Valcrist's page

I've missed this every year, usually due to all of the excitement over the banquet announcements, but I think this will be the year I make it! I hear nothing but good things, and I love a challenge!

I find a good trick is to know how much of the story your party will go through in a session, it varies by group, and then the night before read over only what you'll need for that session. So if you play for 4 hours at a time, and your party averages 1 encounter per hour, then don't worry about preparing more than the next 4 encounters. Just don't overwhelm yourself!

Also, shameless plug, but I am the GM for the Find the Path Podcast, which is playing through Mummy's Mask. If you want to listen to the first half of book one you can find it, and our RSS feed, on our website here. We are also on iTunes and most podcast apps. Good luck!

I'll throw my hat in the ring for this.

How would I go about submitting art for this project (format etc), and if I did so would it count as one of my three?

Thank you Valcrist! That was a good summary of my campaign and I have shared it on social media. I like the 3D model, but it is a bit off from the actual symbol (which you can see unobstructed on the banner of my facebook page).

Thanks for helping to share my project!

Ah, so it is. I'll see if my tech friend can fix that up, and thanks for the share! Hope it helps the project.

I posted a video for this project on my Youtube channel Find the Path. We don't have too many followers so far, but hopefully it will help the project. Our tech guy made an awesome 3D model of your logo for the opening. If you'd be interested in a copy to use for your own projects Jason just let me know where I can send it!

I agree with Grumpus on the tactics, perhaps even with a few suggestions for how they might change based on relationships. I remember way back in Hook Mountain Massacre there was something like that.

It occurs to me that might be taking the choice out of the hands of the players... either way I thought it was a nice touch when I saw it.

Very excited about this! Saw your interview on Know Direction and was hooked by the concept. I'll be donating and will make a video of it for my Youtube channel as well. Anything to help get this awesome project in my hands!

Thanks for all the great work you do!

Very true. I'm glad that getting consent from players was covered in Horror Adventures. I have a player that is deathly afraid of clowns, and she would probably never return if I put on a clown mask. On the flipside of that I also have a player who jokes non-stop when scared, which can ruin the work you put into making something scary. Its always important to be open and talk to your players in situations like this.

I very much like your idea of using sound effects. In a big Syrinscape fan, and their sound track for book two of RotRL is perfect for that. Maybe setting up hidden speakers would be fun? Food for thought.

This thread might help. I tried to figure out a general concept at posting #6, and others came up with examples, literature and concepts also. This was before Horror Adventures, so likely there will be some redundancy but also some new stuff.

Awesome, thank you! There are some great adventure ideas there.

I was really hoping to find some more out of game suggestions as well, probably should have made that clearer... Basically things a GM can do to really get players in the right mindset for a horror game.

For example one game I ran for my players I had them play in a completely different part of the house than they were used to. I only used candles for light and didn't use a battlemat so they would have no choice but to imagine the scene as I described it.

Funny enough I accidentally left open the closet door in the room we played in. Most of my players (especially the ones with their backs to that door) said that was the creepiest part.

If you have any ideas along those lines is love to hear them. Thanks again for the quick response, and thread full of great ideas!

Hey everyone,

I'm working on a video on extra tips for Gamemasters looking to run a horror themed adventure.

I have a number of tricks I've used in the past, like changing game location, playing by candlelight, and not using a battlemat.

I wanted to see if there are any horror fans out there that have suggestions beyond these and those presented in Horror Adventures?

Thanks in advance!

OH, and I find your rule interesting. I like how it's optional but the +2 save DC may be game breaking for an enchantment focused character, especially if you are running a game where most of the villains are not monstrous creatures. And your players might cry foul if you give it to one of their enemies (as any succubus or nymph would have this ability).

Maybe just a +1/-1 trade off? I think there is a trait that gives you something like that.

Still, I appreciate you sharing your approach to this issue!

I remember a homebrew rule I read once where a character had an appearance Ability score (like a seventh separate Ability score). They figured it was half your CHA + half the score your target found attractive. So for instance if you take the following ability scores:

STR 18
DEX 14
CON 14
INT 8
WIS 14
CHA 10

Your appearance score here would be a 14 for someone attracted to strength, but only a 9 for someone attracted to intelligence.

I found it an interesting idea but doubt there is anyone who would want a seventh stat that varied between six numbers. Might work if it was by race. Orcs like strength, dwarves like wisdom. Still a huge hassle to determine if you're hot or not...

I feel someone can describe their character however they like. If they want to dump stat their charisma but say that their character is still attractive then that's their call. I've meet plenty of people I find attractive but can't stand to talk to.

Hey everyone,

My video group, Find the Path, just finished our first video in our new combat series, this time covering initiative and suprise attack rounds. I'm hoping to get some input from all our fellow gamers here. Let us know if you like it, have any constructive suggestions, or ideas for what you'd like to see from us in the future.

Thank you in advance!

https://youtu.be/aMCOSJCOuxY

I absolutely love these, especially the one about vision. In my opinion, the Strange Aeons video is so far the weakest one. The nature of this AP and its character creation process, simply doesn't lend itself for a good summary video. The information is somewhat vague and rightfully so, because spoilering people would be way worse.

I hope you keep these coming and focus on game mechanics (maybe AoOs as the next topic?) or settings (like nations or you could add races?). I don't think making videos about is the way to go, because you have to be careful about what you put out there and run the risk of becoming a weak audio-visual player's handbook.

I'm glad you've enjoyed the videos! We've been talking about taking on the beast that is AoO for a while. It's one of the things that commonly confuses many starting players, so it's a great topic to cover. You're right about it being difficult to keep it vague enough to avoid spoilers, but still capture the imagination of our players. Thank you for honest commentary, and I hope you like what we are working on next!

Neat! That's a pretty dang good introduction to the Adventure Path! Thanks for the work you put into the video.

Thank you for all the work you put into the Guide, I think it may be the best yet!

My gaming group and I have teamed up with a local independent film group to start a Pathfinder focused YouTube channel. We just posted our primer on Strange Aeons, a short video to players to discuss character options and get them excited for the new AP. We are looking for input and suggestions from the Paizo community, since it's you guys we are looking to impress. If you could take the time to watch the video and tell us what you think that would be awesome.

Strange Aeons

We were also thinking about making videos on some of the older AP, so if you like this and are gearing up for one let us know and we'll see about making it! Thank you in advance!

https://youtu.be/cTkl6cxKU54

found this interesting video:

https://youtu.be/cTkl6cxKU54

here is a useful narrative video about USTALAV:

https://youtu.be/wrLu4dNIFag

I'm interested in how supernatural(Su) healing abilities, such as a paladin's lay on hands, works against wounds that require caster level checks to heal.

Examples of this are a clay golem's Cursed Wounds:

Cursed Wound (Ex)

Infernal Wound (Su)

There was a similar thread I found here but there did not seem to be a definitive resolution. I'll be running an encounter soon that will have to deal with this and would like to be able to give my player the closest thing to a rules certain explanation of how this works. Thanks in advance!

So here's an example. Your 7th level party is trying to get into a warehouse, there is a lone guard standing out front. The party fighter walks up and asks for directions while the wizard, 80 feet away and hiding around a corner, casts improved invisibility. He then steps out and casts an Enlarged Charm Person. The guard gets a perception roll to notice, -5 for the fighter distracting and -8 for distance to target, at a net -13. The wizard makes a stealth check, -20 for sniping and +40 for being invisible and stationary, at a net +20. Odds are good the guard won't see him, unless he too is 7th level. All you have to hope for is a failed save...

Yeah it's a lot of arcane power to get past one guard, but it could be used just as easily in other situations. I feel the feats mentioned above are mostly for casting in a crowded room, and would in their own right be useful, but this is just an example. You wouldn't even need enlarge spell, it just adds a nice range boost and I'd like to see someone actually use it. There is also a halfing race trait that drops the sniping penalty from -20 to -10 that would be great for this type of thing.

Anyway, hope this adds to the conversation!

The argument against just using stealth to cast enchantments seems to be that they are attacks (I don't have my book right now but I'm pretty sure RAW they aren't, but assuming they are...) couldn't you just use the rules for snipping then? Even if someone gets a chance to see your "magical lightshow" they would still need to make the perception check.

This could be useful:

Champions of Purity wrote:

Tsukiyo: The followers of the Prince of the Moon act as intermediaries between the living and the spirit world. They preserve cemeteries, help protect communities from evil spirits, and teach innocents not to be afraid of the dark.

Very useful, thank you! Maybe something like Erastils code would work.

I have a player who is making a paladin of Tsukiyo for my upcoming game. I'm a big fan of the expanded paladins code Paizo has put out for the core deities and would like to provide one for Tsukiyo. Has anyone already made one or have any suggestions?

Incorporeal (Ex) wrote:

Even when hit by spells or magic weapons, it takes only half damage from a corporeal source (except for channel energy).

The middle phrase tells you what happens when anything from a corporeal source is able to effect an incorporeal creature: if it can harm them at all, it only does half damage, no matter what sort of ability it is.

I fully agree with Avoron here. If it comes from a "corporeal source" it deals half damage. The sole exception is channel energy. I feel the intent with this is to keep clerics classic role of being good against the undead.

As always a spell (like ghost touch), ability (like a Mother of Oblivion's tentacles I believe), or enchantment (like ghost touch weapons) could also be exempt if explicitly stated in its description. This is despite being from a corporeal source.

I think this is another instance where we old school 3.5 gamers have rules ingrained in our heads, like positive energy does full damage or 50% miss chance.

I'm currently playing thru this AP and am running into the exact same issue. Our party is 13th level and about halfway thru book 4. We are ahead of expected level (we are on the fast progression) by a level, but even considering we should only be 12th we are still almost 50% behind average Character Wealth. We have thus far had a character die in almost every book (not the first because the GM took pity), and raising said characters has put us even farther behind. I can only assume this was intentional, maybe to drive the party to continue exploring, but it seems to be a major flaw in this AP. It reached a point where I had to discuss adding extra treasure to our GM. Maybe you should do the same.

Also I don't believe Cheliax has its own language. Council of Thieves gives the nation more of an Italian Renaissance feel, with Westcrown feeling more Venetian than anything else. Common being Italian makes sense as it, alongside German, was used as a trade language across much of Europe up to and during the Renaissance.

Firstly if I recall correctly Halfling is a conglomeration of multiple different languages that have varied so far from their orrigional source as to be a separate language in and of itself. So maybe English?

First off that's a rather interesting build. I'm not a huge fan of the Mystic Theurge myself, having played one before I can tell you that the build up is long and difficult. The payoff is nice, but not til about 12th level. I understand your build is going for more of a cool "chosen by fate" feel with Sorcerer/Oracle but I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that prepared casters could take the prestige class two levels earlier. You'd have to balance between two casting stats so its a bit of a toss up.

When you say RPG I assume you're talking old school JRPGs akin to the FF series? If so I feel your character works for it. For more of a Link style I'd look into the Ranger. Gives you that marshal strength, skill with a bow, and even a horse that won't die to the first AoE you run into. The "fireballs" and such you can make up with magic items and Use Magic device.

I'd also look into the Myrmidarch Magus archetype. Gives a classic warrior/Mage feel to any character.

Anyway hope this give you a few more ideas for your character, and whatever you settle on I hope you have a blast with it!

Oh and spell like abilities don't count as spells. They are simply racial abilities that "mimic" spell effects. Same as having Daylight(sp) doesn't let you use a wand do Daylight, as it is not technically part of a spell casting class.

Thank you everyone! Sorry for the slow reply.

Happy Gaming!

I was just wondering if anyone knew who made the map in the center of Varisia: Birthplace of Legend (pg 16-17)? The cartographers listed in the book are Rob Lazzaretti and Ben Wootten, but searching their names I couldn't find any indication that they made this map. As the map could arguably be considered more of an art piece I'm not certain which of the contributing artists might have made it.

I'm a huge fan of this artists work, as I assume it's the same person that did the large foldout map of The Shackles for the Skull & Shackles AP. The reason I ask is I'd be interested in getting a larger copy of the Varisian map as well. If anyone knows if the artist has a website, or even a DeviantArt page, that would be very helpful. Thanks in advance.

Happy Gaming everyone!

I agree with shallowsoul,always carry a backup. Even if it's much less powerful than your standard. Or go Adamantine. Worth the money for a hardness bypassing super-sword with a ton of hp.

But on the Subject of Fighter Feats: yes they are somewhat boring, yes they just lest you do what others can do anyway, no they aren't worthless. Ignoring the fighter only feats (which are mostly great) the option to take more difficult prerequisite feats is great. Spring Attack, Whirlwind Attack, etc, are all good flavorful feats that get little use. Add in that you get so many and by higher levels you have the option of doing all kinds of neat feat combos.

Going back to Fighter only feats, most are good. The staple Weapon Specialization gives a flat +2 damage. While most seem to turn up their noses at this, that's the same damage bonus a raging Barbarian's STR bonus gives them with a one handed weapon. But all of the time. There are many others, and I'm sure they've all been mentioned before, so I wont get into all of them.

I feel the Fighter bonus feats are worth it.

Happy gaming!

P.S. Always longswords.

Now actually determining things about the ship would require you to be much closer. Here's how I would handle it. For instance:

Make of the Ship: Perception DC= (size mod of the ship) +1 per 10ft. So a sailing ship (Colossal: -16 size mod) could be identified by a sailor at a range of 260ft(+26 for range) by a sailor taking 10.

Ensign (flag) of the Ship: Perception DC= (size of the flag) +1 per 10ft. A War Ensign is very large, often over 20ft long (Huge: -8 size mod) and so could be identified by a sailor at a range of 180ft (+18 for range) taking 10.

I'd give a +1 perception bonus for every 10ft up the character is, so +6 in the crows-nest. Don't forget that a spyglass cuts the range penalties on perception in half.

My group is playing skull and shackles and I was wondering what your guys' thoughts are on how far away a ship would be able to be seen on the open sea on a clear day? With or without a spyglass.

About 3 miles out is how far someone can see at sea level, according to the game mechanics. About 12 miles from the crows-nest of a 60ft mast (like most sailing ships have). I don't see any reason why someone actively searching for a ship wouldn't see it out on open waters at these ranges.

Just thought I'd drop this FAQ in real quick fro reference:

"The APG magic items chapter says (on page 282), "The creator's caster level must be as high as the item's caster level." This contradicts the Core Rulebook. Which is correct?
That line in the APG is an error. An item's caster level is not a prerequisite for item creation unless it is specifically mentioned in an item's Requirements line (for example, an amulet of natural armor).

(SKR 8/30/10)

—Sean K Reynolds, 08/31/10"

Hmmmmm. I've always thought this was the case. I have a somewhat related question to this, and the thread subject.

My GM seems to be under the impression that for weapons and armor I have to have the prerequisite three times the enhancement(+1 to +5) CL that the item has, as a "hard" requirement if you will. So basically that I can't just raise the DC by 5 like I do with almost everything else I make that I don't have the requirements. Just seeking a little clarification on if I'm understanding this correctly. That the CL is just another prerequisite, if even that, that I can adjust the DC to compensate for.

I guess to sum it up in a question: Am I correct in understanding that CL is not a prerequisite for item crafting? Thanks!

Happy Gaming!

Backstory. I encourage all of my players to write out their characters histories, not just because I like to know them and try to incorporate them, but because it helps you to determine their motivations.

Most people when they start to put things in writing find they will add more and more to the initial history they had thought up. This will in turn add interesting nuances to a character. The wizard I play in my friends game refuses to use Disintegrate on living creatures because of events in his life. Little things like that make a character more organic and believable.

That's the best I got.

Happy Gaming!

Heh. Pugs...

Sorry I would like to Necro this since it came up in a discussion recently.

"With this spell you designate the target as your favored enemy for the remainder of its duration. Select one of your favored enemy types. For the duration of the spell, you treat the target as if it were that type of favoured enemy for all purposes."

I read that as for things like favoured defence not the bane magic effect of a weapon. I might be wrong but wanted to get some feedback.

My understanding is the same as yours. It counts it as a favored enemy, but does not in fact change the creatures type, just how your class abilities treat it. For bane the creature must in fact be that said type of creature. So yep, you've got the right of it.

Happy Gaming!

Actually just finished this book, about half way thru the next. I added a few side quests, mostly saving citizens and helping the oppressed.

Just before the end of the book I did a full thing with the Goblins (I love the little guys). I started by having the players stop a fire that the goblins had set (saving people from burning buildings, stopping a nearby alchemist shop from exploding, etc) after which they learned that the goblins had been provided with a map leading them to where they had started the blaze. Also made it apparent that they were now in possession of a large amount of Alchemist Fire. The party needed no other motivation to hunt the creatures back to their lair and battle it out with Chief Whitechin the Wererat. I also made sure to drop a few hints about the Council providing them with the Alchemist Fires.

The players seemed to really enjoy it! Hope this helps. Happy gaming!

I'm a player in Kingmaker right now and I've haven't noticed being behind on xp. Gold sometimes, but not levels. But our GM also has been rolling up random encounters. Maybe one for every five our six hexes explored. Not sure what the encounter percentage is. Maybe you should just toss a few in your players path. Also I think we were 3rd when we took on the fort in book one. It was a pain, but not undoable.

Happy Gaming!

Actually the "Ye Olde Magic Shoppe" is a basic assumption of the Core Rules. When a character goes to look for an item there, as long as it is within the gp limit of the settlement size, three quarters of the time it is there.

I basically follow the same rules. I find penalizing players for being in a small town by not letting them find the items they want is the fastest way to convince them they should get out of the burbs and head to the closest metropolis.

While this may seem overly generous I prefer to keep my players more focused on the story and less on planed trips to go shopping the next time they aren't "forced" to save some tiny hamlet and can get back to civilization.

But to each their own! Whatever makes things fun for both you and your players.

Happy gaming!

Also dotting. I too have experience with this campaign but am very good at not meta-gaming. Plus I haven't touched it in over three years.

The schedule works great for me, and I'll submit my character concept soon. The 5th is the cut off date, but when is the game supposed to start?

Happy gaming everyone!

"Scourge of Souls"... Hmmmm, getting closer.

"Decent into Darkness" maybe?

I think like so many others I'm trying for a double S name... not getting much.

Valcrist wrote:

Keep up the Aid Another! The bonuses stack!

There's a happy ending joke here somewhere.

I can think of many...

But thanks for keeping the thread alive!

Thanks for the support so far guys! Kitty has also added her video submission to her blog as well. If you're interested in checking it out it's on Gaming in Your Underwear. Just look for the girl on the bed with the giant dinosaur plush!

Keep up the Aid Another! The bonuses stack!

Hey guys and girls. In case you hadn't heard, and most of you probably haven't, Maxim is doing a "Maxim Gamer Girl" contest right now. Basically looking for cute "nerd" girls, mostly girls who play video games and such. Well one of my Pathfinder players is the beautiful Kitty Martini (not her real name), a pin up artist, avid video game and pen and paper player, and founder of her own blog Gaming in Your Underwear. "A website devoted to random bits of nerdity, sexy fun photography, video game/movie reviews, and the occasional cute thing." -Kitty Martini

So basically I'm asking all my Pathfinders companions out there to help a fellow gamer. All you have to do is go to Maxim Gamer Girls (link will take you strait to Kitty's page. SO EASY!) make a quick profile (takes seconds and you can tell them to e-mail you nothing by un-checking all the boxes) and help our Pathfinder Pin Up Girl.

Thanks Everyone! Happy Gaming!

P.S.: Here is the picture she's submitted! Pin Up Nerd

Just throwing this out there, but what is the alignment of your character? I find that many GM's (and players) like to categorize everything into either good or evil, with little regard to neutrality. Take for instance a Lawful Neutral Pathfinder of the Cheliax faction. Said individuals would preform their duties, whether good or evil, because those were the orders issued to them. There should be no real issue with said character doing an evil act if said act were necessary to further the goals of their superiors. Now please keep in mind that this dose not excuse excessive amounts of evil, or always taking the evil path.

This is just one example. My point being that many people are too quick to label someone evil for just a single evil act, ignoring the situational complexities. In short, sometimes the ends justify the means.

As for venture-captains having the authority to change alignment, I support it. It is necessary to keep players from just playing Neutral as Evil. But I agree that there needs to be a way of logging their reasons and explaining the situations. Perhaps a Three Strike system.

Anyway, hope I've helped! Happy Gaming everyone!