Myrnn's page

*zzzzz*...wake me up in 2018 when the next book comes out.

Orthos wrote:

What I don't want to see is a system that uses ideas like "every class should be dealing roughly X+Y at Z level with an even mix of direct damage and AoE", or a system that believes that clarity means removing options. Basically, my ideal tabletop RPG is just Pathfinder with a few more tweaks than they can really make via FAQ or errata. And maybe the scaling type feats we've seen in the last 2 editions of D&D.

Couldn't agree more. That's what I found annoying about 4E and made me abandon it.

Gotta be careful here. There is just one book released for DnD. After reviewing the PHB, it's easy to see areas where additional options will be added to the game.

I looked extensively through the final playtest material. I found myself intrigued by some of the mechanics and borderline excited about the new edition. I will pick up the Player's Handbook and give it a shot. I'm approaching it with an open mind - much like I did with 4E - and will decide if it's right for me. 4E was not a good fit.

I haven't given up on Pathfinder, but to be honest I am less satisfied with it as my "go to" fantasy RPG.

Well, we are having fun going through the first book. We agreed to scale back the mythic elements so we'll see how that develops.

Yeah, until book two things went swimmingly. It's book three (and forward) which are my concern. Things have noticeably changed now that tier three abilities have become available, another mythic feat has been used and the party had time to finally get some better gear.

Conceptually, if the players would have agreed to tone down the advancement rate of mythic tiers prior to starting, do you think this would have made the later books more challenging? Or is it the combination of high level play and mythic in general?

Helpful thoughts, thanks all.

I don't see a problem with the Mythic Tiers. I'm currently nearing the end of the Sword of Valor and things are going quite good.

From what I've read, the problem of "easy encounters" become even more pronounced in Chapters 5 and 6. So, instead of rebuilding encounters I thought I might award fewer mythic tiers (ie, revamp trials per tier or simply change when they are awarded).

I also don't play monsters in dungeon setting just waiting in their respective rooms to be slaughtered. I have the commotion of combat in one room delectable via perception taking distance and barriers into play. So monsters from other rooms might come to join the fight. As well I have monsters that feel out matched fall back into rooms with other monsters.

I'll keep this technique in my back pocket if needed - I like it.

I have slowed mythic tiers later on, I caught on a bit slow. After 4th tier I added one trial needed to advance. That could put the PCs at 8th tier by the end and I hope that helps out. I have also considered using the slow xp track as well but its mostly late for that.

Either way, with 5 experienced players you will have to adjust the encounters by a lot.

Thanks Seannoss. One thing I guess I didn't consider too is what happens if cohorts or additional party members come into play. That could further disrupt things...

Double the number of Trials needed per Tier. Or just don't announce when Tiers happen. I've seen one thread about non-Mythic characters going through the AP as an experiment, though there was a high mortality rate at some points. Half the tiers might be quite viable.

Thanks Tangent - that's precisely what I was thinking. Interesting too, I've also thought about a non-mythic campaign using the AP as the core story.

I'm thinking of doing this if we play WotR with my group. Basically only giving half the mythic tier and maybe also limiting the mythic stat bonuses to a +1 instead of a +2.

I'm also wondering whether that would be enough to balance the AP for my group of experienced players.

Hopefully we can get some thoughts from folks who have been through it. This will also be my first time integrating mythic into a campaign so I'm flying blind.

I'm reading through all the threads here about the difficulty of later chapter encounters...Just starting to play this AP with 5 characters: paladin, fighter, rogue, cleric, and wizard. We are an experienced bunch but our style does not necessarily focus on optimization. I'm wondering though, should I scale back the mythic tiers available to characters? Has anyone taken this approach? Perhaps 5 spaced incrementally instead of 10?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Great food for thought.

Well, Cavalier gets a mount, but is otherwise ideal for this, and highly recommended

If you just want the intellectual/tactical ability to command, not necessarily the inspirational leader side of things, the Lore Warden Fighter Archetype is excellent mechanically.

If you really want the whole package and to skip the Mount there is the Tactician Fighter Archetype, which does all this thematically...but is mechanically sub par.

Personally, I'd go Cavalier.

EDIT: Ooh, forgot Sensei. Yeah, Sensei's maybe not right for the whole build, but a dip to get into Battle Herald isn't a bad idea at all...

Cool, thanks. Yea, I really thematically like the idea of the build being able to shout "stay with me" (inspiration) while having a strong tactical abilities and being able to do some damage.

From your ideas here, I'm thinking cavalier with the unfortunately subpar tactician archetype..I'd love some way to reach battle herald without having to take a dip in bard. Is there a bard archetype that removes spellcasting or some other way to fulfill the pre req?

4e warlord. Oh, you mean PF?

Hmm.

Sensei Monk 4/Standard bearer,Gendarme Cavalier 1/Battle Herald X.

Instead of Sensei Monk you could go with Bard 4, but you don't want casting (sensei monk sounds eastern-ish, but works well enough for an experienced battlefield commander-type person, and if you want you can trade stunning fist away with another archetype).

Warning: you'll be inferior to a straight classed bard at almost everything (most of the time, even your chosen role).

Yea, PFRPG. I was looking at the Battle Herald and thought that might be a possibility. However, I preferred a fighter/BH which doesn't work due to the prerequisites. I'm less familiar with the Sendai monk and gendarme cav, but will look them up. Thanks for the advice!

Hey all, I'm looking for some advice on how to create a character like Maximus from Gladiator. Not a gladiator based character, but rather General Maximus as he was at the start of the movie. Essentially, a good melee fighter that also has some commander abilities. No arcane or divine casting ability.

I'd like to purchase it, but too expensive for one hour of run time. I generally don't find myself listening to audio material (apparently it's not a book) more than once unfortunately. There is a lot of highly entertaining, low cost or even free material out there to fill my commute. To purchase six of these would be $90 for 6 hours?

That's just how I look at it. I purchase a lot of Paizo stuff, but I think I'm out on this one.

Huh, we'll be halfway through by then.

I haven't bought an AP since Kingmaker and don't feel I've missed anything.

Me too. Although I may be interested in the new one coming out...

Myrnn wrote:

The Earth wallpaper thing. Just silly and kills the verisimilitude for me. There is an analog of most major historical cultures....only here they exist at the same time. I also don't find the gods engaging on any level. I love Paizo and the Pathfinder game, but the setting is something I don't care for.

I get this, but to a certain extent, if you use Earth-analogues - and you have to to play standard PF, since it's really an imaginary medieval/early modern setting, at least culturally, it's difficult to construct a world that doesn't share significant geographic similarities and end up with a lot of the same results.

The clothing, foodstuffs, technology, cultural isolation/cosmopolitanism, and underlying mythos (that always exists in tension with the RW - we enjoy things, or don't - like Osirion - based on the ways that it is or isn't the RW) all demand certain similarities.

Europe developed the way it did in part because of geography. Asia also. Varying that in significant ways has significant effects. Tian Xia is more isolated than RW Asia, and that makes sense in how it's depicted. One thing that's clearly not going to happen in Golarion is the Eurasian plague and nomad invasion corridor, even with that festering region over in Iobaria and the steppes of Casmaron, because part of that engine is China. But, if, for example, you place "Japan" next to "Spain" things go out of whack. I think a more fantastic and less RW myth-based planet is a great idea, but sometimes, one wants to be a knight, a samurai, or a yogini, and not having that choice is a downer.

Hence, that's more of a 3pp bag.

Absolutely, I know where you're coming from. And it makes sense to disguise the familiar or create a new iteration.

Even through a different lens, it seems reasonable from a business development perspective to have the "everything and the kitchen sink" campaign world.

And I do like certain areas or aspects: the Worldwound, Cheliax, and others. However, they could of done so much more re-skinning the dwarves, elves, and others to make them fresh. I just never found it engaging. I don't even like the word Golarion. Ugh, awful name.

Nothing that probably hasn't been already said, but here's a relatively new to PF view:

1) Hate the gunpowder. Will never exist in my games.

2) Too human-centric. It's better fantasy when all the races are jostling against each other for supremacy.

3) They took a good adventure idea (Expedition to the Barrier Peaks) and made it into an entire nation. That's way too much Sci Fi for me.

4) It's basically Earth, with a little wallpaper over it. Even when I looked at the first map, my impression was "Really? Europe's here, Africa's there, and let me guess . . . Asia's over there."

I think PF has a nice system, you get your money's worth with the supplements, and very good adventures (especially the APs), but the world needs work. But it's still relatively new. The Forgotten Realms has 20 years on it, so I'm sure it'll get better as it matures.

The Earth wallpaper thing. Just silly and kills the verisimilitude for me. There is an analog of most major historical cultures....only here they exist at the same time. I also don't find the gods engaging on any level. I love Paizo and the Pathfinder game, but the setting is something I don't care for.

I think that is damn cool. Tommy likey.

Myrnn wrote:

Calculus is extremely important to a number of different fields. The problem with it in an academic setting is it's not presented in any kind of context. The integral or "area under the curve" has no meaning. I despised it in college. But, as a research ecologist, I need it.

What do you use it for, and could an excel program spit out the same answer?

For ecology, it can be used to predict population dynamics. When ecologists want to predict population changes, it may start with a differential equation dp/dt = ... That is, the change in a population over time equals the interaction of the factors that follow. Fundamentally, it provides a framework to develop ideas and hypotheses.

It also has a lot of application for ecological sampling, data analyses, and modeling. Excel can spit out an answer, but first you need to develop the model or equation.

.

The forced study of Calculus in school is stupid. No human ever needs to know
such things to live a happy productive life.

Down With Calculus

.

Calculus is extremely important to a number of different fields. The problem with it in an academic setting is it's not presented in any kind of context. The integral or "area under the curve" has no meaning. I despised it in college. But, as a research ecologist, I need it.

60% of the time, it works EVERY time.

Chew on that for awhile.

There is a 50 / 50 chance that he will make it through. But there is only a 10 percent chance of that. Movie?

No one?

Are people at least aware of places one could look into submitting?

On my own I have found Kobold Press and Pathways both have good places to start. Kobold press has a web blog and Pathways is a free webzine like Wayfinder.

I read this interview with Robert from 4 Winds the other day that may help. He comments on some of what you ask.

http://agamemag.com/archives/3830

I just got done watching the NRA conference in CNN.

My stance, this suggestion is a sane one, and in general the sanest suggestion I have ever heard from the NRA.

I am not a gun fanatic, and I am glad to see that this was address separately from all other issues. However the comments made on violence in video-games is saddening, but understanding. I personally stay away from overly realistic and violent games like GTO.

I don't think we should turn to the NRA to establish best policies to keep mass murder out of schools, malls, movie theaters, etc.

This movie really dragged for me. The pacing seemed all off. Some of that worked in the book (eg. the opening scene in the Shire) but didn't translate well. My friends and I all left disappointed I'm afraid - most of us because of the pacing and filler. I'm not a purist nor looking to criticize just for the sake of it. There were some great scenes as well, but overall it was kind of a dud for me.

My 2 cp.

iPad. I use a couple great apps that make things faster for me as a GM.

Myrnn wrote:

Sean, terrific map! Did you use Campaign Cartographer to create it (w/ the City Designer add-on)?

Nope, It's drawn by hand and colored in Photoshop. Although I have done a couple symbol sets for Profantasy's Campaign Cartographer. &:)

Interesting - and very impressive! Thanks for sharing with us all.

Hello all,

I started running Council of Thieves a couple weeks ago and I was really in need of a map with all the labels. I bought the map folio, the poster map is beautiful, but it was too big to just scan and slap some text on. So I looked around on the message boards and I found one map that showed the various districts, but it was on the original style map. So I went ahead and made my own. I think it's OK to post since it's fan made. If there is a problem let me know.

http://www.kencyclopedia.com/maps/Westcrown.jpg

Sean, terrific map! Did you use Campaign Cartographer to create it (w/ the City Designer add-on)?