Victoria Dethasma's page

James,

I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to thank you for answering my last set of questions; I don't often get as much time as I'd like to keep an eye on your thread!

1) One of the abilities of Asheia is to make the wielder immune to all enchantment spells and effects while allowing the caster to believe the spell or effect was successful. A 20th-level enchanter's Enchanting Smile ability allows them to turn enchantment spells against which they have successfully saved back upon the caster (as spell turning). If a 20th-level enchanter were wielding Asheia, would that character still be able to turn enchantment spells, or would Asheia effectively override that ability?

2) How associated is Thassilonian rune magic with the Symbol line of spells in-universe? Is one an extension of the other or is rune magic a different case altogether?

3) Assuming that the events of Rise of the Runelords did not happen, how knowledgeable do you feel scholars in Varisia and the Inner Sea are about Thassilon and the Runelords?

4) Regarding the Demon Lord Abraxas, his Final Incantation is described as having the power to "unmake magic", with the lesser version accessible to characters with the Demonic Obedience feat represented as a damage-dealing version of Greater Dispel Magic. What would be your inclination as to how Abraxas' version would perform by comparison?

Thank you again, as always, for being willing to answer questions here!

James,

Thank you again for taking all these questions from your users and fans! After having tried to communicate with developers in other companies, I have become only more appreciative of your willingness to engage with your community.

1) An artifact was introduced in my home game which took the form of a black tome with a special connection to an (unnamed) infernal lord. Its user may pen a question in blood inside the tome, and receive a clear and unambiguous answer six hours later from the fiend. Thus far it has operated with seemingly perfect omniscience, providing answers to certain intrigues and state secrets that may never have been revealed otherwise. How would you, were you the GM, spin such an artifact such that it remains consistent with its unusually candid and accurate replies, but at the same time is far more than a mere divinatory device?

2) Disregarding schemes for immortal rule, do you feel that Queen Abrogail Thrune would seek to perpetuate her ruling line by marrying a consort and producing an heir to the throne of Cheliax, or is merely the goal of "House Thrune remains in control" sufficient enough from her perspective to allow another relative to take over after her time? In the case of former, what sorts of characteristics, station and pedigree do you think feel she would find desirable? (For example, seeking to wed someone as or less ambitious than herself, or primarily pursuing the political advantages of bringing another vassal into Cheliax's sphere by marrying another monarch, etc.)

3) Would she or any other major ruler in Avistan contemplate wedding one of the more attractive and wealthy Runelords if given the chance? Say, Karzoug or Sorshen, on a voluntary basis (and I'm sure you must agree that Karzoug is a nice-looking gentleman with plenty of financial security).

4) If a mythic character takes the Legendary Item path ability, but later feels another item would be better served as their item of focus, would you as a GM allow them to retrain or alter their Legendary Item ability to apply to the new item instead?

4a) Let's also propose that a mythic character taking the Legendary Item ability wants to apply it to an item which is already a lesser or greater artifact. Do you think that the "item must be a lesser/greater artifact to select this ability" prerequisite for certain abilities would be met by default, or would you feel it more appropriate to require taking multiple instances of the Legendary Item path ability as normal so that an pre-existing artifact is not inherently advantaged over a non-artifact item when selecting its legendary abilities?

5) How do you feel the major Inner Sea nations (Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, Qadira, and Osirion) would regard an Absalom that ushers in a highly nationalist government and began asserting its influence over its neighbors?

Lastly, this is something I have been thinking about for several weeks now and wanted to air out for you. In the past, you have maintained a degree of ambiguity as to just what the Peacock Spirit was/is, whether it was truly a deity or something else. It is also known that Runelord Xanderghul was a worshiper. Acknowledging and paying worship to an obscure power greater than himself - and from a position of rulership - seems slightly uncharacteristic for a Runelord of Pride. However, peacocks as you know are themselves popularly associated with pride... and, in an earlier series of answers, you mentioned that while a mythic character with Divine Source could technically worship himself, such an act would be astonishingly arrogant and worthy of only the most narcisisstic and excessively proud of beings. That so little is known of the Peacock Spirit, and that mythic Runelord Xanderghul, the paragon of pride (and "holder of the Peacock Throne" himself), would deign to both pay and promote its worship, could suggest a more fundamental connection between the two after certain analysis, might you say?

1) I recently had the chance to read the Skull & Shackles AP. Besides loving it, it was really hard not to draw parallels to Pirates of the Caribbean, particularly At World's End. Was this one of the inspirations, and what were any others to your knowledge?

1a) On that note, Davy Jones and Blackbeard (On Stranger Tides) strike me as mythic characters, one who gained his power from a deal with a goddess, the other from voodoo magic and an artifact. What's your perspective?

2) Concerning Razmir: I think he's one of the more interesting figures little-examined in lore, and that his cult is hilarious. That said, most passages on the Starstone and ascended mortals only mention Aroden, Norgober, Cayden Cailean and Iomedae. Is this for the benefit of the reader, who might presumably know that Razmir is a charlatan? Among common people in-setting would he be "the fifth ascended god of the Starstone" or is his divinity not that bought into outside his lands?

3) The rampage of the Oliphaunt of Jandelay was absolutely devastating to Azlant and Thassilon. How do you imagine Thassilon would have dealt with a creature of similar scale without the possibility of de-summoning such a threat, e.g. a CR 30 kaiju? Could they have?

3a) ...How about Great Cthulhu?

4) How do you feel Sorshen's attractiveness and talent in seduction compared to supernatural beings who hold these as their defining traits, such as succubi and pairaka? Would she have made non-unique examples of these kinds of beings look like amateurs given her likely Diplomacy and Charisma scores and mythic abilities?

5) I loved following the Dark Souls conversation, it's one of my favorite games and examples of world building. If you had the chance to import an element of the game into Golarion, what might you pick, if anything?

6) What's Halloween going to be like for the Paizo offices this year? Any chance we'll get to hear about Wes apple bobbing?

Thank you, again, for coming here to take questions from us!

Hi James! Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer our questions! After a few... hours... of reading the recent thread history, I have a few to add to the pile for your kind consideration.

1) What was the original thematic inspiration, if any, for the city of Absalom? It always struck me as a fantastical combination of New York, Jerusalem, and London.

2) Suppose that Ileosa triumphs against the PCs at the end of Crown of Fangs and successfully uses the Everdawn Pool, which stirs Runelord Sorshen from her hibernation beneath the Grand Mastaba. How would the former react to the latter, and vice versa? How would it affect their mutual plans?

2a) Conversely, supposing Sorshen awakens before Ileosa makes use of the Everdawn Pool, how would this change the above? And would Ileosa attempt to petition Sorshen for its use or similar if the Runelord isn't overtly hostile?

3) Which of the Pathfinder Society faction leaders would choose to attend one of Zarta Dralneen's "special parties" if given an invitation (directly or indirectly)?

4) Very little information has been written about the personality of Lady Darchana (archdean of the Arcanamirium) outside Guide to Absalom that I've seen. What sort of person is she? Any thoughts as to what she looks like? I always pictured her as the "unamused headmaster" type.

4a) How likely is it that her ambition to crown Princess Eutropia the Queen of Absalom will be developed in future products?

4b) And about how old is the Princess, anyway?

5) What was the balance of power like between Azlant and Thassilon at their height? Were they evenly matched or was there some acknowledged disparity between the two rivals?

6) I read - and the source isn't springing to mind - that Xin's heir was sequestered as a puppet ruler in Cyrusian. Did Xin's line survive to the end of Thassilon or did the Runelords allow his legacy to die out? Diplomatically, would that heir be perceived as the head of state or barely worth acknowledging?

7) If Lissala were to empower a godling (per Mythic Origins), how would you write her godling path ability, off the top of your head?

8) I absolutely love the work that was done throughout the Shattered Star Adventure Path! After reading through Lost Kingdoms, I've become very curious about other Thassilonian antiquities. If you were to quantify the abilities of The Mirror of Sorshen (viewers "trapped in a dream of arousal and awaken to serve the mirror's master") and Xin's Robe of Runes ("immediate access to the powers of rune magic in pure form") in game terms, what route would you be inclined to take?

Please forgive me if any of these questions have been asked previously in the thread. I tried to find answers in the posting history first, but it all starts to blend together after a while and things get overlooked...