Valley of the Brain Collectors (GM Reference)


Iron Gods

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Paizo Glitterati Robot

GM reference thread for Valley of the Brain Collectors.


Ship it already, just ship it!
Can't wait to see what horrific monster lie within the valley, just as long as it isn't anything too hairy to handle...


ugh... pdf was delayed a week? Was looking forward to reading it today.

Silver Crusade

I finished my Tuesday night game and thought "hey the 4th IG issue should be out"

Bam delayed a week.

*disapointttttt*


Any announcement why?


I have the PDF!

Contributor

For my own groundless speculation on the delay of the PDF and/or shipment, I direct people here.


Ooze licker wrote:
I have the PDF!

!?


Mike Shel wrote:
For my own groundless speculation on the delay of the PDF and/or shipment, I direct people here.

Thanks Mike. Its always Mind Flayers. ALWAYS.


Do we know what the four alien races are yet? Kasatha and what else?


My question already answered here:

paizo.com/products/btpy99sg/discuss&page=3?Pathfinder-Adventure-Path-88 -Valley-of-the-Brain-Collectors#146


I have it in my grubby little hands now. muhahaha. Questions to follow.

Silver Crusade

Interesting dropship... I'll have to read this over

Silver Crusade

Keeping Casandalee charged will be a pretty expensive upkeep, especially during travel assuming she sleeps for 8 hours and is up the rest to perceive the world. I'm pretty sure given her entry that she'll want to remain awake once she leaves the caves to 'assure herself that the world she left is still there'. You can always have her just sleep when she becomes low on charges too.

Another thing is her robot aggregate. Will attaching the AI core to a robot recharge it from its internal power core? Is it possible for the players to attempt a maneuver to 'plug' Casandalee into robots during combat for her to 'assume control' or hack into it?

I currently have the metal gear solid ring chime for when Casandalee wants to talk if she's stored in a pack.

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Ayanzo wrote:

Keeping Casandalee charged will be a pretty expensive upkeep, especially during travel assuming she sleeps for 8 hours and is up the rest to perceive the world. I'm pretty sure given her entry that she'll want to remain awake once she leaves the caves to 'assure herself that the world she left is still there'. You can always have her just sleep when she becomes low on charges too.

Another thing is her robot aggregate. Will attaching the AI core to a robot recharge it from its internal power core? Is it possible for the players to attempt a maneuver to 'plug' Casandalee into robots during combat for her to 'assume control' or hack into it?

I currently have the metal gear solid ring chime for when Casandalee wants to talk if she's stored in a pack.

Two things...

Spoiler:
If she's uploaded into a robot, she uses the robot's power source and thus doesn't need to worry about her core remaining charged—unless the PCs use the core as a way to smuggle her into an area where they don't want the robot to be obvious (which may well become an issue in the next adventure where open displays of technology can be bad).

Furthermore, in the next two adventures, opportunities to access things that give lots of charges become much more plentiful. In effect, the further along the AP you get, the less expensive keeping your tech charged becomes.


I like it. I will be making some changes due to the specifics of my group (running it in 5e, will use mind flayers proper and I have kids playing so will tone down the horror a bit etc), but i like it. Nice way of introducing Lovecraftian lore into D&D since it goes well with the sci-fi trappings.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Agreed! The Dominion's liveship is particularly disturbing.


So many brain hungry aliens, so few Player Character brains, although collectively there might be enough brains to go around:-P


I love the alien touch in this volume, it's just a shame Mr. Logue didn't get to write it. Man, now that would have been some scary s#!£ that's for sure!


i'm happy with the author order, Mike Shel is the perfect guy for alien weirdness from outer space:)


Am I the only one who's a bit leery of the possibility of having the potential for not one, but two NPC's running around with the party for a while?


I think that comes down to your player dynamics. I have a group that doesn't like having npc's join the party unless it's necessary for the adventure (eg RoW) and another group that takes anyone they can with them - they see them as cannon fodder!
If combat is being retarded then have them 'stay at the back' for it.


It also gives you great rp opportunities and allows you to guide the party if required.

Contributor

4 people marked this as a favorite.
Ooze licker wrote:
I love the alien touch in this volume, it's just a shame Mr. Logue didn't get to write it. Man, now that would have been some scary s#!£ that's for sure!

Well, whaddya gonna do? Sometimes you just have to settle for some second string hack and hope for the best.


captain yesterday wrote:
i'm happy with the author order, Mike Shel is the perfect guy for alien weirdness from outer space:)

Sure, sure, it's just that the decaying ship section would be right up his street!

Contributor, RPG Superstar 2010 Top 4

Dear Mr. Shel, on behalf of the rest of us, I apologize.


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Mike Shel wrote:
Ooze licker wrote:
I love the alien touch in this volume, it's just a shame Mr. Logue didn't get to write it. Man, now that would have been some scary s#!£ that's for sure!
Well, whaddya gonna do? Sometimes you just have to settle for some second string hack and hope for the best.

Dude, you've gone an amazing job with this, I'm loving it all.


So, is there some kind of rule in the Iron Gods adventure path that every book must have a 4-armed badass in there somewhere? Between the Blood Ghost, party-destroyer Hetuath, the apprentice bots, and now Isuma we are four for four for four armed fury.

The Exchange RPG Superstar 2010 Top 32

There are few authors I anticipate more than Mr. Logue, Mr. Pett, Mr. Shel and Mr. Vaughan.

I'm looking forward to reading this baby in depth - just browsing the encounters has me drooling!


The book's looking absolutely sinister so far! Can't wait to run it. One question though:

Back in Lords of Rust, in the encounter with the rhu-chalik, it says to keep track of whether any of your PCs get their thoughts copied and transmitted because it might have consequences in Valley of the Brain Collectors. So far, I have not seen any reference to it in Valley.

Did I just miss something or was the idea abandoned in the end? If the latter, can anyone speculate on what could have been?

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

It was in JJ's foreword. Basically, if the rhu-chalik transmitted their thoughts, then the neh-thallgu have an idea of what to expect. I was kinda hoping for evil fleshwarped doppelgangers that the PCs would have to kill, but it works. :)

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Angry Cow wrote:
So, is there some kind of rule in the Iron Gods adventure path that every book must have a 4-armed badass in there somewhere? Between the Blood Ghost, party-destroyer Hetuath, the apprentice bots, and now Isuma we are four for four for four armed fury.

No rule, no, but there is a minor theme of multi-armed characters; that being a classic sci-fi trope that I wanted to play with to help give the whole AP a sort of pulpy sword & planet feel.

Paizo Employee Creative Director

And yeah... the WHOLE product is adventure support. Folks who skip the forewords often miss important and helpful tips and advice.


James Jacobs wrote:
And yeah... the WHOLE product is adventure support. Folks who skip the forewords often miss important and helpful tips and advice.

Well apart from the still present (groan) journal waste of good space, oh and the 'extra' encounter ideas which could have just been part of the AP as a whole rather than a valuable space waster.

Surely those journals could migrate to the support books - either player companion or country books, it's not like they have any spoilers in them. I know, I know, I'm still harping on about that!


So...Question

Robot Repair question:
The Bestiary section for the Reclamation Robot points out that when they get damaged and then fixed some times they go a bit "nuts" and start to have their own personalities and then it suggests that you use a Robo-Jack to get them under control to fix them. Two questions

1. Is there any way to increase the DC of the Robo-Jack besides it glitching out and having the DC for it increase. Maybe an extra charge for +1, 3 Charges for +2, 5 charges for +3 ect.

2. If you were to Robo-Jack Binox how would/could you go about reprogramming him to either be more loyal to the party and work for them or at the very lease not have to re-identify the party to him every time to go back to him?

He Seems like a fun NPC and I think it would be nice for my PC's to be able to reprogram him to see him self as their Duke and the party would be he "Kings" of sort.

I Know James said in a previous post I made that the rules for robot stuff would be in the 6th AP, but I just can't wait! I would hate to see a fun NPC like this go to waist.

Paizo Employee Creative Director

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Ooze licker wrote:
James Jacobs wrote:
And yeah... the WHOLE product is adventure support. Folks who skip the forewords often miss important and helpful tips and advice.

Well apart from the still present (groan) journal waste of good space, oh and the 'extra' encounter ideas which could have just been part of the AP as a whole rather than a valuable space waster.

Surely those journals could migrate to the support books - either player companion or country books, it's not like they have any spoilers in them. I know, I know, I'm still harping on about that!

I feel like we've explained why we feel the journals are a good thing and a necessary thing, and I'm not really interested in belaboring that point.


i like the journals and so does my daughter, in fact they've only gotten better with the new format

Pathfinder Creative Director, Frog God Games

5 people marked this as a favorite.

Mike, this is a FANTASTIC adventure. I think you hit it out of the park. This is the AP I've been waiting for ever since I first read Expedition to Barrier Peaks 30 years ago, and it has not disappointed. However, I think you have done an excellent job in particular of capturing the weird horror of the Dominion of the Black and Lovecraft elements...and still making them feel different from each other. I just wanted to chime in and add my kudos. Did I mention I really like it. :-)


Two questions for Mr Shel and the people at Paizo:

1) On page 13, Mad Paeytr is listed as having the "Insane Insight" special quality, which has no description. I'm guessing this ability was cut in development. What was this ability? Can we get the description? Curious minds want to know!

2) On pages 19–20, Hyrsek Caio seems to be missing two slayer talents, which would correspond to his advanced talents. Can the author and/or the developer chime in with suggestions on which advanced talents he should have?

(Fellow gamemasters: do note that, as a 12th-level slayer, Hyrsek should have sneak attack +4d6 instead of +3d6).

Thanks in advance and congratulations on the outstanding adventure!

Contributor

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Greg A. Vaughan wrote:
Mike, this is a FANTASTIC adventure. I think you hit it out of the park. This is the AP I've been waiting for ever since I first read Expedition to Barrier Peaks 30 years ago, and it has not disappointed. However, I think you have done an excellent job in particular of capturing the weird horror of the Dominion of the Black and Lovecraft elements...and still making them feel different from each other. I just wanted to chime in and add my kudos. Did I mention I really like it. :-)

You made my day, Greg! Just beaming ear to ear.

Say, aren't you supposed to be rooting around in a cadaver rather than reading this stuff?

RPG Superstar 2009, Contributor

Greg's multi-talented. He can read a Pathfinder book in one hand while he roots around in a cadaver with the other.

Also:
You already know my opinion, but I second the notion that you hit this one out of the park.

Also, also:

Spoiler:

EXPLOSIVE RUNES!!!

Keep up the good work!

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Pandelume wrote:

Two questions for Mr Shel and the people at Paizo:

1) On page 13, Mad Paeytr is listed as having the "Insane Insight" special quality, which has no description. I'm guessing this ability was cut in development. What was this ability? Can we get the description? Curious minds want to know!

2) On pages 19–20, Hyrsek Caio seems to be missing two slayer talents, which would correspond to his advanced talents. Can the author and/or the developer chime in with suggestions on which advanced talents he should have?

(Fellow gamemasters: do note that, as a 12th-level slayer, Hyrsek should have sneak attack +4d6 instead of +3d6).

Thanks in advance and congratulations on the outstanding adventure!

1) Insane insight is basically the ability that lets him grow the unusual, semi-magical fruits and vegetables the PCs can find near his home.

2) Evasion and master of disguise fit pretty well.


Is the fleshnet only supposed to work on creatures of Huge size or larger? Or should it be Huge or smaller?

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Cthulhudrew wrote:
Is the fleshnet only supposed to work on creatures of Huge size or larger? Or should it be Huge or smaller?

Huge or smaller.


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

I just wanted to say I LOVE this adventure. One of my favorite Paizo adventures of all time. Awesome job, guys!


Qualidar wrote:
I just wanted to say I LOVE this adventure. One of my favorite Paizo adventures of all time. Awesome job, guys!

Man, I can't wait. I'm barely starting my PCs on Book 2.


I have a question regarding the piece of vercite technology, the optical turrets. Do they function similar to cybernetic eyes in the respect that you need a pair to acquire the effects? As in, do you need two two individual optical turrets for them to provide the immunity to blind and dazzled conditions?

Silver Crusade

I don't believe it does, for cybernetic eyes is requires 2, there's no such wording for the eye turrets. At the same time it says "replaces eyes" as in plural.

Given the picture though, I'd say it's 1 eye simply because it just looks cooler that way. Dual eye turrets looks downright silly.


Ayanzo wrote:

I don't believe it does, for cybernetic eyes is requires 2, there's no such wording for the eye turrets. At the same time it says "replaces eyes" as in plural.

Given the picture though, I'd say it's 1 eye simply because it just looks cooler that way. Dual eye turrets looks downright silly.

That's what I was originally thinking, but what about applying the lenses of magical eyeS slot items? Would you just dismantle a pair of magic goggles and put one lense in? I feel like the item wouldn't function magically after that.

Silver Crusade

On Page 21, it shows Nemgedder Janz as having Melee attacks with his +1 sonic pistols rather than his ranged attacks.

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