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I've been reading up on Ronin in the forums and seen how there was a conflict on Ronin as being something undesirable and Ronin as something people wanted to willingly play.

I've been thinking about it and wondered why not make Ronin/Knight Errant a free archetype and replace the idea of an Order with something like a penalty called "Masterless", or "Dishonored" or something.

My idea is take the abilities the Ronin/Knight Errant get and add those to an archetype that has no ability cost BUT is limited on that you can not have both Ronin/Knight Errant and an Order. If you take an Order than you lose the archetype and if you take the archetype it can only be after you have lost the Order.

And in place of the Ronin/Knight Errant Order instead have a penalty that is based on how exactly you lost your Order. Examples could range from willingly left the Order or your liege due to character growth via story; to something like outliving the liege you swore fealty to because they died in combat without any heirs; to maybe some sort of natural event like a major river getting redirected due to a landslide or perhaps a new trade route opening up that diverts trade to a new area and thus makes the lands the character is attached to destitute and so the monarch strips the liege the character has sworn fealty to of their position and divides the land up among the surrounding neighbors; or perhaps the loss of title and land by the liege the character has sworn fealty to was purely political in nature or maybe the title holder did something like an attempted coup that failed and the character was either a knowing and willing participant, an unknowing one or they didn't even know what was happening because they were elsewhere on a task.

It just seems like if Ronin/Knight Errant is meant to be an undesirable choice it should reflect that in having some sort of actual penalties rather than just having fewer abilities than every other Order does. So making it an archetype that can stack with every archetype seems like the only way to allow people to play it without fighting over the historical accuracy.

This would expand the ability of characters as to be a Samurai/Cavalier you technically need to be of noble birth. Giving Ronin/Knight Errant the archetype treatment could reflect the character's common birth. Maybe they saw a bunch of Samurai/Knights fighting in battle and it awed the character; maybe a Samurai/Knight defended to village the character comes from; or maybe even a Samurai/Knight was a cruel monster and the character choses to become one to do good rather than harm or believes that might makes right and so they seek to become mightier. Either way the Ronin/Knight Errant archetype could allow the character to become a sort of unsanctioned Samurai/Knight, one who knows how to fight like one but doesn't have any official backing nor an fealty to anyone but themselves and those they trust.

The penalties could be as simple as losing all abilities as normal, to losing all the abilities plus also facing an unfriendly attitude when meeting anyone from your former Order to, at worst, actively being hunted and actually taking negatives on certain skills checks. Example: the character was willingly involved with their liege's attempt at a coup. The coup failed and while their liege was killed they survived but, depending on their Order, they were cast out and now not only don't have their Order abilities but are also actively hunted by the monarch they tried to overthrow and their former Order for dishonoring it. This would lead to wanted posters in every major settlement so they'd have to try disguising themselves to avoid being captured.

Anyway, this is just my way or trying to come up with a way that Ronin/Knight Errant could be a choice while there still being something that is undesirable to be. After all, a Samurai/Knight may look down on a Ronin/Knight Errant with contempt and perhaps even challenge them to a fight but there'd still be something below them.

As for how to get them that can be as simple as an atonement/retraining process. The same thing you do if you violate an Orders Edicts and lose their abilities. To join an Order from the archetype the character goes through the atonement process where they retrain themselves to forget everything the archetype would give them as they go from being a loner to becoming part of an organization and learning to rely on other people. And the reverse would work as well, retraining yourself to become self reliant as you can now no longer rely on anyone but yourself.

Here's the link for the Sandy Peterson Mythos Ghoul if you're interested. It's built more to make them playable as either a 1st level character or as a way to replace a character's race. So there's no having to incur massive penalties to create them, aside from the Nascent Ghoul period which has some hefty penalties to Charisma and Dexterity, but those should be expected of a transitional stage. The section gives a pretty detailed accounting of how the Ghouls think.

Also of note is the Sandy Peterson supplement also adds Dreamlands Cats as a playable race.

Ok, I think you may have gotten the wrong Ghoul. When I'm talking Mythos Ghoul I don't mean an Undead Ghoul, I mean a Living Ghoul.

Mythos Ghouls need to eat, drink and sleep just like any other living being. While they may look monstrous and have an unpleasant aroma they are very much a living being.

Here's the description from the Sandy Peterson Games book:

The word “ghoul” often conjures grotesque images that shock and nauseate. Dwellers in graveyards and connoisseurs of flesh and bone, these hooved eaters of the dead move with hungered poise, slaver for the living, and exude the stench of a charnel house. And yet, those who suspect a ghoul of being nothing more than a savage monster are often surprised to learn otherwise. Ghouls are not savage or feral, but possess a keen intellect and a complex society steeped in lore and custom. A ghoul is just as likely to aid visitors as attack, if not more so.

Unlike the more well-known grave-gorging undead that share the same name, these ghouls are living creatures. While their demeanor and nature would seem to make them natural allies to undead ghouls, competition for food and the undead hatred of the living makes living ghouls and their undead counterparts bitter enemies. Nonetheless, living ghoul necromancers are fond of using undead as minions, and undead ghouls often appeal to the sardonic sense of irony so many ghouls possess.

Unless otherwise noted in the text below, when the word “ghoul” is used, it is used to refer to the living ghouls of Lovecraft’s traditions, rather than monstrous undead ghouls.

So the Ghoul I'm referring to is the living sort. A Nascent Ghoul is a template added to the character's race that adds a -4 to Charisma and a -2 to Dexterity but upon completing the transformation into a full Mythos Ghoul their race changes to Ghoul and they lose the stats bonus/penalty for their old race, in this case Elf, and instead gain the bonus/penalty for Ghoul.

And since the campaign is set in Ustalav that's why I picked the Alchemist's Cryper Breaker, although I'm also weighing the Investigator's Gravedigger as a possibility as well.

But mostly, in the grand scheme of the character, him being a Dusk Elf is merely background fluff. That's why I'm not keeping anything like Elven Magic, skill bonuses or the like but merely going for what would be considered personality aspects.

product link CMfPF

personally I think you should be a base human rather than an elf.
Alchemist Class Crypt Breaker is focused on corporeal undead and constructs.
Cthulhu mythos ghouls retain knowledge of their past. The more intelligent ones try to carry on that past life in their new one. They live in the dreamlands and know of burrows that lead there. They are also familiar with Mordiggian and the black temple in a certain city. They now eat dead flesh, preferring human and the older the better. They also realize they can contaminate others with this dread curse and are likely to take precautions. Some may yearn to be human again.

In previous editions you had to create a base character with class, get converted into a ghoul paying the HD or CR in levels, then undead had to pay 3 levels to become 'emancipated spawn'{PrC in Savage Species}(PCs) gaining +2 BAB, +1/1/3 svs, +6 turn resistance in the process.
So you should have to pay somehow for being an undead type and a ghoul, mainly in lost levels.

A friend of mine is letting me join a Pathfinder campaign that she's DMing and has approved the idea of my using a Mythos Ghoul since the campaign is currently situated around Ustalav so she thinks a Ghoul would fit in well there.

For my Ghoul he's going to be a Dusk Elf Crypt Breaker who ended up changing due to all the necrotic energy he'd be inadvertently coming in contact with throughout his adventures but his completed transformation is fairly recent, being a full Ghoul for only a couple of years.

So my question is how much of the Elven mentality should he retain after his transformation? Given he's only been a Ghoul for a couple of years I feel like he should still retain Elven as a free language, as well as still having an Elven sense of cuisine and aesthetics that is current with the times.

I'm thinking maybe he baths on a fairly regular basis, eats his putrefied meat with a knife and fork and perhaps a bottle of wine that compliments the humanoid it came from, perhaps wear a censer or some other type of incense holder around his neck to help stave off a Ghouls normal smell and so forth.

Anyone else have any good suggestions about what parts of being an Elf he should retain in his new form?

And here's the link to the PDF if anyone is interested but doesn't have it yet: https://petersengames.com/the-games-shop/sandy-petersens-cthulhu-mythos-for -pathfinder-pdf/

Let me put that another way. How do you plan to derive stats for the small golem?

It wouldn't take much work, I would think.

A cat has a CR of 1/4 and given this would be a low level construct it's only real changes would likely be a damage reduction of 2/--, immune construct traits, magic so fire and cold would only slow it down and electric would heal it, and remove it's con and int since it is a construct and thus it would get 8 hp you're looking at a cr of either 1/2 or 1 max.

Building it would likely cost about the same as a tiny animated object, since the construct list doesn't have anything like what I've made, which costs 125g. The materials cost would likely be around the same as for a homunculus which is 50g since, unlike the bodies for a flesh golem, finding and getting a cat carcass wouldn't be that difficult.

Creating a flesh golem at...second level? OK, presumably a bit later when you have the cash, but still it's likely to be before it's reasonable for the level. What sort of thing did you mean by a small golem though?

Something small. Like a cat, a dog, a bird, rodent. Something in the tiny range. So it wouldn't be something a lv.1 party couldn't handle.

This is my idea for a golem building Alchemist. As we all know many of the Alchemist archetypes are based on pop culture characters. The Alchemist itself is based on Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde, the Vivisectionist is based on Doctor Moreau and The Reanimator is based on Herbert West, Reanimator.

But there's not one based on Henry Frankenstein. Sure there's the Promethean Alchemist or the Homunculist but making a familiar is a whole lot different from making a golem that can become it's own independent self. So I came up with this idea.

Sadly, I've never gotten to test it out and those who I've shared it with haven't either. So I have no idea how well it could work. If nothing else it would make for a pretty interesting class for a high level NPC.

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Resurrectionist - Alchemist Archetype: "Death is but a door. Time is but a window. I'll be back." – Vigo the Carpathian, “Ghostbusters II” (1989)

The Resurrectionist knows Death. Intimately. Whether she is a grave robber, cracking open coffins, or a killer, cracking open ribcages, the Resurrectionist has one singular goal: defeat Death and to “Show Them All”, Clerics, Colleagues, Naysayers and Divinity, that Death’s grasps can be eluded without needing Divine Intervention. Because whether they have lost a dear friend, a loved one, have died and returned themselves, wish to free the Living from the fear of Death or simply wish to prove it can be done; all Resurrectionists seek to achieve that which many consider to be… unnatural.

1st: Anatomical Studies: The Resurrectionist adds a +1 bonus to all Heal checks for every 5 ranks in Knowledge (Nature) and receives a +1 to the bonus gained from using a Healer’s Kit for every 5 Heal ranks. Additionally, any healing Extract used by the Resurrectionist on a Flesh Golem she created will heal that Construct as if it were a Living thing but only for half the healing a Living creature normally receives (ex: 1D4 instead of 1D8, this includes bonuses gained per level, +5 becomes +2 at lv.20). To heal for the normal amount the Resurrectionist must use her Heal skill and work on the Flesh Golem for 1 hour for every D8 of damage she wishes to repair in addition to using healing spells. Using Make Whole and Make Whole, Greater heals the Flesh Golem without the need to perform the hours long maintenance and for the full amount.

1st: Surgical Precision*: The Resurrectionist gains Sneak Attack. Replaces Bomb Use.

2nd: Create Construct (Flesh Golem): “Warning - Some Assembly Required.” – Notice on inside cover of “So You Want To Play A Deity - The Guide to Creating Unnatural Golems”.
The Resurrectionist knows how to craft Constructs by way of alchemical research rather than arcane magic. She gains Craft Construct as a bonus feat without needing to meet its requirements and substitutes the number of ranks in Craft (Alchemy) she has for her total caster level and must use Craft (Alchemy) to create the Construct. She receives a *2%* discount every 4 levels, max of *10%* at lv.20, when creating Flesh and Alchemical Golems. Can only create Flesh Golems and Alchemical Golems. If the Resurrectionist wishes to create any other type of Construct she must meet the prerequisites for the feat. Craft Construct is only a free feat when used to create Flesh Golems and Alchemical Golems. The Alchemist still requires a Laboratory in order to create any Golems. The character DOES NOT start gameplay with a Golem or 1st lv: character starts with a small golem (such as a dog or cat) which started them upon their path (perhaps non-combat oriented). At lv 20 the Resurrectionist can decide which level the golem they create starts as. Until then all golems are the same level as their creator. Replaces Cognatogen/Mutagen

2nd: Mindless – “From that fateful day when stinking bits of slime first crawled from the sea and shouted to the cold stars, “I am man!”, our greatest dread has always been the knowledge of our mortality. But tonight, we shall hurl the gauntlet of science into the frightful face of Death itself. Tonight, we shall ascend into the heavens. We shall mock the earthquake. We shall command the thunders and penetrate into the very womb of impervious Nature Herself.” – ‘Froaderick Frokensteen’, “Young Frankenstein” (1974).
The Flesh Golem does not think nor act on its own. It follows simple commands but they must be specific and detailed. “Guard this door” will cause the construct to guard whatever door is indicated. If anyone gets past the Golem and is a certain distance from the door it will stop pursuing and attacking them. “Let no one pass” will cause the Golem to block the path of all but its Creator or Master, including companions even if they are with the Creator/Master. Replaces Poison.

3rd: Raven Sight: The Resurrectionist adds Deathwatch to her spell list as a 2nd-Level Extract.

4th: Bestial – The Resurrectionist has done it. Intelligence, not humanoid Intelligence but Intelligence nonetheless, shines behind those eyes.
The Golem becomes self-aware and gains the Intelligence of an animal (3 or 4). This allows it to understand slightly more complex and generalized instructions as well as acting on its own if its’ actions would comply with its orders.

4th: Held Together: The Resurrectionist adds Make Whole to her spell list as a 2nd-Level Extract.

6th: Specimen Preservation: The Resurrectionist adds Gentle Repose to her spell list as a 3rd-Level Extract.

10th: Made One: The Resurrectionist adds Make Whole, Greater to her spell list as a 4th-Level Extract.

12th: Awoken – The Resurrectionist has taken the first true steps toward achieving their goal… or damnation depending upon whom you ask.
The Golem becomes Sapient (INT 5 or 6), able to use tools and weapons as well as speak whatever language it knew in life, usually Common, albeit crudely and brokenly. At this level creating an Awoken Golem is optional but now any Golem, including previously created ones, has a chance (10%) of going Berserk and Awakening when suffering significant stress, either suffering critical damage equaling *10/15/25/50%* of its’ HP or falling to 25% or below in HP. In this event the Golem will usually either attack all around it indiscriminately or flee in its confusion. Replaces 12th level Discovery.

15th: Regrowth: The Resurrectionist adds Regeneration to her spell list as a 5th-Level Extract.

16th: Experienced – The pieces are beginning to fall into place as the Veil of Death begins to lift.

At this point any newly created or previously Awoken Golems will begin getting flashes of their previous life (INT 7 or 8) when performing actions related to whatever Profession or Specialized Skills they had in Life. At this stage the Golem will tend to begin acting either outside of or without orders. It will also begin trying to understand the strange flashes of memory it receives, which may be rather awkward for the Resurrectionist to explain. Replaces 16th level Discovery.

20th: Resurrected – “It’s Alive! It’s Alive! IT’S ALIVE!” – Victor Frankenstein, “Frankenstein” (1931).
The ultimate goal of all Resurrectionists. At this level a Resurrectionist can fully pull someone from the Beyond without the need for Clerics and Deities (INT 9 or 10), “Showing Them All”. At this point the Golem, whether newly created or having been around for a long time, will fully remember their Previous Life and will suffer a final Berserk event when the Past and Present Selves combine. This is also the most dangerous time for a Resurrectionist as the newly Resurrected Golem may not appreciate being pulled from Death’s embrace. Replaces the Grand Discovery and one of the two Discoveries gained at lv. 20. A lv.20 can also create a Rerisen, a playable character with no memories of their previous life, this is similar to a golem in that as the Rerisen levels up they have flashes of their old life, usually starting with their death and working backwards. A traumatic death makes remember their previous life more difficult as they don’t truly want to remember. The biggest difference between a flesh golem and rerisen is that a rerisen is “fresher”, meaning their mental stats will be what they were before death, and they are made using similar style bodies, meaning within a certain height, weight, body type and age range, versus a flesh golem which is made from whatever’s available. The subject to be made a rerisen will typically be stored in a container(s) enchanted with gentle repose so as to have freshness before assembly begins.

*Open Wound: A Resurrectionist may take the Bleeding Attack Rogue Talent in place of a Discovery.

*Impairing Injury: A Resurrectionist may take the Crippling Strike Rogue Talent in place of a Discovery.

Discoveries: The following discoveries compliment the Resurrectionist Archetype: Alchemical Simulacrum, Doppelganger Simulacrum, Elixir of Life, Enhance Potion, Extend Potion, Eternal Potion, Greater Alchemical Simulacrum, Healing Touch, Infusion, Lingering Spirit, Mummification, Preserve Organs, Promethean Disciple, Spontaneous Healing, Tumor Familiar

The Gentle Repose Extract must be either injected, poured over or rubbed onto the body, or body part, which is to receive the effect.

Below are some ideas for additional features:
Pull yourself together: able to use some of the knowledge he has accrued to aid in healing allies. Can reattach severed limbs, including head, so long as any parts are reattached within 5 rounds of being separated. Any longer and a high level healer will be needed.

Not quite dead: gains access to the spell false life.

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And there it is. Obviously several of the features would need to be tested and adjusted.

I'm also toying with the idea of allowing at lv.20 for the Resurrectionist to create a playable race I call the Rerisen. The idea is the Rerisen is not a golem per-say but it's an alchemically resurrected person who is stitched together from the parts of another individual to replace the unusable parts of the base character, as well as an elemental spirit to help revitalize the future Rerisen.

I personally like this idea because it allows for the reuse of a favorite character while resetting them at level 1, with flashbacks of their previous life growing stronger as they level up. I may post the Rerisen to this post once I've finished fiddling with the idea.

I'm working on a Tinker Archetype Alchemist and while going through my Knowledge list I had a sudden realization. For someone who can make constructs and focuses on the clockwork subtype why doesn't the Alchemist Tinker get Knowledge (Engineering) as a skill?

It just seems odd to me, is all. After all, according to Knowledge (Engineering): (buildings, aqueducts, bridges, fortifications); This is the most important skill with regard to technological subjects. Knowledge (engineering) can be used to identify a robot’s abilities and weaknesses. Knowledge (engineering) is also used to identify and understand unknown technological objects in a similar manner to how Spellcraft is used to identify the properties of a magic item. The DC to correctly identify and understand an unknown technological object is equal to the object’s Craft DC. An object with a Craft DC of 15 or less can be automatically identified and understood by someone trained in Knowledge (engineering) who also has the Technologist feat.

And about Clockwork constructs they're identified as: Clockwork constructs are the technological cousins of golems, constructed with a combination of magic and precise technologies dependent upon the internal churning and turning of thousands of intricate springs, screws, and gears.

So it seems like not including Knowledge (Engineering) is more of an accidental omission than an deliberate one.

That's just something I've noticed. Though if there's been an Errata to correct that I haven't seen it.