SeeleyOne's page

Battle Savvy Penguins is going to be awesome.

I am planning on giving it a try first. They have done revisions since the playtest. I have learned that sometimes something looks like it would suck but is actually fun to play. When I started playing Pathfinder the Magus looked like a stupid class with silly things added on (arcane pool, spell strike, etc). Then I played one. I was happy to say that I was wrong. Now I would recommend it to people.

In my group the current GM does not want to use it yet. :/ But half of us players do. So we will either have to use peer pressure or wait until one of us runs. I have been looking forward to this since the Kickstarter.

At first I thought that it said "Bloodhound Gang" and the theme song fron that show in the early 80's sprang to mind.

This looks to be far cooler. :)

I have pledged. It is good to see Goodman Games coming to the Pathfinder scene. Granted 3rd and 3.5 are very similar, but still. I have several of the products for that system. I already have all of the XCrawl stuff. :) I find the setting itself to be kind of silly, but who cares? Just go on dungeon crawls and have fun with it. Not much of a world story is needed for that.

http://paizo.com/products/btpy97cv?The-Plaguewright-Lord-of-the-Microscopic

I just noticed that there is another Interjection Games product. This one is all about mutations and disease. I like Interjection Games' products. They tend to be fun and well thought out. And sometimes I find little jokes in them that give me a chuckle. :)

OK, I just had to do it.

I upped my pledge and saw it jump over the 8,000 mark. I wanted to see the project not only succeed but hit a stretch goal, too.

I noticed that the High Court Witch makes reference to a "BONUS Book -- Way of the Witch for Pathfinder". I am assuming that this is a Pathfinder update for the original Way of the Witch. If that is so, why is it not offered to other levels? Can someone get it otherwise?

Are there going to be any feats or archetypes for other classes that allow a character to be a different sort of witch, maybe an amateur witch? Basically a character that has some witchiness but not the actual class?

Insain Dragoon wrote:

Inner Sea Gods introduced so many new feats and almost every single one was terrible and such a trap.

Who would take a feat to give innocent civilians standing next to you a +2 bonus to AC? WHY?!

Some proper feats in there though, like channeling pos energy to give freedom of movement or get armor training at L-4.

I have the book yet not read completely through it yet. Sad to see the terrible feats continue. I have the Alchemy Manual as well. Craft Ooze is another trap feat. Requires a decent set of prequistes to use. As well as spending time and gold to buy the proper material needed to craft the ooze. Only to craft a ooze that is dumber than a bag of hammers and no loyalty to the creator. Even if it's one of the rare ooze types that is intelligent. The ones you craft are dumb. Great feat for NPCS. Useless for pcs. The devs seem to forget that when it comes to feats both fluff and crunch both need to be useful.

I think that this is the foundation for the "bloat" problem.

1 We have new books come out. That is a Good Thing. Yay!
2 We look at the contents of the books, and their application to the game varies. This is a Bad Thing. Naughty!
3 People become disappointed and lose interest in buying more books.

This is what happened in 2nd Edition AD%D, and started to happen with 3rd edition (when I stopped buying it). It is a problem that also happened in many other games as well.

For me it was most notable with 2nd edition AD&D. I started playing it when it came out (our group made the switch immediately). I was only 14 at the time. I continued to buy it all over the years. I was a fan boy. But while I liked some of the stuff, as the newer Complete This or That came out, I found that what was not allowed in an earlier book was now allowed (and vice versa). The playability guidelines were either ignored as things came out, or the writers had never actually PLAYED the game, or whatever. I don't know what happened, but the bottom line is that the books were not truly compatible. Some of them were overpowered compared to others. The kits in one Complete book were pretty good, and in other books they were smacked with the Stick of Suck.

That is how I have felt that some of the official Paizo stuff has become. Looking at the complaints, I can see that others also feel that way. "The Rogue needs something cool. How about we not give it to them". I am all for new stuff, but I would like things to actually be compatible with the previous products, not just splat things down. Don't the writers ever PLAY the game? It would help if they did (and continued to do as well).

There is a stigma held by many against 3PP (Third Party Publishers). A big part of that is likely from when the OGL first came out. Everybody and their pet fish were getting their ideas published. Some of it was good, but much of it was not. Hence the stigma. However. I have found several cases where 3PP stuff is more playable than the official materials. The 3PP writers actually seem to play the game.

I think the fact that Yoda died of old age precludes him from being a lich, wouldn't you say?

He did not die. He just got tired of having to talk to Luke. He went either Astral or Ethereal.

While I personally think fighting with two shield to be silly...to each their own.

I would say the feat you came up with above is the way to go instead of just house ruling shield bonus stack. As I think learning to effectively fight that way would require more training which the feat would represent.

I cannot stop thinking about the person with a shield on each arm, screaming as the fight, and calling themselves a Tie-Fighter.

I should clarify. I expected good, but not a must-have like it is.

I have been looking over the book. It is pretty cool. I was pleasantly surprised with many of the contents. As an example, Incantations are a cool way to add in the ritual magic to a campaign. It helps explain delvers into the Forbidden Lore without having to take a class in it. Ley lines are also well done. The book is jam-packed full of stuff that MUST become the standard "yes, this is allowed" in any Pathfinder campaign.

That is a really good idea. I would imagine that the eventual Numeria supplement is likely to have something, but who wants to wait for that? And besides, a thread such as this might get the Paizo people some ideas to springboard their own ideas from.

I am a fan having alternate subraces for all races. However, for the most part these tend to swap things out for other things. The two vision modes and Nanite Surge are pretty much it. Maybe some alternate Attribute modifiers. Maybe Wisdom for better scanners, and I could easily see either a higher Strength Constitution. Maybe even both Strength and Constitution for a tougher build (literally).

So that said, you are probably going in the right direction for feats. That nanite surge is also a good way to represent either Ki Pool or Arcane Pool. Maybe even Grit. So going on that, I could see the nanite surge having a feat or variation in those directions.

Additional Surge could be a feat for an additional use per day.

Surge Strength could give bonus strength for a round (or maybe longer if that seems too short). Put that together with a Surge Vitality and you have feat-based pseudo-raging.

Maybe Data Surge and get a bonus to INT or Knowledge check, but a little more specialized than the normal Nanite Surge (or usable more times).

Personally, I would just have it as a subrace of Gnoll. The race looks fine, but maybe some Alternate Racial Traits are what you are wanting. Adding a sort of "ethnicity" for their role could be cool as well.

I had pneumonia a few years ago. It sucks. :/ People take breathing for granted until it becomes hard to do. It also makes it hard to sleep (I was starting to dream while awake after a week of so little sleep).

I already have the pdf, but thanks anyway. :) It was nice to get two books in print for cheap for two other pdfs that I already have, however.

It seems that your magic is different from my magic. If x, y, and z produce a specific magical item, I see no reason that it cannot be mass produced. Sure some steps are more technical or advanced than others, but that does not mean that all steps are equally difficult.

There is a reason that all of the long swords have the same stats. They are built using the same template. Two longswords +1 really can be identical. I see no reason that they cannot be effectively mass produced. Surely less wondrous, but I see magic as equal to technology. And for some reason I like it better that way. You get the high tech with easier technobabble. I like sci fi and futuristic settings the most, but I find that doing high magic fantasy has similar results and in some ways it is better. You do not need to have the hyperdrive malfunction but you can get the desired effect with wonky mana or a similar arcane occurrence.

Sure, and a magus's ability to make a melee attack and cast a spell the same round is basically the same as melee attack + quickened spell, and therefore "not new."

Feel free to continue nitpicking and focusing on the negatives instead of trying to improve the classes.

And to point out, I used to be a nay-sayer against the Magus. Then I did something brave... I tried playing one! Wow, it makes a significant difference to try it out in play instead of just looking at it and saying "Gee, that Arcane Pool looks gimmicky" or "why can't a character just get a feat and do spell combat? X character should be able to do that easily enough.".

Less complaining, more playing. Making up a character is part of it, but PLAY that character, too. There are a lot of things that look stupid, silly, or just "not playable", on paper but are actually a lot of fun in play (i.e. the Savage Worlds RPG).

Wizards learn 2 new spells every level

It seems to me that Paizo is leaning towards making it so that a character concept is viable without the need to multi-class. While I thought that multiclassing was a design strength of 3rd edition, that was probably partly because the base classes were kind of lame at times. Multiclassing and Prestige Classes were practically required. And now while they CAN be viable, they are no longer necessary.

The only base class that I so far have a gripe with is Magus, but I have been thinking about that the past few days and I am thinking that maybe I was looking at it the wrong way. I saw it as a Wizard with a stripped down spellbook, and I thought that perhaps other characters could also have fun with spell combat (a Cleric came to mind).

However, I have been thinking at perhaps it is like Cavalier vs. Samurai, which is essentially the same class only a little different (where you specifically cannot multiclass between the two). Put that way, I could just view Magus as an archetype or Specialty of Wizard, and put that way, my gripes are put to rest.

I think that a lot of the issues that people have with various classes are generally a matter of perspective. Some multiclass builds are ideal for certain character concepts. That said, it is awesome in my opinion that you can stay single-classed and be cool throughout the entire 20-level span.

Whether or not a new system was devised, I would use Dreamscarred's version regardless.

Max HP for players and monsters

I see the Hit Points as a specific component of a character's class design. They get maximum Hit Points because if they did not, their particular class choice would be penalized. Besides, it is also very mean spirited to penalize someone just because they rolled crappy when the character leveled up. They forever bear the mark of that single die roll.

Before someone asks, I prefer point-buy for attributes for the same reasons. A person can either roll really good or really bad, or just plain average, and it has a long-term effect.

I have seen some good ideas so far, keep it up.

A few that I have added to my compendium:

Hit Points

Hit Points are considered to be a feature for a given class, and as such all characters automatically have the maximum number of Hit Points per level.

Witches and Wizards

Wizards now only have the Arcane Bond. I am thinking about adding the option for a blasty power from Wiggz above, though. I feel that Familiars are For Witches Only. (And in the case of Improved Familiar, the familiar turns into the new one, it is not replaced)

The Universalist Wizard does not get the bonus spell slot per spell level that specialist wizards have. However, a Universalist can reduce the Metamagic cost by one to a number of spells per day equal to Wizard level. This allows a spell to be cast at no added cost if it would have a Metamagic cost of +1.
Additionally, instead of the Hand of the Apprentice ability, a Universalist has the Metacharge ability.

Traits

Armor Proficiency (Heavy)
Your character is proficient with wearing Heavy Armor, but the character must already be proficient in the use of Medium Armor. Note that if the character gets a class that gives this for free, the player is allowed to replace this Trait with another.

Armor Proficiency (Light)
Your character is proficient with wearing Light Armor. Note that if the character gets a class that gives this for free, the player is allowed to replace this Trait with another.

Armor Proficiency (Medium)
Your character is proficient with wearing Medium Armor, but the character must already be proficient in the use of Light Armor. Note that if the character gets a class that gives this for free, the player is allowed to replace this Trait with another.

Exotic Weapon Proficiency
Your character is proficient with a single Exotic Weapon proficiency. This trait may be taken multiple times, and each time it will give an additional Exotic Weapon Proficiency.

Martial Weapon Proficiency
Your character is proficient in two Martial Weapon proficiencies. This trait may be taken multiple times, and each time it will give two Martial Weapon Proficiencies. Should the character get a class that provides proficiency in all Martial Weapons, the player is allowed to replace this Trait with another.

Weapon Proficiency: My god are these things terrible feats. I could *MAYBE* see spending one skillpoint for proficiency in a new weapon. But a feat? Totally unreasonable for a feat to give you a single weapon proficiency. If you want to use a weapon you can't, your best bet is basically always to dip into another class. I don't think I know anyone who takes weapon feats. yuck.

I have added them as Traits. One Trait is "Martial Weapon Traits" that gives proficiency in two Martial weapons, the other is "Exotic Weapon Trait" which gives proficiency in a single Exotic weapon. The Additional Traits Feat is a feat is great because now you can get two Exotic Weapon proficiencies, or four Martial Weapon proficiencies, for a Feat.

Reading this thread makes me wonder if DR should be given for armor, perhaps 1/2 of the AC modifier for the armor (round up). Thus, Leather would give 1 DR, Chain Mail gives 3 DR, and Full Plate gives 5 DR. This make having armor remain a viable option.

I am definitely a Stargate fan. I kind of came into the series backwards, though. I started with Stargate Atlantis, and then got into SG-1. I have all of the DVD sets of those two series. I saw the movie when it came out, it is pretty good, but I like the shows a whole lot more. Some of the characters annoyed me at first, but I got to like them after a while.

Your story sounds like it would be fun, and even better as an adventure,

As many people are already aware, the Mythic Adventures has an ability, called Divine Source, which allows for the Mythic character of Tier 3 or greater to grant Divine spells to followers.

This can have serious effects on a campaign setting, and it can lend well towards a different sort of paradigm. In the Stargate setting, there is a race that enslaves worlds and pretends to be gods. However, what if they were Mythic?

If the Goa'uld were actually Mythic beings, then they COULD be gods, given the context that they grant divine spells. Another example is Dark Sun with its Dragon Kings. I do not know what will happen in the new version (go to the Dragon Kings Kickstarter) but at least in the 2nd Edition version it had the Dragon Kings, also called Sorcerer Kings, granting spells to their followers, the Templars.

Anyway, this is in my opinion a cool idea. It makes use of the Mythic rules and makes at least one nation in a campaign make sense. I am envisioning kingdoms that are lead by Dragon Kings (and Queens) of the chromatic and metallic dragon types. Probably other types, too, as I think about it. It would give a state religion, a feel for that culture and just make sense given the context of Pathfinder. You get divine powers from your deity. Sure, in most cases that deity is on another plane of existence, but it surely does not have to be so!

Has anyone else already done something along these lines? Or maybe you have better ideas that you are willing to share?

I got it yesterday and saw that the race creation breakdown is included. While it is generally accepted that such values are not "perfect" (as there are campaign and situational variables), I like to see that in a race design as it still gives an approximate relative "power level".

I like the design. It is pretty simple to implement in a game and the options are logical. It is kind of like the Shifter from Eberron, except that you don't shift. You get the benefits all day long, and that is how it should be.

I can see some feats, and especially some feats that are based on Rage, where the character starts shifting towards its animal type when raging. I can imagine the feline version raging more like the Urban Barbarian, though.

I can also see a character starting as the "default" and then spending a feat or two to become Monstrous as they unleash their inner-beast.

Thanks for the clarification. I will be sure to get it (and not wait until the larger book comes out).

He would also have a following of Bards.

Creating a Dark Humor Domain would be fun. "Well, laugh...".

My gaming group consists of me, one of my brothers, and five of our kids (ages 9 to 13). It is a lot of fun. One adult will GM, the other plays in the party with the kids. We are currently playing in the Rise of the Runelords adventure, and while some things are edited out or toned down it is a lot of fun. The kids get to play on the same team with an uncle/parent, sibling(s), and cousin(s). It also helps them to practice cause-and-effect, understanding motives/rationale (a big part of roleplaying), and other group-play benefits.

We do let people keep their XP and treasure while they might change characters if they find that they do not like their current character. One player switched characters three times now (we started in June). It is hard for new players to get a character that they truly like (that fits their personal style). Also sometimes characters are kind of lame by comparison, like a Fighter Archer where there are two switch-hitter (swap between bow and blade) Rangers. The Archer player is now a really tough Dwarf with +5 to his saves versus spells (thanks to Trait: Glory of Old and Feat: Steel Soul). The point is to play loose with some of the usual constraints and just have fun with it. We don't necessarily worry about continuity. :)

I like Misfit Studios. I have all of their Mutants and Masterminds and Savage Worlds stuff. My only complaint is that I missed that Kickstarter for Bite Me! Granted, it occurred before I started playing Pathfinder, but I can still complain.

I like the class levels for monsters idea. It lets you play the monster and is still fair in comparison to those that want to be "normal" races.

Thanks for the write-ups. I am going to have to import the vampire as a class for Hero Lab; that is something that needs to be done for all of the races eventually.

You can do even more damage to hire someone, or a group, to attack for you.

SeeleyOne wrote:

Most of the classes and options above have not made it to Hero Lab yet. This has severely limited their use in my gaming group, which is sad as I own the majority of the SGG offerings. For the most part any such support has been done solely by fans.

So make them. If you can figure out the complex rules of Pathfinder, you can figure out how to make them work in HL.

Yeah, I can make them. I have done a little bit towards that goal. But there are three problems with this:

1) It is possible that I might be working on something that someone else is working on. If that is the case, one of us is wasting our time.

2) It is better to have an official version. Sometimes new updates to the HL software (or, more specifically, official data sets) will cause a clashing. This is more prevalent if multiple people are coming up with the datasets for SGG stuff.

3) It takes time that I do not have. Do I work on homework? Do I spend time with my wife and children? When I get on these boards it is mostly to give myself a break from school work. True, I could put that time towards making data sets, but then I remember #1 and #2.

I would imagine that #3 is why there is not official data set. Does someone from SGG know how to do it? Your suggestion above seems to indicate that knowledge of Pathfinder equals knowledge of Hero Lab. That is simply not an accurate assumption. However, that said, Hero Lab is not as hard as many people seem to think. You can learn a lot by finding something that has already done and is similar to what you want to do. But finding such can be hard, and again takes time.

So the next option is to pay someone to do it. This has the benefits of time (it is worth somebody's efforts) and it is also made to be the Official Version. The downside, of course, is having to pay someone. But if that is the case, why not do what many publishers have done (Paizo included), and have people pay for the data sets straight from Lone Wolf. Sure, it is not free, but we would be paying to save our own time to input it ourselves. And besides, someone was paid to enter all of the data in the first place and that cost needs to be recovered somehow.

Most of the classes and options above have not made it to Hero Lab yet. This has severely limited their use in my gaming group, which is sad as I own the majority of the SGG offerings. For the most part any such support has been done solely by fans.

I would recommend using the Dreamscarred psionics.

Best Joke Ever!

Another thing that has bothered me over the years is oaths. A Genius Guide to Oaths would also be a good idea.

There should be an in-game effect for making a binding oath, and a consequence for breaking it. Swearing fealty is one oath, but vows are a lot more common.

I would have just rolled dice and pretended that I rolled what was needed for the allosaurus. I got his stupid animal companion, everyone is happy, move forward. Or if you had a particular reason to not want him to have one, just tell the player up front.

Maybe he can save one from mistreatment or some predicament during the adventure. Then the player feels cool, gets the dinosaur, and everyone is happy. So just tell the player, "trust me, just go along on the adventure and see what happens".

This thread was not a total waste. I, being relatively new to Pathfinder (just started playing last month), have had some of my own questions answered.

As for the whole playing a weird race thing, it seems to me that the OP is a munchkin. He/she wants to be able play a grossly over-powered race in the name of "being weird". Yeah, Kobold was brought up, but if the race line-up of the "16th level Gestalt campaign" is any indicator it sure seems to me that we have a munchkin.

I can totally understand the need for playing the normal races for PFS. If those races are so common, it is surely odd to potentially have a party of adventurers that is not a single one of those races.

Another thing that it prevents is any arguments about custom races that you build with the Advanced Race book. It can seem like a good build, and it may very well be, but game balance is subjective. Some things that you can add to a character are game-breakers for certain types of adventures.

So anyway, this thread has had value to me in that I have learned that at some point I may like playing in a PFS game. Especially if things fall apart in my home game.