Doomsday Dawn, Actual Play experience, Scenario 1

[Doomed Hero]

Our Party:

Dwarf Cleric (me)
Halfling Monk
Goblin Rogue
Elf Wizard

Character Creation

(Pros)

1) Character creation is very streamlined. The new character sheet clearly labels everything and the book's layout makes making a new character very straightforward.

2) The Bulk system makes equipment choices really matter. The days of huge equipment lists seem effectively gone. Some people might not like this change, but I do. It means difficult choices have to be made, or clever work around have to be figured out.

3) The new skills system, and it's integration with the Background system is excellent. Fewer skills seem unnecessary, and Perception being a derived attribute rather than a skill is an excellent change. Personally, I think that design philosophy should be pushed even further, especially regarding Lore. Lore should simply be an alternate use of other skills, such as Nature Lore being an alternate use of Survival (using Int for the roll instead of Wisdom).

4) With 10 starting HP and a Con bonus, Dwarves feel significantly tougher than other races now. I appreciate that. Likewise, Elves feel fragile. That's also good in my opinion.

(cons)

1) The character choices seem underwhelming. In 1st edition, I remember being wowed by many character options during the Playtest (yes I've been playing Pathfinder that long). I had to make hard choices based on which one seemed most interesting out of a plethora of cool options. In 2nd edition, some of my character choices were made based on which ones seemed slightly less yawn inducing.

2) The layout of all the different feat sections is a bit obnoxious. I like that all the levels are listed, but it would be really nice if they were simply compiled in one list, with the kinds of feats in parenthesis along with the levels.

[Doomed Hero]

More to come tomorrow.

[Doomed Hero]

Gameplay

Pros

1) The 3 action system is elegant and easy.

2) The numbers are more manageable, even from the beginning.

3) Falling damage is actually dangerous again. Ow.

4) The crit system is clever and feels far more cinematic.

5) Traps feel more dramatic and meaningful, rather than being a game slow-down.

6) The shield block mechanic is innovative. I love reaction abilities.

7) Monks and Rogues don't feel like second class citizens anymore. Our Halfling Monk held his own just fine.

8) The Dubious Knowledge feat is hilarious and fun.

Cons

1) The Grab ability causing Flat-Footed is brutal. Feels possibly overpowered compared to the other things our party experienced in combat. I was impressed and horrified at how effective the combination of Grab and Sneak Attack is.

2) Recovering from dying is problematic. On one hand I appreciate that unconsciousness isn't the yo-yo that it used to be. being knocked out is a big deal. That said, it takes players out of the fun for a long time. Having the consciousness DC be based on the enemy that knocked you out means boss fights, when every action matters most, and players are the most invested in the action, end up rolling and failing to wake up over and over again. Our monk and our rogue were knocked out in the first two rounds, and then spent the entire rest of the fight failing to wake up after being healed. It wasn't fun for them.

[The Once and Future Kai]

Good feedback. Thanks for posting.