Pheoran Armiez's page

When using the Boost meta word to summon creatures using the servitor effect words, does the effect words' level increase? Instead of summoning 1 creature off of the spell's equivalent summon monster/summon nature's ally list of monsters, a boosted servitor word spell summmons 1d4+1 creatures.

It was said somewhere on the forums that boosting the servitor effect word increased the spell level by 3, but I cannot find this information anywhere in the meta word section or the servitor effect word description.

RAW (as far as I can tell) a 17th level word caster wizard can, as a standard action, throw down a boosted Servitor IX word spell to summon 1d4+1 monsters off of the Summon Monster IX list. Granted, not the most effective use of a wizard (since spell words generally don't have the same range of options as standard spells), but still... pretty potent stuff, even if they can only use meta words 10 times a day and are limited by spells per day as normal.

Side question: does the servitor words of power (RAW or RAI) interact with racial traits, feats, or class features as the summon monster or summon nature's ally spells? For instance, Augmented Summoning: does it interact the same with Servitor I as it does with Summon Monster I? What about a Herald Caller Cleric using words of power? Would all of their class features interact with the servitor spells as if they were summon monster spells?

Thanks in advance for any help and insight you can share.

As I was looking over the new Interrogator alchemist archetype, I couldn't help but notice the archetype took away the two primary ways an alchemist deals damage with very limited stuff in return. Regardless of who you talk to, bombs and mutagens are considered the bread and butter of the alchemist's ability to deal damage. Not only does the interrogator remove these options but they go even further to completely remove the option to gain mutagens or cognatogens later on, through discoveries. In exchange you gain injections and serums. Injections use melee touch attacks to impose a -2 penalty on Will saves for a short period of time, while serums can impose a spell-like effect through the injection (requiring a Will save, which is made with the imposed penalty). The serums themselves aren't bad. However, they really pale in comparison with the damage an alchemist could dish out with bombs and mutagens.

To that end, I have cooked up some homebrew discoveries to help boost the interrogator's options, hopefully giving it a unique feel and making it a more interesting option for play. Please let me know what you think and if these are too weak or too powerful. Also, what else could be added to help make the interrogator archetype more useful to a standard game while retaining its unique flavor?

POISON INJECTION
Prerequisites: Injections.
Benefit: The alchemist can use a dose of injury poison like a serum, applying it to any injection as a swift action before he makes the attack roll for the injection. Instead of the normal effects of the injection, the target suffers the effects of the poison and takes a -2 penalty to its Fort saves against the poison for its duration. If the melee touch attack fails, the poison injection isn't delivered but can still be used again—once activated, it remains potent for 1 day. A poison injection that hasn't been administered becomes inert if it leaves the alchemist's possession, reactivating as soon as it returns to his possession. The penalties for multiple doses of poison stack but the -2 penalty to Fort saves against poisons does not.

SERUM OF AUTOLYSIS
Prerequisites: Injections, Alchemist 6.
Benefit: The alchemist gains access to the autolysis serum. This serum is specially designed to break down dead organic matter cleanly and efficiently through advanced alchemical processes. When injected into a corporeal undead—even a corporeal undead that normally lacks blood or flesh—the undead creature takes 1d8 points of damage for every two alchemist levels the alchemist possesses (maximum 10d8). If the undead creature succeeds on a Fort save, it takes only half damage. Any Large or smaller undead creature reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by this serum is disintegrated, leaving behind only a trace of fine dust. If this serum is injected into the corpse of a Large or smaller once living creature, the corpse is automatically disintegrated. The serum has no effect on objects that are not corpses; thus, a dead creature's equipment is unaffected.

SERUM OF MEMORY REVISION
Prerequisites: Injections, Memory Modification, Alchemist 16.
Benefit: Once per day, the alchemist can prepare a serum of memory revision. This special serum costs 10,000 gp to create and takes 1 hour of work. The alchemist can only maintain one such serum at any given time. A serum of memory revision can only be injected by the alchemist who created it. On a failed Will save, the target's most private and personal thoughts are intruded upon by the alchemist who bends those thoughts and memories to his will over the course of up to 8 hours. During this time the target losses the ability to form new memories of their own. The alchemist can erase or add memories as he sees fit and alter emotions and opinions, but not alignment. When he is done, he can leave the target insane (as described in the insanity spell) or seemingly unaffected, without any memory of the hour prior to the intrusion. Erasing memories of a magical compulsion doesn't remove the compulsion, nor can a serum of memory revision remove procedural memories that might affect skills or class abilities. Severe changes to personality can be corrected by a break enchantment spell (although an atonement spell might be needed as well, depending on circumstances). Alterations to memories and subtler thoughts can be restored only through use of wish or miracle.

Say I am playing a 5th level reincarnated druid and want a way of removing negative levels, what are my options? I've found a few that work but I wanted to know ALL of my options for removing negative levels, preferably without the help of outside spell casters.

1) Samsaran and Mystic Past Life to add restoration, restoration, greater, and miracle to my character's list of spells known to remove negative levels and restore the appearance of my character's reincarnated body.

2) Multiclass into a class that can cast restoration and restoration, greater.

3) Aasimar with Enlightened Warrior racial trait and multiclass from druid into qinggong monk (Neutral Good alignment) to replace diamond body with the ability to use restoration as a spell-like ability (no gold cost).

4) Buy ranks in Use Magic Device and buy scrolls of restoration and restoration, greater.

5) Bathe in the blood of a dragon using Dragoncraft items (3 vials of dragon's blood costs 180 gp and removes 1 negative level each week).

Any other options I don't know about?

I have a question about any number of abilities that allow you to reincarnate (as the spell) in a safe location somewhere within X miles of where you died.

The spell leaves you naked, nameless, and alone... right? That is to say, the spell creates for you a new young adult body of [insert random race here] and brings you back to life, but it does very little else. You have no gear (not even clothes), you have no past (at least no one will recognize you), and you are alone (not even a familiar or companion will be with you).

How do you come back from that? Do you wander naked into a civilized area and maybe beg for clothing? Do you Minecraft yourself some new starting gear by punching down trees? Do you try to find your body like in WoW?

Survival strategies, please!

If you check out the veranallia azata it has a nifty power called Rebirth and the reincarnated druid as a nifty power called Many Lives:

I wanted to know if the following ability seemed to fit and was mechanically balanced for a muse-touched aasimar who was a reincarnated druid. Instead of "choosing" to be a reincarnated druid, they were simply a druid whose unique fusion of ancestry and talent granted them the following ability. The replacement ability swaps an at-will 2nd or 3rd level spell (locate object) for a one-time 2nd or 3rd level spell (plant growth) and the ability to reincarnate into the same race (aasimar). This ability would replace Many Lives but all other aspects of the reincarnated druid archetype would remain the same:

Many Rebirths (Ex): At 5th level, if a reincarnated druid is killed, she may automatically reincarnate (as the spell) 1 day later. The creature's original body decays and sinks into the ground, affecting the surrounding area in a 1/2-mile radius as though with plant growth (enrichment). Over the next 24 hours, a white, flowery cocoon emerges in a safe location somewhere in the area of the affected ground and splits open, revealing the newly reincarnated druid inside. If she is killed during the next 7 days, she remains dead and does not reincarnate. The many rebirths ability does not function if the reincarnated druid is slain by a death effect. A reincarnated druid cannot be raised from the dead or resurrected, though she can be reincarnated. A reincarnated druid always returns to life as an aasimar.

I was thinking about building a character (probably rogue) that was an aasimar, but I got to thinking "what if he didn't know he was an aasimar?" I am a huge fan of Scion of Humanity. I just wanted to know if anyone had ideas for how that would work?

For me, at least, the obvious issues would be the starting age (60+ years but looks like a young adult 16+) and the racial traits like darkvision and spell-like abilities. Everything else could be explained away, such as energy resistance as an attack "not being so bad" or skill bonuses as "always had a knack for..." and such.

I just wanted to get your guys' ideas and opinions on how to work this character development opportunity.

Couple quick questions, just because it is late and I am bored...

Firstly, if an Aasimar with the Scion of Humanity alternate racial trait takes the Racial Heritage (Human) feat at 1st level to be treated as a Halfling, can they begin play as a Small sized character? I ask because Aasimars descended from Halflings are Small sized but otherwise mechanically the same.

Secondly, if they can begin play as Small sized characters, do they appear as a human child or would they have to take Childlike (Halfling) and Pass for Human (Halfling) to appear as a human child?

Just wondering.

PS - I don't want to get into the mechanical/social issues with a human/halfling relationship; I just thought the thread title was attention-grabbing.

Can a human take the Racial Heritage feat to gain the kitsune subtype? If so, do they also add the shapechanger subtype? Finally, would they be able to qualify and use the Fox Shape feat (prerequisites: Cha 13, base attack bonus +3, kitsune)?

I just had a question about the Shaman hybrid class and the Heavens spirit. Given the rules, it would be possible to take both Flight (a witch hex) as well as Lure of the Heavens (from the Heavens spirit hexes). If so, would all of the abilities stack?

Flight (SU): At 1st level, the witch can use feather fall at will and gains a +4 racial bonus on Swim checks. At 3rd level, she can cast levitate once per day. At 5th level, she can fly, as per the spell, for a number of minutes per day equal to her level. These minutes do not need to be consecutive, but they must be spent in 1-minute increments. This hex only affects the witch.

Lure of the Heavens (Su): The shaman's connection to the skies above is so strong that her feet barely touch the ground. At 1st level, she no longer leaves tracks. At 5th level, she can hover up to 6 inches above the ground or liquid surfaces. At 10th level, the shaman gains the ability to fly (as the spell) for a number of minutes per day equal to her shaman level--the duration does not need to be consecutive, but it must be used in 1-minute increments.

If combined would it be:

Flight of the Heavens (Su): The shaman's connection to the skies above is so strong that her feet barely touch the ground. At 1st level, she can use feather fall at will, no longer leaves tracks, and gains a +4 racial bonus on Swim checks. At 3rd level, she can cast levitate once per day. At 5th level, she can hover up to 6 inches above the ground or liquid surfaces and can fly, as per the spell, for a number of minutes per day equal to her level. These minutes do not need to be consecutive, but they must be spent in 1-minute increments. At 10th level, the shaman can use this ability to fly for a number of minutes per day equal to twice her shaman level. This hex only affects the shaman.

I am playing around with the samsaran race and trying to develop more racial options for it. I wanted to know if this optional racial trait looked balanced.

Martial Past Life (Ex): You choose one weapon when you select this racial trait. You gain proficiency with your chosen weapon. If you are already proficient with your chosen weapon or later become proficient from another source, you gain a +1 insight bonus on attack rolls with the weapon. You can use your character level to qualify for feats with a fighter level prerequisite when those feats are applied to your chosen weapon. This racial trait replaces shards of the past.

I was also thinking this could replace Samsaran Magic, but I think it fits better with Shards of the Past and Mystic Past Life (which is one of the most potentially broken racial traits I have ever seen).

Also for your consideration:

Roots of Humanity (Ex): You are among the rare samsaran whose human ancestry manifests itself as a dominate trait in your current incarnation; possessed of fair skin, pupiled eyes with pale blue irises, and dark hair. You possess the human subtype as well as the samsaran subtype and count as a human for any effect related to race, including feat prerequisites. You can pass for human without using the Disguise skill. This racial trait replaces samsaran magic and alters your humanoid subtype.

This section introduces monk vows, which any user of ki can take to increase his ki pool.

A monk can discipline his body to hold more ki by upholding the strict tenets of a vow. By adhering to his vow’s tenets, the monk’s ki pool increases by the amount listed in the vow’s description. Every vow comes with a penalty or limitation to offset this increase in ki. A monk can take a vow at any level, but it does not add to his ki pool until he gains a ki pool as a class feature. The ability to take these vows replaces the still mind class feature, even if the monk abandons all his vows.

Can an enlightened paladin (archetype) use monk vows?

The archetype grants a ki pool and it would fit thematically, but I am not sure if the vows are monk only or only stated as being monk because monk was (until ninja and a few other exceptions) the only class that got a ki pool. It says it replaces the still mind class feature, but that section specifically relates to monks. I just wanted to see what other people think about it, either through official rulings or how you would address it as a GM.

I was curious about the Samsaran Monk of the Healing Hand. This is either not truly a sacrifice or one of the truest sacrifices around.

A samsaran's life is not a linear progression from birth to death, but rather a circle of birth to death to rebirth. Whenever a samsaran dies, it reincarnates anew as a young samsaran to live a new life. Her past memories remain vague and indistinct—and each new incarnation is as different a creature and personality as a child is to a parent.

True Sacrifice (Su): At 20th level, in a final selfless act, a monk of the healing hand can draw in his entire ki, which then explodes outward in a 50-foot-radius emanation. All dead allies within the emanation are brought back to life, as if they were the subject of a true resurrection spell with a caster level equal to the monk’s level. When the monk does this, he is truly and utterly destroyed. A monk destroyed in this way can never come back to life, not even by way of a wish or miracle spell or by the power of a deity. Furthermore, the monk’s name can never be spoken or written down again. All written mentions of his name become nothing more than a blank space.

The outcome of this odd pairing really can only take one of three forms; either the samsaran is truly utterly destroyed, not truly utterly destroyed, or something in-between. This much I am absolutely sure of.

Truly Utterly Destroyed: The old adage is "mechanics trumps flavor" so it would make complete sense for the samsaran to not reincarnate anew as a young samsaran. In this outcome the samsaran made a truly great sacrifice, not only giving up its current life and the past lives it had accrued but also any lives it might have lived in the future. Truly a loss for the samsaran community and the world.

Not Truly Utterly Destroyed: Because the mechanics of true sacrifice are talking about that particular player character and the flavor of the samsaran race states "each new incarnation is as different a creature and personality as a child is to a parent" it may stand to reason that the samsaran would still be reincarnated.

Something In-Between: What if both happened at the same time? Yes, the samsaran was reincarnated as their race is want to do, but true sacrifice also took place, robbing the new samsaran from the inheritance of their memories of their past lives or even bleeding through into their current incarnation. This could manifest as not having a name or even having no memories at all; merely popping into existence as a child with little to no knowledge of the world around them.

Now that I think about it, this could be a really cool back story (pending GM approval) for a samsaran character. You could even swap out the Shards of the Past racial feature for the Forgotten Past (Story Feat). In order to fulfill the completion requirements of the feat, the samsaran character might have to solve the mystery of the nameless hero who scarified their life to save his adventuring companions. After all, a samsaran pulls off true sacrifice and you happen to manifest around the same time with memory issues? Not the needle in the haystack it first appears, but there is still plenty of room for mystery. Maybe the evil they defeated still lurks in some form, ready for a CR appropriate encounter to finish the job...

Thoughts?

The Complete Age Chart

The Complete Height and Weight Chart

Finals are nearly over and for whatever reason putting together these two charts have been cathartic for me.

Using the information provided by Paizo, I put together the Complete Age Chart for those interested in playing a young character of a non-core race. I have explained my methodology in other posts for generating these starting ages.

For the Complete Height and Weight Chart, I researched demographics and found a study by the American Sociological Association's Division of Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. They compiled information from 2007 to 2010 on the height and weight ranges of Americans from birth to 19, as well as 20 and over. Using this information, I was able to find that the Pathfinder rules are pretty spot-on for generating realistic height and weight statistics for adult (16+ for Pathfinder) human males. However, adult (16+ for Pathfinder) human females fell short in height and weight. After adjusting the height and weight chart for humans (adding 5 pounds to the base weight for males and adding 1 inch in base height and 15 pounds in base weight to females) and races based on humans, I was able to generate heights and weights that fell within the 25th and 75th percentile for minimum and maximum ranges, as well as a median range within 1 inch and 5 pounds of the study. I also found by halving adult weight and reducing adult height by 12%, I was able to generate youth heights and weights within the same 25th and 75th percentiles, as well as within the same median range. To generate all youth (aged 9 to 15 years or their equivalent) base height and weight, I halved adult weight and reduced adult height by 12%. There is a reasonable 1 inch and 5 pound margin of error to these adjustments. The lower end of the height and weights are to represent 9 year old characters or their equivalents, the median represents 12 year old characters or their equivalents, and the high end of the height and weights are to represent 15 year old characters or their equivalents.

I hope you find this useful and any feedback or questions would be greatly welcomed.

PAz

Just to clarify, I am a student at Western Illinois University studying psychology, sociology, and nonprofit administration. I am in my senior year of study. I tutor English at a local community college and work for AmeriCorps in Early Childhood Literacy (basically hanging out with 3 to 5 year old kids). I also facilitate an LGBT youth drop-in for 13 to 19 year old teens. While I have extensive experience working with children and studying developmental and adolescent psychology, as well as sociology, I am not a professional game designer. However, I am an avid player of Pathfinder and other d20 systems, and I actively promote d20 systems as a wonderful learning tool for older children and teenagers. Any of the content I have generated is my gift to the community to be used or unused as each individual deems fit. OGL. Have fun, play nice.

I linked this in a general discussion thread but figured it would fit more in Homebrew. I put together a Young Character Starting Age by Race Document that gives the starting ages of ALL core, featured, and uncommon races. I was hoping some people could look over it and see if it appears accurate/balanced. It is in Google Docs because I really don't know how to set up tables on the forums. I used the core races to figure out races with similar starting ages and racial subtypes, while about 14 of the races (mostly the planetouched races) were figured out through a combination of comparison, common sense, and guesswork.

Let me know what you think.

PAz

I was wondering if anyone else has experience running a two party campaign model where one party are standard adult adventurers and the second party is comprised of young adventurers using the mechanics provided by Paizo?

In one of the last series of adventures I ran, I tied together a few modules (Into the Haunted Forest, Hallows Last Hope, and Crown of the Kobold King) into a campaign that introduced the players and their characters to Falcon's Hallow which would be their primary stomping grounds. During this process, I also built (using the young character mechanics introduced by Piazo) the youths that disappear during the Crown of the Kobold King adventure.

As a part of the Hallows Last Hope and the beginning of the Crown of the Kobold King adventures, I had each of my players take control of one of the youths and ran a very toned down adventure centered around the various back stories provided by the modules. In this way, the characters learned about the children, grew attached to them, and, when they were ambushed and kidnapped by a group of kobolds, it made it all the more terrifying. Lets just say I have never seen players more motivated to rescue a group of NPCs that could provide them neither reward or prestige.

Granted, part of the adventure module involves investigating what happened to the children in the first place, but I was playing with a group that has a surprising ability to compartmentalize (as well as hold their liquor while still roleplaying).

After the Crown of the Kobold King, I started getting into some homebrewed adventures involved with the town and basically biding time for Revenge of the Kobold King. I was surprised to find my players basically claimed Falcon's Hallow as their new hometown, bought out Jak'a'Napes and (using downtime mechanics) poured much of their gold into making "The Green Drake" the new hot spot of Falcon's Hallow. They even went so far as to hire a couple of the children they played as to run the stables and serve tables. The party's fighter even hired Hollin's sister to serve tables to get her away from her life of prostitution (which was a fun little adventure in and of itself involving a show of force and a muddy brawl). The party paladin took Jurin Kreed under his wing, and the party wizard began tutoring Savram Vade.

All in all, very rewarding.

For whatever unjustifiable reason, when I first laid eyes on the Healer in the Miniatures Handbook (back in the day), I felt an immediate connection to the class. I have always wanted to play something akin to that class, a pure and uncompromising healer, in Pathfinder. However, I had always felt the classes and archetypes available never really lived up to my expectations. Even the old Healer class doesn't live up to my idea of what it means to be a truly dedicated healer anymore (spoiled by the good folks at Paizo, I suppose). To that end, I have put together the Healer alternate class for Pathfinder. It is an animal friendly class "chuck full" of healing, along with various nonlethal combat options, some "leg room" for skills, and an eventual ascension into a near-deathless beacon of positive energy.

Disclaimer: The healer fluff is not mine, the majority of the mechanics are not mine (thank you open source, Paizo), and I make no claim of ownership over this totally free for anyone to use class. Play test, have fun, go nuts.

I am looking for constructive criticism and fully admit the majority of the mechanics stem from a combination of cleric, druid, and paladin class features (along with inspiration from other classes and archetypes). I have also included a list of favored class bonuses and a list of feats (almost all from Paizo) that pertain to the healer. I know I need help balancing the class and want to avoid the "one trick pony" or "heal bot" approach to healing by offering additional uses of channel energy and lay on hands. Thank you in advance for your time and feedback.

PAz

Healer Table Note: Not so much a table as a written outline of base attack bonus, saving throws, spell progression, and class features at each level. I really need to learn how to format tables on here.

Basic question, what would the stats be for a spear completely composed of mithral? I understand a spear is mostly made of wood but suspending disbelief that a blacksmith could shape metal into the general shape of a spear (gasps!) what would it look like statistically? Also, I realize it would be better to figure out the statistics of a spear made of metal before jumping to that most delicious of metals known as mithral (drools) but I figured I would save time and skip that step. Thanks ahead of time!

Mithral Spear
Cost: 3,002 gp; Dmg (m): 1d8; Crit: x3; Range: 20 ft.; Weight: 3 lbs.; Type: Piercing; Special: brace, masterwork, overcomes DR as silver, rust monster delicacy

Hey everyone,

I was throwing around the idea of a melee character with an artistic side (brush strokes and sword strokes both require a certain degree of discipline). However, I also liked the idea of the character being able to craft their own magic armor, weapons, and wondrous items because it saves on money and gives me more control over the gear my character uses or has access to. That, and I love crafting magic items for other party members because every time they use an item I made or even designed for them (with GM permission of course) I feel a sense of accomplishment.

Would Craft (painting) be an applicable (read: reasonable) skill to take with the Master Craftsman feat so the character could later take Craft Magic Arms and Armor and Craft Wondrous Item?

I know there is a lot of talk about Master Craftsman and how certain crafts and professions shouldn't be allowed or just don't make sense, such as Craft (baskets) or Profession (midwife). I just figured it would be as if the character could use expensive or magical pigments to paint one of the aforementioned types of items on canvas only to have it spring to life. You know, sort of like an enhanced version of the Marvelous Pigments wondrous item.

Just wanted to get some thoughts. Thanks in advance.

PAz

Hey Pathfinderers,

I was looking at the Vow of Poverty option for Monks and thought some of it was a little clunky, mechanically. I just wanted to clairify a few things, give my own opinion on it, and ask you guys for your own advice on how to play an ascetic character.

The first issue I see is in regards to the items the monk is allowed to own. Thematically, it makes sense, and you may take or leave any or all of them (except maybe for a simple set of clothing for modesty's sake). The "any one other item" is vague, probably on purpose for the sake of the GM or player to add a little flavor to the otherwise bland inventory list of the VoP monk. However, what constitutes "some value" in regards to this ability? I'm going to go out on a limb and say anything magical is right out, but what about masterwork or special materials (which usually implies masterwork quality)? More than likely that is out too, but what is a good ballpark gp limit (less than 1 gp? 10 gp? 50 gp? 100 gp?)?

The second issue I see is in regards to the line "the monk can never keep more money or wealth on his person than he needs to feed, bathe, and shelter himself for 1 week in modest accommodations" which, if we go by the pricing guidelines in the book is 2 gp 2 sp 4 cp (a weeks worth of poor quality meals, inn stays, and baths). I'm assuming the monk would bath once a day (just in case they took Vow of Cleanliness). So does that mean the market sets how much money the monk can carry with him? Or does the book set the 2/2/4 limit and if a place is more or less expensive then the listed price, oh well?

The third issue I see is in regards to the line "he cannot borrow or carry wealth or items worth more than 50 gp that belong to others" which prevents him from helping the party carry treasure, artifacts, or relics out of a dungeon... even if such items are a part of a greater quest, such as returning an artifact to a temple or restoring a stolen crown to a benevolant king. It just seems like an arbitrary gold limit, albeit probably set as a guideline to prevent abuse.

So, those are my beefs with Vow of Poverty. However, I would like to offer some homebrewed options for such characters.

Optional Skill Use
The following skill use can be used by ascetic characters.

Using Diplomacy to Beg
You can use Diplomacy to beg for basic necessities from a community or individual. To do this, you must spend at least 1d4 hours soliciting alms from a community or assisting in various types of unskilled labor. The DC of this check depends on the type of need sought, but for most common needs (such as food, drink, and shelter) it is 10. For more serious needs (such as medical attention or passage aboard a ship), the DC might increase to 20 or higher. The GM might rule that an unusually benevolent community or individual reduces the DC by 5, while an unusually malevolent community or individual increases the DC by 5. In addition, you take a -1 penalty on your check for every 1 gp of visable wealth you possess.

Optional Feat
The following feat can be taken by ascetic characters.

Detached Ascetic
You know how to walk this world devoid of attachment to material goods, and your commitment to the ascetic lifestyle grants you more leeway when observing the tenants of your vow.
Prerequisites: Vow of poverty class feature, monk 3.
Benefit: You gain a bonus on Diplomacy checks made to beg equal to your monk level. In addition, you may carry wealth or items worth more than 50 gp that belong to party members or allies, provided such items are stored in containers and you do not access such containers.
Normal: A monk with the Vow of Poverty cannot borrow or carry wealth or items worth more than 50 gp that belong to others.

Optional Character Trait
The following trait can be taken by ascetic characters.

Ascetic (Faith): You live an ascetic lifestyle in order to strengthen your spiritual convictions and rely on the kindness of others to get by. You gain a +2 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks made to beg, and Diplomacy is always a class skill for you.

Those are my thoughts. What are yours?

I was curious. Could a VoP monk use adventuring gold to build small shrines or temples dedicated to tending to travelers or the poor of a community? Like, if he was the founder of a non-profit? In the description of Vow of Poverty, it is pretty clear the monk can't own anything expensive (like a business or an organization), but does that restriction prevent him from building a temple or founding an organization that he neither owns nor runs?

I know in 3.5 a VoP character was expected to get a cut of any gold the party received and donate it to those in need, so its not really much of a stretch for a VoP monk in Pathfinder to do the same. Plus, VoP in Pathfinder is nowhere near as powerful as 3.5. Is there any potential harm or abuse?

For example: say a VoP monk sets up small temples in or around communities he helps, using the downtime system. He pays for the construction costs and hiring managers/teams with the gold that would normally be given to him for his cut in helping the party overcome challenges. He has no intention of running the temple or collecting earnings (all of that goes towards paying the manager and upkeep of the temples). However, he would probably use the temple from time to time to bathe, eat, rest, and otherwise use the temple for its intended purpose; helping weary travelers and the poor. Wouldn't this be akin to donating his gold from adventuring to a temple, except he is doing one better and breathing life into a new resource for the area's poor? Would he be able to do this if his adventuring companions held on to his share of the gold and made the payments to build the temple and hire its employees on his behalf?

Just curious.

A character concept I really like is a civilized orc fighter who has buried his "fury" deep down and it only unleashes itself in times of true need. Mechanically this will be represented with a deep pool of negative hit points, ferocity, and eventually the Deathless feat tree. I was also looking at using feral and dayrunner orc racial traits, along with the adopted (human) character trait and an Int of 13 (after racial modifiers).

The campaign I'm thinking about using it for is a 5th level, 25 point buy, using any published books we have on hand (I have all published non-campaign specific books except Ultimate Campaign). I was going to use Str 16, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 10 as the character's stats (which includes the +1 ability boost at 4th).

What I am looking for is Pathfinder sources I can use as inspiration for roleplaying such a character. As a smarter than normal humanoid, I want him to carry himself with a certain dignity and restraint, even in the face of hatred from other "civilized" individuals. The more I understand about human or other humanoid reaction to a full-blooded orc, the better I will be able to build my character to anticipate any social barriers the character would have already experienced.

Also, I was thinking about going Weapon Master or Unbreakable fighter archetype to represent his dedication to controling his fury, and relying on a few feats that grant bonuses when at negative hit points to reflect the change in his fighting style/tactics that occurs when he is in true danger and the fury takes over.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated.

Hey guys, want to give me a hand balancing a feat? For those familiar with Story feats, I've tried my hand at constructing one for characters who have lost a loved one and seek to bring them back from the dead. Because raise dead requires 5,450 gold to have cast on one's behalf, I imagine a number of individuals have failed to come up with that sort of coin within the time alloted to bring a loved one back from the grave.

Since True Love, Unforgotten, and Vengeance didn't seem to fit very well, I give you:

Lost Love (Story)

The greatest love you have ever known was taken from you, but you will find a way to break death’s hold.

Prerequisite: You must have found love with a person who died through violent or unnatural means, or have the For Love, Major Disaster, or The Lover background.

Benefit: You carry a token of your lost love (such as a nonmagical piece of jewelry, leather or twine scraps from your handfasting ceremony, or a lock of their hair). While this token is in your possession, you gain a +4 bonus on saves against death and fear effects.

Goal: Find a way to bring your love back to life. This requires resurrection, true resurrection, wish, miracle, or some other powerful form of magic beyond the scope of raise dead.

Completion Benefit: You and your love share a life force. You both treat your Constitution scores as if they were 10 point higher than normal for the purpose of determining when hit point damage kills you. Because of the nature of your shared life force, you do not lose this completion benefit if your relationship with your love comes to an end for any reason, except death. However, if you or your love dies, the other may choose at any time to immediately and painlessly die.

Special: You may use the token from your love in place of a portion of your love’s body for the purpose of bringing them back with resurrection magic. This consumes the token. If this token is lost or destroyed, you may spend 1 week questing to find another token of your lost love.

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The following was some fluff I wrote to help flesh out the back story for a character (an alchemist with the internal and herbalist archetypes) I'm going to be playing in an upcomming campaign. If I can get the feat balanced, I would like to use it for my character as a character goal.

"Yes, you are truly beautiful, my lady," I said as I averted my eyes from her unclothed form, "but I am afraid I have already known and lost the most beautiful creature this world has ever known."

"And by what name did this creature, more beautiful than I, go by?" She asked me seductively.

"Wyn… his name was Wyn." I replied.

I could feel her smiling wryly at me now, and for a brief second her charming aura of confidence faltered.

"Your lover was a man?" The nymph asked a little amused.

"No more a boy, really. We both were. We were young, in love, and immortal. He was the son of an herbalist and a midwife. My family had been displaced by a war—a dispute between landholders over property lines turned bloody. We were strangers and he and his family showed us kindness and hospitality."

"My parents and older sisters worked on a nearby farm while I helped him with collecting wild herbs used in his father’s shop and his mother’s midwifery. Such tasks afforded him and me time alone. We became good friends… best friends… and, one sun-kissed afternoon, lovers. When we reached the age of majority, we announced our intention to be handfasted. This did not come as a surprise to either of our families and their blessings were given. I was so happy that day… I thought I would die of joy at any moment..."

"So what happened to this perfect boy of yours?" She asked.

"We had been wed less than a year when it happened. An unnatural beast was spotted by some trappers prowling the woods, but Wyn had left that morning to get an early start on collecting lavender and thistle. He had a way with animals so he never felt he had to carry a weapon with him, but this… thing, it was no animal… it was a monster. Even if he had a weapon with him, I doubt it would have changed anything… but if I had been with him…"

"I guess it was some time before the others found us. Wyn had died long before I could reach him, but I was holding his lifeless body in my arms hoping I could somehow will him back to life. It was a few days before we could bury him. You see, we were a poor community. We couldn’t come up with the gold to afford the healing magic that could bring him back from the grave, so we had tried to plead with the regional temple… I remember my heart breaking again that day."

There was a silence between us. I believe she sensed the pain I was hiding in my heart. Then, wistfully, she asked me what he was like.

"Wyn was… like sunshine; warmth spread with a smile. He was like air… his presence sustaining the very beating of my heart. He was every good thing the world had ever promised me, and when he died… the sun failed to rise in the morrow… and the stars fell from their place in the heavens. When he was finally buried… when Wyn was finally laid to rest, I left for the deepest part of the forest. I couldn’t bear to live in the place we had made our home, and even though his family didn’t blame me for his death… I still did."

"He loved nature; the way things grew and the beauty inherent in the balance of the natural world. So, I sought to remove myself from “civilized” lands, in the vain hope I might find him waiting for me in the darkest wilds. I have yet to find my Wyn, but I have found some solace in this realm; comfort in the balance of nature. Perhaps that will be enough to learn how to breathe again."

I dared to look upon her once more, and was taken aback by beauty perfected, marred by sympathetic pain. I wiped my tears away, previously unaware of their presence.

"And here," I said with a forced smile, "I thought I had shed them all."

I posted this on a recent thread about building a lycanthrope race using the Advanced Race Guide, but because it was posted in Game Connection, I thought I'd post my idea on the homeberw section. The OP had built a 29 RP lycanthrope with a lot of bells and whistles, but my take was the streamline the build and roll the more powerful features into racial feats the player could take as their power grew. He had some nice fluff for the race but this is purely mechanical. Any suggestions on racial feats, what to include, and fluff for a natural (non-curse carrying) lycanthrope of the werewolf variety would be greatly appreciated.

The appeal of this race is a playable werewolf character at 1st level without CR adjustments.

Lycanthrope
Type
Humanoid (lycanthrope, shapechanger) (0 RP)
Size
Medium (0 RP)
Base Speed
Normal (0 RP)
Ability Score Modifiers
Standard (+2 Con, +2 Wis, -2 Cha) (0 RP)
Languages
Standard (0 RP)
Racial Traits
Defense Racial Traits
Natural Armor +1 (2 RP)
Feat and Skill Racial Traits
Skill Bonus (Perception) +2 (2 RP)
Magical Racial Traits
Change Shape, Lesser (human) (3 RP)
Offense Racial Traits
Bite (1d4) (2 RP)
Sense Racial Traits
Low-Light Vision (1 RP)
TOTAL 10 RP

Scent
You gain the scent ability
Prerequisites: Wis 13, lycanthrope.
Benefit: You gain the scent special ability.

Improved Bite
Your natural attack damage increases.
Prerequisites: Con 13, lycanthrope.
Benefit: Your bite attack deals 1d6 points of damage instead of 1d4 points of damage.

Improved Natural Armor
Your natural armor bonus improves.
Prerequisites: Con 13, lycanthrope.
Benefit: Your natural armor bonus increases by +1.

Damage Reduction
You gain damage reduction that is only overcome by silver weapons.
Prerequisites: Con 15, Improved Natural Armor, lycanthrope.
Benefit: You gain DR 5/silver.

Wolf Empathy
You gain the ability to communicate with wolves.
Prerequisites: Wis 13, lycanthrope.
Benefit: You gain the spell-like ability to speak with wolves and dire wolves as if using speak with animals. In addition, you gain a +4 bonus on Handle Animal checks made with wolves and dire wolves.

Beast Form
You gain the ability to change into a wolf.
Prerequisites: Con 13, Wis 13, BAB +4, Improved Bite, lycanthrope.
Benefit: You gain the ability to transform into a wolf as per the spell beast form II at will. You retain any natural armor bonus, damage reduction, and spell-like abilities while in this form.

Using the 3.5 Hexblade as inspiration, I was trying to build a fighter archetype that allowed the use of a small number of witch hexes. I want to know if this achetype is overpowered, underpowered, or weirdly both. I also want to see if the class features feel like they belong with the hexblade.

Fighter Archetype (Hexblade)
While some fighters might curse their opponents under their breath, the hexblade believes actions speak louder than words. Weaving dark arcane studies with martial prowess, a hexblade learns to use a number of hexes and to imbue his blade with dark eldritch power.

Alignment: A hexblade must be of a nongood alignment.

Arcane Study (Ex): Hexblades gain 2 additional skill ranks each level. These ranks must be spent on Fly, Heal, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (history), Knowledge (nature), Knowledge (planes), Spellcraft, or Use Magic Device. These skills are class skills for the hexblade. This ability replaces the hexblade’s proficiency with medium armor, heavy armor, and shields.

Detect Magic (Sp): Hexblades can use detect magic at will as a spell-like ability. This ability replaces the hexblade’s proficiency with all martial weapons except the short sword, long sword, bastard sword, and great sword.

Hex: At 1st level, a hexblade gains a hex. He gains an additional hex at 2nd level and for every four levels of hexblade gained after 2nd level. Otherwise, this works as the witch’s hex ability. A hexblade’s levels in this class counts as his caster level for the purpose of using hexes that normally only function for spell casters, such as the cauldron hex. A hexblade’s save DCs for hexes are Intelligence-based. This replaces the hexblade’s bonus feats at 1st, 2nd, 6th, 10th, 14th, and 18th level.

Arcane Resistance (Ex): At 2nd level, a hexblade gains a +1 bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like abilities. The bonus increases by +1 for every four levels beyond 2nd. This ability replaces bravery.

Hexblade Training (Ex): At 3rd level, a hexblade gains a +1 bonus on attack and damage rolls with the short sword, long sword, bastard sword, and great sword. The bonus improves by +1 for every four levels beyond 3rd. This ability replaces armor training 1, 2, 3, 4, and armor mastery.

Hexblade’s Curse (Su): Starting at 5th level, a hexblade may curse a target he has successfully struck in melee with a short sword, long sword, bastard sword, or great sword as a free action. This ability otherwise functions as bestow curse but allows no saving throw. A hexblade curse can be removed with a remove curse or similar magic, using the save DC as the DC to remove the curse. A hexblade can only have one hexblade curse in effect at a time. If another hexblade curse is made, the first immediately ends. A hexblade gains the ability to maintain an additional hexblade curse at 9th, 13th, and 17th level. This ability replaces weapon training 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Major Hex: Starting at 10th level, a hexblade can choose a major hex whenever he could select a new hex.

Grand Hex: Starting at 18th level, a hexblade can choose a grand hex whenever he could select a new hex.

Weapon Mastery: This class feature applies to the short sword, long sword, bastard sword, and great sword. This ability otherwise functions as weapon mastery.

Okay, so I sort of have a "20th level bro-mancer" with the archaeologist archetype for bard. I love how it fuses the lore seeking and knowledge-base of the bard with the daring-do of the rogue. However, I had a question about the rogue talents you have access to as an archaeologist.

An archaeologist's rogue talent class feature "otherwise works as the rogue's rogue talent ability." This includes the ability for the archaeologist to take the "Ninja Trick" talent.

When a rogue or archaeologist gains access to advanced rogue talents, they gain access to advanced ninja tricks (just as the ninja gains access to advanced rogue talents).

The Assassinate advanced ninja trick allows the user to study a target for 1 round and make a "sneak attack" on the target that requires the target to make a saving throw or die in addition to normal damage.

While I understand an archaeologist doesn't have sneak attack and shouldn't therefore be able to take talents or tricks that modify or enhance a rogue's sneak attack ability, Assassinate doesn't have an * denoting it as modifying sneak attacks.

My question:

Should an archaeologist be allowed to take the Assassinate ninja trick even though they don't deal extra damage on a sneak attack?

I was thinking of developing a deity for an upcoming campaign whose portfolio was focused on nature and specifically reincarnation as opposed to an afterlife. Using the Reincarnated Druid archetype as the deity's "clerics," I wanted to use a character trait that would allow a player to be reincarnated into their previous character race (instead of rolling on a random table to determine what humanoid race the character is reincarnated as).

I wasn't sure how to word such a trait or if its power would be in-line with other traits.

Also, if it would be too powerful to be considered a trait, could it be used as an alternative racial ability? If so, what would its RP cost be? What would be the RP cost of the Reincarnated Druid's "Many Lives" class feature if it were instead a racial ability?

I am a mechanics lover (read: whore), pure and simple. If I need a story, I'll make one up and very rarely do I ever bring a premade module into my games. That being said, I LOVE the idea of an MMO based on PFO, but at the same time I HATE reading all the little details of every land, baron, and township just to figure out what is going on in the overall arch of some worlds I will never actually play in. One of my hopes for PFO, is that I will be able to explore the lore of the world organically as I adventure, kill things, figure out I killed the wrong things, and kill things again.

What I DON'T want to see is a WoW lore system of old lore content that is still around and never changes even though the world advances. I know they keep the old content in because they have to cater to 85 levels of questing and they DID make a lot of changes (mostly bad) with the last expansion, but I have higher hopes for PFO.

My question (and yes, there is a question in all of this) is how will this lore be introduced into the world (opening cinematic, lore based quests, NPC interactions) and how will it advance over time?

Hey GW,

I have a quick question for you. In the starting NPC settlements, are the NPC guards/commoners/buildings immortal/indestructible?

It would make sense if they were, after all players have to start somewhere, and it would ruin everyone’s fun if a group of player characters “laid siege” to one of the starting communities. This also bypasses the issue of immortal NPC children “ruining immersion,” since everyone in the starting settlements are immortal. As an additional plus, it would provide an absolute safe area from griefers (unless they are gluttons for unending repetitive punishment) for people that just want to RP or have a safe place to rest their character’s digitally rendered heads.

Just wondering,

Pheos

I know I saw someone posted an idea about an in-game newspaper or newsletter, but what if we had other literary sources of information in the world of PFO? I’m talking more specifically about publishing in-game books.

While I believe paper, blank books, and scrolls should be utilized by player characters to write notes, create spell books, and scribe scrolls with magic spells on them, I feel it would be a disservice to PFO to not allow for player characters to pen and publish their own mini books in the game world. However, I also feel there should be some limitations.

Firstly, anyone should be able to pen anything (a pseudo-first amendment for PFO). After all, are we really going to call the town guard because someone penned a book that just says “butt” 50 times in a row? Additionally, stuff like that will phase itself out of the market because no one… okay, hardly anyone would buy it because it serves no practical purpose and carries almost no inherent role-playing value.

Secondly, crafting a book should take a measure of actual writing skill as well as the appropriate crafting skills to bind the paper and use calligraphy to clearly write words. While an individual should be able to conceptualize, craft, and sell any book they wish, doing so should not be cheap.

Third, what about GW sanctioned in-game mass publishing? Perhaps if a player character submits a copy of their book (and a hefty editors fee to avoid the spamming of “50 Butts to End Any Conversation”) to an in-game publishing house, a real to goodness GW editor could look over the book for spelking errors, grammar mistook, and marketability to the PFO community. If they decide they want to publish the book, the book could appear in libraries, item vendor inventories, or player owned shops with the author gaining royalties from the sale of each in-game item.

Just a thought.

I sort of had a hit or miss idea for part of the social aspect of PFO.

Everyone you see in the world begins with [Race] [Gender] over their character, instead of their name. For example, instead of “Pheoran Armiez” dangling over my beautiful self, it would say Human Male. From an RP standpoint, it means you actually have to interact with someone to differentiate them from everyone else. A simple /introduce command could be given to politely introduce yourself to a targetted player character, and if they reply in kind both parties now know each other.

Exceptions to this may be those who have bounties on their character, but this information would only be accessible to you if you have checked the local territory bounty boards. The individual would stand out in a crowd of player characters because their name would be known (having recognized them from their description on the bounty board). Such information would only be as current as the last time you checked the bounty boards (say next to the marshal’s barracks).

Alternatively, individuals that are a part of a guild you join may have their name appear above their character to you because you are in the same social organization. Likewise, party members would probably have their names appear above their heads as well.

One reason for doing this would be the Disguise skill. You could have an item that would essentially be a Disguise Kit for a specific Race/Gender combination (with bonuses or penalties involved if the race or gender does not match your own). It could also allow a “known” criminal or individual to move about relatively anonymously (since the exact detail of character avatars may allow for someone to quickly pass by someone they know or who knows them without being detected as anything other than an unknown player character of X race and Y gender). Think RP-style cloaking device.

Another reason for this is to “spot” known associates in a crowd, and to more easily see who you have or have not worked with before. Acquaintances could be given an RP designation using the helpful, friendly, indifferent, unfriendly, or hostile monikers.

Alternatively, a simple asterisk next to a player character’s name to denote you have interacted with them (rated your attitude towards them as helpful, friendly, indifferent, unfriendly, or hostile) could work as well.

Just a brain-fart in the wind.

Hey GW,

What up?

Okay, so now that we have the pleasantries out of the way, I have a question. In the blogs it says your characters abilities will be based on level advancement (i.e. I get sweet stuff whenever I level), but I am otherwise led to believe gaining ranks in particular skills won't warrant any actual mechanical benefit to my character. I get it; that is a lot of mechanics to balance, but not even a low-level boost to something?

In EVE, which also uses the real-time skill learning thing (which I think is awesome), every rank in a skill gives you at least a minor boost to something, whether it is a +1% chance to hit a target, +2% weapon damage, or a bonus 5% armor. I was just thinking, for players that want to play a more organic character, if each rank in each skill provided some minor mechanical benefit (you know, beyond qualifying for a level in a core class), it might make players feel like they’re advancing their character with every rank they gain, rather than every level they work towards.

Not sure if this is workable with your current vision of PFO, but I just thought I'd throw it out there as something I'd like to see. Yeah, it gives the min/max people something to do, but in the end 1% of this or even 5% of that shouldn't really make or break a character... right? Anyway, I was just wondering if that could work.

Your buddy,

Pheos

Dear Goblinworks,

Being as PFO is based off of an amazing roleplaying game which, itself, is based off of a slightly less amazing (yet still above averagely amazing) roleplaying game... can I haz RP gear?

With all of this talk of items and crafting and pvping and mini-games and whatnot, I just wanted to remind those designers at Goblinworks not to forget about roleplaying gear. Clothing sets (in-game store bought, player created, or looted), fun items (food, drink, fireworks, love potions, disguise kits), and other things that enhance the immersion of PFO.

This request also includes in-game mechanics that will help me fully realize the look and feel of my character, such as the ability to change my hair style, various /actions (sit, kneel, dance, joke, laugh, pray, laugh maniacally, pout), and titles (earned or in-game purchased).

While the mechanics of spell casting, sword crafting, and feet moving are all important elements, please, don't forget about the minor mechanics that could lead to really amazing roleplaying opportunities.

Your Pal,

Pheos

As was mentioned in the latest blog, certain structures can be attacked and destroyed, but these structures may also be used to safely log from the game and used to store items in a limited capacity.

If I safely log my character out and the structure I was logged out in is later destroyed, what happens to my character? Do I log back in just outside of the destroyed structure? Do I log back in still within the destroyed structure but able to leave (since it was stated characters will be able to leave damaged/destroyed structures)?

What happens to my stuff that was in limited local storage? I know it says it is destoyed, but since I was logged out when the structure was destroyed, can any of that stuff be placed into my inventory before I log? Can some of my stuff in limited local storage automatically be placed into my inventory (up to my carrying limit) if a structure I logged off in is destroyed? Could I "loot" my limited local storage for a random selection of items that I had placed within it?

Just wondering,

Pheos

I get over zealous when I post new stuff, so I will try to be more concise in my post.

Because "days" and "extended rests" won't really be a viable option for managing character resources, at least not from the perspective of a sandbox MMO, why not have cooldowns for magic/supernatural/awesome sauce abilities?

For examples, simple combat spells (low elemental damage or temporary debuff effects) could have a cooldown of 6 to 30 seconds. More powerful spells (moderate to high elemental damage, buffs, or low level healing spells) could have a cooldown of 1 to 3 minutes. Getting into the more powerful effects (AoE spells, group heals, summon monsters), you could have cooldowns anywhere from 10 minutes to 24 hours.

In this way, you keep spellcasters flavorful, scale spells with skill progression (reduce cooldown time, make lower level magic slightly more powerful), and give another dimension for power management. After all, if a spell from Pathfinder would be too powerful for its level in PFO, a long cooldown can help balance its power by limiting repeated use.

Just an idea. Could this work? And if not, why?

I posted a similar topic in a thread about alignment, but after having some time to think about the mechanic, I would like to present here my idea about how PFO could run alignment and reputation.

Essentially, you would have two charts on your character sheet, allegiance and reputation. Allegiance would cover not only the traditional notions of alignment but also ideologies. Reputation would track your standing with various players, guilds, and settlements.

Allegiance:

For allegiance, the standard Chaos, Evil, Good, and Law spread would be used, as well as a few core ideologies. While I am still a little vague on the ideologies, I know natural forces (Air, Death, Earth, Fire, Life, and Water) will appear amongst them. Your character would begin play by selecting your starting alignment and/or ideology. Moral and ethical philosophies would be directly opposed to one another, so whenever you increase your standing with Law, your standing with Chaos decreases and whenever you increase your standing with Evil, your standing with Good decreases, and so on. Some ideologies may be directly opposed to each other as well (Air/Earth, Death/Life, and Fire/Water).

Because some classes have stringent alignment restrictions (barbarians, clerics, druids, monks, and paladins), these classes are expected to act in accordance with these alignments. However, like in the case for druids, maintaining a neutral alignment requires the balancing of both good and evil, as well as law and chaos. In a system that tracks the balances of these forces through “moral” actions and “ethical” actions, you find the game produces a group of people that will randomly perform evil or chaotic acts, not because it is what their character would do, but to avoid building up too much good or law.

Instead, why not add natural forces (Air, Earth, Fire, and Water) as an allegiance, and in order for a druid to stay true to their character, they must keep at least two of these natural forces within their top three allegiances. This way, they focus on performing actions that directly reinforce their connection to the natural world, instead of arbitrary juggling their morals and ethics to make sure they don’t lose their connection to nature (and thus their powers).

Clerics could be run the same way, instead of saying their alignment has to be within one step of their deities, why not add the option of declaring a deity or two ideologies. Each deity will have a number of allegiances (either moral/ethical philosophies or ideologies) and the cleric would strive to keep at least two of these in their top three allegiances. In this way, clerics would focus on performing actions that please/are in tune with the will and want of their chosen higher power. If a cleric chooses a lawful good deity, chances are they will be performing actions that not only please their deity, but also raise their standing with law and good, simultaneously decreasing their standing with chaos and evil. This also avoids the moral/ethical juggling dilemma, since so long as the cleric keeps his deity’s portfolio in his top three allegiances, he will be able to maintain his divine connection and his powers.

Paladins would have a harder time going about it, but they would be required to keep law and good in their top three allegiances. If they worship a deity, they should at least remain on good terms with their higher power, keeping their deity’s portfolio (which should contain at least law or good or both). Besides, if the paladin in performing good and lawful actions, and had selected a deity that is at least some part goodly or lawfully aligned, chances are they will keep their deity’s portfolio high on their list of allegiances.

Barbarians and monks would be required to keep law out of their top three allegiances or in their top three allegiances at all times, respectively. A barbarian rage could count as a chaotic action, thus mechanically balancing against law on behalf of the class, as a suggestion.

If we look at character creation, you would be able to choose your starting alignment and either a deity or an ideology you are aligned to. A character that begins play with a lawful good alignment and selects Iomedae (a lawful good deity with life in her portfolio) would have the starting allegiance list:

Good 100 (helpful)
Law 100 (helpful)
Life 50 (friendly)
Air 0 (indifferent)
Earth 0 (indifferent)
Fire 0 (indifferent)
Water 0 (indifferent)
Death -50 (unfriendly)
Chaos -100 (hostile)
Evil -100 (hostile)

So long as the character keeps Good and Law in their top three allegiances, they can enter into Paladin or become a Cleric of Iomedae when they gain their first level. If they keep Law in their top three, they could become a monk, but they would not be able to become a barbarian until Law was no longer a part of their top three allegiances.

As characters perform actions that either reinforce one or more of these allegiances (casting spells with certain descriptors, killing outsiders of certain subtypes, ect…) their allegiances will organically begin to take shape and will reflect the innate actions of the character. I feel this is a superior system than trying to assign alignment and attempting to control or shape character actions in reverse.

Reputation:

Reputation would consist of a list of every player character, guild, or settlement you have interacted with thus far in your game experience, and would be denoted as helpful, friendly, indifferent, unfriendly, or hostile. When you encounter a new player character, their initial starting attitude would be indifferent, but you could change your attitude towards an individual to reflect interactions you have experienced with that player (shifting it to friendly or helpful if they were of assistance or nice towards you, and shifting it to unfriendly or hostile if they were rude or grieved you in some way). Any player can see how you “feel” towards them, and you can see how any player “feels” towards you.

With guilds and settlements, your reputation may build slowly or plummet rapidly because of actions you perform. If you kill time trolling a certain guild or killing people in a certain settlement, your reputation with those guilds and settlements will decrease and become unfriendly or hostile. If you are helpful towards a guild or help fight off monsters in a settlement's hex, your reputation with them will improve to friendly or helpful. Each social shift should provide minor game benefits, such as guards coming to your aid quicker if they are from a settlement that is helpful towards you.

Unlike Allegiances which have opposed elements, player characters, guilds, and settlements would be independently flexible in how they view you. You could be loved by all, hated by many, or live a relatively anonymous life of indifference.

Anyway, long post over… just a thought.

In Pathfinder, non-player companion resources can be broken down into familiars, companions, and mounts. Each one serves a role and may often act as an iconic piece of a character's identity.

In Wo... some other game, they have pretty much the same thing with vanity pets, pets, and mounts. I could see PFO working its mechanics... with a little magic (*wink*)... along those same lines.

Familiars could act as vanity pets, providing a specific benefit to a player when activated and being "dismissed" upon a character's death. Familiars in this system would be available through either skill acquisition or through a special merit badge. Alternatively, maybe getting your first level in sorcerer or wizard grants you the option of gaining a familiar. Additional familiars could be bought, found, or even crafted (mechanical bunny gives me a +2 competence bonus to look awesome).

Companions would be your classic "pet," acting as a fighting companion under your control via a command bar. A pet would always be active, unless you "dismiss it" into the wild. You could reactivate it once you reenter the wilderness, or, if it dies, you could restore it to life while within a natural setting. Additionally, an "urban" companion (a.k.a. cohort) could be available and follow similar mechanics in a settlement. A companion's abilities and power would probably be directly influenced by your skill progressions and merit badges. Alternatively, like familiars, druids or rangers who reach a specific level could have the option to gain an animal companion. Individuals who train in leadership skills could gain the services of a cohort.

Mounts would be... well... mounts, and they would allow you to travel quickly or, possibly, engage in mounted combat. A mount would probably have static abilities or its abilities would be directly tied to your skill progression or merit badges. A mount could be "called" in the wilderness or in a settled area and dismissed into either as easily. Paladins could have the option to gain a mount at a specific level, but for the most part, everyone should have the ability to gain a mount of some sort.

Yes, this might interfere with the immersion of "I need to find a stable for my horse" and "my animal companion can't be raised from the dead once it dies" and let's not forget "my familiar should be able to be targeted or aid me in combat." However, by sacrificing a little realism (you already don't have to eat, sleep, or poop) you can streamline the mechanics to fit the needs of the world. You already have auto-rez and can loot your own body, so conjuring an animal ally out of thin air shouldn't seem THAT disruptive to your immersion, especially in a world where legitimate magic exists.

Just saying.

Bags!

No, I'm not cursing. I was just curious how the bag situation is going to play out. I imagine you would begin play with a backpack (mundane) and maybe the ability to attach a number (3-4) belt pouches to your person. Casters would probably use one of those slots for a material component pouch. I like what I've heard about encumbrance playing a role in how much you can cart around, but what about extradimensional storage?

Could I have a glove of storing that allows me to activate an at-will magical effect (with a 6 second cool down) to stow or produce a single handheld item (like a weapon, wand, or shield)? Could I get a handy haversack that would allow me to haul items without worrying too much about encumbrance? Could my belt pouches be upgraded to bags of holding? Could they be upgraded to a bag of tricks?

Okay, that last one is probably its own thread, but I really would like to know.

What if all player races begin play with Common and their racial language as starting languages, and with a simple /command, they could switch between Common, Elven, Dwarven, Orcish, Halfling, Gnomish, or whatever?

If this was combined with the removal of "general" channels (no trade, city, or local defense) and players could speak or YELL to eachother within a certain radius, how would this change immersion and gameplay? If someone is speaking in Ignan or Infernal, maybe it is too pass secret information in an otherwise crowded area. Sure whispering would be okay, but I see that as being incorporated more as a message spell (0-level and usable at will for casters).

If you can learn other languages, maybe your group of adventurers could use Terran or Abyssal as a secret language. Druids would have their own little social club, and casters with access to comprehend languages or tongues could become socialites.

Not to mention the hardcore RPers who may set up macros to curse in Goblin, blass in Celestial, and complement in Elven.

Just a thought.

When crafting mundane and magical items, mechanically speaking, I would be more interested in how an item looks, rather than tracking a few minor bonuses and penalties (min/maxing). If it would be more mechanically feasible for the people of GW to fabricate a dozen skins for each non-unique item, at least for items of masterwork quality, that would be awesome.

For example: Say when my elf or half-orc character crafts a long sword, I have the option of applying the elven or orcish template (a cosmetic appearance shift of the standard long sword skin). It doesn't change the damage or critical range of the weapon, but it looks different and sets my weapon apart from others of its type. Likewise, if my character earns particular merit badges, maybe it unlocks additional templates I could apply to a weapon, piece of armor, or item.

A specialist crafter could train in maybe a handful of templates they could apply to their crafted items.

If each item could have a template, even if there are only a dozen such templates in the world, it would still add a level of depth to the item creation process that I feel is lacking in other games. If the programmers can find a way for certain templates to apply minor bonuses (say a reduction in cost for certain magic item enhancements placed on specific items... I'm looking at you holy weapon with the celestial template), that would be cool too.

Just a thought.

Hey.

How's it going? Cool... cool. Yeah, so... I sort of posted this here to ask a tiny little favor, PFO. I mean, it's nothing huge or game breaking, but it is really important to me... (deep breath)... okay...

Please, don't let squirrels drop shields when I kill them. A few nuts or some squirrel meat is fine... but no bucklers or tower shields. And the bears... please, don't let me loot magic items from them (well, unless they recently ate somebody). Don't let the natural or unnatural creatures of the world drop random crap they would never have in a logical game.

Now, I'm not saying you were thinking that (you weren't thinking that, right?), but I just had to ask. I'm sure you have all sorts of fun ideas for loot that make sense. Maybe you'll go by the treasure guide under each monster's description. Maybe natural creatures can be harvested for meat, bones, and other, um... bits. Whatever you decide, I'm sure, will be totally cool.

Just remember, please... no squirrels with shields.

With production skills being a viable means of advancing and engaging the world, has there been any consideration of cheer items (items that grant temporary morale bonuses when "consumed")?

While food or alchemical items could be produced to provide a minor bonus for combat oriented characters, even art (pictures or books) could be utilized the same way.

Additionally, what if a performance based PC (bard or someone interested in making a living "selling" buffs to other player characters) could act, dance, or sing in order to grant temporary morale bonuses to nearby PCs that "tip" them. It would be a means of producing a product that player characters may wish to purchase, and higher training in the performing arts could grant higher or longer lasting bonuses (with a subsequently higher pay scale).

Just a thought.

I'm a fan of EVE, love the sandbox, but a number of people posting on these message boards have brought up a very good point. The main proposed starting zone for characters is VERY human controlled. While humans could very well make up the majority of NPCs, a number of player characters could be asking themselves "where did I come from?"

Could relatively close, but geographically different starting zones be set up for different races? Failing that, could these races have home regions of their own to at least answer the question of where a player character elf or half-orc originated from?

I suppose each race could have a starting settlement, and there could be a single "cosmopolitan" city where any race could start. Just a thought.