BishopMcQ's page

The Library structure in Kingmaker did this on a broader scale.

Effects While in a settlement with a library, you gain a +1 item bonus to Lore checks made to Recall Knowledge while Investigating, as well as to Researching checks, and to Decipher Writing checks.

I think a book doing it for a specific Lore is fine, but I would have it be a 10 minute thing not a 1-action thing. If it was measured in actions, the mechanic would step on class design and some magic items.

Bag of Holding + Portable Hole = Astral rift

https://2e.aonprd.com/Equipment.aspx?ID=2195

The Bag of Holding was remastered into the Spacious Pouch. I would guess that the Portable Hole if it is ever remastered will not have that functionality.

I made a NPC human fighter, rebounding toss, ricochet stance, quick reversal and combat reflexes. All in on Athletics and fun skill feats with same.

Most of the time it was shield tossing, and shoving or disarming folks. Was he the biggest damage dealer around, no. Was he a ton of fun to play for a few sessions without outshining the BDH in the group, definitely.

It gave me some ideas on how I would remake him if I was going to play as a long term character.

Ed Reppert wrote:

Don't schools teach basic logic any more?

Weren't you reading? They got rid of schools.

I thought the Wizard blurb provided whole new schools of civic wizardry and fire pickles.

I think we just need to polish it up. Clearly the Kineticist's biggest issue is that it keeps moving around. The further it moves, the less energy it has. We can fix this with a little bit of polish and create the truly powerful, Potentialist.

The Potentialist doesn't need to worry about gates or composites. It has untold power, drawing that power from all that passes around it, even vast cosmic forces.

The Potentialist synergizes well with the Inventor, as the Inventor can truly exploit Mechanics to help the Potentialist spring into action. The Potentialist has truly explosive responses when combining with others. With a simple charge, the Potentialist can become electrifying to watch.

If you are standing in a well lit area, with no cover, then the fighter is going to be more likely to hit. If the enemy is hiding behind cover, the Ranger is more likely to spot them and be able to attack at all.

Also, the fighter spends 2 actions to Double Slice or Power Attack. The Ranger spends 1 action to Hunt Prey, 1 action to Twin Takedown or Hunted Shot. Or the Ranger can give their party all bonuses on hurting the monster.

Level 2 - The fighter gets a new way to hurt people in well lit areas. The Ranger gets a new way to be in the wilderness, ignoring difficult terrain to be able to get away from monsters or close the distance on them while the fighter splashes through the muck.

Fighting on an open battlefield in the morning or in a well-lit tavern, yes the Fighter is going to hit more frequently. Good for them.

Fighting in the outdoors with factors like poor lighting, underbrush, and fog, then the ranger will do better.

Are you really going to sit here and use an anecdote to excuse the disgusting mess that is an Improve Knockdown Fighter? Show me any single action in the game as efficient as a Fighter knocking a boss flat on their back while dealing damage.

It is 2-actions and requires two feats. There are some other limitations around it as well.

Now, does that feat need to be rebalanced? Possibly.
Is a single edge-case proof that a class is entirely overpowered? No.

Having run games with a fighter and several other characters, the Fighter did not consistently outshine the other characters. Each character had time in the spotlight.

A bucket of sand is a finite object. A cup of water. Yes, it is made up of smaller parts -- but then again so is the tree. Pathfinder is not designed for us to get into the cellular level. The pedantic answer for measuring gas would be to do a volumetric analysis, understanding partial pressures. This would require some assumptions that Golarion's atmosphere is similar to Earth's.

If it was a sapling, yes, I would say that it probably could be done within the bulk limitations. Just not a tree large enough for a bridge (unless it was a bridge for ants).

Using base kinesis to weed a garden, where the phytokineticist looks at a weed and says "No" and it goes away, would be reasonable.

I would likely say that the Tree is one object, and can't have a portion suppressed. There are plenty of other ways to knock down a tree.

Hello, there appears to be a minor layout glitch with the interactive map file for Dreamers of the Nameless Spires. The title page on the file that I downloaded from the store last night has the cover art for Dreamers, but the title says "They Watched the Stars"

The maps all align to the adventure for Dreamers, so it's functional. It just looks like the cover page needs an update.

I would roll my dice and just apply attacks from left to right. As long as you have a consistent routine that doesn't make anyone think that you are cherry-picking specific dice for specific modifiers, it should be fine.

I've also made index cards with my common attack sequences or placed trimmed index cards into a sheet protector designed for baseball cards or similar, then used a wet erase marker to add modifiers.

There are a lot of options. Play around with a few and figure out what works best for you.

Alternately, turn the grid off and break out a tape measure. 1" = 5' move your characters around freely. 5' reach, anything within an inch is a fair target.

Welcome (back) to wargaming, which in many ways is the grandparent of modern roleplaying games. This also allows for actual circles, lines and cones rather than the corner cuts you deal with on a square grid.

Provides for an equal level of tactical simulation to account for abilities that would require a grid.

But what about Androids? Nothing. Do they need to eat? Maybe, maybe not.

Androids breathe, eat, and sleep like a human, although they're incapable of biological procreation.

That part was clear. I agree that a lot of the rest of this can get murky.

From the thread for the Product Discussion, it sounds like they were custom maps, not an existing map pack. One of the GMs who ran it previously offered to link a copy of custom minis they made (cardstock print outs) early on release date for other GMs who might want them.

Can we move the subforums for closed Playtest to the bottom of the list? Maybe do this 2-4 weeks after the Playtest finishes if there is still significant traffic into those threads in the immediate debrief period.

Another thought would be to keep the Advice and Rules forums up closer to the top.

Right now, if I come into the PF2 forums there's General Discussion, then Dark Archive Playtest, Dark Archive Playtest General, Psychic, Thaumaturge, then 4 more subforums for Guns and Gear, 4 more for Secrets of Magic, then finally Advice, Rules Discussions, and the products, 3pp, etc.

You could also take all the guns out, then call them to you later on in case you are going somewhere they won't let you carry weapons.

Most people make you hand over the gun, not take off the entire belt.

I like it for the ability to pull a gun, do the fire/reload etc as necessary. If I need to drop the gun, that's fine. I pull the next one out when my hands are available. When all is said and done, I can bring the guns back to me and not have to worry about retracing my steps or if I dropped it overboard etc.

Niche use, definitely. Full of flavor, sure. Optimized to help maximize DPR, not at all.

Unless you are fighting enemies that are significantly lower level, that third action is almost always better spent doing something other than attacking. Raise a shield, Step away, or even just switching your grip on a weapon.

Order vs Chaos has been a frequent struggle in story telling. Babylon 5 did a good job of showing how those two approaches can lead to Good and Evil actions, as well as, the redemption arcs of those who ally with one side then realize what the cost of that philosophy will mean for the rest of the world.

While immortal, inscrutable forces of the universe may follow them, I think mortals are going to end up with a messy gray all over the place. That gets even more complex when you consider the intent behind the choice, the unknown consequences of that choice, etc.

I really like the way a few spells have different effects based on the number of actions spent to cast them. I just wish more spells leaned into that action economy rather than most being a flat 2-actions.

Historic enemies can become allies. Gods can change or at least the mortal interpretations of their words can change and new covenants formed. The world grows and adjusts.

Enemies are not constant. The enemy soldier swinging a sword at my comrade in arms will not be shown mercy in the middle of a fight. The enemy soldier who surrenders is not an enemy, they are a prisoner of war.

Should I kill them out of hand? No, that's being evil.

Should I let them return to their homeland and believe that they'll never raise a sword against my kin? That's a big murky gray spot full of situational context.

Pointing at a quote from a decade ago, from an individual who doesn't work for the company any further (to my knowledge), doesn't say where the lore is today. It tells us where the lore and belief was at that moment. Ask yourself where will the world be in another decade?

Sounds like the Red Warlock in Oglaf (Realistic Goals).

That specific comic is safe, but other comics on the same site are NSFW, so no link.

Well, I've played PF since launch, and earlier editions of D&D before that. Roleplaying in general for pushing 30 years. All that said, I have only around 200 posts on this forum. There are plenty of people like me, I'm sure who read but don't post frequently. Plenty more who play with their friends and don't contribute to these forums at all.

I think it would be easier to shift the conversation to an IC perspective. To be seen as a veteran of the Pathfinders, how many expeditions do you need to have gone on? I could see them grading within their chapterhouses, much the way that military units have done for centuries. Survived the battle of XXX, explored the caverns of YYY, and you're a veteran. Done 10 of these great deeds, you're seen as an ace of aces, or similar.

The pathfinders also have a history of grading your participation by what you did. Council of Thieves included venturing into a cursed and forgotten Pathfinder lodge, where the heroes learn all about some of the inner politics of venture-companies and what happens when people feel they've been dealt with unfairly.

I noticed that the files for just Book 1 (Adventure and Interactive Maps) are the same size as all of the files for the Abomination Vaults (Adventures and Maps).

Age of Ashes - 133 mb
Extinction Curse - 184 mb
Agents of Edgewatch - 293 mb
Abomination Vaults - 155 mb (for half as many books as previous APs)
Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - 546 mb

That brings in Fist of the Ruby Phoenix as nearly the same size as the first 3 APs combined. What's changing?

Temperans wrote:

Making it so it gives the full +2 always means that characters would be incentivized to get their primary and secondary to 22. Which is impossible in the current system without a gracious GM.

And tertiary... and whatever fourth is.

Quaternary

I would imagine that Shelyn and her followers would be fine with polyamory and polygamy as she supports love in its varied forms.

Non-standard die cuts would likely have to be made. Depending on the exact shape these could be rather expensive and single use. (How often are you going to need 3 square edges and a cut out around a halfling bartender with tray?) Last I checked, custom cutout stickers are not cost effective in mass production if the cuts need to change frequently.

This could possibly be overcome by printing squared off stickers on clear, with an opaque background to cover text. Then you are just changing the print area of opacity vs clear to see artwork.

The other problem with stickers is that they thicken the book. One or two stickers you may not notice, but to test it out take an old spiral notebook and a few sheets of mailing labels. Place the labels throughout the spiral as if covering over text. You will notice that the repeated thickness will begin to make the book thicker. This places additional stress on the binding and make it so the book does not fit on the shelf as well.

Solutions:
Spiral bound books - depending on the extent of the errata, remove the spiral, print and replace the errant sheets, rebind. Problems here - most consumers don't have a spiral punch so the pages would have to be pre-punched to match the others. Spirals will shorten with each clip/removal/rebind and so spirals will need to be sold separately to allow for replacement as they age. Pages also tear free of spirals so consumers will need the ability to replace damaged pages over time.

Digital Files - Similar to the PDFs that we have now, include a markup layer to notate when text was changed between printings to allow for clarification. Problems here - technology problems between different readers may prevent layers from working properly. Some cost involved in layout effort though it should be minimal as all information currently exists.

Errata book - print full pages and bind as separate reference book. Include CIA approved redaction device, for redacting original text to clue readers in that they need to reference the errata. Problems here - Consumers may not wish to pay for separate product, so reference should be available digitally. Thematic fit between government espionage and a high fantasy RPG is questionable.

I've used initiative cards since PF1. They contain a brief rundown of saves and skills for each character. Then I print out a page of random d20 rolls for players from Excel. Add the number on the card to the number on the sheet. Line through so that I know it's been used. It takes some prep work, but it goes fast in the moment.

Similarly I pre-print a list of NPC names with a few blank lines next to each one. That way if they suddenly want to get cozy with NPCs that I had expected to be window dressing, they can be incorporated straight in to the story.

With Roll 20 and COVID, I find it easier to do the secret rolls because I just click on their sheet.

But it doesn't entail the survival of the experience-ER. No one cares about object immortality, just subject immortality.

You continue to make bold statements "no one," "never", "always."

There are many people that faith in their legacy, their family, or some other purpose continuing on after their individual death is worth their own personal life, or that their life is complete and the struggle of survival is no longer necessary. The struggle for personal survival and continuity at great cost, especially damage to the community is the difference between a healthy psyche and a damaged one.

Would you personally make the choices that you are espousing as something that must be done to fight against the scourge of mortality?

Also, where in any of these books does it discuss what the common townsperson or even a parish cleric knows about the travel of the soul and their outcome after shaking off this mortal coil? I don't see anywhere in the River of Souls that says any of that is common knowledge or even known amongst mortals.

In which lore book is this explained?

Planar Adventures, the River of Souls section has a great explanation of cosmology and the soul in Golarion. It's PF1, but there are no mechanics purely the lore behind the cycle as it relates to Pharasma and the rest.

My take on it is "That's odd" tells the players they need to spend time in the area and nudges them in a direction. Sometimes they will be in the middle of something else and have to remember to come back, other times they will be able to look into the matter immediately. If there are multiple things to find in an area, it gives them one of them.

There's also the fact that by choosing to be an investigator to be good at finding clues, they are making the choice to not be a different class or if they multiclassed into Investigator not having other dedications.

Some of the more advanced feats are also labeled as Uncommon, meaning that before "Who Dunnit" gets added to the game, the GM has to decide it's something they want.

In the murder investigation scenario, there are the physical factors of where the murder happened, who did it, and how. There is also the motive behind it.

When the party comes into the study, they could find:
a- A painting is askew (there's a secret passage behind the portrait showing how the killer moves around the house unseen)
b- the ashes in the fireplace (Contains bits of burnt paperwork -part of the motive of killings)
c- a ribbon discarded under a chair (hinting that all of the guests were given presents)

Across the hall, the lounge is where the murder happened:
a - the door locks from the inside and the murder victim still has the key (suggests the murderer was already in the room)
b - body shows signs of blunt trauma to the head (rule out edged weapons)
c - a candle has fallen from the mantle (fireplace here is also a secret passage - candle fell when moving)

So now, the party has two secret passages to explore; a lead on motive something that was in those papers, but they don't know what yet; knowledge that the killer either was stealthy enough to open a secret passage without causing alarm or was able to hide/be invisible in the lounge; gifts were given to all the party guests - everyone had a weapon; killer used a blunt weapon - either was given it or able to get it away from the original owner unnoticed.

Plenty of clues in 2 rooms to lead toward the investigation without giving away that it was Colonel Mustard with the Lead Pipe and that he was being blackmailed for war profiteering.

GMing this campaign right now for different groups I'd say

Book 1

Book 2

Book 3

Book 4

Book 5

Book 6

From a story standpoint, separating the eidolon from the summoner feels a lot like the story from the His Dark Materials trilogy.

I was thinking back to the Tome of Battle, some of the schools that the sword sages used would flow neatly into magus tricks. Running and leaving flames in your wake, coating your weapon in fire, summoning shadowy tentacles to entangle those beside you. Having things like that, even if they are archetypes that lean into the niche. This could also create the design space for an occult magus, an elemental/primal one, etc.

It doesn't look like we will get an arcana pool like the 1E magus had. If the lower level spell slots could instead be converted into tricks--when the magus out grows the 1st level slots, they instead get to trigger Fleet Step twice per day. A spell that targets the magus only, once it is chosen, it cannot be changed. The spells could also be linked to the magus' synthesis, to show whether they are the fast moving, stalwart and steady, or distant and aloof type.

This would provide magical tricks--incorporating sword and sorcery throughout, without increasing spellslots for balance against the rest of the class.

In your top hat of course.

I have it on good authority to "never trust an elf"

I understand, the scenario you're describing would be unbalanced. I'm looking for a balanced approach where I only have to trust my luck once rather than twice for a single effect.

I dislike the double roll as well. For spells that require an attack roll, I think it can be a single roll from the Magus. For spells with a saving throw, the target still gets a saving throw (I'm not rolling that die, so I don't mind as much the 2 dice in this scenario).

The increased effect on a critical from the strike balances against the choice that I may miss entirely and waste the confusion spell, from Paul's example. If I hit and do well, it makes it a little harder for the wizard to resist.

Re: Spellstrike, I will say that I dislike the two rolls as currently laid out. I loved the change to critical effects in 2E that made it a single roll, I don't need to roll again to confirm. The fact that the spell is being channeled through the weapon makes the second roll seem unnecessary.

I like the improved effect on a crit, it makes Saving Throw spells feel like they are getting something out of the need to attack instead of the spell automatically hitting. Some of the restrictions with the Spellstrike mean that it may not always be the optimal choice--if I need to hit two targets it might be better to cast Electric Arc on its own rather than channel through the sword.

2E has a mechanic through Arcane Archer that Spellstrike can draw from. I do think that since Spellstrike is a core function of the base class, it should be a little better. Simply removing the second attack roll would fix that in my mind.

I like the synthesis. Yes, some may be more optimized than others, but they each provide a unique feeling and approach. Given the dramatic change in spell slots, some clarification should be added in a sidebar about how the loss of low level slots interacts with various magic items that are based on slots. This is because many players use the books and don't scour internet forums and Twitch feeds for clarification, so having it in the book will streamline the experience.

I'm not sure if it's been offered up before. What if Spellstrike allows you to use your weapon strike in place of the spell attack roll for Cantrips, keep the crit effect for Saving Throw spells. You could also cast spells without the sword to hit 2 targets with Electric Arc for example, but you aren't as good at it since your sword isn't involved.

Then you can do the hit with a sword and spell all day long. You can cast big boom spells from your slots or use them for buff spells. Take the feat to get some extra buff spells/slots.

Maybe have the modified Spellstrike work with a single weapon by default, then allow feats to add a different class of weapon.

I will be interested to see how getting a critical on the Strike improves the effect of the Spell Attack roll and how that balances against having a lower Spell proficiency level. It sounds cool, but without playing it out across multiple encounters how does it compare.

What impact will Capture Spell play into a magus' rotation?

Double Shot - two attacks against different targets, both at -2

Triple Shot - You can now A.) attack same target with Double Shot and B.) make 2 shots at -2/-2 or 3 shots at -4/-4/-4.

At least that's how I read it.

-----

The exacting strike could be 0/-5/-5 or 0/-5/-10 depending on if you hit with your second attack.

Is it worth the investment, balancing opportunity costs etc, is difficult to say because I've never found a game that plays the same as the white room simulation. Some days I never roll higher than a 7, and I have to start adjusting my choices to stack positive multipliers because I know my dice will fail me. Other days the dice are hot and only roll 10+ and I can be a little more risk taking. And some days the dice are normal, highs/lows and everything in between.

Is your character the type who wants to put the single perfect attack down range or fill the air with so many arrows that you get to fight in the shade? Neither choice is right or wrong, they're just different approaches.

With items not having specific slots, you can also talk with your GM about changing the appearance. An unobtrusive monastic order may have Clandestine Robes instead of a Clandestine Cloak. The magic functions identically, same cost etc.

The other thing I've noticed is that AC is good, but tactics are better. Knowing when to skirmish versus standing in the center to slug it out. There is some risk reward--I think we can finish the baddie this round if we all hit hard, if we don't this will hurt.

Having the higher AC, lowers the risk if your party favors the "stand there and take it" approach. The action economy becomes harder to balance for certain characters if you favor a running battle of small skirmishes.

Based on 1E, the hybrid prestige classes (different I know) had a later entry. BAB of +5 and the ability to cast arcane spells, Ability to cast 3rd level spells and proficiency in martial weapons, etc. These all started at 6th level entry. I look at proficiency gating to be the same type of design choice as a BAB requirement or number of Skill Ranks. It is a game design choice to delay the introduction of certain skills and abilities.

If Magus has a ranged option and a melee option, then the Eldritch archer is going to be for people who don't want the magus playstyle or want to be the primary class they chose with some flavor into the melding. Or perhaps magus will be built around melee only, but their spell selection and martial capability will meld right into the Eldritch Archer making it the go to class for accessing EA quickly.

Some characters have a deep and abiding faith, others don't. Some clerics proselytize, others don't.

One thing I like about clerics is the breadth of options, so that even two clerics of the same faith may embrace different aspects of their deity and have distinctly different vibes from each other.

Materially, the spell has little changed. It's expensive and it takes time to prepare in advance.

Making it a ritual instead of a spell opens the narrative space quite a bit, especially since Paizo has shown that you can have an 18th level baker who makes nearly divine cupcakes, but still can't fight even a 1st level character.

Yes, it takes multiple people to cast it. That would be your party members, henchmen, hirelings, etc. If you are worried about someone learning your secrets, there is the time-tested method of burying them in the tomb with you.

Personally, I find the rarity system to be a flag to a GM to consider the impact this will have on the story being told between the GM and players. Will it impact the story positively, throw it in. Will it detract, hold off for awhile. Just remember that it's a joint story being told from both sides, so if your character has overarching goals that will require something with a rarity tag talk with the GM to be sure that will fit.

I think it is reasonable for a character to see an effect and wonder "how did that work? Can I do that?" Then, when they return to town and start talking and researching (per the rules process), the character can learn how to do that.

Use the experience of seeing it done to prove that it's possible, and then engage in the study and practice to figure out how. This could also serve as a way for the GM to introduce Uncommon spells.

I like the Magus Styles. (Colored Knights from above) It also has some options to tie it into regional ancestry, ie. scarf dancing that can be Uncommon outside Varisia.

Options that allow Strike, Cast, Stride in a variety of ways within the round would be nice. An arcane charge, spell dervish, etc.