Meet the Iconics: Raia

Distant Scholar wrote:

I wonder how easy it is to minimize the "techno" part if one wants someone who studies just magic. But that's for another blog post.

For such a character, the Mystic class may be a better choice.

I guess we'll find out.

Is it weird that reading through this small "iconics" story, I find myself wondering why there wasn't actually as much emphasis on the path of the Technomancer she walks, so much as what shaped a world outlook she possesses?

Its a good story, but I feel it's a more clear example of the Xenoseeker theme than it is of Technomancers.

Its like the class's abilities are being treated as a means to travel another path rather than as a path in itself. Which kind of leaves an odd implication that if she wanted to go all in with the Xenoseeker theme, she could have taken another class with more emphasis on either xenobiology or diplomacy, like Mystic or Envoy respectively.

... That said, if the goal of the iconic's stories is to be interesting rather than just "iconic", then its probably a better choice than merely going with the obvious choice of something that sounds more like the Scholar theme. I can at least sympathise with the idea of a Xenoseeker Technomancer, I'm going down the path of a programmer to some extent, and yet I have a soft spot for cute animals; my family owns a whole bunch of huskies, and seeing them is probably the one thing that calms me down when I have to go see my parents (and have to deal with being stuck in the middle of nowhere).

That's my critique done.

In other news:

Raia was immediately enthralled with the exotic ryphorian and his silky white fur,

... Two questions... One, what is a Ryphorian? And two... Can I play one?

I'm not sure if I should be picturing a fluffy white puppy, or a noble wolf. Or some other fluffy animal. But consider my interest perked.

---

Edit: Suddenly I go back and read the comments I skimmed, only to realize half the stuff I said is stuff people already noticed... Oh well.

Raia: Our mission is to explore new worlds, seek out new life, and new civilizations--
Navasi: And teach them how to love! ;D
Raia: NAVASI, NO!
Navasi: Navasi, yes! ;D

... Two questions... One, what is a Ryphorian? And two... Can I play one?

A Ryphorian appears to just be a winterborn Triaxian.

So basically just a furry humanoid, and definitely playable, at just 10 RP, on par with most other PC races.

I thought Elves came to Golarion from Castrovel not the other way around.

[scurrilous gossip] What elves don't like to admit is that neither Golarion nor Castrovel are their actual homeworld, and that they've mostly forgotten, having left a chain of mostly used up 'homeworlds' behind them, as they elf-gate off to a new 'homeworld...' [/scurrilous gossip]

You might be surprised at home many people are driven completely around the bend by 'normal, loving upbringings'

That said, I have no idea how this 'idealistic college kid' iconic will deal with any sort of hardship.

Well, college itself is one giant hardship of frustration xP

It is a great character background...I would have like to see more technomancer stuff in it...but than again I kinda like it as the class is really just a means to the end of meeting new races and cultures which is the character's true passion.

Luna Protege wrote:

... Two questions... One, what is a Ryphorian? And two... Can I play one?

A Ryphorian appears to just be a winterborn Triaxian.

So basically just a furry humanoid, and definitely playable, at just 10 RP, on par with most other PC races.

A part time furry, with star trek ear props.

...

Yep, I like 'er. CARRY ON!

Clever ploy- paint fake skin over the strongest armor.

That's the inverse of this.

Hmm... I wonder how this Xenoseeker style Technomancer would develop once they met up with a sort of... Digital Outsider.

I'm fairly certain that it would go mostly the same as it usually would for her, except being in an unusual position of her Technomancer abilities being more relevant to the process of first-contact/diplomacy/etc than usual.

Then again... She may already have experience with that. Given Androids are a thing.

Lashunta sexual dimorphism from Pathfinder got retconned into a metamorphic subspecies system. Damaya get what used to be female stats in Pathfinder.

Why?

IonutRO wrote:

Lashunta sexual dimorphism from Pathfinder got retconned into a metamorphic subspecies system. Damaya get what used to be female stats in Pathfinder.

Why?

So the GM didn't have to say to players: "if you want to play this subrace you must choose that gender".

The NPC wrote:

IonutRO wrote:

Lashunta sexual dimorphism from Pathfinder got retconned into a metamorphic subspecies system. Damaya get what used to be female stats in Pathfinder.

Why?

So the GM didn't have to say to players: "if you want to play this subrace you must choose that gender".

Also, in RP terms, major life decisions are more interesting than genetic inevitability.

For a bit of a sneak preview of what the Starfinder pre-painted miniatures will look like, here is a link to them. However, the image quality is fairly poor but in general you get a pretty good idea of what they will look like:

www.minisgallery.com/starfinder/index.html

Cool, new things!

... with almost no details showing up in those tiny little thumbnails, it at least shows that the "pre-painted" minis are not done yet, they all need shading and highlights. They look way to bright as is. Also, all starships are the same base size, from fighter craft to battleship, i guess it makes sense what with the scale of space but it doesnt look good on the table... *grumble*

Fardragon wrote:

The NPC wrote:

IonutRO wrote:

Lashunta sexual dimorphism from Pathfinder got retconned into a metamorphic subspecies system. Damaya get what used to be female stats in Pathfinder.

Why?

So the GM didn't have to say to players: "if you want to play this subrace you must choose that gender".

Also, in RP terms, major life decisions are more interesting than genetic inevitability.

It's only genetic inevitability that makes you think that and makes me disagree.

Also, all starships are the same base size, from fighter craft to battleship, i guess it makes sense what with the scale of space but it doesnt look good on the table... *grumble*

They need to all fit on the 1" grid map. Also, there's no way I would buy a bunch of gargantuan minis - too expensive and a pain to transport.

OTOH, lots of people have fleets of Star Wars minis, so not everyone thinks like me.

I'm less concerned about the relative sizes and more concerned about packaging them up in sets of 1 fighter, 1 frigate and 1 battleship. I sure hope there are like 3 fighters in every box, because I can't imagine a world where I don't use way more fighters than frigates/battleships...

Can we move the mini discussion to another thread? This is about either Raia or at lease technomancers.

*Yawn*

I have to say I'm pretty disappointed in Raia's story. I wanted to play her until reading it. If she's going to be an iconic, shouldn't she have something distinguishing about her? She's completely unremarkable.

She's happy, has a loving family and long distance boyfriend that she stays in regular contact with, and enjoys exploring the universe and meeting aliens for the sake of not only exploring and learning, but for peace and mutual advancement of all species with the help and sharing of each other's knowledge.

That's pretty distinguishable.

She's happy, has a loving family and long distance boyfriend that she stays in regular contact with, and enjoys exploring the universe and meeting aliens for the sake of not only exploring and learning, but for peace and mutual advancement of all species with the help and sharing each other's knowledge.

That's pretty distinguishable.

Of a sea of troubled childhoods and difficult lives or horrible events that spur people to adventure, I think Raia is most certainly a nice breath of fresh air.

I like to have an example of technomancy that she uses in her day-to-day or knowledge that she exchanges with new cultures.

Probably an "Illusion" spell or holograph she can easily manipulate to show pics and stuff (would make a good technomancer cantrip if you ask me)

Lucas VerBeek wrote:

I thought Elves came to Golarion from Castrovel not the other way around.

[scurrilous gossip] What elves don't like to admit is that neither Golarion nor Castrovel are their actual homeworld, and that they've mostly forgotten, having left a chain of mostly used up 'homeworlds' behind them, as they elf-gate off to a new 'homeworld...' [/scurrilous gossip]

Elves, the Termites of the Galaxy... :-)

I actually like that Raia is more defined by her theme than her class. It shows that it's okay for players to make themes the focal point of their characters, since that's the way one of the iconics is defined.

Clever ploy- paint fake skin over the strongest armor.

Or just make the big armor plate over your heart or face transparent, so that people aiming at your head are surprised to see their shot ricochet off.

It's not like 'transparent' is a big shocking invention. We've had glass for ages (bullet-resistant glass and 'transparent aluminum' less so), and D&D has had the glassteel spell for decades.

Lucas VerBeek wrote:

I thought Elves came to Golarion from Castrovel not the other way around.

[scurrilous gossip] What elves don't like to admit is that neither Golarion nor Castrovel are their actual homeworld, and that they've mostly forgotten, having left a chain of mostly used up 'homeworlds' behind them, as they elf-gate off to a new 'homeworld...' [/scurrilous gossip]

Huh didn't know that, Cool.

I agree with Rysky and GTW. I've seen a bunch of orphans, maligned children, and taciturn loners over the years.

Most of my characters tend to be from a background similar to this iconic. Love the backstory and the 'class as day-job' is something I really like.

So are we ever going to get that Technomancer class Preview or no?

Based on the previous pattern Technomancer preview will be Friday.

So are we ever going to get that Technomancer class Preview or no?

Didn't you read today's Paizo Blog post? They've decided to remove the technomancer from the final product specifically to spite you.

Oh, of course. How silly of me. Also, thank for the info Luke.

I also like the story here. I don't even mind that the character is more focused on the theme than the class.

The thing that makes it hard though is we have no idea why she studied to be a Technomancer rather than (as an example) a Mechanic. The background presented could work with several of the other classes just as well.

It is made worse because we still don't have a preview of the class. In the other iconic stories, we got some feeling for how they used their class abilities. Here? Nada.

I like the story, but am really looking forward to the class preview of the technomancer. It is the class I've been most interested in seeing so far. Once I've got that, I plan to go back here to review the iconic's background again.

If they had previewed the class first, I don't think there would be as many complaints.

No matter which we do first, someone will be unhappy. We're doing out best to get them in the same week, which doesn't seem like an unreasonable amount of time to wait for your preferred info to come out if you want to read it in a different order than we release it.

I'm just thrilled we're getting previews...

Set wrote:

Lucas VerBeek wrote:

I thought Elves came to Golarion from Castrovel not the other way around.

[scurrilous gossip] What elves don't like to admit is that neither Golarion nor Castrovel are their actual homeworld, and that they've mostly forgotten, having left a chain of mostly used up 'homeworlds' behind them, as they elf-gate off to a new 'homeworld...' [/scurrilous gossip]

Huh didn't know that, Cool.

That was meant as a joke, not something real or canonical. Beware my posts!

Considering how conflicting the info on Elves often is, it could *be* real. At the very least I'm saving it as fodder for some future homebrew galaxy I might make.

I know those long-distance relationship feels

No matter which we do first, someone will be unhappy. We're doing out best to get them in the same week, which doesn't seem like an unreasonable amount of time to wait for your preferred info to come out if you want to read it in a different order than we release it.

Consider the Fan Rabies as a testament to our trust in Paizo's record for great products. :)

Very interesting story and potential for character development.

Really dislike the artwork, for the simple reason that the body armor has a huge weakness in the protection of the abdominal area, and that can potential by a fatal flaw in a combat situation.

I didn't read anything in her story saying she would be good in combat. Sure, she is a technomancer but her whole backstory revolves around visiting new places and studying alien races. The lack of full body armor is fine if you are using peaceful negotiation. I think political correctness can stay outside on this one.

No matter which we do first, someone will be unhappy. We're doing out best to get them in the same week, which doesn't seem like an unreasonable amount of time to wait for your preferred info to come out if you want to read it in a different order than we release it.

I am one of the ones that check the blog everyday for new content and even though I want the core book in my hands now I can wait. I appreciated these previews and they are making me want it more and more.

QuidEst wrote:

Clever ploy- paint fake skin over the strongest armor.

Or just make the big armor plate over your heart or face transparent, so that people aiming at your head are surprised to see their shot ricochet off.

It's not like 'transparent' is a big shocking invention. We've had glass for ages (bullet-resistant glass and 'transparent aluminum' less so), and D&D has had the glassteel spell for decades.

But that leaves the "protected" area vulnerable to laser burn (the 20th/21st Century type, not the type that propels visible missiles), whereas painted on fake skin might protect against that.

Oh well, at least transparent armor still protects against dogs with really cold noses . . . .

Maybe she dresses in the fashion of her choosing because she casts TechnoMage Armor if she's in a combat situation. No idea if that's a spell nowadays, but hey, Magic Missile is still around.

And yes, I realize that everyone has light armor proficiency and ASF is no longer a thing, so there's less of a reason for Mage Armor to exist.

You know there is a little item known as personal energy shield so she can be wearing bikini and still have reasonable armor at same time

You know there is a little item known as personal energy shield so she can be wearing bikini and still have reasonable armor at same time

Also she could have the armor called "second skin", which for all I know could be literally a secondary skin like layer (that sounds kinda awesome actually).

She got the shirt when she was a teen and when she decided to go tall and lanky it didn't fit anymore- -but it's her Totes Favorite anyway!

Her armour has two modes: Sexy & Protecty

Sexy: Shows midriff.

Protecty: Doesn't show midriff and maybe some other parts.

khadgar567 wrote:

You know there is a little item known as personal energy shield so she can be wearing bikini and still have reasonable armor at same time

Also she could have the armor called "second skin", which for all I know could be literally a secondary skin like layer (that sounds kinda awesome actually).

exacly