Aaron Bitman's page

Peter Schickele, musical parodist behind ‘P.D.Q. Bach,’ dies at 88.

I feel compelled to share a few personal notes. I remember, during my childhood and teens in the 1980s, listening to my father's PDQ Bach records. Also, my father took my brother and me to some PDQ Bach concerts.

In the 2010s, long after I had thrown away my record collection, when my father was moving away, my brother and I were going through some of his belongings to decide what to keep and what to throw away. This included some of his old records. I didn't even have a turntable at the time, so I didn't feel inclined to take many records, but somehow, I felt compelled to keep a few of them, including The Intimate PDQ Bach.

Later, I got a turntable, and - 3 years ago - feeling surprised that The Intimate PDQ Bach wasn't up on YouTube, I recorded it and uploaded it myself: Link

As with many of my efforts on the internet, my work later proved redundant, as someone else posted the record there as well: Link

But my involvement - however limited and superfluous - led to one thing. On this page...

Link

...someone posted a comment just hours ago informing me of Schickele's death.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom - Trailer

Aquaman is probably my favorite DC movie of all time, and this trailer looks VERY promising!

Jerry Moss, the "M" of A&M Records, died of natural causes on August 16, 2023, in his home in Bel Air, California, at the age of 88.

Here are a few articles with more details:

Jerome Moss Obituary

Jerry Moss, Who Formed A&M Records With Herb Alpert, Dies

JERRY MOSS, 1935-2023

Jerry Moss, Co-Founder of A&M Records, Dies at 88

Jerry Moss, co-founder of A&M Records and Rock Hall of Fame member, dies at 88

Jerry Moss, A&M Records Co-Founder & Rock Hall of Famer, Dies at 88

Jerry Moss Dies: A&M Records Co-Founder Was 88

Jerry Moss, co-founder of A&M Records and Rock Hall of Fame member, dies at 88

It was 8 years ago that I posted on this website about my favorite musician alive, Herb Alpert, in celebration of his 80th birthday. That post included a 1500-word blurb about his amazing career. Here's a link to that post. Since then, I've expanded that biography to about 13,000 words. I STILL regard him as my favorite musician alive. And I'm sure - based on the extensive research I did for my book - that he wouldn't have been nearly as successful without the help of the other co-founder of A&M, Jerry Moss.

I remember lurking on these messageboards for years before working up the nerve to post my first message in 2009. These boards had an awesome community and there was so much I wanted to say and learn about RPGs. I got thoroughly hooked on these messageboards like a junkie.

And I'm not Paizo's biggest fan. So many fans here raved about so many Paizo products while I felt that only a few of those products were all that great. But I loved the messageboards so much, I felt the pressure to show my support, so I spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars on Paizo merchandise (and other products through Paizo's store).

Then in 2010, I thought I was going to lose my job. That belief made me decide to put aside RPGs and pursue cheaper hobbies. I had to suspend my Paizo wish list. My belief that I would soon be unemployed also sent me into something of a depression, discouraging me not only from buying RPG material, but also playing RPGs and posting on these boards.

But later in 2010, the president of the company found a different position for me; I didn't lose my job after all! The first thing I did to celebrate was buy stuff from Paizo's store.

So from 2009 to 2013 I was a prolific poster; I wrote over 2000 posts during those 4 years, despite that period of depression in 2010.

After that, though, I gradually lost interest in Pathfinder, in RPGs in general, and in these messageboards. In 2019, I noted that I hadn't posted even 400 messages in the previous 4 years. I still read role-playing books, but I played less and less.

I mention 2019 because that was the year I truly did lose my job and the depression returned. At the time, I figured that my days of posting on paizo.com were numbered. So I wrote a farewell in a thread I called A goodbye of a sort.

Since then, another four years have passed (or nearly that long). During those 4 years, I got another job, lost that job too, and got yet another job.

And my interest in playing RPGs has sunk even lower. I once - briefly - played in a Golarion campaign, but that was about it. But I still read RPG materials, including some by Paizo, now and then.

And during those 4 years, I wrote 70 or so posts. I check these boards less and less often, but I visit occasionally. It's like that Zeno paradox: a rate can keep getting relatively lower, indefinitely, without ever reaching zero. Maybe my goodbye was premature.

Recently, I did a little statistical study of ability score generation according to the official, default, 3.0/3.5 rules. I'd like to invite you all to read about it - or the results, at least - in the following thread:

Dice averages

Ennio Morricone, the Oscar-winning film composer, died today at the age of 91.

Of course, he's best remembered for the theme to The Good the Bad and the Ugly, the second sequel to A Fistful of Dollars.

But here's something I like better: the Spotnicks' cover of his theme to the FIRST sequel, For a Few Dollars More.

I recently saw a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode that impressed me so much, I feel compelled to talk about it. And I always found this site to be a good place to discuss anything geeky, so here I am.

I should back up a bit. Back in the 1980s and -90s I would watch Star Trek intermittently. I had no particular interest in Worf and certainly not in the whole Mogh / Duras / Gowron subplot. I stopped watching altogether in 1999 and I never saw anything of the last nine (or ten) episodes of Deep Space Nine which wrapped up the whole Dominion war.

In the past year or two I felt a revived interest in Star Trek so I took to watching The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine but still not in their entirety. Too many of those episodes were boring, irrelevant, or just plain dumb. But I watched the episodes more significant to the continuity.

And when I did, I found Worf to be a much more interesting and sympathetic character. By extension, I took interest in other Klingon characters, such as Gowron.

I don't expect all of you to remember the show in such detail after so many years so here's a (simplified) summary. Worf lost his honorable status in the Klingon Empire and so - in a Season 5 episode from 1990 - he took an interest in supporting someone who opposed the current administration. This was Gowron. Worf helped Gowron to beat the forces of Duras - Worf's enemy - and to take over the Klingon Empire as Chancellor. And yet Gowron never seemed to be a particularly good or sympathetic character. He seemed more interested in increasing his own power and glory than in supporting the Empire. He was only one of the good guys in a the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend kind of way.

In 1993, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine premiered. The fourth season introduced Worf into the show; Sisko recruited him to help him with troubles with the Empire as it made war against Cardassia. In Gowron's defense, I must admit that he wasn't entirely to blame; he was being manipulated by REALLY bad bad guys, namely the Dominion. A daring mission by Deep Space Nine crew members - including Worf - helped to expose that plot and partly reconcile the friction between the Federation and the Empire, but Gowron still wasn't a remotely sympathetic character.

Then, in Season 5, the Federation and the Dominion went to all-out hot war against each other. The last 9 or 10 episodes of the last season (season 7) dealt heavily with that war. (I say "9 or 10" because the last episode was a double-length episode, shown as 2 episodes in syndication.) I started watching that grand epic last week.

And one of the subplots in it had Gowron mishandle the war against the Dominion rather than risk his own glory and power. Reluctantly, Worf decided that Gowron's insanity had to stop. So he challenged Gowron, killed him, and installed Martok - a truly great and honorable warrior - as Chancellor in his place!

Okay, maybe the whole Gowron subplot was simplistic and therefore implausible; the same is true of a lot of Star Trek. And that ending I described wasn't particularly cleverly written or anything. But what I found amazing was that Worf killed Gowron over EIGHT YEARS after Gowron beat the Duras forces and consolidated his position! EIGHT YEARS!!! I probably watched less TV than most, so this won't mean much, but I can't think of any other TV show that let a subplot go on for so long and come to an even halfway satisfactory conclusion. Finally, Gowron got what was coming to him!

You know, one thing that made Star Trek impressive - despite its glaring problems - was that so many actors kept coming back to reprise their roles that weren't regular characters. It made the galaxy seem small, but on the plus side, it also made so many subplots - such as Gowron's - possible. (I suppose Star Trek must have paid those actors well to keep them coming back.)

Anyway, I expect to finish watching the Dominion war later this week. I look forward to finding out if Kai Winn will suffer an equally fitting fate. Now THERE'S a villain I just love to hate!

****

I wrote all that text above days ago, intending to post it here, but I didn't get around to it. Since then I finished the Dominion war and found it rather disappointing. The business of Bashir and O'Brien entering Sloan's mind like it was a VR interface was so dumb, I couldn't help but wince. And obviously the cure - which the show made to look ridiculously simple - was going to be used as a bargaining chip for the peace treaty, so I see it as a cheap plot device.

And I mentioned I was hoping for a fitting end for Kai Winn, so the last episode disappointed me in that too. She did the whole "noble self-sacrifice" routine to re-imprison the Pah-wraiths... but she was the one who had freed them in the first place! Simply getting killed was a fitting fate for Gowron, but Kai Winn deserved so much worse!

For instance, the Pah-wraiths could have taken control of Kai Winn (and remember that it had been established early on that when Pah-wraiths possess someone that person is fully conscious of everything that's happening to her). When Sisko came on the scene he could have helped the Prophets to trap the Pah-wraiths in the fire caves by trapping Kai Winn there, leaving her to burn for the rest of eternity. Now THERE'S a fitting fate for a Bajoran who gave so much hell to so many other people!

But... okay, at least the show finished the Dominion war, so it ended on a bang, unlike TNG which ended on a whimper.

This might not be my very last post on Paizo.com, but I think the end is near.

I spoilerized my depressed rambling above to make sure you would read my main point: You're a great community, and I was thrilled to be a part of it. I wish success and fun for all of you. And thank you, Paizo. The last decade has been quite a trip for me.

My son wrote up some classes for PFRPG (1st edition). He would like to ask: Could you critique? (Are they balanced? Is it worth it to multiclass rather than take one of these classes? Are there abilities that need to be fixed/ removed/ added?)

Mystic Artist
The mystic artists are a group of secluded monasteries and monks who have discovered what they call “the pocket veil”. This mysterious realm, created by Nethys, can only be accessed with arcane might and divine mysticism combined. While it takes up no space in the Outer Circle, it is directly linked to many things like light, time, energy, magic, and the Astral Realm. Very few are able to find these monasteries, which is why there are very few mystic artists in Golarion.
Role: The mystic artist, much like a wizard or a sorcerer, it typically the arcane spell caster of the party. However, the mystic artist has a strength that wizards lack: the ability to fight in close quarters. Often running up to the front lines in armor, with a potent glimmer weapon in hand, mystic artists, while lacking the raw arcane prowess of even the magus, proves useful in both combat situations, with his varied spell and class skill list coming in handy whenever the situation arises.
Hit die: d8
Alignment: any
Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Fly (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (planes) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skill Ranks per Level: 4+ Int modifier
Armor and Weapon Proficiency: Mystic Artists are proficient with all simple weapons, light armor, shields (but not tower shields), and glimmer weapons (see below).
Base Attack Bonus: Medium (3/4 level)
Fort and Ref: Poor (1/3 level)
Will: Good ([1/2 level] +2)
Level/ Special
1/ Mystic Code
2/
3/ Mystic Code, Glimmer Weapons
4/ Mystic Item
5/ Mystic Code
6/
7/ Mystic Code
8/ Mystic Item
9/ Mystic Code
10/
11/ Mystic Code
12/ Mystic Item
13/ Mystic Code
14/
15/ Mystic Code
16/ Mystic Item
17/ Mystic Code
18/
19/ Mystic Code
20/ Mystic Item

Spells: Mystic Artists cast arcane spells, based on their Wisdom (what level they can cast, the DC, bonus spells). There is no arcane spell failure chance for wearing light armor or a light shield. They do not need any materials, focuses, or items to cast their spells.

Spells/ Day (Spell Level X: no. per day at 1st level, 2nd level, 3rd level; ... means that the number before the ... is the highest amount)
Spell Level 0: 3, 4...
Spell Level 1: 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4...
Spell Level 2: -, -, -, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4...
Spell Level 3: -, -, -, -, -, -, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4...
Spell Level 4: -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4...
Spell Level 5: -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4...
Spell Level 6: -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, -, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3...

Spell List:
0th- Dancing Lights, Flare, Light, Message, Open/ Close, Prestidigitation, Read Magic, Resistance;
1st- Feather Fall, Hold Portal, Identify, Inflict Light Wounds, Produce Flame, Shield, Silent Image, Ventriloquism;
2nd- Blur, Fog Cloud, Gust of Wind, Heat Metal, Minor Image, Mirror Image, Snare, Sound Burst;
3rd- Dispel Magic, Fly, Helping Hand, Hold Person, Inflict Moderate Wounds, Major Image, Water Walk, Wind Wall;
4th- Air Walk, Dimensional Anchor, Fire Shield, Freedom of Movement, Hold Monster, Inflict Serious Wounds, Lesser Planar Ally, Resilient Sphere;
5th- Contact Other Plane, Dismissal, Greater Dispel Magic, Plane Shift, Scrying, Telekinesis, Teleport, Wall of Force;
6th- Inflict Critical Wounds, Move Earth, Planar Ally, Project Image, Transformation, True Seeing

Mystic Code: At every odd level, a mystic artist learns a special formula of mystic symbols he can create mentally by will to gain a desired effect. Each has a name, a minimum level in parentheses, and the effect.
Arcane Lore (9): Learn one arcane spell in a slot of one level higher than it actually is without expending a mystic artist spell per day. You must be able to cast a spell of the desired level the arcane spell is in.
Astral Form (11): Once per day, cast Astral Projection as a spell- like ability.
Astral Jolt (9): As a swift action, cause any creature you can see to lose one level for one day per every time you take this mystic code. You may do this 3 plus your Wisdom modifier times per day.
Energy Shield (3): As a standard action, you create a shield 10 feet in diameter in front of you with resist energy to one type of energy, determined when you create it. It has resistance equal to 10 plus 10 per additional four caster levels, up to 30. You may do this 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Great Touch (1): On a non- touch spell, have all numeric and variable effects of the spell doubled, and make the range touch, requiring a successful melee touch attack. You may use this 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Learned (7): Learn one additional spell on the mystic artist spell list of a level you can cast.
Light Power (1): As a free action, you may redistribute the lighting in a 30 foot radius spread. Have each five foot square be represented by a number: 1 corresponds to no light, 2 to dim light, and 3 to bright light. Each five foot square should have a number between 1 and 3 at the end. You may use this 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Mirror Dimension (7): By spending a standard action of concentration, you can manipulate space in a 30 foot radius spread however you want for one minute. You may use this 1+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Mystic Dodge (1): Every time you take this, you add your wisdom bonus to your AC (as a dodge bonus), Reflex save, initiative, or Dex- based skills.
Overload (5): As a full- round action, you cast harm as a spell like ability. This is usable 1+ your Wisdom modifier times per day.
Portal Jump (1): As a move action, create a portal, a circle 5 feet in diameter, which teleports anything that steps in it up to another portal 20 feet away per level, determined by you. The portal lasts for one minute, and this ability is usable 3+ your
Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Portal Shift (13): As Portal Jump, except creating the portal takes a full- round action, and it transports up to 2000 feet per level away.
Portal Travel (7): As Portal Jump, except creating the portal takes a standard action and it transports up to 200 feet per level away.
Rope of Light (3): As a standard action, you create a glowing 50 foot silk rope which glows as though a light spell was cast on it. It can be used to entangle targets with a successful touch attack, and may also be used as a regular rope. It lasts for one
minute, and it is usable 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day.
Rune Power (3): This works as the Spell Rune power does for clerics with the Rune domain, except it doesn’t include Blast Rune, and mystic artist level replaces cleric level. It is usable 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take this past the first.
Spell- Powered (5): You may spontaneously add any metamagic feat you know to any spell without increasing the time or the level 1 time per day, plus 1 every additional time you take this beyond the first.
Spell Shield (1): As a free action you create a “shield” 10 feet in diameter in front of you which deflects a total amount of spell levels equal to the highest level you can cast, after which is disappears. You may have the shield move with you or stay put. This is usable 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, plus one per additional time you take it past the first.
Summoned Item (5): You may summon an additional mystic item as a standard action for one minute every day, which can cost up to as much as a regular mystic item would cost, after which it disappears. You may use this once per day, plus 1 every time you retake it.
Time Manipulation (13): Each time you take this, chose one spell- like ability: time stop, haste (for everyone within a 30 foot radius spread), or slow (for everyone within a 30 foot radius spread). Each of these are usable once per day.

Glimmer Weapons: At 3rd level, you gain the ability to summon glimmering “weapons” out of thin air. You may add bonuses derived from feats to these (ex. Improved Critical [Glimmer Weapons] doubles the critical range without increasing the cost; see below). They last for a total of 1 minute per level per day, but these minutes don’t have to be consecutive. For every weapon you create, you get to spend a number of points equal to your Wisdom modifier to increase the effect of the weapon. The costs for improving various aspects of glimmer weapons are below (round up for any fractions at the end):
Damage: .5 per step (1d3, 1d4, 1d6, 1d8, 2d4, 1d10, 1d12, 2d6). Notes: Don’t decrease damage for small characters; you may always add your Strength modifier to damage, and may consider it light, one- handed, or two- handed without additional cost.
Critical: .5 per step (19-20, 18-20); .5 per step (X3, X4).
Range: .25 per 5 foot increments (melee weapons count as 0).
Bludgeoning/ Piercing/ Slashing: 1 per type exceeding one.
Special Quality: +1 per every special quality (ex. trip).
At 6th level, all glimmer weapons automatically gain a magic bonus, which may be used for magic weapon properties, equal to your level divided by 6.
At 9th level, all damage dice, critical range, and ranges are doubled for no cost.
At 12th, all glimmer weapons automatically gain the spell storing quality, stored with any spell you can cast of up to 3rd level.
At 15th, you may spend a total of a full- round action to create a glimmer weapon and add any mystic code you know to it. This way, when another creature touches/ it touched by your glimmer weapons, they are affected by the desired mystic code (choose this when creating the glimmer weapon), as well as the regular damage and effects of the weapon. A Will DC 10+ ½ your level+ your Wisdom modifier halves any effect of the mystic code.
At 18th level, any other creature who touches/ is touched by your glimmer weapons must make a Will DC 10+ ½ your level+ your Wisdom modifier or take an additional 20 points of Int, Wis, or Cha damage, decided when you create the glimmer weapon.

Mystic Item: At 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, you gain the permanent service of any kind of magical item, even an intelligent one, for no cost. This item can cost up to 500 gp X your level. To use this item, you must make a Use Magic Device check and succeed at a roll of 10+ ½ the item’s CL+ 1 per 1000 gp cost.

At 1st level, a mystic artist gets 3d6 X 10 gp (average 105 gp).

Terun, Iconic Mystic Artist
Terun (pronounced teh- roon) has seen much in his short life. He is a bastard son to a Forlorn elf and a Bonuwat trapper and fisherman in the southeastern corner of the Mwangi Expanse, and because his tribesmen didn’t know of his maternal elven heritage, they believed he was sent from the gods to lead them, and was pampered since birth. Very haughty and vain, Terun led his tribe for 4 years with the already in place village elder, Bokuna. During this time, Terun made peace with all of the surrounding tribes, who had once fought viciously over rights to areas of the sea and territory, introducing an age of prosperity the tribe had never seen, which only added to Terun’s ego complex. When Bokuna was about to die, she whispered to Terun that she knew of a far- away island where others who were sent by the gods sometimes went: the Impossible Kingdom of Jalmeray. Swearing to return to the village, Terun left by boat the next morning. He never returned. While at Jalmeray, Terun succeeded, but felt threated by the others there who seemed to be so much better than him at many studies which he could not pursue in the Mwangi Expanse. To satisfy himself, he would often brag to his teachers, leading almost everyone on the island to hate him. One night, an unexplainable dream came upon Terun of a whirling being of immense power. Terun then woke up to find that same creature being presented before him by his teachers who hated him so much. They challenged Terun to fighting the being, and Terun obliged. Before beginning the duel, Terun asked the being where he was from out of simple curiosity. Having never been cared about before, the being responded that he was from the pocket veil. Intrigued, Terun lost focus and the battle against the thing, but because the being felt that Terun had been nice to him, he spared his life, and was kicked off the island. Terun did not feel remorse for his exile. He immediately went in search of the pocket veil and those who might know about it, abandoning his village. He eventually came to the Great Monastery in Nex, where he was forced to forget everything he knew in order to tap into the power of the pocket veil and become a powerful mystic artist. The tortuous and tedious task finally humbled him. When most of the monastery was attacked, Terun fled north to Katapesh, ready to use his newfound power for others, though not to the extent that others come before a larger plan. Terun is now a young half- elf of about twenty- seven years, with a well- trimmed brown goatee and mustache, and slicked back brown hair. His name literally translates to gift of ancient power in his tribe’s dialect of Polygot.
TERUN
HALF- ELF MYSTIC ARTIST 1
Medium humanoid (elf, human)
AL N
Init +2; Senses low- light vision; Perception +5
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 12, flat- footed 13 (+3 armor, +2 Dex)
hp 12 (1d8+4)
Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +6; +2 vs. enchantments
Defensive Abilities spell shield (1 level); Immune sleep
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee spear +2 (1d8+3/X3)
Ranged light crossbow +2 (1d8/19-20)
Special Attacks mystic code (spell shield 6/day)
Mystic Artist Spells Prepared (CL 1st; concentration +4)
1st-identify, produce flame
0 (at will)-dancing lights, read magic, resistance
TACTICS
Before Combat Terun casts resistance on himself and uses his spell shield mystic code, moving it in front of him and any feeble allies. If possible, he uses diplomacy to end a fight before it happens.
During Combat Terun switches freely between melee and range, using whichever helps the battle more. In melee, he attempts to use flanking tactics while attacking with produce flame or his spear while moving his spell shield in front of him. At a range, he fights on the defensive, protects allies who are staying back, and fires his crossbow.
Base Statistics Without resistance and his spell shield, Terun’s statistics are Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +5; Defensive Abilities none.
STATISTICS
Str 14, Dex 14, Con 11, Int 10, Wis 17, Cha 12
Base Atk +0; CMB +2; CMD 14
Feats Skill Focus (Diplomacy), Toughness
Skills Acrobatics +5, Diplomacy +8, Intimidate +5, Spellcraft +4
Languages Common, Elf, Polygot
SQ elf blood
Combat Gear scroll of feather fall; Other Gear backpack, bedroll, light crossbow with 10 bolts, silk rope (50 ft.), rations (7), spear, waterskin, studded leather armor, 4 sp

Woodlander
For some, the natural world is everything. Most focus this love, or even hate, on druidic practices, but some find a special connection to woodland creatures, and become woodlanders. These select individuals are able to form closer bonds with those around them, in a way that only professional diplomats or interrogators would understand. While they lack much ability to fight, fighting is not what a woodlander would like to do. Rather, they make peace with everyone at every available opportunity.
Role: The woodlander’s power wanes and waxes with their proximity and relationship for nature. They excel at making people love each other and work together, though not always for themselves, as is the case with evil woodlanders. They serve as diplomats, guides, and effective shields when with others, aiding them with their various augment abilities and spells. However, their most powerful feature is their nature’s ally,
which can give them an edge in any situation, depending on which ally they chose.
Hit die: d6
Alignment: any
Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft(Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disguise (Cha), Fly (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Perform (Cha), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Use Magic Device (Cha)
Skill Ranks per Level: 6+ Int modifier
Armor and Weapon Proficiency: Woodlanders are proficient with all bludgeoning weapons not normally made from metal, all armor not normally made from metal, and all shields normally not made from metal. Ironwood doesn’t help change if the item is made from metal for the sake of proficiency, but rather making it from either darkwood or dragonhide, assuming the tree or dragon in question willingly gave his hide up. These forms of armor and shields do not impose arcane spell failure chance.
Base Attack Bonus: Low (1/2 level)
Fort and Ref: Poor (1/3 level)
Will: Good ([1/2 level]+2)
Spell Progression: As sorcerer (note: no bloodline)

Level/ Special
1/ Wild Empathy, Nature’s Ally
2/ Augment
3/ Augment
4/ Augment
5/ Nature’s Warden (1st)
6/ Augment
7/ Nature’s Ally
8/ Augment
9/ Augment
10/ Nature’s Warden (3rd)
11/ Augment
12/ Augment
13/ Nature’s Ally
14/ Augment
15/ Nature’s Warden (5th)
16/ Augment
17/ Augment
18/ Augment
19/ Nature’s Ally
20/ Nature’s Warden (7th)

Spells: Woodlanders cast spontaneous arcane spells, with their spellcasting ability being Charisma. They don’t need a focus for their spells

Spell List:
0th- Acid Splash, Create Water, Daze, Detect Poison, Know Direction, Lullaby, Mage Hand, Mending, Message, Open/ Close, Purify Food and Drink, Read Magic, Ray of Frost, Resistance, Virtue
1st- Alarm, Calm Animals, Charm Animal, Detect Animals or Plants, Endure Elements, Entangle, Goodberry, Hide from Animals, Hypnotism, Lesser Confusion, Pass without Trace, Sleep, Speak with Animals, Summon Nature’s Ally I
2nd- Animal Messenger, Animal Trance, Barkskin, Daze Monster, Fire Trap, Hold Animal, Lesser Restoration, Reduce Animal, Resist Energy, Spider Climb, Summon Nature’s Ally II, Tree Shape, Warp Wood, Wood Shape
3rd- Beast Shape I, Deep Slumber, Diminish Plants, Dispel Magic, Dominate Animal, Heroism, Nondetection, Plant Growth, Protection from Energy, Quench, Speak with Plants, Spike Growth, Suggestion, Summon Nature’s Ally III
4th- Antiplant Shell, Beast Shape II, Blight, Charm Monster, Control Plants, Elemental Body I, Freedom of Movement, Giant Vermin, Hold Monster, Repel Vermin, Summon Nature’s Ally IV
5th- Animal Growth, Awaken, Beast Shape III, Break Enchantment, Commune with Nature, Elemental Body II, Insect Plague, Plant Shape I, Summon Nature’s Ally V, Tree Stride, Wall of Thorns
6th- Beast Shape IV, Elemental Body III, Fire Seeds, Form of the Dragon I, Greater Dispel Magic, Liveoak, Mass Suggestion, Plant Shape II, Repulsion, Summon Nature’s Ally VI, Transport via Plants
7th- Animate Plants, Banishment, Elemental Body IV, Form of the Dragon II, Plant Shape II, Sequester, Summon Nature’s Ally VII, Transmute Metal to Wood
8th- Animal Shapes, Antipathy, Control Plants, Form of the Dragon III, Mass Charm Monster, Mind Blank, Summon Nature’s Ally VIII, Sympathy
9th- Dominate Monster, Elemental Swarm, Freedom, Mass Hold Monster, Shambler, Shape Change, Summon Nature’s Ally IX

Wild Empathy: A woodlander can improve the attitude of an animal. This ability functions just like a Diplomacy check made to improve the attitude of a person (see Core Rulebook Chapter 4). The woodlander rolls 1d20 and adds her woodlander level and her Charisma modifier to determine the wild empathy result. Most animals start with an attitude of indifferent. To use wild empathy, the woodlander and the animal must be within 30 feet of one another under normal conditions. Generally, influencing an animal in this way takes 1 minute but, as with influencing people, it might take more or less time.
At every odd level beyond first, a woodlander can use wild empathy on a different type of creature.
At 3rd level, it is usable on magical beasts.
At 5th level, it is usable on plants.
At 7th level, it is usable on fey.
At 9th level, it is usable on elementals.
At 11th level, it is usable on vermin.
At 13th level, it is usable on all dragons.
At 15th level, it is usable on monstrous humanoids.
At 17th level, it is usable on aberrants.
At 19th level, it is usable on oozes.
At every even level, a woodlander chooses any one augment she has (see below) to immediately and freely apply to any creature she uses wild empathy on successfully (improves its attitude by at least one step), choosing among only the ones she had selected for this purpose, as long as the woodlander sees the creature.

Nature’s Ally: At 1st level, and every 6 levels thereafter, a woodlander magically attracts any creature of her choosing with at most a number of hit dice equal to her woodlander level. This creature must be a type of creature which a woodlander can use wild empathy on. A woodlander may have up to 4 allies at a time, and may dismiss any of them at any time, though she can’t get a new one until she achieves the next level that grants this ability. This ally is with the woodlander of its own volition, so maintaining a relationship with it is crucial, or it will leave. The ally and the woodlander can telepathically communicate with each other as long as they are within 100 feet of each other. Whenever the woodlander gets another level of woodlander, the ally can gain an extra hit die of whatever type it is, as well as everything that number of hit dice effects.

Augment: Whenever this is listed, the woodlander gains the ability to focus the power of raw nature in a new way. This allows her to augment her allies’ abilities, and potentially her own. Each augment has a name, an effect, the targets, and the duration. Once an augment with a “permanent” duration is used, it can’t be used on the same target again. Once an augment with a “1 minute per day” duration is used, it cannot be used again that day, regardless of targets; the rounds don’t have to be consecutive. Activating an augment is a swift action. She may choose one augment from the following list each time:
Allied: Gain +1 nature’s ally (self, permanent)
Augment Self: +2 to all wild empathy checks (self, permanent)
Bestial Fury: +2 to all damage rolls (self and all allies, 1 minute per day)
Compassion: +2 all Charisma- based checks (self, permanent)
Daydream: -2 all Will saving throws (all enemies, 1 minute per day)
Empower Augment: +1 to any numeric effect on any 2 augments (self, permanent)
Great Heart: +2 to fear and mind- affecting effects (self and all allies, 1 minute per day)
Great Might: +1 hit die of the highest kind the affected creature has (one ally, 1 minute per day)
Halt: -30 feet to speed; if less than 0 feet, target is unconscious (one enemy, permanent)
Inspire: +1 to attack and damage rolls (all allies, 1 minute per day)
Life Will: +2 against all poisons and diseases (one ally, permanent)
Mystic Might: +1 to all spell DCs and CL checks (self, 1 minute per day)
Nightmare: +2 to all Wisdom- based skill checks (any one ally enemy or self, 1 minute per day)
Obliterate Augment: -2 to any numeric effect on any 2 augments (one enemy, permanent)
Protection of the Wild: +3 natural armor AC (one ally or self, 1 minute per day)
Shadowed: +2 to all Dexterity- based checks (self, permanent)
Spook: -2 to attack rolls (all enemies, 1 minute per day)
Suggestion: As per the spell suggestion; DC equal to 13+ your Charisma modifier; CL equal to your woodlander level (one enemy, 1 minute per day)
Spurt Blood: -1 to Constitution (one enemy, 1 minute per day)
Resistance: +1 to all saving throws (one ally or self, 1 minute per day)
Unify: +2 to all aid another checks (all allies and self, permanent)
Willpower: +1 to all Will saving throws (all allies and self, permanent)

Nature’s Warden: When you cast an abjuration spell, you may choose to have it also affect all friendly creatures you can use wild empathy on within a 100 foot radius spread of up to the level listed for no additional casting time or spell slot.

At 1st level, a woodlander gets 3d6X10 gp (average: 105 gp).

Karah, Iconic Woodlander
Nearly two thousand years ago, when the Choking Death reached a Numerian Kellid tribe near the Stolen Lands, the chief, Tiamthin Klen, was able to save everyone using supposed demigod powers. He blamed the plague on “the tribe witch”, an evil resident of their tribe who was secretly evil. He tasked the tribe with rooting out the “tribe witch”, which soon became known as the Thickety, in every generation, and hanging her. Most of the time, there was no Thickety or any arcane spellcaster of any sort in the tribe, and the tribe would hang an innocent woman; however, there was a Thickety in Karah’s generation: Karah. Not only was Karah a Thickety, but her mother, who was hung while giving birth to Karah, was also one. All her life, Karah was bullied for her mother’s crimes. Then, one day, Karah found her true calling: animals. Karah had picked up how to sweet- talk others from a particularly nasty bully, and used that talent to talk to an animal herder, who had an escaped thylacine in a pen who needed to be tamed. Karah not only calmed all the animals and the thylacine, but was able to befriend all of them in a way she had never known was possible. The next day, the thylacine walked up to her and wouldn’t leave her side; Karah named him Shiaddinz. However, the tribesmen took Shiaddinz as a sign that Karah was the Thickety, and tried to have her hanged, forcing Karah to escape to Brevoy, promising to stop evil and ignorance at all costs, and to protect all living creatures of nature. Karah is a mere fourteen years old, yet is taller than most fully- grown men, and is incredibly beautiful, still with signature Kellid scars on her arms and legs. She has long brown hair, brown skin, and fierce but charming eyes.
KARAH
HUMAN WOODLANDER 1
Medium humanoid (human)
AL NG
Init +2 Senses Perception +1
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 12, flat- footed 13 (+3 armor, +2 Dex)
hp 11 (1d6+5)
Fort +1, Ref +2, Will +3
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee club +0 (1d6)
Ranged sling +2 (1d4)
Woodlander Spells Known (CL 1st; concentration +5)
1st (4/day)-sleep (DC 16), speak with animals
0 (at will)-detect poison, lullaby (DC 15), read magic, virtue
TACTICS
Before Combat Karah uses her skills, wild empathy, and speak with animals to gain as many allies before a fight. If possible, she hides in a strategic location.
During Combat Karah keeps Shiaddinz close for protection, but rarely sends him into melee unless desperate. She casts virtue to strengthen allies and lullaby and sleep to weaken foes. When needed, she fires her sling and fights with her club, and isn’t afraid of dying or being hurt within limits.
STATISTICS
Str 10, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 18
Base Atk +0; CMB +0; CMD 12
Feats Spell Focus (Enchantment), Toughness
Skills Climb +4, Diplomacy +8, Handle Animal +8, Intimidate +8, Stealth +6, Survival
+5, Swim +4
Languages Common, Hallit
SQ nature’s ally (thylacine named Shiaddinz), wild empathy +5 (animals)
Combat Gear potion of cure light wounds, scroll of entangle, scroll of ray of frost; Other Gear backpack, bedroll, sling with 10 bullets, rations (7), club, waterskin, leather armor, 8 sp
Shiaddinz See thylacine (Bestiary 3 or PFSRD)

Super
Supers are very far and few between, representing the peak evolution of a species. Many are feared, but many are loved, even worshipped as gods. While most supers derive their powers from genetic mutation, many have gotten them from curses, blessings, or almost anything, and a super’s origin is what defines him the most. Supers take on different attitudes, whether they be of saviors, regular heroes, destined overlords, emissaries of a religion, mistakes, and everything in between.
Role: Supers are highly customizable, able to become fighters or spell casters of any sort, as well as many other things, using their powers derived from more general sets. As such, they can be of any race, alignment, or function to the party, and often serve as whatever is missing from the rest of the group. Supers often team up with each other as well, either with identical and uniting or radically different and harmonious powers.
Hit die: d8
Alignment: any
Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Disguise (Cha), Fly (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Linguistics (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Stealth (Dex).
Skill Ranks per Level: 2+ Int modifier
Armor and Weapon Proficiency: Supers are proficient with all simple weapons, light armor, and shields (but not tower shields).
Base Attack Bonus: Medium (3/4 level)
Fort, Ref, and Will: Good ([1/2 level]+2)
Level/ Special
1/ Set 1
2/ Set 1 Power 1
3/ Set 2
4/ Set 1 Power 2
5/ Set 2 Power 1
6/ Set 1 Power 3
7/ Set 3
8/ Imp. Set 1
9/ Imp. Set 1 Power 1
10/ Set 2 Power 2
11/ Imp. Set 1 Power 2
12/ Set 3 Power 1
13/ Imp. Set 1 Power 3
14/ Imp. Set 2
15/ Grtr. Set 1
16/ Grtr. Set 1 Power 1
17/ Set 3 Power 2
18/ Grtr. Set 1 Power 2
19/ Imp. Set 2 Power 1
20/ Grtr. Set 1 Power 3

Set: Each super’s powers are organized into sets and levels. Within each level of set there are three different subsets from which a super may choose one. Each set grants an ability the first time a super gets it. Whenever a “Set X Power X” is listed, the super gets to choose one power under his chosen subset of that set’s level. Sets 1 and 2 have “Improved Set”, which allows the super to either improve in the subset he already has or gain a new one as a regular subset. In addition, when an “Improved Set X Power X” is listed, the effects of one power under the improved set is improved. The effects of an improved set are listed in []. Set 1 has a “Greater Set”, which allows a super to either improve an existing Set 1 subset or gain a new one as a regular subset. In addition, when a “Greater Set 1 Power X” is listed, the effects of one power under the improved set is improved. The effects of a greater set are listed in {}. All saving throws for powers are 10+ ½ the super’s level+ his Cha modifier, and his caster level is his super level.

Set 1 Subsets (Mutation, Physiological Enhancement, Super Ability):
Mutation: Spellcraft becomes a class skill [+3 on all Spellcraft checks] {+2 on all Will saving throws}
Charm: charm person at will as spell- like ability [suggestion at will as spell- like ability, replaces charm person] {charm monster at will as spell- like ability, replaces suggestion}
Flight (self only all): levitate at will as spell- like ability [flight at will as spell- like ability, replaces levitate] {overland flight at will as spell- like ability}
Invisibility (self only all): hide from animals and hide from undead at will as spell- like ability [invisibility at will as spell- like ability, replaces hide from animals and hide from undead] {greater invisibility at will as spell- like ability, replaces invisibility}
Regeneration (self only all): stabilize at will as spell- like ability, can’t be used to harm undead [cure light wounds at will as spell- like ability, can’t be used to harm undead, replaces stabilize] {cure moderate wounds at will as spell- like ability, can’t be used to harm undead, replaces cure light wounds}
Super Speed (self only first 2): expeditious retreat at will as spell- like ability [haste at will as spell- like ability, replaces expeditious retreat] {slow on all others at will as spell- like ability}
Weather Control: gust of wind at will as spell- like ability [control winds at will as spell- like ability, replaces gust of wind] {control weather at will as spell- like ability, replaces control winds}
Physiological Enhancement: Endurance as a bonus feat [Diehard as a bonus feat] {+2 on all Fort saving throws}
Extra Limb: Gain additional prehensile limb [Gain additional prehensile limb, +4 to CMB] {Gain additional prehensile limb, +4 to CMD}
Hard Skin: +2 natural armor [+4 natural armor] {DR 5/ bludgeoning}
Natural Attack (other than wings): Gain any one natural attack [gain any one natural attack and improved natural attack] {gain any one natural attack and multiattack}
Super Healing: Fast healing 2 [fast healing 5, replaces fast healing 2] {fast healing 10, replaces fast healing 5}
Super Vision: See without impairment 120 feet in any lighting [see up to 60 feet and able to see through any material with a hardness of up to 9] {see up to 120 feet and able to see through any material with a hardness of up to 14}
Wings: Gain flight speed equal to your land speed (average) [double your flight speed, increase maneuverability to (good)] {triple your original flight speed, increase maneuverability to (perfect)}
Super Ability: Ignore the ability score prerequisites for 1 feat [Ignore the ability score prerequisites for 1 feat {Ignore the ability score prerequisites for 1
feat}
Super Charisma: +2 Charisma [+3 Charisma] {+4 Charisma}
Super Constitution: +2 Constitution [+3 Constitution] {+4 Constitution}
Super Dexterity: +2 Dexterity [+3 Dexterity] {+4 Dexterity}
Super Intelligence: +2 Intelligence [+3 Intelligence] {+4 Intelligence}
Super Strength: +2 Strength [+3 Strength] {+4 Strength}
Super Wisdom: +2 Wisdom [+3 Wisdom] {+4 Wisdom}

Set 2 Subsets (Arcanist, Battlehead, Blessed):
Arcanist: bonus metamagic feat [bonus metamagic feat]
Bardic: cast spells as a 1st level bard [cast spells as a 7th level bard]
Mystic: cast spells as a 1st level mystic artist [cast spells as a 7th level mystic artist]
Sorcery (no bloodline): cast spells as a 1st level sorcerer [cast spells as a 7th level sorcerer]
Wizardry (no school): cast spells as a 1st level wizard [cast spells as a 7th level wizard]
Battle-headed: bonus combat feat [bonus combat feat]
Improved Base Attack: your base attack bonus is for a super 3 levels higher than you [your super base attack bonus increases to 1/ HD of super]
Improved Proficiency: Proficient with medium armor, light and one- handed martial weapons [proficient with all armor, shields, and martial weapons]
Improved Style: gain bonus combat feat [gain bonus combat feat]
Super Punch: gain slam attack [add double your Strength to slam attacks]
Blessed: bonus metamagic feat [bonus metamagic feat]
Clerical (no domains): cast spells as 1st level cleric [cast spells as 7th level cleric]
Druidic (no domain): cast spells as a 1st level druid [cast spells as 7th level druid]
Lycantist: cast spells as a 4st level lycantist [cast spells as 10th level lycantist]
Paladin: cast spells as a 4st level paladin [cast spells as 10th level paladin]

Set 3 Subsets (Energy, Psychic, Space-time):
Energy: Cast protection from energy at will as spell- like ability
Elemental: cast wall of fire at will as spell- like ability, except any element (earth, fire, ice, or lightning) of your choosing during the casting
Explosive: cast fireball at will as spell- like ability, except it’s pure energy and there is no saving throw
Light: cast any illusion spell of up to 4th level of your choice (chosen when this power is) at will as a spell- like ability
Sound: cast shout at will as spell- like ability
Psychic: +4 on all Will saving throws
Empath: +4 on all Charisma- based skill checks, automatically know all emotions of all others within 120 foot radius spread of you
Precognition: cast divination at will as spell- like ability with 99% success
Telekinetic: cast telekinesis at will as spell- like ability
Telepathic: cast telepathic bond and detect thoughts at will as spell- like abilities
Space-time: bonus master craftsman feat and any 1 item creation feat
Matter Bender: cast fabricate at will as spell- like ability
Teleporter: cast teleport at will as spell- like ability
Time Controller: cast time stop at will as spell- like ability
Time Traveler: travel anywhere in time within 100 years per caster level in the past or future; while time traveling, your body doesn’t exist in your regular year; you can’t change the past with this power

At 1st level, a super gets 3d6X10 gp (average: 105 gp)

Commander Crong, Iconic Super
Crong was born to lead, and from birth, he intended to do so. Not only was he the only half- orc in his orc tribe in the Hold of Belkzen, but he also had incredible tusks, teeth, and nails, which made him truly fear- inspiring. He toppled various chiefs until he was in power, and declared himself the epitome of the orc race, now the commander of an army ready to enforce his will on his word. While in the Mindspin Mountains, he encountered another half- orc chief with his own army of inferior orcs, who challenged Crong to a fight. Knowing he would lose, he forced his greatest soldier forward to meet the challenge, during which both half- orc and orc perished, though Crong declared himself victorious, taking the other chief’s cape. However, Crong could not sleep for many nights after the battle, and, in an attempt to prove that he too could do just as well as his soldier, he left the tribe and fled west, where he was captured by a group of adventurers from Varisia. Crong saw them as weak, and made a very mocking image of them in his mind. But when the group’s paladin died in real honor, Crong became sincerely good, and he joined the rest of the party, who got killed in the very next battle. Crong left for Korvosa, where he is now the city’s hero of a sort, though he favors bloody adventures over publicity adventures. Crong kept his title of “commander” from when he was with the orcs, but has no intention of returning to them. He exhibits great bravery in battle, though quite a bit of cockiness, too. He can be nice at times but prefers to be rough. He is exceedingly tall and muscular, with his tusks being nearly half a foot long.
COMMANDER CRONG
HALF- ORC SUPER 1
Medium humanoid (human, orc)
AL CG
Init +2; Senses darkvision 60’; Perception +1
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 12, flat- footed 13 (+3 armor, +2 Dex)
hp 13 (1d8+5)
Fort +3, Ref +4, Will +3
Defensive Abilities orc ferocity
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee longspear +4 (1d8+6/X3)
Ranged heavy crossbow +2 (1d10/19-20)
Special Attacks set 1 (physiological enhancement)
TACTICS
During Combat Crong acts as the powerhouse, dishing out as much damage as he can before getting hurt with his longspear and crossbow. He targets strong fighters over weaker spellcasters, letting other allies deal with them. While he is unwilling to die for a cause, he knows that his orc ferocity is a good last resort tactic. He uses his skills to flank and demoralize his opponents, if he can.
STATISTICS
Str 18, Dex 14, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 10
Base Atk +0; CMB +4; CMD 16
Feats Endurance, Toughness
Skills Intimidate +6, Stealth +4
Languages Common, Orc
SQ orc blood
Gear backpack, bedroll, heavy crossbow with 10 bolts, rations (7), longspear, waterskin, studded leather armor, grappling hook, 4 sp, 11 gp

Lycantist
Lycanthropes are horrible animal- humanoid hybrids that haunt villages and children’s tales, preying and attacking the weak until they die or they too are afflicted with their horrible curse. Yet for many that rid themselves of lycanthropy have lingering effects; a desire to rejoin the world of the full moon. These individuals are lycantists, who get magical power that resonates in them from their former state of being. Many lycantists, however, study lycanthropes or just have a strong connection with them, including a biological lycanthrope parent. Every lycantist has an animal that he shares a bond with, too, typically the one he used to be able to transform into.
Role: Lycantists, with their spells and abilities, are the scouts and healers of the party, but also quite adept at fighting both lycanthropes and any who cross them when they are transformed into their linked animal. They come from a staggering amount of backgrounds, so many have other skills that can aid both themselves and their allies. Many of the lycantist’s abilities only work or work better depending on where the moon is in the sky, but they are equally fearsome during the day.
Hit die: d8
Alignment: any
Class Skills: Acrobatics (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Profession (Wis), Perception (Wis), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str)
Skill Ranks per Level: 2+ Int modifier
Armor and Weapon Proficiency: Lycantists are proficient with all simple weapons, light armor, medium armor, and shields (but not tower shields).
Base Attack Bonus: Medium (3/4 level)
Fort: Good ([1/2 level]+2)
Ref, Will: Poor (1/3 level)
Spell Progression: As paladin
Level/ Special
1/ Lycanthrope Power, Lycanthropic Link
2/ Moon Manipulation
3/
4/ Channel Lunar Energy
5/
6/ Remove/ Induce Lycanthropy
7/
8/ Read the Moon
9/
10/
11/
12/
13/
14/
15/
16/
17/
18/
19/
20/

Spells: Beginning at 4th level, lycantists can cast prepared divine spells, with their CLs being their lycantist level minus 3. All of their spells require a small stone and animal hair to cast (as foci). Their spellcasting ability is Wisdom.

Spell List:

1st- Cure Light Wounds, Dancing Lights, Faerie Fire, Flare, Light, Read Magic, Remove Fear
2nd- Blindness/ Deafness, Darkness, Darkvision, Inflict Light Wounds, Lesser Restoration, Remove Disease, Remove Paralysis
3rd- Cure Moderate Wounds, Daylight, Deeper Darkness, Flashburst*, Inflict Moderate Wounds, Moon Blade*, Remove Blindness/ Deafness
4th- Cure Serious Wounds, Harrowing, Inflict Serious Wounds, Moon Path*, Neutralize Poison, Remove Curse, Restoration

*New spell detailed here:
Flashburst
School Evocation [fire]; Level Lyc 3
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, DF
Range Long (400 + 40 ft. per level)
Area 20 foot radius burst
Duration instantaneous (see text)
Saving Throw Will partial; Spell Resistance Yes
Flashburst creates a dazzling flash of light, which dazzles all seeing creatures in the area. Those within 120 feet of the blast (but not in it) get a Will save to negate 2d8 rounds of temporary blindness.
Moon Blade
School Evocation; Level Lyc 3
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, DF
Range 0 ft.
Duration 1 minute per level (D)
Saving Throw none; Spell Resistance Yes
Moon Beam creates a 3 foot sword of moonlight which all casters are automatically proficient with. It may count as any form of sword for purposes of Weapon Focus and other related feats and abilities. Attacks with a moon blade are melee touch attacks, and your Strength modifier doesn't apply to damage rolls. It deals 1d8 points of damage, plus 1 per every 2 levels. Any creature that wants to use a spell or spell- like ability the round after he got hit by a moon blade must make a Caster Level check (13+ amount of damage dealt)
Moon Path
School Evocation [force]; Level Lyc 4
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, DF
Range Medium (100 + 10 ft. per level)
Duration 1 minute per level (D)
Saving Throw none (see text); Spell Resistance no
Moon Path creates an unshakable bridge of force from one point in the range to any other point, as far as 15 ft. per level long, and 3 to 20 feet wide, depending on what you decide when you cast this spell. While any creature is on the path, he gains the benefits of Remove Fear and Darkvision. The path can be dispelled, but no physical force or gaze attack can bypass it. It must be straight, continuous, and unbroken.

Lycanthrope Power: At 1st level, a lycantist may imitate one of the following five lycanthrope powers: +2 natural armor, DR 5/ silver, any one natural attack, +2 Strength, or +2 Constitution. For natural attacks, choose any animal which the lycantist could turn into if he were a lycanthrope. This choice must be made at 1st level, and may not be changed. A lycantist gets another power at 3rd level, 11th level, and 17th level.

Lycanthropic Link: This ability functions as a ranger’s favored enemy ability, except it is only usable on lycanthropes, and the bonus to the skills, attack, and damage is 1 plus 1 for every 5 levels the lycantist has of lycantist.

Moon Manipulation: When the moon is out (late afternoon to early morning, relatively clear skies), a lycantist of 2nd level or higher can change how much moonlight shows on her surroundings. This works similarly to a mystic artist’s light power mystic code, except it only works during the above conditions, it works as far as the lycantist would be able to see given most favorable lighting, and it is usable 1/day at 2nd level, plus one additional time 9th and 14th level.

Channel Lunar Energy: At 4th level, a lycantist gains the ability to channel the energy of the moon as a standard action in one of two ways: rocky wrath, which deals damage to non- lycanthropes and heals lycanthropes, or man in the moon, which heals non- lycanthropes and deals damage to lycanthropes. Once this choice is made, it cannot be reversed. At 4th level, this ability deals/ heals 1d6 points of damage, plus 1d6 for every 3 levels above that. Usable 3+ your Wisdom modifier times per day, this ability works in a 20 foot radius spread, centered on you. A Will saving throw equal to 10+ the moon’s phase number (see below) + your Wisdom modifier can negate the effect, though one may voluntarily not take this save.
During a new moon, the phase number is 1.
During waxing and waning crescents, the phase number is 3.
During the first and last quarters, the phase number is 5.
During waxing and waning gibbous, the phase number is 7.
During the full moon, the phase number is 9.

Remove/ Induce Lycanthropy: Once per day for every 6 levels of lycantist, a lycantist may remove (if man in the moon, see above) or afflict (if rocky wrath, see above) lycanthropy upon any one creature of his choice in his lunar energy circle. Should remove lycanthropy be used on a non- lycanthrope, the subject is immune from contracting lycanthropy. Should induce lycanthropy be used on a lycanthrope, he turns into his animal or hybrid form, depending on what the lycantist decides. A Will saving throw equal to the saving throw for Channel Lunar Energy (see above) may be taken to negate all effects of remove/ induce lycanthropy; this save is not the same one as for channel lunar energy.

Read the Moon: Once per night, when preparing his spells at night, a lycantist of 8th level or higher may gaze up into the moon and read the future using astrology. The CL for all of these is equal to the lycantist’s lycantist level.
At 8th level, this functions as an augury spell.
At 12th level, this functions as either an augury or a divination spell, depending on the lycantist’s choice while reading the moon.
At 16th level, this functions as either a commune, an augury, or a divination spell depending on the lycantist’s choice while reading the moon.
At 20th level, this functions as either a greater scrying, a commune, an augury, or a divination spell depending on the lycantist’s choice while reading the moon.

At 1st level, a lycantist gets 3d6X10 gp (average: 105 gp)

Morstra, Iconic Lycantist
Even though Morstra was born in the Five Kings Mountains, she never called it home. She was lost along the southern border when her parents were killed by goblins, and was found and taken in by a worker of Andoran’s Lumber Consortium, where she lived and was forced to work, though she simply saw it as a condition of her being taken in as a foster child, teaching her a hard work ethic and giving her a strong and able body. A year ago, however, there was an attack by dire werewolves, which wasn’t unusual, but Morstra got bitten and afflicted. Due to the fact that it was the night of the full moon, she immediately transformed and killed one of her companions before she was knocked unconscious and left for dead by some mercenaries working for the Consortium. When she woke up the next morning, though she forgot all of the events of the night after she got bitten, she remembered being bitten, and, seeing the dead body of her companion, realized that she was a lycanthrope. She ran away to a local church of Iomedae, who would often help those in their vicinity, where she was cured and offered a place to live if she would convert to Iomedae, which Morstra did, seeing that she could not return to the Consortium. One day, the Consortium asked for help fighting against monsters, and Morstra was asked to accompany other members of the church. While the monsters had fled by the time the church got there, Morstra still investigated and found the dead body of her companion, with distinctive bite marks. From that day on, she’d have dreams when the moon was out about werewolves, becoming a dire wolf, and the urge to murder everything in her sight. The dreams became more frequent and more intense, to the point that she once woke up and found herself hovering over a sleeping cleric with her jaw wide open over his chest. After examining herself, she found that she had grown teeth of a dire wolf, and she feared that her affliction may not have been entirely cured. She ran off into the woods for two years until she learned how to control her impulses and gain mastery over her newfound powers, but was reluctant to rejoin the church or anyone else, fearing their death. Since then, she has traveled Andoran and befriended others, though not very easily. She still follows Iomedae, but not with others and hardly ever in public. She is ordered, strict, and meticulous about everything, with piercing black eyes. She stands at four feet tall, has brown, disheveled hair with streaks of gray, even though she is only 45 years old.
MORSTRA
DWARF LYCANTIST 1
Medium humanoid (dwarf)
AL LN
Init +4; Senses darkvision 60’; Perception +3 (+5 to notice unusual stonework)
DEFENSE
AC 16, touch 10, flat- footed 16 (+4 armor, +2 shield)
hp 12 (1d8+4)
Fort +5, Ref +0, Will +3; +2 v. poison, spells, spell- like abilities
Defensive Abilities defensive training (+4 dodge v. giants)
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft.
Melee bite +2 (1d8+3 plus trip)
Ranged sling +0 (1d4+2)
Special Attacks lycanthrope power (natural attack: bite [dire wolf]), lycanthropic link +1, +1 attack rolls v. goblinoids and orcs
TACTICS
Before Combat Morstra slowly and stealthily moves ahead of her allies, using her skills and senses to detect and deal with trouble that may arise before a battle.
During Combat Morstra attacks in melee when above 4 hit points with her bite, typically targeting lycanthropes, spellcasters, and small creatures. She makes trip attacks against those who she believes will be more susceptible to it. If she must retreat, she uses her sling.
STATISTICS
Str 15, Dex 10, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 8
Base Atk +0; CMB +2; CMD 12 (16 v. bull rush and trip)
Feats Improved Initiative
Skills Appraise +1 (+3 non- magic metals or gemstones), Climb +1, Stealth -1, Survival +7
Languages Common, Dwarf, Goblin
SQ weapon familiarity
Combat Gear potion of cure light wounds; Other Gear backpack, bedroll, sling with 10 bullets, rations (7), acid, waterskin, hide armor, heavy wooden shield, 50 foot silk rope, 3 sp, 5 gp

Terrorstrike
Fear has played a constant role in storytelling and real murder, and terrorstrikes know this, and are masters of exploiting others’ fears as well as combat and murder. While they can get scared, too, they are much more often the ones who scare. So great are the terrorstrike’s abilities that no terrorstrike can be good, knowing the psychological harm they do, even if it is to those they oppose.
Role: Terrorstrikes take on the role of villain more often than they do of hero, and typically need master of their terrain to make full use of their abilities. That being said, terrorstrikes are invaluable to all parties of good- aligned adventurers, both as fighters and as lone rangers going ahead of the party where their expertise can be better used.
Hit die: d10
Alignment: any non- good
Class Skills: Bluff (Cha), Craft (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive, Sleight of Hand (Dex), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis)
Skill Ranks per Level: 2+ Int modifier
Armor and Weapon Proficiency: Terrorstrikes are proficient with all simple weapons, martial weapons, and light armor.
Base Attack Bonus: High (level)
Fort, Ref: Poor (1/3 level)
Will: Good ([1/2 level]+2)
Level/ Special
1/ Jump Scare, Spell- like Abilities
2/ Smell Fear
3/ Scared Stupid
4/ Strike of Fear
5/ Sow Terror
6/
7/
8/
9/ Mark Fear
10/
11/
12/
13/
14/
15/
16/
17/
18/
19/
20/ Heart Attack

Jump Scare: At 1st level, a terrorstrike can perform a jump scare, which inspires fear in its target. A single jump scare can only have one target. To perform a jump scare, a terrorstrike must first be seen where the target has not seen him, and then make a successful Intimidate check against him. Doing so makes him shaken for 1 minute per level of terrorstrike. At higher levels, this has an increased effect.
At 5th level, it makes the target cowering.
At 10th level, it makes the target stunned.
At 15th level, it makes the target frightened.
At 20th level, it makes the target panicked.

Spell- like Abilities: All of these are usable 1/day, with a CL equal to the terrorstrike’s level. All DCs are equal to 10+ the spell level+ his Charisma modifier.
At 1st level, he can cast invisibility, but only on himself and with a duration of 1 round/ level or until dispelled. At 8th level, this is replaced with regular invisibility.
At 7th level, he can also cast cause fear.
At 13th level, he can also cast fear.
At 14th level, he can also cast greater invisibility, but only on himself and with a duration of 1 round/ level or until dispelled. At 19th level, this is replaced with regular greater invisibility.
At 17th level, he can also cast symbol of fear.

Smell Fear: Starting at 2nd level, a terrorstrike can smell fear up to 120 feet away in any direction. A terrorstrike can pinpoint the exact location of anyone within the range that is panicked.
At 6th level, he can also smell all frightened creatures.
At 10th level, he can also smell all stunned creatures.
At 14th level, he can also smell all cowering creatures.
At 18th level, he can also smell all shaken creatures.

Scared Stupid: At 3rd level, when a terrorstrike causes another creature to be shaken, cowering, stunned, frightened, or panicked, he can cause them to lose their sense of reasoning and deal them 1d4 points of Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma bonus, though a successful Will saving throw (10+ ½ his terrorstrike level+ his Charisma bonus) halves the effect. This is usable 1/day at 3rd level, plus one additional time for every 4 terrorstrike levels he gains after.

Strike of Fear: At 4th level, when a terrorstrike successfully hits a foe, he may cause them to become 1 step more frightened (none, shaken, cowering, stunned, frightened, panicked). This ability is usable 1/day at 4th level, plus one additional time for every 4 terrorstrike levels he gains after.

Sow Terror: When a terrorstrike of at least 5th level wins a Stealth check by at least 5, he may sow terror as a standard action, and create some small noise or shadow to make it appear to a single target that no one is there, but their subconscious toys with the idea that there is something lurking in the darkness. This causes the target to become one step more frightened (see above) until the terrorstrike stops concentrating plus 1d3 rounds.

Mark Fear: When a terrorstrike of at least 9th level attacks any target who is shaken, cowering, stunned, frightened, or panicked, he gains a +2 to all attack rolls against that target. At 13th level this improves to +4, and at 17th it improves to +6.

Heart Attack: At 20th level, when a terrorstrike would cause any creature to become one or more steps frightened than panicked, that creature must succeed at a Fort saving throw (10+ ½ the terrorstrike’s level+ his Charisma modifier) or die. Once this ability is used, it can’t be used on the same creature again for the next 24 hours.

At 1st level, a terrorstrike gets 4d6X10 gp (average: 140 gp)

Talathel, Iconic Terrorstrike
All his life, Talathel has walked along Lake Encarthan, a lake which many fear; but most who have met Talathel and lived know to fear him more than the Lake. Born and raised as a warrior in a small community of elves in northwestern Kyonin, Talathel was abducted by priests of Razmiran at the young age of 75, where he was trained to be a personal assassin for a Priest of the Fifteenth Step near Pilgrimage, where he developed a meticulous style for inspiring fear in his enemies. He was very unhappy with the iron grip with which Razmir and the priests ruled the kingdom, and how all his targets were already afraid of him before he came or gave any indication that he was coming. Eventually, his freedom- friendly ideologies forced him to leave the kingdom and head north into Ustalav, where he used fear to frighten those who preyed on others in the same way, assuming there was coin involved or the enemy in question was particularly evil or oppressive. He makes friends easily despite his powers and aptitudes, but all his attempts at persuasion quickly turn to interrogation and fear tactics. He is short for an elf, with long, perfectly straight, blond hair, which was dyed black during his time in Razmiran and has had a hard time reverting to its normal hue.
TALATHEL
ELF TERRORSTRIKE 1
Medium humanoid (elf)
AL CN
Init +3; Senses low- light vision; Perception +2
DEFENSE
AC 15, touch 13, flat- footed 12 (+2 armor, +3 Dex)
hp 12 (1d10+2)
Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +2; +2 v. enchantments
Immune sleep
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee scimitar +2 (1d6+1/18-20)
Ranged longbow +5 (1d8/X3)
Special Attacks jump scare (1 minute)
Terrorstrike Spell- like Abilities (CL 1st)
1/day- invisibility (self only, 1 round)
TACTICS
Before Combat Talathel moves into a hiding position and knocks his bow, using invisibility only as a last resort.
During Combat Talathel makes a jump scare as quietly as possible, immediately attacking with his longbow until his target falls, moving on to another target if possible, and continues to fire his bow until his enemies are dead or until the odds become stacked against him.
STATISTICS
Str 13, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 15
Base Atk +1; CMB +2; CMD 15
Feats Weapon Focus (longbow)
Skills Disable Device +7, Intimidate +6, Stealth +7
Languages Common, Elf, Sylvan
SQ elven magic
Gear backpack, bedroll, longbow with 20 arrows, rations (7), waterskin, leather armor, thieves’ tools, scimitar, 4 sp, 2 gp

Yesterday, my 12-year-old son GMed for the first time, and he did a great job of it!

That's the TL;DR version of the story. The full version I wanted to write is loaded with side-points, but that's the main thing I wanted to convey.

Some of you may remember my boasting of my son's role-playing exploits. After my other players quit, I started my son - 4 years old at the time - playing BECMI. I mentioned it in this thread. As usual when I play an RPG one-on-one, I let the player create and play a couple of PCs, while I played a couple of "GMPCs" to make a full party.

The story continued with...

My 6-year-old played Pathfinder

...and...

My Dad played Pathfinder

In that last thread, I mentioned that I didn't believe my father had much love for the game, and that the real reason he played was that he wanted to spend quality time with his grandson.

Sometimes, my son would dream of GMing, and would start reading a module or start designing his own adventure. But he would soon lose interest.

In this thread...

Anyone still playing D&D 3.0?

...I related that I decided to switch back to D&D 3.0, and started a 3.0 campaign, set in Varisia, again with my father and my son as players. I mentioned the following:

The grass is often greener on the other side, and I often feel conscious of the relative merits of 3.5 and PF, but all in all, I still feel I like 3.0 the best. My son made it clear he prefers Pathfinder, and he once made arguments about why we should switch back to it by pointing out some of its merits at some length. I responded "I know that PF has some advantages, but I'm sticking with 3.0." He wasn't terribly happy with me for a while after that, but we continued playing all the same.

Thinking back on that conversation now, I think I also said something like "Yes, PFRPG has its advantages, and if you ever run a Pathfinder campaign, I'll be happy to play in it."

Another aspect of that campaign I mentioned at the time was my father's part in it. With my son and me, my father experienced (hah!) levels 1 through 10. Considering his limited enthusiasm for the game, I would have considered it a great achievement if my father had played a third as much as he had.

Since I last posted in that thread, we finished Chadranther's Bane, and I prepared the beginning of another adventure... which may never get played. My father is moving away, so it's just me and my son again. Furthermore, my son - 12 years old by now - was getting bored with the Varisian campaign. And he still felt no interest in reading modules. So he started writing up his own first-level PFRPG adventure, set in Cheliax, and ran his first session yesterday.

And what a job he did of it! He wrote up sophisticated descriptions which surprised me. And he kept the action moving, and he had to improvise when I didn't cooperate with being railroaded. He performed admirably throughout.

It was quite an experience for me in other ways too. I'm not accustomed to playing without GMing. Oh, I've played in PBPs. I've played computer RPGs. Sometimes - particularly with my children when they were very young - we would free-form role play, with a GM telling stories while the player made choices for one of the characters... but with no rulebooks, stat blocks, maps, or dice. But as for actual, face-to-face, table-top RPGs with a real system, I didn't play without GMing in over 30 years, until yesterday! Just sitting on the wrong side of the GM screen seemed a novelty!

This campaign marks another first as well. Until now, I've never played nor created a monk character. (As a GM, I sometimes statted out a monster with a level or four [or eight] of monk, but always as an adversary for the party to fight, and never a "pure" monk without monster HDs. I once grabbed stats for a monk from the NPC Codex, but the PCs never encountered that character.) Monks just didn't appeal to me. But lately, after seeing the Karate Kid movies, I've been dreaming of playing a PC who's part Daniel LaRusso, part Tanis Half-Elven. Now I'm doing it! (I got lucky and rolled very high ability scores. Now if I could only get high attack rolls! I didn't made a decent attack roll - and consequently never scored a hit - throughout the whole first session! Well, at least I TOOK a lot of hits, thus protecting other party-members from getting wounded themselves.)

And as far as I can tell, my son has every intention of continuing the adventure next week. The saga continues...

I have a question about ranged touch attacks, because I wonder what can be done when the target WANTS to be hit.

I ask because I'm planning to play a first-level sorcerer with the Celestial bloodline, which provides a power called Heavenly Fire, letting her unleash a ray as a ranged touch attack. It does damage to evil creatures, but it heals good creatures. I may want to stand back - away from combat - and fire my ray at other party-members, who might be engaged in melee. I assume that I would need to make a ranged touch attack for that as well. My question is whether that party-member can do something to make it easier to get hit, like dropping his Dex modifier to -5 for that one attack, or something.

That line of thinking led me to wonder about other, similar situations. For instance, suppose a cleric wants to fire a wand of Cure Light Wounds at a distant party-member. I assume that would require a ranged touch attack as well.

I searched this site for information on the topic, and didn't find anything. Has it been discussed?

Here's a link to the CNN article.

I'll confess that the only Cleary books I read were the "Klickitat Street" books - that is to say the ones with Henry Huggins, his dog Ribsy, his friend Beezus, and of course, Beezus' unforgettable little sister, Ramona. However, those books hold an honored place in my reading experience - both in my childhood and in my adulthood. A lot of my friends and relatives enjoyed those books, and I knew a couple of kids who liked the "Mouse and the Motorcycle" books as well.

Here's how I propose to celebrate Cleary's centennial: Drop Everything And Read!

And whatever you read, don't think about the theme. Just read and enjoy it.

Okay, I just made a Grade-A fool of myself. Maybe I could blame Paizo and DriveThruRPG for spoiling me with nice things? No, I guess I can't.

I wanted to buy a book in digital form, so I bought the e-book in Nook format from Barnes and Noble's site. It was my first time doing so. I don't have a Nook device, but I figured that I would download it in some format, and with some web searching, I could find some way to convert it to PDF. Or if I couldn't do that, I could download some program onto my PC that would let me view the file.

Oops. Wrong and wrong. It looks like Barnes and Noble keeps the book on their own greedy server. I get nothing for my money except the right to view their copy, I guess. And as for getting a program to view the thing, apparently there no longer is one available for Windows 7. I would need 8, and I have no intention of upgrading.

I sent a message to Barnes and Noble, asking for help, but I doubt I'll get any reply, let alone a helpful one. I should have done my homework first, curse me!

So my first question is: Does anyone know a way I can view the thing without shelling out money for a Nook? I doubt it, so I'll move onto my second question.

Once I resign myself to having thrown away $3.99, I'll wonder: to which site should I turn next? The book doesn't seem to be available for Amazon Kindle (which, I suspect, would give me the same problems as Nook format anyway,) but I think I see it in two other places: lulu.com and iTunes.

It looks like Lulu lets you download in one of two formats: Epub or - Hallelujah! - PDF!!! Can anyone confirm for me that this works? Do you know anyone who buys books this way?

If not, what about iTunes? When buying e-books from Apple, does it give you an actual file for your money? Can you read the book on a PC with Windows 7?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.

Yes, Herb Alpert turns 80 today, a fact that gives me the perfect excuse to pay tribute to this man so remarkable in so many ways.

(First, I'll say a brief word about myself, so you can just skip this paragraph. I've been a fan of this guy's music since before I was old enough to pronounce his name. I listened to a dozen or so of his albums hundreds of times. After about 20 years, I got tired of them and stopped listening, but I still mentioned him now and then. Last year, I got hooked again. I mentioned it at the time. Since then, I listened to those 13 albums dozens of times each, and bought another.)

So what can I say about Herb Alpert? First of all, no, he isn't Mexican, nor Hispanic. (In fact, his band, the Tijuana Brass, had no Mexicans at all.) He came from a Jewish family in California. He picked up the trumpet at age 8. After attending college, serving in the U.S. Army, and dabbling with acting, he decided to pursue a career in music. After working in the industry for a few years, co-writing some songs (such as Sam Cooke's Wonderful World) Alpert decided to do his own thing.

But... what SORT of thing? He didn't know, at first. Alpert and his friend Jerry Moss created their own record company, A&M Records, and Alpert started working on a song, called "Twinkle Star," written by another friend, Sol Lake, but his direction still seemed uncertain...

...until he happened to attend a bullfight in Tijuana, Mexico, where a mariachi band introduced each new event with a rousing fanfare that made the crowd go wild. Alpert then knew he wanted to make Mexican-style music (or rather, what he PERCEIVED as Mexican style at the time. 20 years later, another trip to Mexico would teach him more about authentic Central American musical styles, but I'll get to that later in this history.)

So he changed "Twinkle Star" and called the result The Lonely Bull which became a Top 10 hit in 1962.

And the legend began.

Alpert then went on to create a whole record in the same "Mexican" style, using the band name "Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass". (Actually, "the Tijuana Brass" didn't exist yet. Alpert hired backup musicians on an irregular basis only, at this point. Alpert himself played all the trumpet parts, overdubbing whenever necessary.) Some of his songs were original, written by his friends. Others were covers of popular songs of the time, or of older tunes. After that album, he made another Tijuana Brass record in 1963. Starting with his third album in 1964, Alpert achieved a more polished, professional sound.

The fourth record, Whipped Cream & Other Delights (1965) was a smash hit, selling over 6 million copies in the U.S. Even today, I sometimes find references to the cover picture.

A growing demand for live concerts compelled Alpert to hire musicians to form the REAL Tijuana Brass (or TJB, for short). The concerts were great successes, attracting audiences of people with a surprising variety of age. And at the same time, Alpert made more #1 albums, like !!Going Places!! (1965) Even today, many people know Spanish Flea and can't think of the show "The Dating Game" without remembering the song.

In 1966, the next album, What Now My Love, also hit #1. After the release of another album, S. R. O. the Guinness Book of World Records recognized that Alpert set a new record by placing five albums simultaneously in the Top 20 on the Billboard Pop Album chart, an accomplishment that has never been repeated. Alpert sold 13.7 million albums in 1966, making him the top-selling artist of the year. In 1967, his next record, ...Sounds Like... also hit #1, and although the ninth album "only" reached #4, Alpert made it back to #1 with The Beat of the Brass in 1968.

In 1969, though, Alpert grew tired of the style. He released a couple of lifeless, unsuccessful albums and disbanded the TJB.

In fact, Alpert needed a break from performing altogether for a while. His schedule of recording and touring proved too busy for him, and caused him stress. What's more, his lip physically failed him, and he couldn't play the trumpet without stuttering the notes. Needing a new creative outlet, Alpert took up abstract expressionist painting. He painted almost every day for the next 20 years, a fact that may seem insignificant at this point. But keep reading.

To be sure, Alpert was still running a successful record company, signing with many musicians and making them famous. For instance, it was Alpert who gave the Carpenters their first break in music. He also first brought the song Close To You to their attention, which catapulted them into fame. Over the years during which Alpert and Moss owned A&M Records, its recording roster would come to include Burt Bacharach, Cat Stevens, Peter Frampton, Cheech and Chong, Bryan Adams, the Police, Styx, Supertramp, Janet Jackson, and many others.

But what about Alpert's own music? For years and years after returning to the trumpet, he made albums in different styles, without achieving the popularity of his Tijuana Brass years. (In the mid-1970s, Alpert even recorded a couple of albums under the name "Herb Alpert and the T.J.B.", and even formed a new band of that name with some of the same performers in the original TJB to tour behind those albums, but didn't meet with the same level of success.) The height of this has-been's career as a musician was obviously past, right?

Wrong!

In 1979, he tried a more laidback sound, mixing modern pop with jazz, funk, and dance, resulting in his biggest success: Rise. He went on to make an entire album in that style, which sold over 3 million copies.

You'd think he would continue imitating that style to capitalize on its success, but he was rich enough to afford the luxury of doing what he WANTED to do. His next album was only somewhat like "Rise", and he continued to experiment with different styles.

In 1982, he wanted to commemorate the 20th anniversary of "The Lonely Bull", so he traveled to Mexico, where he learned some surprising things about Latin-American music. (I told you I'd get to it!) The result was the album Fandango. One single from that album, Route 101, hit the top 40.

He went on to make many more records, such as 1984's Bullish. That album bore the name "Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass". Again, he re-formed the Tijuana Brass with some of the same performers, which went on a concert tour to support that album.

In 1988, Alpert and his wife Lani Hall started the Herb Alpert Foundation, which would go on to give away more than $100 million promoting education in the arts.

In 1989, Alpert and Moss sold A&M Records to PolyGram for $500 million, which Alpert and Moss split 50-50.

I'd say he was doing passably well, wouldn't you?

As a musician, however, he continued making records. Meanwhile, Alpert was surprised to get numerous offers to buy his paintings. In 1989, he held the first exhibition of his work. In 1990, he got started in the art of sculpting. Around the turn of the century, he decided to take a break from recording and performing music, and concentrate instead on the visual arts. He's had many gallery shows. His sculptures go for 2 to 3 hundred thousand dollars.

His music still sold, however. In 2005, he sold the rights to his most popular albums to a company called "Shout! Factory" which continues to sell those CDs to this day. He also assembled some old Tijuana Brass recordings dating from 1962 to 1974, finishing and editing them, and also remixing and improving a few of his previously released songs. Shout! Factory compiled them into an album called Lost Treasures which I would recommend to any Tijuana Brass fan.

In 2009, Alpert, with his wife Lani, went back to making new records and going on concert tours.

And he still supports education. For instance, in April of 2010, the Harlem School of the Arts shut down for three weeks due to financial difficulty. 3000 miles away, Alpert read about it in the newspaper, and just like that, he wrote out a check for half a million dollars to keep the school open. In 2012, the Herb Alpert Foundation granted over $5 million to the school.

And he still hasn't put down the trumpet. Herb Alpert's latest album came out in September of 2014 and hit the Billboard chart on release. His concert tour is still going on.

What can I say about his music? I can seldom explain why I like a certain song, musician, band, or type of music. Well, I left links to plenty of songs for you to sample, so you can judge for yourself. All I can think to say is one word:

Olé!

I should explain that I'm very ignorant about the web. I sometimes get "You've never heard of such-and-such-dot-com?!? Where have you been hiding?" So don't overlook an obvious answer.

My question is like this. If someone wanted to upload a video to the web, to share with the public, the first obvious choice of site would be YouTube. To upload pictures, my first thought might be Shutterfly or Photobucket (although there may be other, more popular sites for that purpose, for all I know).

But what if I have just sound files, with no video, in .wma format, that I want to make accessible to the web-browsing public, and I don't want to spend any money to do it?

First of all, I wonder if I should first convert my wma's into some other format, such as mp3. I mean, I don't even know if Apple users or mobile-device users can play wma's. I'm reluctant to download a program unnecessarily (after my last PC got hit with a zillion viruses) but is that what someone generally does in this situation? And if so, what program would you suggest, and where can I safely download it for free?

(For that matter, if I DO download a program, should I download one that will let me record in another format in the first place? Back in the 1990s, my PC came with a decent program that let you edit a sound file, and perform normal Windows commands, e.g. New, Open, Edit, etc. The Sound Recorder program I see now can do nothing but Start Recording and Stop Recording!)

And then there's my main question of what site to use. I've never uploaded anything to YouTube before, so I don't know what that's like. Is there an option to upload a .wma file (or at least an .mp3 file, or something) and just include a picture in place of a video? Obviously, I see lots of "videos" with only one picture, and I don't know how people go about doing that.

Or should I use a different site meant just for sounds? I searched with Google, and found lots of sites, but I don't know which ones are safe or trustworthy.

Or should I create an .html page with a link to the .wma (or .mp3, or whatever) and find a good free web hosting service? And if so, what site(s) would you recommend?

Or is there a better answer than any of these?

Hmm... I see references to the barrier wall, Varisia, Isger, the Darklands, Osirion, Lake Encarthan, Vudra, the Mwangi Expanse...

Huh. I see no mention of the kingdom of Geb. That was the first place I thought of when I heard about this book. That's odd.

Well, at least there's Eox.

Some of you may remember the story of how my 6-year-old played Pathfinder. Well, he hasn't stopped yet. Sometimes, when my father came for a visit, my son had him read a few parts of the Core Rulebook, and got him interested. So when we decided to start a new campaign, we invited my father to join us. He started playing a halfling bard, and when that character died in the final battle of the first adventure, he decided he'd be happier with a human fighter, whom he's played ever since.

I wanted to run a couple of old D&D modules in this campaign, but in an effort to make this look as Paizo-ish as possible, I got a PFRPG GM's screen. I already had a couple of Bestiary Boxes for monsters, but the Beginner Box gave only a few choices for PC figures. My father repeatedly complained about that. He kept saying "When will you get more pawns, already?" So when his halfling character died, I got an NPC Codex Box in time to give him a big selection for his fighter character. When I told him that, he looked awkward, and muttered "Oh, you didn't have to get that", and without even LOOKING in the NPC Codex Box, just chose the Valeros pawn from the Beginner Box. Go figger.

But he's been having fun and doing well in this campaign, for the most part. He participates, and he role-plays in character at some of the times when I least expect it.

My "default" campaign world is Golarion, but this time around, I surprised my son by announcing that this campaign would be set in the Grand Duchy of Karameikos, for a reason I kept secret at first.

Long ago, I had learned the hard way to start beginning players not with an ambitious, long-term campaign, but with a simple dungeon crawl. So I ran "King's Festival". Then I ran "The Sunless Citadel" just to level the characters up before I got to the big one.

Well, I don't mean to pooh-pooh "The Sunless Citadel". It IS my all-time favorite introductory module, so I felt like I was really accomplishing something by writing up a PFRPG conversion. I don't run D&D modules in PFRPG "on the fly". And for something as special as "Sunless", I didn't want to take a lot of shortcuts. I statted up all the NPCs, staying as true to the original stat blocks, and to PFRPG, as I could. For other adventures, I might have just grabbed some handy stat blocks from the NPC Codex, or something, but I just couldn't bear to treat "Sunless" so dismissively. I even statted up Erky Timbers! (Well, I did copy the gear from the NPC Codex to get Sharwyn's treasure.)

But when the party finished "Sunless", I felt it was ready for the adventure I REALLY wanted to run. I had been waiting for five years for this moment. I had chosen the setting because of this module. Now I could finally run "Night's Dark Terror".

And I could run it the way I wanted to. Upon seeing the...

See, that's the nifty thing about starting at first level. One of my earlier players started his first campaign at 5th level, and didn't realize what he had until he had to start his next D&D Campaign at level 1. Now my father understood how the challenges of a Pathfinder adventure could be deadly to ordinary mortals. Now he could truly appreciate that his PC and his party weren't just run-of-the-mill people, but HEROES!

Anyway, we've been sticking with the campaign for a long time now. We're now on 5th level, and we just entered...

It's no biggie, but on the home page, the "Paizo Blog" and "Web Fiction" links (in the tabs) don't work today.

I just discovered the PRD's version of the appendix of Ultimate Equipment, and it looks to me like the gem tables aren't clearly labeled.

When looking at the treasure generator tables, they list things like "two grade 1 gemstones, grade 2 gemstone" and the like. But the random gem tables are only labeled "Least Semi-Precious Gem (Craft DC 10)", "Lesser Semi-Precious Gem (Craft DC 12)", etc, with no explanation of what the grades are.

Table 7-50 in the book makes it clear that "Grade 1" means "Least Semi-Precious Stones (Craft DC 10)", "Grade 2" means "Lesser Semi-Precious Stones (Craft DC 12)", and so on. If I didn't have the book, I might have guessed that's the case. But some people might not figure that out. Is this a mistake? Or am I missing something?

When I'm looking at a user's profile and hit the "Favorites" tab, the posts aren't sorted properly. Am I wrong in thinking that they were sorted before?

(If this is a bug, I guess this isn't likely to be a high priority, but I do wonder if I could get some confirmation about this.)

Hi. I was wondering about a good source (perhaps by a 3rd-party publisher) for an alternate magic-type class, that meets certain criteria.

First of all, I want it to be easy for a player to learn, and easy to figure out how to use it effectively. I don't want to have to juggle dozens of combinations of options to figure out an effective one. Back in 2009, I looked through the Advanced Player's Guide playtest, and found it to be too... well, advanced.

My second criterion might not seem to make much sense, because it will sound like I'm asking for an alternate RACE, rather than class.

You see, back in the days of D&D 3.X, I was excited by the idea of Level Adjustment. For the price of four class levels, for instance, you could play a pixie, able to fly, and stay invisible while attacking. The "Savage Species" book really excited me, as I imagined slowly gaining the powers of, say, an astral deva, a hound archon, or a djinni.

I've recently come to accept that trading hit dice for powers is a thing of the past, and I feel that the extra powers I would want from Savage Species are too powerful, and therefore unbalancing, with the hit dice. Going back to the pixie example, maybe greater invisibility - usable for an indefinite number of times per day and an indefinite period - is too powerful to make a balanced PC, and the same goes for the indefinite number of times a pixie can use the Special Arrows ability. (Sorry, zerzix. I don't mean any offense. I know you worked very hard on that conversion. But those conversions do look rather overpowered, now that we don't give up hit dice for those powers. And even WITH giving up hit dice, if the professionals at Paizo feel that such creatures are too powerful, who am I to argue?)

But it also seems to me that getting nifty, potent powers is too much for just the "race" element to handle. The alternate race books I've seen don't seem like fun. I'll admit to one huge exception: the Aellar and Kestrels from "Races of Wind and Wing" seem quite exciting. (The Advanced Race Guide is on my wishlist, by the way, but its high price makes other items rise above it on that list.) But it seems to me that most of a PC's great powers come not from RACE, but from CLASS as they level up. Therefore, if, mechanically, a class could give powers that, in the game world, actually stem from race, that would be neat.

In a way, I'm describing the Sorcerer class, as different bloodlines can give you extraordinary, spell-like, and supernatural powers as you level up. But what if a class could take that idea even further? After all, most of a sorcerer's useful powers come from his spells. What if a class got rid of spells altogether, and gave you ONLY powers? Then you could use lots of very powerful powers without having to cast any spells.

So, for instance, instead of learning the Sleep spell and the Greater Invisibility spell, you gained those as supernatural powers at certain levels because you're some fey creature. Instead of praying to a deity for the power of Holy Smite and the Cure Light Wounds spell, you get them as spell-like abilities because you're some kind of celestial being. (A "fallen angel", perhaps, who slowly regains his powers on the path to redemption?) Instead of casting the Gaseous Form spell, you get it as an ability, and at some level, you'll get, say, the Whirlwind power, because you're some form of Genie. If the Bestiary monsters are too difficult to balance as PCs, then maybe some variation of those monsters, with somewhat different powers, could be designed (for instance, by limiting the number of times per day those powers may be used, or by limiting those powers in other ways). I'm not saying that I want those particular powers, by the way. I'm just using them as examples.

If my second criterion is too outrageous, then maybe I'll settle for something else. Back when I was first getting into 3.0, I was really excited to see a 3.0 conversion of Al-Qadim, particularly the Sha'ir and Hakima classes. I'm not sure why those classes impressed me so much when so many other alternative spellcasters didn't. Maybe it's because I was familiar with the work of fiction on which they were based. (Maybe Archetypes will suffice, once I figure out what the heck archetypes are.) Or maybe those two classes impressed me because they did away with old restrictions by replacing them with new ones. (For instance, a Sha'ir can cast an indefinite number of spells per day, but the catch is that it takes a long time for a Sha'ir's gen familiar to retrieve a spell, which it must do before the Sha'ir can cast it.)

I see lots of alternative magic-using classes for Pathfinder RPG (particularly by Super Genius Games). Would any of those fit the bill? Does my question even make any sense?

I go to the page
Expeditious Retreat Press / d20/OGL / 1 on 1 Adventures (d20/OGL) and I click on any one of the products listed, but it takes me to a page that's essentially blank (except for those side frames). I also think it odd that the top of the page says "Expeditious Retreat Press / d20/OGL / 1 on 1 Adventures (d20/OGL) / Print Editions" when the link that took me there says "PDF".

I looked in the rules FAQ and searched the boards for this question, and didn't find it.

Suppose a paladin wants to use his Lay On Hands ability to deal damage to an undead creature. Suppose he makes a melee attack roll and misses. Does this consume one use of Lay on Hands for the day? Or can he "hold the charge" and try again like with a spell?

I've looked at a lot of Paizo modules, AP volumes, and PS scenarios over the years, and I'm afraid I've found only a few of them to be all that awesome. I'm curious to know what 3PP PFRPG-compatible adventures people might recommend. (Mind you, if someone feels that a certain Paizo adventure is really exceptionally good, and meets some of my criteria, I'll consider that too.)

Here are some of my criteria.

For one thing, I usually prefer shorter adventures, less than 32 pages. For an exceptionally great module, I might go longer, even as much as 100 pages, but I'm not in the market of a big super-adventure or AP right now.

One big selling point for me is an intriguing back story or hook. In the days of AD&D, I was a big fan of "Dungeon" magazine, for that reason.

Also, my players and I can't stick with a single dungeon complex any bigger than 32 pages, and even 32 pages is pushing it. With bigger adventures, I prefer that they have SEVERAL small dungeon complexes, and enough of a plot in between them to give the players a reason to explore them. For that reason, I loved "The Speaker in Dreams", and I'm currently running the "Coins" trilogy (from the "Kingdoms of Kalamar" line) to give some examples. (And the first "Coins" module, "The Root of All Evil", also begins with a good example of an intriguing hook.)

Wilderness exploration is OK, but I detest naval adventures. I could live with a ship voyage with an encounter or two, but anything more than that I'd probably skip or replace.

Also, I don't want anything too difficult for players. Some adventures give puzzles and problems for the players to solve, or might force the PCs into some awkward situation, like having to infiltrate an enemy base and bluff their way through it. My players and I don't like that.

I prefer low-level adventures. The lower the better. I would never run anything higher than 12th level, and I'd prefer 6th or below.

Also, there's one kind of adventure I'd like even if it IS just a big dungeon, and even if it doesn't have such an intriguing back story or hook. If someone knows of some 1st-level dungeon crawl good for introducing players who are new to RPGs, I'd be interested. I'm afraid that "Crypt of the Everflame" wasn't my cup of tea. It was too contrived (even more so than usual for a dungeon crawl), too linear, and too difficult for new players without modification. I'm afraid that "Master of the Fallen Fortress" didn't do it for me either.

If a module is for an unusual campaign setting, I'd consider that a major drawback (although I might be more open to such a product in the future).

Does anyone have a suggestion?

I recently noticed that arrow traps got tougher in PFRPG. In D&D 3.0 and 3.5, a CR 1 arrow trap attacked with a bonus of +10 and did 1d6 damage. In PFRPG, a CR 1 arrow trap attacks at +15 and does 1d8+1 damage. Does anyone know why Paizo made this change?

I'm looking now at a 3.0 module with a CR 1/2 arrow trap, which attacks at +5 and does 1d6 damage. Another arrow trap has a CR of 1/3, an attack bonus of +2, and does 1d6. If I were to run this in PFRPG, I feel safe in assuming that those traps should do 1d8+1 damage, but what about attack bonus? Should I just add 5?

...and I don't mean the Beginner Box, nor some simplified form of the game. I mean the real, complete Pathfinder RPG. He made some great progress in it, and I feel compelled to boast of his exploits.

Some of you may remember my stories in the past about my son playing Basic / Expert D&D at the age of 4. He rose to many challenges in that D&D game, and overcame them. He continued that campaign for a long time. Among other things, he played "Palace of the Silver Princess" to its completion.

So when he asked to play Pathfinder for the first time, I dared to get ambitious. Not only would this campaign be a first for him, but a first for me in several respects... at least, in a REAL campaign.

You see, sometimes, I might just create some characters and run them through a bunch of adventures on my own, in order to learn the system. In order to teach myself D&D 3.0, I ran a solo campaign. In order to teach myself D&D 3.5, I ran a solo campaign... and in fact, I never played a real campaign in D&D 3.5, as no one else wanted to play 3.5 with me, so I stuck with 3.0 for my real campaigns.

Only in my solo campaigns did I use a published campaign setting. For my real campaigns, I would typically create the setting myself, or just handwave the setting. When I played Basic D&D with my son, I mentioned that the characters lived in the Grand Duchy of Karameikos, but I never did anything with that.

But I had always wanted to set a real campaign in an established setting, and make real use of the setting. Now, I've finally done it. I showed my 6-year-old the Pathfinder Campaign Setting book (the 3.5 version), opened the map of the Inner Sea "Reigon" (sorry, Paizo!) and said "Your characters live in the kingdom of Nex."

My son was fascinated! He started asking questions about Nex and the surrounding areas. (In fact, it was uncanny that he asked about the very places that would become important later in the campaign. It was like he could tell the future, or read my mind.)

Also, my real campaigns had all been hodgepodges of small adventures with little or no connection to each other. I've never run a single adventure or series of adventures bigger than a 64-page module. I've never even tried, except in solo campaigns. For instance, I taught myself 3.5 by running a bunch of characters through "The Red Hand of Doom". I got most of the way through it, but quit when my party got TPKed by that...

But now, for the first time, I decided to start running a complete series of adventures for a real campaign, because I had always wanted to run the "Coin" trilogy of modules ("Root of All Evil", "Forging Darkness", and "Coin's End" by Kenzer and Company, written for the Kingdoms of Kalamar campaign setting.)

One of the reasons I wanted to run that trilogy is that it had such an intriguing hook.

And it worked! My son was impressed with the need to stop the baddie. Maybe that was part of the reason he stuck with the campaign for so long.

When I run a campaign one-on-one, I usually have the player control two or three characters, while I play two or three "DMPCs", thus forming a full-sized party, and that's the way I did it this time.

To be sure, such a young child has some things to learn. During one battle, after my characters engaged in melee, my son announced that his cleric character would hang back and do nothing.

I tend to give my son advice, in consideration of his age, so I said "Why? Even if the cleric doesn't dare battle the monster directly, she could still step up to my characters, in such as way that the monster can't reach her, and then she'll be ready to cast Cure Light Wounds on my characters."

"No, she won't do it."

"Why?"

And my son smiled, showing that he was wise in the way all children consider themselves wise, and said "I have my reasons."

Consequently, one of my characters was killed in the battle. Even though it was my character, not my son's, and even though the party won the battle in the end, my son became upset. He saw that I wasn't pulling my punches, and after that, his characters acted much more sensibly. He continued the series for a long time after that, and there haven't been any more character deaths, as of yet.

But my son taught ME a few things as well, showing that he could make use of the "sandboxy" nature of a campaign setting. At one point, he said "Why should I travel all the way to Quantium just to find out where <a certain NPC> is? We know that he's in the Mwangi Expanse. Why not just go to the Mwangi Expanse?"

I argued "The Mwangi Expanse is a big place." I showed him on the map, and asked "How will you know where to look?"

He replied "We'll ask around."

I thought about that for a while. Why not? It could work. I could throw in some encounters that could lead him in the right direction. And if that doesn't work, he could THEN go to Quantium to get the information. So I prepared for this change of course. Then my son changed his mind and decided to go Quantium after all, but if he hadn't, the whole campaign might still have worked.

Of course, even when he follows the railroad, I'm not running the trilogy verbatim. For instance, I ripped out the whole...

And it was a success! I was surprised to find that my son finished "The Root of All Evil", and I had to start work on converting the second volume, "Forging Darkness". The trilogy was written for 3.0, and of course, it was written for the Kingdoms of Kalamar setting, so I have to convert it both for PFRPG and for Golarion. Also, I think that a lot of the encounters are too tough and deadly, so again, I have to replace them. For instance, I decided that the...

There's no point to this story. As I said, I just felt compelled to tell it. Now I'm just trying to decide how to rewrite the...

My current Pathfinder campaign should be heading to the Mwangi Expanse sooner or later, and for various reasons, I want to include Tasloi encounters there. I got the D&D 3.5 conversion for Tasloi from this page of WotC's website, and scribbled a PFRPG conversion. I would like to post it here and ask people to help by proofreading it.

Would there be a legal problem with posting that?

So I'm looking at the first Bestiary, Appendix 2, titled "Monster Advancement", pages 294 - 296. For those of you who don't have the book handy, the information is on the following page of the PRD: Monster Advancement (although for some reason, the "Reducing Hit Dice" sidebar from page 296 isn't there).

I'm wondering: by what criteria do you decide whether to apply the "young" template to a monster, or whether to reduce its racial hit dice (assuming that the base monster has more than one hit die)?

Is it simply that it's easier to use the template? And if that's the case, then does reducing the hit dice give better results? Or are there entirely different reasons why you would want to reduce hit dice rather than use the Young template?

Obviously, all the same questions apply to adding hit dice vs. using the Giant Creature template.

I wonder if anyone knows whether Jay Stratton, of Pantheon Press, has ever tried Pathfinder RPG. In my effort to find out, I looked at some Pantheon Press products, which do in fact include some Pathfinder-compatible "Nobis" products and conversions, but I'm not aware that Jay Stratton had anything to do with any of these.

What brings me to ask this question? He wrote an editorial recently.

Redundant Skills

This is an old one, but you know what really crumbles my cupcake? Redundant skills!

I make a ‘sneaky’ character in some new game. Eager to play, I zip through the creation process, find the Sneak skill, and dump points into it. I then sit down at the table with four fellow adventurers, a trusted gm, a large pizza, and off we go!

First encounter, my gang decides to spring an ambush. Perfect! I am, after all, playing ‘Captain Sneaky-Pants.’ We hunker down behind cover and when the bad guys get close, the gamemaster asks us for… wait for it… a HIDE roll.

I feel the blood drain from my face. With trembling hands, I pick up my character sheet for a closer look. Yes, there’s my Sneak skill, in which I am a relative expert. Then I see it: the Hide skill, where I still sport the meager base chance because I didn’t know the damn thing existed! I look even closer and find additional skills for shadowing, camouflage, and subterfuge.

Now, my GM is a good one and she hears my pleas. She lets me redistribute my skill points on the spot so I have a passable Hide roll for this fight, and we move on. But that’s hardly the point. How can I be so good at sneaking yet so bad at hiding? Can you imagine a member of Seal Team 6 saying, ‘Sorry guys, I can avoid detection while moving, but when I sit still, I make a lot of noise.’

Also, if I really want to be ‘Captain Sneaky Pants’, I have to dump four times as many skill points as if I want to be ‘Captain Rides a Horse’??? I mean, I don’t see the Acrobatics skill split up into summersaults, backflips, handsprings, and forward rolls! Are you telling me it’s really four times more expensive to be ‘Captain Sneaky Pants’ as ‘Captain Tumbles Around’?

And it’s not just stealth skills. Ever played a game with Spot, Notice, Listen, and Sense? What the hell?? You can’t just write Perception? I mean, picture this:

Legolas, what do your Elf eyes see?

Nothing Aragorn, I put my points in ‘Listen’ instead of ‘Spot’.

Yeah, that’s fun…

Okay, now that I’ve got the rant out of my system, here’s where redundancy actually works. If you’ve got a flexible GM, you can have lots of different social skills.

Bluff, Charm, Intimidate, Seduce – these all say different and interesting things about the character. A seducer has a totally different personality than an intimidator, and it’s fun to know and express this difference in the mechanics. But when faced with a social challenge the GM should let any of these skills come into play. A guard can be lied to, seduced, or intimidated with similar results, but the method is important for character conception.

So, yes, there’s that one exception! But otherwise, my plea to game designers everywhere: dump the redundant skills.

Is it just me, or does anyone else think this article screams "SELL ME PATHFINDER RPG!!!"

"Has Begin"?

It may be high time to appease the Deity of typographical errors. You know, at "The Altar to the Old Golds"

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Seriously, though, now that I'm "between" RPG campaigns, it's good to know that Paizo keeps putting out adventures that I'd like to order someday just to READ. There are several on my personal wish list.

I tried posting about this idea in the "Card & Board Games" subforum. Now I'm going to try again, in a subforum that might get more attention.

I was toying with the idea of playing Chess with some other user over these forums, using Golarion-related images as pieces. I would post links to an image of the board, like this...

Board.

...and the other player could post his/her move, with a message like "Knight from B1 to C3," and I would make my move, and change the board image accordingly.

In case there's any confusion about which image is what piece, I could provide a...

key.

Would anyone be interested in playing such a game?

(Also, I'm open to suggestions for other icons for the pieces.)

I don't even know whether this should go under "Card & Board Games," "Gamer Connection," "Forum Games," or what.

Anyway, I was toying with the idea of playing Chess with some other user over these forums, using Golarion-related images as pieces. I would post links to an image of the board, like this...

Board.

...and the other player could post his/her move, with a message like "Knight from B1 to C3," and I would make my move, and change the board image accordingly.

In case there's any confusion about which image is what piece, I could provide a key.

My first question is: Does anyone have suggestions for images to use for pieces? Some of those images have nothing to do with Golarion, and I'm sure someone could come up with better ideas.

My second question is: Would anyone actually be interested in PLAYING such a game?

(What can I say? I'm no longer in a position to play PBPs, and I always fantasized being the "tactical map keeper." This comes close, at least.)

I read a book in the late 1970s (or maybe early 1980s?) whose title I don't remember, and I wonder if anyone can help me to identify it.

It was a children's book, with no internal art. The plot was like this: A young girl finds an old diary that her aunt had kept when SHE had been a young girl. The aunt, at the time she had written the diary, was superstitious, paranoid, and high-strung. She believed that her ring was cursed, and that it could do evil magic. Whenever something bad happened, the aunt believed that the ring was responsible. The aunt was afraid to go out at night, for fear of what the ring might do. (I'm sure I'm getting the details wrong, but it was something like that.)

The niece, now reading the diary, believes in the curse, and happens to get hold of the ring. She talks to her aunt, who has no memory of the ring, nor of what she had written in the diary. When the niece brings up the subject of the curse, the aunt has no idea what the niece is talking about. Clearly, the aunt no longer believes in magic.

The niece, over the course of the book, happens to meet some old man who has a pet bird. For some reason (perhaps because she's determined to know the truth about the curse?) the niece commands the ring to kill the bird at midnight. She immediately regrets this, and freaks out all night. Finally, unable to stand the suspense any longer, she visits the old man... and finds that the bird is fine. The whole curse was just a product of the aunt's imagination.

Any ideas?

I just applied the "young" template to the troglodyte. (Those of you well versed in modules may guess why, but I won't name the module, so as to avoid spoilers.)

Anyway, I wonder if I did it right. Can anyone spot any mistakes in it? And I wonder if I should reduce the speed to 20 feet, since the young troglodytes are of Small size. I don't think there's any rule that I should, but it seems right.

Any thoughts? Thank you for your help.

Young Troglodyte CR 1/2
XP 200
CE Small humanoid (reptilian)
Init +1; Senses darkvision 90 ft.; Perception +0
Aura stench (30 ft., DC 11, 10 rounds)

Defense
AC 16, touch 12, flat-footed 15 (+1 Dex, +4 natural, +1 size)
hp 9 (2d8)
Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +0

Offense
Speed 30 ft. (20 ft.?)
Melee club +1 (1d4-1), claw –4 (1d3-2), bite –4 (1d3-2) or 2 claws +1 (1d3-1), bite +1 (1d3-1)
Ranged javelin +3 (1d4-1)

Statistics
Str 8, Dex 13, Con 10, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 11
Base Atk +1; CMB -1; CMD 10
Feats Great Fortitude
Skills Stealth +11 (+15 in rocky areas); Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth (+10 in rocky areas)
Languages Draconic
Treasure 2d10 sp each

Stench (Ex) A troglodyte secretes an oily chemical that nearly every other creature finds offensive. All living creatures (except those with the stench special ability) within 30 feet must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 11) or be sickened for 10 rounds. Creatures that successfully save cannot be affected by the same troglodyte’s stench for 24 hours. A delay poison or neutralize poison spell removes the effect from the sickened creature. Creatures with immunity to poison are unaffected, and creatures resistant to poison receive their normal bonus on their saving throws.

I just dug up my copy of Crypt of the Everflame just to take a closer look at the stats for the iconics in it (the first-level PFRPG versions of Valeros, Ezren, Merisiel, and Kyra.) I wonder if anyone could shed some light on any of my questions about them:

1) Kyra's Dex is 8, so her initiative modifier should be -1. Why, then, is it 0? Does she get a +1 from somewhere?

2) Merisiel has a BAB of 0, a Strength modifier of +1, and a Dex modifier of +3. So her CMD should be 14. Why, then, is it 15? Again, am I missing a +1 somewhere?

3) With a Strength score of 12, Merisiel should carry up to 43 pounds as a light load. In the Crypt of the Everflame version, she's carrying 46 pounds of equipment. Shouldn't that reduce her speed to 20'? And yet she's listed as having a speed of 30 feet.

4) Have there ever been official listings of the iconics' height and weight?

5) How about age? (I've seen years of birth for Ezren, Seelah, and Seltyiel - 4665, 4687, and 4679, respectively - but what about the rest of them?)

6) What languages does Ezren speak?

I meant to add, but forgot to mention, that I was once about to buy The Complete Northwest Smith, because I heard that the hero uses a ray-gun instead of a sword. But then I heard that the stories involve fighting ancient, evil, Cthulhuesque horrors, rather than high-tech challenges, so I didn't buy the book.

Hopefully, that will help clarify what I'm looking for, and what I'm not.

(Continued from another thread)

..Back in the days when I read and used Dungeon magazine, I regarded Willie Walsh as the most recognizable contributor name, second only to that of Chris Perkins. I'll never forget Huddle Farm, and my friend and I had great fun with Fraggart's Contraption...

...and much later, when my players and I switched from 2E to 3.0, I was hesitant to do so. There were so many 2E adventures I wanted to run, and I wasn't confident that I could convert AD&D material to 3E to my satisfaction. In point of fact, I could, and I did so many, many times thereafter. But at that point, I wasn't sure if it would be worth the effort, even if I could do so. So for my first conversion I had to choose an adventure that was worth it. One that was special. One that I really, really wanted to run.

I chose Clarshh's Sepulchre.

And boy, did it work! I first started fleshing out the geography of my campaign world with the map from that adventure, and that world gradually grew over the next 3 years. That adventure had...

That adventure...

And the...

Any other Willie Walsh fans out there?

Is it just me, or has anyone else found problems browsing the messageboards on paizo.com lately (for the past 18 hours or thereabouts)?

Sometimes, the site is painfully slow, and at other times it's fine. Sometimes, I can't seem to load a page, and after minutes of waiting I have to go back and try again (to have it respond right away.) Sometimes, a page loads the important stuff (i.e. the text), but hangs while trying to load the icons (and on one occasion, even the fonts.)

Whenever I clicked on the "new posts" link for the thread "Pathfinder Adventure Path series question" the server would think for a while and then send me back to the page I had been on. (I eventually got around this by clicking on the thread title instead.)

I think someone needs to hit the server, like Han hitting the Falcon's control panel in The Empire Strikes Back.

I'm trying to understand the Fast Healing ability. It's supposed to be "just like natural healing." But natural healing requires a full night's rest (8 hours of sleep or more.) Does this mean that creatures must sleep for their fast healing to work? Or in the case of monsters that don't sleep, do they need to rest, at least? Will they heal while taking move-equivalent actions? Or will they heal even while attacking?

linkie

I don't watch horror movies, but I'm told that the characters in them are inhumanly stupid. Upon seeing 17 dead bodies directly outside a house, they proceed to enter the house. This is to make the audience shout "NO! DON'T GO IN THERE!"

This must be what they feel like. I feel this childish impulse to shout at the Thing in the Shadows "NO! DON'T TIP THE BAD GUYS OFF!"

Also, I would ridicule the "Life is bad, therefore undead must be good" logic. Obviously, that would do nothing to convince anyone, but still...

Actually, it's GOOD that the strip got this reaction out of me. It's been weeks since I felt much interest in the series.

I'm trying to understand how PBPs work, and the netiquette involved. I see that when a PBP calls for, say, 5 people, then the first 5 people who respond get to join, and the next few are put on a "reserve list."

What exactly does that mean?

Suppose a long time goes by and one player doesn't show any signs of creating a character. Could the GM say "John Tardy, post within 2 days or I'm replacing you with the first reserve player," or something like that?

Suppose the game has been going on for months and months, and a certain player drops out. Does the GM expect the people on the "reserve list" to be following the PBP for all those months? Would the GM be expected to say "Jane Reserve, if you respond within a week, you get to fill the empty slot?"

I recently read the Pathfinder Gazetteer, or about 95% of it, anyway. Very interesting. It makes me wonder if there's some kind of list somewhere of modules, AP chapters, PF Society Scenarios, etc. by location?

I'm not talking about the obvious "hot spots," like Varisia, Andoran, Kortos, etc. Those lists would be huge, I'm sure.

But if no such list exists, I wonder if someone could tell me of adventures set in - or Pathfinder Chronicles / Companion books (besides the Campaign Setting book, of course) that elaborate on - some of the more distant, but interesting locales? Such as...

Irresen?

Galt?

Geb?

Druma (which is technically not remote, but still interesting)?

Thank you in advance for whatever help you can give me.

Now that we know the state of V's marriage...

...and for that matter, the love life of every Order member, I wonder what ever happened to Hilgya. Ever since OOTS #84, I've been expecting her to come back for revenge on Durkon. Maybe accompanied by Durkon Jr.

Posting this will be pointless if I get no answers within 18 hours.

I've had almost no exposure to Golarion material before. I just ordered my first AP module, Burnt Offerings, from amazon.com. To my surprise, it came in only 3 days. (Not bad for free shipping!) This would be a great opportunity to read it over the weekend, but...

If I read it around the house, my kids may see it, and that full-color art may get them curious about it. They may ask me to read it to them. And I've heard that some of Paizo's modules have some mature content in them.

I don't censor violence from my children (much to my family's chagrin,) but I strictly censor sex. I thought I heard about something objectionable in The Skinsaw Murders, but I could easily have misunderstood. Is this something I should keep out of my children's sight?

Thank you in advance for your help.

No, there was a funnier post than that.

There was once a Middle East political thread that descended into a lot of flaming, trolling, and name-calling, which ultimately led to the thread getting shut down. But before it got shut down, someone joked that Israel was Lawful Neutral. And right here, Paul Watson piped up

Please don't bring alignment into this. We're trying not to get too heated and controversial.

I laughed out loud at that one.

Ah, who am I kidding? This post is just a transparent excuse to bump my own thread now that the messageboards are more accessible again (I hope).

Logical Conclusions

Then how does Roy explain why so many demons and devils kill each other?

(I'm surprised no one started this thread yet!)