adventurers might "find one" if they were looking for one.
If you're the GM... wherever you want.
There are none currently "in opperation" in the in-print Golarion. If they exist, they'd be lost in some remote corner of the world. Probably crashed and in need of repair.
Alternatively, you could find them on other planets and other planes and bring them back to Golarion.
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James, how many of the setting questions asked of you could be answered by a simple search using the Ennie winning PathfinderWiki?
Probably some of them. And a certain amount of errors would creep in there, since there's some stuff on that Wiki that's outdated or just wrong or pulled from unofficial sources. (Which is NOT a slam against the wiki... but might be a slam at the fundamental nature of ALL wikis.)
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I know Airships are rare in Golarion and I could potentially put one anywhere I choose, but I was wondering where a party of adventurers might "find one" if they were looking for one.IANJJ, but two things come to mind:
- a quasi-functional piece of Shory technology, discovered in the ruins of one of their cities, could be (or be converted into) an airship of some kind.
- you could find one build by gnomes, anywhere there are large numbers of gnomes. Brastlewark in Cheliax or Whistledown in Varisia come to mind, but Gogpodda in the Steaming Sea seems like a particularly awesome/likely place to find such a thing.
A piece of Shory tech would certainly work. But Pathfinder gnomes aren't inventors. You need to go to Krynn or Azeroth for those gnomes.
They're craftsmen but not inventors? Interesting! I'd have expected a race that's all about new experiences being quite inclined to invention.
I have always played fatigue countering abilities like the paladin mercy to be effects that simply cover up fatigue so that if a person continues to use it they simply go straight to exhausted.
however RAW makes it pretty clear that a 3rd level paladin never need sleep again for the rest of his life as he simply removes fatigue every 12 to 24 hours.
can you tell me the intent of this mercy and other abilities like it.
NOTE: the mercy specifically states that it temporarily removes effects caused by curse, disease or poison after 1 hour. but does not really mention natural fatigue
(I believe its fair to say that it works the same)
having said that... i want to try a different question.
would you consider disarming a bow wielder when ever they try to use a bow in combat to be trolling the player or just good common sense NPC tactics.
bows do a sick amount of damage and many players avoid AoO by using the 5 foot step. If I then have the monster step forward and take the bow (note I am saying ANYTIME a reasonably intelligent monster gets into melee with an effective bow wielding character) would the player be justified in feeling singled out?
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They're craftsmen but not inventors? Interesting! I'd have expected a race that's all about new experiences being quite inclined to invention.
Maybe it has something to do with them once being creatures without a true soul since they came from the First World? The souls they possess now may not be as fully formed as the other Material Plane races?
James, do mites have souls? Any chance of an ARG makeover for mites?
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They're craftsmen but not inventors? Interesting! I'd have expected a race that's all about new experiences being quite inclined to invention.
They're not even necessarily crafters. If anything, gnomes in Golarion are explorers/collectors. There could certainly BE a gnome inventor, for sure, but it's not an overarching racial stereotype like it is in Dragonlance or World of Warcraft.
Mostly BECAUSE it's an overarching racial stereotype in Dragonlance and World of Warcraft.
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I have always played fatigue countering abilities like the paladin mercy to be effects that simply cover up fatigue so that if a person continues to use it they simply go straight to exhausted.
however RAW makes it pretty clear that a 3rd level paladin never need sleep again for the rest of his life as he simply removes fatigue every 12 to 24 hours.
can you tell me the intent of this mercy and other abilities like it.
NOTE: the mercy specifically states that it temporarily removes effects caused by curse, disease or poison after 1 hour. but does not really mention natural fatigue
(I believe its fair to say that it works the same)
having said that... i want to try a different question.
would you consider disarming a bow wielder when ever they try to use a bow in combat to be trolling the player or just good common sense NPC tactics.
bows do a sick amount of damage and many players avoid AoO by using the 5 foot step. If I then have the monster step forward and take the bow (note I am saying ANYTIME a reasonably intelligent monster gets into melee with an effective bow wielding character) would the player be justified in feeling singled out?
RE: Sleepless Paladins—Yup, if a paladin wishes to use his ability to remove fatigue to effectively never sleep again, that's fine.
Yes, the player would feel justified in being singled out, especially if you didn't have those monsters do similar tactics against other characters.
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They're craftsmen but not inventors? Interesting! I'd have expected a race that's all about new experiences being quite inclined to invention.Maybe it has something to do with them once being creatures without a true soul since they came from the First World? The souls they possess now may not be as fully formed as the other Material Plane races?
James, do mites have souls? Any chance of an ARG makeover for mites?
I'm not sure what them being "true souls" has to do with inventing.
Mites, though, have souls. They're not outsiders; they're fey. All fey have souls.
Also, Mites are NOT zero-HD creatures, and as such they aren't a race that we'll be doing an "ARG makeover" for. Since they have racial HD, they're not really all that appropriate as a player race.
I know Airships are rare in Golarion and I could potentially put one anywhere I choose, but I was wondering where a party of adventurers might "find one" if they were looking for one.If you're the GM... wherever you want.
There are none currently "in opperation" in the in-print Golarion. If they exist, they'd be lost in some remote corner of the world. Probably crashed and in need of repair.
Alternatively, you could find them on other planets and other planes and bring them back to Golarion.
Or someone could create one?
They're craftsmen but not inventors? Interesting! I'd have expected a race that's all about new experiences being quite inclined to invention.Maybe it has something to do with them once being creatures without a true soul since they came from the First World? The souls they possess now may not be as fully formed as the other Material Plane races?
James, do mites have souls? Any chance of an ARG makeover for mites?
I'm not sure what them being "true souls" has to do with inventing.
Mites, though, have souls. They're not outsiders; they're fey. All fey have souls.
Also, Mites are NOT zero-HD creatures, and as such they aren't a race that we'll be doing an "ARG makeover" for. Since they have racial HD, they're not really all that appropriate as a player race.
I don't want to contradict you but, some of the races in the ARG were races with racial HD, they had a makeover to make them zero-HD race. But I agree it might not be a good idea with other races/monsters/etc...
Dear James Jacobs,
I've run into a problem with several ranger archetypes and how they interact with class features that the archetypes don't replace but can no longer function. This thread was posted back in May but it hasn't seen any official response. Could you please clarify if it was intended that certain class features like Freebooter's Bane that replaces Favored Enemy but keeps Quarry or the Infiltrator's Adaptation that replaces Favored Terrain but keeps Camouflage were intentional or just errors?
Thanks,
Roshan
How exactly did Thassilon get all those summoned monsters to fight with? Lots of wizards casting lots of planar binding?That, and gate spells or simply opening portals to other realms.
1. By portals, you mean like one created by a cubic gate or well of worlds?
2. Are there other ways to create portals?
3. Can a wizard cast an enchantment spell from a staff (say, mass suggestion) without it being obvious she's casting a spell?
4. Can a 20th level wizard make a staff with a caster level of 17?
5. Do all spells in a staff have the same caster level or can they have the minimum needed for the spell level (and thus save cost)?
Any chance we'll be seeing a Pathfinder product with rules for playing as dragons, beyond the general rules for playing monsters already. Something along the lines of the old Council of Wyrms perhaps?
Because the higher the die gets, the swingier things get. It's equally probable to roll max damage as it is minimum damage for a d10, but for 2d6, it's more likely to roll average damage. As damage dice get larger, it gets more important for game balance for rolls to skew more and more toward an average in the middle of the range rather than be evenly spread throughout the entire range.A more mathematically charged duo of questions.
Is there a formula you and the other Paizo workers used in calculating what you should use for a large sized dice?
Why does a d8 turn into a 2d6 instead of a d10?
A fair point. What is a good example of the math involved for setting up what dices becomes what when you bump into larger than Large dice? I'm mostly curious as I am really interested in doing the math for probability for dice rolls.
The Distract trick that the Falconer Ranger can teach his Feathered Companion doesn't list how long the Shaken condition lasts. Would it be safe to assume that it's meant to last until the start of the Companion's next turn?
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Do the ballot counters in Andoran ever have to put up with people writing in powerful villains or dark gods (such as the Whispering Tyrant or Great Cthulhu)? Do the honest ones actually count such votes?In Golarion only one person gets to vote... the guy who just forcibly retired the previous ruler.
You mentioned awhile ago that undead were immune to fear, like from the spell or from Intimidate to Demoralize, and I'm curious about what the exact rules that make it so. The two explanations I've come up with so far are that fear is a morale effect, so they're immune for that reason, and the other is that fear is a mind-affecting effect. I'm trying to reconcile the intent with the words at this point, to help people out if the question comes up again. Thanks!
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[T]he political system... is described as "One Man, One Vote," in which Vetinari alone is the Man, and he has the Vote.Do the ballot counters in Andoran ever have to put up with people writing in powerful villains or dark gods (such as the Whispering Tyrant or Great Cthulhu)? Do the honest ones actually count such votes?In Golarion only one person gets to vote... the guy who just forcibly retired the previous ruler.
The city works!
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I don't want to contradict you but, some of the races in the ARG were races with racial HD, they had a makeover to make them zero-HD race. But I agree it might not be a good idea with other races/monsters/etc...
No contradiction at all. The way the original question was phrased, I interpreted it as a "why didn't you do mites in ARG?" type question.
You certainly COULUD build a zero HD version of a mite. It's not something we're likely to do anytime soon, if ever, though.
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Dear James Jacobs,
I've run into a problem with several ranger archetypes and how they interact with class features that the archetypes don't replace but can no longer function. This thread was posted back in May but it hasn't seen any official response. Could you please clarify if it was intended that certain class features like Freebooter's Bane that replaces Favored Enemy but keeps Quarry or the Infiltrator's Adaptation that replaces Favored Terrain but keeps Camouflage were intentional or just errors?
Thanks,
Roshan
I can't clarify intent for most of the content in that book—I wasn't involved in its design or development, so that's really more of a Jason/design team question.
The easiest solution is to just let the ranger pick a favored enemy type that his quarry or other later abilities apply to.
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Any chance we'll be seeing a Pathfinder product with rules for playing as dragons, beyond the general rules for playing monsters already. Something along the lines of the old Council of Wyrms perhaps?
Unlikely. VERY unlikely. Too much of the game assumes that the player character is a human-shaped Medium or Small sized creature. Once you break that assumption, the underlying framework of the rules (not to mention the underlying framework of the world of Golarion) starts to fall apart and become unplayable.
Dragon PCs are, to put it bluntly, not appropriate for the type of game we're publishing.
Beyond what kind of things the Advanced Race Guide's race builder will let you do, we have no plans to do something like Council of Wyrms. Things can change, though... we might change our minds in a decade or three...
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How exactly did Thassilon get all those summoned monsters to fight with? Lots of wizards casting lots of planar binding?That, and gate spells or simply opening portals to other realms.1. By portals, you mean like one created by a cubic gate or well of worlds?
2. Are there other ways to create portals?
3. Can a wizard cast an enchantment spell from a staff (say, mass suggestion) without it being obvious she's casting a spell?
4. Can a 20th level wizard make a staff with a caster level of 17?
5. Do all spells in a staff have the same caster level or can they have the minimum needed for the spell level (and thus save cost)?
1) Those are two additional methods of creating portals, yes.
2) Yes. There are as many ways to create portals as the writer of an adventure or supplement that requires portals to play a role can make up.
3) Not normally. There might some day be a feat or a class ability or something that lets you disguise the fact that you're casting spells from a staff, but I don't believe any such abilities exist yet. For now, dust of disappearance or greater invisibility are good solutions.
4) Yes.
5) Minimum of caster level 8th, I believe.
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A fair point. What is a good example of the math involved for setting up what dices becomes what when you bump into larger than Large dice? I'm mostly curious as I am really interested in doing the math for probability for dice rolls.Because the higher the die gets, the swingier things get. It's equally probable to roll max damage as it is minimum damage for a d10, but for 2d6, it's more likely to roll average damage. As damage dice get larger, it gets more important for game balance for rolls to skew more and more toward an average in the middle of the range rather than be evenly spread throughout the entire range.A more mathematically charged duo of questions.
Is there a formula you and the other Paizo workers used in calculating what you should use for a large sized dice?
Why does a d8 turn into a 2d6 instead of a d10?
That's a design team question.
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Creative Director
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Will we get anymore on the runelord of sloth? Also from previous posts you've mentioned that he was one of the weaker runelords with powers below that of karzog, if this is the case then how did he manage to call upon the oliphant to do his bidding?
The last runelord of sloth, Krune, was not the ONLY runelord of sloth. In fact, there were PLENTY of runelords of sloth before him, some of whom were quite powerful.
There'll be more information about Krune coming soon, though.
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The Distract trick that the Falconer Ranger can teach his Feathered Companion doesn't list how long the Shaken condition lasts. Would it be safe to assume that it's meant to last until the start of the Companion's next turn?
Lasts for 1 round.
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Are the Whore Queens ever worshiped as a pantheon? Also who or what worships the malenbrache and how is it different from the worship of the archdevils or infernal dukes?
They certainly could be worshiped as a pantheon.
Worshipers of the lower tier unique devils are generally loners and solitary cultists.
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Do the ballot counters in Andoran ever have to put up with people writing in powerful villains or dark gods (such as the Whispering Tyrant or Great Cthulhu)? Do the honest ones actually count such votes?
I suppose so. They wouldn't count such obvious joke votes. And there could well be legal ramifications for "wasting votes."
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You mentioned awhile ago that undead were immune to fear, like from the spell or from Intimidate to Demoralize, and I'm curious about what the exact rules that make it so. The two explanations I've come up with so far are that fear is a morale effect, so they're immune for that reason, and the other is that fear is a mind-affecting effect. I'm trying to reconcile the intent with the words at this point, to help people out if the question comes up again. Thanks!
Undead, being immune to morale effects and mind-affecting effects, are more or less DOUBLY immune to fear as a result. And on top of that... it makes sense that undead wouldn't be fearful.
James,
I'm thinking of running a short little mythic playtest storyline. I know you aren't sure when they're going to be available for playtesting, but where can we look for them when they do pop into existance?
Also, someone asked me, "Is James Jacobs a muppet fan?" the other day. My response was, "How should I know?" but now I want to know. Are you a muppet fan? Would a giant Tyrannosaurus muppet be awesome or dumb? When you imagine a muppet based on Lovecraftian lore, which muppet is it?
Thanks!
~Tundra
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When you imagine a muppet based on Lovecraftian lore, which muppet is it?
Gonzothotep.
About the well of many worlds; according to Classic Treasures Revisited (p.40), "an adventurer or sage attempting to predict a well’s destination for a given point of origin must spend a week researching and then succeed on a DC 40 Knowledge (planes) check."
Or you could just slap a well on a surface. Did Todd mean for the check to be the other way around, with a known endpoint but an unknown starting point? (I want a portal that goes to here, where do I need to place it?")
JJ, in regards to clockworks:
What made them so appealing to Thassilon that they would refine development from their Azlanti cousins? From what I can infer from the mechanics, a clockwork and a golem both require the same craft construct feat to create. The clockwork is not cheaper to build when compared to similar golems. They are not stronger. They are not easier to build by any stretch.
What was their primary appeal? Modability?
You mentioned awhile ago that undead were immune to fear, like from the spell or from Intimidate to Demoralize, and I'm curious about what the exact rules that make it so. The two explanations I've come up with so far are that fear is a morale effect, so they're immune for that reason, and the other is that fear is a mind-affecting effect. I'm trying to reconcile the intent with the words at this point, to help people out if the question comes up again. Thanks!Undead, being immune to morale effects and mind-affecting effects, are more or less DOUBLY immune to fear as a result. And on top of that... it makes sense that undead wouldn't be fearful.
So they're both morale and mind-affecting. Excellent, thanks.
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JJ, in regards to clockworks:
What made them so appealing to Thassilon that they would refine development from their Azlanti cousins? From what I can infer from the mechanics, a clockwork and a golem both require the same craft construct feat to create. The clockwork is not cheaper to build when compared to similar golems. They are not stronger. They are not easier to build by any stretch.
What was their primary appeal? Modability?
Clockworks could be used to record video and audio that Thassilon and Azlanti could use for spywork when other magics couldn't be put to use. Golems probably could with some sort of magic, but this was major component of the crystal core of a clockwork creation.
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James,
1) I'm thinking of running a short little mythic playtest storyline. I know you aren't sure when they're going to be available for playtesting, but where can we look for them when they do pop into existance?
2) Also, someone asked me, "Is James Jacobs a muppet fan?" the other day. My response was, "How should I know?" but now I want to know. Are you a muppet fan? Would a giant Tyrannosaurus muppet be awesome or dumb? When you imagine a muppet based on Lovecraftian lore, which muppet is it?
1) There'll be a blog post, a link to the playtest on the front page, and lots of chatter and info spread all over the boards. If you show up at paizo.com once it starts, you'll know pretty much at once.
2) I'm not a muppet fan.
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About the well of many worlds; according to Classic Treasures Revisited (p.40), "an adventurer or sage attempting to predict a well’s destination for a given point of origin must spend a week researching and then succeed on a DC 40 Knowledge (planes) check."
Or you could just slap a well on a surface. Did Todd mean for the check to be the other way around, with a known endpoint but an unknown starting point? (I want a portal that goes to here, where do I need to place it?")
A well of many worlds has a near infinite number of locations to link to. But where those links go is essentially random. If you want to use a well of many worlds to go to a specific location on a specific plane... knowing that is what the DC 40 Knowledge check is for.