RPG Superstar 8 Season Dedicated Voter, 9 Season Marathon Voter. Pathfinder Society GM. 1,351 posts (3,423 including aliases). 1 review. No lists. No wishlists. 38 Organized Play characters. 8 aliases.
So, I'm co-opting this "Amatatsu Library" idea, and considering it a bit of foreshadowing for future development.
I have five PCs- -I'm going to have each of them "gravitate" towards a book written by someone from each of the five families to sort of add the "Five Families v. Five Storms" background.
Part of the problem with the campaign is that there's a ton of cool loot that our party won't be proficient with, so the idea for the books I had were as follows:
-'Studying' any of the books alongside Ameiko and/or Koya grant Tien as a bonus language.
-Reading a book lets a PC use an eastern weapon as though it was a "normal" equivalent, tailored to the PC. (Some of these make more sense than others...glaive=naginata, earthbreaker=tetsubo, longbow=daikyuu, but the other two PCs are a summoner who technically has a quarterstaff and a brawler who forgoes weaponry altogether).
-Each book would have another ability outside of the language and proficiency that would be PC-specific.
So, here's what I'm starting from. More ideas/better names/critiques would be appreciated. The party will be 5th level after Brinewall.
Loyalty, by Amatatsu Maemi (for a LN Unchained Summonner):
This treatise about service and obedience is allegorically focused on planar binding and filled with gory detail.
-Studying this book grants the reader Tien as a bonus language.
-Studying this book allows the reader to treat a Katana as a Longsowrd for feat and ability purposes.
-At 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th level, choose an ice, mud, magma, or lightning elementals. You can now summon them with summon monster spells or SLAs. At 12(? negotiable)th level, add Aether Elementals to this list as well.
-Erinyes Devils may be summoned with SM5 instead of SM6, but the PC will know that summoning them in this way will have unknown consequences later. (When the party meets Amatatsu Maemi in book six, she will have recon as if she witnessed the party fighting in any encounter with Erinyes present).
The Pale Flower, by Shojinawa Hokuto (for a NG cleric of Shelyn taking the Bladed Brush feats):
This tragedy play and accompanied musical score tells of a samurai who is assigned by his daimyo to a battalion alongside his father's murderer. The samurai plots revenge throughout the war, but cannot act in a way that would weaken his lord's forces. The samurai loses his life in the following battle, and dies with honor intact.
-Studying this book grants the reader Tien as a bonus language.
-Studying this book allows the reader to treat a Naginata as a Glaive for feat and ability purposes.
-At 5th level, gain Clarifying Channel as a bonus feat.
The Arrow Flies True, by Higashiyama Hasegawa, (for an archery-style ranger):
This collection of haiku and other poetry is illustrated with fine watercolor art. One story details a monk, despite being blind, drove off a rampaging bear with a flurry of arrows, saving her monastery and nearby town.
-Studying this book grants the reader Tien as a bonus language.
-Studying this book allows the reader to treat a Daikyuu as a Longbow for feat and ability purposes.
-Treat all wind as one step less severe for the purposes of firing a bow.
-At 5th level, gain Boon Companion as a bonus feat. (I expect this PC to take an animal companion at 4th level...)
The Fall of Lung Wa, by Sugimatu Ichiro (for a Brawler, using some style feats):
This historical account is written from the point of view of a leader of the successor states after the Lung Wa empire collapsed into what are know collectively called the Dragon Empires, including several detailed reports about combat operations of the newly formed nations.
-Studying this book grants the reader Tien as a bonus language.
-Studying this book allows the reader to treat a Nine-Ring Broadsword as a member of the close weapon group for feat and ability purposes. (I plan on making the Nine-Fold Spirit Sword into another "family" weapon, but if there is a better option somewhere else I'm open to ideas).
-At 5th level, you may assume a combat style as part of the same action to "learn" it via Martial Flexibility. If you have a style feat permanently, you may start combat in that style (as per part of Combat Style Master).
Monkey Goblin, by Teikoku Ishii (for a 2-handed fighter who loves to break things):
This leather-bound tome details the story of a disgraced ronin samurai who, having been commanded to leave a port town defenseless against pirates, defiantly threw himself off the cliff overlooking the port and crashed into the maruader's ship with enough force as to sink it outright.
-Studying this book grants the reader Tien as a bonus language.
-Studying this book allows the reader to treat a Tetsubo as an Earthbreaker for feat and ability purposes. (I plan to make the Tetsubo of the Titans found in book 5 another "family" weapon).
At 5th Level, gain Improved Sunder as a bonus feat. Treat objects as though there hardness is reduced by your strength modifier.
Thoughts? Advice? (The group will not likely even get to Brinewall until next week, so there's time for feedback).
I am beginning to run the AP. My PCs have cleared out Licktoad Village, and are going to observe shipwrecks and the cave with Tsutamu and the Whispering Shrike.
My idea is to put the module Feast of Ravenmoor on the way to Brinewall, likely with Koya mentioning that there an "interesting celebration of Desna" on the way.
My party is a group of 5, generally new to Pathfinder, Unchained Summonner, Shaman (primarily an archer), Fighter (18 str, Earthbreaker), Cleric, Brawler (only player whose played much PF). They are currently level 2.
My real questions are "should I have my party level to 3 before the module" and "would leveling them to 4 afterward make Brinewall too easy"?
Well, I went to bed last night having just got a spark of inspiration and sad that I missed the deadline. Needless to say, I'm happy I got to submit an entry. We'll see how it goes.
If nothing else, I'm hopeful that our boy Maldris gets a good role model to look up to.
The Character: Vad DesChamps, Once-human, now-Oread Fighter (Lore Warden) 5 Low Templar 5
What Changed: Lore Warden Archetype (and minorly, the dusty rose prism ioun stone)
What's the problem: Vad's primary concern in a fight is his beautiful face. Combat Expertise being moved from level 2 to level 6 means either he would need to take more levels of fighter (delaying prestige class levels) or reassign his stats (to qualify with an INT prerequisite). The loss of the 2nd level bonus feat pushes most of his "fight without getting hurt" feat progression (Dodge, Mobility, Pointblank Shot, Shot on the Run, Parting Shot) back a level, and likely costs him the one "flavor" feat he currently has (Celestial Obedience). Considering the Low Templar prestige class requires two other feats (Weapon Focus, Mounted Combat), there isn't really the ability to fit Combat Expertise back in (even if I could re-arrange the ability scores to allow it).
What's a minor annoyance: The change in CMB (from both the base class and the ioun stone) lessens the impact of one of his typical ways to influence the flow of combat- -being generally useful at combat maneuvers (previously +18) gave a wider array of tools than the significantly more narrow Maneuver Mastery ability that the new Lore Warden inherits from Brawler (which is lessened further by the decision to split into a prestige class, missing any upscales in the ability). Vad has never done a huge amount of damage- -he only has 14 STR- -maneuvers were one of his methods to lessen the danger to himself (and others!) They likely will continue to be (+15, +1 more on some maneuver of my choice as per Brawler), just less successfully.
1d20 ⇒ 5 Does a 20 fail where a 23 would succeed?
What I'd like to see: Honestly, Vad (and I) can likely live with the changes. I've never felt that this character has dominated a scenario with it's combat prowess. (Library of the Lion, however, was a breeze because Know: Nobility). Grandfathering would be lovely, but consistency means more to me.
I enjoyed all three parts of Bonekeep (as a player). When the briefing is (paraphrased) "Come loaded for bear, because we think this is a suicide mission of sorts. If anyone can come back from it, its you," it makes you feel like a badass.
That said, it's not for everyone. Some people dislike the constant specter of failure. (I think it's exhilarating.) I feel like scenario difficulty is in a good spot right now.
To take the initial statement and twist it absurdly, though:
I too would like another Bonekeep. If nothing else, it's better than more lame Elemental Planes scenarios. There's plenty of our own plane to adventure without silly "everything is on fire"/"everything is underwater" planar traits.[/missing the point]
Also, don't forget that if an incorporeal Phantom is out of line of effect for more rounds that your Spiritualist level or more than 50 feet from you then you lose it for the rest of the day.
Which matters (barely) at first level and is negligible afterward.
It takes (at most) 10 feet of movement to get through a door and back.
Why should every NPC behave with the same guile and expertise as the heroic adventurers? That feels way too much like a GM attempting to beat the players, not facilitate the telling of a story where the PCs are the heroes.
Not every enemy NPC would. Just ones with Intelligence scores above 5. That seems to be the spot where the Paladins and Monks start thinking tactically and positionally aware, right? Besides, there's a significant gap between "the same guile and expertise" and "enough situational awareness to know that the guy with the giant pointy stick will try to stick me if I get close enough."
I won't run intelligent combatants as if they're foes in a tower defense game.
As a player, I prefer wins against competent foes- -a win like that feels earned. Watching NPCs run headlong into the a spear feels comedic, not heroic.
-A falconer ranger has piqued my interest ever since first seeing it in Ultimate Magic, but I've never managed to get the right flavor together.
-A two-weapon fighter using two different weapons has had the same issue. I've been piecing together a spear-and-short-sword version that I'm 3/4 happy with...
-The Four Daves
-There's a gnome gunslinger/inquisitor of Brigh X with a blunderbuss that I can picture in my head but cannot seem to translate to a character sheet.
-I keep seeing that crushing despair is on the cleric spell list if you worship Naderi, but can never seem to come up with anything about the character besides "I can cast crushing despair..."
-More halfling rappers. One will be a cleric of Milani with the Riot Subdomain. (At least the flavor on this one works- -vandalizing Chelish opera houses and speaking dissent in places like Isger and Nirmathas.) Another will likely be some sort of rake or thug rogue.
-If I ever build a second archer, it will likely be a toxophilite ranger, if nothing else, than to say "Which eye?" Whenever anyone asks "Think you can hit that from here?"
I play my NPCs as if they were PCs. My PCs will not typically risk finding out the hard way whether or not someone has Combat Reflexes, why should my NPCs*?
*Of course, some NPCs have tactics that say otherwise. If the tactics say they "attack mercilessly/carelessly/whatever," they will charge forward, tactics be damned.
Fixing broken flavor is as important as fixing broken mechanics.
Sure, but fixing flavor while breaking mechanics after such very long period of time does more harm then good. This is still a game which is driven primarily by mechanics first.
Fixing it after 3, or maybe even 6 months, sure. Fixing it after 2+ years feels like bad precedent and an unhealthy decision for the PFS environment as a whole. This drives people away from a game when a decision like this breaks their characters they spent a lot of time on.
But not enough time to consider that Sarenrae worship is an inherent part of the archetype.
Speaking of the tapestry, I'm still waiting for the inevitable "Whatever happened to Hao Jin?" scenario.
At some point we will realize that the Illuminati the Sovereign Court has been working behind the scenes to resurrect the Ruby Phoenix. Hell, she's even on their sigil faction logo.
On that note:
Season 9: Year of the Risen Phoenix.
(It's like a combination of seasons 3 and 4. Ninjas! Varisia! Tapestries!)
Every time I see a thread about necromancers, my mind starts brewing another "nonlethal damage" character. Not that I expect necromancers in this neck of the woods, but still.
The faction reset in seasons 2,4, and 5 got rid of the few interesting and likeable Faction heads (al'Jakri, Torch, Karela, Amara Li) and left us with ones ranging from workmanlike (Valsin, al'Hakam) to boring (Ollystra, Morilla) to detestable (Maldris).
And for the hassle that they were (and they were, I'm not pretending that they were not), I miss the old-style Faction missions.
Is there anyway to make that one work outside of having a Character with XP on them that was already Shadowlodge?
NO..
the character had to have earned Fame already in shadow lodge to use it
Well, to purchase the Shadow Lodge vanities you would need to have Shadow Lodge Prestige/Fame, but the ability to get discounts on purchased healing for your fellow adventurers is valid for anyone.
I'm not saying that there is a "right" or a "wrong" answer to this, but both 'pounce' and 'Ride-By-Attack' change the already complex and no- entirely-functional mounted charging rules. If I had to make a gut ruling, I'd say you cannot do both because both modify the same set of rules. (As in, you can replace the "normal charge" with either of the two options, but both simultaneously doesn't grok in my head.)
I typically default to the "make it make sense" when mounted combat is an issue. ("A guy on a horse should be able to do what a guy on a horse can do.")
For what it's worth, the players in our area seem to have a good sense of when to cut and run. I can think of a handful of fights where there was one or two character deaths (and no real meaningful way to decisively end the fight in our favor) where "running and regrouping" was the modus operandi.
Sometimes that's "regroup and try again." Sometimes it's "regroup and cry off." But as a result, there aren't many real TPKs.
"I total defense and pick up the wizard's body."
The few "real TPKs" I've seen/been a part of typically have a downward spiral of failed saves. Paralyzed by ghouls, dazed by necrophidii, unlucky color sprays combined with angry halfling support, cytillipedes, that sort of thing.
If Veiled Illusionists were more ubiquitous, they'd be doing it wrong.
For what it's worth, we've got a pretty high concentration of prestige classes in our lodge. There's a Stalwart Defender, a Mammoth Rider, a few Evangelists, more than one Pathfinder Chronicler, an Arcane Trickster, a Duelist, a Low Templar, a Harrower, a Loremaster (maybe two), a Theurge (now retired), a level 3 character that will eventually be a Divine Scion...and some indeterminate number of Veiled Illusionists.
Oh, and two Living Monoliths. (One of each printing...)
I read through this thread, and I don't recall whether or not this was answered...
In Belkzen, (boss=Blemia, if it matters) you are expected to add the Yohanatatsu's body and katana. Is there a place they go, or is that also up to me?
I was considering having her interred in the Shrine to Shizuru (seemed the most logical place). Is there anything wrong with swapping the room descriptions of A2 and A18 so that their primary and secondary objectives aren't both in the first room?
□□Cooperative Troubleshooting: Marcos Farabellus’s constant reminders that a team “is only as strong as its weakest link” have instilled an appreciation for teamwork. You may cross one of the boxes proceeding this boon off to use a fellow party member’s skill ranks (including class skill bonus) for one noncombat STR or DEX skill check. (Your own stat modifier and armor check penalty applies.) You may cross off both boxes to instead allow your party to use your skill ranks on such a check.
I suppose a similar one could be attributed to Kreighton Shane and deal with cooperative research checks?
Style matters. I'll take 1d6+7+Style over 2d8+22 any day. (Especially if someone else in the party is slinging 2d8+22s around).
And, as people have suggested, always have a backup way to influence combats. (I've got a soft spot for Steal combat maneuvers. Ripping headbands and belts off of foes is a special kind of 'invalidated tactics.')
*Paladin of Erastil
*Paladin of Shelyn
*Paladin of Sarenrae
*Paladin of Kurgess
*Paladin of Chaldira Zuzaristan
VC: We need you to sneak into this Aspis base disguised as Aspis agents and rob them of the MacGuffin, then assassinate their leader.
I imagine that one goes like this:
We don the disguises. We sneak in. At some point, the disguise fails, and we subdue the enemies who practically throw themselves at us.
We find the target that VC Heidmarch (because let's be fair, if it's scummy, it's VC Heidmarch) wants eliminated. We offer him redemption. He lies and accepts. We see that he is lying, play along until he attacks us, and send him to Pharasma like the scum he was all along.
1 XP, 2 PP, Full Gold. (But the real reward is in the play, of course.)
