Polina

Archomedes's page

RPG Superstar 6 Season Star Voter, 7 Season Star Voter. Organized Play Member. 247 posts. No reviews. 6 lists. No wishlists. 1 Organized Play character. 1 alias.



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Having level independent durations is good. I like the new duration on mage armor. However, buff spells have gone down to between 1 minute to ten minutes. This decrease feels more low magic and low fantasy to me than perhaps what was intended.

I feel like having a hand full of duration increments is probably a good idea from an accessibility standpoint. Plays can ask "Is this a one minute, 4 hours, or 24-hour spell?"

4 hours seems like an improvement to me over the 10 minutes per level former duration of long-term buff spells. It allows them to be cast as part of a preparation phase without having to rush right away from encounter to encounter to get the most use out of the spell.

If you are trying to avoid the paradigm of casters eating the martial or skill monkey's lunch by self-buffing then you could have them have a reduced personal duration such as ", or 10 minutes personal." for spells that allow casters to circumvent having to make skill checks or on spells that improve their combat capabilities. (Although a utility polymorph spell that lets you keep a shape for hours would be very nice.)

As things stand, one-minute durations make it impossible to prepare for difficult encounters except to demand spells from casters from round to round. This change does not feel more accessible over the last edition to me.

Just assigning a new duration increment to these spells seems an easy fix that would take up no more space in the rulebook.


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We have corrected our GM when he refers to the party as "our heroes" in our last session
recaps. At best the PCs are "our protagonists"


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i just remembered this ability from the water orm and thought that it would be helpful as a social talent in order to help a vigilante get into costume

Elusive (Su) Water orms are rarely discovered except by their own choice. As a full-round action while in water, a water orm can move up to its run speed (200 ft.) without leaving any trace of its passage (identical in effect to pass without trace). An elusive water orm gains a +40 circumstance bonus to its Stealth check. In addition, when not in combat, a water orm is considered to be under the effects of a nondetection spell. These effects function at caster level 20th and cannot be dispelled.

Maybe call it flee the scene? How many playtesters would find something like this helpful?


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I'd like to see the avenger get a pool of temporary hit points when in vigilante identity that refresh at the end of each day. Then we could have talents that key off of that, restoring lost temp hp, increasing the pool or refreshing them for a second wind etc.


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24) "Ancient spirits of evil, transform this decayed form into Mumm Ra! The ever-living!"


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To beef up monsters. For every two monk levels you add to a monster you add 1 to its CR, up to a total CR increase equal to its base CR. This means you can add:

  • + 2d8+(2 x con mod) HP
  • 2 weird bonus feats
  • + wis to AC and cmd
  • Evasion
  • +3 all saves
  • 2 stunning attacks per day
  • +1 to BAB
  • Skill points equal to 12+(2 x int mod)

To a monster all for a total CR increase of +1. Doesn't matter which monster because monk is always considered a non-associated class. Dont forget to modify their base stats by +4, +4, +2, +2, +0 and -2.

Slap that on an owlbear or a dragon. Or a pack of wolves. Hilarity ensues.


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It might be how you are describing your character's actions. Doing things like asking the other PC's in character to buy you time while you execute a plan or describing your character's reaction when his allies are injured on his behalf may go a way toward the appearance of good.
You can be calculating without being dark and brooding. Dark and brooding characters don't really work in the game because you don't get a chance to narrate those character' sinner thoughts. So you have to say things like "thanks to your sacrifice I was able to damage their flank and break their formation, you sacrificed honorably my friend, the glory this day is ours."

I imagine the whole dark, brooding thing is probably the problem. Say good aligned things to narrate your characters inner monologue after the fact. Play positive PR in character rather than out of character.


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You get the most benefit from wild shape turning into a deinonychus at 4th level for 3 primary natural attacks and one secondary natural attack. Then at 6th level you get pounce, 3 natural attacks with grab and rake as a dire tiger. At 8th level you get pounce, grab, rake and 15 feet of reach as an allosaurus.

The earliest a barbarian gets pounce is 10th level. And don't forge that the size bonuses stack with enhancement bonuses, moral bonuses and alchemical bonuses to strength and constitution.

If you cherry pick forms you wind up ahead of other classes by a lot with wild shape.

And that's ignoring all of the plant, magical beast and elemental shapes you can assume for utility's sake. Look again at the immunities that elemental and plant creatures gain.

Compare that to what other classes get at those levels, and wild shape seems pretty good.


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Ooze type traits render it blind. It does not have blindsight as most oozes do. Its perception modifier is -5. It cannot survive long on land.

It relies on critters being curious enough to poke at it before it attacks. That is less than being a filter feeder like jelly fish.

Hope that helps.


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I think I will design two different sets of in game politics now.

In one political system, the high priests of various churches are of a high enough level to cast commune and alignment applies.

In the other political system, the high priest of the church is an elected official with NPC class levels, probably in aristocrat, and no one has an alignment.

I wonder which my players would prefer. A world where good and evil can be proved through empirical evidence or one where good and evil are subjective.

Which do you all prefer. A world where the local priest can send a letter to a pontiff if something is good and a being of pure good can give the pontiff and, down the ladder, you an answer? Or a world where you have to make a call and no force in the universe can really say if its objectively right or not?

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Hello all. There were a number of posters providing reviews of all of the items entered in the competition last year.

I would like to provide my reviewing services as well.

Any meta-critique advice from the seasoned pros on methodology to use as I prepare for this undertaking?

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My current avatar's expression reflects my feelings after hitting submit.

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I'd love to see an option for an alchemical flight engine and/or wheels as the scallywag advances. :D


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Calling the inquisitor Van Hellsing or Solomon Cane would be as accurate as calling the Barbarian Conan or the Monk David Caradine's character from Kung fu.

It represents a specific brand of gritty, organized monster hunter. One outfitted by a religious organization to hunt heretics and enemies of the faithful, or simply kill monsters.

As far as who or what is a heretic: All the gods hate rovagug, all the good and neutral gods hate Lamashtu and her monsters and beasts. Doesn't matter whether you are of the god of righteous fury, of the god of crafting or of the god of love, if something eats, kills or predates upon your faithful, you have a certain set of skills for hunting it, you cast judgement down upon it, and you suffer not the monster nor the heretic to live.

edit: at least thats one interpretation


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A paladin shouldn't be allowed to lie without breaching the code in that situation.

The reason why is this: The fiend would take the paladin at his word only if a paladin could not lie to fiends without falling. If the paladin was allowed to lie, then there would be no point to telling a lie about his friends' location in the first place. The demon has no incentive to believe him.

More broadly: Fiends need to be able to believe that a paladin cannot tell a lie to them without falling. This means that a paladin can broker deals with fiends that they would trust no other mortal to broker. This allows paladins to create temporary alliances with fiends purely based on the fiends taking it on good faith that the paladin will need to seek atonement if he does not intend to keep up the deal as the verbal contract was agreed upon in spirit as well as in letter in the case of amoral portions of the deal. This allows paladins to be in a unique position to ally the forces of good and evil in order to oppose mutual foes like Rovagug who threaten all of existence and/or a thing that all sentient being hold to be important.

And here is the kicker: A paladin may as an individual then choose when and where to fall from grace for breaking his word, and unless the evil he lies to is willing to test the paladin further, it may act under the erroneous information provided by the paladin, which may prove critical to the fiend's enemies. A paladin may fall willingly if it is tactically advantageous to the cause of righteousness to do so. It still leaves them without divine aid, but they are betraying a sacred and universal trust, and breach of the contract for authority and power that the paladin brokers with the powers of righteousness is not without cost. However, each paladin is at their core a person, and is fallible, and may choose to spend the currency they are given as a paladin at their discretion. Sometimes that just means losing everything at once until you prove yourself to worthy of a mantle of immaculate integrity.

------------------------------------------------

Or at least that is my interpretation. It all depends on rule 0: what is deemed best in your group for the health of your friendships and your game.


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I didn't make it to round 2 in RPG Superstar 2013, so I'm posting the archetype I created for feedback and general home game use.
It includes the Mechanized template in it's word count.

The mechanized simple template can be used to create mecha-dinosaurs from regular dinosaurs and giant robots from giants with little additional work.

If there is enough enthusiasm I might re-write this into an alternate base class with unique spells, feats and Numerian technology based evolutions.

Let me know that you think:
_
_
_
Mechanist (Summoner) 450 - words
Mechanists blend the super-science of the Silver Mountain with magic. Exiled by the Technic League who feared their power, the Mechanists moved their practice to The bordering River Kingdoms. Finding kinship with outlaws and exiles, Mechanists often hire themselves off to pirate crews.
Class Skills: The mechanist gains Disable Device as a class skill.
Mechanical Genius (Ex): A mechanist uses Intelligence, rather than Charisma, to determine all class features and effects relating to the summoner class, such as the Spells and Summon Monster class features.
Mecha Eidolon: At 1st level the summoner's Eidolon becomes enhanced by the Summoner's blending of conjuration and super-science. The Eidolon gains the mechanized template.
This replaces Life Link as well as the Eidolon's Evasion, Devotion, and Improved Evasion.
Automaton Summoner (Su): At 1st level Creatures summoned by the mechanist's summon monster spells and spell-like abilities gain the mechanized template if they would normally gain the celestial or fiendish template.

The Mechanist removes elementals, and outsiders from the lists of what he can summon with his Summon Monster spell-like ability, adding the following to those lists:

Summon Monster: Clockwork Spy**.
Summon Monster II: Animated Object (Small).
Summon Monster III: Clockwork Servant**.
Summon Monster IV: Animated Object (Medium).
Summon Monster V: Animated Object (Large), Clockwork Soldier**, Gearsman Robot†.
Summon Monster VI: Animated Object (Huge).
Summon Monster VII: Alchemical Golem*, Animated Object (Gargantuan).
Summon Monster VIII: Animated Object (Colossal), Myrmidon Robot†.
Summon Monster IX: Clockwork Leviathan**, Iron Golem.
* Bestiary 2
** Bestiary 3
† Inner Sea Bestiary

Annihilator Class Allies (Su): At 19th level, a Mechanist adds Adamantine Golem*, Annihilator Robot†, and Clockwork Goliath** to the list of creatures he can summon with his Summon Monster spell-like ability.

Mechanized (CR 0 or +1)
Mechanized creatures dwell in Axis, their living bodies made partially or entirely out of component parts. Mechanized creatures are summoned by the summon monster spells of a Mechanist
A mechanized creature's CR increases by +1 only if the base creature has 5 or more HD. A mechanized creature's quick and rebuild rules are the same.
__Rebuild Rules:__Defensive Abilities: gains Mecha-Resiliance (Ex) resistance or immunity to Mind affecting effects, necromancy effects, paralysis, poison, and stun effects as noted on the table; gains Para-constructed (Ex) For the purposes of effects targeting creatures by type (such as a ranger's favored enemy and bane weapons), this creature counts as both it's own type (such as animal, humanoid (giant), or outsider) and construct.; A mechanized creature gains Constructed (Ex) (see inevitable subtype, Bestiary2, page 307) if the base creature has 11 or more HD; Weaknesses Vulnerable to Electricity.

Hit Dice__________Mecha-resiliance_________________Hardness______Special_______ _______
__1-4_______________+4_________________________---_________Para-constructed _______
__5-10______________+8_________________________5__________Indefatigable____ ______
__11+______________----_________________________10_________Constructed_____ ______

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Beardforge

Spoiler:

The Beardforge brightened my mood every time it showed up, so I voted for it a lot is what I'm saying. I like this, I think I would like a blacksmith's hammer "Beardforger" more.
Mechanically I would not advise basing uses per day on the user. Creates balance issues. I think I would prefer ironbeard at will. Less wonky, seems to fit for the price point, though every martial and his mother will want one at a certain level.

I am strangely at peace with that imagery.


Laurel of Kurgess
Spoiler:
Positive: I voted for the original laurel more often than I voted against it.
I still don't know who Kurgess is, but a verdant laurel as a holy symbol of a good deity seems awesome.
Constructive Criticism: I would have kept the original bit about the rotting on an evil character's head, maybe have it grant a permanent negative level that vanishes when the laurel is removed like a holy sword.

Mechanically it could benefit from some rewording. "A cleric of a good aligned deity may use the laurel as a holy symbol." should stand on its own.

Without the whole "wilts if you are evil" think I start to wonder who Kurgess is, and that bothers me. I also wonder if the theme is tied together well between the self-sacrifice, the speed and the laurels. However, I'm not motivated to look this up, and would probably have down voted this version for having a weak thematic tie. I would have the word Kurguss hyperlink to here http://www.pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/kurgess. That way if a voter's hackles are raised, they can assuage they doubts and indulge their curiosity.

Bracers of Daring Exploits

Spoiler:
So its based on the belt of battle, neat. Rewards daring-do, awesome. 7 times per day as an immediate action...wait, what? I'd drop the price and allow it to kick in for a lower amount and fewer times per day. 3 seems to be the sweet spot but 5 works just as well at the current price point.

As it is, anyone who isn't a halfling is going to want one or two of these as soon as they have 10-5K to spend, and I'm not sure getting +5 bonus 7 times per day seems unfair to me as a GM. It certainly wouldn't seem fair to me attached to a high level BBEG as a player.

Mantle of a Thousand Hands

Spoiler:
Positive:Thematically evocative, elegantly described.

Constructive Criticism: Carrying capacity of the hands is not listed, doesn't explicitly say that the hands may be used to preform slight of hand skill checks. In fact, beyond drawing things quickly, no abilities of the hands are listed. Can they preform any action the wearer's normal hands could perform except attack, why can't they attack? Did you mean to say they do not grant additional offhand attacks? I think that is what you meant, but it isn't what you wrote. If they can hold weapons and can do anything a hand could do, I would assume they could load a pistol or hand crossbow and fire it from concealment, just not as an additional offhand attack or when wielding a two handed weapon. That seems about balanced.

As is the hands provide too little benefit. Do the hands drawing items or weapons as swift action transfer those items to the wearer's normal hands as a part of that action? If not how long does it take to shift a weapon from one of the cloak hands to a primary hand that can make an attack with it?

I think some further revision is in order.

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Is this cavalier Oathlorn? No. He is a traitor. His focus is in killing people who punish him for violating the laws of the land he chooses to reside in for abandoning his honor, and betraying those who placed their trust in him. He should probably not be an adventurer as he hurts the ones he swears oaths to. He should definately not be somewhere where "oathbreakers die."

I see you were trying to echo the design of the heretic archetype. unfortunately that isn't superstar. Escpecially since you can't, as written, tranfer over to vanilla cavalier after breaking an oath and back to oathbreaker after renewing alligiance and atoning for the oath you broke.

I will not be voting for this.

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When I saw the archetype's name, I said to myself, "Well, lets see if this is a Scallywag."

Scallywag is pirate talk. This Scallywag has his own boat and flies the colors of a dread pirate. He can harpoon the white whale. He can probably make the kessel run in less than 12 parsecs.

Ahrrr, here be a scallywag.

Good idea, river-piratey in a river-pirate nation, excelent mechanical execution. Overall I get a strong sense that this idea stands on its own in regard to both flavor and mechanics, and that says superstar to me.

I will most likely be voting for this archetype.


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I whipped up a magic item that makes out of combat healing seem more interesting (to me at least) and remembered this thread.

Medicine Pouch
Aura weak conjuration; CL 3rd
Slot --; Price 540 gp; Weight -- lbs.
Description
This small burlap pouch contains a fragrant mix of medicinal and sacred herbs.

The bearer may sprinkle a dose of medicinal herb from the pouch as standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity, providing the recipient 1d8 of magical healing. The bearer may augment the application of herb with a sacred chant to a diety he worships, making a DC 10 knowledge (religion) check. If the check succeeds, the wearer may roll 1d8 twice and keep the higher result. For every five by which the bearer succeeded this check, he may roll an additional time, keeping the highest result among his rolls.
A newly created pouch contains 30 doses. A dose may be gathered from a wooded area by foraging for 4 hours and succeeding both a DC 10 knowledge (nature) or survival check as well as a DC 10 knowledge (religion) check. For every 10 by which the result of the knowledge (religion) check exceeds 10, the bearer restores an additional dose.
Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, cure light wounds; Cost 270 gp

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I'm on my fifth draft of my labor of love archetype, with a few more in the works. I'll probably develop and release my runner up archetypes that I don't submit to the competition on the forums.

I feel reaaaaally good about my archetype advancing to round 3, I don't know if my item will get me there though.


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cmastah wrote:


For power interactions, I'm not entirely happy treating psionics as magic because it dulls the taste of psionics. Extroardinary abilities for instance, are treated as acts of physical power rather than magic for example and I'd like to treat psionics in that manner. If I want to incorporate psionics I'd have no choice but to treat it like magic if I end up doing so though.

Its less that psionics is just another form of magic, and more that magic is capable of affecting psionics, and beasts that resist magic also resist psionics in equal measure.

Psionics as a whole then isn't a trump to magic resistant things, its another way to interact with the eldritch forces of the world. In the same way that Sorcerers use magic through force of persona and Wizards use magic through introspection and contemplation of eldritch arts, so too do psions and wilders manipulate the currents of the astral planes and the ambient psychic forces of the world and themselves through introspection or force of will.

There are psionic powers that ignore spell/power resistance though, most have crystal or ectoplasm in their names I think.


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Elbe-el wrote:

I detest the Bard not for mechanical reasons...mechanically, the Bard unbalanced against other classes and very close to overpowered and broken.

My problem with the Bard is not with its effectiveness as far as the rules are concerned, but with the Bard's merits in an artistic sense...a ROLE-PLAYING sense. Simply stated, the Bard as a PC class makes no sense at all...even in a fantasy setting.

If this were World of Warcraft, where actual role-playing isn't a factor, then I'd never play anything BUT Bards (Paizo's writers tried too hard, I think, to make it a viable class). If game mechanics are all we're worried about, then it doesn't make any sense for anyone, anywhere, ever, at all, to play anything BUT a Bard (they can heal, buff, fight, do anything a rogue can do, and blast...why ARE there other classes?).

...but that isn't what I do. And it isn't what I want done to my art, science, and first love (is it REALLY just a hobby for you? Really?)

Simply stated, we're supposed to be better than that...more imaginative than simple DPR calculations. If that is what my life's passion has been reduced to, well...I have no answer for that but sadness.

Driving and inspiring your allies in the heat of battle with epic poems, or soul stirring performances of musical pieces that pump your moral such that victory is snatched from the jaws of defeat, such that a even match becomes a route and spinning the tale afterward around the campfire or at the local inn doesn't fit in your fantasy?

Studying a bit here and a bit there in the arcane arts, the art of combat, a dizzying array of learned skills, and the practical application the great folkloric performances of myriad peoples and cultures of the world seem like class abilities no one in a fantasy setting should have to you?

You couldn't riff with any of this? Really?

The Bard is more than just crunch, it is some of the fluffiest crunch. Maybe you should give it another read and see where that takes you.


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I don't see what the issue is. Undead shouldn't feel pain, undead have no live nerves, and consist entirely of dead matter. They shouldn't be able to taste necrotic flesh, that's why they don't eat their own kind. Positive energy dissipates undead and makes them wither, the same way negative energy opens wounds on living creatures. It should kill them, but not torture them. Torture inflicts non lethal damage. Undead are immune to that. All the pcs did was disarm him and threaten him with destruction, which is psychological torment, but since he is a warped, psychotic mockery of all that is living, he deserves no pity.

An undead can be wounded, it can be threatened with distruction and disarmed of its component parts, but it can't really be tortured unless you bring it back to life so that it can feel pain again.


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wraithstrike wrote:
Ed Girallon Poe wrote:

While I'd definitely allow it at my gaming table (since I don't see it being anymore broken than the synthesist already is), it does seem to "replace" The Eidolon class feature. The thing that puzzles me is the "This ability alters the normal summoner’s eidolon class feature, but is otherwise identical to that class feature" part. Marking for FAQ, cuz I'd like to have absolute proof.

Quote:
A character can take more than one archetype and garner additional alternate class features, but none of the alternate class features can replace or alter the same class feature from the core class as another alternate class feature. For example, a paladin could not be both a hospitaler and an undead scourge since they both modify the smite evil class feature and both replace the aura of justice class feature. A paladin could, however, be both an undead scourge and a warrior of the holy light, since none of their new class features replace the same core class feature.

This. But I think as a GM I would allow it in a home game if you gave a good reason why you wanted it for flavor purposes.


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chaoseffect wrote:
It's ridiculous for a man with years of hard practice and dedication to beat a dragon in a fist fight, but not ridiculous for a random person with slightly above base intelligence to be able to shoot rainbows out of his hands that are so intense they blow your mind.

Needed this laugh.

+1 so hard


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I actually really like the idea of a half elf sorcerer saying "it's okay guys, I got this" While being filled with ancestral power and channeling the eldritch learning of one of a thousand generations of sorcerers in his line who expanded their arcane knowledge, then the next few rouns cutting loose with the newfound arcane knowledge. I see this spell as being a last ditch effort trump card kind of thing for when your character is looking to "go nova" anyway.


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This is shocking! People who want to "threaten" can do so by wearing spiky gauntlets?

This is clearly a design mistake as it does not make sense in context. Why would someone with blades sticking out of their gauntlets be able to slash at people who leave clumsy, careless openings? Large spiky gauntlets were not intended to threaten anyone and should instead cost 2,000 gp per hand and have the "kitten bottle feeding" special quality.

But no, seriously, the rule works the way it is supposed to work in context and in reality.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----

To answer the question posed by this thread, if you don't want to appear threatening, and you don't expect trouble, there is no reason to wear spiked gauntlets.

If you want to be able to say "I didn't do it, honest" when someone gets slashed, you use a dagger, you can hide that on your person with slight of hand. Its much harder to prove that you are not guilty of something if your cold, threatening metal spiked hands are dripping with gore.

Also, if you are going somewhere where you would be expected to take off or sheathe weapons, you may just flat out be asked to leave spiked armor or spiked gauntlets at the door.

If your spiked gauntlets aren't properly invested in, they are not even going to matter at higher levels when they can't punch through DR 5/cold iron, silver, magic, law, evil, let alone DR 10/anything, so at that point, they might as well not be on your character sheet.

Besides, as you can draw any weapon as part of a move action if you go more than 10 feet, the novelty of always being armed without having to draw a weapon will wear off fast when everyone else can do so as a part of an action where they are casting a spell, charging, moving to the side to flank and inspire courage, or do anything else involving moving 10 feet in a round anyway.

In addition to this, you could always say that you are carrying a dagger in one hand, and it is mechanically almost the same, save for not being disarm-proofed, except that you could always say that you drop or throw the dagger, while the spiked gauntlet takes more to get rid of.

A dagger is superior for wizards as wizards are proficient with daggers and can throw daggers if they find need to do so.

Clubs are free and thus are superior for druids for the above reason.

TL;DR: The rules work as intended and as written for spiked gauntlets.


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Elondor wrote:


-wizards not being combat viable (think gandalf. I suppose he was a gestalt fighter/wizard. I also suppose magus 'fixed' this)

I don't know what you are talking about, probably because I am too busy cleaving orcs in half with my longsword as a 1st level elvish transmuter. After that I will probably still be too busy casting mage armor, shield and extended bulls strength to notice whatever it is you are talking about. After I am done casting transformation and becoming better than the fighter at being a fighter, then I think I can find some time to talk about it.


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Kelsey MacAilbert wrote:
I'm building up a campaign setting that goes into adult topics. Specifically, I plan to use my copy of The Book of Erotic Fantasy when building the cultures and when RPing certain characters.

Do not do this, do not open the book of erotic fantasy. That book is terribly inane, silly, and has art that will kill even the most fierce of desires.

Quote:
I also plan to eventually do a PBP off this site.

Then don't go into graphically explicit detail about sex. As a story teller you should be showing that sexuality has an impact in your world, rather than telling what is oozing or engorged. Use clever wordplay to skirt around the issue of sex, most words in shakespear's plays are sexual sland and innuendo from his time period. All cultures have sexual practices, if you look into those more unique sexual practices, they often manifest in culture and religious practices. Cultural practices around the culture of sex in your setting will be more evocative to players than what specific acts look like and/or a how to guide.

Quote:
This PBP is planned to go into topics such as rape (the incident happens "off camera" [I'm not going to far as to write out a rape scene], but it has a major effect on the storyline),

What? Like, pregnancy? Or war? If you are not typing out a rape then why would you need to ask permission? Look at the bestiary entry for skum. Or half-orcs, or orcs regarding half-orcs.

Are you trying to explore the psychological impact of the rape? Are you forcing player characters to deal with their characters being raped? I don't get it.

If you want to include rape you can just say "She bares his child now, but not by choice." and be done with it. Showing, not telling is the mark of a good storyteller anyway.

reasonable things to expect given the time period the game represents wrote:
genocide, racism (both human on non-human and human on human), homosexuality, and consensual sexual relations.

None of the these things are controversial. Hobgoblins are genocidal, most evil humanoids are genocidal, goblins ACTUALLY eat babies. Some nonevil humanoids are genocidal, some cultures are genocidal. This is all within the pathfinder campaign setting cannon.

Quote:
I'm particularly worried about the sex and racism. I use cultures based off of real life ones, so the racism isn't just elves and orcs going at it. Is Paizo going to tolerate this, or is it a definite no-no?

Human on human racism exists between Chelish colonialists and the Mwangi in the inner sea world guide and pathfinder campaign setting respectively.

Also, there is an encounter in Pathfinder #1 Burnt Offerings involving sexual promiscuity and misconduct of certain NPCs and the ramifications it can have on the characters in game if not handled delicately.

In other words, why are you even asking this question?

So, to be clear, you want to have a section in your published campaign setting about how the characters are supposed to have sex based on their region? The book of Erotic Fantasy was probably refused on the grounds of eye-raping art and stupid, stuuuupid spells alone. LOOK AT ME, I HAVE A GIANT PENIS ARM SPELL.

I blame the book of Erotic Fantasy for everything bad about 4th edition.

Quote:
To paraphrase, can I have coverage of sexual behavior and human on human racism based off of real life cultures in a Pathfinder compatible pdf, or not? Can I run a PBP campaign set in said world off of this website, or not? Finally, could I get a set of clear limits on what Paizo will and will not tolerate in this regard?

You haven't stated what sexual things you would be including, other than things that already can be covered or have been covered in Paizo content. Besides describing explicit details of rape, that I know of. Again, look at the skum and orc entries in the bestiary, its an excellent example of how to tactfully include information about sex in your fluff.


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Ultimate Combat wrote:

Rage Mutagen

At 2nd level, whenever a ragechemist creates a mutagen that improves his Strength, that mutagen grants the ragechemist a +6 bonus to Strength, a +2 bonus to natural armor, and a –2 penalty to Intelligence. Furthermore, while under the effects of this mutagen, whenever the alchemist takes damage, his rage grows, with detrimental effects. At the end of each turn that he takes hit point damage, the ragechemist must succeed at a Will saving throw (DC 15, or DC 20 if any of the damage came from a critical hit that turn) or take a –2 penalty on Will saving throws and to Intelligence. These penalties end 1 hour after the mutagen ends and stack with themselves. If the penalty lowers the ragechemist’s Intelligence score to 0, the ragechemist is comatose until 1 hour after the mutagen expires.
This ability replaces poison use.

The alchemist mutagen class feature specifies that it grants a +4 alchemical bonus to an ability score. Barbarian rage specifies that it grants a moral bonus to ability scores, and spells like bull's strength grant an enhancement bonus to ability scores.

The above class feature seems to grant an untyped bonus of +6 to strength, meaning the bonus from rage mutagen would stack with with any other bonus. I think the intention was to add an additional +2 whenever an alchemist brews a strength enhancing mutagen. The ability could use a bit of clarification.

Is this ability supposed to grant a net +2 increase to strength when using strength based mutagens, or is it really supposed to pump the user up to +10 (+4 alchemical, +6 untyped) strength at level 2?

I support it either way, it sounds like a wicked option to have at your disposal as an Alchemist 2/ Barbarian X


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Aelryinth wrote:

No, it's a cop-out. I specifically asked for viable Melee solutions, potentially usable by any class, and not just specific archetypes.

You're basically saying "Don't use Melee." Hence, cop-out.

==Aelryinth

TWO WEAPON FIGHTING.

There, I used caps, maybe that will get your attention. Its one feat with few prerequisites and it lets you make an offhand attack at your highest base attack bonus -2. Or you can do so without the feat for -4/-4 which is not too much in the scheme of things, crane boy is still eating a -2 to hit you with style at 5th level.

That or you can throw your primary melee weapon. Or fight defensively, or total defense action and ignore him. Or delay till he ends his turn next to you and full attack if he is too far away. Or you could get pounce. Or be an alchemist with feral mutagen and get 3 attacks at your highest BAB, or be a Barbarian or Sorcerer and get two claw attacks at your highest base attack bonus, or be a magus and attack with your one handed weapon and one spell.

Thats just a few of the things I can think of off the top of my head. There are plenty of other melee options.

satisfied?


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Aelryinth wrote:

I've always considered that when the other side of an argument resorts to mockery and hyperbole that they've acknowledged they've lost, so no skin. And when others chime in with their opinions on posters without contributing to the discussion, they are acknowledging it, too.

So, I love it. The best defense that you can't cut a bowstring is that bowstrings DO NOT EXIST. What a WONDERFUL argument. That sure makes sense!

As for bringing in the devs, my gut feeling is they'd go 'sure, go ahead.' JJ tends to do that when you ask him something.

And a 3 foot long taut string is a Fine object? I think you have your view of a fine object somewhat skewed. Maybe if I'm trying to cut it along the perfectly vertical axis...but hitting a bowstring isn't going to be harder then hitting the edge of a door as far as size goes. Do you have problems swatting at a yardstick?

Have you ever fenced with yardsticks? Now imagine that your opponent is holding the yardstick dead center. Now imagine that there is something hanging off to the side of it, now imagine that you have to get a good hard whack at the stick hanging off of the other stick. now imagine that your opponent is dancing back because he wants to shoot arrows at you while you try to hit the stick with your stick. Now you have to avoid the arrows, catch up with him and match his maneuverability. My guess is that you would have a few too many arrows sticking through your chest to cut that bow string, if that is what you were focusing on hitting. To use your analogy.


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Aelryinth wrote:
Archomedes wrote:

There is such a thing as two weapon fighting, you know.

Edit: to clarify, this is how you hit a crane style user at level 5, before access to iterative attacks.

No. The problem here is you need a full attack action to hit the Crane, and the Crane is moving around and limiting you to standard actions, i.e. one swing.

Then pull out your daggers or darts and throw them at him. They would then be ranged weapon attacks and ignore his deflection ability.

Aelryinth wrote:
Unless you've a way of dealing out multiple swings on a standard action, you're in trouble.

You can throw anything as an improvised ranged weapon with a range increment of 10ft by taking a -4 non proficiency penalty. Assuming that you don't have a ranged weapon on your person. As a standard action. Ignoring deflection. You can even two weapon fight with improvised ranged weapons as a standard action.

Aelryinth wrote:
I should also like to point out that the simple ability to parry away your BEST attack in an exchange of full attacks, and then generate an extra attack for himself, caters nicely to the Crane technique if he doesn't want to do the 'float like a butterfly' scenario. You lose your attack most likely to hit, and he gets one extremely likely to hit, which skews the damage exchange nicely.

by taking a penalty to hit on all attacks, being forced to make an attack every round or spend a full round defending every round and spending a bunch of feats. Additional limitations include not being able to two hand weapons, two weapon fight, or carry a shield with your off hand. Also, the feats you spent are useless for deflecting ranged attacks and are meaningless versus spells.

I would say that given the trade offs, crane style is balanced, wouldn't you?


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Crane Wing lets you deflect one melee weapon attack per round.

You can make an offhand attack with your gauntlet, your shield or your backup weapon if you have to duel such an opponent.

There is such a thing as two weapon fighting, you know.

Edit: to clarify, this is how you hit a crane style user at level 5, before access to iterative attacks.


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I want to believe.

It would be delicious from a flavor standpoint: a monk bedecked in rustic, unassuming garb that doesn't entirely suck compared to his friends. His worldly possessions not glowing like Christmas lights, he is free to take pride in his own accomplishments, and not boast about or become distracted by his worldly possessions, as they do not look that interesting.