Numerian-style Reskinning


Pathfinder Society

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5/5

This is one of those "I bet I know the answer" questions but I just want to check. Since the idea behind the Numerian artifacts, as discussed somewhere in the campaign setting, is that you can just take magic items and reskin them as alien tech--wand of scorching ray becomes laser pistol, etc--and since in PFS you can reskin stuff for style as long as it won't impact the stats in any way, that means I can have a Kellid whose Wand of CLW is, say, a stimpack dispenser? It's still a touch effect, it still heals, it's still small (positing tiny stimpacks), so it doesn't matter how I describe it.

Yes?

Shadow Lodge 5/5

Last I knew there was a "No Reskin Rule" I recall a thread where someone wanted Dark Tapestry Physical qualities for his Half-Orc (IIRC) and the answer was no

Silver Crusade 2/5

Except visually I wouldn't know you were using a wand. I wouldn't think to use UMD with it. I wouldn't know what the item is, and it doesn't fit the theme of the campaign. Otherwise, I could take a gunslinger and pretend to be Commander Sheppard, and that's just silly.

TLDR: No.

1/5

The only rules on reskinning items is this:
"A player may not re-skin items to be something for which there are no specific rules..."

So I would say no since there are no specific rules for the use of laser guns or stim packs. The reskinning rules are more along the lines of small changes that don't change what the actual item is. For example...I don't want a cheetah animal companion so I call it a bobcat. It's still a cat but a slightly different looking cat. An item example would be something like carrying around a great sword but describing more along the lines of the ridiculously sized meat cleavers seen in anime instead of the more traditional shape.

What you want to do doesn't hurt the mechanics of the game but it does confuse the rest of the table. In addition it takes away from the story telling of the world by throwing concepts that [Edit] have an extremely rare basis [/Edit] in Golarion.

Edit: This has been hashed out before (Pig at Gencon incident) and the general consensus is to avoid reskinning. If you absolutely feel you must reskin things then take a look at the PFS FAQ for the reskinning of animal companions and items question. Follow that ruling and be prepare to do a lot of explaining at the table to other players.

Dark Archive 4/5

Lab_Rat wrote:

The only rules on reskinning items is this:

"A player may not re-skin items to be something for which there are no specific rules..."

So I would say no since there are no specific rules for the use of laser guns or stim packs. The reskinning rules are more along the lines of small changes that don't change what the actual item is. For example...I don't want a cheetah animal companion so I call it a bobcat. It's still a cat but a slightly different looking cat. An item example would be something like carrying around a great sword but describing more along the lines of the ridiculously sized meat cleavers seen in anime instead of the more traditional shape.

What you want to do doesn't hurt the mechanics of the game but it does confuse the rest of the table. In addition it takes away from the story telling of the world by throwing concepts that have no basis in Golarion.

1. You are correct on the main point

2. Numeria is a country in Golarion where a spaceship crashed and it has strange and wondrous technologies

Dark Archive 1/5

I was also enthusiastic about reskinning my sorcerer spells to a clockwork theme, using Golarion technology lore stated in Inner Sea World Guide and Guide to Absalom, here is the discussion:
http://paizo.com/forums/dmtz62xs?A-Character-Concept-About-Clockworks

From the thread:
The problem with reskinning is there are often mechanical ramifications of reskinned spells. Let's take a look at your example:

If your character casts stinking cloud by turning a knob on the arm of his mechanical arm:
1. Does this change the DC of an opposed spellcraft roll to determine what you are "casting"?
2. Does this mean you can never cast a stilled version of stinking cloud?
3. If an opposed fighter witnesses this, can they sunder your mechanical arm? If so, what impact does this have in game? Beyond not having a hand now, can he still cast spells?
4. If a wizard, does he still use a rotten egg or cabbage leaf as the material component? If so, does he have to load these into the mechanical hand?

These types of issues can be easily hashed out and agreed upon in home games. However, in an open, organized play session, it's too big a pain in the neck to have to go through a 150 point FAQ on your character with a new GM and get his or her buy in on every reskinned component. As a result, it simply isn't allowed.

Will Johnson's answer clarified everything, and was right to the point, showing me some "future" problems my character will run into with GM's.

5/5

So we're not allowing any Numerian flavor in PFS, then?

I'm not being sarcastic--that seems to be the conclusion here. If I can't reskin items as suggested in the setting books, then the only thing I can use with a Numerian feel is the currency, which is pointless.

Is there any way to resolve this short of Paizo releasing a book about Numeria with items that are approved for Society play?

Is there such a book forthcoming? If not, could there be? I'd be all over that.

5/5

Alexander_Damocles wrote:

Except visually I wouldn't know you were using a wand. I wouldn't think to use UMD with it. I wouldn't know what the item is, and it doesn't fit the theme of the campaign. Otherwise, I could take a gunslinger and pretend to be Commander Sheppard, and that's just silly.

TLDR: No.

Ah, you have read the campaign setting, yes? Numeria is a country in Golarion. Bordering Mendev, I think. It has a crashed alien space ship. "The campaign setting" I referenced in my original question is the Inner Sea World Guide.

Commander Sheppard, on the other hand, not so much.

3/5

There are plenty of Numerian-flavor things that are legal. Most of the adamantine in Golarion comes from Numeria for one thing. Maybe your Kellid barbarian has adamanitine armor or weapons made from recycled bits of Numerian tech.

Maybe you have a viridium weapon which is made from the radioactive fuel of a Numerian speaceship.

You can always just describe your wand of CLW as anything you want and adjust accordingly if the DM raises a stink about it.

Silver Crusade 2/5

Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:
Alexander_Damocles wrote:

Except visually I wouldn't know you were using a wand. I wouldn't think to use UMD with it. I wouldn't know what the item is, and it doesn't fit the theme of the campaign. Otherwise, I could take a gunslinger and pretend to be Commander Sheppard, and that's just silly.

TLDR: No.

Ah, you have read the campaign setting, yes? Numeria is a country in Golarion. Bordering Mendev, I think. It has a crashed alien space ship. "The campaign setting" I referenced in my original question is the Inner Sea World Guide.

Commander Sheppard, on the other hand, not so much.

I have. Just because it exists doesn't make it part of the campaign flavor. Its there for GMs who want to use it. And reskinning a musket at a mass altering weapon, and saying my armor looks like a carbonfiber composite material doesn't alter the stats...just how it looks. Same justification, just a bit silly.

1/5

For your knowledge...this is what is legal from the Inner Sea World Guide (Pulled straight from the additional resources section of PFS):

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea World Guide
Domains: Scalykind and Void domains; Equipment: all weapons, armor, and adventuring gear on pages 290–293 with the following restriction: only gunslingers may purchase firearms except cannons, which are not available to anyone; Feats: all feats on pages 284–289 except Cypher Magic, Cypher Script, Eye of the Arclord, Fortune Teller, Hamatulatsu, Harrowed, and Shade of the Uskwood; Gods: All gods listed in the tables on pages 229, 231, and 234; Languages: all languages on page 251 may be learned via the Linguistics skill; Magic Items: goz mask, unguent of revivification, wayfinder, zoic fetish; Prestige Classes: Hellknight, Low Templar; Races: All human ethnicities are legal except Azlanti, humans begin play knowing all listed languages for their chosen ethnicity as racial languages; Spells: all spells on pages 294–297 except harrowing, extraplanetary teleport, and teleport trap

Edit: Alex and I need to stop posting in the same thread. We tend to fill threads with overly strong, super smart varmints.

5/5

Alexander_Damocles wrote:
I have. Just because it exists doesn't make it part of the campaign flavor.

Your argument seems to be that a nation which exists in the officially published campaign guide is not part of the official campaign flavor. If so, I disagree, and find the premise of the argument puzzling. If not, please clarify; I wish to understand.

Lab_Rat wrote:
For your knowledge...this is what is legal from the Inner Sea World Guide (Pulled straight from the additional resources section of PFS):

That's not really relevant to the question of reskinning. (Unless you're trying to argue that the description of the campaign world isn't part of the approved resources. Which I assume you are not.)

Shadow Lodge 5/5

as far as I know Numeria is Society's "Area 51" and while it is acknowledged to exist .. the answer is no ... Numeria comes up in a lot of discussions ... most recently in the discussions about other Gun using Archtypes (Spellslinger, Guntank, Holy Gun ect)or advaanced firearms... everyone ALWAYS uses Numeria as the Exception to the rules ... and the consistent answer is it breaks campaign flavor which I tend to agree with.

FAQ wrote:


Can I re-skin or re-flavor an animal companion or item?
You may choose a specific type of animal companion from any of the base forms listed on pages 53–54 of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook or a legal Additional Resource but may not use stats for one base form with the flavor of another type of animal. Thus, a small cat could be a cheetah or leopard, as suggested, as well as a lynx, bobcat, puma, or other similar animal; it could not, however, be "re-skinned" to be a giant hairless swamp rat or a differently-statted wolf. If a GM feels that a re-skinning is inappropriate or could have mechanical implications in the specific adventure being played, he may require that the creature simply be considered its generic base form for the duration of the adventure. A player may not re-skin items to be something for which there are no specific rules, and any item a character uses for which there are no stats is considered an improvised weapon (see page 144 of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook).

thats the exact ruling as presented in the FAQ ... it seems fairly straight forward to me

Silver Crusade 2/5

Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:
Alexander_Damocles wrote:
I have. Just because it exists doesn't make it part of the campaign flavor.

Your argument seems to be that a nation which exists in the officially published campaign guide is not part of the official campaign flavor. If so, I disagree, and find the premise of the argument puzzling. If not, please clarify; I wish to understand.

Lab_Rat wrote:
For your knowledge...this is what is legal from the Inner Sea World Guide (Pulled straight from the additional resources section of PFS):
That's not really relevant to the question of reskinning. (Unless you're trying to argue that the description of the campaign world isn't part of the approved resources. Which I assume you are not.)

Let me rephrase that: Numeria exists in Golarion. In PFS, its not used. That is how the campaign is currently run, if you disagree, take it up with Mike Brock.

5/5

Alexander_Damocles wrote:
Let me rephrase that: Numeria exists in Golarion. In PFS, its not used. That is how the campaign is currently run, if you disagree, take it up with Mike Brock.

Not used, or doesn't exist? Are we saying that there's just a big flat stretch of snow there? Is it not a nation, and it's divided amongst what should be on its borders? Or are we saying that we just shouldn't talk about it because it's inconvenient?

If it's the former, okay, but where is that written? (Seriously, I want to see it; if the nation has been removed from organized play that's going to be in writing somewhere.)

If it's just inconvenient, I'm going to have to point out that I don't see why gunslingers can be everywhere, and Tengu can flock to the European-flavored nations, but Numeria--which doesn't require new rules, just new flavor--is somehow over the line.

Edit: Also, isn't this exactly HOW one takes up something with the campaign coordinators? Start a thread, get conversation rolling, see if people agree? Mike reads the forums, you know.

Dark Archive 5/5

Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Maps Subscriber
Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:
Alexander_Damocles wrote:
Let me rephrase that: Numeria exists in Golarion. In PFS, its not used. That is how the campaign is currently run, if you disagree, take it up with Mike Brock.

If it's just inconvenient, I'm going to have to point out that I don't see why gunslingers can be everywhere, and Tengu can flock to the European-flavored nations, but Numeria--which doesn't require new rules, just new flavor--is somehow over the line.

You keep bringing up Numeria. I keep bringing up the fact that James Jacobs isn't going to let a freelancer write a lot of stuff about Numeria in a PFS scenario.

The region is pretty, uh.... special, and going to get some love in the Inner Sea Bestiary. From the conversation I sorta remember from James and a fan talking in the Paizo booth at GenCon on Sunday, Numeria isn't going to get more detailed work until they can do it "right". Until then, yes, they're going to largely ignore it and I'm going to tell you that you can just relax and not have your spidermechs and laser rifles in Golarion yet.

In-world, Numerian PCs apparently have their own concerns local to Numeria, and don't go traipsing off to Absalom to play with Azlanti relics...

5/5

TetsujinOni wrote:
Until then, yes, they're going to largely ignore it and I'm going to tell you that you can just relax and not have your spidermechs and laser rifles in Golarion yet.

Dude, all I want is to be able to call a Wand of CLW a hypospray instead.

Shadow Lodge 5/5

First the way a wand works is it casts the spell and you deliver it with your hand ... so your flavor / mechanics are broken

2nd Evidence and rules have been quoted and you have rejected them ...

the direction of this thread has been evident for a while in that its going round and round and getting nowhere fast except frustrating people

I agree with the previous statment ... take it up with Mike ... as there is nothing more that we can do here

Shadow Lodge 4/5 *** Venture-Captain, Michigan—Mt. Pleasant

Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:
TetsujinOni wrote:
Until then, yes, they're going to largely ignore it and I'm going to tell you that you can just relax and not have your spidermechs and laser rifles in Golarion yet.
Dude, all I want is to be able to call a Wand of CLW a hypospray instead.

Then play in a homebrew game and reskin to your heart's content. Or you can play PFS and play by this campaign's GM's rules (aka Mike Brock and no reskinning)

Grand Lodge 4/5

Numeria is the bizarre estranged uncle of the Golarion continents. The accepted convention is to not talk about him/it.

I honestly think it's a matter of how crazy you get.

Metal armour crafted from the scrap of strange devices = fine.
Stimpack administer as a Wand of Cure Light Wounds = getting close to pushing it. Wouldn't they be alien stimpacks? And wouldn't they expire?
Laser rifle operating as a Wand of Scorching Ray = pushing belief.
Walky-talky that only operates when you have purchased a scroll of commune, message or whispering wind = no way.

It'd be cool to have a Mad Max/Fallout/Borderlands style barbarian, but you need to keep it believable to Golarion's flavour.

Silver Crusade 2/5

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Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:
TetsujinOni wrote:
Until then, yes, they're going to largely ignore it and I'm going to tell you that you can just relax and not have your spidermechs and laser rifles in Golarion yet.
Dude, all I want is to be able to call a Wand of CLW a hypospray instead.

Right. And some folks want to call a dog a pig. In PFS, we don't reskin. Personally, I think there is some room for common sense reskinnings, but the management said "no reskins", and I abide by that.

5/5

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Guys.

It's a discussion board.

I'm not rejecting the ruling, I'm discussing it, because I don't like it, and this is the place to do that.

There's no resolution to be had. I had an idea, and it was pointed out that the rules don't support it. Why are you getting so frustrated about this? That's the entire point of having a forum called "General Discussion." If you don't want to debate this topic, why are you posting in the thread?

5/5

KestlerGunner wrote:

Numeria is the bizarre estranged uncle of the Golarion continents. The accepted convention is to not talk about him/it.

...

It'd be cool to have a Mad Max/Fallout/Borderlands style barbarian, but you need to keep it believable to Golarion's flavour.

I hear what you are saying, but I disagree. It's part of the flavor of Golarion by virtue of being placed on Golarion by the people who came up with Golarion. Not talking about it because it's inconvenient seems nonsensical to me.

Grand Lodge 4/5

I agree with you. I'm just commenting that the tradition has been 'Don't mention uncle Numeria!' It's not *my* choice.
To my understanding, we still don't have any Numerian scenarios.
At some point, Paizo decided the nation inspired by an old 1980s module about a crashed spaceship wasn't good for the campaign unless handled really, really well.

We still have the same problem with Alkenstar. Despite the nation getting their own class, to my knowledge the Society still hasn't headed over there to fire some scatter-guns, hunt some mutant gnolls and outrun a mana waste storm. (PFS writers, I'm dropping a hint here)

I also agree with you on the fact that we can use these forums as a sounding board or place to discuss the campaign. Flat out statements like 'No reskins ever' are really disheartening.


Alexander_Damocles wrote:


Right. And some folks want to call a dog a pig. In PFS, we don't reskin.

Oh god, not the pigs again.......

5/5

Actually, digging around and seeing the pig thread was really helpful this morning. It immediately prompted me to choose a pig as a familiar for the character.

I was going to reskin him as a boar (since Numeria is cold) with broken tusks (to avoid changing the mechanics of his bite) but heaven forfend ... ;p

Dark Archive

I am with you on the Numeria thing, I have argued about it a few times. I joking put a black spot over my map of Golarion and lable it AREA 51. Its the elephant in the room you can't mention.

Grand Lodge 4/5

Maybe Pathfinder Society agents head to 'Area 51' all the time, it's just the Bards-In-Black show up at the end of the scenario and use their special silver Wands of Modify Memory to ensure you don't get the chronicle.

Dark Archive

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KestlerGunner wrote:
Maybe Pathfinder Society agents head to 'Area 51' all the time, it's just the Bards-In-Black show up at the end of the scenario and use their special silver Wands of Modify Memory to ensure you don't get the chronicle.

And the ones that make the save are slandered in public so no one believes them

Liberty's Edge 5/5

KestlerGunner wrote:

I agree with you. I'm just commenting that the tradition has been 'Don't mention uncle Numeria!' It's not *my* choice.

To my understanding, we still don't have any Numerian scenarios.
At some point, Paizo decided the nation inspired by an old 1980s module about a crashed spaceship wasn't good for the campaign unless handled really, really well.

We still have the same problem with Alkenstar. Despite the nation getting their own class, to my knowledge the Society still hasn't headed over there to fire some scatter-guns, hunt some mutant gnolls and outrun a mana waste storm. (PFS writers, I'm dropping a hint here)

I also agree with you on the fact that we can use these forums as a sounding board or place to discuss the campaign. Flat out statements like 'No reskins ever' are really disheartening.

Actually there is a scenario that takes place in the Mana Wastes (or at least close enough to experience their effects.)

Liberty's Edge 5/5

Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:

Actually, digging around and seeing the pig thread was really helpful this morning. It immediately prompted me to choose a pig as a familiar for the character.

I was going to reskin him as a boar (since Numeria is cold) with broken tusks (to avoid changing the mechanics of his bite) but heaven forfend ... ;p

I understand you are probably being sarcastic here.

But I must say, Boars have stats. You can't reskin something into something else that already has stats.

Grand Lodge 4/5

Andrew Christian wrote:


Actually there is a scenario that takes place in the Mana Wastes (or at least close enough to experience their effects.)

Ooh - which one? Does it ever get into Alkenstar?

The Exchange 5/5 RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16

It does not. If you like, though, I'd be happy to run you through it on VTT once Paizo Game Space goes live. (Which should happen Summer of 2012...)

Grand Lodge 4/5

:glee:
I look forward to being transmogrified by a magical storm when that technological innovation arrives!

5/5

Andrew Christian wrote:

I understand you are probably being sarcastic here.

But I must say, Boars have stats. You can't reskin something into something else that already has stats.

I wish to congratulate you on the deleterious effect you had on my blood pressure just there.

Sczarni 2/5

KestlerGunner wrote:
Andrew Christian wrote:
Actually there is a scenario that takes place in the Mana Wastes (or at least close enough to experience their effects.)
Ooh - which one? Does it ever get into Alkenstar?

Is there really one out in the wastes? If so, I really wanna get a chance to run in that one...

The Exchange 5/5 RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16

Sure thing, Jack. If you've got a 7th-level PC, you can join KestlerGunner.

1/5

Jack-of-Blades wrote:
KestlerGunner wrote:
Andrew Christian wrote:
Actually there is a scenario that takes place in the Mana Wastes (or at least close enough to experience their effects.)
Ooh - which one? Does it ever get into Alkenstar?
Is there really one out in the wastes? If so, I really wanna get a chance to run in that one...

Don't remember the name...it's a season 0. Just played it with a lvl 8 wizard. That blew chunks. Spent most of the game going...will the dice let me throw a spell this round....nope!

I think the most hilarious thing was the arcane archer noticing after we were well into the wastes and starting combat that he couldn't access any of his arrows from his efficient quiver. LOL. He ran around stabbing things with a mundane dagger.

Sczarni 2/5

Chris Mortika wrote:
Sure thing, Jack. If you've got a 7th-level PC, you can join KestlerGunner.

I've got one now, but he's not gonna be 7th level for much longer.

Grand Lodge 4/5

My 7th just became 8th. So it might be a while's off :{

Shadow Lodge 5/5

he was meaning its a 7-11

Grand Lodge 5/5 ****

The Scenario in the Mana Waste is Lost at Bitter end.

For GM's I can only recommend to read up on rules regarding Dead Magical zones. The first time GMing it lead to the longest ever rules discussion I had on the table.

Sczarni 5/5 * Venture-Lieutenant, Washington—Pullman

Patrick Harris @ SD wrote:

This is one of those "I bet I know the answer" questions but I just want to check. Since the idea behind the Numerian artifacts, as discussed somewhere in the campaign setting, is that you can just take magic items and reskin them as alien tech--wand of scorching ray becomes laser pistol, etc--and since in PFS you can reskin stuff for style as long as it won't impact the stats in any way, that means I can have a Kellid whose Wand of CLW is, say, a stimpack dispenser? It's still a touch effect, it still heals, it's still small (positing tiny stimpacks), so it doesn't matter how I describe it.

Yes?

I remember Sitting in a GM101 session at PaizoCon. Mike Brock sitting right in front of me along with VLs and VCs. It was in a portion of the GM101 where they were running through scenarios that we as GMs might come across. One was re skinning, the scenario was a guy built his character to be Conan(on the spot and it was quite funny) but the problem is that everything has to fit in the story line of PFS Campaign. Conan obviously does not, he is from the Hyborian Age, worships a deity not supported in PFS, has catch phrases that cause people to give odd looks.

One justification the people running GM101 against this behavior was that just because you can re-skin something that does not change things mechanically, does not mean it will fit into the PFS, or that it should be done. Pathfinder books are used to give a great volume of material to be used not only in PFS but in home brews, adventure paths, modules, and whatever ever else people might want.

Lets look at your Stimpack Dispenser(CLW wand). You fall down and go unconscious at one point, somebody starts looking through your bags for your CLW wand. They expect to find a magic stick and find only a strange device they have seen you injecting yourself with. Now they have to use their own magical healing to get you back up due to your re-skinning. Everything about the stimpack dispenser is the same as a CLW wand except the description of the item, but its impacted game play.

Sometimes it's just better to not push the boundaries of re-skinning. As a GM I'd be totally for you having a blue pig familiar or walking around in a set of Armor that has polka dots on it, but there is a reason why some things are not allowed. The PFS campaign has a restricted amount of material because otherwise people would be running around with Jetpacks(Fly Spell), Laser Guns(Your scorching ray), and having face to face with VCs over Skype(Enter Image Spell).

The Exchange 5/5 RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16

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Quote:
I remember Sitting in a GM101 session at PaizoCon. Mike Brock sitting right in front of me along with VLs and VCs. It was in a portion of the GM101 where they were running through scenarios that we as GMs might come across. One was re skinning, the scenario was a guy built his character to be Conan(on the spot and it was quite funny) but the problem is that everything has to fit in the story line of PFS Campaign. Conan obviously does not, he is from the Hyborian Age, worships a deity not supported in PFS, has catch phrases that cause people to give odd looks.

Coraith,

I have to disagree with that attitude. As long as “Conan” is a Pathfinder-legal character (maybe a Barbarian planning on taking a couple levels in Rogue) then we have no business restricting that player’s fun. He worships a being he calls “Crom”, go for it! We know that Golarion gods have different names in different places. (Besides, Crom doesn’t grant spells, as far as we can tell, so who knows if he’s just a powerful outsider.) He wants to be “from Hyperborea,” that’s fine. The name literally means “the far north”, so he might be from those lands beyond the Worldwound, north of Irrisen, off the map of the Inner Sea region.

(If he wants to be ‘king of Aquilonia,’ we should remind him that’s he’s not high enough level, yet.)

We are not the setting police. Let’s say I come to your table with a 7th-level human paladin worshipping Torag. Is that character legal? Let’s say I haven’t read the one sentence in “Faiths of Purity” that says that Torag’s paladins are all dwarves. Will you let me play that character? Do I have to pay for an atonement to switch gods? Do I lose my paladin status? Or do I have to switch races to dwarf? How do I put that on my Chronicle sheet?

Do all PC elves need to adhere to all the descriptions in “Elves of Golarion”? Does everybody playing a Halfling from Cheliax need to read up on how Halflings are oppressed there? Can somebody play a “winter witch” archetype without knowing as many details about Irrisen as the GM does?

Look, we want people to interface their PCs’ background with Golarion lore. We want players to design characters that fit into the fantasy tropes they find attractive. If the Gamemastering 101 advice is to discourage anything the GM thinks doesn’t fit into his version of Golarion, then eventually we will all run into a GM who had read an article in some AP from a couple years’ ago, or a paragraph in the Inner Sea World Guide, or caught a reference in the Rivals guide that contradicts something about our PC’s background. (Well, unless you’re Mark Moreland. Nobody’s going to catch Mark in a Golarion mistake.)

Rather, as long as the PC is legal according to the rules, hold your tongue, unless you are absolutely certain that you can talk to the player about any weirdness in a supportive, nonchallenging way.

Liberty's Edge 4/5 5/55/5 **

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Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber; Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber

Chris, it is one thing to get your Golarion Lore wrong in your PC background, That is not is much of a problem and I agree A GM can't tell a PC You are wrong in your Lore Fix it! A GM can though if he has the resources at hand work with the player to show him the correct lore and the Player can change it to match the lore.

That said... Using lore from another totally Different IP Setting should be strongly discouraged by GM and other players. I would not allow it at my Table (I am not going to argue back and forth on this).

We are all in a shared setting, Something we all agree to when we play PFS games. By not allowing someone to bring in a PC from a different setting we are not restricting that player’s fun, we are showing him how to have fun in the correct setting he decided to join by playing Pathfinder Society.

Shadow Lodge 4/5 *** Venture-Captain, Michigan—Mt. Pleasant

:) I do have to admit that I have a character from another IP... I have a Magician bard, Albert "Presto" Krupp. Every now and then he'll check his wrist for the time and remember he doesn't have a watch, or he'll make a comment and shake his head because none of the characters understand it. I've also had him sing some 70s-80s songs. I'm usually subtle about it, and haven't played him much, but I don't think anyone in my group has really caught onto it yet. :) Of course I've incorporated him into Golarion. He was trained in Olparra. He went back to his roots and learned stage magic to compliment his bardic abilities.

The Exchange 5/5 RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16

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I agree to a point, my friend. Part of the goal of Pathfinder Society Organized Play is to act as ambassadors, to get players interested in the richness of the Golarion campaign setting. If a new, enthusiastic player sits down with a character drawn from Greyhawk, and we don't say anything, we aren't doing our jobs.

But if he sits down with the character just as the session is supposed to start, and we explain that he's doing it wrong and that Uvot-worship is not allowed at your table, and that the Theocracy of the Pale isn't a valid home country, ... then we're not serving the community, either.

Oh, and as a datum: I have indeed had a GM tell me that my Golarion lore was wrong and that I needed to fix a PC's background.

Dark Archive 5/5

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Chris Mortika wrote:

I agree to a point, my friend. Part of the goal of Pathfinder Society Organized Play is to act as ambassadors, to get players interested in the richness of the Golarion campaign setting. If a new, enthusiastic player sits down with a character drawn from Greyhawk, and we don't say anything, we aren't doing our jobs.

But if he sits down with the character just as the session is supposed to start, and we explain that he's doing it wrong and that Uvot-worship is not allowed at your table, and that the Theocracy of the Pale isn't a valid home country, ... then we're not serving the community, either.

Oh, and as a datum: I have indeed had a GM tell me that my Golarion lore was wrong and that I needed to fix a PC's background.

I'll point out things that jump out as potentially troublesome, like playing Kyra the Taldoran...

5/5

Chris Mortika wrote:
Oh, and as a datum: I have indeed had a GM tell me that my Golarion lore was wrong and that I needed to fix a PC's background.

Or what? I mean, unless he was asking you to change a trait or something, what exactly was his expectation?

In that situation, I would almost certainly agree amiably, change absolutely nothing, and never play at his table again. But I'm fairly pigheaded, so that might be a factor. ;p

Sczarni 5/5 * Venture-Lieutenant, Washington—Pullman

Chris Mortika wrote:

I agree to a point, my friend. Part of the goal of Pathfinder Society Organized Play is to act as ambassadors, to get players interested in the richness of the Golarion campaign setting. If a new, enthusiastic player sits down with a character drawn from Greyhawk, and we don't say anything, we aren't doing our jobs.

But if he sits down with the character just as the session is supposed to start, and we explain that he's doing it wrong and that Uvot-worship is not allowed at your table, and that the Theocracy of the Pale isn't a valid home country, ... then we're not serving the community, either.

Oh, and as a datum: I have indeed had a GM tell me that my Golarion lore was wrong and that I needed to fix a PC's background.

I would sit down after the scenario(time permitting) or give them my cell phone number/email and have a back and forth with them giving them some information on Golarion lore to make their character fit into PFS. Otherwise if somebody is running around talking about a land that doesn't exist, praising a god nobody has heard/doesn't exist, trying to find the non existent cult that killed his village. Well at that point the PFS Lodge would probably pull him aside and see if he is insane. I know I wouldn't want somebody running representing my organization that might be having illusions like that.

That's a side point to what I was saying though. I meant to show that re-skinning to things that are not inside the PFS campaign can slow down the game, create awkward situations, and can usually be a pain in the butt. The Conan was an example of a slight re-skinning of ideas(mainly deity and geography) that has the potential to cause a game to derail. Especially if there is a Conan buff at the table who starts in on how the Conan player is doing it wrong.

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