Flow's page

Be gentle! I'm half expecting the thing to dramatically explode into a giant ball of fire when people start signing up. I'm a little worried about the server. I entirely expect new issues to crop up as people join - please be patient and I'll absolutely look to resolve issues as fast as I'm able.

So, go play - everyone can sign up now!

https://tabletopgiant.com/users/create

Key Features:

• A level 1 character creator using the vast majority of Pathfinder Society legal sources. If a new player ever asks for help making their first character - send them here.
  
• User profiles for networking - make friends, send private messages, show off your creations, track your scenario completion as well as the Pathfinder sources that you own.
  
• Create, find, and join player groups. Each group gets its own forum, event calendar, and also rolls up the scenario completion of each member to assist in event planning.
  
• Event Planning - each group can make its own events. Each event has its own chat thread so players and the GM can muster online before the game. Players can attach their character sheets as file or by linking TG characters - this allows the GM (and perhaps other players) to review characters well before the game.
  
• Lots of other stuff!
  
• For the uninitiated - this site is *in development* and will be regularly updated. Some things may not work perfectly the first time you try them - but let us know what doesn't work, and we'll fix it!
  

Thank you!

--TG

This isn't necessarily PFS specific - but it does impact PFS games more than homebrew as we're much more likely to be in a place with multiple games going at once.

We have two friendly hobby shops that run games around here. Both are great. That said - both can get loud. I mean, loud enough that I have to shout while reading flavor text. Forget about trying to role playing PC's and such by giving them funny voices - it's too loud for any nuance - you just have to yell everything. It kind of sucks.

Anyone have any ideas? I was almost wondering if there was some sort of headset product out there - something that six people could wear to hear each other better. Or, little speakers around the table? I don't know. This has to be a problem many others have had, and I am curious as to what others have done about it.

Last night I GM'd my first game in over a year, and we hit a snag in one of the encounters. The party encountered a 'Scarecrow' in the following scenario:

We had a very bad time with the fascination effect. By RAW - which I think is a bit fuzzy here - this ability is AWFUL. I am very interested in hearing how others run it, and how they interpret the ability.

Two questions:

1.) I had the fascination effect go off the instant players saw the creature, having them all makes saves at once - was this correct? Or, should I have had them make their saves on their turn in initiative order instead?

2.) Can the scarecrow fascinate a target more than once? Meaning, if a player is fascinated, and then a friend shakes them out of it - can they be re-fascinated? The text on the creature does not say anything about 'Immune for 24 hours afterwords' or anything. If the scarecrow can re-fascinate - that's awful!

3.) The scenario itself includes this strategy for the scarecrow:

This text, with its 'one opponent at a time', heavily suggests that fascination is NOT broken when a fascinated victim's ally is attacked. This seems to say that once everyone is locked down, the Scarecrow can just wake them up (and kill them) one by one.

We were playing the lower tier, and this was an APL 2 party (this is a CR 4 monster). When I started the encounter, I played it to RAW. It quickly became obvious that a TPK was going to happen, and the players were not happy with the Scarecrow's OP-ness, especially in how different its fascinate ability works compared to other fascination effects.

Given the fuzziness of its writing, and the obviously imminent TPK, I ended up ruling it that the effect could not be repeated for 24 hours after fascinating a player once. I still made it so that when the scarecrow attacked, only the fascination in the target breaks - not their allies.

The party won the day with that small change of interpretation - but it was close.

How would you have run it?

I had a question come up tonight during a PFS scenario (won't say which one to avoid spoilers). This is a PFS related question if that matters for the answer.

The party encountered a scarecrow, which of course immediately used it's 'fascination' gaze.

A couple of questions -

1.) When do players roll their saving throws against the gaze? I had them all roll when they first saw it (i.e, at the beginning of combat) - but I realize this was likely a mistake. My guess is - they roll on their initiative?

2.) If a player is fascinated and then somehow is no longer fascinated - either by being attacked by the creature or by an ally shaking them out of the state - can the scarecrow's gaze re-fascinate them?

There is nothing I could find that said a scarecrow's gaze can't work a second time on a person right after they are shaken out of it; but following this makes it REALLY tough to beat.

Hello all,

I've just pushed up a major update to Tabletop Giant, and I'd like to walk everyone through it. I am choosing to make a new thread, as the old one was focused on the 'Character Creator' component of the site, and I am concerned that many may not realize that the scope of the site has expanded. While Tabletop Giant does contain a character creator (still level 1 only - but that will change), its intent is to be a tool to facilitate Pathfinder gaming in all of its many facets.

User Profiles:
Every user now has their own profile, which can be used to show off the characters they have made as well as to network with other players. As is commonly understood in social networking, a user may also make 'friends' of other users as well as send private messages.

Each user profile also comes with a Source Ownership feature which allows the user to note which Paizo items they legally own. In a future update, the character creator will provide a feature to build characters using only those source materials flagged as 'owned' by the user, which should make it easier to make characters that are legal for Pathfinder Society play. A configuration to create characters using all sources will still be available.

Also part of each user profile is a scenario completion tracker, which will allow the user to flag those scenarios they have GM'd or played, in either mode (standard or core).

Further, players may join up in groups, which leads me to...

Groups:

The Grand Lodge may serve as at least a partial demo for what I am going to describe.

A 'group' within the context of the site is a collection of players with a common playing goal; typically geographical. Players may create a group for their local hobby store, or even for a region. Other players may then join that group and, all together, they may schedule, plan, signup, and muster for a game using site features.

There are three types of groups that may be created: Open, Approval Required, and Private. Open groups may be seen within the group search feature, and may be joined by anyone who wishes. Approval Required groups are also viewable within the search feature, but joining such a group requires the user 'Petition' to join, and an Administrator of the group approving the petition. Private groups are not viewable within the search feature, and may be joined through invitation only. Invitations to join a group are also available to all members of an open group, as well as administrators of approval required groups.

Each group comes with an assortment of features, including their own forum, their own scenario completion tracker, and their own events calendar.

Group Creation and Roles: Any registered Tabletop Giant member may create a new group. By doing so, they are designated as the group's 'Creator', which has administrative privileges within that group. As the group's creator, the user may set roles for other users within the group, such as Admin, Moderator, and Planner. An Admin has all of the powers of a Creator - except that it cannot make or unmake other Admins. A Moderator has editing privileges within the group's forum. A Planner has scheduling privileges for the group's event calendar. A Creator or Admin may perform any of the tasks the other roles can perform.

Group Scenario Completion Tracker:
As each user's profile allows the user to fill in those scenarios they have completed, a group is able to bundle up those accomplishments into a group report. All scenarios are shown in both modes, with a percentage score showing those players who have GM'd or played a given scenario. This allows group event planners a way to see those scenarios that might be best to plan.

Events
Each group comes with its own events calendar, and events may be created by any Admin or Planner. This demo event may serve as an example.

Events come with some neat features. Players and GMs may sign up for the event, and those who sign up past the max are automatically treated as 'Backup' players and GMs.

Players who sign up to the event may share the character they intend to play. A player may attach a character generated at Tabletop Giant, or they may upload a file that represents their character sheet (e.g., PDF). If a player wishes to only share the character with the GM, they may configure this as such on the event page. Further, a player may also set the level of the character they intend to play, as this helps to predict the APL which can help the GM in their planning.

Allowing a GM to review the character sheets before the game can assist in planning and preparation. Further, if a GM has a tablet (or other device) with an Internet connection during the game, then it is entirely feasible for the GM to look up skills (or anything else) of the player's characters using these attached sheets. Personally, I am planning on using this for immersion; no longer do you have to ask "Who has Knowledge (Geography)?", which gives the players meta knowledge on something within the game. You can just check the character sheets, see who has it trained, see what their bonus is, and then ask them to roll.

The Scenario Completion tracker also comes into play with these events. If a player has previously played or GM'd a scenario within the event, then a warning message is displayed so that they are aware of it. Further, if a player signs up for a scenario, and they have flagged the scenario as 'played' in their Scenario Completion, then the GM of the game is also shown a warning on the event page so that they know they may have a 'repeat' player signed up to their game (which is typically not PFS legal).

The event planner is also self-aware; if a player signs up for the same scenario in multiple time slots, they will also see a warning on each event's page. This is to help in the case a player signs up for a scenario, forgets, and then signs up for the same scenario elsewhere.

Each event also comes with its own comment thread, which allows the GM and players to muster online well before the game.

Further, a feature to create a PDF of the event signup is available, so that a player can download and print a copy of the event to take with them to the game. This can be helpful if they have signed up for many games and need to keep track of things.

Group Hierarchies
Groups may also relate themselves to one another. Each group may have a single parent, and an unlimited amount of children. A group's creator or admin may petition other groups to be either their child or their parent; if the petition is approved from the target group, then the relationship is set. An admin of either group may sever the relation at any time.

This can be used in any way which is convenient, but primarily it was conceived of as a means to establish geographical relations. For example, a "Pathfinder Society of California" group may be created. Then, a slew of other groups - "Pathfinder Society of Sacremento", "Pathfinder Society of San Diego", "Pathfinder Society of Los Angeles", etc - these could all be 'children' groups of the Pathfinder Society of California. Each of these city groups could then have their own children, down to individual playing locations, if desired.

Group Announcements
Announcements were created as a means to 'flow down' information from parent groups to children. A group creator or admin may create an announcement; these announcements have special prominence at the top of a forum page. Announcements are not threads - they cannot be commented upon directly - and are designed as a one-way means of communication.

When an announcement is created, the author has the option for it to 'cascade'. A cascaded announcement automatically propagates to all children groups. This means if the administrator of the 'Pathfinder Society of California' group wants to flow down information on a newly planned convention, they may create an announcement, set to to cascade, and then it will flow down to all children groups automatically in order to spread the news.

All of these features are extremely new and are only modestly tested; bugs and issues could easily be hiding. For those that are registered - please do feel free to experiment and do let me know if you find any problems. I can only fix a bug if I know it exists.

Tabletop Giant has been a 'closed' site now for quite some time. This is going to change. While a date is not yet firm, I am hoping to open registration within the next few weeks. There is some setup required to open it up, and until the 'fog of war' clears I will not be able to provide a firm date. With the opening release there will also be a Patreon donation page, which I do hope everyone will consider.

This site has been quite a job. There is a lot of love and hope in it; I hope everyone enjoys it.

Thank you!

--TG

Text for Clever Wordplay:

Benefit: Choose one Charisma-based skill. You attempt checks with that skill using your Intelligence modifier instead of your Charisma modifier.

I think I know the answer to this one, but I'm hoping to be surprised (I want to be wrong because it's easier to be wrong in this case).

Can a player choose the generic 'Profession' skill for Clever Wordplay, or do they need to declare a specific profession (e.g., 'Profession (Sailor)')?

!

I'd like to settle out 'what is reasonable' in communicating with a intelligent summoned monsters. I did search the forums, but didn't see anything that went into detail (apologies if I missed a big thread on this).

RAW of Summoned Monster states: "If you can communicate with the creature, you can direct it not to attack, to attack particular enemies, or to perform other actions."

The key word there is 'communicate', which infers a myriad of possibilities, just so long as you can convey the command successfully to the summoned monster.

So - this is what I think. These are the three possible ways I see of 'communicating' with an intelligent summoned monster.

1.) The big obvious method - you speak their language. You tell it do to what you want it to and then it does it - easy.

2.) If you do not speak their language, things get tougher. Being an intelligent creature, I do not see any reason why a player could not communicate with them through gesticulation and pantomime. I feel such communication could be accomplished through a DC check using Diplomacy or Bluff, and that the DC should be the same as 'Push' for Handle Animal (DC 25).

3.) If another member of the party speaks the language of the summoned monster, I do not see any reason why communication could not occur through a translator; certainly, conversing through a translator is a form of communication, and communication is the key word in RAW. However, I think it is fair for a GM to require one DC check using Diplomacy or Bluff (as 2., above) in order to get the monster to understand that you are using a translator (otherwise, it might not obey the commands given from a third party!).

Is this reasonable under PFS rules? Thoughts appreciated!

This is for PFS, if that matters with this one.

The Magus archetype 'Skirnir' has a special 'Arcane Bond' that states:

At 1st level, a skirnir gains a shield (except for a tower shield) as an arcane bond item. This is identical to the wizard class ability, but the skirnir may only bond with a shield, not a familiar or other item.

Link: Linky

Must they still purchase this shield? Or do they literally get a shield for free?

Thanks!

This is a rules question - but it is PFS dependent, and so I'm hoping the General Discussion is a fine place to ask (if not, feel free to move :) ).

I have a player who would like to worship the dead God Aroden with their non-divine reliant character (I believe it is with a summoner).

Aroden - being quite dead (for now) - isn't typically a God that is worshiped, but is there any harm in allowing it for players who do not even have divine spells? The player mostly wants this worship for RP purposes.

My inclination is to say 'sure', but interested in opinions. I would still enforce the one-step alignment rule, but beyond that I'm inclined to allow it.

Thanks!

I have a player with a question whether these two can work in this certain situation - I think the answer is unfortunately 'no', but I'm looking for confirmation.

Player: Does have Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Aldori Dueling Sword)

Aldori Dueling Sword reads: "An Aldori dueling sword may be used as a Martial Weapon (in which case it functions as a longsword), but if you have the feat Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Aldori dueling sword), you can use the Weapon Finesse feat to apply your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier on attack rolls with an Aldori dueling sword sized for you, even though it isn't a light weapon."

Note of interest: Aldori Dueling Sword is a slashing weapon.

Champion's Finesse (Ability of Daring Champion, a Cavalier archetype): At 1st level, a daring champion gains the benefits of the Weapon Finesse feat with light or one-handed piercing melee weapons, and he can use Charisma in place of Intelligence for the purpose of combat feats prerequisites. A daring champion also counts as having the Weapon Finesse feat for the purpose of meeting feat requirements.

Thought: As an Aldori Dueling Sword is slashing and not a piercing weapon, it unfortunately does not function with the Champion's Finesse ability.

Is this correct?

Thanks!

I don't know if I'm tired - but I keep staring at this description and my brain keeps telling me that the first two lines cancel each other out - which doesn't make sense.

Font of Power says: "An eldritch font gains one additional spell slot for each level of arcanist spell she can cast. However, the number of spells of each level that she can prepare reduces by 1. If this reduces her spells prepared for a level to 0, she still gains spell slots of that level, which can be consumed using the consume spells class feature to fuel her arcane reservoir or cast spells using metamagic feats."

My trouble is the two lines in bold.

So, with Arcanists, there is the number of spells they can prepare for a day, and then there is the number of spells they can cast spontaneously that day. What exactly does this power do for both of these variables?

This is probably simple - my brain is just getting fuzzy.

Aasimar heritages change the behavior of the Skilled and Spell-Like Ability racial traits the Aasimar typically has available.

However, there are other alternate racial traits that replace Skilled and the Spell-Like Ability, and I am a little confused on whether a heritage may be taken if one of those traits no longer exists.

Let's just use 'Skilled' for this example - if a player chooses 'Truespeaker' as an alternate racial ability, and thus they lose the "Skilled" racial trait - can they still take an alternate heritage? Or, does taking Truespeaker (or any other alternative racial trait that removes a trait that heritages change), negate that possibility?

Meaning - those things that racial heritages modify - do they need to exist in the character in order to take the heritage?

This question is PFS specific mainly. Thanks!

The shield proficiency feat includes this text:

"Barbarians, bards, clerics, druids, fighters, paladins, and rangers all automatically have Shield Proficiency as a bonus feat. They need not select it."

I suspect that other classes should be in that list, such as some of those from the Advanced Class Guide.

What other classes automatically gain this feat?

Hello everyone,

Tabletop Giant is a new website which provides a way to make Pathfinder Society characters. It is available here: http://www.tabletopgiant.com.

The site is currently in test mode and we would enjoy it if some players would visit and try it out. I'm hoping to find about ten people that would be willing to try the site, and also willing to report on any issues they may encounter. The site is still in active development and there will be issues - but we're hoping, with the support of the community, we should be able to identify those issues and get something really neat working.

Here are a couple of points to introduce the site.

We have a number of character builds set as public, all those are available for all to review. These public characters are available in our Character Factory. Simply click on any of the profile images (or the handy 'View' button) to see the character sheet.

A particularly neat feature is cloning. For users that are registered, a 'Clone' button will be available on each character in the Character Factory. Hitting this button will make a copy of that Character Sheet in the user's own personal space, which can then be edited and changed into a brand new personality. This will allow players to use existing builds as 'templates', instead of just starting from scratch. We are also planning to allow users to add new characters to the Character Factory so that they may share them with others.

As the site is in test mode, new users will need an access code in order to register. If you are interested in trying the site out, please post below and I'll PM you a code, likely within the next 24 hours. Once I have ten people, we will see how it goes, and will send out more codes as things appear more and more stable. Once things are solid (or, close enough), we will open the site to everyone.

I really hope this site sparks some interest - happy to answer any questions about it.

Thanks!

There is a line in the rules regarding animal companions that is giving me hiccups. I should note that I'm primarily thinking of this in the context of PFS, so home brew rules don't apply.

"Note that animal companions cannot select a feat with a requirement of base attack bonus +1 until they gain their second feat at 3 Hit Dice."

Source: http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/druid/animal-companions

First - am I really reading this correctly? Animal Companions cannot take feats with a +1 BAB requirement until they are level 2 (which is when they get their third HD - they get 2 at level 1)? They *do* have a BAB of 1 at first level, so this is very strange.

Second - if the above is true, let's do an 'Explain it like I'm five' - why are animal companions penalized in this way?

Lastly - The pregen character Adowyn, which is the iconic hunter, has a wolf with Weapon Focus on its Bite, which is a feat that requires BAB + 1. Is this build then not strictly legal in a PFS sense? I'm aware that there are a number of rules issues with the pregens and I'm wondering if this is another issue.

Thanks!

There is some controversy over this item in other forums, and I wanted to pick the brains (mmmmm...brains) of the denizens here and see what you think.

Here is a link to Effortless Lace: Link!

The problem is found within this text block:

If the weapon is wielded by a creature whose size matches that of the weapon's intended wielder, the weapon is treated as a light melee weapon when determining whether it can be used with Weapon Finesse, as well as with any feat, spell, or special weapon ability that can be used in conjunction with light weapons.

My opinion is that this item, when used on a one-handed weapon which is then wielded in the offhand, reduces the two-weapon fighting penalty. I believe that this text block is saying that Effortless Lace works with feats, spells, and special weapon abilities in addition to reducing the two-weapon fighting penalty when used on an offhand weapon to make it light.

However, some are reading the text block above in a restrictive sense, and suggesting that it can *only* be used with a "feat, spell, or special ability...". Since two-weapon fighting is not a "feat", not a "spell" and is not a "special ability", Effortless Lace has no effect on two-weapon fighting, at all!

How would you all rule it? Interested in your opinions.

Hello. I am Hollister Gorgonton the Lich.

"Ahhh!" you might say, "It's a lich!". Well, stop that. I am not here to use my vast and timeless command of Necromancy to force you and your loved ones to grovel before my whimsical will, no! At least, not right now. Later. I'll let you know when. It'll be a surprise. There will be balloons and cake to go with the tears of the oppressed. Chocolate cake. Muahahaha!

Anyhoo, at the moment, I wish to tackle a more nefarious issue than merely conquering a ragtag group of mortals; and that issue is, the problem with buying hardback Pathfinder books and then the necessity of having to lug those books to games to prove that I own them, so that I might use their arcane power to better subjugate my opponents and command their very realities.

This effort really isn't for me. This is for my minions. "GAH!" says my minion, "Why do you have to base your character on twenty different books, and then only buy hardback, forcing me to lug 100 pounds of paper pulp to every single game?" At this point, I typically disintegrate my minion for being a complainer. Minions should know better. As I said, fixing this problem is really for my minion, so that I have one less reason to cast disintegrate upon them. My heart is in the right place.

As the issue is currently understood, there are two competing forces. First, there is the desire of Paizo to want to confirm ownership of their product in order for it to be used within their organized gaming system. The opposing force are those mortals who prefer the purchasing of such products through actual paper, and this paper has a weight and mass that is objectionable to carry. We realize that buying a PDF makes things easier, but many of us love a physical book and find that to be preferable. All good Lich prefer actual books, rather than digital. When was the last time you saw one of my kind look something up on a kindle? Part of that is our skeletal hands - touch screens misbehave with bony fingers.

But, there is a better way. BEHOLD my DARK and TWISTED POWER!

The current system can appease the interests of both sides, and it can do this using the existing infrastructure of the Pathfinder Society. The tool to resolve this problem is a simple concept that I call a "Product Confirmation Boon".

"WHAT IS THIS TERRIBLE MAGIC!" you might say, followed by "PLEASE GET THIS POISONOUS SNAKES OFF OF ME!" Sorry about that, but the snakes stay. Anyhoo. A Product Confirmation Boon is exactly what it sounds like - it is a boon, signed off by a GM of a minimum rank of 'Venture Lieutenant", which confirms that the player has proven owner ship of a list of products.

This boon sheet can have a similar structure to the current inventory/purchase tracking sheet. Just a list of boxes and rows, and a VL can write in (or, check off) the names of the products confirmed to be owned and then sign off on it. They can also draw a squiggly line following the names of products so that meddling mortals won't feel tempted to 'write in' additional items on the sly.

The workflow of this new device is similarly simple. VL's can just set an hour aside before or after games at your LFHS to confirm ownership for their players. Players will dutifully bring in their physical books (without complaining, or I will magic missile you) for their VL to sign off on.

The reason such a boon requires a minimum of VL is a nod toward Paizo; only those held particularly accountable, who have particularly noted loyalty to Paizo, should have this great and dark power of being able to issue such helpful boons.

The beauty of this is that ownership will be confirmed, which fulfills Paizo's interest - but the books need only be carried in ONCE. After that, the player needs to make sure to bring their Product Confirmation Boon which can be used for future GM's to confirm product ownership.

The existing rule structure would then become something like:

Players referencing mechanics outside of the Core Assumption must provide the following:
* A watermarked PDF of the originating source material, or a physical copy of the originating source material, or a copy of a Product Confirmation boon listing the originating source material, signed off by a VL (or higher).
* The player must also provide a clear and legible copy of the mechanic involved, so that the GM may read all rules involved for their understanding and adjudication.

Creating this Product Confirmation Boon can have some very positive results for the Pathfinder Society.

* It is fair to Paizo - using this method, they would have VL confirmation that their products are being purchased.

* It is fair to the players - I don't think players would have much complaint over having to bring in their physical books *once*.

* It will encourage audits - currently, there are a lot of softy GM's who do not really pursue the confirmation of ownership of source material, because we are all aware that it can be difficult to do. There is a definite population of GM's who are sympathetic to the owners of physical books, and are likely to gloss over product confirmation entirely because they don't want to 'be a jerk'. With Product Confirmation boons, however, this process becomes much easier - so much, that GMs will be encouraged to request evidence of product ownership.

So, that's it, really. I'm going to go back to my other task, which involves making some chocolate cake and filling up some balloons. There's a party next week! Invitations will be sent soon.

A question came up today on the FB group regarding a typo within a particular PS scenario. The typo itself was rather innocuous - a scythe was listed in a stat block of having a crit range and multiplier of '19-20/x2', which is in conflict to the weapon's standard '20/x4'.

A conversation followed in which multiple parties stated (paraphrased): "never ever deviate from the text as written no matter what", with the instruction to use the unmodified typo. The implication is that we, as thinking people, are 'not allowed' to correct obvious mistakes when running scenarios.

While I do agree with the notion of 'run it as written', I tend to think this is a philosophy, and not a religion. What I saw 'written' in this case was a typo, and I do not feel I am wavering from the intent and challenge of the scenario by correcting this typo in game.

Are we really so hand bound that we are unable to correct even the most mundane of mistakes within Pathfinder Scenarios? I just can't imagine that we are. Am I alone on this? Thoughts?