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Pathfinder Adventure Path: Rise of the Runelords Player's Guide (OGL)

4.70/5 (based on 17 ratings)
Pathfinder Adventure Path: Rise of the Runelords Player's Guide (OGL)

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Who Will Save Sandpoint?

This invaluable resource for Pathfinder's first Adventure Path reveals how best to customize your character so that he'll fit into the realm of Varisia with ease. Inside this guide you'll find:

  • An introduction to Varisia, the frontier region that serves as the setting for Rise of the Runelords, and a brief exploration of your PCs' new hometown of Sandpoint.
  • Notes on how humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, half-elves, and half-orcs exist in Varisia.
  • Details on what roles each character class can expect to fill in Rise of the Runelords, including suggestions for animal companions and familiars, favored enemies, character backgrounds, and more.
  • Domains and more for twenty new deities comprising the core pantheon of the Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting.
  • New weapons, armor, and equipment.
  • New feats to give your PCs a distinct Varisianfeel.
  • Full-color maps of Varisia and Sandpoint.

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-059-9

Note: This product is part of the Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscription.

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4.70/5 (based on 17 ratings)

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A Fantastic Way to Start an Epic Adventure

5/5 —

As my long-running Rise of the Runelords campaign has finally hit the last chapter, I realised that one of the things I've never reviewed is the original (3.5 edition) Rise of the Runelords Player's Guide. This 16 page book was sold with a cover price of $ 2, and (I think) usually came bundled in packs of five so everyone at the gaming table could have one. It's a high-quality product that comes on glossy paper and with colourful artwork and design. They're pretty hard to find nowadays, but I was lucky to spot one on eBay for a reasonable price. Anyway, with no further ado, let's get into it.

The cover is very cool, and, although players won't be quite aware of why yet, sets the tone for the campaign perfectly. The 7-pointed Sihedron star takes prominence, and the page borders are designed as if the reader is about to open an ancient, eldritch tome. The inside front-cover is a map of Sandpoint (the town that serves as the PCs' homebase), with detail sufficient to make out individual buildings, street names, and geographical features. It's exactly the map that players should have at the table to better envision where their characters are, and players could, as they explore, make their own key to go along with the map. The inside back-cover is similarly useful: an attractive map of Varisia that includes tons of marked locations and clear geographical features. The vast majority of these locations aren't visited during the campaign, so there's no spoilers here--and in addition, the GM can make good use of this map as well.

The first page, "Welcome to Varisia," emphasises the usefulness of having PCs designed specifically for the region and the campaign. Varisia is a frontier wilderness, and many of the challenges in the campaign involve surviving the land, not just monsters. PCs who think about feats like Endurance and skills like Climb will find themselves better placed than PCs who care only about combat. Players who ignore the Player's Guide very well may find themselves having a harder experience than they should in the campaign, but it's probably their own fault!

The next three pages, "Races of Varisia," discuss how the Core races fit into the region. This is especially important for players new to Golarion who have probably never heard of Shoanti, Chelaxians, and Varisians. Stories are best when they're grounded in interesting, believable settings, and this requires investment by the players in trying to make characters that reflect that setting.

Pages 6-9 are "Adventurers of Varisia." It contains a couple of paragraphs on how each of the Core classes fits into the region and to the campaign more generally. It's also chock-full of useful sidebars on things like native fauna, the deities of Golarion, and suggested familiars for sorcerers and wizards of different backgrounds. In short, there's a ton of flavour and little bits of detail that help to situate a PC in the setting.

The next two pages are "Equipment of Varisia", and it focusses on weapons and armor used by the native Varisian and Shoanti peoples. There are illustrations and statistics for things invented specifically for this setting, such as starknives, earthbreakers, bladed scarves, and more. Many of these pieces of equipment were later included in the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook and other sources, but often in a way that strips them of a lot of the flavour that is presented here.

The next three pages are titled simply "Varisia." The section contains a brief overview of the region and its history--a crucial theme of the Adventure Path. Several feats for PCs who hail from the region are included. Because this was designed for 3.5, I won't go into great detail on them, other than to say they're probably low-powered compared to modern Pathfinder feats. This book came out before Paizo had the concept of campaign traits, which is probably the only thing really lacking here. A sidebar describes the languages often spoken by inhabitants of Varisia.

Last up is a two-page description of Sandpoint. Sandpoint is extremely important for the campaign--if the PCs don't care about it, the campaign doesn't really work. So getting the players invested in the town early is one of the GM's biggest tasks. This book doesn't really emphasise the necessary connection as much as it should, however.

I love the idea of Players Guides, and they're one of the things that drew me to Paizo Adventure Paths to begin with. They're a great way to sell players (in a non-spoilery way) on a new campaign, and to give them a chance to customise characters for it. The original Rise of the Runelords Player's Guide was a concise but interesting and useful preview of the campaign, and surely contribute to the success of the Adventure Path as a whole. It's still worth using today and I think it's far superior to the (PDF only) Anniversary Edition Player's Guide (which I've reviewed elsewhere). I'd recommend making the substitution, just linking to the updated traits for the Pathfinder RPG.

Got surprising amount of use from it

5/5 —

Contains a lot of information, doesn't give away too much about the adventure. Good resource IMO.

Small but packed full of info

5/5 —

This is a small (only 16 pages) guide to the world in which Pathfinder is set- the continent of Varisia, part of the world of Golarion.

It purports to be the guide to start the players out on "Rise of the Runelords" but it's a great guide for any who adventure in that world.

Sections on races and classes of Varisia, including a great chart on the local Deities , including Portfolios, Domains and even favored weapons.

There's also a handful of local weapons and other gear, including the Starknife and War-razor.

I also like the local feats, here included for a free background feat. In power, they are moe like "traits" than feats, but still they add a little local flavor and some roleplaying ideas, but also are somewhat useful.

There's great color maps of Sandpoint and Varisia, too.

All in all, this is a fantastic value for the price.

Portuguese - Br

4/5 —

Uma ótima primeira introdução ao cenário de Varisia, mas não prepara tão bem os personagens para a campanha quanto player guides futuros. De qualquer forma é muito bem escrito e vale a pena para qualquer jogador de Rise of the Runelords.

Excelent Resourse

5/5 —

Perfect starting point to getting you players ready for this AP.

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Sovereign Court

Question: Where did you hire so many transmuters for your staff?

You start with blank paper, and it turns to gold.

To extrapolate, this sort of product is exactly what I would use over and over again. A cheap, quick guide to a campaign world, with tips on character creation and new useful feats. Keep 'em coming!

I think this sort of thing would pay off for Greyhawk, large areas of Forgotten Realms, and Ravenloft. Hopefully it's an idea you'll kick around.

Ptolus, Savage Tide, Castlemourn and other settings have something comparable. But yeah, it's a pretty great idea and one that every setting ought to have, in my mind.

I plan on buying 6, plus the one that I will be getting from my subscription. That way all my players can have one. Plus, for $2.00 a pop, it is worth it.

I'm in already. Paizo's a good company, and if they keep churning out stuff like they've done for Dragon and Dungeon, this should be good.
Contributor
Sharoth wrote:
I plan on buying 6, plus the one that I will be getting from my subscription. That way all my players can have one. Plus, for $2.00 a pop, it is worth it.

Please keep in mind that I'll be selling these to stores in packs of five, so if you order your books from your FLGS ask for a pack plus one :-) THey will, of course, be available individually on paizo.com.

The player guide will be a free PDF download FYI.

Do I have to wait until August to see my free PG for subscribing?
Grand Lodge
Lord Zeb wrote:
Do I have to wait until August to see my free PG for subscribing?

Yes, it will only be available in August. But it will only be free if you are a Charter Subscriber as I understand it.

Scarab Sages

Are there plans to provide a Player's Guide for each adventure path?
Dark Archive Contributor
Ungoded wrote:
Are there plans to provide a Player's Guide for each adventure path?

Yup!

Scarab Sages

My players often take a significant amount of time generating new characters. Escpecially if it requires reading up on a new setting. I've shown up to more than one game to find a player frantically finishing a character for a game that was announced a month or more earlier. Is there any chance that the Player's Guides are going to be available in advance of the new adventure path, so that character generation can get a head start. If I get the Player's guide in August at the same time as the first adventure, I may not be able to play it until October.

Will there be a new players guide for each Adventure Path? If so, that would mean 2 Players Guides each year?
Mike McArtor wrote:
Ungoded wrote:
Are there plans to provide a Player's Guide for each adventure path?
Yup!

Never mind. The question has already been answered!

Hmmm, mayhaps I'll get one for myself now and then buy a pack in stores for any group I might wish to garner if they are going to be sold in stores as a bundle.
Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer
FenrysStar wrote:
Hmmm, mayhaps I'll get one for myself now and then buy a pack in stores for any group I might wish to garner if they are going to be sold in stores as a bundle.

Bundles going to retail will be priced at 5 for $9.99, so there's no significant discount.

question if I turned my dungeon and dragons into pathfinder books will I recieve one of these or must I add a month to month subscribtion?
Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer
Edward Bahr wrote:
question if I turned my dungeon and dragons into pathfinder books will I recieve one of these or must I add a month to month subscribtion?

You have to add a month-to-month subscription to get a print copy for free (but anyone will be able to download a free PDF).

Vic, if I am a subscriber, does that mean I get a free copy of the new players guide when you start the second (and third, and fourth, and...) AP? If so, then all I can say is "SWEET!!!".
Contributor

By the by, I'm writing this right now (you can tell by the four days of stubble I'm sporting). If any of you have any ideas on stuff you really really want to see in here, be sure to tell us! For example, Varisian Names: Yay or Nay?
Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path Subscriber

*Rhothaerill cracks the whip* No shaving for Wes. :P

Yay to Varisian names. The cultural aspect is helpful for campaign flavor, though I'm sure it will come out in the various adventures too.

Another yay to Varisian names.
Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path Subscriber

Honestly, the item I want to see the most in the Players Guide is fluff, such as an overview of the culture of the races of Varisia. Another good item would be how to fit the main core classes into the starting location, similar to what was done for Diamond Lake in the Age of Worms AP. Since this guide is specifically for the first Pathfinder AP rather than the world as a whole then taking it to that level of involvement would be useful.
Rhothaerill wrote:
Honestly, the item I want to see the most in the Players Guide is fluff, such as an overview of the culture of the races of Varisia. Another good item would be how to fit the main core classes into the starting location, similar to what was done for Diamond Lake in the Age of Worms AP. Since this guide is specifically for the first Pathfinder AP rather than the world as a whole then taking it to that level of involvement would be useful.

Seconded. And ditto for the names.

Dark Archive Contributor
F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
If any of you have any ideas on stuff you really really want to see in here, be sure to tell us!

Feats for making gnomes even more badass. ^_^

Sovereign Court

Could you give us a brief snippet of info from the booklet? Like, for example, what is the best favored enemy for a ranger?
Contributor
Rhothaerill wrote:
Honestly, the item I want to see the most in the Players Guide is fluff...

Phew, no problem there. Since only a handful of folks have played in Varisia so far the Player's Guide will have tons of "this is here, this is here, these guys fit in here, and this is in style here" type exposition.

Both James and I are big fans of rules that build off fluff and, having such a focused story with RotR, we can incorporate rules that are a bit more specific than the usual "+2 on Search and Craft (underwater basket-weaving)" feats you usually see. For example, if you're a member of the Shoanti Skoan-Quah tribe, the Clan of the Skull, you might gain “a +2 bonus to your Armor Class against undead,” as ties into their cultural roles. Or, if you're a member of one of the other eight clans, you can choose the same feat (Totem Spirit) and receive a benefit that ties you more closely to another tribe, giving you both a rules benefit for the story decision of intimately tying your character to the region.

It's not all fleshed out yet, but what's coming along so far is pretty cool.

Mike McArtor wrote:
Feats for making gnomes even more badass. ^_^

Gnomes are getting a surprising amount of love as they're one of the PHB races we thought deserved some more attention and a bit to distinguish them from the other shorty races. Of course, though, you'll see all this Mike... not just because you work 6 feet away, but because you're the biggest gnome enthusiast and critic there is.

Weirdo.

Mr. Slaad wrote:
Could you give us a brief snippet of info from the booklet? Like, for example, what is the best favored enemy for a ranger?

For the last two weeks Sutter has been reduced to tears on a daily basis as he searches for timely blog posts, so I dare not give away anything more than I already have (salty tears get my keyboard all sticky). That being said, suggestions on topics like "what is the best favored enemy for a ranger" is exactly the sort of stuff that's in there. These bits aren’t spoilers, they’re not cheating, they’re info rangers (and all the other classes) in Varisia would know and you should too. That’s kind of what the whole book is about, a cheep and easy way to bring your character up to speed. Keep up with the blog in the next week or so and I'm sure you'll get a few good swaths.

That being said... goblinoids at 1st, giants at 5th. ;)
Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path Subscriber

Sounds good Wes. :b:
Sovereign Court

Nice...

Hi Paizo team,

Would this also be useful for characters going through the other GameMastery Modules or is it very much tied to Rise of the Runelords?

Thanks in advance!
Bocklin
Dark Archive Contributor
F. Wesley Schneider wrote:

Gnomes are getting a surprising amount of love as they're one of the PHB races we thought deserved some more attention and a bit to distinguish them from the other shorty races. Of course, though, you'll see all this Mike... not just because you work 6 feet away, but because you're the biggest gnome enthusiast and critic there is.

Weirdo.

Yay!

Wait... weirdo...?

Oh well. Yay! :D

Nothin' weird about a little gnome love...

Another vote for the names. Also, something I would like to see as far as fluff is some attention to the physical difference between different cultures. Not sure how many different cultures are going to be featured in this path, but a few notes on how you can look at a person and guess where they might be from based on what they are wearing, how their hair is styled, mannerisms and accent.

Me personaly I would rather see more fluff than rules (or rather all fluff and no rules) in the players guide, but it does sound like you guys are coming up with some interesting crunch.
Sharoth wrote:
...if I am a subscriber, does that mean I get a free copy of the new players guide when you start the second (and third, and fourth, and...) AP? ...

I, too, was curious to know this as well. Also, is this the only thing the "charter subscriber" gets (the spiffy messageboard tag aside)? I've got 5 issues of Pathfinder due after my Dragon & Dungeon subs die so I thought I'd at least wait to see if it's something I want to continue picking up before committing to the subscription. If it's only the player's guides I'm missing out on I can always buy those separately.

- Chris Shadowens
Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer
Sharoth wrote:
...if I am a subscriber, does that mean I get a free copy of the new players guide when you start the second (and third, and fourth, and...) AP? ...

As far as I know, nobody's even discussed how we'll be handling future Players' Guides yet.

Chris Shadowens wrote:
Also, is this the only thing the "charter subscriber" gets (the spiffy messageboard tag aside)?

Yep.

Vic Wertz wrote:
Sharoth wrote:
...if I am a subscriber, does that mean I get a free copy of the new players guide when you start the second (and third, and fourth, and...) AP? ...

As far as I know, nobody's even discussed how we'll be handling future Players' Guides yet.

Chris Shadowens wrote:
Also, is this the only thing the "charter subscriber" gets (the spiffy messageboard tag aside)?

Yep.

Well, there is the discount, and the PDFs....

I never thought the tag was "spiffy" and stopped noting tags after a month on the boards.... Ok, except when they say Publisher, Editor or something like that. Contributors? Gah! Who cares...

;)

Does anyone think my tag is spiffy?

BFHD.
The Exchange

I saw on the blog today that Pathfinder #1 and the Player's guide is supposed to ship this week. Is this correct? Does this mean that consumers may have this before the end of the month? I didn't expect this until Dungeon ran out. Please say it's so!

FH
Sovereign Court Contributor
Fake Healer wrote:

I saw on the blog today that Pathfinder #1 and the Player's guide is supposed to ship this week. Is this correct? Does this mean that consumers may have this before the end of the month? I didn't expect this until Dungeon ran out. Please say it's so!

FH

That was an unclearly worded statement. It ships to the printer this week. It will then be printed and shipped back to Paizo, and then to us in its previously scheduled timeframe.

The Exchange
Rambling Scribe wrote:
Fake Healer wrote:

I saw on the blog today that Pathfinder #1 and the Player's guide is supposed to ship this week. Is this correct? Does this mean that consumers may have this before the end of the month? I didn't expect this until Dungeon ran out. Please say it's so!

FH

That was an unclearly worded statement. It ships to the printer this week. It will then be printed and shipped back to Paizo, and then to us in its previously scheduled timeframe.

damn...

Dark Archive
Mike McArtor wrote:
F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
If any of you have any ideas on stuff you really really want to see in here, be sure to tell us!
Feats for making gnomes even more badass. ^_^

I'll second that!!

Kruelaid wrote:
Well, there is the discount, and the PDFs...

But that's for regular subscribers, too...yes? I'd meant, specifically, the "Charter Subscriber", which, I believe, was answered above.

Kruelaid wrote:
I never thought the tag was "spiffy"

Neither do I, was just pointing it out in the event it was going to be used as a "selling point" to become a "Charter Subscriber". Since I've 5 issues of Pathfinder due me after Dragon & Dungeon pass away I'm going to use them to judge whether I want to continue subscribing (which, I'm sure, I will since I've been a fan of Paizo's content for some years now, no reason to suddenly dtop) or not. I can order the Player's Guide and I'll have the PDFs available so so far I think I'm set.

- Chris Shadowens

Since, sadly, Dungeon and Dragon is no longer going to be published, I am eagerly looking forward to this subscription as a way to feed my players when we head back over to the big sandbox. Having quick and easily accessible guides and products like this is what made me subscribe to D&D way back when. Im sure that this will have the same great attention to detail and fun-factor as past products were.
Chris Shadowens wrote:
Kruelaid wrote:
Well, there is the discount, and the PDFs...

But that's for regular subscribers, too...yes? I'd meant, specifically, the "Charter Subscriber", which, I believe, was answered above.

Kruelaid wrote:
I never thought the tag was "spiffy"

Neither do I, was just pointing it out in the event it was going to be used as a "selling point" to become a "Charter Subscriber". Since I've 5 issues of Pathfinder due me after Dragon & Dungeon pass away I'm going to use them to judge whether I want to continue subscribing (which, I'm sure, I will since I've been a fan of Paizo's content for some years now, no reason to suddenly dtop) or not. I can order the Player's Guide and I'll have the PDFs available so so far I think I'm set.

- Chris Shadowens

Ah but if you subscribe while you are in transition you get the Player's Guide for free and if you don't wish to continue cancel the subscription before your tranistion issues are up.

Silver Crusade

Mr. Lacefield or other Paizo sales reps,

The player's guide is $2.00, correct? I was somewhat flumoxed because I spotted FRP Games selling it for $15.98! (http://www.frpgames.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=38004) I know Paizo is limited in its ability to influence what others sell Paizo's product for, but that price for a 16 page guide sounds a wee bit high.
Tzzarg wrote:

Mr. Lacefield or other Paizo sales reps,

The player's guide is $2.00, correct? I was somewhat flumoxed because I spotted FRP Games selling it for $15.98! (http://www.frpgames.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=38004) I know Paizo is limited in its ability to influence what others sell Paizo's product for, but that price for a 16 page guide sounds a wee bit high.

I think that is for a pack of 5, I remember them saying that it be for sale at stores in a 5 pack (like Ptolus I believe)

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Looks to me like someone over there didn't pay attention to the MSRP, actually... they're pricing the Player's Guide as if it were a volume of Pathfinder. Which isn't quite accurate...

When will the Player's Guide be available for download (since it's a pdf file I assume you can put a specific date on it)?
I hope it's something like August 1st, since it would then give my players a little time to read it and use it to generate their characters before the actual adventure arrives and I can start the game.
Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer
GentleGiant wrote:
When will the Player's Guide be available for download (since it's a pdf file I assume you can put a specific date on it)?

Early August, probably a little bit before Pathfinder 1 ships.

When can we expect these to ship? Am I right in thinking that they will come about the same time as my last issue of Dungeon? Also, I know the player's guide pdf will be available for free in August (I haven't bought it, as you wonderful people will be sending me one anyway). I'd like my players to be able to download it soon, so we can get crackin'.
Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

Printed copies of the Player's Guide will ship at the same time as Pathfinder 1: mid-August.

Can we get an option for buying a pack?
Or should I just order 5 at once?

Why do I feel like Little Orphan Annie today? The sun'll come out tomorrow, the Player's Guide for Pathfinder tomorrow, free P-D-F...

At least, I really, really hope it's tomorrow. Please be tomorrow. Please.
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