stutzj's page

Dear Paizo

The Beginner Box is brilliant. So, thank you for making this product. Its great for those of us who like the new and the old school all combined in a easy to use package. While I know the purpose of this product was to act as a gateway game to the real deal of Pathfinder Core, I must say, that having played both, I prefer the 'less is more' approach of the Beginner Box. Which isn't to say that I play the right way and everyone else is wrong (god no! please play the way that is fun for you, everyone!)- I certainly can see why people like the core rule - it's just too much game for my style of play. Now I know that this has been discussed and you all are very clear on your stance regarding a 'Expert Box'/continuation of the Beginner Box line, but I think you all should reconsider.

Hear me out.

I don't think you need a 'Expert BOX'. Its not necessary. I imagine you all are not making a huge profit on the 'Beginner Box' since there is so much bang for your buck and its a steal at 39.99 (again, part of the gateway game strategy). No I think you should release a soft cover that will fit snugly into the Beginner Box maybe around 96-100 pages in length, similar to the Gamemasters Guide. Sell it for $15-20. I GUARANTEE you that it would sell well. It would appeal to and be enthusiastically received by a group of gamers like me that love the Beginner Box but are unlikely to invest in the multivolumes necessary for the full on Pathfinder experience.

Plus, D&D Next is coming and you probably will have competition because of the flexibility of the system to appeal to both more rules heavy players and players who enjoy less rules like me. This could be your way to compete with them in that area. I know that I would choose your system over D&D Next. You will keep those of us excited by the Beginner Box style of play and Pathfinder but who are not committing to the larger chain of products and keep us from investing in D&D Next. This probably applies the most to the OSR crowd which I would argue is probably a large potential purchasing base that would be interested in buying this product because it mirrors the Basic/Expert products of yore that so many of them pine for.

Here is what you could put in it:

6-10th level rules for existing classes.
Several new classes (by no means limited to what I suggest and covering 1-10th level):
Druid
Ranger
Paladin
Bard
One new race:
Halfing

Select spells (similar to the amount for the first three levels in the BB) for the new classes and spells up to characters of 10th level.

I'm guessing for all the races, new classes, and 6-10 rules, spells you are looking at about 30-35 pages(3 pages for new non casting characters, 1 new page for Rogue/Fighter, 4 new pages of spells for Cleric and Wizard, 8-10 pages for Druid. 1 page for Halfings (you could even add another race here since race options only take up a half of a page in the Hero's Handbook)

10 pages for new Feats and Skills.

2 new pages for harder traps.

6 pages for new magic items

26 pages for new monsters including 3 pages of updated random encounter tables for high levels(same as Gamemaster Guide in BB)

4-6pages detailing a slightly larger world outside of Sandpoint. Like a VERY condensed version of the Inner Sea World Guide - just enough to get your imagination going.

14 page expert level adventure.

2-4pages of new rules/combat options/extended travel rules.

2 pages miscellaneous pages (preface, epilogue)

For a grand total of 98-100 pages.

No need to include new pawns. Just use monsters from the 'Bestiary Box' (hey, I'll buy that now since I actually need it). Use an already published flip map so again people will probably want to buy it or if they are cheap they can just use the blank map from the BB.

I would so buy this and you would make me, and I imagine, a good number of other people like me happy and keep us using the Basic/Expert Pathfinder for years to come. It really would be my game of choice.

Just my 2 cents.