Lem cleared his throat, and Merisiel guiltily ceased fiddling with her dagger, giving her full attention to the halfling standing on the table in front of her.

Lem is always going to be my character in PACG. That’s because I played him through the entirety of my first Pathfinder Adventure Card Game journey in Rise of the Runelords. When we finished that up, we followed Mike Selinker’s recommendation for using Wrath of the Righteous as a continuation of Rise, and so I played Lem for another three boxes of adventures! So, I’ve gotten pretty used to fighting with a d4 and constantly emptying my hand to help my fellows. It’s a pleasure to finally write about it!

An adventuring party is like a rock band, each member bringing his or her own unique sound to the collective whole. A champion or fighter may stand in front, her wailing axe cutting a line through the crowd. A cleric or wizard might hide off to the side, out of the spotlight, but filling the room with atmospheric effects, a veritable wall of sound. A witty rogue may dart about the stage with precise choreography, delivering pointed accents to her allies' riffs. But it's the bard that ties the entire ensemble together, the drummer who keeps everyone on the beat, making each of his bandmates' parts shine. Lem, the iconic bard, is Pathfinder's Ringo, and his friends certainly get by with a little of his help!

No Iconic Evolution this week, folks! Nah, that's just some April foolin' a day late. No class is better at playing the fool or pointing out others' foolishness than the bard, so you'd better tune your flutes and put on your dancing shoes (halflings excluded, of course). In this weekly video series, artist Wayne Reynolds takes Paizo's publisher and chief creative officer, Erik Mona, through his creative process in updating Pathfinder's iconic characters for the game's Second Edition, coming out this August. Check out this short video of their conversation for a glimpse into the mind of Pathfinder's most iconic visual artist and the first official look at the new version of Lem, the iconic halfling bard!