 
Sign in to create or edit a product review. Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-17: Stranded on Y 
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product - Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-17: Stranded on Yesterday's Tide
Mechanics or Crunch- The adventure is a good one, but influence is a dividing factor. Influence encounters are something that divides players. It's a mechanical way to make social encounters work, but some players absolutely hate them. This starts with one. That will either make you love this adventure or start off weak. From there it gets better and enters surprising levels of Cthulhu mythos. And that's always fun. 4/5 Theme or Fluff- Mystery, into combat, and then Cthulhu. That's the ingredients of a solid four hours of fun. I love the story and enjoy everything it has to offer.5/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. They know this. they know how to lay out an adventure. 5/5 Summary - I enjoyed this one but not everyone will. The influence-focused encounters will make some players mad, but others will find their stride. Then it's combat and skills to win the day. Those are always fun, so all players will enjoy everything after the first act. Fun, but something to keep in mind. 93% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-14: Twice in Stee
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product-Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-14: Twice in Steel
Basics- The demons are gone, but very much not forgotten. The Pathfinder Society hunts for a lost cultist who might restart the Worldwound. Will you stop her in time? Mechanics or Crunch- I love a good hex crawl. You have some crazy side events, some social, some skill, and a few combats. The math all works out. Also, this has probably my favorite event in a PFS scenario: IF YOU STEALTH, YOU AVOID A COMBAT! It’s not an “it happens later" thing, it's “you bypass a combat.” Everyone has something to do in this adventure and the math is solid. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- This is a hex crawl, so there are lots of things that can happen. The issue is there are LOTS of things the players might miss or can happen. As a GM, you have a lot to run in a higher level PFS adventure. And as a GM you have keep the players on task to get this done within four hours of a con! It's REALLY easy for this one to run off the rails if the players go in the wrong direction, miss hints, or even just don't get all the pieces. More direction would be nice and even a bit more variety of things to encounter for fights. I love the story and the idea, but this one you have to keep a solid watch on for time. 3/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. The adventure reads fast has its own map for the players and the GM, and is organized well. This is the stuff I want in an adventure for an organized play. 5/5 Summary- The main issue I and a lot of people will have here is the length of the adventure. It's solid, and I WANT more hex crawls in PFS. But, direction and time are lacking in this one. Players can easily go off on crazy chases, and that eats precious time off the four hour PFS adventure clock. But, the other pieces are fantastic. Maps, monsters, things to do, and even new friends to meet make this a fun adventure for higher level characters. Make more hex crawls, but maybe provide more directions in the future ones. 87% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-23: An Agent's Ob
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product-Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-23: An Agent's Obligation
Price- $8.99 here https://paizo.com/products/btq027rn?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-223-An-Agen ts-Obligation TL; DR- Short but fun! 98% Basics- Where are the agents? Cheliax is not a welcoming place, but when you find friends, you take them! But what happens when agents go missing? Who’s killing Pathfinders? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure is fun, but we are starting to get up there in power! There are some harder fights here, so Pathfinders need to be prepared. There are also changes where combat is not the only way forward. What the players decide to do is all up to them, and that also allows for interesting flexibility in the adventure. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- The story to this one is good, but failure can break the immersion. This is a “follow the trail” adventure. That’s good, but the issue is if the players fail. If they fail, they can talk to the host who invited the Pathfiners and she will save them. That’s ok, but it breaks the immersion a bit. Also, this adventure is good, but a little short depending on the players’ actions. Make sure they know that if they play smart, then they play quick! 4.75/5 Execution- This is classic Paizo. Solid execution, easy to read, fast to set up, and good to run. 5/5 Summary- This advances the Pathfinder Story, allows for player choice, and if things go well, the players feel smart. But, if it's a bad day, then it will be a lot of asking. I like the choice. The combats can be hard, but not too bad if the players prepare. If not, it will be a hard day! 98% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-07: A God Falls W
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product-Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-07: A God Falls Where Magic Fails
Basics- Oozes with godlike powers? The Godsrain has caused unexpected things like an ooze with a chunk of the god of war. Are you strong enough to fight a god? Can you prove it?. Mechanics or Crunch- This is a short adventure with a bit of randomness built in. The basics are a skill challenge fest, then a fight, a possible fight, and lastly the main, big event fight. It’s not bad, but it’s maybe a little simple. 4/5 Theme or Fluff- There is solid stuff here, but the missing parts are a bit noticeable. The adventure has an awesome picture of an ooze city which is cool, but there are four separate test rooms and the adventure doesn't give descriptions or pictures of those rooms. That would REALLY help. The story is good, but help me help the players understand the room more. The adventure also has a filler section which is ok, but it's kind of strange to add filler. I get if you want to build out parts of the story, but the parts here just for time. That’s not as much fun as you might want. It’s good, but focus would help this adventure 3.75/5 Execution- Paizo does good books. This reads fast, has nice layout, and has most of the pieces I need for the game. I’d like more art as some of the random encounters are things I have to hunt down. Paizo puts the stats in the adventure, but not the art? Throw those in as well as this effectively has infinite pages. Also, give me more art for the adventure as above. The book is still $8.99, so I expect a bit more now. The execution is good, but needs a bit more to be great. 4.5/5 Summary- This is a good adventure, but is missing pieces to really help me make a great presentation. The skill rooms are fine, but no art and descriptions make life harder. The encounters are fine, but some filler encounters that don't build the world don’t help. The execution is good, but I need more to run this effectively. The price doesn't quite justify all the parts here. 82% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-08: Upon Wheels a
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-08: Upon Wheels and Rime
Basics- You’re building a what? The Winter Queen is homesick and trying to revolutionize her country at the same time. Bids are being taken to build a train, but what is a train? And who wants to stop it? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure isnt so much crunch, but world building. There is a social interaction, then a chase, then combat! It’s short, but its fun. The encounters are balanced for everyone. It’s just a bit short. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- This is a callback. If you played First Ed Pathfinder and killed Rasputin in an adventure path, then you will recognize all the key players here. Those who didn’t, won’t miss anything, but it's a call back. The story is interesting, and it builds out some of the world of Pathfinder in fun ways that everyone will enjoy. 5/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. Solid layout, production, art, and even text makes this something to be studied. 5/5 Summary- This is a solid, if short, adventure. The short issue depends on roleplaying. The combats are fun, and the story offers the players a chance to change the Society and the World via their choices. I loved this one. 99% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-13: All That Glit
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-13: All That Glitters
Basics- Ready for maybe a wild goose chase? A lost vault has been discovered that may have a lost key to a pocket dimension. If you check the cache, the Pathfinders get to keep everything but that key. Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure is a good old dungeon crawl. Not much diplomacy, not much outside exploration, but good old enter the room, explore, kill the bad guys. You can’t beat the classics. There might be some encounter balance issues, but overall its crunch is well balanced. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- The biggest issue for this adventure is the length. This is a VERY short adventure with a bit of story, but not much beyond the basics. This adventure uses a map that was used in a quest, but this is a full sized adventure. It’s fun as you explore the vault-like museum, but it needs to be longer. I’m pretty quick as a GM, but this took me less than 2 hours to run at a con. And something important, I dont think they describe what the key is. You find it, but they don’t describe what it looks like. 4/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. Solid layout, production, art, and even text makes this something to be studied. 5/5 Summary- This is a fun adventure. I like the crawl. Crawls in dungeons are always fun, but this is just not long enough. Throw me more encounters here. Some are even marked as optional. More things to do would spice up this adventure. But, what’s here is good. 91% 
Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-12: The Burning of GreensteeplesPaizo Inc.Our Price: $8.99 Add to CartRing Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-12: The Burning o
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-12: The Burning of Greensteeples
Basics- Greensteeples burns! Thrune attacks the Pathfinders at Greensteeples, and it's your job to help. Can you get in, get your friends, and get out? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure covers a lot of bases. It has an infiltration round and several combats. Infiltration could be better described in the core books, but what's here functions ok within the rules themselves. There is a smattering of social encounters, but overall, it's several small events as the players attempt to sneak in, kill bad guys, get friends, and sneak out. It’s good overall, with only a few small issues. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- I know Thrune doesn't like the Pathfinders, but there seems like there is more going on, but I don't know it. I feel like this is setting up something big, but I don't have enough to tell my players about it. There is moving and shaking, but I don’t understand it. I'd like to know more than what's here. The base plot is fine, but the bigger plot is something I think isn't well explained. 3.75/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. I keep saying they do this well, and they did this well again. 5/5Summary- I liked this one, but I wish I could love this one. I need more big story beats. I felt like I missed it here, so my players may miss it as well. The major events went well, and the players and I had fun with the crunch. The execution is on point as always. I just want to know more of what is going on. 90% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Silver Bark,
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Silver Bark, Golden Blades
TL; DR- More variety at the cost of a bit of story. 95% Basics- What’s happening in the Forest of Spirits?! A mist has rolled in and people just can't pass through the forest. Someone has angered the spirits. Who or what has caused this problem? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure has some serious crazy changes! This adventure starts with the players or GM rolling several D4s. These COMPLETELY change the adventure. And I don't mean small things, but the entire last map! The adventure has different final bosses, different maps,and different encountres depending on what the rolls are. This is crazy fun, but it works! If you want variety, this is the adventure you want. My one issue is the differences mean you don't really know where to put the encounters as this is pretty much left up to the GM to decide where the encounters happen. Good, but if you are used to the adventure deciding where the fights happen, then you might forget to put the encounters in! I’d like a bit more guidance, so I can better run this adventure. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- This is a fun adventure, but the big issue is the variety means you can’t build too much direct story around it. There is some, and it works, but I'd like more story of who the bad guys are. The major story beats don’t change, so that is good. I would just like a bit more flow with this adventure as a whole. This is the major issue of American RPGs vs JRPGs-choice and story vs freedom and railroad. 4.5/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. I almost never have anything bad to say with they way they set up their books, and this is no exception. Solid production all around. 5/5 Summary- If this is the future of most of the PFS scenarios, then I’ll be happy. I can’t be as spoon fed as I was before with complete ease to run an adventure out of the box, but at the same time I also get new variety for my players. I love what’s here even if the story is less forward. I would like a bit more story, but the adventure as a whole works well. 95% 
Pathfinder Adventure Path #183: Field of Maidens (Blood Lords 3 of 6)Paizo Inc.Add Print Edition $26.99 Add PDF $19.99 Non-Mint Unavailable Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Adventure Path #183: Field of Maidens
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day!; Product- Pathfinder Adventure Path #183: Field of Maidens (Blood Lords 3 of 6)
Basics-; Ok, but who’s behind all this crap?; Field of Maidens picks up where the book two of Blood Lords left off with our heroes being summoned to find who’s behind the poison plot. But along the way bodies start to pile up… Mechanics or Crunch- The crunch here works well.; Paizo understands their system the best, and it shows.; The combats were balanced, and my all undead party had monsters where they could FINALLY use negative energy to damage.; There is some serious social interaction along the way as well as a bit of exploration.; Fun all around.; 5/5 Theme or Fluff-; The adventure works, but some of it feels like fluff. This adventure has the characters go after a newly undead creature from the first book.; As they track them down, they learn about the new creature, but some of the events along the way are kind of out of left field.; There is about a third of the adventure in the field of maidens that felt like it really wasn't necessary. It works, but it’s a bit of fluff that might not really build out the main quest.; 4/5 Execution- Paizo knows their stuff. Paizo made this so there is good art, hyperlinks, good layout, and an easy to read style that makes this easy to approach. Solid production all around. 5/5 Summary- This adventure is fun, but be ready for the filler episode. The middle third isn’t really necessary, but the rest does advance the plot. The monsters are fun, combat enjoyable, and the social interactions are well done. It’s a well done book with a bit of filler. 93% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Immortal Influ
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Immortal Influence
Basics- Pathfinders, are you ready to PARTY!? This intro scenario for this year's Pathfinder Society season has you go hobnob with the snobs of Absolom to make a good impression. All you got to do is be nice, show the Pathfinder Society is good, and make a friendly impression. What could go wrong? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure’s mechanics are on point for an intro adventure. There are about four different encounters in this adventure. It’s pretty heavenly split between some social, some light exploration, and combat. All of them feel like they fit for the levels they aim for. This adventure is the standard excellent Paizo crunch I expect.5 /5 Theme or Fluff- Intro adventures have tough ground to cover, and this one does well, but it’s not perfect. The adventure has the players go to the party, and start with a few different mini interludes. These work well, but players can't see all the characters and their small side quests and vignettes. Not bad, as the forced adventures where players have to do all the side quests get a bit story heavy, but these all kind of boil down to “do good and learn that one person doesn't like you”. Next there is the new antiPathfinder group who aren't evil, and you have to avoid them. Then you quite literally have to fight devils and then save someone’s life. After that people try to run you over. After that you must convince everyone you're awesome after literally saving people from the devil. Lastly there is one last optional combat that’s fun. The story gets a bit disjointed as you save them every step of the way, but people still don't like you. Maybe that’s more realistic than I think having just reread that again. 4.5 /5 Execution- This is just a yadda yadda of all my other Pathfinder reviews. Good layout, easy reading, good pictures, good resources, good handout….yadda yadda yadda. I expected Paizo to make a good layout for the adventures, and I got it. I might quibble about not having all the monster pictures in the book, but that has more to do with there being three different fights possible in the middle, but seeing as those on their free database with pictures, that feels too pedantic for even me to downgrade them for. 5/5 Summary- This isn’t perfect, but this might be one of the better year intro adventures out there. The mechanics are good. The flow is not perfect, but it works decent enough. The adventure itself is solidly crafted. It players in under four hours, and is fun enough that everyone had a blast. If you want to jump in to Pathfinder Society, this is a good starting point as either a GM or a player. 97% 
Pathfinder: GodsrainPaizo Inc.Add Print Edition $29.99 Add Audiobook (MP3) $24.99 Add Download $14.99 Ring Side Report-Book Review-Pathfinder: Godsrain
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Author- Liane Merciel
Ring Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Society Scenario #7-06: Archives of E
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Society Scenario #7-06: Archives of Eternity
Basics-Time to keep exploring! Archives of Eternity continues the main metaplot as the Starfinders continue to explore Aballon. This time an old archive is found. Who was there, why where they there, and what secrets are hidden in the archive? Mechanics or Crunch- This is a very story forward adventure. If you are a combat monkey, then you might not enjoy this adventure as much as some others. The combats that are here are good, but they tend to be kind of short. That’s not bad as the math that’s here works well. But, if you wanted four hours of just crunch, you will be slightly disappointed. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- The story is the main focus of this scenario. I’m saying this because the whole point of this adventure is to explore a long lost archive of materials. And with that, it succeeds well. Several questions are answered, but many more are presented. That’s fun world building for the Starfinder society. 5/5 Execution- This is the Paizo I know and love. We have solid layout with solid text, with solid pictures, and an overall ease of reading. This is the Paizo quality I love. 5/5 Summary- Starfinder society for 1st ed is almost done. I love what’s here, and Paizo is giving this world a fun sendoff. These adventures are key to helping with that send off. It’s not perfect, as its maybe a bit too story focused. I like the story, but some of my more combat oriented players were a bit disappointed. It won't take four hours, but it will build out your Starfinder experience. 98% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Playtest Scenario #4: Rescue at Shimmfine_young_misanthrope —Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Playtest Scenario #4: Rescue at Shimmerstone Mine
Basics- Hey Kid, want to find some miners for us? Rescue at Shimmerstone Mine is a quick adventure for level 15 Starfinder 2nd Ed characters. Players are contracted to find some missing miner after communications went dark. What happened in the mines? Mechanics or Crunch- It’s high level Pathfinder/Starfinder 2nd Ed content by Paizo-it’s good. The math works well here as it's more of the classic formula with players attempting to find all the missing miners. There are fights, traps, and puzzles for them to solve. Mathematically it works well. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- For what it is, it's a solid adventure. This is a three hour adventure, so if you want more story, you will be a bit out of luck. It is an engaging story of a mine that went crazy and understanding why the mine exploded into crazy riots is part of the Starfinder RPG system and Starfinder universe update, but the adventure’s story works well enough all on its own. For a short adventure, it's a fun one. 5/5 Execution- Paizo did a good job here, but dropped the ball in some very serious ways. It's hyperlinked, well laid out, yadda yadda and the standard good things that Paizo does. But, there are serious issues as well as some minor issues. The minor: the adventure says there are x number of miners and you will not find that number. That’s minor, but it drove a player of mine mad! The majors are Paizo didn't put in a separate picture page for the NPCs. They do that in the Pathfinder and Starfinder adventures, but why not here? It's even more of an issue because they literally put pictures of the NPCs in the text. Give me a page with them alone to show the players. But the biggest sin here is the lack of pregens. Paizo wants players to make level 15 characters. No, give me some you think my players would build. You did it for level 1 and 5, but why not 10 and 15? You can find them online as people are making them, but that's a big issue here. This is a good adventure with some serious outside execution issues. 4.25/5 Summary- I like this one, but the flaws are here. In terms of pure math and crunch, it’s solid workmanship showing off the system. For the story itself, it's fun and expands the world. For the execution, there are a few faults. No pregens is a big red flag. GIVE ME THOSE PREGENS! Make this plug n’ play for tables! Beyond those issues, it's a good adventure that will play in 2-3 hours while expanding a bit on the world. 95% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Playtest Scenario #2: It Came from th
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Playtest Scenario #2: It Came from the Vast!
Basics- In space, no one can hear how good this is. It Came from the Vast! is the second Starfinder playtest scenario. In it, space truckers find an abandoned ship, decide to make money on it, and find it is much more than they originally thought. This time for level five characters! Mechanics or Crunch- So far so solid! The mechanics on display for the 5th level pregens and the five level adventure all work well. There is a variety of things here that the characters encounter, from monsters to haunts to skill checks. It’s just a solid experience for two hours. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- You've heard the beats before, but this song is still different enough to be fun. I too love me some Alien, but this one gets elements of The Thing involved as well. Solid fun all around, and different enough that my players and I all had a blast, even though we knew what was going to happen after we read the adventure description. 5/5 Execution- I liked this adventure, but it’s missing a few pieces. The standard layout of the PFS adventures with pictures at the end are not here. It has a good layout and is easy to read, but the pictures help me show players the monsters and other creatures involved. Also, I like the stat blocks to be separate. These are small things, but it hurts the presentation a bit. This is exactly the same as what I said for scenario one, and I still stand by that. 4.5/5 Summary- This is exactly what I want to see in a Science-Fantasy space horror. You got monsters, you got areas dripping with goo, you got space horrors and discovery, you got magic plant ships, you got ghosts of the dead. This is a fantastic short adventure that is easy to run, and fun for all. Give me back some of the older layout and this would be perfect. 97% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Playtest Scenario #1: Shards of the Gfine_young_misanthrope —Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Playtest Scenario #1: Shards of the Glass Planet
Basics- Go to new places, meet new people, and… make friends?! The drift crisis has opened up a world held in a glass bubble. This adventure gives a bit of world lore, a bit of mechanics, and a good chance to see how Starfinder 2nd Ed will work. Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure works well mechanically. It has the basic breakdown of being a few skill checks to learn about the world that has been opened up, then some stuff happens, combat, trap, and final combat. It’s short, but all the DCs are within line of what to expect, and the combat is resonbably what I expected. You can not do anything too crazy in a level 1, so while short, it is expected and fun. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- This is a fun adventure, but not the most involved. As I said before, it's skill checks, combat, trap, and final combat. Short, but not that complex. Then again, it's level 1, so you can’t throw the PCs into too crazy an adventure. My players and I had fun, but be prepared to ham up roleplay. 4/5 Execution- I liked this adventure, but it’s missing a few pieces. The standard layout of the PFS adventures with pictures at the end are not here. It has a good layout and is easy to read, but the pictures help me show players the monsters and other creatures involved. Also, I like the stat blocks to be separate. These are small things, but it hurts the presentation a bit. 4.5/5Summary- This is a fun adventure, but maybe not the best Paizo has put out. It’s also a bit hard since it’s a level 1 adventure that is the same as a quest. Don’t expect multiple hours of crazy adventure, but do expect a short, fun intro to Starfinder 2nd Ed. It has a few faults, but that doesn't make it any less entertaining. 90% 
Pathfinder Adventure Path #182: Graveclaw (Blood Lords 2 of 6)Paizo Inc.Add Print Edition $26.99 Add PDF $19.99 Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Adventure Path #182: Graveclaw (Blood
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Adventure Path #182: Graveclaw (Blood Lords 2 of 6)
Basics- Go to new places, meet new fey, and kill them! Graveclaw continues the Blood Lords adventure path as our heroes begin to track down the people who are involved in the poisoning plot and THEY ARE ALL FEY! Find the hags, kill them, and travel all around the land of Geb Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure is a bit tougher for the players than most of what I’ve seen. The players had fun, but they took some beating compared to most of my Pathfinder experience. That’s not bad, but it can get discouraging as they have to keep fighting again and again to stay alive. It’s a fun adventure, but something that might turn away some players with some slight balance issues. Also, the faction system is broken. I like the general idea, but right now I and my players still don’t know what the points do. More guidance is needed to really bring this out for everyone. 4.75/5 Theme or Fluff- The story here is good, but disjointed. The major plot of finding who is responsible for killing everything is fully on display. That said, this adventure is more vignettes as the players learn where a hag is, go there, meet locals who hate her, go to her home, and kill her. Repeat till four hags die. It’s not bad, but a bit too disconnected for a full flowing story. But when hanging out with a magic drugged up Vampire lord on a bender is on the itinerary, who cares? 4.5/5 Execution- Overall solid work from Paizo with one problem that I will dock because I am petty. Solid lay out, eat to read, and good art all make this a great product. Things that would make me happy are maps that fit into Roll20, but Paizo backed Foundry instead. That’s understandable. It’s hyperlinked, so it’s nice for my tablet. The ONE thing that drove me up a wall was the last fight. The final boss is listed in one place, when you go there, it then references a second area. That annoyed me as the other creatures in the fight are listed in the first area. So, I end up bouncing between three places in a book. DON’T DO THAT! Aside from that one annoyance, Paizo makes a solid book. 4.95/5 Summary- Blood Lords continues to be some of the most fun I have had in Pathfinder that Paizo doesn't like to admit too. It’s most definitely not a a standard hero story as the players often are not great heroes but aspiring evil lords. This particular part is good, but misses a few too many things to be amazing. The adventure is brutal, but not bad. The story is a bit disjointed, but still flows. The execution as always is good. I will definitely be returning for the third part of this path! 95% Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day!
TL; DR- Want to play some Pathfinder in space? 95% Basics- Pathfinder 2nd ed IN SPACE! Ok, let’s look deep into this deep space RPG. Base Mechanics- Do you remember pathfinder 2nd Ed? If you are proficient in a thing, it's proficiency bonus (trained, expert, master, or legendary) + ability modifier + level + d20. Not proficient? D20 + ability modifier. This is versus AC or some static number from another character. That’s it! If you love Pathfinder 2nd Ed, you can instantly play this one. This is a full RPG, but honestly if you have the Pathfinder basics down, then you are ready to go! Let’s look at my thoughts. Mechanics or Crunch- I love Pathfinder 2nd Ed, so this is perfect. This feels a bit better balanced from small things like cantrips doing damage based on level. The changes that were imposed to make the 3.5 to Pathfinder 2nd ed transfer are solid, like Aim for the Operative class making them equivalent Pathfinder 2nd Ed ranged rogues. All the new changes from the standard Pathfinder 2nd ed formula work well adapted to the space opera of Starfinder. It’s what I expected, but still enjoyable. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- This is solid, but things are missing. We have the basics of the world, but some things are lost and have to be lost. A big one for me is the notion of stamina. I loved stamina and hit points being different. Now, you just have hit points. That changes the flavor a bit. It needed to go for Starfinder to work in Pathfinder 2nd Ed’s mechanics, but it's a change that loses some of the originality of Starfinder. Other things work well like the mystic, Starfinder’s cleric-ish character, having a giant pool of hit points that it can use to heal any character in the group. This feels like a fun new addition to the Pathfinder system. The changes are good, but some flavor is lost in the transition. 4.5/5 Execution- Starfinder 2nd ed is well done, but I feel I want a few changes. The layout and PDF is well done. Also, given this book is free it is instantly amazing. You can easily speed read through any section and skim to find the information you need. But I want more summary tables. Skill feats have nice tables, giving summaries of each of the different feats and the full feat is below with its full write up. Class feats are not written that way. Archive of Nethys does this better; it has all class feats in nice tables that you can read via hyperlink. Make those tables for each class to make it easier to read! Also, this may be a bit petty, but Pathfinder 2nd Ed started using titles in their PDF files. This document does not. PLEASE DO THAT. I don't want to have to memorize long strings of digits to know what files I need to open for game night! And last but not least, missing are the major rules I was hoping for: space ships. Ship combat in Starfinder was fun, BUT you had to want it. And most players did not, based on how the adventures are written. This book does not have spaceship combat. I know Paizo knows how to make Pathfinder 2nd Ed work. They do fantastic jobs on Pathfinder 2nd Ed, but I don't know how they plan to handle space ships. The absence of these rules is something experienced Starfinders will feel. 4.75/5 Summary- Go get this PDF! It’s free, so I need to tell everyone to check this out. I love Pathfinder 2nd Ed, and I watched Star Wars Ewok adventures on VHS so many times as a child I broke the video tape. Starfinder is the system that was built for the Starfinder game, but saw a few issues. Starfinder 2nd Ed is a solid progression of the Starfinder brand. There are issues, and some of those will be fixed when the full rules come out and others are just growing pains of the system. Others are just CHANGE HOW YOU NAME THINGS! But, even with a few small issues, this game is a solid RPG that you should check out. 95% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Howl of the Wild Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Howl of the Wild
Basics- Who let the centaurs in the sub? Howl of the Wild is a character options book with new races, spells, items, and archetypes for characters who want a bit more animal in their characters. In addition, the book has a framing story about an expedition to uncover the guardians of the wild and the monsters they encounter, providing GMs with new monsters and story hooks for them to dig into. Mechanics or Crunch- Paizo knows their math and it shows here. The new items, options, monsters, and characters all expand Pathfinder into fun new places. And the new grafts allow characters who are plain human to even get into the action. Some archetypes require the characters to have some animal parts, but with the right addition, anyone can play. It doesn't feel exclusionary, but lets people specialize into something new at the same time. The monsters are fun and bring some old creatures back into the mix as well. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- Howl of the Wild feels like it fits in Golarion and adds to it at the same time. I love the new races, and since its set far away from the main setting areas, they don't feel like they are tacked on. The new stuff all fits into the world and has fun descriptions and art to help you see what the authors wanted to add. I also enjoyed the story the book told as the explorers try to find the guardians of nature. They do, AND THEY ARE BIG. If you want some end bosses for a nature based game, here you go! 5/5 Execution- This book is good, but feels like a step back for Paizo’s normal work. What’s here is good. I like the flow and pictures, but this book doesn't have the short tables and descriptions of feats, spells, and items. It honestly makes it a pain. Also, while there are dividing pictures, the different sections are not as well defined. One change to a new subject was so jarring, I redownloaded my copy thinking I missed some pages in an error. I figured it out, but the older layout decisions are a better way to display the materials. I'd rather have less stuff and more tables to summarize all the pieces than too much to really take in. 4.5/5 Summary- This is a good book with a single error. I love the new crunch; it adds new character options and even tools for the GM to get to play with. These are all great additions to the game. I love the new story. It's fun to see a new part of the world and to see the new characters who live in it. It also builds out the world for the GM, so they can make new stories and monsters to challenge the players. My one issue is the layout. What’s here is good. It reads fast and easily, but the lack of tables makes skimming hard. As both a GM and a player, I want to be able to skim character feats, spells, and items quickly. Bring those back! But, overall this is a good addition to the world of Pathfinder. Check this out if you want to walk on the wild side. 98% 
Starfinder Society Scenario #7-02: Zo! vs. ZoPaizo Inc.List Price: Sale Price: $7.19 Add to CartRing Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Society Scenario #7-02: Zo! vs. Zo
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Society Scenario #7-02: Zo! vs. Zo
Basics- What’s ya name!? In Zo! Vs. Zo, the Starfinders are asked to help Zo! Defend his semi-good honor as his name is threatened by a city called Zo. How will your group of Starfinders fare as lawyers and in combat? Mechanics or Crunch- This is a fairly simple adventure with some combat, some social, but no exploration. It’s all set in cities as the Starfinders have to prove they can do the fighting, then attempt to set up a legal defense, and finally a real defense in legal combat. It’s a bit on the rails, but still good. The mechanics are well done and felt fair and fun. 4.5/5 Theme or Fluff- The story is a bit off here. The basics are to prove you can fight, do legal skill checks, do more legal skill checks, and then fight no matter what. The legal stuff felt off. I would like the option to just not do the second fight if the characters succeed enough or for them to just push for combat. That’s how I would run this for a home group, but for Society, the flow makes the adventure feel strained. It works, but the logic is a bit off. 3.5/5 Execution- Yeah, we all know this was gonna be a 5/5. It's a Paizo book. I keep saying this exact sentence when I write about Paizo. They know layout, text, and art. It’s an easy to read adventure. Maybe the one thing that would help is having separate art from the other legal combatants, but that's extremely nitpicky. This is well done. 5/5 Summary-This is a fun adventure, but maybe not the most logical adventure. Any group of guys and gals will enjoy the adventure, but it's a bit linear and a bit nonsensical. That said, it's an adventure to a world that most Starfinders have not been to and some courtroom drama that almost no players outside of those brave profession (barrister) players do. You will have fun, but maybe don’t think too hard about why things are happening. 87% 
Pathfinder Monster CorePaizo Inc.Add Print Edition $59.99 Add PDF $19.99
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Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Monster Core
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Monster Core
Basics- We’re all gonna die! Monster Core is the last of the three main books needed to play Pathfinder, providing the foes that the heroes will face in their journeys. Mechanics or Crunch- Paizo knows their math. These monsters are the ones we know, mostly, and love. The Paizo staff designed good monsters and this just gives them the 2.5 glow up new coat of paint the system needed to get them fully ORC compliant. It’s well done. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- The story of the monsters takes a tiny bit of a dip. As we move from 3.5/SRD base to ORC/Paizo’s own world, we lose a few things. A major example is alignment. We have Demons, Daemon, and Devils. We have three different groups that are basically out to destroy everything but all just end up with the bad guy banner. There is a story, but it's that part of the story supported by differences in alignment and motivations that really separate these different D-based bad guys (that and centuries of European occult history). The same goes with different dragon types. I want to reiterate that what’s here is good, but the theme of these different monsters does miss alignment. 4.5/5 Execution- Yeah, we all know this was gonna be a 5/5. It's a Paizo book. It reads fast, well, and is pretty. Monsters get art for me to show players. I get a good layout and hyperlinks. Heck, there are even a few player things like a few rituals to sell your soul or talk to god! 5/5 Summary-This is a good book. My view might be tainted by the changes from 3.5 to ORC. I love the ORC, but we do lose some things along the way due to the legalese. Those are things you will have to bring with your own stories to the table now. This book will easily give you the foes to make those stories full of conflict and victory. 97 % 
Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Era's EndPaizo Inc.List Price: Sale Price: $7.19 Add to CartRing Side Report- RPG review of Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Era's End
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Originally posted at Throat Punch Games, a new idea every day! Product- Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Era's End
Basics- New boss, new random magic thing, new place, who dis? Year of Era’s End sets out to establish the next and final meta plot for Starfinder Society 1st edition. The Starfinders have made new friends with the Anacites on their barren homeworld. Will the Society understand how the latest found magic item works before evil robots try to kill us all? Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure is fairly simple and similar to the usual first adventures of a season. You have a few fights, a few social encounters, and a few skill challenges as you explore. It’s not crazy, but it all works well. 4.5/5 Theme or Fluff- Much like the mechanics, this adventures is pretty standard for the first adventure of a season. You will meet the new boss, meet some new friends/middle managers of the Starfinder Society, and a new adversary group. The adventure is split in two, with two different goals in each as you try to understand the newly found device. It’s standard, but decently well done. 4.5/5 Execution- Paizo knows adventure production. Layout is good, text is easy to read, and organization is good. The maps are all available, and the monsters and NPCs all have pictures that I don't have to crop myself. I’ve even adjusted to the increase in cost as nine bucks is about the price of a movie and this will take about three to four hours to play. Solid work. 5/5 Summary-It’s the end of the world, and I feel fine! Starfinder Society First Edition is going away, and this honestly is a decent start to that. It’s some simple mini adventures that get a metaplot started, introduce new characters in the lore, and allow for some fun encounters along the way. If all the final adventures work like this, it will be a good send off. 93 % Product- Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges – Necessary Introductions System- Pathfinder 2nd Ed
Basics- Let's go make friends! The Pathfinder society wants to make friends with a dragon, and YOU get to make the introductions. Don't mess up, because you can be flamebroiled and are tasty with ketchup! Mechanics or Crunch- The adventure has all the pieces where they should be and they generally work well. There are about 3 fights, a couple traps, and a skill challenge. Those are all mechanically done well. The skill challenges are not as much fun as they could have been, because my players tend to feel like they want them to just end by accomplishing X solutions before Y events. I can dress that up, but the repeated challenges can get boring in a hurry, so I just let them succeed if they do well enough. Overall what's here is good, but it has a few issues. 4.5/5 Theme or Fluff- This adventure is a pretty simple story where the normal dungeon crawl is flipped. Instead of going into a place where you are NOT supposed to be, you are invited into this one. However, some elements feel a bit crammed in. I like the goblins making kimchi, but they are not really needed and it detracts from the overall flow. My players didn’t really explore much; why would you just explore a person’s house if they are waiting for you? Also the last fight just doesn't need to happen. Maybe having a hallway fight with OTHER robbers would be a better way to endear the kobold butler to the players? Something to consider. 4/5 Execution- Pathfinder by Paizo? Yeah this is gonna be a slam dunk. I might not be crazy about the 9 buck price tag, but for five people to get 3ish hours of entertainment, then I'm a bit more ok. 5/5 Summary- This is a decent adventure that will tie to something bigger. And that's the whole hope of organized play. It's a fun ~3 hour adventure where the players get some fights, some social encounters, and some skill tests. It's well put together, but a few issues crop up along the way that prevent perfection. Some are system choice issues and some are flow issues. None are going to hurt this in a fatal way, but maybe change an element or two to make this a better experience. 90% Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder One-Shot #3: Head Shot the Rot
Basics- AIM FOR THE HEAD! Head Shot the Rot is a one-shot drop-in game for four PCs set in Alkenstar. It’s a glorious “Kill the bad guys, save everyone!” kind of adventure. Mechanics or Crunch- This is Night of the Living Dead in Pathfinder. You have some zombies and you have some people. You get some skill checks, some combat, and some social. That’s all the pieces of the game I want. And I’m happy! It’s solid mechanics with 3rd level PCs and some monsters that can tear them up if they screw up, but enough firepower to make sure that doesn't happen. Finely balanced as all things should be. 5/5 Theme or Fluff- You start in a bar with your buds, bad happens, and you kill it. Save the people, get the money. That’s the story and there is enough in the adventure and maps to build that into a fun place to play and explore even if you don’t go far. The PCs and I had a blast with this one. 5/5 Execution- It’s Paizo. They know how to lay out a book, make nice art, make it easy to read, and get me the information I need in a hurry. It’s 10 bucks, which is a bit pricey, but it filled four hours. This beats the movie test of if I went to the movies with the same friends, would we spend more. So, I don't feel ripped off here. It comes with art, maps, and PCs - all the toys I need to literally just drop in Roll20 and play. 5/5 Summary- Some days you crave Game of Thrones level intrigue, and others you just want a bunch of zombies, a gun, and a goal. This is the latter. I loved everything here. It’s a fun one shot where all the players get what they want out of this, while I had fun and did not need hours of prep before. Hey Paizo! Make more of these, and then connect them to each of the adventure paths. I’d buy them! 100% Ring Side Report- RPG review of Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exp
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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration
TL; DR- Too much money for a too short adventure. 77% Basics- And we’re walking! This Pathfinder Society adventure features you as a tour guide to a multidimensional maze where you guide a new venture captain to a lodge, then help round up some little elementals all while trying to be on time for his party. Mechanics or Crunch- Paizo understands its mechanics. The game itself works well here, but the adventure is a bit short. What is in this adventure is about two fights and several skill checks to help multiple different players feel involved with a bit of exploration thrown in. Solid work overall, but a bit short for my players as no players felt too challenged and a few checks cleared the adventure with no problem. 4.5/5 Theme or Fluff- The adventure works, but it feels off. We have a new guy who wants to see a place. Cool, but there is a random fight, some random elemental stuff, a kind of random handout, and a random place that doesn’t feel all that connected. It works, but my players and I felt that it was a bit disjointed. Furthermore, it didn't really introduce any major metaplot or content. It was a decent distraction and having more pure noncombat adventures would be fun, but this wasn't that nor was it pure combat adventure. It felt like too much of a mix. 3.5/5 Execution- I was the most disappointed here. The adventure works with classic Paizo layout and text doing their good job as always, but there is too much text and not enough guidance with some things being tried but not really working. First, there are random things that happen. Good! But use the random event charts that we had in previous chapters rather than just have three options for the GM to pick. Same goes with where the main NPC wants to go. Add in a chart where he says where to go, describe the location, and have a random dice roll. The main bulk of the adventure is in a maze. Which is fun, but doesn't have a massive location, but maybe just set pieces. There are places that I don’t feel were all that connected nor did the riddle handout really help me or my players with it. The price of the adventure is high, but they are now including all the information I need to run it. However, the map they give is too big and can't work on Roll20. It also has a grid, so I have to fight with Roll20 to line it up. PDFs can remove the grids, so I appreciate those. But, here I am paying for a product that isn’t quite getting me what I want. Honestly, if these were just set piece locations as they wander the maze, I feel that would make this run easier and make the maps small enough to upload to Roll20. I appreciate what they gave me, but for almost 1/3 the price of their regular adventures, this costs a bit too much. 3.5/5 Summary- Overall, this works. It's a fine enough adventure, but it's short, a little disjointed, and the add-ons are a bit wonky. I don’t hate this, but I feel some aspects hold this back. Some small changes in organization and flow could help this be a top notch adventure. You can easily run this, and you and your party will have fun. But, don’t expect this to run for the full five hours. 77% Originally posted at Throat Punch Games, a new idea every day! Product- Pathfinder GM Core
Basics- ORC TO THE RESCUE! GM Core is the new ORC version of the Pathfinder 2nd Ed GM book. That’s really it. Mechanics or Crunch- What’s here is good and gives some solid advice for GMs. It covers everything from adventure building to treasure disbursement. I like whats here, but it needs more. I want a random item table. They have item tables, but throw in a random mechanic for what to give out. I can find it online, but if I'm dropping 60 for a book, I want to think a bit less. I also need a bit more guidance on some things. Crafting is ALWAYS a pain as players want free stuff and GMs need to keep the system from breaking. Some walkthrough would help a bunch here. What’s in the book is good, but I need just a bit more. 4.5/5 Theme or Fluff- Theme covers some ground in this book. You have everything here from how to deal with at-table situations to the world of Golarion. I may not need some of this but new GMs and new players to Pathfinder are going to find some use of this book. 5/5 Execution- It’s Paizo and they made a book. The book reads well, skims easy, and has hyperlinks. It’s all the things I need and want in a book. 5/5 Summary- This is a solid book. My main issue is what isn’t here compared to what is. I can find answers and tables online, but for the price I expect it here. Now, here is the issue- do I tell you to buy this book? And that’s a solid maybe. If you have the previous book, then you honestly will be ok without this one. It’s not bad, but Pathfinder 2nd Ed didn't really change in a massive way between the OGL and ORC in my opinion. And honestly, I think that was the goal. If you know what you’re doing this might be a pass, but if you are new or don't have a GM guide for 2nd Ed, get this book! 97%
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