Fleanetha's page

Thoroughly enjoyed the first episode on YouTube catch up - well done for this Aaron and all others involved. I look forward to watching Episode 2.

Does anyone have a link to Omelette's dice jail/ prison seen in Series 1? My daughter and son would like one each!

I agree and would wholeheartedly recommend them too. A quick comment re the price: these are fully cast audio dramas, like a play on the radio, rather than an audiobook with one actor reading the book. With music, special effects, and a full cast, I would guess they cost more to produce than an audiobook and so have to be priced higher. The question to answer, then, is: is it worth the extra money for the greater immersion? For me, it is and the extracts mentioned above might help determine if it's going to be worth it for you too.

I would like this series to continue too - there are many more APs, of course, plus I think many of the novels would convert magnificently to this format. Whom to cast as Jeggare? Radovan? Torius Vin? Jendara? Luma? Larsa? Salim? Rodrick? ...

Thoroughly enjoyable series - many thanks to all that made it happen and fantastic news about the second series.

That email address towards the bottom of this (excellent) Blog post looks wrongly spelt: organziedplay@paizo.com and may affect your feedback.

Why are issues 63, 66, 67, 69 not available at Paizo?

Of course it must be entirely coincidental that the flying creature in the second piece of art by Richard Suwono is adopting the shape of the Yellow Sign.

Hello Paizo,

are you not going to have Pathways #50 available - you have a gap currently?

I hope so

Cheers

J

Well, I would like to place on record a huge thank you for all the fantastic short stories we have had over the years through the web fiction. I can still remember when it was a pipe dream to get fiction associated with Golarion, and now we have so much the web fiction is ending.

Well done to all the authors and to James for organizing it all.

I am also in the group very sorry to see it go: I will miss my regular short doses.

J

Many thanks for the fast answers both - much appreciated.

J

I am hoping there are people active on this forum that can help us please. My group are considering playing an Adventure Path on roll20 software, which is a cloud based VTT.

We are a private group and want to use the material within the AP - maps, images, handouts. Are we allowed to upload and share this copyright material just within our group for play in our AP run through?

I have searched these messageboards and got conflicting information, namely, everyone here seems to favour roll20 and is using it happily for play and I presume uploading the maps from the PFS mods. Paizo staff on the boards offer advice on how best to handle maps in VTTs and the FAQ for the Interactive maps state they 'may be very helpful to GMs who run games using virtual tabletop software.'

BUT...the CUP specifically states:

'You may not use artwork, including maps, that have not been published in the blog, although you may create your own interpretations of material presented in our artwork and maps, provided that your interpretations don't look substantially similar to our materials.'

We do not want to breach copyright, as this is a cloud based mechanism for sharing, nor do we want to have to use weasel words to get around this CUP wording. I think it is going to be about whether our use is private or shared on an open website but I cannot find that wording / interpretation sanctioned anywhere. So are left a bit confused and would be very grateful for any pointers in this direction please.

Cheers

J

Well done Adam - a good tale well told. I would like to add my vote to those requesting more of Blit's & Allyra's story.

Nice to be back in Absalom too - a place we feel we know.

J

I have just finished reading this novel and wanted to add my comments to James Sutter's request above for gauging opinions and calibration.

I have to say I think this is one of the better novels in the Pathfinder Tales line and I have read most of them now. The title refers to a group of barbaric people in a barbaric end of Golarion, so my view is that the level of violence is about right for a Paizo product. Taking on board the comments above, and fully understanding the level is not for everyone, I have to say that within this bestial context the lack of violence, brutality and even rape would be unbelievable for me. The fact the author / editor have incorporated the latter in a subtle fashion that might well be missed by younger readers, yet is clear to most adults, is thoughtful, clever and laudable.

I will add one more positive I have surprisingly not seen in the comments so far, and that is I found this book the most horror-filled of the line so far (and that includes Nightglass amazingly). The initial period when the general enemy is unclear and unknown was chilling.

Protecting people and children from unsuitable material is vital, so perhaps the suggestion elsewhere of a guide to violence and other adult themes might be an aid to parents on the books, while allowing some themes to be treated without being neutered?

Well done Wendy - I'd say you should be very proud of your first novel and, like many others, I hope we can see more of Jendara in the future please.

J

Will this be a monthly or 6 weekly etc. timing between releases?

One every 2 months Blackcat

Thank you both - I can safely start reading this story first then while I await delivery of the novel.

Hello. Does this tale occur before or after the novel ' The Dagger of Trust' please?

Is it important to read the stories in order?

Thanks

Hey, Fleanetha:

Online gaming works virtually like "real world" game play...

Just a quick response to say thanks Jesse - lots there to look at which I shall look forward to doing later.

Cheers

J

Congratulations to the new Venture-Captain and wishes for every success in the role.

Our group has played PFS for a long time now on-line as we are friends in disparate geographies, but we are now moving to try out Adventure Paths. This means I'll need to start looking online for PFS goodness.

I am intrigued then as to how this works? This is a forum so will just get longer and longer - is there one place which holds a list of what one needs to do to get ready for online gaming; a list of games being offered and how to join?

Cheers

J

Many thanks for the response Kevin Andrew Murphy. The chronological order is now up on the PathfinderWiki.

Fantastic to see the ascent to a Pathfinder's Journal for the Gantier brothers, but I'd like to add my vote to the many already cast that this pair warrant a full Pathfinder Tales novel of their own.

Until then, I am very much looking forward to the next instalment.

Thanks

J

Can I confirm that the events of 'The Bonedust Dolls' occur after those of 'The Secret of the Rose and Glove' and 'The Perfumer's Apprentice'; but occur before the events of 'Thieves Vinegar' please?

So chronological ordering of the stories is as follows:

The Secret of the Rose and Glove · The Perfumer's Apprentice · The Bonedust Dolls · Thieves Vinegar

Thanks

J

Thanks Mark for the clarification - very useful

J

Thank you Scott, but that cannot be right I'm afraid; though it begs the very interesting question of what those symbols mean and why they are placed on the mods they are. Those symbols all appear on mods earlier than the start of the 2 arcs. It looks like a design change was effected for #4-05 onwards and those symbols were dropped along with a red stripe down the left hand side.

Still baffled then.

I did look more closely at the mod covers though based on Scott's idea and on #4-08, #4-10 and #4-12 (all tier 7-11) there is a banner over the title labelled 'Year of the Risen Rune' - is that to indicate High Tier arc, though the summary of 4-12 does not mention Lissala at all?

J

Many thanks Chris for the prompt response. Not quite there yet though - I'll explain a bit more. My understanding from this blog post is that Year 4 mods from #4-07 onwards are in 3 groups:

1. a High Level Lissala arc

2. a Low Level Aspis Consortium arc

3. Other mods not associated with either arc

Allocating the mods to these three groups is baffling me currently, for instance, not all Tier 7-11 mods seem to be Lissala associated (#4-12). Not all 1-5 / 3-7 seem to be Aspis connected (#4-09, #4-11, #4-14, #4-15). I cannot find a categoric list of which mod falls into which group.

Hope that explains my conundrum more clearly.

J

How does one tell which of the Year 4 modules are the Low Level and which are the High Level arc? I cannot see it in the descriptions.

Many thanks

J

Bravo Can Sungur and all the Turkish Pathfinders: very very impressive. All the best for your future growth there.

We played this yesterday and had fun - it became a quick emergency mission immediately after finishing First Steps while the new Pathfinder PCs were still in Absalom - worked well in that context too.

I have come to record the session today but found the comments here.

For consideration please:

o It would be nice (no more) to have a PC record as having played it in the on-line record, even though it grants no PP,XP & GP

o More importantly, it'd be good to give a GM credit as they still have to prepare and, in yesterday's case, 'eat' the Quest - half a point??

Thanks

J

Lovely book arrived today. Very useful and often used I'm sure. I particularly like the non-magical section, the use of item slots for categorizing wondrous items, the gem section is a gem, and the vast tables for treasure generation.

However, am I missing it, but the first thing I tried to look up was the Wayfinder and the various ioun stones usable and the various states of ioun stone - broken, etc?

Is it missing? If so, why?! That was definitely something I wanted in the one source book of equipment.

Anyway - back to skimming the book...

J

Nevertheless, without spoilers, the information you've all provided has been valuable - thanks

J

[No spoilers please]

I organize a group, but am a player too, so it is difficult to know what is in the mods to better plan ahead.

Our plan is to get a set of slightly more Tian Xia flavoured PCs through 'First Steps', then use them to work through the Year 3 Ruby Phoenix / Tian Xia mods.

Does anyone have any advice on which to do in which order? Looking at the front cover pictures the ones with a red Ruby Phoenix badge start with 3-03 The Ghenett Manor Gauntlet but that seems to be set in Katapesh and continue with 3-04 The Kortos Envoy, which is set on Kortos; so, does that badge mean anything at all? 3-15, on the other hand, has no badge but is set in Minkai.

Also there are jumps in Tiering so we may need to fill in some gaps with other mods to bridge.

What would people recommend as a way through bearing in mind PCs will start at level 2.0?

Thanks

J

Very good tale - thank you.

Who is 'Grandmother Sun', though, please? 'Grandfather Gozreh' in part 4 is obvious, but is Grandmother Sun a plea to the feminine aspect of Gozreh or a call to Sarenrae or another sun-based god?

Thanks

J

So the creature successfully making a grapple check loses all attacks bar one (unless it has a constrict or rake SA) while the failed grappler gets to make a full attack at -2 to each attack (maybe or maybe not against the grappler). That seems a good argument for not grappling ever.

J

Many thanks all for your time in debating this in order to help me make a decision.

For those interested I have gone with the following formal rule:

Any new PC to the campaign will start with a penalty to XP of half a level band of the PC they are replacing. If the old PC was in the lower half of their level, this reduction in XP will result in a negative level for the new PC until their XP reaches the entry point to the old PC’s level.

So an XP penalty is applied but not too harshly and in a way that the player never needs to construct a PC that is LEVEL-1, but can start with a new PC at the same level as the one he replaced, albeit maybe with some -1 penalties, etc. for a while.

Cheers all

J

I am DMing Carrion Crown currently and we want as a group to formulate 'rules' for dealing with character death in case it happens, so that we do not make hasty decisions at a potentially emotional or tired moment. Pretty much everything is agreed (I have pasted the rules at the bottom of this post for interest / use by others) as it comes from Paizo publications. However, there is one area about which I cannot find any guidelines in the Core Rulebook, Gamemastery Guide or on these messageboards and would appreciate some help please.

When a player chooses not to bring back their current PC in favour of adopting a new PC, should any XP penalties apply to the new PC or should the brand new PC take on the dead PC's XP total?

My gut reaction is there should be a penalty as choosing a new PC foregoes any financial penalties of casting / purchasing a raise dead or similar spell. Similarly, getting full XP can mean a more optimized PC in terms of feats, etc.

CURRENT RULES FORMULATED

In the event of a death in the party, the following rules shall guide us:

* Any spell used to bring back a player shall be run as per the rules, including costs for spellcasting by a non-party member
* In the event a PC cannot be brought back from the dead, or in exceptional circumstances when the player wishes to adopt a new PC, the following shall be used to ensure death is not an easy route to wealth and XP:
** all the treasure of the dead PC will be forfeit except clear plot items; we shall assume that wealth is given to families, charities, paying for funeral, etc. (see Core Rulebook p403 for more guidance.)
** the new PC shall gain wealth according to the rules on Core Rulebook p400 and Table 12-4 on p399
** New PCs shall be built according to all the Character Creation rules
** When you all started you did not know each other and were thrown together through the common fact that the Professor knew you and trusted you. You had no choice in this and have now stuck together. A new arrival however, would realistically be vetted by the party for a number of reasons: what do they bring to the party? Do they fit the party ethic? Ad absurdam, would the PCs normally kill the PC, rather than adopt them in a completely unbelievable fashion?
*** This vetting should be performed sympathetically on all sides

On the question of maps I am sure I remember reading about a comparative map that showed the Inner Sea Region overlayed on Tian Xia. Did this ever get published? I understand it was never a 'canon' map just a bit of fun but it would be interesting to see it.

Cheers, J

Fleanetha wrote:

Could I make a plea for the deity and national symbols in this splendid book to be placed in a Community Use Package so we can use them, for instance, on the Pathfinder Wiki?

Many thanks

J

This has now been done! You can find the Religious and Regional symbols from this book in both of the Community Use downloads.

Many thanks for this Chris. My esteemed wiki colleague has loaded them all onto the Pathfinder Wiki where they look tremendous.

J

Incubus

Caustic drake and thunder drake from Guide to Darkmoon Vale p21, though the caustic drake has suggestions based off a wyvern in the random monster tables later in the book.

Pathfinder Wiki is now updated with Varki Generic Villain plus a comment to thank you for the spot.

Question: There were 16 original counties in Ustalav. Now, 9 form the Soivoda, 3 form the Palatinate, 2 became Virlych, and 1 was annexed by Razmir. That only adds up to 15. Where am I missing the last original county?

Good question that has yet to be answered I think. The reply about Lastwall refers to the 2 counties Grodlych and Virholt that became Lastwall and Virlych. There does seem to be only fifteen not sixteen mentioned.

J

Fleanetha wrote:

Could I make a plea for the deity and national symbols in this splendid book to be placed in a Community Use Package so we can use them, for instance, on the Pathfinder Wiki?

Many thanks

J

Officially on my to-do list! I anticipate that I should get to this sooner than later.

Just seen this so many thanks Chris - an early Christmas present no less.

Cheers

J

Could I make a plea for the deity and national symbols in this splendid book to be placed in a Community Use Package so we can use them, for instance, on the Pathfinder Wiki?

Many thanks

J

You can also use the Posting Poles around town to notify everyone of the desecration and a warning, say, from the Sheriff to stop doing it.

J

Minor question. Oni and Kami seem to get Common as a language, sometimes their only language. I cannot believe this is Taldane, so is 'Common' now used relatively to denote the common language of an area, i.e., in this case probably Tien?

Quick update: session 2 was last night with MAXIMISED HP for all monsters. After some of the Ravengro encounters (skeletons in Restlands / stirges in town square) my party of 6 decided to head off to Harrowstone.

They hit rats, scythe and Piper.

Quote: 'May be we missed some dungeons in the town and we should not have come here so soon'.

I am happy now: thank you.

J

Thank you Helaman for the pointer. I listened to the podcast yesterday. I have just run the second evening of HoH so it is very timely.

To the 'podcasters': many thanks for a really good product which I would recommend to anyone else DMing HoH. Guys, what I thought was really useful was the interplay between a DM and one of his players. That gave a real insight to how the mod works from both sides - well done. How to make the mod interesting for players when the DM knows so much more interesting things but has to get that across without spoon feeding is so tricky.

Can you do another one for the following mods please?

J

Excellent work generic Villain! With skills like this you need to be working for the Pathfinder Wiki forthwith at:

http://www.pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Pathfinder_Wiki

Nearly all of the languages you list are there, categorized and searchable. There may be some you don't have too like Minkan and Garuda.

Start at this index page for the languages:

http://www.pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Languages_of_Golarion

However, you got one we haven't got in Varki. I can add it but do you want to? If you don't know how people there can help. Offer of joining us is very serious!

J

I have started this week with session 1 of HoH and have 6 players and found this thread. Thanks for the ideas above and most chime with what I have done already:

kept the main fights identical;

added more of the same monster at roughly 50% extra where I could;

where that would bump numbers up too high, I have swapped out for a higher CR monster but kept the EL to about the same as 150% x original EL. For instance I swapped a load of CR 1/3 skeletons for a few skeletal champions.

However, I am intrigued with the suggestion way back in the thread by Windspirit to boost the HP to the maximum amount. That never got picked up again I think but sounds interesting. Isn't that cheating? If every fight is at max HP, that's very tough I'd have thought - PCs expending a lot more for exactly the same reward? Still it feels like a very simple but effective way to deal with extra PCs and I will try it.

It is a kink in the design of the updated reporting system that was rolled out at the start of Season 3. While it is an important thing to fix, the Chronicle sheet is the ultimate record and trumps whatever is reported online.

Many thanks for the quick response Joseph - I have informed the DM they do get 4 PA regardless of what the system says and we hope that will be corrected eventually.

Cheers

Joseph,

Game-mastering a module earns you 3 xp and 4 PA. That's not too shabby.

If your goal is to get as much GM-credit towards "stars" as possible per hour of GMing, then I would recommend running scenarios rather than modules.

Interesting, this is what I had thought reading everything BUT as an event organizer I have just reported a Module and the poor DM only seems to get 2 PA. I think this may be a bug in the reporting system? I tried adding the DM's player as well as the DM but got an error stating the PC had already played the mod. There is no place to add PA to the DM as there is for the players either.

Could Paizo comment please - I'd like the GM to get full credit?

Many thanks