The Covenant Man's page

Why 18? Seems a strange number.

The previous campaign we did 20-point buy and it seemed like the GM had to keep upping the HP of monsters/NPCs to make things sufficiently challenging.

When we were creating PCs for the 1st 18-pt-buy campaign we first tried 15 points and the results were too lackluster. I experimented making a paladin, a monk, a barbarian, and a sorcerer with 15 points, 16 points, 17 points, 18 points, 19 points, 20 points; 18 points was where I found I wasn't disappointed with any of the PCs created and after running some test encounters with the GM found that although the combats weren't TPKs they weren't cake-walks either.

The next 2 following campaigns we used 18 points because it seemed to work. We're almost finished with Reign of Winter using 18-pt buy, and while we agree that point buy amount is probably the sweet spot we're going to go to 20 points for our next AP because we're not going to use Hero Points for it.

The past 3 campaigns I've played or run we used 18 points which has worked out pretty dang well even for MAD PCs.

Just thought I'd share.

It's funny how people love answering questions not asked. The OP's question (name of this thread) is "Do you want to see more support for words of power?" not "Why do you hate words of power and why should everyone else hate them as well?"

I haven't tried them yet but they intrigue me. I would like to play a Wizard who uses them once to try the system out, but because it's alternate and not a core system (just like the armor as DR system & other systems in UC, etc.) I doubt we'll see any more support for it from Paizo in this iteration of PFRPG; 3PPs however are going to support anything now or later so that's who I would look to for that.

RAW, the description text for the bastard sword means:

There would be a 2-handed martial weapon listed as "bastard sword" as well as the bastard sword listed under exotic weapons, but as we don't have unlimited space and printing budgets we're only going to put it in the list once.

The rule of "How RPG books are written".

Awesome!

I named this series 'Haiku' for 3 reasons:

1. It's a recognizable Japanese word and concept to westerners.

2. I've included an appropriate haiku, that elucidates the mystery and location of the site.

3. Since a haiku is a very concise poetry format, this is intended to be a very concise product: as a mapped site, with a single encounter and included mechanics. It's just a slice of Kaidan, so using 'Haiku' in the title is very fitting, I thought.

This is my first published release as author/designer - I hope you enjoy it, as I have plans for many more!

I need to thank Justin Sluder who designed the higher CR stats and the additional special abilities for the yurei no kami ghost of the bath house.

Major kudos to you, gamer-printer! I hope to join the ranks of the published myself someday, and as an avid dark/horror RPG player/GM I will definitely be purchasing and DLing this.

Huzzah!

2nd to what jwood314 said: One of the best things about Hero Lab for me is having the Bestiary packs and being able to advance monsters easily when adjusting adventures or creating my own; when not GMing it's an awesome tool for creating different versions of the PC I want during character creation until I come up with the one that fits. Well worth the $ for the time it saves me.

blue_the_wolf wrote:

I have noticed in several games that players geneally start out good, or at the least neutural but many players end up becoming evil at higher levels... or at least much less good.

has any one else noticed this?

how does t show up in your game?

I shudder to think what kind of depressing grim-dark setting you play in that would turn a Good-Aligned character all the way to evil by the end of it.

I had this happen to me when I DM'd a 3.5 Planescape campaign, the bulk of which was filled by Expedition to the Demonweb Pits, the first "AP"-style adventure I had ever run and a hell of a fun ride for all of us. That campaign started out using much of the great stuff free for download from Planewalker.com and included a Nathri Barbarian, an Aasimar Druid, and a Tuladari Rogue among the planar humans and halflings in the group, and all alignments were allowed. The party started out mostly neutral, a few good, one LE Cleric/Necromancer of Wee Jas that ended up a theurge.

Many of these were first-time players, and I kept an internal point system for player actions that affected alignment. If a PC's actions were putting their alignment in danger of changing they were passed a card giving them the first warning as a "twinge" of guilt, later if the PC continued performing evil (or good, chaotic, w/e) acts they were passed a second card with their last warning. The third card informed them of their alignment change.

No one ended up good by the end of the campaign, the Aasimar Druid went from NG to NE in about the first 6 months, and the Halfling Fighter ended up CE. That halfling fought so much like a demon I made the guy his own Demon Knight prestige class (the PCs were on the Baatezu side in the Blood War).

So, OP, now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.

I’ll jump in on this minor thread necromancy :)

It hasn't been "thread necromancy" for me as much as a breath of life spell to keep one of the few positivity-skewed threads on these forums alive.

My character doesn't carry a ranged weapon because he's dead. Because he didn't carry a ranged weapon.

Carry a ranged weapon.

Daron Woodson
Abandoned Arts

The More You Know...

Check out the Pathfinder RPG take on "dervish", be it the archetypes or Dervish Dance feat, and you'll see where a lot of the support for "duelist types" went.

Also, I've seen plenty of good archetypes from just the APG that help "einhanders".

I guess I'm not seeing the same things you're seeing, OP.

Thanks for your help guys! This community rocks.

Velcro Zipper, that mini was exactly what I was thinking of as it could totally be a gillmen without any extraneous drawing or added features. I understand you could just put gills on any human neck but was looking for something more like this.

I'll email these links and suggestions to my player (he doesn't follow the forums like me). If anyone else thinks of anything, please don't hesitate to post ideas/links. :-)

This. Is. AWESOME!!!!

Yo,

I'm about to start GMing Skull & Shackles, one of my players made a Gillmen Rogue with the eldritch raider archetype from ARG but he can find ANY gillmen minis anywhere online. I had thought maybe Reaper had one but I was mistaken, at least nothing in their Pathfinder Miniatures lines (and I haven't looked through the Pathfinder Minis plastic singles available yet but will after posting here).

Does anyone have a link or an idea for a good Gillmen mini for my player?

Just for kicks, when my players want to have a value assigned to attractiveness, we use the equation of (Charisma+Constitution)/2. Apply the resulting number to the same scale the attributes are based on (10 being average) and you have a number that we've had no problems with.

That being said, yeah..you could always just say "He's extremely attractive" or "She looks like an angel" and be done with it.

I used to use the same formula (Cha+Con)/2 for a house-ruled appearance score because that seemed a logical explanation of how physical health and presence of personality could combine into attractiveness, but then you get TriOmegaZero's list above which means such a score only helps describe non-monstrous humanoids. I have since learned that good players will have different things their PCs find attractive or repulsive, and these days always let them decide on their own (and make sure I have pictures of any unique monsters and NPCs handy).

If you can have an Evil Outsider Bane weapon, why wouldn't you go for the catch all Extraplanar Outsider Bane weapon? As long as you aren't in their home plane, it works.

Because "Extraplanar" is not one of the available options for the Bane special ability, unless you're house-ruling things or the weapon is unique (like the "Zon-Kuthon" Bane sword in the recent PF Campaign Setting artifact book, among other places; IMHO this is a mis-leading label for a Bane subtype, since it means that the bane works against any worshipper of Zon-Kuthon as well as possibly on the god himself, although bane or no if you tried hitting him with said sword he would probably just laugh and snap it like a twig before sending you to his fortress in the Plane of Shadow for an enternity of torment...)

ecw1701 wrote:

I would *LOVE* to be able to make this work, but every way I've tried, and every thread I've read always ends up the same: you'll be terribad.

Ignore them.they're all focused on winning DPR matches on playing the game the way a single classed character would.

Focus on the reasons WHY you want to build such a character. There are good and valid roles for a Mystic Theurge to play but uou can't play the game of the single classed caster, you have to redefine your own.

+1

The most powerful character I played in 3.5 was a Mystic Theurge, haven't tried one in PFRPG yet. Was able to take a feat for multi-classing casters twice, once for Cleric and once for Wizard to keep the Caster Level the same as my character level, and IMHO that over-powered the PC; there wasn't any situation that came up that I didn't have a spell for, and therein lies the real strength of a Mystic Theurge.

For a Druid (Menhir Savant archetype) I played recently in PFRPG I was first debating Mystic Theurge by multiclassing with Wizard (friend was running a campaign where Cleric wasn't allowed) but decided straight Druid was better for the things I had in mind for the character.

Instead of MT you may want to look into the Pathfinder Savant PRC, while it doesn't have the same insane amount of spell options available you would be able to dabble in Wizard spells without losing any Caster Level (if that's even a worry - one player in a 3.5 game I ran had a necro-themed MT without those "boost multi-class CL" feats I took when a later book came out and didn't have many problems with the -3 CL per casting class).

Players that will bring up ideas and work together with me on truly unique PC abilities that reinforce their character's background and concept, and who are willing to compromise on adjustments I propose in order to achieve as much balance as can be rationally attained in any fantasy RPG.

Level Zero

169. You wake up to angry stares and whispers as you break your fast at the inn. As you head out to take your morning walk you gradually notice wanted posters plastered up on nearly every available surface. A sense of dread fills you, and as you near one you see your name in bold letters above an uncanny sketch of yourself staring back at you...

Grunt

(coincidentally sharing the same nickname with the one above him)

One thing I've done when 1-2 PCs in a group I've GM'd for seemed to mop the floor with every enemy is use a few methods to make encounters more "balanced":

Give every monster and enemy PC full HP for a group of 4-5 players, 6 or more give them 1.5 times full HP.
Find a "debuffer" or "support" type monster and add it to the encounter.
(Last resort) - Add 1-2 more enemies to the encounters.

Made for a much better game (I erred in letting the first PFRPG group I GM'd use 25-point buy for use with Pathfinder Modules and basic CRB CR guidelines... live and learn) for both me and my players, as we've all found that the greater the challenge the more fun the game.

I know it's not a problem with your whole party, but using some of these things may help even things out; if the other PCs are getting knocked out the Oracle will have to spend more time healing them than clobbering your monsters.

40. Plague that causes all who die from it to rise as zombies slays half the town in 24 hours.

What sucks for a druid in wild armor he's not proficient in, that is crazy heavy and has all of those armor check and speed/encumbrance penalties etc., is probable roleplaying restrictions and therefore ALWAYS wanting to be in wild shape, so this scenario only maxes out its benefits at fairly high-level play.

Heavy armor takes forever (in combat time) to remove and don, most civilized societies aren't going to allow wild animals or elementals within the community limits or indoors (although once the druid is high enough level for tiny animals this isn't much of an issue), and while wearing it in normal humanoid form the character is going to be much slower and klutz-ier (<-word? :-P).

As a GM I say go for it, but don't expect to have an easy ride.

Oh, and I agree with everyone who says you only get the bonuses from wild armor while in wildshape and not any of the penalties, anything differing from that is a house-rule.

Talk amongst yourselves...

This is a problem with designing a SIAC Wondrous Item and using the usual spell-level formula for pricing the item without taking the spell effects into consideration. Since a revision of Core rules (bracers of archery, lesser/greater) is probably a bad idea at this stage, increasing the price of the bracers of the falcon or not using every aspect of the spell would be preferred, IMHO

Killer rabbits. Sound effects. Free Profession ranks for each PC (makes wilderness, urban, & sea travel more interactive).

Taste is always relative: some people love something, some people enjoy it sometimes but aren't a "fan", some people it is Not For Them, and some people are offended by it.

Paraphrasing (and probably badly), I believe it was Marilyn Manson who once said that those who take themselves too seriously end up becoming parodies of themselves.

I used to like BBT, and enjoy re-runs, but lately the only character that's interesting to me is Amy Farrah Fowler... I found the "Fun With Flags" youtube video she & Sheldon made last season hysterically amusing.

YMMV, as always.

After the encounter if she's still complaining about your enemy being "badwrongfun", refer her to the Blight Druid archetype and Rule 0. I don't let what my players "insist" things should be effect what any type of class or race may be when I GM, if she wants to create that constrained mythos then she can do it when it's her turn to GM, if she ever wants to.

From my experience that's just basic gaming etiquette. You've done your homework, nothing more needed IMO.

...or 4:20...

The next poster wishes the world were made of Nerf®.

There's also the Blight Druid archetype from the APG which would also support an undead-type druid.

I would suggest that the domain ability be a radius rather than its current wording. Setting a radius is a well established method of defining an area in the game already.

Minotaurs prefer squares. It is known.

Luckily I found this one coming in December and placed my preorder, even though I missed out on the original.

So, although my g-friend's kid won't be able to get one for her b-day, she'll at least get one for X-Mas!

In my experience, back in 3.5 clerics were the most poweful class in the game (we used to fight each other's characters when we were bored, cleric won more often than anyone else).

Despite the loss of a spell slot, the re-balancing in PFRPG has made them less all-powerful, but still fun to play. I'm currently the cleric in the campaign I'm playing in and I like being able to keep my party alive (other PCs in party are rogue, spellslinger, & magus).

Clerics rock, and will continue to rock for the life of D&D in any of its incarnations. And you can play any kind of cleric you want to in PFRPG, especially with the archetypes, domains, and spells available in the SRD alone.

Personally, I think Paizo has done a decent job of giving enough love to all of the classes, and there isn't one that I wouldn't consider playing (doesn't go the same for archetypes, but I think that's the point).

Alignment as a role-playing tool and not a straight-jacket.

Would the Eldest be candidates for demi-god-like-enemies in Mythic Adventures, or more like dieties? Just curious.

Master Spy costume gets the vote, although Nicole gets an honorable mention for best smile.

The Covenant Man wrote:

EDIT: Whoops! Cheapy was right again:

"Weapons cannot possess the same special ability more than once." My bad.

Can that be interpreted more liberally? I.E. is Bane: Undead "the same" as Bane: vermin?

Regardless, if you want the 4d6 goodness you can always do holy/evil stacked with bane.

The way I read it (and its placement below the special abilities) is that you cannot have 2 "bane"s on the same weapon, just like you couldn't have 2 "frost"s, "holy"s, "defending"'s, etc.

It could always be interpreted by a GM more liberally in a home game, as said YMMV.

Well, I've always viewed crackling black energy (i.e., electricity) as being the best representation of negative energy damage. (At least, that's how I've described it a lot. I'm not sure where I got that from, as I've been using it for years.)

Basically, I'm writing a story, and part of it involves a BBEG using negative energy. I originally pictured it as the crackling black electricity I mentioned before, but I think for thematic purposes black fire might actually be better.

I guess the tl;dr version is: If you read about or saw a movie where a bad guy uses some sort of energy attack that screams "evil", what would it be and why? And if you had to limit that to either electricity or fire, which would you pick?

Whatever works better for the narrative; whichever looks best in your mind's eye when you read the words on the page.

You can only place one bane on a weapon at a time. They changed that in PF, I think.

I'm not seeing that anywhere. (Bane in the PRD)

My thoughts on this subject are that bonuses of the same type don't stack. What the PRD says is that "Against a designated foe, the weapon's enhancement bonus is +2 better than its actual bonus". So, if I'm interpreting rules correctly (and this is unfortunately a corner case): having a +1 evil outsider bane chaotic outsider bane longsword is possible, but only one or the other applies and both bane bonuses don't stack against a CE creature.

In 3.5 I house-ruled that they stacked only because the weapon that had both of those bane properties was a near-artifact-status legendary demon-slaying weapon, but that was GM fiat. YMMV.\

EDIT: Whoops! Cheapy was right again:

"Weapons cannot possess the same special ability more than once." My bad.

36 minis for the $15 level. Just funded my first Kickstarter.

Excellent! Congrats! Hooray! Huzzah! Exclamatory salutation!

The King in Yellow:

I wear no mask!

This sounds excellent. Paizo never ceases to satisfy.

The Advanced Race Guide would be a neat thing to play with to try to replicate PFRPG versions of all of the TMNT animal races for personal use. Maybe one day when I have some extra time I'll try to tackle it, but from what I've read of the race creation rules this seems doable.