Starting questions.


Beginner Box


Hello, I know that there is most likely ninethousand and one forum posts of this, however I am a lazy bastard and chose to derail like I always do.
I am new to pen and paper rpgs, last time I played was in 2005 with my brothers when i was rather young, and I decided to ask if it was possible for the residence I live in to buy Pathfinders as it is only around 150 - 100 Danish kroners.
They said yes to buy the starter box, and I have a few questions for the game.
1. I have checked the wikipage, and decided I wanted to play assassin, of course starting as a rogue, so what would be the ''best'' race and starting stats for the class?
2. How many levels can you get up to in the beginner box?
3. How can I make my assassin/rogue good at dps, effective in trap finding and such?
I hear that a rogue/assassin's damage isn't as good as Wizards and the majority of other classes, so how can I get up to par with them?
4. In the beginner box is there only the 7 core races or are all of the other races in too?
5. How does min/maxing work in Pathfinder?
6. What is the ''best'' composition in the game for a 4 - 6 player session?
I know Mages are a most as they are ''Overpowered'' ( Citation needed )
7. Some of the players are sort of still in those stereotype pandering, despite being young adults, so they believe roleplaying is only something ''basement dwelling virgins'' do, so how can that be dealt with? Can we just do it like a hack and slash game with no roleplay or is it a must, if not then is it possible to help such a player at least try it?
I think thats it.


I beleive that the Beginners set goes until 5th. And it is there to introduce people to roleplaying and Pathfinder. I would just read through it before playing and most of these answers will be found. Welcome and have fun!


to answer question number 6, the game is set up for 4 players but with alittle work you can do 6 players. Do you have a core book, if not I would sugest getting one. When it comes to race I would say human you get 1 extra skill poing and 1 extra feat, and +2 to one ablity. If you dont want to do human Elf is good +2 dex, +2 int, and -2 con. And you can use longswords, and longbows, that helps alot.

Silver Crusade

Uninite wrote:
1. I have checked the wikipage, and decided I wanted to play assassin, of course starting as a rogue, so what would be the ''best'' race and starting stats for the class?

For role-playing, you should go with a race that intrigues you. Generically if you're combat focused, stats should begin with emphasis in DEX, then CON, STR, INT, WIS, and then CHA. A medium-sized class with a +2 that can be put in DEX is ideal. You can swap CON and STR for some extra damage, but most of a rogue's damage is done from sneak attacks.

Uninite wrote:
3. How can I make my assassin/rogue good at dps, effective in trap finding and such?

Flank your opponents and improve your initiative so you can catch opponents "flat-footed" in the first round. Consider two-weapon fighting. Don't worry about "keeping up" with other classes. It's a team effort, not a video game. A tabletop rogue isn't a World of Warcraft rogue. You bring a ton of skills to the table that will aid the party in more than just combat. Otherwise, skill points are required in Perception and Disable Device to help find and disarm traps.

Uninite wrote:
5. How does min/maxing work in Pathfinder?

Just like it sounds. Rather than choosing your ability scores and abilities for role-play flavor, you're going for combat supremacy and probably use an online "guide" to a particular class. It can make for bland, cookie-cutter characters. It's simply a matter of preference.

Uninite wrote:
6. What is the ''best'' composition in the game for a 4 - 6 player session?

The classic D&D party was a fighter (soaks damage), thief (skills and traps), wizard, and cleric. The point is to have diversity so that there are more options to overcoming challenges. Sometimes you need a fighter to bash down that door, other times you need a cleric to cast water breathing. Don't worry about which class is "more powerful" than other class. Just make sure you're having fun playing the class you have chosen.

Uninite wrote:
7. Some of the players are sort of still in those stereotype pandering, despite being young adults, so they believe roleplaying is only something ''basement dwelling virgins'' do, so how can that be dealt with? Can we just do it like a hack and slash game with no roleplay or is it a must, if not then is it possible to help such a player at least try it?

It's no different than a poker club to play cards that meets once a week. While I don't have to let the world know I play cards on Thursday nights, I don't act ashamed or hide it. Pathfinder challenges me to think on my feet and I enjoy it. 'Nuff said. As to style of play, new players probably need more combat just to get a feel with intermittent chances to interact with NPCs. I would start with role-play encounters like "the guy at the bar has been bad-mouthing your claim that you killed those goblins. He now walks over and spits in your beer. Are you going to do anything about it?" Later on down the road, mature gamers will get more complex interactions, such as political intrigue.


Alright, I went to the closest Dragons Lair, bought the bb, a social worker student( Whom likes rpgs) and I spent quite a few hours reading the guides and such, we just finished a 3 hour session in the singleplayer adventure inwhich we got one of the other teens in the game, and after an hour of trying to remember the dice rolls and such, we finally got a lot of way, it was fun, however we did lose a bit of spirit at the start.
The whole roleplaying is kind of hard to do, like talking to a goblin and such.
However we managed to kill a lot of stuff, and I got a lot of crits with my rogue(I got 22 dex).
The hardest was probably creating the character, however now we know how to and can teach the others how to do it.
I find the game a lot of fun!

Silver Crusade

And knowing is half the battle.

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