As a (former?) regular reader of the blog, I wanted to express a level of frustration I have with one element:
The web fiction.
I actually very much enjoy the stories, and read them when I get the opportunity. However, often I only have a few minutes at lunch to peruse the blog during the day. While this was (once upon a time) sufficient, I found that the web fiction took a surprising amount of time to scroll through, particularly on a smartphone. I didn't have the time to read it over lunch, and as the "wall-o-text" became a regular part of the blog, I have found myself skipping reading the blog altogether for weeks on end, and often missing posts I would have otherwise liked to see.
I understand that the web fiction requires a lot of time and effort, and I would likely actually read it (in its designated section) with it removed--but because of its current place in the blog, I have largely ceased to read the paizo blog--I just don't have the time or inclination to sort the fiction from the FAQ, so to speak.
[Edit]: I actually wouldn't mind a short paragraph from the week's fiction (with a link to the rest) at all! It'd likely just get me hooked, regardless. It's just the full text of the web fiction embedded in the blog that bothers me.[/Edit]
I know that initially this was discussed with some frequency, but I still felt the need to voice my concern, and didn't see an appropriate recent thread. Thanks for your time!
Any ideas on what tidbits I could share with the players about the Lodge from these two spirits? Thanks.
I actually used those spirits to heavily detail backstory on SIvanshin/Bisby, since he's such a big deal later. In particular with Coriana, I tossed in a love triangle--Siv loved Coriana, saw her embrace Bisby when the two of them returned safely, and got ticked enough to make off with the Totemrix.
WIth Ghaelfin, I provided a third-party perspective on the love triangle, and some of the Bisby backstory as well.
A lot of it depends on what the party askes--in all the seances, I let them plan out their questions, then ask away--I just tried to add tidbits of story along with their answers.
For what it's worth, I think I wrote up a cipher for Cugney's Wedding elsewhere in this forum--it might give your players something to look at for that part of the investigation!
Name: Orem, Thrune Pathfinder (Long story)
Race: Human (Chelaxian)
Classes/levels: Magus/11
Adventure: The Twice-damned Prince
Location: Beneath Vuiper's Manor
Catalyst: The lovely and deadly Chammady Drovenge
The Gory Details:
The party encountered Vuiper; as Zak was a member of his house, dialog ensued. Unfortunately, the cleric of Abadar was hardly stable, at this point; a few harsh words from the party swiftly push him over the edge. He attacks, and is appalled to see his god desert him.
He retreats, calling for help from Chammady; with no response forthcoming he uses the cape to make his fast exit downstairs. When the party encounters him again downstairs, he fights back with unsettling confidence...enough so that the fighter looks behind him to see if he has hidden allies. The perception check wasn't even close; a few rounds later a dagger is buried in the Orem's back. That's right--yet another death-by-death-attack.
The party fights back, trying to tell her they have something they want to show her. She smiles, and says she'll take it from their corpses. The sorcerer then...baleful polymorphs her.
He turns Chammady Drovenge into a rat.
Through his ability to understand vermin, he is the only one who understands her following statement: "Very well. you have my undivided attention." After showing her the contract, the party (surprisingly) breaks the enchantment and gives her the contract, then heads home to revive the fallen magus.
I'm still quite new to RPG's. I'm a victim of the 1980's witch hunt. My parents banned RPG's in my home so I didn't grow up playing. I was robbed of a life of iconic adventures.
I'm actually looking for the EXACT OPPOSITE thing that Coltaine is looking for. I really want to play the very most traditional, loot-claiming, dragon-killing, evil-wizard-toppling adventure out there. What would you all recommend?
Folks can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Rise of the Runelords is your big winner there, perhaps followed by Second Darkness. This is not to say they are dull or trite at all, by the way--just that they kind of represent the platonic DnD megacampaign.
Full disclosure: played a druid throughout Second Darkness. Have not yet played or run RotR.
On the side-thread, I crave the materials from SKR's drow-party campaign. I'm looking forward to We Be Goblins, too.
Coltaine wrote:
Is it possible to have a non traditional AP? I was thinking of this; whether it was possible to have an AP where the end goal isnt necesarily to save the world or some variant thereof, but something different (take over a town, improve racial relations, become filthy rich, prevent a marraige, espionage of the highest order, get married...) or some other non traditional quest.
To roll back in to the original question, I'd encourage looking at Council of Thieves (along with kingmaker, of course). With tweaks, this campaign's focus can shift widely.
Plus, book 2 is wildly non-traditional, and a boatload of fun. Running that play is one of my favorite sessions as a DM, ever.
Sorcerer didnt exist back when I did this, but it's a good idea.
This has always seemed like a good idea in principle, but I've had bad results trying to force the issue. Just because folks haven't played DnD before doesn't mean they don't have a character idea--DnD didn't invent the idea of a bard, for instance. In the end, they're most likely to keep playing if they feel attached to their character, whether or not they pick the rules up quickly.
I certainly point at certain classes and say "these are easier to learn" but if someone wants to be a rogue, telling them "no" is a fast way to scratch a potential player off the list.
To be honest, days before the game, my first questions for potential players are not "have you read the rules?" They're usually more along the lines of "Do you have a favorite fantasy novel? What's your favorite character?" Get them thinking about the character instead of the rules!
The best way that I've used to teach D&D is by having the person play. Don't boggle the newcommer with stats and rules, and just play. Of course, you'll have to use the PC more like an NPC at first; suggesting courses of action (simple choices), and telling him/her to roll certain dice. Then slowly, gradually, showing that player combat rules, making him/her understand what it is he/she is actually rolling.
If that new person can losely follow a story, I swear it'll all come naturally.
I've tought many players this way. Works great.
Ultradan
I actually agree. I've seen folks get way too condescending with newcomers...especially wives/girlfriends. Some folks are far too ready to overemphasize minutae to newcomers; no one needs to know grapple rules until they come up. Heck, let's be fair. Most folks don't remember grapple rules WHEN they come up.
My suggestion? Pick up hero lab/PCGen. Find out what kind of character they want to play--I tend to encourage fighter sorts, but don't force the issue. Make a character, or help them make one.
Then just walk them through a single mock combat round--pcgen or hero lab make it pretty straight forward--roll d20, add *this* number to it. If I say you hit, use *this* to get your damage. if I ask for AC, it's here. If I ask for Saves, they're here. If I ask for skills, they're here.
After that, you can point them at the rules online or loan a book, but I typically emphasize that even the DM doesn't typically know all the rules by heart, and many players remember little more than the stuff listed above ;-)
Cover and Attacks of Opportunity: You can't execute an attack of opportunity against an opponent with cover relative to you.
Concealment: [...] You can't execute an attack of opportunity against an opponent with total concealment, even if you know what square or squares the opponent occupies.
So for one example, a smoke bomb at your feet might provide some buffing breathing room....
For another, in a typical 'crowded lab' map you're probably 5 feet from a little cover at all times. Heck, since he's a gnome, a half-eaten fig practically provides cover. Technically, I believe even the PCs themselves are soft cover. Even without a smokestick or smoke bomb, many maps have more than enough to make it frustratingly hard for the PC's to make him stop hitting the bottle...at least until a clever party member readies an attack to shoot the potions.
ty for all the great posts, here is a quick update. We played the first two sessions of my campagin last weekend and the magus felt in line with everyone else. We have the magus, alchemist, cleric, and my current npc a pally. I kept it action heavy for the first session and it was apparent from the getgo that the magus had to always keep resource management at the forefront of his thoughts so there wasn't a lot of bursting but more of an even spread of abilities
That's been exactly my experience GMing a magus in CoT--the player joined not long after Rev1 of the Ultimate Magic playtest started, and has played a magus non-stop since. I tend to run rather long adventuring days, so the party is well aware that an early nova will leave them frustrated often for multiple gaming sessions; thus, the magus thinks carefully about each spell or (far more) arcane whatchamacallit point he spends.
They never reach the full-on useless stage that an empty wizard or cleric presents, but they do have to choose carefully--more so than most classes, in fact (the ki-pool-esque mechanic is one of pathfinder's most limited resources).
FWIW, relative to the rest of the part (Fighter, Cleric, Sorcerer, Rogue) the Magus seemed underpowered in Rev1, and pretty much on the money for Rev3, even long term. The player has been happy, the party hasn't felt overshadowed, just enough damage has been traded for versatility, and resource management is key.
Caveat: as with any caster class, you'll see their power level rise rapidly if you run short adventuring days...but full casters typically blow the Magus and everyone else out of the water if they get to nova every fight.
I've been personally hoping to see a segment (or book) with some apg-style favored classes for some of the alternate races that are common in some areas. These could be quite helpful for things like CoT (Tieflings) or CC (Changelings).
I'd love to see a few flavorful replacements for the skillpoint/hit point for Changelings, Aasimar, Tieflings, Changelings, Gillmen, Dhampir, Orcs, and Changelings (etc.)
Just because i didn't see it mentioned, for sorcerers Still Spell is pretty nice situationally; they already have eschew materials, making grappled/entangled casts trivial (and very frustrating for the DM). Obviously if you have spells like dimension door to escape that can help (but perhaps you'd like silent spell to guarantee your exit, in that case?)
Also, I second Heighten. Most under-rated sorcerer feat ever: it allows most every spell you select to provide its effects at the power level desired--flavor wise, it can mean your bread-and-butter spell remains fearsome at all levels.
Spontaneous casters really do well with almost anything metamagic--because they don't have to prereserve the higher slot, they can customize spells as needed.
There are a number of DnD monsters derived from Eastern European folklore (including Baba Yaga, of course). Check out Rusalka, and I believe Domovoi were in some book or another.
Thematically, there are a few things you can consider.
-Russian stories tend to be darker than their western counterparts--even the funny ones often have a pretty grim ending.
-If you are targeting a medieval slavic setting, a little research can be a big help--one only needs go back a few centuries to reach a point where much of the region was largely the province of warlords claiming chunks of territory. This is ripe for a 'points-of-light in a vast darkness' sort of setting.
-Look up some russian folklore--it contains origins for vampire mythology, a rich culture of witches, and a complex semi-pantheon of minor spirits. Further, once it was effectively forcibly Christianized, the new religion layered onto the old for a significant amount of time, rather than necessarily replacing it whole-cloth.
For particular entertainment/inspiration, check out Viy. It's a classic tale of priest kills witch, priest holds rites for witch, priest is killed by giant evil Marshmellow (Domo-style!). I believe you may even be able to watch the whole thing on youtube. I recommend you take it with a liberal dose of vodka.
I've been considering a bard for Serpents' Skull (a sea-singer, to be specific, even if most of the campaign has nothing to do with the ocean). I just figure a sailor or piratey-sort could make for a nice thematic transition into the campaign.
Problem is, I know that the bard will need to have things to do besides cast--but I'm not sure precisely how often. ;-) I'm currently planning around the halfling bard concept (which suggests making an archer of some sort) but given the sailor-theme, I thought stirring in a smidge (maybe 1-3 levels?) of gunslinger might be fun, and give the bard something to do when hesitant to cast.
That said, I was wondering if anyone has tried mixing a few levels of gunslinger in to another class, since the update--does it provide reasonable functionality? I've no doubt I'd have to invest in things like Deadly Aim, Point blank shot, and such. I'd prefer to avoid paper cartridges if possible--the GM wants to make firearms pretty rare.
Name: Zak Ghival
Race: Human (Chelaxian)
Classes/levels: Fighter/10 (Bastard Sword-and-Board)
Adventure: Mother of Flies
Location: Sandor's Room, Walcourt
Catalyst: Sandor the Strange, a suddenly revealed, grounded Diviner
The Gory Details:
The party reeled from the lighting blasts of the cross-shaped entryway as they entered the abode of Sandor the strange. Once the whole party had cycled in (as per his prior divinations) the greater-invisible, flying Sandor dropped disintegrate on the (*roll...*) fighter....who saved.
Massive divination +Init meant Sandor was first after the surprise round as well. Slow was dropped on the crowd...all of whom saved--except Zak. Zak took a potion of haste to dispel the slow. The scorcerer glitterdusted, revealing Sandor, and the magus Hydraulic-pushed him to force a (failed) fly check. Sandor was grounded, in a corner, with Zak, fabled Sixfold Survivor, in his face.
So Sandor popped phantasmal killer. Description: The face of Zak's beloved (currently kindapped) Amaya, twisted by the ravages of undeath, swoops towards him. Will save failed, and a natural 2 on the fort save meant poor Zak's heart just gave out.
Zak almost refused resurrection after that description. 0:-)
Name: Tim, the Enchanter
Race: Tiefling
Classes/levels: Sorcerer/9
Adventure: Mother of Flies
Location: The Dusk Market, outside One-Eye's shop
Catalyst: Maglin, converted to Playtest Ninja/10
The Gory Details:
The players arrived, led by the reluctantly recruited Alberten. Perception scores had been collected by yours truly in the prior session, and were rolled secretly. The rogue requested a perception, and rolled a natural 2. The ambush would go ahead as planned.
Maglin (having started from the rooftops) goes invisible, descends to the street, and death attacks the sorcerer after half the party had entered the shop, as the rogues unleash their crossbows in a rain on the party. Death attacks mean never having to say goodbye.
For bonus entertainment, the fighter runs into the shop and locks the door to avoid the death-from-above....leaving Maglin with a fistful of quieting needles and time to spare with a body.
So I ask you, Pathfinders, do you have ideas for wild surge effects? How do you keep the fun in the crazy of Wild Magic while not screwing up game balance?
My favorite character was a gnome illusionist with some wild mage effects grafted on, trait style (his last name is my screename, of course!). That said, the randomness is probably not for everyone.
If you want a little variety in failure, consider the Critical Failure deck! It has a different option on each card for Magic, Melee, Ranged, and Natural--this could give you the weirdness you're looking for on a serious failure without turning the entirety of the magic-using populace into Zifnab/Fizban. There is also a critical success deck, but I haven't used it personally, and cannot vouch for it. The CritFail deck rocks, though!
Last night, I replaced a villain from CoT: Mother of Flies with a ninja. The following playtest contains spoilers for one encounter in PA#29. Players of that campaign, or potential players, are discouraged from reading it if you have not yet gone passed that book. I'd also request that my players not read this, just in case. ;-)
Council of Thieves Playtest: Ninja:
In this encounter, I made relatively minor modifications of Maglin, Council Hushman, to convert him from Rog7/Asn3 to Nin10. In the interest of space saving, I'll assume our beloved designers have access to Maglin's stat block unless requested otherwise. ;-) In brief, these changes were as follows:
Swapped Cha and Str, giving him 10/17/12/13/8/10. Corrected Sneak attack to 5d6. Converted class abilities from rogue to ninja (No Trace, Light steps, lost Evasion and Trapfinding). For the 4 ninja tricks, I modeled them largely after the character as listed, leaving the 4 tricks as Bleeding 5, Combat Trick, Shadow Clone, Vanishing Trick. Master Trick Assassinate (DC = 10+5+2=17). The original weapon was a rapier; for flavor (and because of the picture and an awesome mini I had) I changed it to an adamantine claw, and treated it as a shortsword with a +5CMD to disarm (didn't come up during the fight).
Initial observations: This isn't how I'd have built the ninja myself, perhaps, but I wanted to keep his skillset similar to the original character to provide a better benchmark for behavior/utility/power.
Encounter Modifications:
Rather than have Maglin wait inside, I had him wait with the rogues outside on the rooftops. Kruthe had actually dies earlier in the campaign; I played his character as a zombie, with the added defenses and weaknesses.
Party: Level 9.
Human Fighter (Sword-and-board)
Human Cleric of Desna
Human Rog7/ShD2
Tiefling Sorcerer
Accompanied by Alberten, Src7.
I had collected the party's perceptions the day prior, and rolled scores for them secretly as they entered the alley. The rogue also actively requested a perception roll, which I allowed (yay, natural 2--they ambushers remained hidden).
Alberten, the rogue, and the cleric enter the shop. Maglin, meanwhile, quietly and invisibly approached, and death attacks the sorcerer. Sorcerer fails the fort save, and dies on the spot. Zombie Kruthe busts from the back room of the shop. All six rogues fire their crossbow bolts to round out the surprise round.
The Fighter rolls a high initiative, and (taking the initiative) runs into the shop and closes the door, leaving the tiefling's body outside. (The player gets Alberten for the remainder of the encounter). Alberten casts Arcane lock on the door.
The ninja gets two of his buddies to assist in inserting quieting needles in the body (I spot-ruled that this meant it took three rounds total, and delayed the last rogue by an additional round. Judge me if you will.) Three rogues moved above the shop as the party battled ZombiKruthe; one cut a hole in the roof, the other two dropped fireball beads in. BOOM.
The rest of the rogues move to the back door. Party Rogue tumbles past Kruthe into the back room. The cleric saw the rogue appear from invisibility, so she casts invisibility purge. Foes bust in the back room, throw their beads of fireball, and start trying to work in sneak attacks (fat chance, plus the party Rogue evasions the heck out of the DC14 beads). Kruthe is finished off as the ninja arrives (and is disgruntled to find his invisibility purged) with his assistants in tow. The remaining beads are lobbed in, dealing damage to a few party members.
The ninja was now visible, preventing trivial death attack. Ninja Through tumbles on the part of the ninja (two failed, two passed) and a reposition on the part of one of the rogues, the ninja flanked the cleric for sneak attack+bleed 5 three times; two of them, the fighter was in range to use In Harm's Way to take the damage, poison, and bleed (saved vs fort 14) The travel domain's teleportation effect allowed the cleric to escape when cornered.
An attempt was made on the rogue and the fighter, both failing with very high rolls (both had actively sought AC-building items) making the cleric the prime target. This meant that the ninja had a hard time getting full attacks with the extra attacks, though. The ninja survived primarily by using his thief buddies to soak attacks; he went down a mere two rounds after the party fighter members turned on him, since he lacked access to vanishing trick.
Final notes and observations:
The power level in this circumstance was probably similar to the original. Standard Action Death-Attack study, though, seems like it might still be a little on the crazy side--had the ninja not stopped to Quieting-needle the body, he would have gotten at least one free DA on the rogue before the cleric even had the chance to Invis-purge, much less thought of it.
Accidentally posted this in the wrong forum last night. Sorry for the double post!
TOC :
Introduction
Playtest Group
Prior Impressions ( Original
Magus)
Revised Magus: Encounter List
Player - Voiced Concerns
Final Impressions
Introduction :
I 've been running a Council of Thieves campaign
that acquired a Magus (original version ) when a
new player joined the group during book 3 , after
the last round of official playtesting closed . He
upgraded the character to the new rules when
the revised version was released. Impressions of
the session follow .
Prior impressions : For reference , my
impressions of the (original ) Magus at 6 th level
were middling at best- - the class just had trouble
keeping up with other base classes damage or
utility wise . The player used spell combat a
couple times, then just gave up . The player
largely felt forced into the role of a mediocre
melee .
* Revised Magus*
Encounters (2 sessions ):
1 ) Roleplaying /Problem solving Encounter
The player was only loosely involved in the
roleplaying encounter; things took a turn for the
worse. Initiative was called , but the sorcerer
pulled out Memory Lapse successfully . The
group retreated . The group pulls out a bag of
tricks ( yes , they had a bag of tricks ) and the
Magus adds a dash of pyrotechnics to create a
cat - astrophic distraction .
Salient point : The Magus had just gotten the
revised rules for this encounter, and didn 't know
he could burn a pool point to prepare
pyrotechnics . As a result , he had bought a scroll
for this encounter . Subsequently he has stated
that he intends to reserve points specifically for
spell preparation . More on this later in 'Player
voiced concerns '.
2 ) 4 CR 6 Ftrs + 1 CR8 Undead
With an arcane pool enhancement , the Magus
dealt respectable damage throughout the
combat. He otherwise conserved spells and
points , leaving him a fair bit behind the fighter in
damage , but he out - dps 'd the rogue . A Dazzling
Display was used VERY effectively on all but the
undead foe.
3 ) Roleplaying Encounter
The Magus succeeded on two knowledge checks ,
adding information about a relevant spell , and a
particular denizen of another plane. Salient
point : The Magus used the skill list to good
effect . The naturally high Int meant that the
player was able to accommodate more skills
than 2 + int melee types typically have .
4 ) 1 CR 9 Evil Outsider , 3 tough CR6 Evil
Outsiders .
The cleric took the cake on this one , Dismissing
my Big Bad Monster . The Magus was the star of
the subsequent cleanup with the three Evil
Outsider Mooks ( who had a significant HP each)
as he enhanced his scimitar, such that it was not
just superior to his comrades ' weapons, but also
specifically keyed to their weaknesses .
5 ) 1 CR 9 Sorcerer
A third weapon enhancement was used.
Spellstrike was used heavily with a whip in this
fight to mediocre effect , mostly due to low dice
rolls. Things picked up when the Magus used
web to limit the sorcerer 's mobility , then moved
up . He tried to cast something with spell
combat, but failed the check . He then used
burning hands with spell combat ( burning away
the web, of course) . The player - sorcerer , as an
irrelevant side note , used improved counterspell
to totally mitigate several lightning bolts , but he
ran out of appropriately leveled spells pretty
fast.
Player Comments/Concerns :
- The player is still concerned with a lack of
variety of attack touch spells for use with spell
combat, mostly due to the lack of variety rather
than any balance concern .
- He also actively voiced a degree of concern
regarding Knowledge pool and Pool Spell , saying
he felt like it was taking something from Divine
and Sorcerous casters . He agreed that Pool
Spell's cost made it appropriately expensive , but
Knowledge Pool , on the other hand , was cheap- -
he intends to now use a few points daily for
'niche ' spells he doesn' t know but might need .
He still is uncomfortable with Improved Pool
Spell's 'best- of - both - worlds ' capability, and flat
disagrees with getting access to the whole
wizard spell list (" which even a wizard doesn' t
get ") - - although that 's 19 th level , which this
campaign won 't reach . As a DM , I actually
agree - - I wouldn 't mind seeing the Knowledge
pool and Improved / greater spell pool come
back as part of an ' archmagey' base /prestige
class, but they don 't seem to fit the Gish theme
to me, and could potentially cause balance
issues ( but I haven't seen that reflected yet ,
obviously ) .
- The player feels that conserving Arcane Pool
points is a facet of playing, but doesn 't feel like
he has too few- - he 's pretty happy with the
number .
Final Impressions :
The Revised Magus's damage potential seems to
be a little lower than other DPS - focused classes
( when played in this manner , anyways ), but
utility seems to make up for that . After the
revision , spell combat and spellstrike saw good
use, and the weapon was enhanced several
times. A full adventuring day 's worth of
encounters didn 't see him run out of pool
points , but he did have to conserve; I felt like
the number of points available to him was good
( opinion alert ) . The player is pretty happy , and
other players don 't feel like he 's outstripping
them.
My concern , and that of the player himself, is
the Knowledge Pool / Improved and Greater Pool
Spell abilities ; the only playtesting input I can
provide is that my player intends to use several
of his points from now on to prepare spells he
thinks he 'll need for a day .
If the duration of the playtest is extended , I 'll
have another session 's input this weekend .
Otherwise, thanks for the playtest ! I 'm looking
forward to th
TOC:
Introduction
Playtest Group
Prior Impressions (Original Magus)
Revised Magus: Encounter List
Player-Voiced Concerns
Final Impressions
Introduction:
I've been running a Council of Thieves campaign that acquired a Magus (original version) when a new player joined the group during book 3, after the last round of official playtesting closed. He upgraded the character to the new rules when the revised version was released. Impressions of the session follow.
Book:
The encounters below are from the Infernal Syndrome.
Group (7th level):
Playtest Magus(v2)
Rogue6/Shadowdancer1
Fighter (Sword-and-board)
Cleric of Desna
Arcane Sorcerer
Prior impressions: For reference, my impressions of the (original) Magus at 6th level were middling at best--the class just had trouble keeping up with other base classes damage or utility wise. The player used spell combat a couple times, then just gave up. The player largely felt forced into the role of a mediocre melee.
*Revised Magus*
Encounters (2 sessions):
1) Roleplaying/Problem solving Encounter
The player was only loosely involved in the roleplaying encounter; things took a turn for the worse. Initiative was called, but the sorcerer pulled out Memory Lapse successfully. The group retreated. The group pulls out a bag of tricks (yes, they had a bag of tricks) and the Magus adds a dash of pyrotechnics to create a cat-astrophic distraction.
Salient point: The Magus had just gotten the revised rules for this encounter, and didn't know he could burn a pool point to prepare pyrotechnics. As a result, he had bought a scroll for this encounter. Subsequently he has stated that he intends to reserve points specifically for spell preparation. More on this later in 'Player voiced concerns'.
2) 4 CR6 Ftrs +1 CR8 Undead
With an arcane pool enhancement, the Magus dealt respectable damage throughout the combat. He otherwise conserved spells and points, leaving him a fair bit behind the fighter in damage, but he out-dps'd the rogue. A Dazzling Display was used VERY effectively on all but the undead foe.
3) Roleplaying Encounter
The Magus succeeded on two knowledge checks, adding information about a relevant spell, and a particular denizen of another plane. Salient point: The Magus used the skill list to good effect. The naturally high Int meant that the player was able to accommodate more skills than 2+int melee types typically have.
4) 1 CR9 Evil Outsider, 3 tough CR6 Evil Outsiders.
The cleric took the cake on this one, Dismissing my Big Bad Monster. The Magus was the star of the subsequent cleanup with the three Evil Outsider Mooks (who had a significant HP each) as he enhanced his scimitar, such that it was not just superior to his comrades' weapons, but also specifically keyed to their weaknesses.
5) 1 CR9 Sorcerer
A third weapon enhancement was used. Spellstrike was used heavily with a whip in this fight to mediocre effect, mostly due to low dice rolls. Things picked up when the Magus used web to limit the sorcerer's mobility, then moved up. He tried to cast something with spell combat, but failed the check. He then used burning hands with spell combat (burning away the web, of course). The player-sorcerer, as an irrelevant side note, used improved counterspell to totally mitigate several lightning bolts, but he ran out of appropriately leveled spells pretty fast.
Player Comments/Concerns:
-The player is still concerned with a lack of variety of attack touch spells for use with spell combat, mostly due to the lack of variety rather than any balance concern.
-He also actively voiced a degree of concern regarding Knowledge pool and Pool Spell, saying he felt like it was taking something from Divine and Sorcerous casters. He agreed that Pool Spell's cost made it appropriately expensive, but Knowledge Pool, on the other hand, was cheap--he intends to now use a few points daily for 'niche' spells he doesn't know but might need. He still is uncomfortable with Improved Pool Spell's 'best-of-both-worlds' capability, and flat disagrees with getting access to the whole wizard spell list ("which even a wizard doesn't get")--although that's 19th level, which this campaign won't reach. As a DM, I actually agree--I wouldn't mind seeing the Knowledge pool and Improved/greater spell pool come back as part of an 'archmagey' base/prestige class, but they don't seem to fit the Gish theme to me, and could potentially cause balance issues (but I haven't seen that reflected yet, obviously).
-The player feels that conserving Arcane Pool points is a facet of playing, but doesn't feel like he has too few--he's pretty happy with the number.
Final Impressions:
The Revised Magus's damage potential seems to be a little lower than other DPS-focused classes (when played in this manner, anyways), but utility seems to make up for that. After the revision, spell combat and spellstrike saw good use, and the weapon was enhanced several times. A full adventuring day's worth of encounters didn't see him run out of pool points, but he did have to conserve; I felt like the number of points available to him was good (opinion alert). The player is pretty happy, and other players don't feel like he's outstripping them.
My concern, and that of the player himself, is the Knowledge Pool/Improved and Greater Pool Spell abilities; the only playtesting input I can provide is that my player intends to use several of his points from now on to prepare spells he thinks he'll need for a day.
If the duration of the playtest is extended, I'll have another session's input this weekend. Otherwise, thanks for the playtest! I'm looking forward to the results!
I've had luck with flashback and flash forward sequences. take care with flash forwards, of course....it can be hard to circle around.
I once had a group start a campaign playing a half night as some of the villains they would later meet.
Another time I just started them right at the first Big Fight the first night, and flashed back to How they Met in small pieces over the next few sessions. Toss a future villain in as a friendly npc in the flashbacks, and you'll likely earn a satisfying curse or two when the reveal hits.
PF AP #17 had the Calistria chapter, I believe. It included 4 bonus summons for Priests of Calistria (including a giant bee [I] and a hellwasp swarm [VIII]) but I don't know if (a) this would be acceptable for a non-cleric, or (b) if it is acceptable for organized play.
Since no one has jumped in to help, I shall endeavour to do so! If I'm wrong, perhaps my incompetence will inspire others to correct me.
Devil's_Advocate wrote:
First, I have chosen the Sling Staff for his ranged weapon, but I'm not sure which damage size is appropriate since these staves are supposedly made for Halflings.
If I recall correctly, halfling sling staffs are martial weapons for halflings, meaning that a bard would have to take a martial weapon proficiency to get access to them as a halfling (or a level in a class that can use them, like fighter). The damage size would still be as listed (small).
Devil's_Advocate wrote:
Secondly, does the Halfling proficiency with the Sling Staff translate into any kind of proficiency bonus to his attack rolls?
It doesn't come with a proficiency bonus, but avoids the -4 normally incurred from using a weapon with which you are not proficient.
Devil's_Advocate wrote:
Thirdly, I also bought him a scorpion whip. Does one use the normal CMB bonus in order to trip or disarm opponents using a whip?
It would use normal CMBs for disarm and trip. It would be small damage dice, and has reach--but keep in mind that it still doesn't threaten, even though it deals lethal damage. The big advantage is that you can drop it if you fail on the maneuver to avoid the return maneuver...anbd that you can use it at range, usually avoiding the AoO.
Devil's_Advocate wrote:
Lastly, my Halfling is a follower of Calistria. If I were to take the Summon Monster I spell, would I be able to re-flavor the monster so that it is a swarm of wasps rather than a fire beetle or snake?
I'd have to leave that to a PF Society player--I'm just the tabletop sort. I *think* there are at least a few reflavored summon monster spell lists for each deity, but I can't recall which issue of the adventure path had calistria. Something in second darkenss, I think.
Those are good questions--welcome to the boards! I think someone will be along to give you a cookie soon if they haven't already.
Does your group often find that the healers use single-target heals in combat but are stymied by keeping out of enemies' reach? It may be a difference in playstyle for us.
More that they armor up pretty heavily, and thus often lag a little behind the melee fighters throwing themselves into the fray. I suppose my biggest concern is that healers might stop getting to the thick of things at all--instead hanging back and just pumping life into the fighter.
That said, the cleric in the game I'm running isn't likely to be an issue, I suppose. He enjoys mixing things up a little too much to be a healbot...I just want to make sure I've thought it through before I set the precedent and allow it for all of my games. ;-)
After reading through the APG pdf, I've been impressed by the balanced nature of the feats, features, and spells therein.
That said, I was wondering about other DM opinions on Sacred Bond. Seems like a pretty significant increase in capability for the cost of a 3rd level spell that,by default, all clerics would automatically learn.
I'm not certain that is actually a problem--given the utility of selective channeling, it may instead just represent an alternative approach to what some of the clerics in my games call a 'feat tax'. At the same time, that significant a spell is worth a sounding board.
I wrote (a very very bad) poem in German and made cypher clues as a side note on the "parchment" (as I thought Dargentu would have made). The clues were a little more obvious than in your poem, but did the trick after a good portion of riddling.
Thanks!
Yeah, I should definitely consider scrawling a few notes in the margins--maybe syllable counts, and/or circling a few key points. As a player, I know things are always less obvious than they seem to the GM prepping the puzzle.
Sorry, no poem writing/coding skills here. I had to be upfront with them and just explain what they learned from the check, without any poem. I'd love to have had that poem.
Here's a first rough draft. I caution: this is terrible, terrible poetry, with a smidge of risque metaphor. But! It pseudo fits the bill....maybe. Thoughts?
Spoiler:
Cugney’s Wedding Was to be The
Event of the Century!
The man himself was middle
Aged – yet all agreed he could Wave
Goodbye to older aches and
Pains—for with her he would be
Young again! For her little Door
Remained locked—untouched by man
(or even by a maid’s hand)
…As far as any knew – but lies
have ways of coming out when
hidden by the flaws of men.
And so he arrived that day with
Bells on, in his finest dress
Clothes…he was, in fact a mess!
You see, the bride who waited in
The church before him frightened
Him! All of eighteen she was--
Too fair for an old man! She’d Cut
And run before he could glimpse
Her lithe form out of that dress!
He understood: she’s just a lass—
He understood, but loved her
For more than what he’d caress.
He knew where she was coming From
But still, he thought he’d do well.
It’s true, he had a faint smell
Of mothballs, and there was a Wart
On his nose, but he’d comport
Himself with dignity—some,
At least! He stood for minutes—three—
And entered the church, head high!
His beloved met his eye--
He saw her softly whisper ‘Hun
I think it’s time!’ He could see
An eager, excited sigh!
All at once, he felt that old dred
Melt away! The crowd saw old
Cugney step up a new man!
He saw his life as food sans salt
Sans her, his life seemed so cold…
If he lost her, twas HIS fault.
There was no doubt his palms were soaked
As were his clothes with nerve’s sweat.
The old man felt his cheeks wet
With tears—there were no more cold feet
For he had the love of sweet
Marie, who would HIS wife be.
Poor Cugney saw no tear there, Nor
The girl behind him, misty
Eyed. The sigh he thought eager
Instead bore nerves. But looking east
The sun had risen--meager
Moments remained. Twas time to
do or die! For none there knew the
Lass who was her lady love
Was a witch of quite some skill.
They had committed to their path
The witch produced the small dove
And with whispered words caused ill.
In seconds short the charm did find
His heart, and caused it to bind
His love to his dying day
To the dove upon her finger
To which his eyes did then stray.
One would think that the story
Would end here—however it must
Continue: see, for the lass
Was caught just a smidge—her lust
Set on Cugney, who’d rather pass.
Thus we set a four-side stage:
Youth, and Dove, and Witch, and Age.
The witch—her name was Anne—saw Grand
Plans dissolve to Chaos then!
She loved girl and girl loved man
And man loved bird! Erastil’s Lodge
Still sat, as yet unaware
That things had fast grown quite odd.
The fair bride’s eyes were filled with light
But for Anne she held no sight…
Only Cugney drew her lust.
Cug cared for dove, as now he must.
Without ado or fanfare
The wedding words took to air.
What followed then was quite the show
Westcrown’s never seen its like!
“First off, Marie! Your oath please?”
The cleric asked, and straight off the
bride did swear her life to “He
who stands beside me, that tease,
Let’s head to our bed straight away:
I cannot wait! Please don’t stray!”
The old priest smiled at eager
Youth! He knew that soon she would Delve
Myst’ries bound to marriage beds.
He blessed her oath and turned then…
“I too in turn will swear to hav
and hold this bird beside me!”
Silence reigned supreme just then:
Cugney swore before the heaven’s
His eternal marriage vow.
The crowd—in shock—did not see
The witch step forward to give an oath!
“In that case, take me, Marie!
I pledge marriage to all three!
I’ll take them all—and with a will
That I might have Marie still
Else I’ll live in misery.”
Old Cugney’s wedding worked because
Lovers stepped up without pause.
Without commitment, you see
Misery’s lot was bound to the
Three. Girl, Girl, old man, and dove
Did pledge bed and life today
And love did mend what would be fray.
The translation:
Spoiler:
Every line should have seven syllables. The first line of every 3 has 8. Typos in those extra syllables are deliberate clues for the players.
These assemble as follows:
The Wave Door lies within Cutlass--
From Wart three hundred salt-soaked feet
Noreast the pathfinder must pass.
The Grand Lodge light must show the way:
Delvehaven's oath will cause the fray.
Has anyone running CoT tried going the extra mile and spinning up the Cugney's Wedding/Wave Door poem, or something like it? I was thinking about trying to write up something abbreviated and similar, but if another artistically inclined GM had already done so, all the better.
I'd very much like to see the item used when my party runs across it.
I wonder if the negative level was an originally intended consequence of using it? While it's mentioned in the Core Rulebook, the stat black doesn't make explicit note of it. Obviously by the RAW, it does what it does, but I'm reasonably certain my group won't touch it....they fear negative levels like the plague.
Has anyone tried removing the negative level? DId it balance? Has anyone tried a downgrade?
I would love a module along these lines. Any chance you'd post your gm notes and the like once it's done so that we, the unwashed masses, can bask in its drowyness?
I deeply crave this book. I've had three separate gnomes over the years, and they rank as my top three favorite PC/NPCs.
I will gladly give you every Bag of Tricks I own for an advance copy of this book. I will still offer at least three DAYS worth of pulls from my gray bag of tricks if advance copies are not permissible, forcing me to buy it on release. That's more weasels than you can shake a 10-ft pole at.
As when creating ANY magic item, consult with your GM first.
Sounds like a commercial for Enzyte, or Lipitore. However you spell them. "As always, consult your doctor before using intelligent magic items. Side effects may include delusions of grandeur, arguments with equipment, or impotence."
As counterintuitive as it seems, consider suggesting a small character--medium mounts can usually enter even the narrow corriders of dungeons, given a decent handle animal score.
Corrected: I forgot that you use your dexterity bonus "IF ANY" to flat footed AC. Added a conditional that adds in the negative DEX to flat footed AC if the DEX is less than 0. Does that sound correct?
Below, I've added STR, DEX, and Con bonuses, as well as sections for Touch and flatfooted AC. [edit: added Touch/FF] [edit2: correct Touch/FF].
Keep in mind: These are changes to existing values, not total values. That means that Touch=2 doesn't mean a touch AC of 2, but a touch AC of 2 higher than TouchAC prior to wildshape.
Going to try to get a website up with these values (and the spreadsheet) soon.
Additional thoughts? Is there anyone with the devotion to turn this into something prettier and more useful? I can go ahead and mail you the .xls in advance, if so.
Furthermore--how's my math? I wouldn't be surprised if I've missed something...
I'll add my experience to rydi et alia's . I've already (in the original playtest) posted my math-based-thoughts on the matter...see that thread if you're interested. I'd rather talk to the current discussion, and offer my opinions on solutions.
As both a player and a DM, I see 10-min per level spells as used in a few encounters. To give a (spoiler free) example, anyone who has played in the Second Darkness campaign should recall several cases (several meaning "more often than not) in which an entire "day" was spent in hostile territory....and I can't think of more than one or two cases in which danger was only present for a few minutes at a time.
I think Rydi's point is that the players don't HAVE to be in "constant danger" (aka combat) to run out of duration--if a character is in a forest, or the Darklands, or a particularly rough bar, they would have to choose between being protected against the (entirely likely) potential of an attack, or wasting an action once the combat began. Thus, unless a character intends to campaign on the notorious two-hour-workday, the average adventurer--who, let's face it, doesn't exhibit good judgement in choice of locale--is entirely likely to run out before the second meaningful combat of the day, unless they're stripping and reapplying on a per-combat basis.
This is not to say that this is necessarily a bad decision to have to make...simply that the rewards are not worth the cost of casting flamestrike in the first round of combat.
My personal thoughts on the matter:
Fizzlebolt Option 1) Extend to hours-per-level
This places them in the category of Mage Armor: furthermore, while it is better than mage armor, the opportunity cost of taking a mystery is much, much higher than that of taking a spell, even for a spontaneous caster. I'll go so far as to say I don't think it should be nerfed in this approach, either.
Fizzlebolt Option 2) Reduce activation to a Swift/Immediate/Free action
This sets it more in line with things such as the Cleric Bramble Armor. If swift, the durations should probably be left pretty high. To be honest, I'm currently playing a Cleric (now level 11) with the Plant domain, and I've never even hit with bramble armor OR Wooden Fist..and they're free actions! That duration being limited to rounds just means it's never turned on until I'm in melee, and at that point I'm getting out of melee...so I'm rarely hit a second time. I'm rambling, so to abbreviate: if the duration is kept the same, a swift action would be worthwhile during the first round of combat. If cut down to rounds, I'd rather see it set to an Immediate action than a free one, so I could see it turned on when I'm hit.
Fizzlebolt Option 3) Nerf-n-stack
Since all oracles have medium armor, the ability to "augment" that armor would be perfectly fine. Obviously the bonuses would have to be reduced...but it would allow the duration to be shortened to rounds or minutes without being a waste--it allows the cleric to walk around with reasonable defenses most of the time, then go into "wash my pants afterwards" mode when the Vrock shows up to claw claw talon talon bite you.
As for the "benefits over regular armor" thing, I'm gonna apologize to Jason for "me too!"ing and agree that the benefirst from it not being real armor are essentially meaningless unless you can wear the armor for at least as long as Mage Armor. It doesn't matter that I can sleep in Bone Armor...it'd never make it to bedtime anyways, and if it did, it would be gone by the time the token night engagement started. Movement penalties, Dex penalties...they're all things armor wearing classes have dealt with. Give me hours per level, and I'll agree the benefits matter...but knowing that for up to 3 hours, I could move 5 feet while being protected no better than I could have otherwise...meh.
Also remember, "If the form you assume has any of the following abilities, you gain the listed ability." So if you turn into a Dire Wolf that has a natural armor of 3 you only get 3. The spell allows for up to 4, but you are limited by the form you are taking.
I'm not sure that's the case--i believe that portion refers to the abilities of the monster; the natural armor bonus, like the strength, is a flat bonus. (Natural armor is not one of the listed abilities; rather, it us listed separately, with the ability score enhancements).
Your ac <> touch ac <> flat-footed ac, so these would be calculated separately.
In addition, the following factors are also changed:
1) Reflex Save / Fort Save, and if memory serves, Will Saves are oftentimes moot
2) HP can change (particularly if you're a water elemental)
3) Skill bonuses change
4) Number and type of attacks (remember that you have to back out improved natural attack[s] if the base critter has the feat)
5) Special abilities, senses, attacks
6) CMD versus trip can be affected (look at the picture of the medium earth elemental - four legs)
Xi ) The ac values are derived...but I could show at least a column indicating what to do to get them. Unless I make my spreadsheet into a more interactive resource (which I suppose I could do) these will have to be done per char.
1,2,3) I actually have these values in the spreadsheet I used to generate this chart. Skill bonus changes are a little ugly to display--at the moment I'm just going with "str-based skills" etc. Just trimmed it out for space purposes...
4,5,6) These are getting into the rabid-detail level; while a full outline would be cool, for the most part these are (like armor) specific cases (once you've looked up the number and kind of attscks a lion has, for instance, you have all the info you need...just have to calculate damage bonuses. That said, I think ill add a section summarizing abilities per beast-shape level, and perhaps a few notes of other modifiers like legs--good point!
At work right now, but I'll try to toss up an update this evening, and perhaps make the spreadsheet available. I dont really intend to make the bestiary unnecessary--just to make it easier to apply the stat changes as a unified whole.
Other thoughts? Are folks even interested, or am I overthinking it? ;)
As I am currently running a druid, I frequently find myself trying to figure out adjusted stats in Wildshape. Several things factor in: size changes apply benefits and penalties to AC, To-Hit, and Damage (and reverse that trend for CMBs); strength and dex changes also modify combat stats. Natural armor is applied; etc.
To that end, I've tried compiling the total changes. These values are the total change to each stat; thus, if a druid has a +9 to To-Hit (TH) and they change into a diminutive animal, they end with a +11 TH.
To calculate these values for small druids, subtract 1 from the TH and AC values, and add 1 to the CMB and CMD changes.
*AC is starred because it presumes wild armor. If your armor or shield are not wild, subtract the value of the armor.
I have a more thorough spreadsheet showing my math, as well, if anyone's interested...I wouldn't be surprised to see an error or two.
And the type of action it takes to be activated needs to be stated in the entry.
It's true--but the entry at the start of the section does say that unless stated otherwise, it is a standard action for each revelation--I presume that is the case here.
@A Man in Black--stole the words right out of my fingers...and couched them better than I would have, I suspect. ;-)
The way bone armor reads, the benefit is an armor bonus. This suggests it is not intended to stack with any existing armor--is this intentional?
I ask, because the initial value is +2 armor bonus--which is equivalent to leather armor (a +2 bonus)--which the Oracle can already wear. It seems to scale up to match light armor, as well--but given that it is a standard action to activate (essentially costing a round) and only lasts a minute per level...it just doesn't seem to match the cost of a revelation unless it stacks with existing armor--or perhaps is a free action to activate, although I'd still be a little leery of it.
Examples:
Oracle with dex 14:
@ Level 1:
AC with Bone Armor : 14 (+2 dex, +2 BA)
AC With Leather Armor: 14 (+2 dex, +2 Armor)
AC With Studded Leather: 15 (+2 dex, +3 Armor)
@ Level 7:
AC with Bone Armor: 16 (+2 dex, +4 BA)
AC with Studded Leather: 15 (+2 dex, +3 armor)
AC with +1 studded Leather: 16 (+2 dex, +3 armor, +1 enh armor)
[Wealth by level: 23,500 gp. Cost of +1: 1000g]
@Level 13
AC WIth Bone Armor: 16 (2 dex, +5 BA) and 5 DR/Blu.
AC With +3 Chain shirt: 19 (+2 dex, +4 armor, +3 enh armor)
[Wealth by level: 140,000 gp. Cost of +3: 9,000 gp]
Obviously these are just examples, and obviously DR is not AC--but special abilities/mats can be added for the ac, and the armor scales past level 13. On the other hand, if Armor of Bones stacks with existing AC, it becomes worth the standard action and revelation, providing a temporary bonus to AC/DR.
I'm sure I've mis-mathed...but it probably gets the gist across. Thoughts?
Just thought I'd toss it out there. I've loved the wild mage since its 2E inception--the 3.5 Complete Arcane respin didn't particularly amuse me (no wild surges? A tragedy!) but I've been a huge fan of Sean's (google up his website--I don't remember if it's appropriate to post links here), among others. Makes for some of the most memorable characters I've seen or played. ;-)
Any chance we'll see a prestige or base-class rework of the 2E favorite (or the SKR OGL one, for that matter) in some shiny official Paizo source?
I still think the existing numbers could be used in reverse for a better tumble representation...CMD v. CMB rather than CMB v. CMD
If you are suggesting using CMB as the target number for Tumble instead of CMD, I might have to try that.
It puts a defensive action (tumble) against an offensive trait (CMB). CMB is also modified by magic weapons and such, which would make success harder.
Using Valeros as examples, he would have DC of 36 (10 + CMB + 3 for weapon training +3 magic longsword + 3 for Weapon Focus feats).
Hmm...that is a bit of math. Maybe 15 + base CMB? That would be a DC 32 (though that seems low target number for his level).
My biggest issue with the abstraction is the size issue--whether or not I could personally tumble under an elephant, the 'dodgy halfling fellow rolls under the ogre' is a fun archetype throughout numerous cultures. Allowing that CMD is a defensive action, i'm inclined to ignore some of the Ring of Prot silliness...but I'd still rather reverse the size modifier for tumble DC's.
Change is hard. Did anyone else get that resistant feeling to the change on Cleave? And at first I couldn't figure out what made it different from Whirlwind Attack but it's a matter of adjacent foes only (great cleave) vs. foes within reach (whirlwind).
Keep in mind--Cleave is a standard action now (not a full-attack), meaning it gets its money's worth in mobile combats. This is likely a nice response to one of the chief complaints in the beta --melee could only attack once after moving.
In particular, I see it as most useful for builds that already expect to get hit--barbarians, for instance, are already probably taking hit anyways: a -2 to AC while raging and frequently supbar armor scream high-con-only...this is no different than a charge, but has the potential to inflict some bonus hurt. If the attack actions can be combined with other booster feats, all the better.
I like it. It's like a paladin's muscle relaxer for the soul. Doesn't make the issues go away--it just gives enough room to work through them.
I'm actually a little surprised at the number of people who wanted such a rigid game mechanic (because let's be fair--that's what this is). As a DM, it has always been insanely hard to work a paladin into a group of rather varied individuals, and harder still to avoid posing circumstances that require the player to choose between a) Leaving the party, probably bathed in the blood of another player or key NPC, or B) Losing all powers (with or without copious bloodshed).
For once, we might get to see a paladin in a party without putting a burden on other characters as to their selection. Remember, folks. Sarenrae may rock, but she's a game deity--I think she'll allow a few atonements for the sake of facilitating game mechanics.
The druid section of the Pathfinder Campaign Setting refers to the Wildwood Lodge and the Isle of Arenway, somewhere along the Sellen river. Other than that statement, though, I haven't been able to find any additional info.
As I'm currently playing a druid in the setting, I was wondering if anyone knows anything else (such as it's specific location, for instance--the only thing that struck a chord with me was the island on he northeast corner of Andoran map). I'd love some extra info--are there any (Paizo) supplements that go into the druidic organizations more thoroughly?
