ArVagor's page

Bump, hoping for some clarification...

Constructs are not objects. You simply can't jump into them using object posession, the spell creates an animated object, it does not allow you to posess a construct.

Please re-read the full text of greater object possession; the spell specifically allows you to possess a construct.

So first, let me post the two relevant texts:

Object Possession, Greater

School necromancy; Level occultist 5, psychic 6, sorcerer/wizard 7, spiritualist 6, witch 7
Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Target unattended Gargantuan or smaller object (minimum Tiny) or construct
Duration 10 minutes/level (D)

This spell functions as object possession, except as noted above. The possessed animated object has a number of Construction Points appropriate for its size (up to 5 CP for Gargantuan objects). Your silver cord extends to medium range (100 ft. + 10 ft./level).

You can attempt to possess a construct instead of an unattended object as your first possession with this spell. If you do, this spell acts as control construct, except as noted above.

... and ...

Control Construct

School transmutation; Level sorcerer/wizard 7
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target one construct
Duration concentration
Saving Throw none (see text); Spell Resistance no

You wrest the control of a construct from its master. For as long as you concentrate, you can control the construct as if you were its master. You must make a Spellcraft check each round to maintain control. The DC of the Spellcraft check is (10 + the construct's HD). If the construct's creator or master is present and trying to control the construct, you both must make opposed Spellcraft checks each round to control the construct.

So if I use greater object possession to jump into a construct, do I even need to make any checks? The former spell implies that it replaces control construct's school, range, target, and duration with its own—"10 minutes/level" replacing "concentration"—so the Spellcraft check would be completely unnecessary, wouldn't it?

So these things are rather interesting, from a certain point of view. My question is, for a given slot, one can have a minor, major or greater piercing. If one takes a greater piercing, does one get the lesser abilities as well (i.e., those granted by the minor and major piercings)?

I want a cat-sized wasp!!!!

Are you sure that's not a regular size wasp riding on the shoulder of a pixie?

Please make the stuffed owlbear the next Paizo-made plushie! We wants it, Precious!!!

Hm... I wonder if my PFS gnome is a long-lost Nackle? He's a barbarian, but he gets excited instead of raging (I mean seriously, there's so much to see in the world; why get angry at it?). He (thought he) comes from a long line of gnomish gardeners, so he uses the family tree pruner as an heirloom weapon (okay, so it was really a ripsaw glaive, but then the 'Heirloom Weapon' trait was updated, so it became a glaive-guisarme, i.e., the pruning blades stopped working), and yes, he has ranks in Craft (Topiary)...

Thank you all for the input. FWIW, digging a little deeper in the Harrow Handbook, I also saw that the "Card Caster" magus archetype has the following ability:

Harrowed Spellstrike (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, a card caster can invest a single thrown weapon with a single touch or ranged spell as part of the spell’s normal casting time. The spell must target a single creature, and the spell’s range changes to match the thrown weapon’s range increment. This ability otherwise functions identically to spellstrike, except it can only be applied to thrown ranged weapons instead of melee attacks. This ability replaces and modifies spellstrike.

... and Spellstrike allows the magus to make a free melee attack with his weapon after casting a touch range spell.

Again, nothing conclusive, but in regards to my original question, I think it tips the scales slightly in favor of throwing the card as part of the casting action...

The Cartomancer, out of The Harrow Handbook has the ability to deliver touch spells via cards:

Deliver Touch Spells (Su)

...
In addition, the cartomancer can deliver a touch spell with a thrown card. This uses the Deadly Dealer feat (see below), except the attack is resolved as a ranged touch attack and the card deals no damage of its own. This ability can be used with any card (not just one from the cartomancer's spell deck).

My question would be, since the rules for touch spells in combat permit the caster to cast the spell and touch the target in the same round, can/does the cartomancer cast a spell and deliver it via card in the same round?

Thank you all for the input. As I said, we are consulting the ARG just for guidance, not as hard and fast rules on race development. I'm well aware of the wide RP range (Svirfneblin == 24 RP? Really???)

The gist of the race is that dwarves in his world are really derived from elemental earth, very similar to the background John Wick describes for them in his Wicked Fantasy line. So there is a core dwarf based on Earth, as well as four sub-races/ethnicities tied to the plane of Earth's interaction with the planes around it (Mineral, Magma, Ooze, and Dust). The dwarves are not themselves elemental (in other words, the ethnicity tied to Magma wouldn't have the (fire) sub-type); we just want their nature (and stats) to reflect that (so the "magma" dwarves, being connected with fire, should be more agile, "mineral" dwarves should be more structured, etc.)

FWIW, after some discussion last night, we're thinking that adding a –2 Dex onto the Specialized line is only going to be worth –1 RP. Mainly because it feels about right; this also happens to be the difference between "Standard" and "Weakness" (which has a net –2 to a single score).

I'm helping a friend design some dwarven sub-races for a home campaign; it's not Pathfinder, but we're using the Advanced Raced Guide for guidance to keep the sub-races balanced.

One of the sub-races has more affinity for earth and stone than the others—similar to an Oread, but not quite the same. We also found the "earth dwarf" variant in the D&D 3.5 Unearthed Arcana, and those stats were just about right: +2 Str, –2 Dex, +2 Con, –2 Cha. The Str and Con bumps for the hardiness of stone, Dex penalty since stoney things aren't generally very agile, and Cha penalty because, well ... they're *dwarves*.

So Specialized (1 RP) seems to be the best starting point, with the following base: +2 Str, +2 Con, –2 Cha. But can anyone suggest what the point value might be to lower that last stat (Dex)? Advanced Dexterity grants a +2 bonus for 4 RP, but I can't really see a –2 penalty to a stat being worth –4 RP? I've also tried various combinations of Greater Weakness, Mixed Weakness with Advanced (whatever), but one stat always gets out of hand (either to a +4 or –4)...

He looks like a younger Ezren!

So, thinking of ways to improve a witch's survivability without the expense of also killing her familiar, I was taking a look at longarm bracers. Some relevant text:

Her weapon attack rolls take a –4 penalty, while unarmed strikes and natural weapons using the arms take no penalty.

So what about touch attacks made to deliver a spell? Yes, I know that you are considered armed when holding the charge from a touch attack, but that doesn't entirely answer the question...

What is it that every campaign setting needs a mega-dungeon? Greyhawk had Castle Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms had Undermountain – is Bastardhall Golarion's answer to this quandary?

Griffin Rider wrote:

As a hard and fast rule "a" proceeds a word that starts with a consonant.

I'll be sure to remember that when referring to 'a NPC'.

Touché...

While we're at it, can we please stop saying/writing "an history"? Damn Brits...

Well sure, sugar gliders *are* that fragile. But this is the mighty Kopinao! (Seriously, how many sugar gliders have you seen with purple and green stripes and poisonous tail stingers?)

In preparation for GenCon, I finally got off my slacker butt and downloaded the KS PFS Chronicle. So the dumb question I have is -- how do we use it? I.e., there's no GM signature, etc. Do we just put it in our character stack unsigned? Does someone at the con HQ need to sign it before we use it? What prevents us from using it more than once?

If all these questions and more are already answered in another thread, can you point me where? My search-fu is sorely lacking...

So where does one find the form for the mini? I'm a Crowdforger Pioneer, and I see my other downloads, but no "mini" form...

Dragnmoon wrote:

I have pictures I bring with me when I run these characters. If you can find me a 1/2 Orc Barbaque chef (Male) and a halfling wizard, I would be happy. If anyone can cast disguise self IRL, I will play in character.

You could wear this while playing the chef: http://www.hauntyourhome.com/detail/EL-M2430/Mini_Chef_hat.html. Otherwise, there's only this: http://www.coolminiornot.com/shop/miniatures/soda-pop-miniatures/soda-pop-i ron-chef.html

<edit>:If you meant a picture, how about this: http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090925053348/wowwiki/images/e/e9/Ch ef%27s_Hat.jpg ?

Who’s to say that a highly magical creature originally from the highly mutable and primeval First World (gnome) would not be physically transformed if raised by the preternaturally primitive Orcs with nearly magical rage in their blood?

Ninja'ed – this +1

Or build a really ugly gnome :-)

Fozzy Hammer wrote:

No better way to beat the big bad guy than to run up to him and throw the whole necklace at your feet! Big fun!

So they can pick it back up and use it against you? Having that work is highly GM dependent since the wording on the item describes the beads working after they are detached.

Hit yourself with a magical fire attack and voluntarily fail the save ;-)

Has anyone searched through the various PFRPG books to see if there are any instances of magical elven chain?

Answering my own question, yes.

• Kingmaker/Sound of a Thousand Screams has a suit of +4 elven chain in one of the treasure hordes
  
• Second Darkness/A Memory of Darkness has a scattered throughout, 3(!) suits of +2 elven chain, a suit of +3 moderate fortification elven chain, and a suit of +1 glamered elven chain
  
• Second Darkness/Descent Into Midnight includes a suit of +1 moderate fortification elven chain
  

These are published under 3.5 rules, for what it's worth.

I don't think that really matters; a precedent was established whereby something called "elven chain" was upgradeable with standard enhancements; that there was also the enhanced elven chain in Kingmaker shows that it is upgradeable...

No, Elven Chain is expensive and not as good! :-)

Statwise, elven chain and mithral chainmail are the same -- 20lbs., AC +6, armor check penalty -2, max Dex +4, arcane spell failure 20%. For an extra 1000gp, elven chain is treated as light armor for all purposes, when compared with mithral chainmail which is light for everything but actual proficiency. OTOH, you can upgrade the mithral chainmail, but based on comments from the developers, you can't upgrade the elven chain, which continues to be a lame ruling, IMHO.

Has anyone searched through the various PFRPG books to see if there are any instances of magical elven chain?

Already posted on a thread in the rules section. But I want to know how it is being handled in society.

The monk weapons listed in the a PG state in their description that monks are proficient with them adding them to the monk weapon proficiencies. However the monk weapons in the UC do not state whether they are covered under the monks weapon proficiency or if they require the spending of feats to add the proficiency.

In Boise I have a new player using the three sectioned staff on his level one monk out of the UC weapons list. It is a double monk weapon with specials and 1d10 damage. Is this legal without a martial and exotic weapon proficiency?

The "monk" qualifier on a weapon merely permits it to be used as part of a flurry of blows; it does not actually grant proficiency with the weapon... And similarly, while APG specifically grants proficiency in the temple sword and the cestus, there's no such wording in any of the weapon entries in Ultimate Combat

I myself hope that I work towards the LG spectrum when I GM. I've met a few LE GM's. (Like the guy way back when in Living Greyhawk that I saw chase down an entire party of fleeing PC's and kill them one by one.)

Did the GM chase them down, or did the GM's monsters chase them down?

Had fun in that one, especially after my barbarian ended up with a Wisdom of 2 for the entire second half of the mod! You know how hard it is to complete a faction mission at that point??? ;-)

If it weren't for Fezzic having low Wisdom, I'd recommend looking at two of the new monk archetypes in Ultimate Combat, namely Martial Artist (martial arts without ki) and Tetori (essentially a monk specializing in grappling). There's also the Ki Throw feat from Advanced Player's Guide: "Your physical control and mastery of momentum allows you to throw enemies."

Actually, it is a rule. Just because it didn't make it in the guide changes nothing. Josh was asked about reskinning in Society Play and as his role as head of Society Play, he said it wasn't allowed. One of my pet peeves with Josh was that he would make a ruling, say it would be in the next update, and then not include it. I know I had to bug him to get some things included in the Guide.

And what about those people that don't have the time and/or the inclination to go through the forums every day looking for new "rules updates" from the campaign staff? All they have to go on is what is in the guide, so if it's not there, how would they even know it was pronounced?

We ran into the same problem in the Living Greyhawk campaign (and I suspect the other living campaigns experienced it as well), and it was one of the things I hated as an administrator, namely how many hoops we had to jump through to get something in print...

It was not really rebuilding that the PFS house rule on archetypes refers to.

The standard rule starting with the APG is that you can only choose archetypes for a character at the 1st level of a class. Period. But the PFS rule that is here somewhere in the forums, is that a player can add an archetype to their character so long as the character is not higher in level than the level of the first replaced ability. That is not really rebuilding, but rather is adding on.

That's kind of ... odd, that that's in question. I mean, how can you add something to your character at first level, if there's nothing to add to your character at first level??? ;-p

And as far as replacing abilities once you're past them, I'd say ditto; how can you replace something that you've been using all along -- it's like being 6th level and deciding you want to swap out the fighter level you took at level 2 for rogue...

The current v4 Guide does not even include the word 'archetype' and thus does not correctly explain in PFS how you can potentially pick up an archetype for a character.

Does it need to? Almost all of the Advanced Player's Guide is available, and archetypes are fully explained in there...

Out of curiosity....Do the boon races like Tiefling and Tengu each have a negative stat? (ie +2ded, +2 int, -2Cha)

I can't speak for the others, which you could verify for yourself in the various Bestiaries, but the Tengu is +2 Dex, -2 Con, +2 Wis

Shadowborn wrote:

Believe it or not, there's a lot more of the state of Washington than just Seattle and its surrounding environs.

Could have fooled me!

There must be something outside Seattle -- how else would you get your White Castle fix?

BTW, I hope you gave Russ Akred an extra GM star for bringing in that Crave Case to GenCon! ;-)

This is what I am afraid is going to happen after the race book comes out. We will have 700+ Asimars running around...

The simple solution to this is, of course, to not allow the races book to be a valid additional resource...

I'd be curious how some of these DMs saying "No" to the pigskin would handle my gnome...

Disregarding the changes to the heirloom weapon trait, he has (had) a ripsaw glaive (Gnomes of Golarion) that was an heirloom weapon via the trait. In character, he only ever saw it as a tree pruner, one that was handed down through the generations because his family was one of gardeners. He told people it was a tree pruner; he used it in-game to cut back loose brush from camp sites and to carve bushes (he has both Craft(topiary) and Profession(gardener) as skills). In combat, however, game-mechanically it is a ripsaw glaive and has always been treated as such in combat

So -- am I not allowed to use my tree pruner in your mod?

We have not created rules for future tech within the Pathfinder RPG except in a few cases in Kingmaker and Dungeons of Golarion. Turns out, we have a whole 300+ page book coming out next Gen Con on equipment; if that book contains rules for the type of technology found in Numeria, we'll consider it for legality in the campaign at that time.

Wait -- in Kingmaker?!?!? Where??? I need to go have a chat with my DM! >:-)

[...] Player One: It hurts me! I was following the rules why should I get punished for that? [...]

Except there is no actual harm to Player One -- his character is not affected, his rewards are not affected, etc. -- and Player One is not being punished in any way.

It's the same imagined harm that occurs when Player Two has a boon he got by attending GenCon and Player One complains that that's not fair because he can't afford to attend GenCon for whatever reason, and so misses out on having the same boon.

BTW, if you're going to cite evidence of revolvers in a long out of print Paizo work, that's been effectively errataed out just like Asmodian Paladins.

Huh? Just because something is out of print (presumably you mean the original Pathfinder Campaign Setting book) doesn't mean that it is no longer valid as resource material in establishing what is and/or isn't canon for a particular setting.

Quote:

there is no rule in any book that allows for Re-Skinning of Companions/Mounts what have you, there for I don't allow it and would not let my PFS players back home do."

Well there are no rules saying you can't and the rules as Rubia pointed out--

The whole "The rules don't say you can / the rules don't say you can't" argument is a terrible base to start a discussion from in any situation. For example, the rules don't say I fall down when hit with a sleep spell, or when I fall unconscious -- there's no mention of the prone condition in either case. For that matter, I apparently don't drop things when knocked unconscious, only when I am stunned.

So please stay away from "rules say you can/can't" arguments -- I had my fill of them with the Living Greyhawk player base, and I'm unfortunately starting to see that mentality creep into PFS judges and players as well...

I second this suggestion for You Only Die Twice, as long as there isn't a Paladin in your group or a religious character worshiping a deity vehemently opposed to undead.

I think it is doable as such with some creative/interesting roleplaying. I played it with the Kyra pre-gen this past weekend at GenCon:

Painlord wrote:

I can't wait to play a gnome pest.

I'm pretty sure that Thea already is.

How can a *cat-bunny* gnome be a pest? They're adorable!

Neil obviously hasn't met my gnome barbarian, Tikobos -- he doesn't rage, he gets excited!!!

I talked to the Hero Lab folks about these boons on Saturday and they were unaware of it (seemed to be anyway). I showed him the boon and they said they would need to have contact from Paizo to get any of these changes into their system. Otherwise, i would have to create my character with a bunch of red ink on the screen.

Or, you know, do it by hand ;-)

I disagree, It says right out, Crafting is not allowed, except for cheaper bullets.

If it was allowed it would say it was allowed.

For reference: "Special: If you are a gunslinger, this feat grants the following additional benefit. You can use this feat to repair and restore your initial, battered weapon. It costs 300 gp and 1 day of work to upgrade it to a masterwork firearm of its type."

This repair section says nothing about crafting a *new* firearm; rather, he is repairing his existing firearm to be of better quality.

But I'm nobody, so I would say let the PFS powers-that-be clarify...

As someone who had to Head Marshall the RPGA this year, I can say that we had a huge increase in over all turn out this year comparable to the same last year. That being said I'd love to see Paizo have a larger gathering room, and would be very nice to have Pathfinder be much closer, as the only PFS I got in at gen Con was at Scotties.

Huh; I would have thought the opposite, as every time I was in the vicinity of the Sagamore, it seemed there were fewer tables filled with players than I've seen in the past -- maybe the adventures are getting so easy that everyone finished an hour or two early...

The sign to me that RPGA/LFR is losing steam -- I had a real ticket for the LFR special on Saturday morning. Having left my LFR characters at home, and wanting to play PFS instead, I thought I would have no problem getting someone who would want to trade their generics for my real ticket. Would you believe it took me standing up on a chair and shouting out the offer *thrice* before getting any takers? And yes, I was at the correct location for the special's mustering, and yes, there were people there. Even then, the person who offered to trade seemed kind of "ho hum" about the offer...

So if I would really like to start a new character of one of the variant races, I can either stop playing until the ARG is released or I am dooming the variant race character to a painfully low level.

<SARCASM>What? You mean you'd actually having to *play* a character through the 1st level and onwards? Oh, the horror!</SARCASM>

Seriously, "scheduled to play the latter up to twelfth level"??? Stop planning so much and let the game world affect your characters... ;-p

To be fair Drogon, the word elitist carries with it a negative connotation that is more than its literal definition. While he may literally be an elitist, actually calling him an elitist is unwarranted.

Unwarranted, as I only accept being called a jerk by 5-star GMs like Kyle...

You could limited it to conventions where you can get access to random ones like Paizo has already done. And then to make them avaiable to the general public...allow DM's one race boon of their choosing for each DM star they have earned.

The systeem already checks to see how many sessions are reported with you as DM and assigns stars to you, it shouldn't be a huge leap to link something to that which would allow you to download a race boon once.

Here's the biggest problem with that idea as I see it -- such a method does not prevent the person downloading the boon from printing it off more than once, nor forwarding that PDF on to their friends, messageboards, etc. The chronicles handed out at the convention were actually signed by someone at Paizo (Hyrum? Josh? Can't be sure...). I suppose one could duplicate the signature with some effort, but if you're going to that much trouble that you're willing to commit forgery to play an alternate race, then you have other issues...

This morning was the last slot at GenCon. A nice couple came and sat at my table, where I was running Frostfur Captives. The lady introduced her character as being a 2nd-level halfling cavalier with a pig mount.

If she was at least 2nd level, then she could have easily earned the 150gp it takes to purchase a riding/war dog. Who's to say she didn't obtain the dog that way, as opposed to getting one for free via the cavalier class feature?

Honestly, why is it so wrong to give out con-exclusive SWAG to people attending conventions?

I'm an elitist because I happen to live within two hours drive of GenCon? I'm an elitist because I saved the money to pay for my transportation and lodging? I'm an elitist because I'm missing out on two days pay back at work since it's a new job and I haven't earned any vacation?

If the boon races come out in the ARG, what then? You will still have to pay for *that* book ($40 physical, likely $10 for the PDF) to actually use the race(s) without the boon chronicle, so is that going to be elitist too (because after all, my tengu was "free" but yours will cost at least $10...)?

Well then, I was lucky enough to open the chest, and received the boon which grants permission to play a Tengu. They have a racial feature, "Swordtrained":

Pathfinder Bestiary[/i]]Swordtrained (Ex): Tengus are trained from birth in swordplay, and as a result are automatically proficient with sword-like weapons (including bastard swords, daggers, elven curve blades, falchions, greatswords, kukris, longswords, punching daggers, rapiers, scimitars, short swords, and two-bladed swords).

Two-bladed swords and elven curve blades are both exotic weapons, so is it safe to assume, that any exotic weapon that is sword-like would be acceptable? Or is this going to turn into another 'Heirloom Weapon' debacle?

IMHO, the tengu are here because of the increased Eastern culture flavor that will be appearing this year as a result of the Ruby Phoenix Tournament, and I'd like to keep such a PC flavor-appropriate – joining the Lantern Lodge delegation; possibly ninja, samurai, or monk; etc. – and proficiency with some of the eastern weapons introduced in Ultimate Combat would be nice...