Derry L. Zimeye's page

Hey howdy, everyone! I'm Derry, your gender non-comformiest GM, and I'm here to present (for your listening pleasure!) the third campaign of the award winning Dice Will Roll podcast!

Do you have what it takes? To stand among legends? To overcome impossible foes and challenges? To be the greatest fighter in the world? Then prove it... AT THE RUBY PHOENIX FIGHTING TOURNAMENT!

Once every 10 years, adventurers from around the world are invited to the eastern continent of Tian Xia, where dragons rule nations and kami live in sprawling forests of spirits. It is here that they compete in a martial arts tournament organized by the mythical sorceress, Hao-Jin, the Ruby Phoenix. The prize? One of the infinitely powerful relics she collected over the millennia, from weapons that have felled nations to handwoven demiplanes, artifacts anyone in the world would do anything to own. 32 teams will compete in the trials of Danger Island, 8 will compete in the finals in the city-state of Goka, and only ONE team will stand victorious. Are you ready? Then FIGHT!

Join Masami Takahara, the Kitsune Magus, Xie Chuji, the Dhampir Monk and Sangku, Witch-Prince Of The Sea, the Undine Witch, as they take on the dangers of Danger Island, the trials of the tournament and adventures beyond! Lots of references to anime, JRPGs and more by folks who grew up on the stuff. We've previously run Kingmaker and Extinction Curse, and our newest show is angled to be the best one yet! So come along, and keep it rollin'!

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Absolutely phenomenal to see! This is history in the making for TTRPG. Hopefully, the jerkwads who called all of this a witch hunt will get a clue now (and maybe pigs will fly?). Vive la Revolution!

It's less about implementing it, that's the easy part! But resolving it is tricky— after Mogaru attacks, there ceases to be an obvious time for a Ninja showdown climax to happen. That's where I'm struggling!

Hey hi! I'm going to be running this adventure soon, and I want to try to involve a player backstory into the campaign. They're a former ninja who defected to the Golden League at a young age. She's kept her past secret from the party, and intends to try to keep it that way. Now, what kind of GM would I be if I didn't force them to reckon with their past?

The only problem is... I'm not sure WHEN this should happen. I was considering having them catch the PC alone in Goka in Book 2, and for the Clan leader to try blackmail them into winning a reward from the Tapestry, but then that runs into the problem that this won't really get a chance for payoff; not enough time will have passed if it happens at the end of Book 2, and come Book 3, the party will have their hands full saving Hao Jin, and then it's too late by the time they actually get the treasure, it feels cheap to come in like "Not so fast! No happy ending quite yet!"

I can't seem to figure out the best time to incorporate this backstory hook, and I could really use advice!

My favourite part is that people legit think we want to boycott Paizo, when reading literally any of this should make it clear we just want employee rights. Good lord.

Anyway, stan the creative teams

kings of not knowing that you need to keep pressure on until it IS fixed or it's pushed under the carpet

Literally nobody wants to cancel Paizo, good grief. We want their workers to be treated fairly. Is every complaint from henceforth a witch hunt or mob justice? Or are we supposed to sit there and be fine with companies doing less than savoury moves? Grow up, you're not 12, we can expect better from companies. Nobody has pitchforks, and nobody wants to destroy Paizo or anything.

A start, but we expect more to come. I'm worried about the individual meetings. Good for the execs because they can isolate people, bad for the workers because they can’t present a united front, as a friend put it.

Just to address the criticisms of the first point made vis a vis hiring a third party whistleblower firm: this was a point made by a Paizo employee, not a random community member. I hope that clears things up.

Posting this here from the main thread for visibility.

Obviously, this situation is a lot, with many moving pieces. However, one thing has become clear; employees are being mistreated. Writers, artists, developers who make the stories we love, and use the platform of Paizo to reach more people than they ever could alone. But that's coming at the expense of abuse from their employers, and it has to stop.

This situation has evolved into is a call for accountability and for better working conditions for Paizo Employees. Those interested in helping more can find the hashtag #PaizoAccountability on Twitter, where several former Paizo staffers, freelancers and community members have put together a list of demands, which are:

* Paizo needs to hire a whistleblower/arbitration company.
* Said company must investigate Sara Marie's wrongful termination.
* Executives need to be held accountable and investigated
* Executives need to enter good faith negotiations with their employees
* Salaries need to be posted and raised; some employees live below the median living wage in Seattle

These are requests put together by people who know Paizo and have or still do work with them. These aren't fantasies, they're fundamental requirements of the employees to fix this company. I, the guy in charge of the Dice Will Roll Podcast, and many other content creators like Jessica Redekop of Valiant, Perram of Know Direction and Rise of the Rulelords have joined in in calling it; if you want things to be better, or maybe you just want to stop hearing about all this, then help us end it and email these fundamentals to customer.service@paizo.com and help make a change.

Anyway, for people throwing a fit over this being cancel culture, it really isn't. What it has evolved into is a call for accountability and for better working conditions for Paizo Employees. Those interested in helping more can find the hashtag #PaizoAccountability on Twitter, where several former Paizo staffers, freelancers and community members have put together a list of demands, which are:

* Paizo needs to hire a whistleblower/arbitration company.
* Said company must investigate Sara Marie's wrongful termination.
* Executives need to be held accountable and investigated
* Executives need to enter good faith negotiations with their employees
* Salaries need to be posted and raised; some employees live below the median living wage in Seattle

These are requests put together by people who know Paizo and have or still do work with them. These aren't fantasies, they're fundamental requirements of the employees to fix this company. Myself and many other content creators like Jessica Redekop, Perram of Know Direction and Rise of the Rulelords have joined in in calling it; if you want things to be better, or maybe you just want to stop hearing about all this, then help us end it and email these fundamentals to customer.service@paizo.com and help make a change.

This really isn't getting the scope of the problem, I feel. Bigotry is only one of the problems; the treatment of employees is another that was barely touched on. Many of us also want to know HOW you're going to listen to employees to make the company better. Simply saying you'll listen feels dismissive, as was just stating Paizo's inclusivity mission.

Saying things is one thing. Doing it is another. We want action, not platitudes.

Hey gang! After browsing the forums and reading through the rules for the Circus, I got the urge to expand on it. So, compiling ideas from Zapp and IcedMilk in the Circus Analysis Thread, and then expanding on those further, I bring you...
THE GREATEST RULESET EXPANSION ON ALL OF GOLARION!

Featuring...

*Rewards for Successfully Completing Acts
*PC Wages
*Tie In with the Reputation Subsystem
*Expanded Trick Traits
*NPC Training
*More Use for Non-Performer Roles
*More Upgrades, like Amusement Rides and Drumrolls
*More Actions specifically for shows, like Building Hype and Taking Risks
*Locales
*Expanded Random Events

And much more! Feedback welcome, we'll be using these in Dice Will Roll's playthrough of Extinction Curse which starts Thursday the 30th alongside the release of the APG in order to show off some of the new character options available in the book! Hope you enjoy!

Hell, even the name Wind-Walkers works. Still evocative of the original, and another name used in the Ithaqua novel. We're spoiled for choice with cool names and can still be respectful of the culture they're from.

This is an interesting topic for me, as I'm planning a horror campaign heavily inspired by Algonquin and Inuit cultures (combined with some other concepts like eldritch horror) where the Wendigo is a major presence throughout the campaign. Even though it's just a campaign for me and some friends, I've been trying to do research to present things as accurately and respectfully as possible while still giving myself some creative freedom. I've been trying to think of how to accurately represent the Wendigo while still remaining within the D&D/Pathfinder "go to place and kill the monster" mold, which I'm not entirely sure is appropriate for the Wendigo.

The quote from Desmond I posted may be interesting to you. In his eyes, it's okay-- so long as you are keenly aware of the lesson the myth is meant to tell, a warning against all consuming greed. I'll probably stick to the name Rysky coined, and remain careful either way, but yeah, you're on the right track I think!

Derry L. Zimeye wrote:

Rysky wrote:

Could rename them Ithaq or something of the like.

Ohhh, Ithaq? Where's this from?

Something of note- the whole "big zombie ice deer" Thing is actually something of a Pathfinder original. The deer thing is kind of contemporary, considering the original creature is like an ice giant. Pathfinder changed the Saxra to the Skulltaker (albeit, probably for different reasons, since the Saxra, an Argentinian myth I believe, is relatively obscure) so honestly, renaming it might be a big step. Thank you Rysky, you remain this forum's patron saint!

Ithaqua is Lovecraft's Windwalker/Wxndigo (seriously, his title is The Wxndigo), so I just played with that.

Huh! I considered myself pretty well read on old Huge Racist Lovecraft. Ironic that we'll be able to use his IP to be more respectful to indigenous people, despite it all!

The problem with renaming things is you are actually removing the acknowledgement of that creatures roots from your game (where most of the population will interact with it.) The name Wendigo is something someone can go "oh thats interesting" and then look it up. All of a sudden they are learning more about a culture they other wise wouldn't. Know what happens when I google Ithaq? I get results about a League of Legends player with that name. Huh I guess Paizo just came up with that monster all by themselves. Or worse I follow the google "hey did you mean Ithaqua" and I'm like "oh they borrowed this from Lovecraft."

THAT is cultural appropriation in my mind. You get the idea for a monster from an existing culture, and then erase that cultural connection (or worse have now whitewashed it to coming from Lovecraft.) You've replaced an avenue for learning with ignorance. Well done.

... Man, the point is they don't want people finding out more and giving it more ability to do harm. That's exactly the point. They don't want it to be trivialized, and would prefer we didn't use it. Having creatures inspired by a legend but not an actual representation of the legend itself for culturally respectful reasons ≠ whitewashing. I dunno if you're deliberately misreading the point or not, but it's not really our place to decide something /isn't/ culturally insensitive if native folk say it is, which they've been saying. I linked you places they've said it. I've talked to someone who agreed. I dunno how else to convince you this isn't some fringe issue

Team lead Desmond here!
Thanks for reaching out about this topic. Unfortunately while I’m not Algonquian, I am Iraquois Mowhawk and the Algonquian are our northern siblings and we share a deep culture.
In our stories the Wendigo was meant to tell a story and warning to those who rely to heavily on greed and wealth. People who gave into this sickness turned into the twisted monster seen in popular media today. I feel that if you plan to use the creature in your game try to stay true to the original intent of the creature by telling teaching this lesson. If that doesn’t fit the narrative then I feel a name change would be sufficient. ❤️

So here's that! In Extinction Curse, this can still be written in easily. That being said, there's still a lot of room as written to misrepresent these guys, and that's still something Paizo should consider looking into. This doesn't touch the Sk*nwalker thing, which I feel could best be fixed by just using the term Werekin, since the ancestry doesn't really have anything to do with Sk*nwalker lore, and everything to do with lycantrophy.

To be clear: I'm not saying "Ugh, Paizo's SUCH a bad company" for this. They do representation so much better than... Well, anyone I've seen so far in any media, honestly! It's just that these two beings specifically have a cultural context we can't really compare to any other monster in the bestiary without delving into false equivalency and overlooking the things that happened to Indigenous people and their culture at the hand of colonization. If we're willing to look at why a law enforcement AP could be handled insensitively, and give guidelines in order to better approach it in a more aware way, then I feel we can share that respect with Native Folk and their culture too.

What about all the Greek, German, Mayan, African, Indonesean, etc. mythological creatures and races?

I would like to speak with some of them to hear their opinion directly. I just dont get how naming something is insulting with out more context.

Hey man, let's de-escalate a little, okay? Remember that Native folk are still around, and by and large the victims of genocide. Saying "what about the Greeks?" is a false equivalency, because the Greeks weren't killed en masse and forced to forgo their culture by their killers.

Google is your friend here, but as a show of good faith, here's a few sources on why plundering a very important native belief as Big Scary Monster when it's still a part of a modern culture, not one that's been gone for millenia, is a problem. This isn't an All Monsters! situation. I'm Irish, I don't mind leprechauns at all, because they're not a core part of my culture. To answer your question, the TL;DR is naming the creature is considered taboo, since it gives it power and invites its attention, and many native folk request we respect that tradition and don't do it.

Here's a few sources, if you want to know more!

https://mysteriousuniverse.org/2018/10/why-the-wendigo-is-not-my-monster/

https://ko-fi.com/post/The-Wendigo-Is-Not-Yours-for-the-Taking-C0C116U8P

https://www.backstoryradio.org/blog/the-mythology-and-misrepresentation-of- the-windigo/

https://www.google.com/amp/s/ladygeekgirl.wordpress.com/2015/06/01/magical- mondays-appropriating-myth-and-magic/amp/

Would simply changing the name and art be enough to make it usable? I ask because the creature has a lot of unique mechanics and it would be a shame to lose them. I'm not familiar enough with the culture to say if those mechanics are based off anything there.

If the mechanics are ok, you should be able to replace the name and art with your players being none the wiser. Doesn't address it with Paizo, but it is something.

This is the thing I'm most curious about. I've managed to get a hold of the team lead of Heartbeat Dice, who is native themselves. I've asked them if changing the name enough? Should changes be more severe? Are there even a need for changes, should they be handled respectfully? Etc etc. I'll update with their insight soon!

Mild Age of Ashes & Extinction Curse spoilers ahoy!

Hopefully, me censoring W*ndigo was enough to pique your curiosity into reading this thread. Regardless, with how TTRPGs are looking at cultural and racial sensitivity lately, I wanted to bring up an elephant in the room that's been on my shoulders since Day 1 of getting the first Bestiary: the W*ndigo.

I'll be clear: I'm white as snow! I'm hailing from Ireland, the closest I've come to interacting with the First Nations is dating a Canadian. That being said, using your platform, etc etc, this is something I feel we as a community (and if possible, one Paizo can weigh in on eventually, especially now that they're hiring sensitivity readers) should discuss.

The long and short is the W*ndigo is a HUGE part of Algonquian culture, even today. This isn't some random critter from folklore, it's an extremely serious topic that, for the most part, is trivialised and turned into another good ol' fashioned Monster of the Week by the rest of the world. Granted, the PF version has more inspiration from Blackwood's novel than from folklore, but even saying the name of the creature is considered taboo. I was hoping Paizo might change the name and some features to make it into a creature inspired by the folklore but seperate enough to be respectful of Algonquian culture. It was honestly a surprise to get to its page in the Bestiary when I first opened it, full name right there, considering Paizo tends to be on the ball with sensitivity lately. I was willing to drop it (whatever! I just won't use it!), but now both Adventure Paths in 2e have at least one W*ndigo encounter, one of which is pretty important. It's getting harder to avoid the topic, so I'm bringing it up now.

How do we approach this situation? What alternatives are there, in name or in spirit? And how do we do this in a way most respectful of the cultures this figure was, unfortunately, trivialised from?

I didn't have money when the Kickstarter came around... but I do now. Hey, when's this gonna be up for preorder?! I'm not gonna run Kingmaker in 2e a second time after doing it with Dice Will Roll, but I really want this- if only to read back, see how things could have gone differently.

Also, HUGE commendations on making Nyrissa look amazing! Her old design never struck me as "beautiful yet terrifying", but this... she's really both now.

That is what we in the industry call a "Himbo", fellas

ADORE this! It gives us so much personality that'd be impossible to fit into the AP alone. Spectacular! Incredible! Bravo, bravo I say!

We're going to have blackscaled vigilante investigator kobolds releasing in time for this!

Diligent police kobold by day, cowled caped-crusader kobold by night!

I can see the bat-signal on the walls of the Starstone Cathedral already...

;)

A cool concept, but I think I'd prefer my Kobold in this AP to be...

Copper.

;)

This is looking to be one of the most fun APs in a long time!! The question is...

Will it give us a clown archetype? ;)

A few of my players are VERY excited for the playtest. One of them was wondering how the abilities of some classes might interact with the abilities of others- speficially, Barbarian-Witches (Cackle and Rage? Sign me up!).
Of course, this isn't a thing right now- there's no Multiclass Archetypes in the Playtest Document, and they're not particularly straightforward to homebrew (nor would homebrewing be very useful to the Playtest Process!), so I was wondering if there were any plans to have us check out the interactions between different class abilities and feats with the new classes!

Why oh why is it that every time people say "I think I'd like to have a nuanced look at the lore", some chucklenut comes in with "But /I/ want to have races that are specifically child murdering slave owning sex deviants!" This is like the 4th time this kind of thing has happened on my times in the forums... nuance is good, it's messed up to have "ENTIRE RACE SHARES X IDEOLOGY" enforced, grow up

Vibrant Thorns is amazing! Thorns grow from your body, and uh-oh! Anyone who touches you takes damage equal to your max spell level. What's that? You just cast a positive spell? Now they do 1d6 to anyone who touches you! Seriously, a tenth level Cleric can give themselves a screw-you-take-5d6 to anyone who wades into melee with them. That's an AMAZING boon for warpriests!

The use of the word SERIES is very important!

The link changed because my first post had a typo! We just wrapped on the first day of shooting! And let me say, thisshow is going to be a lot if fun to watch!

I don't know if this kind of teasing is even legal! LET US KNOW, JASOOOON!

Confirmed!

"I am super excited to announce that I am down here in LA to film a Pathfinder Second Edition show with the awesome folk at @GeekandSundry! Stay tuned for more information!"
-Jason Bulmahn

Discuss! What does this mean, folks? I've always commented that Critical Role is the reason 5e did so well- could this be a genuine competitor move once more?

Hey hey hey... Y'all best not be talking about 1e classes in this 2e classes thread... Should I maybe make a thread specifically for discussing old ones and how they get converted?

Derry L. Zimeye wrote:

Actually, I kinda want a Leadership themed class a TONNE now...

A 'Noble' or PC Aristrocrat class could be fun. Leadership built-in. Able to 'inspire' like a Bard (but without necessarily having anything to do with music or singing or the Perform skill). Perhaps other Marshall-like bonuses to enhance their 'minions' and allies, such as the Noble class ideas from Green Ronin (which was much better at using the Aid Other action, and could Aid Other his entire entourage as one action). More money / cheaper prices / better selling rates and / or better access to housing, stabling, crashing with other hoity-toity sorts, etc. for supporting that large entourage, etc.

Plus, consider- a cohort that you can use like an Animal Companion! A bodyguard? A butler? A cultist? It's perfect for people who want to play duos, or people who want the GM to play a recurring NPC, or whatever you like!

Okay, so on one hand- being serious, this is a really, really big thing for us. I think a lot of folks around the Facebook groups or forums know about Dice Will Roll, our super queer-inclusive Kingmaker podcast, and how passionate we are about bringing LGBT stuff to Actual Play. Sometimes, it's really hard. I can't tell you the amount of times we deal with "I'd watch it if it wasn't gay" comes up, or "Why do you have to put it in our faces" just for mentioning it's a queer podcast with LGBT characters or creators. Sometimes, we even think about listening, about conforming and pretending we're something we're not just to fit in with whatever's mainstream. But seeing this- seeing each and every name, one by one, these people I /know/ that I recognize, some of whom I literally idolize... one by one, seeing that they're like us, that we're not alone? It's extremely moving, and... I dunno, it gives me hope. It makes me remember "hey, you're not the only ones going through this!" Thank you all. You make gamers like us feel safe, and I mean that genuinely.

Being less serious now, "James Jacobs is too funny to be straight" was my first reaction to seeing him on Pathfinder Friday a few months back and honestly? Vindication

"where the benevolent gold dragon Mengkare oversees a grand experiment to perfect humanity"

[slams that press x to doubt button]

I don't really know what was going through the team's head when they decided to have a full on TPK as the climax for the book... the joy of finishing an AP is letting them go home happy! I'm glad there's a sidebar, but I wish it wasn't a sidebar.

[Spritzes water at the martial flexibility debate] get out of my store, we sell new classes here! >:0

(Pssst! Perhaps a PF2 Medium thread is in order? ;) )

graystone wrote:

Derry L. Zimeye wrote:

The more I think about it, the more I feel we could really use a full on diplomacy-based class that ISN'T magical.

[...]

Now if you're looking for non-magic buffs, I don't know. The game is based on just about everything being a spell. You'd most likely need a skill feat to gain such an ability and rogue is looking good for that.

Theoretically the framework for a warlord/marshal/envoy type character already exists in the game (or at least the playtest). Characters with animal companions already spend an action to grant their animal companion actions; a class feat for a two-action ability with the verbal trait could say something like "You harangue your ally into action. The target gains one bonus action that that they must immediately use to Stride or Strike." Low level feats would need to have action economy slightly skewed like that (since having the barbarian who's already in the enemy's face take a free whack at them is probably more efficient than having the envoy-type run up and strike), but you could use cooldowns and conditions for more powerful abilities.

From there you've got a framework you can use for any number of tactical abilities, even complex tactical maneuvers. And it would be vastly superior from an ease of use and usability standpoint since it would take the place of teamwork feats but not require party-wide buy-in. The class feats themselves would probably make the multiclass archetype extremely exciting as well; "battle herald" bard builds that combine tactical feats and cantrips would be a glorious addition to any group.

Now THIS is a Marshal I can get behind!

The instant a GM decides they know everything and no longer need help is the instant they stop growing in skill as a GM. :-P

in a way, isn't this how irori became a god, though, james? you trying to keep us from obtaining godhood?

Hmmm. I won't be killing off my PCs, if
that's the plan.... I'll just have the holy energy turn them into outsiders or something, I'm NOT gonna murder my heroes for beating the game.

So about this Game Mastery Guide rule... Mark, reckon we can expect it to work basically the same as the Playtest version, or are there variations? I like my combat fast, and wicked high damage helps move it along. ;)

Perhaps mix the Haunts and Full Caster Monk?? A mystic class!

I'm so excited to see new classes and archetypes brought to the table- as well as a tonne of new ancestries, perhaps delving into the downright monstrous!