Right now, the OPF has two "members": Paizo's organized play programs (Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society, and Adventure Card Society), and Evil Genius Games' new OP program.
In recent days, there has been an exodus of staff from the latter as well as freelancers cutting all ties with the company, based on "ethical" or "moral" differences between the individuals and the company.
This is not the place to talk about what those issues are, or who is right or wrong, since they are irrelevant to my point.
This condemnation of an OPF member company's ethical standards causes some concern, both for volunteers of the OPF but also given the OPF's new charitable status. It is extremely easy for concerns about ethics at a charity to cause prospective supporters to look elsewhere or to pull support. Left unchecked, it can even cause government to review said charity's status if the concerns continue.
I trust that the OPF board is already investigating the issue and looking at any actions they deem necessary based on this. That's also not what this thread is about.
My main question going forward is: what process is used to vet prospective members of OPF? That should be made public, so that people who play or volunteer for one OPF program know that the same charitable organization isn't also running an organized play program that they strenuously object to.
(I personally wouldn't support an OP program where the table rules allowed GMs to exclude players based on gender, say, or where all the scenarios were written by AI. Right now I don't know whether OPF programs would be allowed to do that or not.)
Clear standards about what OPF stands for would help everyone, and can serve to foster the kind of gaming environments the OPF wants to build. (Maybe it is out there somewhere, but right now the OPF website redirects to a Paizo OP page, and I couldn't find anything on it.)
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My experience in OPF and charities:
I am not an expert in U.S. charity law, but I have been involved in Canadian charity management for my entire professional and volunteer career in a variety of roles, and many of the rules are similar. I also spent three years working in a management role in a U.S charity. On the OPF side, I've supported Paizo's OP program for more than a decade, founding my local PFS Lodge and serving as Venture-Captain (twice) and currently as Venture-Lieutenant.
Well done! Warden spells and Snares were the things I did not like/get about the Ranger. Now PLEASE for the sake of the anthropomorphic animal ancestries find us away to do Twin Takedown and the like with claws and other unarmed natural attacks.
Try as I might, I just can't write small enough to use the session sheets that are printed in scenarios, and as an event coordinator, I often can't read the writing of those who think they can. So I made this one. Feel free to use if you like it.
While I briefly worried about using more paper than the old one, of course the old one gets printed on a full sheet anyway and half isn't used, so it's probably the same thing.
Hey folks! We're running three days of Pathfinder and Starfinder as part of Game-itoba, and you're all invited! We've got a survey for what games you want to see. Some games are already mapped out based on peoples' requests, but here's your chance to tell us what you want to play.
Sun streams through the stained glass windows in the old Cathedral of Aroden, now serving as the Almas Lodge of the Pathfinder Society. Venture-Captain Brackett’s ornate desk is covered in neatly stacked bundles of documents. Venture-Captain Brackett is seated at the desk, his hands tented thoughtfully. Behind the venture-Captain, a young man in the golden epaulets of an Andoran military officer regards you impassively.
“I need you to investigate the Irrica family of central Isger,” Brackett begins without looking up. “The Eagle Knights have finally released their documents from the early days of the Goblinblood Wars, when they fought alongside Hellknights and Druman mercenaries to contain the goblin invasion up north. Lots of interesting information in those files.”
Brackett nods curtly at the young officer. “Captain Bascomb?”
The officer steps forward and comes to attention out of habit before speaking. “The Irricas were supporters of House Thrune during the Chelish Civil War. After the Thrune family came to power, there was some sortt of conflict between the two families. One of the Thrunes who served as liaison to the Irricas did something to offend the family's patriarch. There were rumors of extortion. The Thrune agent apparently disappeared, and rumor was that the Irricas killed him using some sort of supernatural aid. The Irricas were not punished for this apparent transgression; on the contrary, the family received several lucrative contracts from House Thrune, and became quite influential regionally. The family was wiped out in the Goblinblood wars. The last of them fell defending their summer home, which was never reclaimed.” The captain nods smartly to Brackett before stepping back.
Brackett returns the nod and sums up. “So, we have a family in Isger who had some sort of "supernatural aid". This allowed them to kill a member of the Thrune family and not incur Thrune wrath, at a time when they were consolidating power and could not afford to appear weak."
Brackett's eyes narrow. "Something that could scare Abrogail Thrune into inaction is not something we want left lying around in an abandoned house in Isger. Go to the Irricas’ summer estate and try to find out what sort of supernatural aid the Irricas had. Be here and ready to leave before dawn tomorrow.”
Hey everyone! I'll post the party asap, but you should know that the GameDay was slightly delayed because many GMs just got their scenarios. We'll get started soon.
Is anyone having trouble recruiting enough players to run 10-98 at their smaller events? We would routinely run 7-8 tables for a special, but I'm having trouble filling 5 with this one (which is of course the minimum).
Of those I've talked to, the early rumors of this being a "grinder" to end your PFS1 characters' stories is still a big factor. The newer players don't have level 5's and don't want to play pregens, so that's a smaller factor.
On a related note, if you missed GenCon, come to Winnipeg August 23-25 for our Grand Convcation!
Recruitment is open for this game, which occurs as parts of PbP Gameday VIII! This is a public game, so the first 6 legal PFS characters posted will be accepted. I'd prefer to play high subtier, so level 3-5 characters preferred, but if you want to bring a level 1 you can. Please post using the profile of the PC you wish to play.
Expectations:
* everyone will post a minimum of once a day, with a detailed post that includes any combat contingencies;
* if you'll be away, you can provide me with standard operating procedure to 'bot your PC for you';
* this is a group game, so characters that work well in a group are best. :)
If you're new to play-by-post, take a look at my profile where there are some useful hints on how to make this all work. I'll be using Google Charts for combat maps, and this forum for
Personally, I prefer interesting characters with backstories, since those can really come out in a PbP game. If you just wanna roll dice, that's cool too, but if you give me story to work with I will give you story back.
Full disclosure: I wrote one of the quests in this scenario.
Game begins on August 26th. I will get the appropriate threads set up this week. We have a local con the weekend of Aug 23-25 so the starting post may go up sooner.
So, I did this on August 1 at our FLGS to get PF2 going. We had 6 players who came out to build PCs and play "The Sandstone Secret" quest. Sharing my experiences and hoping to learn from others who've done the same.
I started with Lucas Servideo's awesome character worksheet - it gives you a place to track your ability scores as you build, and includes the ability boosts/flaws for all races, backgrounds, and classes for shorthand. I hope he posts it somewhere, it really is fantastic for those who already play PF1 and want to get their PCs built quickly.
Then I explained the ability building system and the feat system briefly. I got everyone to select their race and class, and gave them class-specific character sheets from the Character Sheet pack. (Wasn't planning on doing this, but I forgot the sheets I'd printed at home, and had to buy these as a last-minute replacement). They have all the proficiency levels pre-checked, which saved a lot of time.
Guided them through their choices, and told them about free rebuilding at level 1 (so no one fixated too much on weighing every possibility). Gave them the class-specific equipment kit. Those who had their own rules could work ahead and buy more gear. We skipped factions and Pathfinder training because the Guide was so new and we couldn't access it from our location. (Plus, rebuild. We did assign factions after the game so people got their reputation. No one missed the free consumable, though.)
Not everyone had their own copy of the rules at the table; expect this, and consider not letting someone without rules play a prepared spellcaster unless you have a rulebook you can hand them every five minutes. (Again, rebuild.)
Then I ran the quest using no secret rolls, but described where secret rolls would/could be used. We had a nat 20 and a nat 1 come up as the first two rolls (both to Recall Knowledge), so I got to explain those. Explained things as they came up, rather than in advance.
I'll do a lot of things differently at our Convocation event in a couple of weeks, where we're running a bunch of these... I think it's better to let people select a class/race and then help them build a "pre-gen"-like character so they can play and try it out. More people needed to learn the rules, rather than the details of character generation. Making some decisions for them in the interests of time, and then letting them change it later, is a good idea.
I'd like to hear other ideas - any GenCon experiences that help?
Hi folks, I went onto my "Organized Play" tab to register my first PFS2 character, but there's a glitch with the Factions - there aren't any. And you can't save without selecting one.
Not complaining at all - I know it's a nutso time for you all! - just letting you know about it. Thanks!
Hi folks, I saw there wasn't a thread for this scenario... hopefully it's because it's just so well-written that there's no need for any additional questions! :) But it could also be because it's so free-form that it's too confusing, or that no one is running it. I know I learn a lot as an author from reading all the GM threads on my own (and other peoples') scenarios, so I figured I'd start this up and ask a few questions for my own edumacation.
credit where credit is due:
Thurston and John cooked up this idea and all the parameters, and then Thurston did some great development work on my somewhat confused turnover with lots of options.
So, do people find they are selecting various traits that fit the existing NPCs, or rolling randomly? Obviously each option fits a given NPC better than others - are there enough NPCs to make this re-playable without feeling repetitive? Additional encounter locations would have been nice, I'm sure, but hopefully there's enough variation within the personalities that even a repeated encounter should feel new.
Is there anything in the situations that strain credulity too much, or just doesn't flow at the table? This is the first full-on repeatable I've worked on, so anything people can share about how it's working or not would be appreciated.
Hi folks! I'll be running my scenario Death on the Ice as part of the Outpost II play-by-post convention! I'm not taking sign-ups here, all of that is through the event which you can find here.
Players who are signed up, go ahead and dot in while I get everything organized.
Wow, that's a HUGE amount of content coming this month! Thanks, everyone, for all the hard work. I won't be at GenCon, but I'm looking forward to running the new stuff at our Convocation event in late August!
I just checked in on my PCs, and it seems that many of the recent issues with the reporting system have been fixed. My PC profiles now show GM and Player credits, and you can now see your Fame score in the main list of characters without having to open up each profile. (Sorry I'm I'm late this this party, I hadn't been looking at the stuff recently at all.)
THANK YOU to whichever goblins were involved in this!
I have a group of kids who want to learn to play, and standard PFS isn't the best venue for it. (We need to run only 1-2 hours at a time, during non-bedtime hours.) On the surface, a campaign-mode module, run a couple of hours at a time at my FLGS, seemed like the best choice to do this within PFS. In addition, I foresee some kids wanting to continue to play together as a group, playing official PFS but not joining the night-time adult groups. It got me thinking about the proper way to handle youth-only* games under PFS.
I checked in with my V-C and she flagged that there have been offline discussions about youth games, and also said that Pathfinder Academy hadn't been released publicly yet. Other than that, there don't seem to be any rules regarding youth-only games.
Can anyone provide an update on the status of Pathfinder Society Academy, or any other rules/discussions about youth games under PFS? I don't want to have to un-teach some rules to kids if there is policy imminent.
Thanks!
* youth-only:
We've had lots of kids come out with their parent(s) to regular PFS, but because of the speed and information overload, many tend to just defer to their parent. Putting a group of youth peers together is likely to be a better situation for them to develop as players (and hopefully, into a GM at some point!)
I find myself with a double room booked at the Doubletree, but my regular Winnipeg crew has all opted out of the annual pilgrimage to PaizoCon (well, except Thursty, who is staying with his new bosses).
I'm looking for at least 1 person who needs a room and is willing to help defray expenses a bit... PM me and we can work stuff out. Given the late date, it will be a pretty good deal for staying at the Con hotel.
Hi folks! I'm one of the GMs who will be running this scenario in this slot - really looking forward to meeting a bunch of you! If people check in here, we can do some pre-mustering into subtiers to save time at the event. This is a great scenario, with some good investigation as well as a nice mix of combat.
Post your preferred subtier and whether you want a Core or Regular campaign table, and we'll get it figured out.
Hey folks! I'm one of the GMs running this scenario in this slot. It looks like it's full, so we can pre-muster tables of similar subtier to save time at the event. Really looking forward to this scenario - lots of investigation with a good mix of combat.
Hi folks! I am one of the GMs assigned to run this scenario during this slot. For those who haven't played, it's an evergreen with a bunch of different options to make it different each time. If you're playing in this slot, we can try to pre-muster tables of similar subtier and avoid repeating any of the options people have already played.
Check in with your preferred subtier, and also what parts you have already experienced (in spoilers, please!) so we can give everyone the best possible time at the table.
Here we go! Take a look at my profile page for some links on typical play-by-post styles, if this format is new to you.
Vailic:
20 Rova, 4711 A.R.
The streets have been busy, but the day has brought few customers. Most of the out-of-towners are here for the Swallowtail Festival, and aren't looking for any magical components or scrolls. Perhaps alchemist's kindness will sell the morning after.
Your partner, Dominic, finishes the entry in his logbook and closes it with a heavy sigh. "You know, maybe we need to diversify... there just aren't enough wizards in Sandpoint to cater to. Maybe if we spent more time on the fireworks, and less time on the written materials...? He trails off, the same way he does every time he raises the issue. Dominic is a good partner, but he's also a good friend, and won't push you too hard. Besides, things aren't that bad, yet. You almost made the rent last month, and if that Chelaxian hadn't stiffed you with silver coins dipped in gold wash, you would have even made a profit.
In the back, young Eadwig bumps into the wall again, watching the crowds out the window when he should be sweeping. "Ed! Pay attention!" Dominic groans. "I don't want another disaster like last month! Sweep up, and then you can go and check out the crowds." Eadwig seems to notice where he is for the first time, and smiles, a big friendly smile that drives young ladies into fits of giggles. He spins the broom around like a baton, grins again, and goes back to sweeping the floor.
The crowds are building, especially across the street at the Rusty Dragon, a popular watering hole. You should probably cover the windows with the storm shutters tonight - the weather seems fine,
but who knows what sort of storm may blow into Sandpoint with this crowd?
Casca & Zeldanna:
20 Rova, 4711 A.R.
After a long day on the road, you are very glad to see the village of Sandpoint appear ahead. Over the past hours the road has become almost crowded, with farmer's carts, the occasional rider, and even a brilliantly-painted circus train all sharing the route towards the Light of the Lost Coast.
You recall the old farmer you passed a few hours back, and his tale of goblins and demons and who knows what else that lives up on the Devil's Platter, the high bluff of rock that lies just south of the road. Yet nothing attacks you as you pass the strange high hill, and soon the foreboding is erased by the sounds of a friendly village preparing for a festival.
The road turns south, leading to Sandpoint's North Gate - an overly-detailed name, since it is the only part of the town that is walled, and so it is the only gate. A steady stream of people pass through the large wooden doors, held open by a pair of bored-looking guards leaning against them. The guards seem to ignore most folks, although they do seem to stop those in traditional Varisian costume and ask them a few questions. The guards don't even glance at you as you pass within the walls and enter Sandpoint. Immediately ahead is the White Deer Inn, a three-story building with a raucous common room. ON the left along the wall is a cemetery, but the main attraction is the new Sandpoint Cathedral. A massive stone edifice with amazing stained-glass windows, the Cathedral seems out of place in as rustic a place as this. Still, obviously someone feels the town merits such an architectural marvel, and you look forward to the opening tomorrow morning.
You've heard that the Rusty Dragon is a good inn, if a bit rough; the White Deer is usually more formal, but with the number of people already in its common room, you wonder if there will be any places to stay at all.
It's about 2 in the afternoon; tell me what you'd like to do for the next hour or so at the least. Also, check out the links at the top which lead to a Google Docs site that will have maps, handouts, etc.
I picked up some Hirst Arts Egyptian molds and cheap plaster, and made a 3d version of the Tomb. Since this section is PFS-sanctioned, I have run it three times already, which makes the time spent more worthwhile.
Total cost about $100 including molds, plaster, paint, etc. The minis I had. Total time: casting the bricks takes a long time because each batch needs to dry, but I did 2-4 batches a night while doing other things. Assembly and painting was only a few hours, following the directions on the Hirst Arts site. I had to take some liberties with the 45-degree angles, and also stopped building full doorways and walls as I went on - unless you have a low table, it's hard to play in the narrow spaces when the walls are up. Many of the walls were designed to be removed during play to clear sightlines.
If you haven't done 3d stuff before, it can really help to set the flavor for this AP. Even just a few bricks and props on your map looks great.
Does anyone recall when it became no longer legal to replay a scenario for credit, as long as it was with a PC of a different faction? Was it at the end of Season 2?
Auditing a PC for Seeker-level play, and I have a couple of GM credits from the same scenario on two different PCs. Reporting system shows them both as legal, without a "PC has already run this session..." flag, but I want to make sure all is correct.
We're running 8-10 tables of the season 7 specials on Friday as the kick-off of our Convocation three-day event. (Many of you could make it to Winnipeg, Canada, if you left now... still a few spaces left... we also have the Season 8 multi-table interactive on Saturday...;)
I've re-read the Guide 8 text several times, and it is completely clear to me that the entire section on pages 6-7 applies to the level 1/4/7 pre-gens, and doesn't consider the scenario-specific pregens at other levels. You can't follow those rules unless you first "Choose one of the pregenerated characters available in Community Use Package: Pathfinder Society Pregenerated Characters", and the rules for resolving death don't work unless the pregen is at level 1, 4, or 7. (For Serpent's Ire, most pregens are level 8, one is lower level, and one has no character levels at all.)
I suggest that, until new rules come out governing the pregen credit rules for Exclusive scenarios, that we default to the rules from the previous season's guide. This is the only thing that I can see which allows for consistent application of rules until this gap is dealt with, because it specifically addresses all pre-gens of all levels:
PFS Roleplaying Guild Guide Version 7 wrote:
If you play a non-1st-level pregenerated character, you choose one of your characters to assign the chronicle to at the end of adventure, and then apply the credit to your character as soon as she reaches the level of the pregenerated character played. You may not assign a Chronicle sheet earned with a pregenerated character to a character that was already at the level of the pregenerated character or higher.
(Yes, I realize it violates the likely intent of the new pregen rules, but until those rules are clarified, they don't work for Exclusives.)
Does this sound like a reasonably-defensible position? I really don't want the spectre of a possible rebuild in several months looming over these games.
Players are permitted to spend character gold to help a party member purchase spellcasting services such as raise dead or remove disease. This includes pooling money to buy breath of life or raise dead scrolls or potions for use in the game.
First, I think that the list of consumables you can pool money for is exhaustive, since it doesn't use "such as..." language?
Second, I'm guessing this means they can be purchased in advance, on spec of them being needed... What happens to these items if they are not used? Who owns them? The only solution that comes to mind is that they get sold back at half price and the money split between those who contributed (pro-rated based on how much they contributed).
Prepping this now - it's great to head back to this location, and I'm really looking forward to the flavor of this one.
Wondering a few minor things (listed in order I came across them, not in order of importance):
On the map of Azlant Ridge, what are the height differences on the excavated areas?
On the Hill Country flip mat, what is the implied height differences for the cliffs along the path?
On the map of Starwatcher Tor, at area C5, where exactly is the crack into area C12? There are some crack-like features on the map, but they don't really align with the location.
On the Chronicle (which is awesome!), with the unique item, there are a number of check boxes. Is there an implicit order to the listing, as in you must check them off in order? I don't think so, as some of them list specific prerequisites, but I just want to confirm that someone could (for example) complete and check off box #2 or 3 without first completing box #1.
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for levels 1–11.
At long last, the Pathfinder Society has reassembled the Numerian device known as the Sky Key. Initial tests suggest it is capable of projecting a location’s past into the present, allowing Society agents to peruse books from destroyed libraries and speak with echoes of long-dead heroes. Now that it has perfected the Sky Key’s controls, the Pathfinder Society is prepared to extract a slice of Absalom’s history and bring it into the present; however, there’s no telling what might be waiting inside—or who in the present might wish to wield the same power.
As you walk through the cavernous halls of the Grand Lodge, dozens of Pathfinders around you are abuzz with excitement. The Master of Swords, Marcos Farabellus himself, is making an announcement of major import to the Society this morning, and you have been invited to attend in person.o
You make your way into the hall and find a seat along with hundreds of others. Marcos sits on the stage near the podium, chatting with a tall, heavy-set woman with a stern face. Her lacquered black breastplate and red cloak mark her as Chelaxian, and the buzz around you indicates that she is the new representative from that country to the Pathfinder Society, replacing Zarta Dralnenn who you see witting in the crowd with a scowl on her face.
You are all sitting next to each other, so please introduce yourselves in character while I set the rest of the game up. We will begin as soon as everyone checks in.
You are stationed at the Grand Lodge in Absalom, awaiting assignment. After several days, you finally receive a summons to join Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng in his office. Arriving at the appointed hour of the afternoon, you are surprised to find instead a halfling in dark robes waiting for you in the outer foyer.
"Hello, my name is Drel," he drawls in a thick Nidalese accent, stretching his name into three full syllables. "Venture-Captain Dreng was called away, and ask me to meet you. We will wait for all to arrive."
Go ahead and describe your character's appearance and do any introductions you would like.
As you walk through the cavernous halls of the Grand Lodge, dozens of Pathfinders around you are abuzz with excitement. The Master of Swords, Marcus Farabellus himself, is making an announcement of major import to the Society this morning, and you have been invited to attend in person.
Making your way towards the main hall, you wonder why you have been selected for something that sounds so important. The Pathfinder Society has been dedicated to the exploration of Golarion for over four hundred years, and you have but recently completed your training and been allowed to join their ranks. Some of you journeyed to Absalom, the City at the Center of the World, and studied for several years to reach this point; others proved themselves worthy explorers and were recruited or granted a field commission. It is always a mystery why agents are chosen for different missions, and this one is no different.
You make your way into the hall and find a seat along with hundreds of others. Marcus sits on the stage near the podium, chatting with a tall, heavy-set woman with a stern face. Her lacquered black breastplate and red cloak mark her as Chelaxian, and the buzz around you indicates that she is the new representative from that country to the Pathfinder Society.
You are all sitting next to each other, so please introduce yourselves in character while I set the rest of the game up. We will begin as soon as everyone checks in.
Recruiting a team of Pathfinders for this scenario. Regular campaign (not Core), level 1. Apply here with the character you wish to play.
This is a roleplay-heavy scenario, and I am a roleplay-heavy GM.
New to Play-by-post? Check out my profile for expectations and links for first-timers.
New to the Pathfinder Society Organzied Play campaign? Head on over to the Pathfinder Society page and click on "Join the Society and create your character now!".
