It is with shaky hands and dizzy fingers that I have to write this, for my understanding of roleplaying in general changed in a Big Band style during this weekend. Yes, I'm ecstatic! I just played two PFS scenarios (The Quest for Perfection Part I and Blood Under Absalom) at a convention, namely Ropecon.
There was no way I could've known what was to come. I gamed with a lot of great people I've never met before. It was fun! I learned a lot about GMing. That was fun too! These games also ended my 8 year dry season as a player. And it was perfect.
And also, as a cherry on top, I won some PF material! I now have a brand new Ultimate Magic sitting right here beside me, waiting to be opened!
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Then I got home and tried to sleep. Sometime around 0.30am, at the border of dreaming, the thought hit me: I can play PFS anywhere in The World. Any. Friggin. Where. Then I tried to sleep some more, failing to meet my DC's until the odd hours..
I bow deeply to the Ropecon organizers, Venture Captain NiTessine, and Pathfinder Society GM Deussu. Without these people, this could've not happened.
Only one question still remains unanswered. At the end of the other scenario, we made a peaceful contact with a creature who greeted us with open arms. And the scenario ended there. After that, the party Magus asked:
"Okay, so now that we presumably shake hands with her, do I release the Shocking Grasp I've readied or not?"
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Welcome to the society.
Please do feed the animals.
Only one question still remains unanswered. At the end of the other scenario, we made a peaceful contact with a creature who greeted us with open arms. And the scenario ended there. After that, the party Magus asked:
"Okay, so now that we presumably shake hands with her, do I release the Shocking Grasp I've readied or not?"
The answer is... the shocking grasp is released on its own, whether you want it to or not.
Oops.
The answer is... the shocking grasp is released on its own, whether you want it to or not.
Oops.
:D
Well, we got the loot already, so now.. RUN AWAY!!! No wait, let's loot her too!
The answer is... the shocking grasp is released on its own, whether you want it to or not.The only real question is, did the magus roll to confirm the crit?
Well, we had a Gunslinger aboard who confirmed something like 10 crits during the BUA session. And those crits were everything between useless and extraordinary. Worst: longsword, rolls 2d8: 1 and 1. Best: his gun (can't remember which one it was), rolls 4d8: 8, 8, 8, 5. Also, he managed to misfire with his gun during the session. Twice.
Come play at my table, hargoyle!
If you've got enough porridge and beds and Goldilocks is coming too, count me in!
come this way, before the other Kyle's get to you.No hargoyle! He is the false Kyle. Come this way. I will lead you to enlightenment.
Rest easy Kyles. It's not easy to get from Brevoy to Arcadia, because that's how far away you are from my point of view. It will take time, patience and a lot of resources before I get to either of your tables.
But now that I have my Wayfinder, it's just a matter of time.. Expect me, when you see me.
EDIT: Some grammar.
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Thank you for your kind words. This is the kind of stuff that makes it all worthwhile. The PFS side of the convention was an outstanding success. Only one table failed to run and Blood Under Absalom was full.
I am sorry I didn't have time to run games at Ropecon, except for the about 20 minutes I sat as a replacement for Mikko when he had to go work his Otaniemi admin mojo in the middle of the game (good thing I was familiar with the scenario). The GM screen was just one sacrifice I had to make, since I wasn't just organizing the Pathfinder Society at the con, but the entire tabletop RPG programming. The only game I could play was Jere's <i>We Be Goblins!</i> at two o'clock in the morning, and I kept falling asleep. The only TPK of the convention, that.
See you at Tracon! Deussu is the head RPG honcho over there, so I can take to the game tables and put some heads on the wall.
(Weird thing... since I was appointed the V-C in early May, PCs have started dropping like flies in my games. Two TPKs and one near-TPK in the space of a few weeks, for a total of 16 dead PCs. I swear it's not on purpose!)
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Yep, Living Campaigns are great! They combine the familiarity with a character that you would normally only get in a home campaign with the ability to go to a convention and play in a one shot con game with complete strangers. In fact PFS is the only reason I play PF RPG.
I just wish other living campaigns were as popular as PFS; I miss Living Traveller :(
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Welcome to Pathfinder Society, hargoyle! I'm looking forward to seeing you in our out-of-con gaming sessions in the Helsinki area. Unfortunately we don't currently have regular game days so you'll have to follow the posts at the pelilauta.fi message board.
At Ropecon, I was in the organizing committee as was VC Särkijärvi, so I couldn't take part in the PFS action there except for being a spectator in a few highly entertaining games. I witnessed a PC escaping death by crashing through a burning wall. Another one threw an enemy 20 ft down from a tower and went along himself - at 0 hit points. And poor Valeros was killed three times on Friday.
I also agree with you that being able to play anywhere in the world is one of the strong points of PFS. Special thanks to the Toronto pathfinders who have welcomed me to their gaming nights two times this year.
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I am a long time player who is just now thinking about getting involved in PFS. I've read the Organized Play PDF and have a few different character options ready to go depending on what's needed. Is there anything else anyone can recommend that I have ready for my first game? And what will I be expected to have prepared as far as back story (I am somewhat familiar with Golarion but generally play in a homebrew setting with friends)?
And where is the best place to look into PFF play-by post possibilities?
(Apologies for the derail and if my questions are somewhat noobish, I just thought this might be a good place to solicit advice since everyone was warm and welcoming.)
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And where is the best place to look into PFF play-by post possibilities?Probably the Events page.
Thanks. Again, sorry, still sort of taking everything in. There's a lot of information out there.
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And what will I be expected to have prepared as far as back story (I am somewhat familiar with Golarion but generally play in a homebrew setting with friends)?
I don't think you need to worry much about having a detailed backstory -- some players and GMs will appreciate you having a coherent reason-for-being for your character, but a lot of them just won't care.
And, to be honest, beyond having a little in-character hook so that the more RP-enthusiastic players at your table have something to identify your character, an in-depth background isn't necessary for PFS play (and, you'll likely see a fair number of players who really don't have any background for their PCs at all -- "I'm a half-orc barbarian. Let's kill something.") While a detailed backstory may help you get into character, most of it will likely never come up in PFS play. As GMs are supposed to run PFS adventures "as written", opportunities to customize play to a particular player's character are infrequent, at best.
As long as you know enough about the setting to not give your PC a really out-of-place background (like a forest-loving elf from the dwarf-dominated Five Kings Mountains region), you should be fine -- and you can probably come up with a "fish out of water" explanation for most strange combinations of character and background.
Venture-Agent, Colorado—Denver
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It is with shaky hands and dizzy fingers that I have to write this, for my understanding of roleplaying in general changed in a Big Band style during this weekend. Yes, I'm ecstatic! I just played two PFS scenarios (The Quest for Perfection Part I and Blood Under Absalom) at a convention, namely Ropecon.
There was no way I could've known what was to come. I gamed with a lot of great people I've never met before. It was fun! I learned a lot about GMing. That was fun too! These games also ended my 8 year dry season as a player. And it was perfect.
I felt the exact same way 2 and a half years ago when I played my first PFS scenario in South Denver at a game store that now hosts PFS events every week. After a couple months of Society play and several years of previous GMing experience I became the PFS organizer at my neighborhood game store. The bonding & friendships I have made with the other players, organizers, & venture captains will always remain very special to me. The joy of introducing new players to the Pathfinder RPG is quite heartwarming. I have received emails from parents and teachers describing the fun their kids have had participating in a tabletop role playing game & making friends instead of sitting in front of a tv, all alone, playing video games. I have heard that some of these kids have improved in classes at school. History, math, English, etc..! I have also introduced collegues, in-laws, and friends much older than me to the RPG world and they loved it!
Welcome Aboard!
Anyway,
Thank you for you heart warming words! I can feeling The Community watching over and protecting me.. until the eventual x4 crit hits and my cleric is squashed..
Welcome to the Society, hargoyle!
If you feel like heading a bit further south, we have lots of PFS going on in Denmark too.
Jacob, thank you for your offer! By and by, me coming over there is actually possible. It takes just about two hours to fly there. I just need the money for the ticket first...
Damned link above was dead.
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It is with shaky hands and dizzy fingers that I have to write this, for my understanding of roleplaying in general changed in a Big Band style during this weekend. Yes, I'm ecstatic! I just played two PFS scenarios (The Quest for Perfection Part I and Blood Under Absalom) at a convention, namely Ropecon.
There was no way I could've known what was to come. I gamed with a lot of great people I've never met before. It was fun! I learned a lot about GMing. That was fun too! These games also ended my 8 year dry season as a player. And it was perfect.
And also, as a cherry on top, I won some PF material! I now have a brand new Ultimate Magic sitting right here beside me, waiting to be opened!
** spoiler omitted **
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Then I got home and tried to sleep. Sometime around 0.30am, at the border of dreaming, the thought hit me: I can play PFS anywhere in The World. Any. Friggin. Where. Then I tried to sleep some more, failing to meet my DC's until the odd hours..
I bow deeply to the Ropecon organizers, Venture Captain NiTessine, and Pathfinder Society GM Deussu. Without these people, this could've not happened.
Only one question still remains unanswered. At the end of the other scenario, we made a peaceful contact with a creature who greeted us with open arms. And the scenario ended there. After that, the party Magus asked:
"Okay, so now that we presumably shake hands with her, do I release the Shocking Grasp I've readied or not?"
Wow this thread gave me the warmfuzzies! I'm hoping to have the same experience at my first Gencon this year! Longtime player, and luckily have a great local group, I'm looking forward to Organized Play now.