Pathfinder Society (PFS) is a worldwide fantasy roleplaying campaign using the Pathfinder (second edition) ruleset. As you complete adventures, your character levels up, allowing you to take their treasure and experience to any table worldwide. You decide your character’s pace, playing as often as you want, without having to stick to the strict schedule of other gaming groups. Further, as a living campaign, the story reacts to player choices, allowing your actions to influence future adventures. Pathfinder Society is a great way to jump right into Pathfinder and find your gaming group!

ADVENTURES

Pathfinder Society play takes place in three main adventure formats:

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Scenarios

Pathfinder Society Scenarios are 4-5 hour adventures. Our scenarios are considered the main plotline for the campaign.

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Quests

Pathfinder Society Quests are 2-3 hour adventures. These adventures are a shorter way to try out the world of Pathfinder Society.

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Bounties

Pathfinder Bounties are one-hour adventures. These bite-size adventures ask characters to take on a quick side job in return for gold.

CHARACTER CREATION

If you want to jump right into Pathfinder Society, you can download a level 1 pregenerated character for free at paizo.com/pf2pregens. If you prefer to build your own character, you can do so using the options in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook without owning the book!

The Pathfinder Society campaign generally lets players use as much content from our rulebooks as possible. However, we do review the options to be sure that they’re appropriate for public play, and occasionally restrict options due to balance or content concerns. See the Character Options page for more information. You can also check out the Character Creation Guide in the Guide to Organized Play for more details on customizing your character to the world of Golarion.

Character Sheets

Blank character sheets to use in making your character

Pregenerated Characters

Premade versions of Pathfinder iconic characters for in-game use

Character Options

List of rules content used in the Pathfinder Society campaign.

My Organized Play

A snapshot of your organized play experience, including characters, in-game benefits, and a play log.

REWARDS

After you complete a PFS adventure, you’ll be given a Chronicle Sheet! This contains a summary of your adventure, as well as important information about treasure and other rewards. It’s important to keep good records in the Pathfinder Society, so keep this Chronicle Sheet safe.

Your Chronicle Sheet will have the following rewards on it:

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Experience (XP)

Typically a Scenario rewards 4 XP, while Quests and Bounties earn less. Every time your character earns 12 XP, they level up!

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Gold

During adventures, you’ll often find treasure. At the end of the adventure, the Society rewards you with gold based on your character level.

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Reputation

Your character earns Reputation with their chosen faction as they complete adventures. This is a measure of how well-regarded you are by the Society, and achieving certain tiers unlocks additional rewards.

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Achievement Points

Achievement Points are tracked online, and can be spent in our online boon store to unlock additional character options, such as new ancestries or rare magical items. Additionally, they can be spent to heal conditions or even return your character to life.

HOW TO GET STARTED

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Find Your Region

Find your region at paizo.com/organizedplay/regions to get in contact with your local organizers

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Contact Your FLGS

Contact your local game store and ask them for information on Pathfinder Society events. You can find Retailers who carry Paizo products on our Retail Locator

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Search for Games

Search for games on Warhorn, Meetup, or other social networking sites

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Visit Us At Conventions

Visit us at PaizoCon, Gen Con, or other conventions in your area listed on the Conventions Calendar

Most public games are facilitated by a Venture Officer, an experienced volunteer whose role is to set up gaming sessions and help out new players. When you go to your first Pathfinder Society game, introduce yourself to the local Venture Agent!

You can also play at home with friends. As long as one of you reports the game in My Organized Play, everyone will get credit, just like playing at a store or convention!

If you have any questions, there are plenty of people willing to help out in the Pathfinder Society forums. We look forward to seeing you at the gaming table! Don’t forget the Pathfinder Society’s motto: Explore, Report, Cooperate!

–The Pathfinder Society team

TERMS TO KNOW

: Access: if your character has Access to a character option, it means they can take it during character creation or level up. Typically, Pathfinder Society characters have Access to all common options, as well as any Uncommon or Rare options for which they meet the printed Access conditions. See the Character Options page for more information.

: Achievement Points: earned for every game you play, these points are tracked on Paizo.com. They can be spent on boons to unlock character options, heal or resurrect your character, and more!

: Adventure: An Adventure is any prewritten Pathfinder adventure that can be played for Pathfinder Society credit. Types of Adventures include Scenarios, Quests, Bounties or Adventure Paths.

: Adventure Mode: Adventures that are not written for the Pathfinder Society campaign, such as Adventure Paths and standalone Adventures, are sanctioned for play in Adventure Mode. Generally, this means that the rules of the campaign are relaxed, allowing GMs to set their own rules around character creation and variant rules. Typically after playing an adventure in Adventure Mode, you will be given a Chronicle Sheet which awards one level of credit to a Pathfinder Society character of your choice.

: Boon: A boon is a special reward that your character earns, or which you purchase from the online boon store. A boon typically unlocks access to new character options, though some boons give you other new abilities. Boons appear on Chronicle Sheets, and you should keep copies of all the boons your character has earned with their records.

: Bounty: Pathfinder Bounties are one-hour adventures for 2-6 characters. These bite-size adventures ask characters to take on a quick side job in return for gold. Typically they feature one combat and one skill challenge, making them quick and easy introductory adventures.

: Faction: The Pathfinder Society has a number of factions, which represent their members’ interests in the Society at large. During each scenario, your character picks a faction to champion, or represent, and will earn Reputation with that faction based on the outcome of the scenario. See the faction pages for more information.

: Quest: Pathfinder Society Quests are 2-3 hour adventures for 2-6 PFS characters. These adventures are a shorter way to dip your toes into the world of Pathfinder Society; they feature all the excitement and adventure of a Scenario, but in a shorter timeframe. Unlike Scenarios, Quests are “Repeatable,” meaning all your characters can experience these adventures.

: Reputation: Your character earns Reputation with their chosen faction as they complete adventures, and sometimes factions will give you special missions to complete to earn bonus Reputation. This Reputation is a measure of how well-regarded you are by the Society, and achieving certain tiers unlocks additional rewards.

: Scenario: Pathfinder Society Scenarios are 4-5 hour adventures for 2-6 PFS characters. Our scenarios are considered the main plotline for the campaign, and outside of specific exceptions, each player can play each scenario once. In the course of these adventures, you’ll travel across Golarion exploring new places, meeting colorful characters and discovering hidden secrets.