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From my proposed "Pathfinder FAQ for New Players"

* The FAQ's rimary audience and focus is new players. The FAQ assumes that they know nothing about RPGs, or how to get started, and aims to make that as intuitive, non-threatening, and simple as possible....

* The FAQ should do more than just answer questions. It should give people everything they need to get started and make good initial decisions. That initial experience is critical - it will either produce a fan or an aversion. We want to help make that experience a good one all around.

What Should I Look for in a Pathfinder Gaming Group?

Keep an open mind, because people's gaming styles are often different from their real-life personas.... At the same time, it's important to look for someone you'll be comfortable with.... As a useful first step, we recommend answering the questions on this short form {url to form, see below for details}, and bring/send the results to Session Producers and groups you talk to. It will help them to help you.

Part of that is the new player questionnaire mentioned in the FAQ. This is a discussion tool that has 4 main purposes:

1. Start the potential player thinking about the possibilities of heroic role-playing, and begin to get them excited about what it could be.

2. Give the SP/GM a sense of the player's role-playing style, likely character type preferences, alignment leanings, and teamwork orientation, even if they haven't played RPGs before. Without using game mechanics concepts to discuss any of this.

3. Foster a discussion about the kinds of adventures, scenarios, and personalities that interest the player.

4. Create a clear understanding of boundaries and red flag issues with this player, before you run into any.

These questions can and should be used in 2 ways. They could be used as a great guide for the SP. Or, they could lead to the conclusion on the player or SP/group's part that this is a bad fit. In which case, a decision NOT to bring the new player in is the right decision for the hobby. That first experience will either make a convert, or create a long-standing aversion.

New Player Questionnaire

1. Let's start by thinking about the kind of hero you'd like to be. Rank these descriptions, with "1" being the description that most appeals to you, and "6" being the least appealing overall. You would most enjoy acting as:

____ Someone who participates in the adventures, while enjoying the exotic locations and meeting all sorts of interesting beings who play their own roles in the grand drama. It's all about the journey.

____ Someone who can and will take names, kick butt, and leave the wreckage of your enemies behind you. And the truth is, you kind of enjoy it. Standing tall before your enemies and giving them what's coming to them is a good feeling, your own way of setting some small corner of the universe to rights. After a while, enemies see you coming and say "uh-oh!" At least, the smart ones do. Now that's what it's all about!

____ The strategist and/or brains of the operation, always thinking ahead, solving problems, choosing tactics, and making sure the group is moving forward. It's all about the goal.

____ Someone with a strong steak of idealism, living both in the world and for those ideals - possibly even acting as a exemplar of those ideals for others. It's all about who you are, who you become, and what you stand for.

____ The brooding outsider, wrapped up in a personal story/ drama that often overshadows outside events in your consciousness. You are scorned and mistrusted by most others - possibly with some justification. It's all about your personal conflicts.

____ The unwilling ordinary hero, dragged into larger events against his or her will. You somehow manages to get through it all, calling on the skills and attitudes of your ordinary (and possibly low-status) life to keep yourself grounded while you make something of yourself. One day, people will ask you "What made you a hero?" and you'll reply: "Heroes aren't made - they're cornered." It's all about the situation and company you're dragged into... at first.

2. OK, now let's step beyond broad styles and talk about the kind of protagonist you want to be and become. Again, "1" is most appealing...

____ Someone who gets by on their wits. You usually have a clever move up your sleeve, the right line for the occasion, the ability to find important clues, etc. You use that to make your enemies' lives miserable.

____ Someone with strong ties to magic and the mysteries of the universe, whether the source of those ties is nature/faerie, channeling from on high, or arcane secrets. Your ties to that power source give you power in the world.

____ Someone who steps up to the front whenever trouble starts and physically goes toe to toe with enemies. If they want your friends or the people you're protecting, they're going to have to go through you first. And you're going to make that hurt.

____ Someone who loves and cares for the natural world.

____ Someone others look to and trust for leadership and direction.

____ Someone who looks out for others, and can act as the glue that holds a group together, whether or not it comes with a leading role.

____ A wild card who usually does their own thing, but somehow it usually works out OK.

3. Great. Let's talk about what you want for your hero one the fame/ love/ power scale. Again, rank from "1 = most appealing" to least appealing.

____ My character wants to be famous, a hero of great renown. If it comes down to a choice, however, fame and respect are better than being widely loved, and the trade of some independence for this kind of iconic status is worthwhile.

____ My character wants to be loved by their friends, by the masses, and perhaps to find true love. They may or may not see me as the most powerful hero, they may or may not recognize me in the street. But when they hear my name, they know that this is one of the world's true good and cool people, and those who do recognize me will stand by me no matter what.

____ My character wants to be formidable enough to call their own shots, fear few beings, and live life his or her own way. I will trade being famous or widely loved to achieve this, if necessary.

4. Who are your top 3 favorite Superhero/ Action Hero/ Fantasy Characters? Why?

I.

II.

III.

5. Who are your top 3 favorite villains of screen or literature? Why?

I.

II.

III.

6. The 3 places in the real world world or in fictional literature that I would most like to visit are...

I.

II.

III.

7. This question is about the genres you like most on screen and print are... (Again, rank from "1 = most appealing" to least appealing):

____ General Action/Adventure

____ Espionage

____ Fantasy fiction

____ Folk tales, any culture or one specific

____ Historical, fiction or non-fction

____ Horror

____ Military/War stories

____ Mystery

____ Nature related

____ Science Fiction

____ Sports Fiction

____ Religion/ Philosophy

____ Romance

9. Evil is (pick the one that most feels like you)...

____ Solely a matter of one's point of view. There is no real, impartial standard that can be used to say something is evil. Those who use this term are usually ignorant, or have ulterior motives.

____ Real, and must be fought when it arises, but within all of the rules. Your ideals are too serious to be set aside.

____ Real, and being a good guy is not a suicide pact. You do the best you can, break less important rules if you have to, make unpleasant choices when forced, and try to make sure the greater good is served. The consequences are too serious for too many people if you fail.

____ A label people use for things they don't understand, or are jealous of.

____ Real sometimes. Some beings are evil, and some ideas are evil. But people who think about it too much are dangerous. There are too many other things to live for.

What does your DM think is the best answer here? How compatible are those world views? How will you two resolve any differences in those views? Discuss.

10. How much realism do you want in the game's dramas, as pertains to evil and other adult themes? Pick one:

____ Full "NC-17". Right up to full horror film experience is fine as default mode re: the evil ones and their actions, nothing is off limits for them and the campaign reflects that faithfully. The world is a dark place, and fantasy is even darker. As for the rest, that's part of reality too. Bring it all on!

____ R-Rated. Bad people do terrible things, and that's why they have to be dealt with. Don't be gratuitous about it, but an adult campaign is fine with seeing that first hand; it underscores the seriousness of the stakes. Other adult themes are also fine, so long as they're handled with some minimum of tact.

____ PG-13. Bad things happen, and adult situations happen. Go ahead and tell us if they happen, but avoid anything seriously bad and keep all of the adult stuff off stage.

____ PG or below. I'm Ok with just using slapped-on labels for bad guys, and fantasy cliches to tell me they're fair game. Anything controversial or graphic should probably left out. It's not something I want to think about in a gaming context.

11. Notwithstanding anything else I've said, the following are subjects and situations I do not want to encounter in any way within the game, even as something that happens as "background" to someone else, and not to a player's character:

What Should I Look for in a Pathfinder Gaming Group?

Keep an open mind, because people's gaming styles are often different from their real-life personas.... At the same time, it's important to look for someone you'll be comfortable with.... As a useful first step, we recommend answering the questions on this short form {url to form, see below for details}, and bring/send the results to Session Producers and groups you talk to. It will help them to help you.

The proposed questionnaire for new players, and its goals/rationale, may be found at this URL.

Suggestions and thoughts are welcome.

With Pathfinder emerging as the flag bearer for v3.5 campaigners, an interesting thing happens: Paizo becomes the custodian of a decent part of the D&D community, and many experienced gamers. Since they're going to want to recruit new gamers, Paizo has an interesting opportunity to help. Paizo will even begin with an advantage - the Pathfinder name will be a step forward because it suggest broader adventuring themes that will be more familiar to non-gamers.

WotC has worked to put a FAQ together for new players, as it tries to branch out the RPG audience with 4E. Paizo ought to do the same - but with a better FAQ, because WotC's falls short in a few areas. My recommendation for that FAQ follows. Feedback welcome - let's make this all that it can be!

FAQ Goals:

* The FAQ's rimary audience and focus is new players. The FAQ assumes that they know nothing about RPGs, or how to get started, and aims to make that as intuitive, non-threatening, and simple as possible.

* Existing RPG players are a distant secondary audience; we can explain everything to them quickly and in shorthand.

* Tying the game into cultural experiences that non-games can grasp quickly is a priority; it will help us communicate, and help remove reservations. Langauge should reflect all of this.

* The FAQ should do more than just answer questions. It should give people everything they need to get started and make good initial decisions. That initial experience is critical - it will either produce a fan or an aversion. We want to help make that experience a good one all around.

With that, the FAQ....

What is PATHFINDER?

Have you ever watched an exciting TV show, or movie, and wished you could do that? Have great adventures in fantastic locations, make the key decisions, kick the bad guys' butts when necessary, and be part of a grand story? Pathfinder is a set of rules that lets people imagine, create and star in those kinds of adventures. Pathfinder's overall genre is fantasy, but the adventures can be of any type, and can duplicate stories and adventures from other genres including mysteries, espionage, exploration, complex social/political scenarios, horror, heroic quests, and more.

Above all, Pathfinder is a social game, not a solo game. It's like any other regular get-together with friends or team sport, which depends on people being together. In Pathfinder, one friend plays the role of the Session Producer (SP), and the others play a team of heroes. The game can also become a hobby, as players get better and begin investing time in creating their heroes and shared adventure settings.

I'm An Experienced Gamer. Can You be More Specific?

Pathfinder is a continuation and extension of the SRD/OGL v3.5 rules. Many of you out there have invested a lot of time and money in that framework. We're committed to supporting existing and new players with improved but compatible rules, great settings, fantastic adventures, and other products.

How Do the Rules Work? Aren't There a Lot of Them?

Most people think the same thing when they begin learning to drive. Within a little while, however, they can just drive, without thinking too much about it.

It doesn't take anything but pencil and paper, some dice, and a bit of imagination to play your first game - and your fellow players or Session Producer will bring dice. It's certainly possible to just dive right in, think like an action movie/ fantasy literature hero or sidekick, and have people explain things as you go.

The basic rules mechanic is simple, and parts will be familiar to anyone who has played video games. Your "player character" hero has certain abilities and skills, which change depending on your ancestry, hero type, et. al. Your skills, powers, and equipment tell you how good you are at different things. The Session Producer (SP) knows how hard something is, and how lucky you need to be to pull it off. You take on your character's role in the drama, and decide what actions you want to take. Your dice roll tells you how lucky you are at that moment, and whether you succeed. If you do succeed, great! If not, try again, or try something else.

You can try Pathfinder by learning just a bit, being part of a player group to learn more as you go, and reading the rulebook. The more you do it, the better you'll get. It's fun!

As your player character heroes succeed in their adventures and continue to train, they'll also get better. The sweet young noblewoman who rises to become a pirate queen on screen is a lot better with that sword by the final movie than she was at the beginning of the first movie. Most comic book heroes also have to learn all about what it means to be a hero, and how to use their potential, before they're good enough to face the most challenging opponents. It's the same with your Pathfinder characters. As they face more opponents and follow their own path, they'll gain more experience, upgrade their equipment, and unlock more of their potential powers. You'll also get better as a player, of course - and that combination will make it possible for your hero to undertake world-shaking missions and do great things that live on in legend.

What does the Session Producer do?

Aside: I've never been thrilled with the BDSM flavor of 'Dungeon Master.' Actually, I've made fun of that for over 20 years now - and even 'Game Master' mischaracterizes the key relationship since players aren't subordinate. So I've picked another term that fits, is more accurate, and as a bonus has a strong cool factor. Alternative suggestions welcome, but I think Paizo has a big opportunity to take a step forward for RPGers here.

The Pathfinder Session Producer (SP) is like a movie producer with improv skills. She isn't a director, because Pathfinder is all about players making choices that can change a story. She isn't an opponent, because her goal is the same as the players': to have a successful, exciting, challenging session that everyone enjoys. Like a movie producer, the Pathfinder SP makes sure everything that's required is ready to go on the set, from making sure the story outline is ready to casting the "bad guys" and extras. Once that's all prepared, her role is to tell the story, act the roles for the story's cast beyond your team, let the players decide what to do, and use the Pathfinder rules framework to help figure out what happens next.

The SP knows all the secrets of the adventure she has bought, or created herself. The adventure only comes alive when the players step in, however, as their decisions can (and often do) surprise the SP and change the story. A good adventure, like a good movie, is all about the balance between a strong basic storyline, interesting characters on both sides, and a bit of surprise that makes for memorable moments.

How do I get started?

The easiest way to get started is to find a nearby gaming group, or an experienced Session Producer/ Game Master who might be interested in a teaching session. If you're at school, there are probably gaming clubs. Outside of schools, your friendly local gaming store is an excellent place to start looking, and Paizo's messageboards also offer a good way to find games in your area.

Once you find the right group, good SPs and groups will help you create a character and get started. This will almost certainly happen before your first playing session, and will be a conversation about what kind of hero you want to be, the group, and the current adventure series. It may also include an initial briefing regarding the most basic rules, and what your hero is good at and not so good at.

If you're the type who prefers more preparation, that's great. Pathfinder's rulebook is available online from Paizo, and can be delivered as a book or downloadable PDF. Now, go find a group and have some fun!

Tip to Paizo: we need a "find a campaign" message board!

What Should I Look for in a Pathfinder Gaming Group?

Keep an open mind, because people's gaming styles are often different from their real-life personas - just as actors and actresses usually aren't like the interesting people that they play in movies. (We might make an exception for dedicated gamer Vin Diesel.)

At the same time, it's important to look for someone you'll be comfortable with. Do you want this person producing the campaign and setting up the stories you're in? Talk to the Session Producer about the kind of campaign it is, what kind of stories and themes are popular, thematic directions (s)he wants to take the campaign, etc. How good is the fit? How flexible are they? How adaptable are you? It's better to wait a bit for a decent fit if the role, story, or environment doesn't work for you.

As a useful first step, we recommend answering the questions on this short form {url to form, see below for details}, and bring/send the results to Session Producers and groups you talk to. It will help them to help you.

Where Can I Find Gaming Materials Like Rules, Adventures, et. al?

You can buy books, dice, and other materials online from Pathfinder's creators right here at Paizo.com.

From Pathfinder rules, to published adventures and imaginary worlds you can use, to dice and other equipment that makes your gaming easier, it's all here at Paizo! We're one of the top distributors of role-playing games and equipment, and have established an excellent reputation for service, reliability, and customer care.

Your local gaming store (consult your Yellow Pages) may also carry Paizo products.

The 3.5 skill and feat systems are unquestionably its biggest weakness. Within that area, the Intimidate skill ranks near the bottom for "most poorly done". Its effect is to actively remove fighter and barbarian types from a number of role-playing situations, instead of involving them.

The problem is its mechanic, which is Charisma based. While that works well for Bards and Rogues, it's an exceptionally poor choice for fighters and barbarians because that is almost always their dump stat. So they don't get involved. And yet, here in the real world, I'd invite you to visit some bars (or high schools, if you're under age) and see who uses the Intimidate feat and how.

Paizo implicitly acknowledges this, and believes it is necessary to fix it with a new feat:

"Intimidating Prowess. Your physical might is intimidating to others.
Benefit: Add your Strength modifier to Intimidate skill checks instead of your Charisma modifier."

This is, I submit, perhaps not the quality of design one would expect from Paizo. Forcing fighter-types and (worse) barbarians to give up a feat, in order to be useful during roleplay encounters, is poor mechanics and will not attract a lot of players to that path. But it's a first draft, and the good news is that they recognize the problem (the mechanic) and solution (use Str).

There are 3 ways to fix this, all of which are better than forcing PCs to take a precious feat: The Simple fix, the Complex fix, and the Class fix.

The Simple Fix is to simply change the mechanic: Intimidate (Str OR Cha). From a game design point of view, I would argue that its elegance and simplicity makes bending convention worthwhile.

This was done in 2E, and worked. I have restored this in my own rebuilt fighter class. Suddenly, the party bard wants to take the fighter along for roleplay encounters, as an intimidating backup presence. Suddenly, the fighter sees this as a good place to put skills that confers real benefits. Suddenly, the incentive is to roleplay a bit instead of always handing this off to someone else. Paizo et. al. are invited to playtest this and see for themselves.

The Complex Fix is to acknowledge that there are 2 kinds of intimidation, and create appropriate skill mechanics designed for each.

Intimidating Personality (Cha). Same as the current skill.

Intimidating Prowess (Str). You are physically intimidating to opponents. Uses Str. for the base skill, but it's an opposed check. For every +2 of difference between your Strength, or your best attack bonus with all current modifiers (skill user picks), and your opponent's corresponding figure, you get +1 to the Intimidation check. If your chosen strength or best attack bonus is actually lower than your opponent's, you take a -1 to the check for every -2 difference.

I used Str. or best attack bonus for the opposed check because your 12th level fighter may not be as strong as that ogre, or in some cases even as strong as the Hobgoblin Fighter 2... but once it sees your moves or even senses your demeanor (ever been around a very good martial artist?) it's going to realize that it's seriously overmatched, and the fear will begin. Remember that Intimidation can be a combat move. I allowed the modifiers rather than using BAB because if you're holding a glowing, pulsing sword, that's more intimidating. If the sword looks inert but is +5 and makes you look that much better, it's still more intimidating. If you aren't holding a sword, it's not a current modifier and removes itself from the equation.

This fix is the most realistic, but also the most cumbersome. Is the trade worth it?

The Class Fix removes "Intimidating Prowess" from the feats roster, and adds it as a class ability to appropriate classes at an appropriate level. This is better design than making it a feat, but I suspect that every strength-heavy class would soon get it. At which point, it becomes obvious that the fix needs to be deeper.

I strongly recommend the simple fix. If this was broken enough to require a special new feat to fix, it's broken enough to fix at the source and encourage more widespread roleplaying, in a wider variety of situations.

Halflings... the Strength/ Dexterity trade off is pretty much a given. The question is their other ability modifier - currently Intelligence +2.

I think it should be Wisdom +1 or +2, and their favored class should be Druid instead.

Let's start by looking at the description of the race:

"...it’s their spirit and sense of community that sets them apart. Half lings care a great deal about their families and other close relations, making them great friends as well as bitter enemies to those who have wronged them. While some halflings prefer to settle in one location, usually with others of their kind and extended families, others feel a greater sense of wanderlust and move from place to place as their moods and the situations dictate. Halflings have a relatively optimistic outlook, being able to find the bright side of nearly any situation. This, combined with their uncanny luck, makes them relatively fearless, willing to risk their lives for the chance of adventure."

That gives us traits of:

* Spirit
* Determination
* Mentally resilient, including strong optimism and ability to work through fear
* Able to get along in small groups for long periods of time without exploiting each other, or wander and size up/ adapt to new situations quickly.

None of this is about intelligence. All of this fits extremely well into the Wisdom category.

Now, let's look at the game design side, because that piece of the puzzle also fits. Races with arcane casters as favored class already exist. Elves as Wizards, Gnomes as Sorcerers (good choice, that!). One more is just clutter.

Races with divine caster as a favored class include Dwarves and Half-Orcs, both as clerics. Notice which class is missing here.

Druids. Halflings fit Druids exceptionally well, as a pastoral race known as excellent farmers et. al. who work with the land rather than forcing it. The wanderers can also fit, for they'll need adaptability to the terrain and there is a need for wandering caretakers of nature. Add the fact that this race should have a wisdom ability bonus, the fact that druids remain an unfilled slot in racial terms, and the fact that Dex bonuses are quite valuable to a druid due to armor restrictions, and the choice seems very obvious.

I'm inclined to make the Wisdom bonus just +1, because Halflings have a LOT of other positive abilities, from attack bonuses to save and stealth bonuses (also a big plus for a Druid). So my suggestions is:

+2 Dexterity, +1 Wisdom, –2 Strength: Halflings are nimble and mentally resilient, but their small stature makes them weaker than other races.

Favored Class: The favored class of halflings is rogue or druid. This choice must be made at 1st level and cannot be changed.