Just curious to see if there has ever been any discussion on adding a weekly "Rules Explained" Blog or even adding a Pathfinder Line such as Rules 101 (following suit with those like companion, campaign setting, etc.).
It would include examples, in-depth rule explainations, options, etc. I think there would be quite a bit of merit, and save folks time searching through the forums for threads.
Some examples might be:
Mounted Combat
Flying
Concealment, Cover, and Stealth
Animal Companions
Area and Line of Effect Spells
I know there are lots more, just some fodder for the discussion.
Paizo has been adding people recently, and the current product lines are behind, because they have had trouble this year keeping up with the production schedule. Adding more Blogs (free-but-complicated-to-write products) and product lines is not going to fly, I think.
For a while, Tuesday Paizo Blogs were just what you're asking for... rules explanations. There was a great set on difficult terrain, for example, and another one on Poisons.
However, not everyone likes what comes out in the blog posts. An off-hand example of why something did not work in one discussion about Monks led to a clarification that had a few posters up in arms and making personal attacks on the developers.
We may someday get the rules-based blog posts back, but that will take time. Time for the Paizo staff to get ahead of the production schedule again (not before September, if the shipping schedule reflects the situation)... and time for the developers to feel like risking the personal attacks once more.
I wonder, though, if the Wayfinder semi-annual fan-created magazine might be a suitable platform for such in-depth explanations. Perhaps the developers might have time once or twice in a 6-month span to review a long example (or two) of confusing rule situations.
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Whoa. Urath DM has the shining and took my words right out of my sleeping head.
But never say never! While I don't currently see the blog (with the challenges it presents to organizing and finding content) as a place to present substantial new content, you never knows what formats and resources might change in the future to make such an idea more tenable.
As for Wayfinder, we love it! Obviously. But I fear our relationship with it becoming too like that of a gigantic giggling man-baby and a colorful butterfly - us wanting so much to touch and be a part of the beautiful thing that we crush it in our knobby meat hands. Wayfinder works brilliantly as a soap box and variety show for new and enthusiastic authors seeking to contribute to the Pathfinder campaign setting, and I'd hate to rob a freelancer hoping to get her work out there of her chance with what largely equates to additional errata. This is also to say nothing of Wayfinder being an unofficial source, which makes directing readers of our RPG line to it for rules clarifications a bit wonky - that should really be the role of our current errata system.
All that said, if Wayfinder's creators wanted to approach one of our designer about doing a brief, Sage Advice styled article - maybe something with a fun, in-character voice to make it something more fun to read - there could be some potential there.
Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
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As one of the people in charge of the colorful butterfly (thanks Wes, for the kind words and great analogy!), I am intrigued by this idea.
Two concerns:
1) This appears to be stemming from a need for more frequent Rules explanations. Wayfinder comes out TWICE a year. I'm not really sure that is frequent enough to give folks their fix. Is it?
2) I'm more concerned about page space. How big an article would this need to be? 1 page? 2 Pages? How many rules questions will that be?Either it would need to be an article in itself, or if the Q & A for each rule was short and concise, it could be something like the "Ask a Shoanti" side bars scattered throughout the issue. I don't want to weigh down the issue with the equivalent of 6 pages of rules Q & A. That would be too unbalanced, and would take away from fan created content (as was Wes's concern).
And, yes, +1 on Wes's suggestion....we'd need a character of some sort to answer the questions.
We'll mull this over for #8...#7 is packed tight with content and ads, and nearly ready for layout now.
Tim
Wayfinder Editor-in-Chief
(Issues #5, 6, 7)
That sounds good. I don't need for it to be in an FAQ on this site. I just need to know designer intent.