Well, if accuracy advanced with level and defense did not, then we couldn't have a +10/-10 crit system (and no one would miss at high levels). PF1 handled this via having a bunch of different things that added to AC, but it was a headache PF2 decided to do away with most of the mandatory magic items.
So the way we get AC to advance with level is we key it off the proficiency system. If it helps, we can look at it as "you are better at avoiding blows when wearing this armor."
A better solution would have been to tie your melee defense, to your melee skill, and relegate armor to reducing damage when you ARE struck.
Furthermore, differentiating armor(taking less damage) from defense(avoiding blows) would have seriously opened up the play space, and made monks and rogues much more mechanically distinct from fighters and barbarians.
Evil wizard throwing disintegrate rays everywhere? Get the dodgy rogue or mink out there!
Slow moving stone giant got you down? Bust out a sledge hammer that has a negative modifier to hit, but does a LOT more damage.
Also, a system like this would create an i game reason for iconic movie tropes like throwing away your shield when you are tired, or a bars throwing on full plate for special occasions like when you are about to face an army of enemies, and like it or not, SOME hits are getting through.
The many threads on this topic really drive home for me how close Paizo was to perfection this edition, and how they botched it at the last second.
The core elements for a classes system are basically all here in PF2.
Add an extra level of proficiency, so there are 5, roll all level requirements for feats into proficiency requirements, I.E. a level 4 fighter feat would simply becomes "expert proficiency in melee" while a level 7 fighter feat would require "master" etc. etc.
Roll all the combat oriented feats into "melee"
all magic feats into either arcane or divine, etc.
Provide some templates for classic classes, but let advanced players pick and choose what they want as they go.
- replace +1/level with 5e's prof chart
- add a level of proficiency (Untrained+0, Novice+1, Journeyman+2, Expert+3, Master+4, Grand master +5 (no using skills untrained, skills that can currently be used untrained, everyone just gets novice for free)
- Vit/wnds
- armor as DR
- taking wnd dmg adds penalties to rolls
- 4 actions 2 reactions standard
- light weapons take 1 action, medium take 2, large take 3
- remove multi attack penalty entirely
- replace most spells with variation on channel energy (use an action to generate power points based on a casting roll, multiple actions give bonus to the roll, spend power points to increase range, add damage, boost dc, add elemental effects, etc.)
- gate all feats by proficiency level, not character level
- remove classes entirely, while providing "classes" simply as prepackaged advancement for new players
Actually at this point I should probably just make my own game....
I would love to see a TTRPG lean into a paper rock scissors style of balance, wherein depending on the conditions, and the threats faced, a character could punch significantly above there level.
For example, I feel that a magic user should have no problem mind controlling a pure fighter many levels above him.
By the same token, if a fighter got the drop on a wizard many levels higher, where that wizard was not prepared for the encounter, was gagged, prevented from holding his focus, etc. then that wizard would be in deep trouble.
Another example would be creating a distinction between hard to hit opponents, vs hard to damage ones. Had vitality/wnds been made core, with crits going to wnds, and armor providing DR for wnd dmg only, you could give fighters a reason to drop the greatsword and pull a brace of daggers, or toss his shield in favor of a 2 handed grip on his sword.
This type of balance encourages tactics, and outside the box thinking.3.pf had some of that, and I would have loved to see that expanded, rather than removed.
Torn between removing feat siloing because it's a mind boggling bad idea or adding multiclassing into the game because I don't see how they could ship a D&D style game without multiclassing.
I think the rules are robust enough that with just a tiny tweak we can ditch classes entirely! (still present "classes", but they are just pre-canned advancement charts for those who would rather not play classless.)
Replace level requirements on feats with proficiency level requirements, and bam, super slick classless system. Infinite variety.
One thing I have considered changing about the mechanic, however (and I'm not sure how to go about it), would be to have critical hits always interact with hp in some way. Whether that means applying the bonus critical hit damage to hp, or the entire hit to hp, or some other split I have no idea. But I like the idea of criticals causing *actual wounds* that last.
I think that one of the Star Wars games had that mechanic, where you had stamina and health, and most hits took stamina off first, but a critical didn't do much more damage, but it dealt damage directly to health. If you hit them hard enough, you could take someone out with one shot, despite their full stack of stamina.
Original d20 SW, I had a GREAT time running that game!
AC was replaced with Defense, and armor only provided DR, which only applied when you were critically hit.
I added a house-rule that ranged attacks always did wound damage unless you were in cover(or were a jedi;)
If I were going to add that system to PF2, I would require spending an action to dive, take evasive action, etc. unless you had a shield or were in cover.
Pathfinder was always just a way to keep 3.x alive, and I was certain everyone felt that way.
This new edition offers some cool bits and bobs to be sure, but the class gating, item focus, magic nerfing, and excessive lawyering of the rules really rub me the wrong way. It's like they filled in all the little cracks you could get lost in, and all that's left is a video game, except I have to do the math.
More and more I am thinking i will replace +1/level with 5e's proficiency chart. I kinda like how it flattens things so that even low level enemies are always at least somewhat of a threat.
I'm sure this might have been discussed or suggested at some point, but I wanted to bring up the ramifications of changing proficiency to be a function of level instead of a direct modifier.
This addresses a lot of concerns surrounding the perceived value of being Trained vs Untrained and the value of being Expert vs Master/Legendary
You could make a completely modular classless system and I think that would be a great variant rule for experience groups but it is too much for most new players and really shouldn't be the default option.
I would still present the standard classes, built using a classless system behind the scenes, for new players.
Back of the book gives the whole deal.
Also streamlines things like feats instead of needing to reprint everything.
I would also merge turn undead with the monks stunning fist/ki powers, and add additional feats to designate energy type (force, pos/neg, fire, etc.)
I would have loved to have seen an edition that embraced wounds/vigor, and armor as DR as core.
It would have doubled down on the "dnd for grown-ups" thing that (imo) drew so many of us to PF after the 4e debacle.
The ability to differentiate fast but squishy opponents, from slow but tough targets would have really opened up the design space, while simultaneously addressing some of the "bounded accuracy" concepts that seem to be all the rage.
Goblin lucks out and crits your level 15 character? say hello to wnd(essentially CON) dmg!
How does the goblin crit your lvl 15 character? Even unarmored a lvl 15 character trained in unarmored has an AC of 26 which makes the goblin just hit critically on a 20, if you were any sliver of armor -> no can do.
DR as Armor is not really how armor works though, DR when armor gets hit maybe, in PF if armor is hit DR = DMG. If you wear a fullplate and I stab you in the armpit or the throat your DR is 0 -> as applied in the system.
A character with 27 armor will get hit by a goblin on a 20 but never will he be critted.
Wounds and vigor including armor as DR then need body zones and the like which is really complicated.
Well the great thing about goblins is there are always a bunch of them, so ONE is bound to roll that 20...
Also in Vitality/wnds systems ac (called defense) is much lower, as armor adds to DR, not AC.
I envision a L15 fighter with an Def(AC) of around 19 (10+half bab+dex)
Plus there are combat maneuvers, dog pile on the fighter, grapple him, hold him helpless, and stab, stab, stab, until something gets through...
Admittedly, for this sort of system to really work, a lot of things need tuning, but that can be said of any new system
It's honestly kind of cute seeing so many people complain about the caster nerfs. These nerfs were definitely needed with how dominant 9th level casting was in PF1... but then they've been coupled with major nerfs to the martial classes as well, with powerful tools moved much further back and more restricted (I'm looking at you, Spell Sunder). The best class in the playtest is easily the Cleric, and surprise surprise the Wizard falls in line at #2.
Yeah, they were really not needed, IMO. What was needed was moving the martials up to the level of casters in many respects. But I know that it is basically religious dogma for some that casters needed to be nerfed into the ground.
There is a type of "balance" that is clearly lost on paizo.
Balance between TYPES/MOODS OF PLAYERS.
The relative simplicity of martial classes exists to allow more casual gamers ACCESS to the game. The trade off of playing a caster vs a martial class is that PLAYING a caster is more complicated, and requires keeping track of more things.
I generally prefer more complicated characters to play, but once in a while I just want to smash stuff, and not have to think about managing resources, enhancing spells, crafting items etc.
Casters SHOULD be more powerful, because they require a greater investment of time and energy to play.
I don't think that this layer (heh) of complication adds anything that won't end with somebody finding a way to exploit the system in a way that will result in flame and tears.
gustavo iglesias wrote:
As someone who has tried this in a lot of different ways during the last 20 years, I am confident telling you it is not worth the effort.
You might be able to get it to work...if you completely threw out the conventional d20 model and took a radically different approach, and built it from the ground up to work with armor as DR (and dodge mechanics, or whatever else floats your boat), and got someone who is highly competent with the math to tune the system exactly to the point where the various armor/weapon options balance against each other. Then it might work.
That isn't happening. Pretty much guaranteed. They aren't throwing out multiple entire subsystems and creating a completely different game so PF2E can have armor as DR when armor as AC is sufficient if not better.
I 100% acknowledge the tangential nature of my post, though I do think system changes along these lines would have constituted a more interesting direction than the one taken, and would have been much better received by my simulationist ilk at least. Whether or not we make up the bulk of the player base or not remains to be seen, though I have a hunch my kind will end up old(er) and bitter(er) throwing dice at our keyboards, and excoriating the kids for just not getting how they wrong they are...
As someone who has tried this in a lot of different ways during the last 20 years, I am confident telling you it is not worth the effort.
I had great success running a Fallout themed game (using omega world D20 rules from an old issue of dragon) with my own homebrew variant of vitality/wnds system, with 3 tiers of "hits" Def(AC), def +5, def +10
Differentiating between being hard to hit, and hard to wound opens up all kinds of possibilities.
For example:
Fighting a big slow ogre? Two handed axes that have a negative modifier to hit, but do extra dmg, are the right call.
Likewise firing off a volley of arrows without taking your time to aim.
Fighting a fast moving foe? might be better to sling that axe and go for the quicker, more accurate (but weaker) short sword, or to spend a action to aim to make sure your arrow actually finds it's mark.
Same goes for the armor you choose to wear:
Going up against a horde of goblins? SOME of those little buggers WILL hit you, so best to bring the full plate.
Fighting a giant with a club that can crush steel as easily as bone? maybe leave the full plate at home, and try and be as nimble as possible!
1 - Action economy
2 - Proficiency (for SKILLS only, and with tweaks for wider spread[+ 1/2 level?])
3 - Bardic music
4 - spell caster multi-classing feats (not as a replacement for actual multiclassing, but as a way to enable the half-caster as an option for some classes) In fact I would remove the martial archetypes, along with the bard's spell casting (in exchange for more feats, more music, more combat prowess, etc.
Lame bits:
1 - proficiency for combat skill (bring back BAB, if only just for bonus, not multi attack)
2 - no real multi-classing. IMHO, multi-classing is what makes tabletop what it is, being able to build exactly the character you want from the available pieces.
3 - gated feats. Just generalize the combat/metamagic feats, and giv ethe fighter other cool stuff (feat sharing, leadership abilities, etc.)
I would have loved to have seen an edition that embraced wounds/vigor, and armor as DR as core.
It would have doubled down on the "dnd for grown-ups" thing that (imo) drew so many of us to PF after the 4e debacle.
The ability to differentiate fast but squishy opponents, from slow but tough targets would have really opened up the design space, while simultaneously addressing some of the "bounded accuracy" concepts that seem to be all the rage.
Goblin lucks out and crits your level 15 character? say hello to wnd(essentially CON) dmg!
I also love grappling, and I would just rule that if the grappler remains in control with a success, they can drag the target 5feet, on crit success the drag them 15.
Could someone explain to me how pf 2e is in any way LESS complicated that PF 1?
In PF 1, you pick a race, and a little blurb give you all the info you need on what playing as that race does
In PF2, picking you race, literally the first thing you do, requires you to pour over a big list of racial abilities, and try to decide what will be most useful to you, when you ostensibly have yet to PLAY THE GAME.
In PF 1, aside from casters, most of your classes abilities are neatly summarized right on the class table. You can see what you will get, and its name gives you an idea what it does.
In PF2, the class table just points you to a long list of options to pour over for each and every level, making it hard to get a feel for a class at a glance.
In PF1, if you wanted to multi class, you just took levels in the class you wanted levels in.
In PF2, if you want to multi class, you need to again pour over a list of possible options, which are essentially copies of abilities printed elsewhere in the book.
In PF1, combat feats, and metamagic feats are just that, feats, that only need to be printed once.
I definitely see a few cool concepts thrown into this edition, but the changes made to basic things like bab, class abilities, races, multi-classing etc. are just mind boggling.
Well - to add this to the discussion - I'll be happy if PF2 means they allow the devs to answer the questions about PF1 without a company meeting - 3 roundtable discussions, several 5 hour dev meetings, and then a straw poll to decide if the DC to jump over a 10 foot pit is 10 or 15.
You won't be the only one. Seeing FAQ threads unanswered for years after their product release (or be rejected as FAQ candidates), while Paizo seems hell bent on publishing new expansions with minimal testing (that make everything that much worse) has driven away several long term players in my group. They won't go to 5E (too simple), but Pathfinder has reached a point they consider unplayable without extreme frustration.
This is Paizo's big chance to make a fresh start with a product that might appeal to new players and grognards, without the baggage from earlier products. I can see Pathfinder dying a slow death if they screw it up, so we need to give the best feedback and testing we can, in the hope that it'll make a difference.
As grognard, I can say with certainty that this edition, as presented, does not appeal to my people.
... Which is not to say it without elements worth pilfering (Actions, proficiency [with tweaks to increase the bonus spread], and the new take on bardic music come to mind)
Ok, I don't want to get into an edition fight here, so I will be direct. No it is not 3.8. PF1 took 3.5 as far as it could. 5th ed is crushing Paizo in market share at this point. They are not trying to make another 3.5, they are taking the Pathfinder engine and making a NEW edition. That means taking risks and making changes. The 3.5/PF1 die hards will still be playing PF1 regardless of what happens with this Playtest.
I am also of the opinion that they will be opening up the options more in the full game. I think the playtest is intentionally restrictive to make sure classes fill there niches properly. That is speculation though.
The fact that 5e is crushing it, only makes it more baffling that paizo would seemingly try so hard to emulate 4e...
So here's the thing, I think that PF2e offers some really great and amazing ideas:
* The three action economy
* The way shields and multiattack interact with those
* The +/-10 critical system
* Scaling proficiencies
* Lots of choices in individual classes
These are all super innovative and I love them... That being said, the rest is pretty lackluster, and as currently presented, it's pretty easy to run 5e with the first three of those added (multiattack now reduces the penalty of your later attacks by 3, for example), and I think you wind up with a better overall system... That's a *big* problem, from my point of view, as 5e is also an overall simpler system, which makes it a draw. Pathfinder 2e might actually be *more* complicated than 1e as presented currently.
I absolutely agree, though I would roll the "ready shield" action, into a "fight defensively" action.
I also feel that the multi-attack penalty rules might be more complicated than they are worth (maybe just drop them and deal with more lethal melee?)...
My problem with the class (and race) choices, is that they seem to remove flavor from classes (and races) and force you to buy it back. This also has the effect of making the classes difficult to groc at first glance, which is not great for new players, or just daydreaming about builds)
A better route would have to just present the core path, and present options to swap class features later (ya know, like Paizo has done a MILLION times)
...I feel like --on a larger scale -- the two significant changes are really proficiency and class feature acquisition/progression rates, ...
And these two things are the main problem. The proficiency system completely changes the feel of the game. It removes the flexibility of the old skill system and leads to really weird effects.
I actually like the proficiency system for SKILLS (Just skills) Though I would have gone with like, half level, rather than FULL LEVEL, which just seams like a weird kind of one upsmanship over 5e's proficiency system...
And with real multi-classing, and maybe a feat the problems with signature skills are largely overcome.
I also like the way that skills have found their way into combat as a way to buff spells, or enhance other abilities.
I would also probably roll a lot of the skill feats back into the skill itself...
The biggest problem with the prof. system as iI see it, is that it has essentially done away with the middle road combat classes, which is probably why bard got full spell progression (which also doesn't sit well with me [bard = jack of all trades, master of NONE, imo])
I'm having a hard time keeping my own morale up let alone trying to sell the system to someone else. I've read a good proportion of the rule book, but I'm not looking forward to either making a character or running the game. It may play a lot better then it reads, but the layout and seemly weird rules are putting me off.
Apparently Vic said in another thread that the action system has been overwhelmingly well received at the convention play-tests. Not sure how I feel about that since not a huge fan of it, but at the same time it's not the thing that bugs me the most about the new edition.
The action system is like the one bit I like in this edition! In fact as other have mentioned, I would love to see activities (spells) that take more that three actions to cast, requiring planning over multiple rounds!
My biggest complaint is the lack of true multi classing, and the way that the classes have had nearly all their abilities pushed off into feats or powers, which means I can no longer just look at a class progression chart and get a feel for what the class can do.
planning weird or interesting builds via multi classing is, as far as I am concerned, the big advantage that tabletop rpgs have over video games, and the reason I have stuck with pathfinder (and dabbled with 5e).
Removing that core feature makes this edition a non-starter for me :(
I would say this edition is more dnd 4.5, than 5.5...
I had the same thought.
To be fair, it is no where near as bad as 4e, and I really do think it can be salvaged, if not by paizo, then by a bit of home brewing (bringing back bab, a few missing spells, and re-organizing the class feats back into the generic categories they belong in (combat, meta magic, etc.)
The updates to exploration mode seem fine, downtime rules are interesting, action economy is pretty nifty etc.
It's weird, I kinda feel like if you mixed the good parts of 2e with the good parts of 5e you'd end up with something pretty slick.
I welcome all the nerfing. It's more in line with 5E and other recent trends of getting away from all the absurdly ridiculous high power nonsense that is from a dated age of design
..... But.... if I wanted to play 5E, I'd play 5E. It already exists, and is lovely in its own way.
Maybe I should have expected this, but I didn't. Pathfinder 1E was effectively D&D 3.75. But somehow I didn't expect that Pathfinder 2E would be D&D 5.5.
I guess I'll try to change my expectations and start going over it again....
I would say this edition is more dnd 4.5, than 5.5...
I don't understand why people think there is LESS bloat in this system, the metamagic feats are duplicated between wizard and sorcerer, the familiar rules are duplicated between alchemist, wizard, druid, and sorcerer.
They also applied curious nerfs in many places, like removing feather fall from the bard spell list (occult, I know), and getting rid of cats grace, bulls strength, etc. (they clearly have a thing against stat buffs).
All the generic combat feats, are now fighter specific, which is weird for the other martials...
Overall it reads like 4e, but less awfull
This really feels like they un-did the majority of the things that made pathfinder a compelling alternative to 4e.
So far I think 5e definitely has an edge over 2e, but they make some wonky choices as well.
I really think this edition can be saved by going back to BAB, keeping the proficiency system for skills, and bringing back real multi classing.
The core mechanics are pretty solid, and no where NEAR as inconsistent and weird as 5e for things like combat maneuvers(trip grapple, etc).
Races also seem off, removing a lot of the quirky weirdness that made playing a non-human interesting, and adding needless complexity to the choice of what race to play (how long are people going to need to pour over the ancestry feats before they make up their mind?)
Also this book is organized very strangely, like how all the alchemical items are just lumped together in the same section, making it difficult to get a feel for all the elixers, bombs, mutagens, etc.
Also, needing to list the insane number of feats for each class in the class section just makes everything seem much more complicated than it needs to. (one of my big gripes with 4e).
And yeah, the way you build your stats just feels too formulaic, and really discourages playing against type.
In a world where Magic is a thing, why wouldn't everyone want some?
In terms of maintaining a semblance of balance, casting restrictions while wearing armor can cover that ground, as well as tying melee ability to AC, particularly in a system that generates a crit when you beat ac by 10. This would expose casters to serious pain, requiring more martial characters to protect them.
Plus, I mean not everyone always wants to deal with the complexities of playing a caster.
Pure melee builds are great for beginners, or people who just want to hit stuff.
That is another great thing about this type of gaming, everyone can play the way they want, and it is up to the DM to ensure that everyone is having fun, has a role to play etc.
Let's not forget that this is a COOPERATIVE game, and it is about more than just who's character is the most powerful.
That is why I feel like balance needs to take a back seat to letting people build the kinds of character they want to build.
...
1. Because this game has classes. If some options are so much better than other options then, inevitably, the "less powerful options" will be less appealing than the "powerful" ones. On these same boards we have people who kept posting stuff like "rolling a martial is suboptimal. They can't carry their weight! Play a caster instead!". Classes need to have their identity and their strong and WEAK points. Making classess that can do everything well is not going top make the game good.
2. Saying that's fine to have an imballanced system because the GM can always enforce ballance is not a solution. Especially because those players who want to be able to do whatever they want and build whatever they feel like with no restrictions are usually the same people who then make a fuss when the DM says no to them.
3. This is a cooperative game but you also want the freedom to build characters with no limitations and therefore able to solve any problem on their own? So why...
1. I concur, that is why I think ditching BAB was a bad idea. Especially in a system where beating ac by 10 means crit. If they went with vigor/wounds(unlikely, I know), and added bab to melee defense(ac) then a caster becomes VERY vulnerable to melee, and requires protection from physical threats.
2. I wasn't trying to imply that balance was not important at all, just that it needn't be a top concern, sorry if that wasn't clear on that point.
3. Limitations are great! The system as presented doesn't offer as many! as even the designers pointed out, the archetype multi-classing system allows you to avoid sacrificing your classes core abilities, while dipping into another class. In classic multi-classing, your have to sacrifice core class progression, you have to make trade offs, you have to balance how MAD your build will be, etc.
In a world where Magic is a thing, why wouldn't everyone want some?
In terms of maintaining a semblance of balance, casting restrictions while wearing armor can cover that ground, as well as tying melee ability to AC, particularly in a system that generates a crit when you beat ac by 10. This would expose casters to serious pain, requiring more martial characters to protect them.
Plus, I mean not everyone always wants to deal with the complexities of playing a caster.
Pure melee builds are great for beginners, or people who just want to hit stuff.
That is another great thing about this type of gaming, everyone can play the way they want, and it is up to the DM to ensure that everyone is having fun, has a role to play etc.
Let's not forget that this is a COOPERATIVE game, and it is about more than just who's character is the most powerful.
That is why I feel like balance needs to take a back seat to letting people build the kinds of character they want to build.
My big issue with multi classing in PF2e so far, is that while on a certain level it may technically offer more choices than 5e, you are a still a (class) + Feats.
I don't want to play a fighter who has some wizard abilities, I want to play a fighter 2/wizard 3, rogue 2/ blade dancer 5.
Digging into the classes, and there abilities, and planning fun, weird builds that take a while to come online has always been one of my favorite parts of table top role-playing.
If you are still the class you started as, you are not multi-classing, you are just poaching some abilities.
If this rule stays as is, I will be left with no option but to home brew something with my fellow grognards, at least until some other company comes along to eat Paizo's lunch, the way Paizo ate WotC's after the 4e debacle.
I really hope that Paizo fixes this before the final version, I am rooting for them.
I mean what is a Paladin really other than a more martial Cleric, who is just a more martial Priest?
The cleric doesn't have to be lawful good! The cleric has lots of spells and the Paladin doesn't. The Paladin also has a harsh code he must follow (cleric's does as well now, but it usually isn't so harsh).
And that is why every group I have ever gamed with HATED those goody two shoes Paladins! Seriously though, the way 5e handled paladins was pretty perfect, doubling down on the whole "intense dedication to a set of principles" thing, while opening up what precisely those principles were.
But from an abilities perspective, Paladin have always been essentially fighter/clerics, and the pathfinder rules presented so far really make it seem like a fighter who "multiclasses" into cleric, will be nearly indistinguishable, conceptually, from a straight paladin.
As others have pointed out, Pathfinder has become home to those who prefer a more "crunchy" system, rather than the more simplified, first timer friendly direction that WotC has been going.
By and large I feel that Paizo has really been knocking it out of the park with this new addition, but in some areas it feel like they are hedging their bets on "casuals".
And while I feel that making space for less experienced players is a great thing, I am seeing the potential here for a system that is truly capable of satisfying all levels of experience.
Present "Advancement paths" that mirror the traditional classes, but build them using a classless system under the hood, that will enable more experienced players to really open things up and build exactly what they want.
The pieces are all there, and I am really hoping Paizo can live up to that potential, if not in core, then in a supplement down the line.
Seems clear (to me) that the bold move here would be to ditch classes in favor of this new archetype/feat based system, then present the "classic" classes simply as templates that less experienced gamers can follow to play a more traditional class.
Meanwhile experienced players can build their perfect custom classless characters in any way they want.
You can also use this to simplify things a lot with regard to the hybrid classes (Paladin, Ranger, Bard)
I mean what is a Paladin really other than a more martial Cleric, who is just a more martial Priest?
I am liking this approach more and more as a class building system, rather than a multi-class system.
I had forgotten that re-training was intended to be a core part of this edition, and that does alleviate my concerns to some extent, depending on how those rules pan out, and if they extend to class levels.
"work with your GM" is a bit of a cop out when it comes to discussing the merits and flaws of a rules system, particularly as part of a playtest.
As others have pointed out, this isn't really multi-classing in the classic sense, and is so far really the only change I take any major issue with, at least in the context of how the rest of pathfinder 2e as revealed so far.
On it's own it is an interesting system, and if layered over a single "Adventurer" class, or the npc classes of old (warrior, expert, adept) would represent a really interesting shift away from classic dnd, and into something much more versatile, and customizable.
As things are shaping up, it feels like paizo is trying to have it both ways, push the envelope, but not TOO far, and for my dollar I would have preferred they pick a side, rather than try to split the difference.
Still excited to see the rulebook, as they have already proven that at the very least PF 2e will have lots of great ideas to steal from for my home-brew system.
PossibleCabbage wrote:
Dairian wrote:
At this rate, why not just ditch classes entirely?
Class features are already feats, BAB/casting progression are already standardized, why essentially reprint each class as an archetype, when you can just use a single base class, and grab the class features you like as you go, to the extent that you want them?
The problem I see with this approach, is that if my fighter does decide to dabble into wizard, he will not be able to switch gears and just focus on casting for the rest of his career.
Well, I think "this gets rid of classes eventually" is really a slippery slope. It is, currently, impossible to have fighter features, rogue features, wizard features, and cleric features since you don't have enough class feats to buy all those dedications. Classes are iconic and you're still getting over half of what you get in total from your level 1 class even if you spend all your class feats on archetypes and multiclassing.
As for "I fall into something and find I love it and want to do only that" style character changes, I figure that's something one can achieve via retraining. I suspect a lot of "I gave up the sword in order to cast spells" character concepts were motivated by how 3.x multiclassing required you to let your swordsmanship lapse, so aren't really necessary anymore however. I mean, I don't know why someone who is regularly involved in deadly combat wouldn't want to be good at as many different ways to stay alive and dispatch their enemies as they can.
At this rate, why not just ditch classes entirely?
Class features are already feats, BAB/casting progression are already standardized, why essentially reprint each class as an archetype, when you can just use a single base class, and grab the class features you like as you go, to the extent that you want them?
The problem I see with this approach, is that if my fighter does decide to dabble into wizard, he will not be able to switch gears and just focus on casting for the rest of his career.
Greetings everyone.
Do you think a "sandbox game" would be doable in the Lost Omens setting?
I want to play a solo sandbox campaign, but I'm not sure what to do.
Thank you in advance for your time and answers.
Note: I'm not going to play Kingmaker, I've already played it as a CRPG.
During your stay at the Grand Lodge in Absalom you've been invited to an audience in the Venture-Captain's office. The door is closed when you arrive, no sound come from the room.
Please feel free to introduce your character and make your acquaintance with each other.
Recently I dived headfirst into PbP games, both as PC and as GM, but it's starting to become complicated juggling all those tables at the same time. I don't want to leave any of that, I have plenty of spare time to play in all of them, but I don't know how to organize them to keep them under better control.
As of now I have my Chrome window always open with pinned tabs for each GSlides I'm using, AoN, Paizo, HLO, and Google Translate; I check the forum almost every hour I'm at my desktop, focusing the view on my active threads, but I start messing a bit my characters and mostly my GM's threads.
What do you use to organize your campaigns? Beside Paizo Campaign Tools extension, are you using any other software to keep track of your PbP games here on the boards?
The shaded gardens outside the Sandswept Hall provide a welcome respite from the sweltering midday sun. Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir reaches up to one of the date palms overhead, pulling down a bunch of ripe fruit to share with the table. They’re good for much more than shade, my friends. But I did not call you here to enjoy my garden. A few months ago, I finally received confirmation that we would be able to execute one of the last excavation permits issued by the Osiriani government. The site is a desert location where the dunes have shifted, revealing the beginnings of a staircase leading down beneath the sands.
The Osiriani government is protective of its cultural history, and with recent changes in their stance on allowing foreign archaeologists to work inside their borders, I wasn’t sure this permit would even stand. The bureaucracy was rather slow this time around, but it turns out we were approved before they stopped issuing permits. I’ve already secured your provisions, including camels, tents, food, water, tools to perform the excavation, and a map to the site. As you know, it may take many weeks to clear the site of debris. The desert can be unforgiving, so don’t hesitate to return here to rest as needed.
The government has already sent guards to oversee the site and protect against any potential thieves. Remember—keeping up a good reputation in Osirion is vital to the Pathfinder Society’s continued presence here. Don’t antagonize the guards.
Player Name: [Your Name Here]
Character Name: [CHARNAME]
Organized Play #: [XXXXX]
Character #: [X]
Faction: [Your Faction Here]
Day Job Check: [Your Skill Check Here]
One spot is reserved for @NotEspi. Will start the Quest on Monday, May 9, 2022, or as soon as the table gets filled with six PCs, whichever comes first.
I don't understand if this is an issue on my end or the site's, but almost every time I post on the forums it takes several refreshes to see what I posted (30 to 60 seconds usually). That's a bit inconvenient, since it may lead someone to think their post hasn't been sent, making them post more and creating duplicates. I've already cleared my cache, but it didn't change much.
Also sometimes I get a blank page with a danger sign on the upper left, saying something about backtracking too much, when I try to post or edit something. What can I do about this?
The young heroes of the town of Kassen are ready for their coming-of-age ceremony, an old tradition in which they retrieve a piece of the eternal flame burning in the tomb of the town's founder. Yet when they arrive there, they find only the corpses of their fellow townsfolk, dead bandits, and mysterious animated skeletons. The novice heroes must brave the traps and perils of the Crypt of the Everflame, discover the source of the corruption that has awakened an ancient evil, and defeat a menace that seeks vengeance against Kassen and its people.
—————
The first time I tried to run this module here on the boards was in 2019, but unfortunately I had to step down from the role of GM because of some health issues. Now that I'm back with a huge deal of spare time I thought I could give this a second chance.
I'm a TTRPG player since 2002, started with D&D3E and its subsequent Editions, but found out in 2015 that Pathfinder was more of my taste. I've tried DMing in the past, I wasn't very successful, but now that I'm trying it here on PbP I'm really having a blast.
What I'm looking for here is to spend some good time with likely-minded individuals to create a nice narrative, have fun, and grow poth as gamers and as persons.
—————
Character Creation Summary System: Pathfinder First Edition;
Starting Level: 1st Level;
Ability Scores: 20 Point Buy;
Races: Core only;
Alignment: Any non-evil;
Classes: Core only;
Optional Rules: Background skills, Character traits;
Starting Wealth: 10 gp; you start your adventure with just your weapons (one or two melee light or one handed weapons or a two handed weapon, and a ranged weapon plus ammunitions, none worth more than 75 gp), an armor worth 50 gp or less (and a shield, optionally), and your class items (common musical instrument, holly and mistletoe, spell component pouch, thieves' tools, wizard's spellbook, wooden holy symbol);
Hit Points: Max at 1st level, average for subsequent levels;
Background: 2-3 paragraphs minimum; your characters are all coming from Kassen, and they know this year is their turn to retrieve the Everflame from Kassen's crypt; every character will have a mentor from the village determined by its chosen class, which should be included in their backstory;
Posting Expectations: 1 post per 24 hours during weekdays (Mon-Fri), 1 post every 48 hours during weekends (Sat-Sun), no obligations during festivities.
—————
I’ll be accepting 4-6 characters at the table. I'll be keeping the recruitment open until 11:59pm of Sunday, May 8, 2022. If at that date there won't be enough player to start, I'll wait a bit longer, until 11:59pm of Tuesday, May 10, 2022.
Player Name: [Your Name Here]
Character Name: [CHARNAME]
Organized Play #: [XXXXX]
Character #: [Y]
Faction: [Your Faction Here]
Day Job Check: [Your Skill Check Here]
Two spots are already reserved, looking for 2-4 more people to start.
You have been stationed at the Grand Lodge in Absalom, awaiting assignment for a mission of utmost importance. Things finally seemed in motion when Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng sent out a summons for available agents. Specialized in the history of Absalom, Dreng is known for putting off-duty agents to work on sundry tasks when he finds them resting within the city’s limits.
Coming to the meeting place—an odd choice of venue, as it is a street corner far from the Grand Lodge—a lone beggar garbed in baggy robes approaches. The only figure visible in the constant drizzle, the beggar sticks out his hands for currency.
Have you any coin to spare, fine folk?
The question hangs in the air for only a scant moment before the figure pulls back his hood to reveal the wizened face of Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng. He gives a crooked smile, soaked head to toe from his unprotected time in the rain. His clothes smell faintly of cabbage.
Sorry about that, he says with a wink. I always like to play a little joke on agents when I stumble across them during my jaunts into town. Now, why did I summon you fine folk here again…? Dreng shakes his head from side to side, as though trying to knock water out of his ears, despite the constant downpour.
Ah yes, the Wounded Wisp! I’m undercover now and can’t stray far from the site I’m watching, but I need someone to retrieve a package for me from that fine establishment. It’s among Absalom’s most storied taverns, you see, and one that holds a special place of privilege in the Society’s lore as the place where the organization began. Well, I could drone on and on about it, but standing out in the rain is doing none of us any favors. As if anticipating agreement, the bedraggled venture-captain produces a small slip of folded paper from one of his many stitched pockets. Dreng quickly shows a glimpse of the page’s contents: a map detailing the location of the Wounded Wisp bar.
The bartender is a woman by the name of Heryn Gale, a fine lady who came to own the Wisp after the passing of her father from—oh, bah, it’s really getting too cold for me to give a proper history lesson! If you could just go to the Wisp, and tell Heryn you’re there to pick up my parcel, it would be most appreciated. I’ll be around here for several more hours at least.
Please feel free to introduce your characters to one another and make a bit of roleplay while on your way to the tavern.
Player Name: [Your Name Here]
Character Name: [CHARNAME]
Organized Play #: [XXXXX]
Character #: [X]
Faction: [Your Faction Here]
Day Job Check: [Your Skill Check Here]
Three spots reserved for @noral, @Gilthanis, and @TriShadow.
I've managed to get my hands on two interesting books, DM Yourself and DM Yourselves. It's been more than a month now, and I still haven't managed to start a solo campaign. Thus I thought "Why not play RotRL with a GMless group?", and now I'm here wondering if there would be enough people interested to form a 4-men party and tackle this AP I had in my closet (literally) for years now. If I manage to find three other people interested in this little project I will put up a recruitment thread while I re-read those two books (since they're not created with PbP in mind I need to read them thoroughly to see if there's any need for adaptation).
So, it's half past 1am on this boring Saturday, and bored as I am I came up with this weird thought.
I've been flirting with the idea of soloing Rise of the Runelords for more than a month, but never found enough interest to actually start the project. I have the adventure, I made the party, I read DM Yourself and DM Yourselves to learn how to play solo or masterless, I've even prepared the whole first module on Roll20, but something is stopping me from starting my lonely adventure in the world of make believe.
So I thought "Why not playing the adventure with other people masterless?", and the idea seemed intriguing, but I don't really feel ready to play that way on VTT. So I wondered if playing an AP masterless on PbP would be something possible or just a completely foolish idea.
What do you guys think? Am I a visionary or just mad in the head? Do you have any suggestion for such a game?
I'm looking for good conversions to PF1E for the Dragon Magazine's APs that Paizo wrote for D&D3E, The Shackled City, The Age of Worms, and Savage Tide. Can anyone help me find them?
Hey, nice people of Golarion! I have a question to which you might be able to answer, and if not at least discuss about it and help me make a decision.
I was thinking of running a Solo Campaign using DM Yourself and DM Yourselves by Tom Scutt, as an exercise for GMing and creative writing (I plan to keep some kind of blog about it), but I can't decide which Module or Adventure Path to play. At first I was thinking of playing Rise of the Runelords, but having played 1.5 books of that AP I think it wouldn't be a "genuine" experience. I thought about playing the Price of Immortality series of Modules, but having read most of the first two parts years ago for GMing a group of noobs feels less interesting as well. Council of Thieves was another choice I thought about, but it doesn't look very interesting.
What should I run to play pretend all by myself? Should I look into other APs/Modules? Maybe the older APs set in Greyhawk? Or just go with RotRL even if the first parts are kind of "spoiled"?
I would like to discuss this with you, to clear my head and take a decision
I have a good amount of PDFs on the site (just bought the bundle from Humble Bundle), and I'm trying to get some friends into PbP games, can I "lend" them my books to create some PFS-legal characters?
It's a lazy afternoon at Gray Falls Lodge. Not many Pathfinders are currently visiting the lodge located in the River Kingdoms, and the few who are staying for some amount of time are mainly holed up in their rooms, or out exploring the nearby wilderness, which is said to be inhabited by many fey.
At the moment the cafeteria is nearly desert and only a handful of customers are spending their time in the large room. Lazily one of the attendants of the lodge enters the room with a roll of paper and a hammer in his hands, and a nail pending from his lips; he approaches the large notice board on the wall and hangs the paper to it with a few thudding hits of the hammer. He then slowly goes back where he came from, yawning widely while reaching the doors.
The new notice is nothing flashy, but since all the other notes and bills hanged are asking for very menial tasks at best Pathfinders might find this new one at least interesting.
For anyone interested:
I recently came into possession of an ancient magical article which might prove of high interest for your Society. I'm also in need of a moderately large sum of gold, which I must acquire as soon as possible, so I'm willing to sell this item for a small percentage of its actual market price. It's not my first time dealing with Pathfinders, and this is why I trust you people with this information.
My name is Ulisha. If the name doesn't ring a bell—which would be a shame for you— maybe the name of the object I've discovered will: it's the Silverhex, an ancient druidic artefact. If your curiosity has been picked, then ask venture-captain Fyrewine for the rest of the information I've sent him within this letter.
Since I don't have much time to wait I've sent word of this "special deal" to other parties, the first to come to me with the amount of gold required will get the item. So don't waste time and be quick, okay?
---Ulisha
Players are now free to introduce their characters, interact between them and with the environment.
On the top of the page there's a Map & Pictures link to the Google Slides file we will use to track characters' information, combat maps, and handouts.
Thank you again for participating in this little project of mine, I hope we will all have a good time!
So, the Night of Ashes takes place "in late Arodus, 4715 AR", and the protest in Aria Park takes place two weeks after Barzillai Thrune is appointed Lord-Mayor of Kintargo. But what's the exact starting day of the adventure? I don't think it could be the day the first module was released (September 2, 2015, which translates to Day 2, Month of Rova, Year 4715 in the Absalom Reckoning calendar), since it's too close to the end of Arodus. Can anyone please give me some pointers?
Hello everyone.
A wise man once singed "You Get What You Give", so I thought (with some higher help) that maybe if I want to play more PF1E PbP I should run more PF1E PbP. So here I am, trying my hand with The Silverhex Chronicles, just to wet my toes in the ocean.
This would be my very first time GMing a PbP game. I've tried at least once before, but some health issues stopped me before even starting the game. Now I feel better, and I'm determined to start this adventure and finish it.
This will be a "first come, first served" kind of recruitment. The Quest is aimed toward players new to Organized Play, but I doubt there will be many newbies here wanting to play 1st Edition games. Anyway everyone is well accepted at the table, and if you're an experienced player please keep in mind that this is my first attempt at this kind of thing, so be gentle and don't hurt me too much. Also any advice would be very welcome.
The only thing I ask to my future players is this: if you want to play at my table you have to run a PbP game yourself using PF1E rules. You can run another PFS Quest (nice), a PFS Scenario (good), a Module (awesome), or even an AP (wonderful). You can run it while playing this Quest, or wait until it's finished. I'm asking this to get some more life in the PF1E PbP scene, which is kind of diminished since the release of the new Edition.
But Diaz, why don't you just play PF2E?:
For many reasons. First, I like the 1st Edition, it reminds me of my first steps in the TTRPGs world with D&D3E. Second, I still haven't finished any AP or Module from this Edition, and I really like to be able to do it (especially the Runelords trilogy). Third, I have some PFS1E characters which I'd like to play and and level up. Fourth, I've paid a lot of money to get the complete set of PF1E addons for Hero Lab Classic as well as many Rulebooks and Accessories from Paizo, and I'd hate to see those investments gather dust in the depths of my virtual stash of things.
So, if you agree with my humble request, welcome on board. I will start the game in a week/as soon as there are six other players (whichever comes first) and I've finished prepping everything.
Players Info:
Player Name: [Your Name Here]
Character Name: [CHARNAME]
Organized Play #: [XXXXX]
Character #: [X]
Faction: [Your Faction Here]
Day Job Check: [Your Skill Check Here]
GM Info:
Time Zone: GMT+0100
Post Frequency: One post per 24 hours minimum during weekdays
Images Medium: Google Sheets
Additional Info:
Before applying to the scenario, please read Doomed Hero's Guide to PbP and Painlord's Advanced Play-by-Post if you haven't already. Those are the cornerstones of PbP guidelines.
If you ever have problem posting for some reason for a certain amount of time please let everyone at the table know with as much forewarning as possible.
For anything feel free to send me a private message. Questions, advices, complaints, anything, don't hesitate and just tell me.
I expect a mature and fun environment of cooperation between everyone at the table. Troublemakers will receive a private warning, followed by a public warning, and then will get kicked from the group.
Roughly once a year I come back to this wonderful place to get my TTRPG fix with some PbP. Since finding someone running an entire AP is pretty hard I settle for some PFS1E scenarios. I've been said that there's an event ongoing right now (Outpost V), and I saw the announcement for PaizoCon Online 2022. I was a bit saddened by the fact that there are very few 1E tables in these events now. I understand that now Paizo wants to push its main product as much as possible, I don't blame them for this, but will this mean that organized online play for the First Edition is dying, or even already dead? I really like PFS1E, mostly because it lets me take advantage of my Hero Lab Classic with all the Paizo books I've paid for it (that's hundreds of gold pieces), while for PFS2E I'll need to pay a subscription for Hero Lab Online, something I can't do anymore.
Should I give up with 1E and completely switch to 2E?
I would like to play some of the official APs by myself. I have my good reasons for wanting to do that, so please avoid replies like "you should find a group of friends" or "it is a social game". I know that, thank you. I've already visited r/Solo_Roleplay, bit didn't found anything related to PF1E.
Hello everyone.
I'm a long time role-player (started back in 2002) and want to dip my toes in GMing once again, but since I can't find a group in the real world or on a virtual tabletop I thought that PbP could be the right medium to get back behind the GM screen.
I've played a couple of very brief adventures here on the forums, always as a PC, but know almost nothing about how to GM PbP games. I've just bought Pathfinder Society Quest #1A: The Sandstone Secret since it seems the perfect entry point for this project.
I'm looking for someone who can help me get on the right track, give me some advice about how to run a game, which tools to use, things like those. Obviously I'll read Painlord's Guide to PbP GMing: Make Your World a Better Place once again, but was hoping to get some more "fresh" assistance.
Thank you in advance for your help and time.
PS: this isn't the first time I try to GM using PbP, the last time I tried I was planning to run an adventure from level 1 to 7, but the amount of work scared me and had to leave the project; hopefully this time will be different, since I'm trying to do something smaller, but if you have any advice about how to deal with anxiety in these cases you'll probably save my life!
Sto cercando due giocatori per allestire un tavolo virtuale per giocare a Pathfinder. Per ora ho trovato altri due ragazzi interessati al progetto, e sto cercando di raggiungere un numero minimo di cinque persone per poter iniziare a definire il gruppo. L'idea è di conoscerci inizialmente attraverso brevi avventure, per poi passare a contenuti più interessanti come gli Adventure Path.
Per quanto mi riguarda conosco abbastanza bene il regolamento di PF1E, mentre mi sono riavvicinato da poco a quello di PF2E, ed ho da pochissimo iniziato a giocarlo in uno scenario PFS giocato in PbP. Dunque non è importante sapere bene uno o entrambi i regolamenti, tutti sono benvenuti, veterani o novizi, l'importante è divertirsi insieme. L'unica cosa davvero importante è la serietà delle persone, mi aspetto di trovare gente seria e adulta che sappia divertirsi al tavolo da gioco rispettando tutti i partecipanti.
Sono disponibile a rispondere alle domande di chiunque fosse interessato al progetto, sia qui su questo thread, sia su Discord—il mio username è DiazExMachina#2287—, sia su Telegram al seguente link. Detto questo spero di ricevere almeno un paio di risposte, nel frattempo auguro a tutti buon gioco.
--ENGLISH--
Hello everyone,
I'm looking for two players to set up a virtual table to play Pathfinder. For now I have found two other guys interested in the project, and I am trying to reach a minimum number of five people in order to start defining the group. The idea is to get to know us initially through short adventures, and then move on to more interesting content such as Adventure Paths
As far as I'm concerned, I know the rules of PF1E quite well, while I have recently approached that of PF2E, and I have recently started playing it in a PFS scenario played in PbP. So it is not important to know one or both rules well, everyone is welcome, veterans or novices, the important thing is to have fun together. The only really important thing is the seriousness of the people, I expect to find serious and adult people who can have fun at the game table respecting all the participants.
I am available to answer questions from anyone interested in the project, both here on this thread and on Discord—my username is DiazExMachina#2287—, and on Telegram to the following link. Having said that I hope to receive at least a couple of answers, in the meantime I wish everyone a good game.
I was just curious, why are (almost) all the icons from PFS2E missing from the forums? I mean, those little icons that appear before the user's nickname in the boards. Is there a specific reason? I tried to see if it was just my browser (Google Chrome) that was acting strange, but they are missing also on Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge. Mine is just a curiosity, I bet the tech team who's making all this thing work has more pressing matters to attend to than some missing icons.
Almost 200 years ago, when the land that was to become Nirmathas was still a vassal of the empire of Cheliax, the northern reaches of the Fangwood were a wild and untamed place. The crusades that laid low the Whispering Tyrant to the north were a distant memory, and those who remained were intent upon keeping the orcs of Belkzen and the remaining undead from Ustalav in check. As a result, the great forest was full of danger, from marauding orcs to deadly predators, making it unsafe for merchants hoping to trade with the growing community of Skelt in the foothills of the Mindspin Mountains to the west.
Feel free to role-play one or two days before the start of the adventure.
Welcome to the Discussion thread for our adventure.
First of all, thank you again for applying to this adventure, I hope we will have a good time playing together!
Now, let's get down to business.
First of all, I would like to create a Telegram group to chat with all of you, both about the adventure itself and also about any other shenanigans that comes into your mind (memes, funny videos, and other weirdness connected to RPGs). That would create a stronger bond between the players, and also allows everyone to be more reachable than if using only the boards. If you all agree with this request please send me a PM with your Telegram user name and I will create the group.
Second, character creation. I've already told you that we will only use the Core Rulebook and the Character Traits Web Enhancement to build your PCs. What I would like to do also is limiting some minor options a bit further, applying to the character creation the rules of the Pathfinder Society Core Campaign. I don't want to make this adventure a PFS scenario, but I think that some core options wouldn't really fit in the adventure, and so I want to restrict them. Namely, the Item Creation feats and the Leadership feats won't be available for the adventure (this will make the Hedge Magician and the Natural-Born Leader traits useless). Now, let's see in the detail what you will be working with:
-Standard (20) Point-Buy system;
-Only core races;
-Only core classes*;
-Non-evil alignment only;
-Max hit points at first level, 50%+1 at subsequent levels (4 for d6, 5 for d8, 6 for d10, 7 for d12);
-0gp starting wealth**.
* Classes from the Core Rulebook have the following alterations.
Cleric: The abilities of clerics with certain domains or who worship Irori are as follows.
-Clerics with the Nobility domain get the Persuasive feat at 8th level instead of the Leadership feat;
-Clerics with the Rune domain receive Spell Focus at 1st level instead of Scribe Scroll;
-Clerics who worship Irori receive Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat so they can use their deity’s favored weapon (unarmed strike) without provoking attacks of opportunity.
Druid: Druids with the Nobility domain get the Persuasive feat at 8th level instead of the Leadership feat.
Wizard: Wizards receive Spell Focus at 1st level instead of Scribe Scroll. Only items listed as always available (see page 21 of the Pathfinder Society Roleplaying Guild Guide) can be selected as the free bonded object granted to a wizard at 1st level.
** You will start your journey with the barely minimum: a belt pouch, weapons (one or two melee and one ranged plus ammunition) costing no more than 50gp each, an armor costing no more than 50gp, and class items as fitting for your class (a common musical instrument for a bard, a wooden holy symbol for a cleric or paladin, holly and mistletoe for a druid, thieves' tools for a rogue, a spellbook for a wizard, and a spell component pouch for every spellcaster except sorcerers). This means that the trait Rich Parents is useless.
Third, a recommendation on party composition. I know you are all experienced players and probably already know what a successful party would look like, and I don't want to put any more restriction on what you want to create, but I just ask you please to avoid to select the same class more than once, if you can. This is because I think it will help us all to have a more heterogeneous party, and will also benefit me, having to learn more about more classes (even if I know the base classes pretty well), and you, letting you out of your comfort zone in case you will have to select something you don't usually play. But, if you find a really, really convincing motivation why two or more of you should play the same class, then I will allow that, but you must know that it's really hard to convince me.
If you all agree with this terms, then welcome to this new adventure! I will soon write down a post with more informations about your starting town and the NPCs you will find there (the adventure assumes you are all native of the town of Kassen in Nirmathas, so knowing a bit about your hometown would indeed prove useful for character creation).
PS: I will use Roll20 for maps and tokens, mostly because I know fairly well how it works and also because I have the maps already prepared there from a previous playthrough.
I'm trying to get some friends into the PbP format, but some of them don't want to commit for too long for their first adventure. I thought I could run them through "Hollow's Last Hope", since it's pretty brief and gives the opportunity to continue the adventure with the subsequent modules, but some of those friends will only play along if we use the new Second Edition rules.
How hard would it be to convert the adventure from 3.5 to PF2? Is it even possible? I know there are at least two monster in the adventure which don't appear in the new Bestiary, would it still be possible to update them?
Every autumn, a few of the townsfolk from Kassen make a pilgrimage to the Crypt of the Everflame to light a lantern from the eternal flame that burns over the tomb of the town's founder and bring it back home, where it is preserved all winter, a symbol of the town’s resilience. Most years, the town mayor and a group of dignitaries perform this quest. Every few years, however, a handful of younger townsfolk are given the honor of lighting the lantern. Many see this as a passage into adulthood, a taste of adventure before settling down to work and marriage.
Introduction:
Hello everyone.
My name is Diaz, I'm an Italian guy of thirty-something years old who loves role-playing games in every form. I've been playing RPGs since 2002, starting with Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition, then moving to the subsequent iterations of the ruleset, until I approached Pathfinder.
I'm fairly new to the PbP scene, I'm currently playing in a game of Strange Aeons and one of Age of Ashes, both as a PC, but I want to try my hand at GMing in this game format. I have had few experiences as D/GM in F2F games, I've DMd mostly D&D 4th Edition (which I loved) for a group of kids back when it came out, but I'm sure I'll be able to be at least an OK GM here on the boards.
With this game I want not only to test my capabilities as a GM for the PbP format, but also find a group of nice people to have fun with. I want to make new friedns and grow both as a player as well as a person. I haven't been on the boards for much time, but I've seen a lot of potential in here to create a nice playing group like it is usual in real life.
What am I looking for:
For this game I'm looking for six players, both newbies and veterans, willing to take part in the Crypt of the Everflame module. My idea is to be able to run the whole Price of Immortality trilogy, but for now I think it would be better to commit for just the first part of it.
I'll be using only the Pathfinder Core Rulebook and the Pathfinder Character Traits Web Enhancement. Since this is my first attempt at GMing on the boards I want to keep things as simple as possible, thus this harsh limitation. So if you're looking for a place to play your tiefling gunslinger or kitsune shaman, I'm sorry but this isn't the right place for you.
I'm looking for people who can post at least once every 24h on weekdays, and maybe on weekends too, bar real life events that will obviously come first. I live in the GMT+2 time zone, and I will do my best to post once a day around 6-7pm. I also want people that will be open with me, that can politely point out my errors and help me grow both as a player and as a person.
How do you apply for the game:
Right now I'm not interested in character builds and stat blocks, since the players will build their characters after they've been chosen. At this moment what I want to know about you is:
-What is your experience with roleplaying games and, in particular, the play-by-post format;
-What is your favourite character class;
-What is your favourite race;
-What do you expect from this game;
-A brief writing example (a character background, an original story, a post in another gameplay thread).
I will try to form an heterogeneous group, especially in respect of experience. I will try to fill at least two slots with new players and at least one spot with a veteran player. I would also like to include in the party an experienced GM, which maybe can help me manage the game at the start.
Recruitment will be open for a week, until Saturday 24/08/2019. Then I will take a day or two to review every post and decide who will become a player character in the adventure. Obviously I will give priority to those who have never played the module before, but if you're an experienced GM who wants to replay the adventure for whatever reason and maybe help me refine my GMing techniques, you'll be welcome to apply.
In summary
-This is my first campaign as a PbP GM;
-Looking for six players, both newbies and veterans;
-Only the Core Rulebook and the Character Traits Web Enhancement allowed;
-Able to post at least once every 24h;
-Writing from the GMT+2 time zone;
-The players will build the party after being chosen;
-Recruitment will close on Saturday, 24/08/2019;
-Post not following the instructions about how to apply will most probably not been taken into consideration.
Please, if you have any question about the adventure or about recruitment feel free to ask here, the answer may be useful to other people as well.
That said, I hope to see many post in this thread, and be able to form a nice group of people to play with for quite a long time!
I'm pondering about GMing my first PbP adventure here on the forums, and I was thinking of running Hollow's Last Hope, because it's pretty brief and (aside from the quick conversion) looks pretty simple. I know it could be used as a prequel to the module Crown of the Kobold King, but something confounds me. On the book is written:
Jason Bulmahn and F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
BEFORE THE KOBOLD KING
Aside from being its own adventure, Hollow’s Last Hope works well as a prelude to GameMastery Module D1: Crown of the Kobold King. [u]GMs interested in running this adventure as part of Crown of the Kobold King can remove all elements of the disease afflicting Falcon’s Hollow and instead use the encounters in Darkmoon Vale and in the ruins above the kobolds’ lair as supplementary encounters.[/u] Containing its own complete adventure and extensive details on the town of Falcon’s Hollow, Nicolas Logue’s Crown of the Kobold King is available now at your favorite local game store and online at paizo.com.
What do they mean with the underlined sentence? Does HLH just become a part of CotKK? How should I run them? Since I want something fast and easy as my first adventure to GM, should I run HLH as is? And since I'll have to convert the module(s) anyway, should I convert them to PF1 or try and go for PF2?
I'm fairly new to the PbP scene, I'm actually playing in a couple games and waiting for GameDay VIII to start to play some PFS. I would really like to play more though, but it seems that there are not many GMs wanting to run the adventures I'd like to play.
On another thread a user told me that "someone should step up and start GMing", and sincerely I thought he was right. There are some adventures I want to GM, but I'm reluctant to start GM in PbP because I've read it's more difficult than GMing F2F games.
Now, I admit that the difficulty is not the only problem in this matter: I have issues with my attention span, something I'm working on with my psychiatrist (yes, I see a psychiatrist and I don't feel ashamed about that), will probably need to take some sort of meds to help my concentration. This, combined with the feeling that I'll be the worst GM in the universe (even if I've already GMd some IRL and VTT games and even been called "the best GM there is") are things that are holding me back from GMing on these messageboards.
I've already read Painlord's Guide, and think that with some experience on the field I should be able to become a decent GM (even if, as I've said, my inferiority complex states otherwise), but still the fear of failure is present and oppressing.
Now that I have explained to you my problems I ask you: should I start GMing now, or should I wait for the right, better time? Maybe I could start with a brief module (my idea from the start), and with the help of a more experienced GM?
I was wondering, will we ever see a module series such as the "Price of Immortality" one for the second edition? Or maybe a conversion of those modules for the new rules?
I've always thought those adventures were a great way to introduce people to the game, and I would love one day to be able to run them for this new edition.
I'm creating a character for an upcoming Age of Ashes campaign, but I'm a bit confused about its possible ethnicity. I want to make it a native of Breachill, but have just found out that Chelish is no longer a viable option for a human character's ethnicity. What happened to the proud people of Cheliax and its vassal nation, Isger? Have they been wiped out from the face of the world? And if I couldn't chose Chelish as an ethnicity for my Isgeri character, which other ethnicity could work?
I'm creating a character for a RotRL PbP campaign, and while searching for something interesting I've found the bloodrider archetype for the bloodrager. Since I've never played a mounted character I thought it would be interesting to give it a try, but I'm concerned that the character wouldn't use mounted combat frequently. I know that one campaign trait gives you a fully equipped, combat trained heavy horse, but I don't really know if this AP will let my character really shine with his mounted maneuvers.
Can you help me decide whether a mounted character would fit in this campaign?
Now that 2nd Edition is officially out is there any GM planning to run either the Age of Ashes AP or The Fall of Plaguestone Module? Or are we all still too busy with the upcoming GameDay VIII?
I have recently created a male gnome sorcerer for PFS play, I should have used it in my very first PFS quest, but ended up rolling an half-elf investigator instead. Still, I would like to use this little fellow one day, but I can't come up with non-cliché ideas for its nature.
Some more details: it has the Eternal Hope variant racial trait, its bloodline is fey, and is using the Seeker archetype. The initial idea was that of a gnome heavily focused on pranks (it is a CN follower of the Lantern King) and the search of informations and knowledge about the First World and its fey ancestors. It wants to join the Pathfinder Society to get access to more informations and knowledge, and also to escape the Bleaching, the curse which claimed both his elderly parents recently.
As you can see there is at least an idea of what this character could be. The only problem is, I'm not sure about the prank part of his attitude. I 'm not sure I could play it effectively without becoming annoying to other players. I thought about changing it to become a CG follower of Desna to make it less mischievous, but can't really come up with decent role-play ideas fitting his build.
So, what I'm asking with this post is: can you help me brainstorming some role-play ideas for this funny little fellow?
While creating a Garundi character I discovered that such culture uses clan names instead of family names. I've searched a bit on the web and on the books, but I can't find any example of these clan names. What does a Garundi clan name sound like? Is it something like dwarven clan names, like Battlehammer or Goldshield? Or do they sound more exotic?
Back in the days I created my first character for PFS play, mostly to see how it worked for online play. I accidentaly created a Core character (only Core Rulebook and Traits Web Enhancement available for creation), but at that time I didn't give much attention to it, because I didn't had anybody to play PFS with.
Now I'm approaching PbP play, and I want also play PFS for many reasons. At first I thought that I should delete my first character, since I won't play Core adventures, but when I tried a message informed me that such action would also delete that specific character number, and I didn't thought that was a good idea.
I have now found a PFS table which will play Ambush in Absalom. I've made a 1st level character and read a handy guide about the PFS, and found out that my first character (the number XXXXXX-1) can obtain a "Welcome Boon". The problem is, that character slot is the one with the Core character I will probably never use.
My question is: is there a way to change a character slot from Pathfinder Core (1st Edition) to Pathfinder Society? The slot I'm speaking of is perfectly new, has never been used for any kind of play. I know I could convert a Core character by playing in a Standard table, but that option won't give me the ability of creating a Standard character from scratch, which is what I want to do. Please, I just want to play with my "Welcome Boon".
I'm a PFS newbie, and am in the process of coming up with a cool character concept for my first PFS adventure, Ambush in Absalom.
The problem is, I'm quite the indecisive person. Whenever I'm presented with options to choose I get stuck thinking what would be the best fitting one for my concept.
Now, what I want to ask you is a little clarification: are the various Factions in the PFS merely a "cosmetic" choice? I mean, aside from some nice traits that they provide, what are the implications in choosing one Faction or another?
Hoping that I've made myself clear, I thank you in advance for your answers.
I'm building a school savantarcanist for the PFS─particularly for Gameday VIII─and I'm a bit stuck with the spells and feats selection.
A bit about my concept: this character is the son of a minor Ustalavic noble house who was sent to Absalom to hone his innate powers. While studying he became fascinated with the Pathfinder Society and decided to train to enter the ranks of the organization.
A bit about the stats: human (Varisian) arcanist (school savant); STR 8, DEX 12, CON 12, INT 18, WIS 13, CHA 14; specialized in the foresight school; enchantment and illusion are prohibited schools.
A bit about what I'm looking for: I need spells and feats that will both be useful and thematic. I'm not looking to minmax this character heavily, what I want is a good character I will enjoy playing in the organized play.
I have a weird─probably stupid too─question: what is the difference between Player Companion books and Campaign Setting ones? Are the first intended for players and the latter for GMs? Can I read a Campaign Setting manual when creating a PC, or should I use only Player Companion books?
