Want More Adventure Card Game? We've Got That.

I'm hoping class decks will have different backs to easily keep them separate from AP cards. Anyone know one way or the other?

I think that they will have the same backs. I cannot confirm, but I would say that is an educated guess, since they can be added to the AP decks. I am betting that the only difference will be the logo on the face side of the card.

Here is where Vic says that they will indicate what deck they came from.

I would guess the same as Erixian. They will probably have the same back so that if you want to mix them in you won't be able to tell the difference. And on the face they will indicate which class deck they came from.

They pretty much have to have the same backs, as cards you acquire while playing scenarios will go into your decks, even if you sub them out at the end.

They will have the same backs.

Check out this post from Vic (I think it is the one ryric is referring to). So there will be rules to explain it, but you basically add the class deck boons to the box according to their "deck number/level" just like you do the boons from a new deck. Then you go and find them just like normal.

That shouldn't skew things too much. And it will help if you end up playing an AP with Skull & Shackles Rogue (i.e. Merisiel) as well as a Class Deck Rogue (i.e. Olenjack). But, if the boons in the class deck are similar to the boons in the AP, it might not even be necessary. For example, if you just want to play Olenjack in RotR Adventure Path, but he would be fine with the boons in the AP, I'm not sure you'd have to mix them in. But if there was a Gunslinger Class Deck and you wanted to play them in RotR, mixing it in would be very helpful.

But we are all still speculating quite a bit on these class decks. (Which by the way, I can't wait to see up for pre-order. And hopefully soon.)

And remember, you will be able to purchase the Guild scenarios inexpensively as a PDF download from Paizo. So you could always run them yourself with your friends separate from actual Guild play. And more scenarios = more fun.

All that is pretty much spot on.

They pretty much have to have the same backs, as cards you acquire while playing scenarios will go into your decks, even if you sub them out at the end.

Oh right, haha.

Apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere, and I realize that this may sound like an oxymoron, but will PACG guild/organized play support solo play like the regular PACG does? I'm planning on running organized play at my FLGS, but would also be interested in playing in between our events and/or if no one shows on a given night for some reason.

It does support solo play.

Thanks for the response, Vic. That's great to hear!

One other question that just occurred to me - will there be something akin to pre-gens in Pathfinder Society play if someone drops in and wants to try it out, but doesn't have their own class deck? If so, any details on how that is likely work?

Thanks for the response, Vic. That's great to hear!

One other question that just occurred to me - will there be something akin to pre-gens in Pathfinder Society play if someone drops in and wants to try it out, but doesn't have their own class deck? If so, any details on how that is likely work?

Given that they will need actual cards to play the game, I don't think that will be much of an option. Of course, if you own more than one class deck, you could always let them borrow one for a session.

That's certainly understandable, which is why I asked. But I know with Pathfinder Society (the RPG) we've gotten numerous people involved when they dropped by or heard about a PFS night and we were able to get them into the action right away. It would be a shame if there was no way to do this for the PACG organized play.

Having additional decks could possibly work, although I don't know if that would be a problem if you are playing through a scenario that that deck had already seen and/or the deck was built further into adventure path the at that point. Also, if I'm running/organizing the guild at my FLGS, it looks like I'm already looking at roughly $200 to make sure the store has the game, the character add-on deck, adventure decks 2-6, plus a single class deck for myself, so I'm not sure I can afford to purchase additional ones for drop-ins.

Given the nature of players of this game, I would find it highly unlikely that no one at the table would have a deck that another player could use. I know that I plan on getting multiple character decks, and I would be surprised if I was the only one locally who did so.

Yeah. I think that this will probably have a higher "cost" to participate than regular PFS, which seemingly has no cost from what I can tell.

Though I think there actually might be an option: Let them play with a character from the Adventure Path Base Set (or Character Add-on Deck) for a single scenario. Those characters will just be sitting there in the box after all.

Granted, we have little to no knowledge of the details of all this, but from what we do know, I can't see why that wouldn't work for a single scenario. Then if they wanted to keep playing they could purchase a class deck ("Hey look! There is one right here on the shelf, with a price tag and everything," says the store manager.)

I'm sure this has already been given some thought and Mike, Vic, Tanis or someone can provide some insight.

Yeah. I think that this will probably have a higher "cost" to participate than regular PFS, which seemingly has no cost from what I can tell.

In theory, PFS has no cost to participate in. You can just make a Core Rulebook character, and so long as you don't use resources from other books you don't even have to bring your copy of the Core Rulebook; it's assumed you have one. The actual cost comes from wanting to use Additional Resources and non-core content; you need to either have the book or own a watermarked PDF that you print from / bring on a tablet, etc. I've spent a fair bit on PDFs that I keep on my Kindle Fire, so PFS is definitely getting me to spend my money :)

Though I think there actually might be an option: Let them play with a character from the Adventure Path Base Set (or Character Add-on Deck) for a single scenario. Those characters will just be sitting there in the box after all.

This was my initial thought, but doing that would actually change the distribution of cards in the Base Set that could go into locations, so I suspect that's not ideal.

My following thought: Make up some Loaner decks from your Rise of the Runelords base set. Perhaps they are the suggested starting decks for each of the base classes, or maybe they are a little different. Let a drop-in use one of those decks, and if they want to keep the progress they've made they can buy the corresponding Character deck. Since the 7 heroes in the base set are the same as the 7 Character decks that will be available, it seems like a pretty good fit.

Hawkmoon269 wrote:

Yeah. I think that this will probably have a higher "cost" to participate than regular PFS, which seemingly has no cost from what I can tell.

In theory, PFS has no cost to participate in. You can just make a Core Rulebook character, and so long as you don't use resources from other books you don't even have to bring your copy of the Core Rulebook; it's assumed you have one. The actual cost comes from wanting to use Additional Resources and non-core content; you need to either have the book or own a watermarked PDF that you print from / bring on a tablet, etc. I've spent a fair bit on PDFs that I keep on my Kindle Fire, so PFS is definitely getting me to spend my money :)

Ah. Once again my lack of knowledge of the Pathfinder RPG world shows itself. That all makes sense. So the pre-gen characters, I assume are "Core Rulebook" only characters.

If only I had more time to learn about the larger world of Pathfinder.

Ah. Once again my lack of knowledge of the Pathfinder RPG world shows itself. That all makes sense. So the pre-gen characters, I assume are "Core Rulebook" only characters.

If only I had more time to learn about the larger world of Pathfinder.

Actually there are also pre-gen characters from the Core Rulebook (cleric, fighter, rogue, wizard) as well as the gunslinger, ninja, and samurai from Ultimate Combat. But if you are creating your own character to play throughout, you can do so using just the material in the Core Rulebook (races, classes, skills, feats, etc.).

I plan on picking up at least 4 or 5 class decks, and eventually all of them -- sadly, they are just too much to buy all at once but... 28 new characters!!!

I'm going to be running it at my local game shop, I'll probably bring a prebuilt list for all 4 characters in each box I own. I'll build a deck that seems about fair for the scenario, and then only pull them out if someone shows up without a deck and wants to play.

I plan on picking up at least 4 or 5 class decks, and eventually all of them -- sadly, they are just too much to buy all at once but... 28 new characters!!!

I'm going to be running it at my local game shop, I'll probably bring a prebuilt list for all 4 characters in each box I own. I'll build a deck that seems about fair for the scenario, and then only pull them out if someone shows up without a deck and wants to play.

I think that I am in the same boat on this one. I will eventually want everything eventually, but will have to settle for 3-5 to start with and work my way up to all of them. I play far too many times a week to not have more characters.

you and me both. I'll eventually get all the character decks (as I'm gonna be pulled to GM a lot locally) and i'll want to try out different things, but the character decks drop the same month as skull and shackles AND the pathfinder RPG advanced class guide (a whole lot of ACG that month, that's for sure) so my wallet will be crying in a shower.

I have another question: Will OP support creating your own characters (given the sheer amount that I've made, I'm sure this comes as no surprise), even if it's just your own fighter or wizard?

Hawkmoon269 wrote:

Yeah. I think that this will probably have a higher "cost" to participate than regular PFS, which seemingly has no cost from what I can tell.

In theory, PFS has no cost to participate in. You can just make a Core Rulebook character, and so long as you don't use resources from other books you don't even have to bring your copy of the Core Rulebook; it's assumed you have one. The actual cost comes from wanting to use Additional Resources and non-core content; you need to either have the book or own a watermarked PDF that you print from / bring on a tablet, etc. I've spent a fair bit on PDFs that I keep on my Kindle Fire, so PFS is definitely getting me to spend my money :)

Technically, for PFS for the RPG, you are required to own a Core Rulebook, even if only in PDF form, so the minimum entry fee is $9.99. On the card game side, the requirement is ownership of a class deck, so cost of entry is indeed a bit higher at $19.99. Still, you need never buy another thing—though we will do our best to make you want to!

I have another question: Will OP support creating your own characters (given the sheer amount that I've made, I'm sure this comes as no surprise), even if it's just your own fighter or wizard?

Nope. You'll need a class deck and an an officially published character that goes with that deck.

Any idea on when we might be able to preorder the class decks?

I'm not concerned with the higher cost to play in the PACG guild relative to PFS for the RPG; I think that's very fair. My concern is the cost of trying it out to see if you like it. Without pre-gens it's $19.99 as compared to nothing for the RPG (I'm assuming that the spirit of the pre-gens is that players new to Pathfinder could participate before they purchase anything).

It seems like we can't generate decks out of the box to play with even as pre-gens. Would there be enough cards in a class deck to build more than one character deck simultaneously? This would solve the problem too, even if it meant 2 characters with the same class (which could happen anyway in organized play).

Any idea on when we might be able to preorder the class decks?

Soon, I hope!

I'm not concerned with the higher cost to play in the PACG guild relative to PFS for the RPG; I think that's very fair. My concern is the cost of trying it out to see if you like it. Without pre-gens it's $19.99 as compared to nothing for the RPG (I'm assuming that the spirit of the pre-gens is that players new to Pathfinder could participate before they purchase anything).

If a player wants to find out if they like the card game, their first experience should be the first introductory scenario in the Base Set box, using a character built from that box, not an Adventure Card Guild scenario using a Class Deck character. The organized play program is intended for people who are prepared to advance their chosen character through the campaign from start to finish.

Would there be enough cards in a class deck to build more than one character deck simultaneously?

One class deck is designed to support one player in the Adventure Card Guild play.

If a player wants to find out if they like the card game, their first experience should be the first introductory scenario in the Base Set box, using a character built from that box, not an Adventure Card Guild scenario using a Class Deck character. The organized play program is intended for people who are prepared to advance their chosen character through the campaign from start to finish.

Thanks Vic, this clarification is helpful. Given this, it seems that at my store, it might be worth having an initial night as soon as the S&S base set is out for people to play the game together and hopefully generate interest to join the PACG guild that way. Newcomers who drift in once we get going would somehow have to get their feet wet some other way (observation, us squeezing in a non-Guild game on the same night, etc.).

I saw a post a while back with a smaller Demo Scenario and Demo Character Decks, designed to be played in a much shorter time.

If possible, it would be wonderful if demo scenarios like these (as PDFs) could be supplied to the participating Retailers, so we can use them to intro the game. Preferably ahead of time.

Reposting them on the messageboard would work, too - and the Rise of the Runelords one we can go ahead and do with our existing decks. Although it would be really nice if a demo setup for the next base set could be provided, too.

For people who are simply new to the game, I think I'm going to hang out at my local game shop for an hour or two once every couple weeks for those that want to try the game in general and don't have the experience for a mid-adventure scenario. Probably the last scenario of the S&S pre-adventure.

I'm a bit sad that the Class Decks seems to have a low value for their cost outside of the organized play scenairos. I guess that dozens of new Blessing of the Gods and similar cards are somewhat a waste of resources if you want to use the new characters for only the increaing number of Adventure Paths.

It would be nice to get a release for only the collected characters + role cards as an option. 4x7 characters + roles would be already 84 cards, so there would be still some room would left for some additional content. But I guess we won't see an option like this anytime soon.

I suggest avoiding any judgement until we get official announcements and can see how the organized play will actually function. I for one, am extremely excited!

And don't forget: You can purchase the organized play scenarios to use at the privacy of your own table. Thus expanding the usefulness of Skull and Shackles. They will be "inexpensive". But you can probably see some of the cost of the class decks as being a contribution towards those scenarios being created.

I'm a bit sad that the Class Decks seems to have a low value for their cost outside of the organized play scenairos. I guess that dozens of new Blessing of the Gods and similar cards are somewhat a waste of resources if you want to use the new characters for only the increaing number of Adventure Paths.

It would be nice to get a release for only the collected characters + role cards as an option. 4x7 characters + roles would be already 84 cards, so there would be still some room would left for some additional content. But I guess we won't see an option like this anytime soon.

Actually, the value they have outside of OP is that you can use your character in different groups. Let's say I play my ranger with one group then take that same ranger and play him in another group. I have my own cards and my ranger is transportable. That's the point of the class decks. It's so your character isn't really tied to a person's/group's set of cards. Plus you don't have to pull cards from their set to build your character.

But if you are consistently playing with only one group and you're not going to play in OP, then the class decks really aren't worth the money to you.

And don't forget: You can purchase the organized play scenarios to use at the privacy of your own table. Thus expanding the usefulness of Skull and Shackles. They will be "inexpensive". But you can probably see some of the cost of the class decks as being a contribution towards those scenarios being created.

And that's what I'm hoping for. This way it will be easier to play with different groups with the same characters. We don't have to be part of the PFS to use the scenarios but we can play them without having to go down an Adventure Path necessarily.

And don't forget: You can purchase the organized play scenarios to use at the privacy of your own table. Thus expanding the usefulness of Skull and Shackles. They will be "inexpensive". But you can probably see some of the cost of the class decks as being a contribution towards those scenarios being created.

Purchasing even more products to make $19.99 investments worthwhile is not sounding too appealing. :)

I wonder if the scenairos will appear in Bookdepository.com, or postage to Hungary could make them less "inexpensive".

At this point it's possible I'll pass S&S for the third Adventure Path. Likely I won't have enough time to play PACG to justify a purchase for both in a year, and I also like to revisit stories I already played - that's why I would like the new characters. (I'm maybe the minority here, but I like the slower speed of releases of RotR better) Of course, at this point we don't even know what will be the third Adventure Path.

At another note, 95% of the time I use my own base set to play, and we use character sheets as a "save game", so most likely I won't need to carry characters with complete decks anytime soon.

Hawkmoon269 wrote:

And don't forget: You can purchase the organized play scenarios to use at the privacy of your own table. Thus expanding the usefulness of Skull and Shackles. They will be "inexpensive". But you can probably see some of the cost of the class decks as being a contribution towards those scenarios being created.

Purchasing even more products to make $19.99 investments worthwhile is not sounding too appealing. :)

I wonder if the scenairos will appear in Bookdepository.com, or postage to Hungary could make them less "inexpensive".

The OP scenarios will be PDF downloads to purchase from Paizo. So no shipping fees!

I'm a bit sad that the Class Decks seems to have a low value for their cost outside of the organized play scenairos. I guess that dozens of new Blessing of the Gods and similar cards are somewhat a waste of resources if you want to use the new characters for only the increaing number of Adventure Paths.

It would be nice to get a release for only the collected characters + role cards as an option. 4x7 characters + roles would be already 84 cards, so there would be still some room would left for some additional content. But I guess we won't see an option like this anytime soon.

No, you won't see an option like that, because it would be a disservice to you, like giving you Lini without animal allies, or Sajan without amulets (or liquids for his Drunken Master role card). Do not underestimate the importance of the non-character cards in the class decks. To give you just one example, some of the new rogues are particularly good with poison, so the rogue class deck includes a variety of cards with the Poison trait that will benefit that character.

Also, while some of the boons are repeated from Runelords, there are quite a few entirely new boons in each deck, and there also also some boons from Skull & Shackles sets that won't have been released when the class decks come out, so when you pop one open, you'll be seeing a lot of new content.

While they're essential for organized play, they are also very valuable as accessories for any Base Set outside of organized play too.

So, if we wanted to play one of those poison loving rogues in RotR we should mix in those poison trait boons from the class deck by adventure deck number as we add the adventure decks from the adventure path.

Just like if we wanted to take the Gunslinger from S&S and play RotR with her, we should probably mix in some of the gun trait boons from S&S into RotR by adventure deck number.

So, if we wanted to play one of those poison loving rogues in RotR we should mix in those poison trait boons from the class deck by adventure deck number as we add the adventure decks from the adventure path.

Just like if we wanted to take the Gunslinger from S&S and play RotR with her, we should probably mix in some of the gun trait boons from S&S into RotR by adventure deck number.

As usual, Hawk has the right of it.

Vrog Skyreaver wrote:

I have another question: Will OP support creating your own characters (given the sheer amount that I've made, I'm sure this comes as no surprise), even if it's just your own fighter or wizard?

Nope. You'll need a class deck and an an officially published character that goes with that deck.

does that mean i can use rotr valeros along with the fighter deck? or only fighters in that class deck.

does that mean i can use rotr valeros along with the fighter deck? or only fighters in that class deck.

Our intent is that you can use any official fighter with the fighter deck. You will have three Valeroses (Valeroi?) to choose from.

We have talked about whether you might be able to use other classes from RotR or S&S with the seven decks we have (for example, the Swashbuckler with the Fighter or Rogue deck). But we haven't gotten enough data to know whether that would even work. So for now, I don't think we're doing that.

So, if we wanted to play one of those poison loving rogues in RotR we should mix in those poison trait boons from the class deck by adventure deck number as we add the adventure decks from the adventure path.

Just like if we wanted to take the Gunslinger from S&S and play RotR with her, we should probably mix in some of the gun trait boons from S&S into RotR by adventure deck number.

Ah, thanks for the answer! That makes much more sense now. :)

I have only a single concern left : that I may end up with too many basic cards in the boon decks if I use multiple class decks. That could be a problem when reaching AP3 and above.

I have only a single concern left : that I may end up with too many basic cards in the boon decks if I use multiple class decks. That could be a problem when reaching AP3 and above.

We'll have to look at that math at some point.

Has it been listed what classes will have class decks? I dunno if it has, but I certainly have my guesses on what classes will be included if it hasn't (my guesses: fighter, cleric, rogue, wizard, bard, sorcerer, and ranger). I know rogue is go because of the blog post, but I'm unsure of the rest.

It's listed in the blog post above, below the picture of the dwarf "merchant."

The seven Class Decks premiering in August will showcase the bard, the cleric, the fighter, the ranger, the rogue, the sorcerer, and the wizard.

I look forward to the monk deck, Sajan has been a blast to play, and I can't wait to see how others run.

I look forward to the monk deck, Sajan has been a blast to play, and I can't wait to see how others run.

Lini has been my favorite, so not getting the druid deck originally hurts a bit, but I think I'm especially looking forward to the Rogue deck and seeing what kind of unseediness we find there.

But in reality, just having so many options is going to be awesome. I can't wait to see how it all plays out.

Remember, Lini will be in Skull and Shackles too. So while she won't be sanctioned for Organized Play, you will have two Linis to choose from for either re-playing RotR or playing S&S.

Remember, Lini will be in Skull and Shackles too. So while she won't be sanctioned for Organized Play, you will have two Linis to choose from for either re-playing RotR or playing S&S.

Yeah, but I'm looking for the variation in the class moreso than another version of Lini that has clear differences. Just like I'm very much looking forward in particular to the three non Ezren Wizards and three non Seoni Sorcerors, but I do appreciate your trying to ease my pain Hawk!