Vlaeros's page

Hello! Running this again and struggling to find all the references to things discussing Nocticula and how she handles people accepting, rejecting, or otherwise to her offered gifts.

Obviously there are strong feelings about RP and specific table expectations. I’ve read those—I’ve found it more difficult to find the exact mentions in-AP.

I am curious:

1) how many times is it mentioned afterwords, and what benefits and drawbacks does it give you?

2) outside of nebulously not “owing Nocticula an ill-defined favor,” what is the benefit for turning her down? What is the downside other than “not having a nifty thing?”

3) what has been the results in your campaign afterwords, and why? (I admit, ten years and a whole other edition later, not to mention the CRPG literally taking up practically every online space discussion, might mean this is a tad late for asking people how it went in their 1e game, but… eh, we’ll see who find this)

What was the treasure Lurian discovered?

It's alluded to several times, but my reading comprehension is a little rough right now, and I'm not locating what it actually is. Is it explained in a different book, or just a red herring?

We're close to hitting the 1.5 million dollar goal for donations to St. Jude, and the stream will soon be coming to a close!

At time of this post, we are only $75k $50k away from hitting that donation drive goal. If you happen to see this, and both can and feel good about donating, please do!

God bless you all, either way, and we all hope for cures to ever more cancers as we go forward. Love you all!

EDIT: Eight minutes makes $25k of difference!

As it says on the tin.

Bonus question: does a spell with a range of 0 ft. and an area of effect necessarily include you in that effect?

I accept RAW and RAI and RAtT, and whatever else so long as you're clear which it is you're suggesting from.

Thank you all in advance!

I asked this in the PF rules forum, but I realized I was most interested in the 3.X versions.

Anyone know if RAW the brilliant energy effect makes the disruption effect nullified?

Similarly, if (for example) brilliant energy and flaming are both active at the same time, is the flaming part incapable of affecting objects?

Further, what about brilliant energy and a slaying arrow?

I was uncertain on this point, as it could be argued either way.

I realized I should clarify, since nothing particularly changes if dealing with living creatures.

What I meant was, let's presume it's a slaying arrow of undead or constructs. Normally, the slaying arrow property bypasses the typical immunities of those creatures (specifically in regards to fortitude saves), which was the source of the question.

Similarly, a flaming whatever thrust into, let's say, a box. Does the fire damage simply ignore the box, or does the "weapon" damage ignore the box, but the flames affect it as normal?

Anyone know if RAW the brilliant energy effect makes the disruption effect nullified?

Similarly, if (for example) brilliant energy and flaming are both active at the same time, is the flaming part incapable of affecting objects?

Further, what about brilliant energy and a slaying arrow?

I was uncertain on this point, as it could be argued either way.

Also, I'm aware this is a PF 1e rules forum, but I'm also curious if and how the answer changes between 3e and 3.5e or similar rules sets.

I realized I should clarify, since nothing particularly changes if dealing with living creautres.

What I meant was, let's presume it's a slaying arrow of undead or constructs. Normally, the slaying arrow property bypasses the typical immunities of those creatures (specifically in regards to fortitude saves), which was the source of the question.

Similarly, a flaming whatever thrust into, let's say, a box. Does the fire damage simply ignore the box, or does the "weapon" damage ignore the box, but the flames affect it as normal?

EDIT: mild word choice for clarity; and again to add a third example; and again, when I realized several of the questions weren't clear as to why I was even asking them! Whooooooooooops!

Does anyone know of there is either a mythological equivalent to or a non-D&D fantasy version of the D&D *reincarnate* spells? Obviously they exist in D&D/Pathfinder and related stuff, but I’m looking for it’s origin and inspiration other than the games. (And other than religious reincarnation, which is very different.)

Basically in myth or even story, I’m asking where does the idea of, “You ded; BAM you alive but a different weird body.” come from?

Like the title says.

Was having a discussion with a friend, earlier, and we disagreed, so I'm doing this for my own purposes.

Feel free to comment!

And, I mean, that's about it. Doing that on its own tends to keep about anyone on a mechanically-acceptable level. There are higher-end options, but those are the most obvious and largest ones and I have done exactly zero work or thought.

In each case, I've just gone, "Buy a higher bonus on the stuff I already got."

What isn't covered, here is any kind of deeper mechanical look. Feats, tactical options, Aid Another, spells that actually stack, increased ability scores, or items that help with those effects.

The point is not to show an optimized ideas or even very good expenditure of wealth, but just to show an extremely straight-forward use of cash wealth and how almost anyone - even if they're naturally not good at attacks or AC - can succeed at the math side by Core Rulebook choices.

Also, only tangentially related:

Anyway! This has been some ramblings and examination. Not much point to it, but it's good information for me to have at other times. Feel free to kind of do whatever you want with this.

While it's obviously fixed for me now, I know I and a few others have had quite a bit of difficulty signing in today. At least one other person mentioned they still can't sign in.

We have the hypothetical ability to do so and can go through the motions, but when we would be successfully signed in, we simply aren't. It's like we never even tried to sign in, even though we'd use the correct information and proceedure. Everything responds as if we were able to sign in normally except we weren't able to sign in.

It's been this way all day until now: this just was corrected for me about seven to ten minutes before the start of writing this post, but within that time, as noted, a friend said he was still experiencing the problem.

Hope mentioning this here is helpful! Thank you for all you do!

Well, fourth wheel.

We're aware of the Razmiran false priest archetype, but that is exceptionally unlikely for <reasons>.

Empiricist investigator with whatever feat and etc. is a "maybe," but that doesn't leave us with good spells. Half-orc (pass-for-human) witch has been thrown around as a possible. Clerics and druids are cool and all, but probably not what we're looking for in this particular game.

A new Discord game is starting soon and we've two bards trying to avoid overlapping.

One is a party animal and hard-leaning to tricky combat, but also fun party times. Has a vague grasp on mechanics, but strong character idea.

The other one is kind of the opposite of that, and is this guy in this thread.

The current build for the "do all the other things" bard is below, but note that this is flexible and feedback is appreciated:

Well that's a mess.

The GM has already approved any of the choices listed; the entire party has agreed upon CN to start.

Though basic bard is presumed, Archetypes are welcome if they do what is indicated above ("fill the gaps in the party") better.

Several suggestions welcome (and more than one build suggestion, if there is, preferred).

The goal is to have a character that can help fill in the gaps of roles with skill monkey (lore master), item crafter, and spell-caster (well, tertiary spell-caster; note - we are aware items are likely going to do the heavy lifting, here).

Related thread about entirely archetyping-out of class features in general.

PLEASE see the OTHER BARD for things we're trying to avoid on this guy! Thank you!

(Other party members: another bard, human kineticist kinetic knight for tanking, elf musket master gunslinger for ranged damage.)

Overly-aggressive or insistent advice, "No, you should never bard, they suck." comments (at least without adequate explanation of why) is not what we're looking for - instead specific advice, a few possible builds or rebuilds, even an alternate class that does "the same thing only better" or something is all possible.

Thank you all for participating!

EDIT: oh, current traits are Propitiation (for increased versatility) and Spark of Creation (for discount; we're expecting money to be a hair tight at first; also currently have an eye toward the feat inscribe magic tattoo, eventually).

Setting note: guns exist with the "guns are everywhere" and "modern firearms" - don't know if that changes this guide, but figured it was worth mentioning.

EDIT: That awkward moment when, while editing, you mess up your own title and the joke to go with it. XD

Archetypes are welcome.

The player is new to PF, coming from 5e.

Several suggestions preferred to allow them to choose!

The goal is to be a party-hard satyr(lite).

Related thread about entirely archetyping-out of class features in general.

The player has determined they are going to be either a piper or satyr (both having been tentatively approved by the GM).

Given that limit and that the two bards are trying to avoid overlap, what are a few possible builds that fits this:

the archetype of Fey prankster, they literally have the ability of combat via screwing with people, so I decided to have them be a character that embraces that side wholeheartedly, by being a total party animal.

very combative, but also very much party animals, always on the lookout for drinks, friends, and fun. But as with all fae, piss them off or hurt their friends and they will make your life

(copy/paste from a conversation)

Most important:

- fey prankster bard
- those races
- skilled/tricky-style combatant that highly frustrates others
- more combat trickster than outright face, but not opposed to being a face if that works better
- see the other bard for details; they are working on avoiding overlap
- notes and general advice on playstyle and how it might suss out in an gameplay (not overly-specific tactics, just broad generalization on how it might work out)

(Other party members: another bard, human kineticist kinetic knight for tanking, elf musket master gunslinger for ranged damage.)

EDIT: links to OTHER BARD should now be updated and working :D

EDIT 2: Setting note: guns exist with the "guns are everywhere" and "modern firearms" - don't know if that changes this guide, but figured it was worth mentioning. :)

For the longest time, I had considered Widen Spell to apply to shrink item as a valid spell to be altered by widen spell: its a thing that multiple groups I’ve played in have always just assumed, and I inherited that without really thinking about it.

However,

Benefit: You can alter a burst, emanation, or spread-shaped spell to increase its area. Any numeric measurements of the spell’s area increase by 100%.

While shrink item notes,

Target one touched object of up to 2 cu. ft./level

That is not a burst, emanation, or spread, nor is it an area!

In the Bestiary they introduce the idea of super outsiders - masters, rulers, paragons, or just real big deals of their respective types - with some sample powers. For devils, they give pit fiends the option of three sample powers: deathmastery, master of magic, or hellfire breath.

They mention, as in all similar entries, that there are more. But what else is out there?

Now, “make up your own” is always an option, but a larger sample size lets us look at what else might be in the ballpark of the intended stuff.

I can think of at least two - one AP spoiler and a certain bound devil in (or under or behind or something) Korvosa.

Anyone know what else there is? Any others?

So, I recalled that there were smaller sized siege engines, and when I looked on the PRDs, it looks like there are rules for both small and medium size engines, but I can't find any examples of siege engines that size.

Anyone know of any?

Was this an idea that was abandoned in development, or am I just missing something?

Thanks!

I'm curious about divine views on hunting and sacred animals.

I'd presume it depends, of course, on the deity in question, and the context.

Four classic examples follow:

Erastil almost certainly wouldn't care if you hunted a dear deer of his (that's how he gained his herald, after all), and especially not if it's for survival. I would even go so far as to say that it makes sense that he expects you to hunt deer - he is all about keeping the balance between civilization and nature, and allowing runaway populations of deer does no one favors. But slaughtering dear deer just because is a bad.

Shelyn likely frowns on killing songbirds unless there's a very good reason. Even if there's a good reason, she would likely encourage you to keep and redeem whatever it is, if possible - she's not the goddess of redemption (that's Sarenrae) but she's slowly but methodically purified the ancient evil Whisperer of Souls (you know the evil artifact that corrupted her own brother by EvilCenobiteShadowBeastAliens) just by being BestGirl love incarnate, and she probably expects her followers to at least make the attempt, if at all reasonable.

Desna likely wouldn't like it if you smushed butterflies, but of anyone I'd imagine she tends to understand that rules gotta be bent or broken. Butterflies might be pretty, but if they're evil you'd best kick in their door crush them remorselessly, take a selfie doing so, and then hear the lamentations of the demons make a hasty exit after having seen the sights.

Asmodeus deeeeeeeeefinitely hates it if you hunt serpents, and will personally damn your soul (if he can) if you do, but you better sacrifice a serpent (and goat, naturally - also preferably the sacred animal of literally any other god, except the one he's trying to con right now, oh, you idiot, I was conning them, oh, you're gonna get it, now) if you want to propitiate him (also he'll use the opportunity to damn your soul).

And that's where the clarity ends for me, honestly.

Kill a zebra Nethys likely thinks your brilliant but also secretly hates you and will curse you, but with appreciation... unless you didn't use magic, in which case it's just a curse, thanks?

Urgathoa also curses you if you swat a (bot)fly?

I'unno!

(Though I thiiiiink it's canon that to those who harm snakes, Ydersius never cared never cared unless he wanted to hate you while Yig takes special exception... YMMV, exceptionsapply, applywithinfordetailsatyourownrisksucker.)

So I'm curious if we know their general responses.

Most specifically I was looking at was Calistria and wasps. And, yes, that sounds weird, but there are people who eat wasps - or at least the larvae - as part of the seasonal cycle (most notably I know of a place in Japan, though there are at least several others). Would that be fine, 'cause Cali don't really care anyway? (And especially if you honor her?) Or would she likely take that as a personal affront?

For the Core set that's Abadar (monkey), Calistria (wasp), Cayden (dog), Gorum (rhino), Gozreh (actually he's certainly fine with it so long as you don't wack the environment), Iomedae (lion; probably only for "legitimate" reasons, though), Irori (why is this a snail), Lamashtu (jackal; she's def. cool with it, probably, so long as you do horrible things, first?), Norgorber (spider; yeah, okay, he's probably fine), Pharasma (whippoorwill - yes 'cause goddess of death, or no 'cause <ain't natural/affronts her senses/insert-reason-here>?), Rovagug (scor-pion), Sarenrae (dove; legit if you're starving, maybe?), Torag (honeybadger, "hahah, good luck, suckers"), and Zon-Kuthon (bat; no... but you can torture and mutilate it so long as it lives?). I mean, I'd love to hear Asmodeus, Desna, Erastil, and Shelyn, too.

And non-core gods.

Acavna (when she lived)? What even is hers, anyway?

Achaekek? I could really see this going either way... but definitely not both?

Aroden (back in the Aroden-old days)? ("If it helps humans..." maybe?)

Bastet? (might be kinda hard to overlook killin' a thing when it shares your face, ya know? glances out the window, sees humanity acting, and retracts the complaint, no that's still legit, we're just good at convincing ourselves otherwise, unfortunately, and I'll stop here)

Besmara? (pretty sure she's cool if you kill whatever? But <expletive deleted> camulatz, amirite? (just kidding, she probably love 'em, just wishes they had more water))

Camazotz? (and how does he feel about camulatz, who I always confuse with him?)

Grandmother Spider?

Gyronna? (it's a mystery! ... nah, just kidding, she will curse you, even and especially if you had no idea, because, and I quote, "<this text has been removed and replaced by your local family-friendly text bar>, you <oops, almost missed some>!"***)

Jaidi?

Kofusachi?

Milani?

Shimye-Migalla? (Does she/they have "oops all animals" or "butterflies" or something else as this aspect?)

The Peacock Spirit (he def. hates ya messin' with his chosen image; the jerk*)

... and so on.

Any canon instances of any of these showing up in text would be really cool to hear about, too!

What is says on the tin.

I know information about more southerly nations has been published, but I don't know if we've ever seen them, exactly, or where they are.

Most specifically, I'm looking for west-coast stuff, but I'm honestly interested in all of it - that means below the Geb "line" as well.

I know that I've seen snippets of things... but nothing too concrete (yes, this is a vague "joke" about the "Field of Maidens" being technically lower than Geb)*.

If so, does anyone know where these things are mapped out?

What about hard details about them? Obviously some things are available via Pathfinderwiki, but I'm curious if we know anything else about their numbers, economics, and similar. A lot of them seem to be reclusive or intentionally stand-off-ish.

I ask mostly in regards to both Skull & Shackles and Serpent's Skull** - both games in which my players and I have had burning curiosity about southern parts of Garund, but almost no information. While, of course, I'm always free to make up my own thing, it would be nice to know more about the place.

(Also, as an aside, does anyone know the thought-process on the new name? In-character Sargava was named for the first colonial-born daughter who learned Polyglot, enabling peace between peoples, but and though I've always wondered at the real-world inspiration for the name, what is the significance of 'Vidrian' both in- and out-of-character, if any?)

Thank you!
(And thanks, Paizo, for making such a great, interesting setting!)

* It's not even a very good one, considering my Inner Sea World Guide map of Golarion just re-informed me that Sargava is/was lower-in-latitude than Geb. My map-humor is well-made, everybody, I swear. :V

** It'll be interesting if I can reconnect with everyone to see what they all think of the Sargava -> Vidrian revolution, especially since a few heavily invested themselves in Sargava with an eye towards reformation, even going so far as to deeply integrate themselves into local politics/earning the graces of Lady Madrona Daugustana and Freeman's Brotherhood (especially famed revolutionary Umagro - yeah, they worked super-hard keeping everyone alive on that one) or similar, in an attempt to leverage things in favor of bringing equality peacefully. It may be interesting to suggest that after Madrona passes - she's pretty ancient already, and her death within a few years is not unlikely - petty in-fighting and squabbling among several of her legal (or socially-invested) heirs hamstrung the PC characters' efforts at internal improvements and they ended up effectively siding with the revolutionaries, though I'd likely ask before making such statements. (They were never so deeply enchanted with Kalabuto - partially because less time was spent there, partially because several of the most politically-focused had effectively dropped out in Eleder, and partially the place was so deeply racist (more so than Eleder!) that they saw little good that could be accomplished directly on the way to <S'sS spoiler>.)

In specific, I'm curious about Jaidi - recently it was mentioned to me that it may well be pronounced "H'eye-dee" (the "J" making an "H" sound like "who" or "Huh?" - as in "Javier" or "juego") though I'd thought of it more like "J'ay'dee" (with a hard "j" and long "a" sound - basically the word "Jade" with a long "e" sound like "ee" or "ii" or whatever you wanna write it).

Of course, these various things could represent a short "i" sound at the end, a long-"a"-fading-into-long-"i" in the middle, a "J" with a "Y"-sound (like "Bjorn" or "Jorginson") or really any other number of combinations.

While it's all made up, of course, and there likely isn't a hard, solid form of pronunciation, I'm curious what's meant with it - both in this name and in Azlanti-form names in general.

I have similar questions about Thassilonian pronunciations, too, if anyone knows - I've always excepted that it's really on-the-nose/obvious English-language-transliterations rather than translations, but the concept that it might not be has got my head spinning (probably needlessly - thanks remarkably vague PIE-language notations that I've been investing myself far too into, recently...)

((As a completely unrelated aside, I am so daggum hype to finally meet Erastil's wife. SO DAGGUM HYPE. I've known about her for a long time, but until stumbling across the fact they're married - and parents to Curnunos and Halcamora, which ohmywordthat'ssoperfectforourgames - makes me so daggum happy, and is recent as of last week or so! Yay!))

I’ve been unable to make a new thread in 1e, and 2e lore might be different, but...

Akatas are a potential source of noqual (if you can control them; admittedly a big “if”), but I was wondering if we have any other canonical “renewable” sources of various skymetals in the same vein of akatas for noqual.

I know each skymetal is different, but where do they really come from, and how are they formed?

Noqual: byproduct of akatas.

Adamantine: (presumptively) exotic star-action creating hyper-dense/hard metallic material (akin to dense iron somehow not radioactive; possibly magic byproduct); though considering its in planets and elemental earth it might be a byproduct of planatery/earth action. (This is entirely guesswork; I don’t know and would prefer canonical correction.)

Others: ?

Does anyone know? According to the wiki, Abyssium is rumored to come from the Abyss, but the wiki doesn’t mention the Akata connection, so it may just be rumor and guesswork. Anyone know?

First of all, it’s good and it’s about to leave Netflix (October 15), so I recommend it, before it’s gone!

Second, in *Tiger & Bunny*, I know there is reference to a “Power-type NEXT” (Cis was erroneously identified as such, and Tiger was accurately identified as such) but does anyone know of any other “types” of NEXT listed in-universe?

So far I've only tried it with Firefox, but the red dot telling me I've got PMs doesn't seem to work! I'll try a different browser when I can, but in the meantime, any suggestions?

... does anyone know?

Doing simple math conversion (look at 5ft. squares on combat maps, translate to full map), the city looks wwwaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy too small to hold "tens of thousands" - about 1,800 feet wide (east/west) and 700 feet tall (north/south) - and a rough guesstimate I read held approximately a square mile for every 38k.

Also, please feel free to check my math - my exceptionally rough calculations put the citadel itself at around 200 feet wide at its widest, and I'm literally using that number plus my thumb as a ruler for the rest of the city. Yes, I know that's terrible. That's one of the reasons I'm asking for help. See, also, the aspect ratio, below, that doesn't quite line up with the 1800/700 calculations - it's off by 20 feet.

That latter seeeeeeeeeeeeeems like it would put the area of Drezen at just about a square mile (seems like it fits the "tens of thousands" number). Given the city is rrrroooooooouuuuughly an ovoid with an extremely rough (by my guesstimations) 2.6 aspect ratio (wide to high), that's about 0.9097 miles (that's roughly 4800 ft.) from east to west and 0.3499 miles (that's roughly 1850 ft.) from north to south.

Is that right?

That doesn't seem very large - especially the north-to-south size, that's less distance than I have to walk to get to my store. While shorter creatures are certainly a thing in this setting (allowing you to fit more into less space), it still feels... small, for a city, to me, at least.

This is moderately relevant in our game, because we have some special effects that have unique, specified dimensions, and we're trying to figure out how much of the city is actually covered (including, potentially, all of it).

Anyway, thanks!

EDIT: just to be clear, I'm not suggesting the citadel itself is small - it's pretty friggin' huge on a map - but rather the city as a whole seems small. I do understand that we live in a much more spread out society than either medieval or Renaissance societies, but "less than half a walk to my local store" still seems small when we're trying to get across the size of a former metropolis. Also, one supposes Dollar General is not, strictly, a "grocery store," (and I don't specifically use them as such) and nor is CVS. So edited that word out.

This is a request for help from someone too sick to read or do much himself.

Hrn.

AC 60

+20 BAB +13 ability +5 enhancement + 2 greater focus; ???

d20+40 caaaaaaaaaaan hit that AC on a natural 20... but it could do that anyway. Hrmmmm.

In know there are other bonuses in non-epic 3.5 games, and I’m probably forgetting something basic and obvious, but I’m curious if anyone can list them “readily enough.” Like, not obscure - a fourth-man PH/DMG1 party of 20th level could have access to it without special crafting - sort of thing.

I mean, dude’s already gotta get a hyper-focused... wait!

+20 BAB +13 ability +7 enhancement + 2 greater focus -> +42 (noice) so 18-20.

So crit-fishing with a +5 cold iron bane (chaotic outsider) holy falchion, I guess. Still seems like there should be more.

Anyone? I’m asking for a... friend.

18 base +2 racial +5 inherent +5 level +6 enhancement = 36 (+13)

For clarity, I’m looking for 3.5, not PF or 3e. Thanks!

(The above presumes a very basic half-orc fighter, by-the-by.)

Copy/pasted here from original thread when I remembered this place existed. Hoping for straightforward, obvious stuff from the Player’s Handbook and DMG. Thanks!

So I tried to make my title as complete as possible.

I'm in Chrome, and the "Sign in" option (or the "My Account" when signed in) is actually overlapping and on top of the Search bar on Paizo's site.

It's probably been that way for a little while, actually, but I simply didn't notice as I usually stay logged in... and the font is almost the exact color of the search bar (it's a little darker, but not much - it's most visibly noticeable by the words very slightly covering the magnifying glass - which is how I found it at all).

There are two problems with this:

> if I try to Search for something and am taken to Sign In or My Account that's a whole load thing that I didn't want and will take extra time to navigate

> if I'm searching for how to Sign In (or find My Account) and can't (which is what first alerted me to the issue just a few moments ago)

Now, the latter is likely to be fine on my end, given that I figured it out (though it's a minor annoyance), but it was pretty much just chance that I happened to notice it. I would hate to think we're losing people just because they literally can't figure out how to sign in!

The former isn't a huuuuuuuuuge deal, but it can be a pretty big quality-of-life issue that can drive users away from the interface.

I know you guys have a ton on your plate, and, honestly, this hasn't been an issue for me... until it was. I know you guys rock it hard, and I want you to succeed! So... have feedback!

My Chrome is set to 100% size (so, normal), and is up to date. I'm on a Windows machine running Win10 (much to my everlasting bitterness, but oh well).

Thanks!

No true clone theorem aside, of course... or not, given this is sci FANTASY and we don’t need to worry about perfect replication of all particle across space time!

Obviously, cloning exists in some forms - see that one place in Absalom station where everyone is a born clone of the same woman, and the mention of “no cloning” laws said enclave gets around by birthing themselves, but what are the source of those laws, and does the clone spell (“have an inert copy until you die”) somehow violate that? If it does, aren’t all bonesages inherently guilty by their electroencephalon? Most importantly [i]why doesn’t it exist as a sixth level speeeeeeelllllllllll?!?!

Starfinder is, like, literally the most perfect setting/system for that exact spell. Clone was always a bit “off theme” for full-on fantasy worlds, as the whole fetch/replica/etc. was covered by doppelgängers, simulacrum (also a bit “off theme” but less, being made of ice and snow or whatever), and so on. I mean, it worked - PF, like most every edition before it, was a gonzo (in a good way) pastiche of every setting under the sun. But for more “traditional” fantasy conceits, it was always one of those less-thematic abilities.

But for science fantasy? It ticks all the boxes: spell, sci-esque theming, and a nice “halfsies” point between divine (life/death/soul) and arcane (brew solutions up in a lab... a lab sounding sci-ish by nature, too)! It’s not even that much of a stretch to push it to sixth level spells...

I mean, an entire famous science fantasy space opera has a film, six (soon to be more?!) season television show, and (now “legendary”) book trilogy written about clones, cloning, and its fallout. (And yes, I did go chronological order, and no, I wasn’t referring to anything after the Zhan stuff, but that counts too).

Does anyone know if there are any ideas or plans for official release or exploration in the future? Any official reasons cited for it not being included?

I mean, I get simulacrum - it’s a potentially campaign-breaking spell with endless layers of arguments about it (though I think a hard light hologram spell should be a thing), but I wasn’t aware of such reasoning with cloning.

Thoughts?

Hip-hip-huzzah~!

Rock on, my dude!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY~!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY OF FREEDOM~!

HAPPY YOU ROCK A LOT~!

But, aside from that, and literally only managing to log on due to <TMI!>, I’m doing okay, and so are my wife and kids. Heart all y’all and maaaayyyyyybe be back for more this summer? Or tomorrow - who knows!

Also, this thread is now for mass wild speculation on what I could be doing with my life, and/or literally anything that isn’t against Paizo rules.

(And if you think I’m into MMOs as a time sink, you’d be super wrong*, as I’m nowhere NEAR that nerdy: I’m far nerdier, to the point that my most recent game is loosely built on one that I’ve never played, because of course it is.)

* we don’t have that much money, XD

So!

At one point, a player of mine ran into a Deck of Many Things.

So far, so good, right?

After a couple of cards, one of the cards was The Winged Serpent (which was subsequently drawn more than once).

In response to some bad cards, the player wanted to wish the bad cards out of existence. This was permitted within limits - it was suggested that maybe the cards were, instead, replaced by cards from a standard Deck of Many Things (though drawn randomly).

During this time, the Harrow Deck of Many Things ended up (secretly) sentient, and various other things, and it was implied that maybe the other deck was, and they didn't like each other, until they did (for reasons), and it was an interesting mess, that resulted with the drawing character having one opposed alignment clone out in the world with no personal memory of what had just happened, another opposed alignment clone who (along with the character) was of a reversed gender (and for a time became allied, but then opposed again - oh, those fickle cards), and so on.

At the time, it didn't really matter which cards were chosen (we'd specified several, but some were left undetermined - and the character ended up a disintegrated pile of ash and a gem shunted into the plane of air), but, for reasons, I was looking into revisiting it into what they ultimately should be.

So, reviewing my old notes, I was thinking about things, and realized there were some decisions that hadn't been made yet!

And so, now, I have some questions:

... so which ones should it have? Why?

... which six cards does it lose, and why?

In addition to shopping around for names, I'm also looking to develop the personalities of the decks, the way they can justify themselves as friends of each other and masters of different alignments, and it's noted that they actually "play quite well with other intelligent items and don't mind others" - I'm interested in developing this, as well.

Further, both have the secretive and uncaring intelligent item traits. Despite that, neither are malicious or harmful to those they like (which, from my notes, is most people). It seems at least the latter is gregarious and kind and pleasant of personality, while the former is focused and warm.

I'm looking forward to your thoughts and ideas!

So!

Hello.

I'm developing a setting and bashed out some races for it.

1) I'm not fully proficient, yet, in 5E-ism

2) I'm interested in making the races fun, fit their flavor, and (reasonably, sort of) balanced

Needless world-lore:

The world is a vaguely Castrovel-alike.

The region has mostly lashunta and elves, followed by half-elves, and, locally, changelings. After that, it's catfolk, hobgoblins, kitsune, kobold, wayang.

Anyway, feedback appreciated!

====================

Catfolk:
- ability: +2 dex, +1 cha
- age: as lashunta
- alignment: usually chaotic; independent, reactive, emotional, playful, sensual, loving, predatory
- medium
- fleet foot: speed 35
- darkvision
- anthrozoomorphic rapport: gain advantage on handle animal checks with animals of your kind
- cat attacks: claw (d4) or bite (d4) attacks
Subraces: house folk, wild folk, jungle folk, or royal folk
- - House: keen scent (advantage on Wisdom [perception] checks involving scent), protective (force disadvantage on attacks against adjacent allies); distractible (disadvantage on checks against distracting phenomena)
- - Wild: keen scent, mask of the wild (you can attempt to hide even when only lightly obscured by foliage, heavy rain, falling snow, mist, or other natural phenomena); nervous (disadvantage on any saves against fear effects)
- - Jungle: mask of the wild, dangerous mien (gain proficiency in intimidation, and advantage on all charisma-based checks related to being afraid of you; and disadvantage on all effects made to trusting you)
- - Royal: +1 charisma, any skill, authoritative (gain advantage on any social check that requires you to assert your authority or charge over others)

====================

Changeling:
- ability: +1 wisdom, +2 charisma
- age: as non-hag parent race, but ages faster
- alignment: usually chaotic
- medium
- speed: as non-hag parent
- darkvision
- hidden monster: unarmored AC is 11+dexterity, claw attack (d4)
Subraces: depending on the hag mother
- - annis hag (gain a claw attack as a bonus action),
- - ash hag (advantage on saves v. fire),
- - blood hag (Insight rolls against take disadvantage),
- - green hag ([choose one proficiency] deception or persuasion),
- - mute hag (advantage on saves v. gaze attacks),
- - night hag (advantage v. disease),
- - sea hag (proficiency with athletics; advantage in swimming),
- - storm hag (resistance to all weather-based effects and lightning damage),
- - winter hag (proficiency with athletics; advantage when used on ice)

====================

Hobgoblin:
- ability: +1 dex, +2 con
- age: as human
- alignment: usually lawful and evil
- medium
- speed: standard
- darkvision
- beast-tamer: training in handle animal
- martial training: gain training in simple and martial weapons, light and medium armor
- martial advantage: (1/turn) deal +2d6 damage with weapon attacks v. a target if another ally is in 5 ft. and isn’t incapacitated

====================

Kitsune:
- ability: +1 dex, +2 charisma
- age: as elf
- alignment: usually chaotic
- medium
- speed: 30 ft.
- darkvision
- biting: bite attack (d4)
Subraces: vulpesoul, ninetails, nogitsune
- - ninetails: kitsune magic ([3/day] dancing lights, druidcraft, prestidigitation)
-> nine tails with a deeply mystical and aloof mein
- - nogitsune: vicious ([choose one] gain a bite attack as a bonus action when you make an attack (1/day per level); or (1/day) auto-advantage or negate disadvantage on a bite attack, gain a bite attack) {or: the first combat you enter each day, gain advantage with your bite attack, and you may make 1 bite attack as a bonus action each round}; cruel (gain proficiency with a poison kit; if a class gives you proficiency, gain advantage, instead); contagious whisper (when you successfully use deception or a charm effect, others who interact with the affected target have disadvantage against that same lie or charm effect)
-> seven tails with a deep sense of fury and cruelty
- - vulpesoul: foxform (gain the druid ability to wildshape as a druid (1/day), but only into the form of a fox; can begin or end this as a reaction) can be done as a reaction); mask of the wild; proficiency (acrobatics)
-> one tail, extremely cautious and movement-focused

====================

Kobold:
- ability: +4 dexterity
- age: short (maturity at 12, maximum age at 60)
- alignment: lawful and evil
- small
- speed: 30 ft.
- anthrozoomorphic rapport: gain advantage on handle animal checks with animals of your kind
- pack tactics (gain advantage on attack when any ally that isn’t incapacitated is within 5 ft. of a foe)
- darkvision
- sunlight sensitivity
- tunnel trapper (training in perception and stealth; gain advantage on checks and saves v. traps)
- natural armor (unarmored they gain 12+dex modifier)

====================

Ratfolk:
- ability: +2 dexterity, +1 intelligence
- age: short (maturity at 12, maximum age at 60)
- alignment: lawful or neutral
- small
- speed: 20 ft.
- anthrozoomorphic rapport: gain advantage on handle animal checks with animals of your kind
- swarming (gain advantage on attack when any ally that isn’t incapacitated is within 5 ft. of a foe)
- darkvision
- keen scent
- skulk (gain advantage in stealth)
- packrat (training and advantage in sleight of hand)

====================

Wayang:
- ability: +1 dexterity, +2 intelligence
- age: as a gnome
- alignment: lawful
- small
- speed: 20 ft.
- shadow resistance: gain advantage saves against shadowy effects, and resistance to necrotic damage
- shadow magic ([1/day] minor illusion, pass without trace)
- superior darkvision
- sunlight sensitivity
- skulk (gain advantage in stealth)
- trickster (training in deception and sleight of hand)

=============================

Half-Elf (Lashunta)
Ability +2 cha, +1 int, dex
Age: standard would be ~435 years
Alignment: ??
Size: medium; usually 4-6.5 ft. tall
Speed: 30
Languages: lashunta; and: elven, quori, sylvan, blah
Knowledgeable: gain advantage on any one intelligence-based skill of your choice
Lashunta magic: friends cantrip; (1/day) prestidigitation [3rd], detect thoughts [5th]
Limited Telepathy: with those you share a language with in 30 ft.

Lashunta
Ability +2 cha, +1 int, dex
Age: standard would be ~435 years
Alignment: ??
Size: medium; usually 4-6.5 ft. tall
Speed: 30
Languages: lashunta; and: elven, quori, sylvan, blah
Knowledgeable: gain advantage on any one intelligence-based skill of your choice
Lashunta magic: mage hand cantrip; (1/day) detect thoughts or dissonant whisper [5th]
Limited Telepathy: with those you share a language with in 30 ft.

================================

Originals for conversion found here, though hobgoblins (and kobolds) pulled more from the 5E MM than anything else (though my kobolds - and hobgoblins, really, but less - are demonstrably better than those in the MM).

These are very likely not the final versions, no matter what.

If there are any "official" treatments, I'd love to see them! Thanks!

New video!

Fun premise!

Anyone want to share their stories?

This can be done on the video itself, or here in the thread!

I'll go first!

So! Funny "crossover" (-ish)/self-referential story time!

Most of our crossovers are more accurately termed "references" - things that are homages to something else rather than actually being that something else - or else are actual references to our own previously-established continuity.

Two examples of the first (homages to our games):
- Generic/unPublished-World (albeit an FR-published module): I was playing a dwarven crafter wizard who specialized in inexpensive (and cursed) items and rapid crafting. In any event, he and his "sisters" (two drow; all three were adopted and raised by dwarves) were slowly drawn into the events of a local town where a mysterious warrior woman used advanced detective work, research, and knowledge skills to investigate and solve various crimes. She wore black armor, hood, and mask, had a black flowing cloak, and a myriad of pockets for all sorts of specialized items... yes, we, too, had batman (well, batwoman, sans explicit bat imagery) in our game!

- Pathfinder (Carrion Crown): An arrogant genius by the name of Assant (a respected frienemy of a good friend) was a noted exceptionally bored genius of dubious moral character who's incredible intelligence and extreme abilities often left him exceptionally bored. Over time getting to know him, it was revealed that he was a noted violinist, occasionally indulged in opiates to overcome his frequent bouts of depression, and often researched a huge and eclectic variety of topics in order to better assist his various schemes and endeavors, and frequently "blotted out" information he thought was no longer useful to "make room" in his "head book" for new and more important information. We were really into a certain BBC series at the time, so the connection wasn't hard to make... (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_(TV_series))

One example of the second (self-referential):
- Forgotten Realms (home brew game): We once played a crossover game in which a PC character (a young female avatar of Pelor named "Basha", called his "daughter" - she'd arrived by way of Vecna's machinations, which, itself, is another long story) ended up severed from her "father" (Pelor) deity of Turmish (a country in FR), and became strongly associated with the sun deity Lathander (who, in-published-canon, was eventually revealed as a version of the sun god Amaunator). In any event, we eventually played a different game, in which the characters came from areas near and around Turmish and other places somewhat nearby. After looking at the host of deity options, reading the descriptions, and listening to the lore, two characters eventually (for various reasons) chose to worship a local Sunset-themed goddess, Basha. It was some time into the game, before I had a bit of an in-character aside about Basha and things related to her, but the two players who'd chosen her look at each other in a minor bit of confusion, and one asks, "Wait, I've forgotten - was she published that way?" ... to which I could only reply, "Well, I don't know - weren't you the one that played her?" Everyone was floored when they suddenly remembered that she'd been a PC.

I don't think Rick has his own thread. That sounds like something someone with a question for him should start though!

He's a very good guy, so it would make sense if he liked FFT.

I'm very good at doing things in a timely fashion.

Just ask those who do PbP with me!

...

Nevermind, I'll just ask them for you!

They certainly all agree! All of them!

>.>

<.<

Whew! Looks like they bought it!

Anyway, ask Rick Kunz all your questions!

Here!

EDIT: title edited to comply with his clearly expressed wishes... ;D

So... does size actually, you know, mean anything in Starfinder?

I mean, yes, technically, it means something - it means roughly 2-4 ft. in height or length, 8-60 lbs., 5 ft. space, 5 ft. natural reach (long or tall).

But that's really nothing.

That size category could well be reorganized as: rough 2-8 ft. in height or length, 8-500 lbs., and 5 ft. space, 5 ft. natural reach (long or tall).

There are really no game rule differences between these two entries and one takes less ink/effort to print.

(A similar argument can be made for fine/diminutive/tiny, but at least they have differing space requirements.)

We know, now, from this post that weapon sizes mean nothing.

So: anything?

It seems like there might be zero mechanical difference between sizes, but I'd be curious if this was confirmed anywhere.

That could lead to really funny stealth weirdness, akin to the old jokes about the Tarrasque's disguise modifier...

EDIT: Ugh, posting before I completed it. Sorry, I'm sick.

To be clear, I'm not saying that it should have all the various modifiers found in the Pathfinder game - Starfinder seems to have gone to great lengths to streamline things, after all. Rather, I'm curious if I'm just missing something.

For the record, I've tried to scan the Tactical Rules section (especially around 255-256), the Races chapter, and the Pathfinder Legacy chapter, but I can't find anything in those, leading me to conclude that there is none - it just feels weird coming off of Pathfinder, so I am attempting to clarify if I'm missing something or it is an intentional change. :D

So I've been in early negotiations with a player who's interested in playing Eutropia as a vigilante - no surprise, there!

I'm curious if anyone has good ideas for incorporating her or other important NPCs into the narrative as PCs?

So, in the Skills chapter, under the Disguise skill, you have the ability to change your appearance.

The chart, below, mentions a "DC Modifier."

But... what DC, exactly, are you modifying? It's not really clarified anywhere in the text.

Change Appearance
You can use Disguise to change your appearance with 1d3 × 10 minutes of work with a disguise kit, by casting a spell such as disguise self, or by using a technological device such as a holoskin. The GM rolls the Disguise check in secret, so you’re not sure how good your disguise is. This check is opposed by the Perception check (see page 144) of anyone who might realize that you are not who you appear to be. If you are not drawing attention to yourself, other creatures do not usually get to attempt a Perception check to pierce your disguise. If creatures are being particularly alert for suspicious activity (such as security personnel on a starship or space station), it’s assumed that such observers are taking 10 on their Perception checks.

The effectiveness of your disguise depends on how much you’re changing your appearance. Without the aid of transformative magic or technology that allows you to do otherwise, you can use Disguise only to appear as a creature that is your size or one size category larger or smaller than you. This does not change your actual size or reach. Disguises are general—you cannot disguise yourself as a specific person.

Certain magic spells, such as disguise self, grant you a +10 bonus to Disguise checks.

The DCs for Disguise checks are adjusted by the type of disguise as well as other circumstances determined by the GM. These modifiers are cumulative; use all that apply.

I've made bold the important part: the only part in the text that refers to DCs at all.

Now, while general DCs are explained in Gamemastering, on page 392,

Skill DCs It is up to you, as the GM, to determine the DCs of the various skill checks the players will attempt during play. Many of the skill descriptions include guidance on typical DCs for skill checks, but there may be times when you need to come up with a DC on your own. If a skill check does not have a predetermined DC, or if a player wants to attempt a task that is not covered in a skill’s description, use the following guidelines. A challenging DC for a skill check is equal to 15 + 1-1/2 × the CR of the encounter or the PCs’ Average Party Level (APL). For an easier check, you might reduce the DC by 5, while increasing the DC by 5 makes for a more difficult check. Changing the DC by 10 or more makes for either a trivial check with little chance of failure or a prohibitively high check with little chance of success, so be cautious when adjusting skill check DCs!

... that isn't the method the Disguise skill uses. It's explicitly, "Roll a disguise check; others oppose it with a perception." - there isn't a set DC to make, unless it's generally expected that it gets harder to make disguises as things go along.

So I stumbled across a question.

Page 346, under Magic and Spells, the iconic mystic - clearly a devotee of Pharasma - seems to be using the animate dead spell.

I mean, it could be the control undead spell (found on both the facing and same page) - though, given the way the shirren is drawing up her hand and at least one of the dead creatures seems to be standing up in response to said action, it kind of looks like she's raising them -, but, really, it doesn't matter: either way, it seems that a Pharasman is using undead.

I mean, in her picture on page 82 (Classes), 333 (Magic and Spells), she's clearly got a sigil of Pharasma floating above her head (and it's unclear if it's there or not on 346 - it could just be out of frame).

So, that leads to a question: has Pharasma revised her stance on undead? Or is it simply her worshipers?

... and why?

Man, I want to see (almost) all of them!

Intrigue

So, to introduce this puppy, what are the Intrigue Systems?

- Influence: I suggest that this might be a running theme once per AP. Certainly the AP isn't going to entirely abandon the AP format to make everything into an Influence from beginning to end; but I figure that this might well allow for some sort of running total or trend among a few different groups, individuals, and/or organizations.

- Heists: I think that there will likely be at least one, probably more, Heist-themes, but I'm uncertain the writers of an AP can actually have a Heist-system in the AP without it becoming a pretty standard dungeon crawl. My suspicion is that there will be more than one full dungeon, but with sidebars for running the dungeon as a Heist instead of a Crawl. In general, though, I'm fairly certain this is one subsystem they can't really bank on.

- Leadership: Well, I mean, Leadership, in some factor or another, is almost certainly going to be part of it. The only real question is whether or not it's going to be straightforward or tricky to implement these rules into an ongoing AP.

- Nemesis: Not only is this going to be part of it, it's going to be part of the background, too - make no mistake, Princess Eutropia's rivals are going to be going full-on Nemesis against her! And they're very likely to include the PCs in the mix! ... the only question is if the PCs get the chance to push back!

- Pursuit: There is no doubt in my mind that this will appear at least once in this AP. I doubt it'll be too common, but I think the one time is going to be fairly mythic. I'm curious, though, if it's going to be a pursuit by the PCs, or a pursuit of the PCs...

- Research: Much as I recently came to love this, I suspect that it won't be used too terribly often. But it certainly will be used once. I mean, there's a lion of an opportunity for research in a library, you know... *cough*

- Spells of Intrigue: I dunno. Maybe?

Next, let's look at Intrigue Elements:

- Relationships and Loyalty: I remain extremely confident that this is going to be a primary theme of this AP. It's incredibly potent and important to groups no matter their inclination (subterfuge or directly).

- Measures and Countermeasures: Again, this is going to be one of the most important themes running through the whole AP. Each entry of the AP is going to be a series of these by the PCs and by their foes.

- The Importance of Appearance: Look, you're trying to get Eutropia on the throne. Coming off as a bunch of thugs working for a cruel despot of a princess isn't going to go well for your side. To that end, I expect a lot of...

- Bargains and Compromise: Seriously, though, this AP almost writes itself in some ways this is not to undermine the hard work of the actual writers, who are basically going to be slaves to a clock and be forced to make extremely hard and difficult choices and wording! So awesome! Certainly there are going to be times when the Princess (and/or the PCs as her agents) is going to be expected - and may even find it necessary - to make bargains or compromise to get important people to throw their support in with her. Compromise is going to be an ever-present specter, and the AP will most definitely make it questionable whether or not what they're getting is worth what they're giving. I suspect that several of the Dungeon Crawls "Heists" the PCs are expected to undergo are there to give them advantage in these - or even as possible alternates to the bargain/compromise line (which might happen, if they fail, or choose to go that route to avoid the possibility of corruption or violence).

- The Power of Secrets: Given that it's been noted as important to play Tomb of the Iron Medusa (and the themes found in Library of the Lion, as well), it's clear that Taldor is a nation that runs on secrets. Given the certain inclusion of the Lion Blades, this is going to be critical, with this holding vast influence in the Importance of Appearance and Bargain and Compromise themes.

Every single one of the Intrigue Themes are going to be super-important as well: A Game of Nobles plus The Criminal Underworld plus War of Propaganda plus Law and Order are all of vital importance in a civil war where (at least) two individuals are present and pushing the legitimacy of their claim. This, of course, yields Ultimate Intrigue title-drop!

So what do you guys think? Yes? No?

What are you hoping for, and what are you expecting?

Let's chat about this thing!

Pathfinder Unchained introduced numerous awesome subsystems and ideas for how to alter your game

I finally, finally gained access to Starfinder today, so, of course, my very first, initial thought was, "Hey, I've not played a game, yet! I can't wait! I'm so hype! So why don't I entirely alter the skill system?!"

... can't say that I'm sane.

Anyhoo, Background skills, Consolidated skills, Grouped skills.

Wheeeeeeeeee~!

First, let's look at Starfinder Skills, and compare those to Pathfinder Skills (fortunately, the Pathfinder Legacy chapter can help with this!):

}NONE{ - - - - - - > > > Appraise, Use Magic Device
Acrobatics < - > Acrobatics, Escape Artist, Fly
Athletics < - > Climb, Swim
Bluff < - > Bluff
Computers < - > NONE (probably the closest was a variant of mysticism)
Culture < - > Knowledge (history, local, nobility), Linguistics
Diplomacy < - > Diplomacy
Disguise < - > Disguise
Engineering < - > Disable Device, Knowledge (engineering)
Intimidate < - > Intimidate
Life Science < - > Knowledge (nature)
Medicine < - > Heal
Mysticism < - > Knowledge (arcana, planes, religion), Spellcraft
Perception < - > Perception
Physical Science < - > Knowledge (dungeoneering, geography)
Piloting < - > NONE (probably the closest was Profession (sailor))
Profession < - > Perform, Profession
Sense Motive < - > Sense Motive
Sleight of Hand < - > Sleight of Hand
Stealth < - > Stealth
Survival < - > Handle Animal, Ride, Survival
}VARIOUS (engineering, mysticism, or appropriate profession){ < < < - - - - Craft

So, the first thing you should notice is that, to some extent, outside of introducing two new skills, they already did a partial version of both consolidating skills, and grouping them together at the same time. Plus, with the elimination of Appraise (and UMD, sort of), they already relegated some skills to Background skills... well, sort of - really, they handle it more by making them assumed to be auto-succeed (pg 500).

BUT! We won't let that stop us, will we?!

Oh, no, we will not!

So let's tackle Background Skills first!

We'll look at Consolidated Skills second!

And we'll address the possibility of Grouped Skills last!

So, internet: what the heck? Really? Really?

You have pictures of, like, everything!

Sigh.

Oh well - that's why I'm here!

I'm looking images!

Basically, there are an absolute ton of characters in Kingmaker! This is awesome!

... however pictures are hard to come by, as a player!

While it's nice and all that they exist in the books, it's difficult for a GM to hold the book, point to the character, and flip between the pages.

That said, we've used a few tricks, but... it would be nice if we could get solid imagery.

And the thing is, there is a ton of it out there! Like, a dozen different NPCs, ranging from the boy you rescue, Tig, to the grig you meat, Tyg-Titter-Tut!

Generally, you can find not only the original art, but even (when it was otherwise black and white) colored versions!

... and yet there is only a single image - the official one - of Satinder and Quintessa (I mean, really, Internet, I've got my safe search on, but you should have so much fan art of those alone that I can't help but run into it), and pretty much nothing from any characters that appear thereafter - with the exception of the final boss.

So... what gives?

I basically have everyone from the first books, and most up to where you meet Satinder/Quintessa Morne, but I'm lacking anyone beyond that, and dedicated searches have turned up nothing. I'm mostly interested in non-villains (though the villains, like Count Drelev or that one evil gargoyle), are cool, too!) and especially quest-givers (like Limm Ticklewing, or that archer who hires you to find evidence of cheating).

So... anyone? Anyone? Beuller? Anyone? Beuller? Beuller? Beuller? Anyone? Beuller?

And thanks!

Man, the horrendous things I do to a language just to make a possibly-obscure webcomic reference.

Anyway, title says what I'm looking for: how to become a bigger dragon.

Form of the dragon III peaks at Huge. We have two whole size categories to grow!

On a basic level, it seems like you could blend something like divine vessel after you're under the effects of fotd3, and call it a day - after all, dv is transmutation, but isn't polymorph which is (I think) the only part of that school that doesn't stack.

To be clear, I'm not looking to Taino out extra size increases to scores, I don't care where the effects come from, I'm just trying to figure out if we can use a valid rules combination and why and how. For this exercise, feel free to note magic items or spells I'm unaware of. Please cite and (unlike me, now, as I'm out of time) please provide links (d20pfsrd is a very acceptable source to me, despite the bizarre snubbing it sometimes recieves around here; though 1st party material preferred, 3rd party will be accepted as mild reference/example of others' takes on the thing).

Related question that I feel still fits into the Rules forum - beyond whatever reading of RAW you're using, do you feel like the trends you see among the rules over-all support this? Note that this is different from FAQratta or rulings - I'm just curious if you have RAW elements that support your claim. This is I necessary, but enlightening for the purpose of getting a better grasp of the Rules in general.

Also, inb4 James Rinser claims that RAW is whatever he says it is (i.e. not what is written down)! I love ya, my dude, but that particular line of logic is neither useful in this conversation, nor productive. Seriously; the guy has great ideas, but just in case he finds this thread, I am attempting to head off that derail/argument before it starts, as it has gone pretty much the same way every time it's been brought up. I'd be interested in hearing other thoughts from you, though!

Also, also: please be courteous and respectful. You may disagree with someone, and that's okay, but please do not try to argue them out of their position, beyond citing relevant points, and showing supporting evidence. I may have (hopefully gently) ribbed James one paragraph up, but I want it made clear that actual commentary on people should probably be avoided.

Thanks for your time!

So... who are the people in the Anniversary Edition's PG?

I'm a GM, and I have the old 3.5 version, so I recognize the (very changed!) Lyrie, but I'm really not sure about the other three.

I've found some of the updated art, and generally we've used that instead, and some of them are so different as to be almost entirely unrecognizable; so if these are characters mentioned somewhere else in the AP, it'd be nice to show off the pictures and go, "Oh, yeah, this is this person."

Also, and this is a weird question, but is there any organized list of, say, all the NPCs in Rise of the Runelords, so that I could kind of keep them all straight? Thanks in advance!

Similarly, is there a collated list of changes between the editions with brief descriptions? For example, I've heard that there's the edition of "an encounter" with Lonjiku at the beginning, but I know nothing else about it, really. I don't need a full thing with that, but something like, "In it, he gets angry at PCs for hitting on Ameiko." or something would be nice, if possible.

Thanks!

So!

Here we are!

A test campaign to test stuff~!

HAH~!

Suck on that success, my currently-at-the-time-of-posting-this-bad-Internet-service~!

This will be the place where various gameplay is tested.

Sometimes this will be to test group cohesion and work, sometimes weird game concepts, and sometimes other things - if it ever gets used all that much.

If you hang out here and start to see some weird things, like a suddenly shifting cast or roster of people, now you know why.

And here we goooo~!

This is a Discussion thread. It is meant to Discuss... Stuff.

... that we're discussing. (Whoever "we" are.)

Yay!

This is a kind of "placeholder" for games and events for any future PbPs I run.

While technically a recruitment page, I'm mostly just exploring how to start a campaign again, and set this up for future stuff.

Game on!

So! I was part of a campaign a while back that never actually received a title, and it makes my campaigns tab really weird! I was trying to look up and recall old games that i'd played in here and nearly forgotten it, because there was no name or link to it visible... but the option to hide the campaign still existed. It took me quite some time to figure out what, exactly was going on, before I realized that the campaign actually literally had no title - none was ever written.

Is there any way it could be edited to be "Untitled Campaign" or "Lloyd Jackson's Untitled Campaign" for those of us who've played it? Because that would be extremely useful and make finding it (and recalling the good times) that much easier!

If not, I understand. Thanks for all you do!

So, unrelated to two other threads that are floating around right now *cough* I started thinking about what it would take to actually possess a construct.

Not in the, "I own a Construct. Watch as I tell it to pummel that guy." sense, but the, "I am a Construct (for now). Watch as I use my Construct-muscles to pummel this guy." sense.

Is there any rules way known to do this?

Polymorph any object is known and probably accepted at my table, but seems dubious in a broad sense, at best, considering its weird wording. I'm curious about any other method outside of that spell.

Preferably a method of somehow physically inhabiting a body different than your own - as noted in another thread, neither magic jar nor possession work, because, as necromancy effects, constructs are immune to those.

Thanks!

EDIT: For the record, this would not actually see play without GM approval first. If anything, I'd be far more likely to inhabit the ship that's being discussed elsewhere. That would be friggin' amazing. "Captain of the ship? Yeah, sure. But I am the ship!"

So, I was going through my almost-annual email slog, and noticed that an order of mine was experiencing problems due to payment method... and was going to run out of time and be cancelled, if I didn't change it!

I've attempted to rectify that (by putting in the new payment method and deleting the old), but, uh, outside of slogging through 1k+ emails, is there any way of knowing if I've accidentally had an order discarded or broken due to the payment stuff?

It happened because someone'd stolen my card number and it was cancelled - I just didn't realize that by using my new card number, I didn't invalidate the old one.

Sorry!

What's the best way to proceed? Did I somehow lose out on any orders that I'd had pending and collapsed due to old payment method?

Thank you all so much! Sorry for being a dunderhead about all this.

... and if the latter, when?

Geas.

Just checked it out on the PRD and it, too, has been altered to match.

So, just to check, the old version, from 3.5 did almost exactly what I thought - I just thought it had a one-year-time limit to the thing, instead of the "1 day/level" effect.

Has PF always had the "like lesser, only stronger" geas, or was that some sort of errata that was hidden in somewhere that I missed?

Don't get me wrong - over-all, I actually welcome this change, but... I'm just really thrown off by having been so very wrong about PF's version of geas.

From here.

Please carry on!

So, in case you've somehow missed the incredible Bestiary 5, allow me to introduce the phenomenal zygomind (not yet available on the PRD).

Now, first, let me say: this thing is awesome. I mean, I hate it (because it's terrifying), but it's awesome, nonetheless! So cool~!

However... how did this get a rating of CR 18?

Going only by general monster rules, while its hit points are about right for a CR 17, it's saves are CR 18-19, it's AC is quite low (at the CR 10-range), and its attacks are CR 14 (with CR 9 damage! ... or CR 16, if you include the constrict as well; I've never really been sure about that)...

... it's good DC is literally off the chart (by five points), and it's "secondary" DC is CR 30.

Now, you might be able to hand-waive the averages of all of this*, but that... really doesn't reflect what a CR is supposed to be.

Now, drawing on this ancient post from way back when CR is supposed to reflect the expenditure of about 20% of a party's resources (seemingly common, but not directly expressed in the rules that I can tell) - but more specifically, an "average" APL should be = ~the party's APL... anything less is easy or even insignificant.

* And even then, this doesn't really work out. CR 30+{31?}+14+9+10+18.5+17 = ~61+23+28.5+17 = ~84+40+28.5 = ~124+28.5 = ~152.5; (152.5)/7 = 21.7857142857142857... ~> CR 21 or 22.

But is the Zygomind really "easy" for a party of level 19s?

Frankly, it entirely depends on two things: the environment and the range the party chooses to engage with the creature (which is determined by the environment).

At 300 ft in a nice, open plain (which is a possibility in "any temperate") it's not even a challenge. Give a paladin a longbow, a metric ton of arrows, and enjoy. Heck, gather a ton of low-level paladins, have them all smite "that thing" and let them pepper the sucker from 400+ feet at -6 range penalty (presupposing you allow them to see it from that far away*); this doesn't cost much, allows you to bypass the DR, and allows you to whittle that hp down (though be sure to make some marks nearby with really long-range spells so you know how far away it is, if it moves toward or away from you at its 5ft/rnd). An alternate possibility is simply grabbing a ton of wands of fireball** (at 11,250 gp a pop) and going to town. I mean, you'd need to use three each round to overcome that fast healing (on average), and you'd need to burn through about 24 charges on each of them (so about 33,750 gp for the initial; get back around 17,500 gp after re-sell).

* This is partially a joke. The Perception DC for something is +1/10 ft distance, so something at 400 ft. away would 38 - 0 for noticing a visible creature, +40 for the range, and -2 for "favorable conditions" in this instance. Of course, it should require a DC +whocaresitstoobig to notice the sun, soooo...)
** Fireball has a range of 400+ feet - something you'd need to overcome the 300 ft. aura. At 5d6/use (do to CL 5) = ~3.5*5 = 22.5 dmg; presume half for the zygomind's surprisingly high reflex save, so 11.25 dmg/use. It takes 24 (about) uses to push the 266 hp down to zero, but since you're netting an over-all "gain" of 2.5 hp/use on the thing, that could easily net you the "extra" hp to kill it over 24 uses.

So... that's really not so bad, right? I mean, at 18th level, 530k... that 33.75k is a drop in the bucket!

But the problem is... that's pretty much it. That's the only way anyone can reasonably approach this thing. A plain, wide-open field.

That DC is a real killer - literally, as well as figuratively, given that if you fail that, you're pretty much done for.

Let's compare the paladin, the paragon and posterchild of all "woah, 'dem saves" characters.

Good will saves, nets you a +11 at 18th. Shiny~!
Pumped up maximized charisma nets you a +12*. Woo~!
Spend some of that money on a nice save-booster~! Yeah~!

That nets a nice +28! Holy cow! ... v. a DC 36. I have to consistently roll an 8 or better every round within 300 ft.

That... that is insane.

Note: yes, the paladin can get a better will save by pumping up his wisdom and taking iron will. But... why? There are exactly zero paladin features that require a wisdom score, and paladins are immune to many of the most common and important mind-affecting effects anyway - and those few they lack, they can cover with a nice protection from evil or magic circle.

I mean, I've spent a fortune** on making this happen. And what about everyone else?

Cleric and druids and similar high-will plus high-wisdom characters? They get that +28* as well (though they can't pump it more than a couple of points higher via effects like Iron Will, unlike the paladin).

Anyone else? They're going to be needing loooooooooooots of luck. Even high-will non-wisdom characters only get around a +16 (presuming high will and protection cloak), meaning they need natural twenties every round to avoid getting sucked into to the sweet embrace of the zygomind.

* 18+2 racial+4 level+4 inherent+6 enhancement = 34 (+12)
** 12,500 for the cloak, 110,000 for the tome, 36,000 for the headband. That's 12,500+110,000+36,000 = 158,500 gold. No longer a drop in the bucket of my 530k, most of which has probably gone into my weapon, followed by armor.

But, you know, what we've described are characters that are really, truly, solidly built. These are semi-typical players who maximize most of their advantages.

But what does Paizo generally suppose most players will have?

Fortunately, we can know!

Kyra, the poster-child for high-wisdom, high-will starts off with... a seventeen. At level twelve, she has... an 18. Even putting the bonus at sixteenth level into her wisdom (not guaranteed, since she didn't put either of the lower-level bonuses there) grabbing a circlet of wisdom +6 (again, not how she's built), iron will, and inherent bonuses to the max... she nets a 30 wisdom*, dropping her will save by 1 point, compared to our own, but indicating that she's not really expected to have that kind of save at 18th level. Seela, at least, fairs a little bit better. Presupposing she follows all of our advice (which she didn't, but, let's just say she's starting now) and ups her wisdom to niggle that extra will save benefit, she'd be able to juuuusssst about equal what I noted above (or surpass with iron will or extra wisdom boosts). Lini is also in a pretty good situation (though not quite ideal), as she's focused rather heavily on her wisdom.

* 17+6+5+2 = 19+11 = 30

... and that's it. None of the other iconics - either there, or printed elsewhere, to my knowledge - have either the build or even inclination toward it to face this thing at 18th level*.

* As an example, I believe all of the rest start with a 15 as their highest score, modified by racial abilities. I could be wrong, but counter examples are likely very rare.

Don't get me wrong. An arcane or divine caster could just avoid it, stay out of range, and spew long-range damage spells.

But that's a very boring combat. And that presupposes they have the range and ability to notice it... which this creature's write-up pretty expressly suggests against (by noting that it's surrounded by trees or in hills or whatever, granting it all kinds of cover or concealment).

It just begs the question... who is this monster for?

Paladins on an open field, and solo high level casters (although these would likely need several wand-adroit creatures or those with natural spell-casting helping them each round) are not a really a terribly interesting battle scenario.

Given the sharp decline of resources by level, placing this at a lower level is just asking for TPK.

Higher levels work much better because of these defenses, but even then, there's a significant problem, and the reason I find it hard to believe that this is a CR 18. It's the kind of thing that, despite how cool it is, makes me, as a GM, go, "Oohh~nononononono!" and just nope right on out of there.

It's effects aren't able to be defended against in any significant way other than brute numbers.

None of its abilities are "mind-affecting" despite requiring a will save and messing with the mind. None of them are a "sleep effect" despite causing sleep. Fascinate isn't a mind-affecting effect and neither (weirdly enough) is "mindscape" - heck, in the Occult Adventures it's not even clear the creature has to have a mind, from my reading (though if I missed something somewhere, that'd be an awesome point to make), though that'd make "plain sense" - it's the question of being able to, say, trick or destroy a golem or undead or vermin in a mindscape or not.

And here's a thing... if it doesn't affect mindless creatures, than it's unclear that the create greater mindscape spell-like ability actually does anything (considering the description specifically calls out the user); and said spell is a [mind-affecting] ability.

So... is this a sign that Paizo is moving away from all the descriptor-heavy rules-stuff and going more with a "loose" and "plain" approach to rules? Is Zygomind just not "clear" enough? Is this all the fevered rantings of a deluded lunatic (that's me :D) who can't read plain English? Are modestly equipped 20th level unbreakable [url=http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/fighter]fighter elves the great bane of this class, or just another chump for the fire?

Is it all CR 18, or what? And if so... how?

To be clear, I think this thing is amazing, and I really want to be able to use it. I can easily just ignore the problems and smooth them over, but I'd like to understand the intent. As-written (in the normally codex-like descriptor language) it looks like the spell-like ability isn't usable, and the other special abilities kind of take over. In "plain English" I'd ignore those things and just presume... which is my tendency... but the other abilities don't specify, and there's all too often some design point I don't quite see.

Any takers? Ideas? Inspirations?

And check out that amazing bestiary~!