RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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I played The Frostfur Captives at the beginning of season 3, and was tickled to death to find that it referenced an earlier adventure (Shades of Ice). With Shades of Ice having launched the career of my highest-level character and Frostfur Captives launching the career of another of my characters (the first character being level 5 by then), it really added a sense of history to my higher-level character and made me feel like the newer character had something to aspire to.
In short, having my new character being told of my older character's exploits felt super cool.
I wholeheartedly support that kind of reference/allusion.
And may I add that it is a wikkid looking Bestiary 3 sneak peek you have there.
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I think call backs to earlier scenarios are an excellent idea Mark. I can certainly confirm that my city's players enjoy longer sequenced scenarios a great deal. The more that all of these scenarios inter-relate with one another, the better. Players love when the call backs and other events seem to make the whole campaign "make sense". It's a cool thing to see players "get it" -- whether that's the Shadow Lodge in City of Strangers becoming clearer over time or some other aspect of the metaplot of the campign. Even the small stuff brings with it some easter egg rewards.
I am looking forward to the Ruby Phoenix Tournament too, for just this reason. I expect to be all over that one for PFS use.
I appreciate that it can be difficult to juggle the order in which scenarios are played and I also appreciate that the problem of "what has gone before" continuity can cause issues in a world as complex and burgeoning as Golarion.
That said, I think at this point it's relatively clear that the continuity assumptions inherent in PFS are divorced (at least, almost entirely divorced) from the rest of Golarion's "standstill timeline". As long as PFS and the AP continuity lines are kept reasonably separate and apart, I don't think this should prove to be much of a problem for the greater campaign world.
As I have mentioned previously -- and I will mention it here again -- I would love to see Larry Wilhelm's hanging plot thread at the end of The Devil We Know Series Pt IV and the fate of the Bell of Obedience be picked up and resume in another arc. A separate but related 3 part arc would expand on the existing four part series and be much appreciated. Given how strong Pt III of that series was (easily the best of the 4), I'd LOVE to see Larry come back and fill in those details. Besides, the Aspis Consortium as a foil for the Pathfinders needs more love, imo. This is especially so given that one of the earliest Aspis Consortium scenarios from Season 0 where it was set up as a villainous organization has been retired.
(Szarni + Aspis ties might be an interesting spin on all of that, too.)
Don't get me wrong, there is a place for one-offs. I don't mean to suggest that there isn't; however, my players want to play the multi-part scenarios and I can flat out see that when multi-part scenarios are offered, my store's players sign up for them quickly and they are all back the next week for the next part (there has been one exception to this, but it was a special case).
To me? That counts large. That sort of excitement demonstrates that these inter-related scenarios and notional sequels are a real success.
More please!
Canadian Maplecakes
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And may I add that it is a wikkid looking Bestiary 3 sneak peek you have there.And that picture makes me glad I've had my fighter spend all his favored class bonuses ramping up his CMD versus grapple. Stay back, you tentacled fiend!
Listen, everyone here should love tentacles!
Why does everyone always pick on the poor guy with tentacles!?
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16
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Matt,
That would make perfect sense. The invaders in Silent Tide were supposed to infiltrate the city, blend in, and then perform sabotage.
I've had them dressed in tatters reminiscent of Absalom fashions from 400 years ago. But it makes sense that they would steal clothes and dress as well-off merchants of contemporary Absalom, attempting to blend in, never realizing that their skeletal form makes that disguise attempt simply macabre.
And may I add that it is a wikkid looking Bestiary 3 sneak peek you have there.
Clearly Ursula and King Triton have a sordid episode from their past that Disney has been glossing over.
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
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Matt,
That would make perfect sense. The invaders in Silent Tide were supposed to infiltrate the city, blend in, and then perform sabotage.
I've had them dressed in tatters reminiscent of Absalom fashions from 400 years ago. But it makes sense that they would steal clothes and dress as well-off merchants of contemporary Absalom, attempting to blend in, never realizing that their skeletal form makes that disguise attempt simply macabre.
Leave it to you to take my Silents joke and make it creepy. ;-)
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RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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Leave it to you to take my Silents joke and make it creepy. ;-)Matt,
That would make perfect sense. The invaders in Silent Tide were supposed to infiltrate the city, blend in, and then perform sabotage.
I've had them dressed in tatters reminiscent of Absalom fashions from 400 years ago. But it makes sense that they would steal clothes and dress as well-off merchants of contemporary Absalom, attempting to blend in, never realizing that their skeletal form makes that disguise attempt simply macabre.
And I thought it was a reference to the Zombie Wall Street protest in NYC happening today!
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Matt,
That would make perfect sense. The invaders in Silent Tide were supposed to infiltrate the city, blend in, and then perform sabotage.
I've had them dressed in tatters reminiscent of Absalom fashions from 400 years ago. But it makes sense that they would steal clothes and dress as well-off merchants of contemporary Absalom, attempting to blend in, never realizing that their skeletal form makes that disguise attempt simply macabre.
It works for the Thing in the Marvel Universe. I mean how many times do you see the Hulk, or Mr Grimm in a panel walking around NYC with a big hat and a t coat.
Anyway I love to see old plot lines moving forward. It gives a feel of change in the campaign that isn't in other organized play settings I have played in.
I give this tread a 3 on the H.P. Lovecraft Tentacle scale.
Nice artwork for us poor unfortunate souls.
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I’m eager to hear what folks think of these homages, both what you think worked well, and what could make the campaign’s internal continuity even stronger.
It's fairly obvious that players like continuity and homages, it makes the world feel real and gives it meaning to the campaign. Familiar allies, villains, places, ... this is why APs are so popular. Although PFS scenarios are more independent (and fit into nice 4-5 hour packages), players still want to see it. So where it makes sense (or where an authors idea is overflowing), more series, especially three part series, are welcome.
It would be nice if there were more scenarios themed to certain regions, to bring them to life. Yes yes, we have scenarios in various regions, but it's not often that the particular cultural flavor is really exposed in the scenario, unless the GM has read other source books and adds a bunch of additional material into the scenario himself.
Anyway, homages are great.
both what you think worked well, and what could make the campaign’s internal continuity even stronger.
What has worked well? Grandmaster Torch (who has elevated himself to a faction leader!), the Shadow Lodge story arc (although I'm not a fan), Blackros museum stories (although I hope that 4 scenarios is enough), Eyes of the Ten (although not many have experienced it), re-occurring NPCs (VCs), and my person favorite are groups like the Red Mantis working their way into scenarios (from APs).
In the future, I'd like to give my PFS players little tastes from various APs, things like Hell Knights, various famous NPCs, etc. Easter eggs (nods to other scenarios) are nice as well.
What hasn't worked well? I didn't really like the penalties in 'Rescue from Azlant Ridge' that were incurred in 'Bloodcove Disguise'.
Also, although it probably doesn't work that well in terms of deadlines, it would be nice if the same author wrote all or at least most of a series. The work would be (theoretically) more consistent. Right now what prohibits us from using some series is that parts of the series aren't written well, so we don't bother with the entire series. (But I suppose it works the other way as well, just not with me).
Some of your upper level series don't seem to have worked very well (Heresy of Man, Echoes of the Everwar), but I'm not really sure why that is. The concept was good (and I'm going to try them anyway).
Further, what NPCs, locations, magic items, or dangling plot threads would you like to see woven back into the Pathfinder Society tapestry in scenarios to come?
I'd like to see slightly less humanoid opponents. Yes, humanoid opponents speak and allow for roleplay, but it's just nice to see monsters sometimes.
NPCs: Iconic parts of Golarion like Red Mantis, Hell Knights. Any repeated NPCs really, like Skeldon Miregrold. :)
Locations: Ustalav, Nex, Geb, Mana Wastes, World Scar, unique locations.
Magic Items: I'd like to see some artifacts that we've retrieved haunt the PF society or have "things go wrong" when they're investigated or stored. With that many artifacts and magical things at our disposal (that we don't use...) something is bound to go wrong.
Plot Threads: None.
You're doing a great job so far in season 3, keep up the good work.
It's funny... but I went through my facebook/tweets of the playtest and I found this lovely post: "Player: I KNOW WHAT TENTACLE MONSTERS DO!!!"
So yes, the spawn of Ursula and Triton is to be feared!
The official answer to pictures such as this is "I've seen enough hentai to know where this is going!"
Flotsam, Jetsam, now I've got her boys. The boss is on a trollllllllll....
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Hi Mark,
My favorite NPCs are Drendle Dreng and Grandmaster Torch. I was delighted to see the latter be made the faction leader of the Shadow Lodge, which is also my favorite faction.
As for stories that I would like to see continued, I vote for The Devil We Know, Part IV. The group that I played in felt cheated by how that adventure ended, and it would feel liberating to be able to avenge ourselves on the villain responsible.
In future scenarios, I would like to see two regions explored more: Nidal and Belkzen. I've always been intrigued with the twilight streets of Pangolais and the potential for vampire adversaries. As for Belkzen, there has been a noticeable lack of orcs in Pathfinder Society adventures. We've seen goblins, kobolds, and even hobgoblins, but there are no orc-centric PFS adventures that I'm aware of. As one of the most hated races in Golarion, you'd think they would at least be worthy of a 3-part adventure arc.
My favorite scenario thus far is The Dalsine Affair. It included the separatist Shadow Lodge and ended the careers of two Pathfinder faction leaders. It felt exciting to be a part of that little bit of history in the making.
Many people don't like metaplot, but I do. It makes an adventure epic while broadening the horizons of the world the player-characters live in. As such, adding plot hooks from past scenarios adds excitement to the overall Society game. Players' eyes widen a bit when they recognize a throwback to a previous adventure and they think to themselves, "Hey! I was there! I remember that!" Such is the stuff stories are made of and it helps continue a fond conversation that almost ended in a previous adventure.
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Blackros museum stories (although I hope that 4 scenarios is enough)...Did I miss one? I thought there was only three?
The 4th one is coming out at the end of this month.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-07: Echoes of the Overwatched
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I love having reoccurring NPCs, items, enemies, and story elements. It makes everything feel more connected and important. I know a lot of players complain that nothing seems connected or important, but I think adding continuity and links like these will really help with that. I also like to be able to created themed game days at my stores. Such as a night where we have a bunch of Grandmaster Torch adventures, or a Blackros Museum night, or so on. Plus it really helps as a GM when I can run a consistent circle of NPCs (for the most party anyways). I think players like being able to react with Drendle Dreng, who they know a lot better and who GMs can develop a personality for, then random VC of someplace the PCs will never be again. There will always be some of that, but it is nice when we can consistently see the same VCs at the same places.