The Future of Pathfinder Society Organized Play, Part IV: Freedom and Democracy For All!

Monday, April 11, 2011

The young nation of Andoran threw off the shackles of aristocracy when its liege nation Cheliax adopted an official policy of diabolism after Aroden's death, and has since established itself as the Inner Sea's largest democracy. Though free from the tyrannical rule of Taldor and Cheliax, Andoran hopes to see tyranny in all its forms wiped from the Inner Sea, and its allies strive ever to increase their own presence in Absalom, which they see as the key to ending slavery and oppression's hold on the weak and poor of Avistan and Garund. Through the efforts of the Steel Falcon branch of Andoran's elite military Eagle Knights—especially the work of the naval Gray Corsairs—the nation aspires to advance its ideals abroad through diplomacy and battle.

Congratulations, Andoren Pathfinders! Since the very beginning of Pathfinder Society Organized Play at Gen Con 2008, your faction has been the clear frontrunner in terms of popularity, and with a huge army come huge successes. Though the faction war isn't a zero-sum game, we're happy to call Andoran the clear victor in the first three seasons of Pathfinder Society play.

But, you're probably asking, if Andoran's victory didn't bring about the collapse of Cheliax nor the abolition of slavery throughout the Inner Sea, what was the point? As the first step in making character choices matter and faction prestige count, we'll be introducing several changes to the faction from an in-world perspective to reflect its increasing influence in Absalom.

First, we've given the faction a new symbol, displayed for the first time in this very blog post. While the symbol is changing, shirts with the old faction will still earn players a free reroll per session. This symbol will replace the clip-arty falcon currently displayed on the paizo.com messageboards and Pathfinder Society membership cards.

Additionally, Captain Colson Maldris, the highest-ranking Eagle Knight in Absalom and leader of the faction, will be receiving a promotion for the successful forwarding of his organization's goals—a promotion that should open up additional doors for him among Absalom's complex upper classes and increase his chances of further cementing Andoran's influence in the Inner Sea, that is, as long as his agents in the Pathfinder Society continue to perform with such diligence and aplomb.

We'll also be shifting the faction's alignment from neutral good to chaotic good, to emphasize the less lawful tactics of sabotage, subterfuge, and incitement to revolt the Eagle Knights often employ to see tyrannies topple and democracy thrive. For those Andoren paladins out there, don't fear. With the advent of five new factions next season, Andoran won't be the only obviously good-aligned faction. But if you don't want to change factions and have been doing okay with most past missions, you won't see a huge shift from the Andoren status quo when the faction's alignment officially changes.

Tune in next Monday for a look at the newest addition to the arsenals of both GMs and event coordinators, and a change to our open call submission process to increase authors' chances of being published in official Pathfinder Society sanctioned adventures.

Mark Moreland
Developer