Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary 2 (OGL)

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Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary 2 (OGL)
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Go beyond goblins with an army of fantasy's most fearsome foes! Bestiary 2 presents hundreds of different creatures for use in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Within this collection of creatures you'll find undead dragons and mischievous gremlins, shrieking banshees and unstoppable titans, the infamous jabberwock, and so much more! Yet not all these monsters need to be foes, as new breeds of otherworldly guardians, living shadows, and vampires all might take up adventure's call. In addition, new rules for customizing and advancing monsters and an expanded glossary of creature abilities ensure that you'll be prepared to challenge your heroes wherever adventure takes them!

The Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 is the second indispensable volume of monsters for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and serves as a companion to the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook and Pathfinder RPG Bestiary. This imaginative tabletop game builds upon more than 10 years of system development and an Open Playtest featuring more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time best-selling set of fantasy rules into the new millennium.

The 320-page Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 includes:

  • More than 300 different monsters
  • Creatures both new and familiar, drawing upon the best-known beasts of legend, literature, and Pathfinder RPG adventures
  • Challenges for any adventure and every level of play
  • Hosts of new templates and variants, including simple templates for on-the-fly creature customization
  • Numerous lists of monsters to aid in navigation, including lists by Challenge Rating, monster type, and habitat
  • New rules for creating and running high-level menaces
  • Expanded universal monster rules to simplify special attacks, defenses, and qualities
  • New familiars, animal companions, and other allies
  • ... and much, much more!

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-268-5

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Last Updated - 7/16/2012

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Excellent Addition

5/5

As its name implies, Bestiary 2 is the second full-length collection of creatures for Pathfinder. It's a big (320 page) book, and introduces, according to the back cover, over 300 different monsters. The vast majority of creatures get one page each (art, stat block, description), though there are a few pages with two monsters and a few monsters that get double-page spreads. In format, it's very similar to the first bestiary collection. Obviously, I can't review all the monsters individually, but I would like to list some of the creatures or new creature types that jumped out at me:

* Aeons: Embodiments of neutrality striving to maintain universal balance, these cosmic entities are hard to conceptualise but interesting and important for planar travel. Several varieties are included here. I particularly liked "bythos", monitors of disruptions to time or space.

* Agathions: Beastlike outsiders native to the neutral good plane Nirvana. The theme works surprisingly well, with each type having a distinct role. I've never really used these, but should.

* Aranea: Super creepy pic!

* Athach: Dumb, bizarre arm monster with no background.

* Crypt Thing: Special teleport ability is pretty cool.

* Daemons: Outsiders with a special desire to consume mortal souls. Still too similar to "demons" and I don't really see what distinct niche they fill.

* Primal Dragons: Elemental-themed dragons plus a shadow plane-themed umbral dragon.

* Elementals: Four new ones here (mud, lightning, magma, and ice)

* Elemental (playable) races: Ifrits, undines, etc., are introduced here.

* Giants: Four new ones, including rune and taiga.

* Golems: Six new ones, with adamantine and clockwork the best.

* Gremlins: New creature type, a good and suitably annoying addition to the game.

* Inevitables: Lawful Neutral outsiders implacable in their goals. Each has a good nice.

* Lycanthropes: Three new ones, with wereboars and weretigers having good, scary art.

* Megafauna: Four new ones.

* Nightshade: Introduced as a creature type, with a really cool description.

* Proteans: Chaotic neutral outsider type. Not particularly interesting, and not obvious how to use well in a game.

* Qlippoths: Pre-demon residents of the Abyss, they hate demons and mortals whose sins form them. A cool concept.

Generally speaking, there are a lot of high-CR and a lot of gargantuan- and colossal- sized creatures. The book fills in a lot of the classics that weren't included in the first collection, and I also noticed a lot that appeared in Rise of the Runelords (including art reproduction). However, there are also a lot I've never heard of before despite gaming for a couple of decades. A good mix! Overall, an excellent, high-quality expansion to a GM's toolkit.


My favorite book from Paizo.

5/5

This book so far has been my favorite purchase of ALL of my RPG books.
I don't know if I can explain the fervor I have for this book but I will try.

So first of all there is the cover, the ever feared Jabberwock(y) of Lewis Carroll legend. Having a tough SOB (CR23) on the cover is the best way to start things off I think. Lets me know im in for a ride with this book.

While the first Bestiary was the standard array of Monsters we have all come to know and love through years of them being reprinted for games the Bestiary 2 is where Paizo took off on its own with a whole slew of new monster and just general new ideas for monsters. A handful of new extraplanar monsters of various alignments were added such as The Aeons, Qlippoths and Daemons all have decently written history and offer a lot of inspiration for using them in games.

The two things I love best about this book are as follows.
One: New dragons, and not just more "coloured or metal" dragons, but a new type of dragon altogether: Primal Dragons. These bad boys have probably the best art in the whole book (magma, im looking at you) and they make for a nice change from the everyday.

Two: The art, while the art in Bestiary 1 is GOOD, its not near as sharp, crisp, and detailed as this book. The colours, the textures, the everything, all done very well. You will not be disappointed when looking through this book.


Great buy!

5/5

I really enjoyed the artwork and the monsters presented in this book, especially the Qlippoth! Must have for your pathfinder library!


Back to the Golden Age

5/5

Looking through the PDF of Bestiary 2, I find myself remembering the days in the 1980s when I'd sit in the back of the mall bookstore and leaf through the various gaming tomes I couldn't possibly buy all of.

Crystal Dragons, Aeons, and several others in this book remind of that golden era, when DMs had such a wide variety of unusual (and often new-age-y) creatures at their disposals, they couldn't possibly ever use them all.

Sure, some of the creatures are a little odd, but on the other hand, the vast variety will lead to some adventurer groups with a far different list of encountered monsters than the norm.

I personally can't wait to spring the Dullahan (aka Headless Horseman) and Animate Dream on my party!


Something does not add up...

3/5

Not as extensive as the first, yet the same price...

I do not mind the creatures in this book, but it does get less use than my other bestiary. However it still has the same problem as the first also. The use of generic rules for a creature type. For an actual hardcover book to be useful in a game (for creatures) you MUST be able to have all rules for the creature on the one page. The use of rules based on a type of creature that you need to leave the creatures page to reference is irritating and a waste of in game time.

Please fix this problem. I understand that constructs all have similarities but I need the rules on each constructs page to reference. Not have to skip to the end of the book to see if they have something relevant when they need it.


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Sovereign Court

The announcement wrote:

# The Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 includes: More than 300 different monsters including new golems, giants, dragons, planar denizens, and classic creatures from mythology and gaming tradition

# An innovative format that gives each creature its own page or two-page spread for complete ecological detail and ease of reference
# Dozens of monstrous variants to modify creatures and keep players on their toes
# Numerous lists of monsters to aid in navigation, including lists by Challenge Rating, monster type, and habitat
# Universal monster rules to simplify special attacks, defenses, and qualities like breath weapons, damage reduction, and regeneratio
# Suggestions for monstrous cohorts
# Plenty of new animal companions and familiars
# AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!

Two questions regarding the announcement above:

- The "innovative format": Is it the same as in Bestiary I or is it a new format?
- "Universal monster rules to simplify special attacks": Could you please shed some light on these?

Thanks in advance!
Günther


Guennarr wrote:


Two questions regarding the announcement above:
- The "innovative format": Is it the same as in Bestiary I or is it a new format?
- "Universal monster rules to simplify special attacks": Could you please shed some light on these?

I guess both are just like Bestiary I: Monsters in that stat block format, always getting its whole page (unless they're special groups of critters that can be grouped together on one page). Common special attacks like rake and the like aren't explained in the monster entry but rather in a glossary.

Liberty's Edge

I'm wondering how many of the AP Bestiary entries will be getting updated from 3.5 and making it in.


Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber
Guennarr wrote:

Two questions regarding the announcement above:

- The "innovative format": Is it the same as in Bestiary I or is it a new format?

From the description, it sounds like the same full page view.

Guennarr wrote:
"Universal monster rules to simplify special attacks": Could you please shed some light on these?

These are the rules at the back of the Bestiary (thankfully also included in the Bestiary II) that describe things like Regeneration, "Grab", Undead traits, etc. Makes the entries shorter, and provides a single set of rules for those abilities.

Any *differences* from the norm would be spelled out in the monster's entry - so you don't have to hunt through two paragraphs for anything changed from every other monster with that ability.

Wildfire142 wrote:
I'm wondering how many of the AP Bestiary entries will be getting updated from 3.5 and making it in.

Me as well. From what I heard, there won't be any from Legacy of Fire forward yet.

Contributor

Kvantum wrote:
Heathansson wrote:
other kytons?
There's already a new CR16 kyton in Pathfinder #30, but others would be nice, too.

We've got plans for kytons, and actually had intended to have more out for them by now, but the timing (and some iffy art) just didn't work out. There's a little about them in PF #30, the Zon-Kuthon article in #11, and in Book of the Damned. All that meant that they didn't quite make the cut for this book either, but we'll have more from them down the line.

vagrant-poet wrote:
Aeons???? Anymore information?

Yeah. In this book. Tune in come October. :P

SirUrza wrote:
I want to start the petition now for Dropbears. :)

Believe it or not the outline of 400 some potential monsters included dropbears. And actually yesterday when asked about something ordered for this book I nearly had a heart attack, opening the wrong file and seeing drop bears still on the list. But, luck is not with our silly Ausie cyptid friends for this book... and no book in the foreseeable future. Don't expect the Cracked Cyptids Redeemed book anytime soon?

Contributor

KaeYoss wrote:
Guennarr wrote:


Two questions regarding the announcement above:
- The "innovative format": Is it the same as in Bestiary I or is it a new format?
- "Universal monster rules to simplify special attacks": Could you please shed some light on these?
I guess both are just like Bestiary I: Monsters in that stat block format, always getting its whole page (unless they're special groups of critters that can be grouped together on one page). Common special attacks like rake and the like aren't explained in the monster entry but rather in a glossary.

What he said.

Contributor

Majuba wrote:
Wildfire142 wrote:
I'm wondering how many of the AP Bestiary entries will be getting updated from 3.5 and making it in.
Me as well. From what I heard, there won't be any from Legacy of Fire forward yet.

Yeah, that stuff is just too new to make us interested in repackaging it and turning it around again. Maybe in another few years, but not now. As for updated 3.5 stuff, there's a lot of 3.5 holes that the original Bestiary just didn't have room to cover that we'll be filling in. That DOES NOT mean that all the stuff deemed too lame for the Bestiary will be in here: delvers and tojinidas, still gone. There's also a fare share of Tome of Horrors monsters updated in here - who wants daemons!? But the parts we're most excited about are getting our first chances to expand beyond the basic core monsters. Chimeras and wyverns and chromatic dragons are fun and all, but we've seen them a hundred times before. Lets see some new devils and demons, some new dragons, some other stuff that's been mentioned in our books but never stated up, new dinos (for James), lots of new gothic horror stuff (for me). Oh and familiars: new low-level, familiar-ready creatures for every fully detailed planar family (why should imps and quasits be the only helpers, protean familiar here we come!).

So yeah. Lots of familiar stuff, but way more new and cool stuff. And as always, drawing off of both our world, our imaginations, and classics of folklore and fantasy you've always known but probably have never had in your game before. That should be 100% clear from the cover once we have something to show off.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber

I would have figured the drop bears for Bestiary VII or so, the same year as World Guide: Sarusan.

Edit: Wes, did you just say Protean Familiar? Awesome.

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Actually... I think we cherry picked a few monsters from Legacy of Fire now that I think of it, but mostly from the earlier ones.

Liberty's Edge

That teaser list sounds great, lots to look forward to.

Liberty's Edge

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber
seekerofshadowlight wrote:
2E put out annuals of critters from every product once a year. I would love to see a complied pathfinder bestiary annual

A collection of all the monsters used in the APs would be really handy. I try to maintain a custom pdf myself but it's a pain I don't have a hardcopy.

Dark Archive

any chance of seeing dinos like Liopleurodon and Postosuchus in the new bestiary James?

Dark Archive

James Jacobs wrote:
Actually... I think we cherry picked a few monsters from Legacy of Fire now that I think of it, but mostly from the earlier ones.

You mean one of my all time favorite monsters -- Peryton -- might be in it? :)

RPG Superstar 2011 Top 16

Pugwampis!


Protean familiar? A little bit of chaos all for me? Sounds great!

Will there be some new proteans we haven't seen beyond the familiar one?

Vigil wrote:
Pugwampis!

Those are a total must!


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber
KaeYoss wrote:
Vigil wrote:
Pugwampis!
Those are a total must!

YES!

Contributor

James Jacobs wrote:
Actually... I think we cherry picked a few monsters from Legacy of Fire now that I think of it, but mostly from the earlier ones.

Now that I think of it you're right. Pretty much just the first one though... hint hintity hint hint. (Oh and it does collect in any stray proteans.)

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

It better be Pugwampis !

Paizo Employee Creative Director

ulgulanoth wrote:
any chance of seeing dinos like Liopleurodon and Postosuchus in the new bestiary James?

Sort of. As in, there'll be a tylosaurus. he's pretty close to liopleurodon.

As of right now... I'm thinking there'll be 4 more "dinosaurs": compsognathus, tylosaurus, allosaurus, and some sort of hadrosaur.

Anyone have any other nominations?

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Pugwampis will be all over the book. Perhaps literally.

Contributor

F. Wesley Schneider wrote:
new low-level, familiar-ready creatures for every fully detailed planar family (why should imps and quasits be the only helpers, protean familiar here we come!)

*DROOL*

Liberty's Edge

heath mosasaurs
are way cooler.


James Jacobs wrote:
Pugwampis will be all over the book. Perhaps literally.

I take this a cover spoiler! Can't wait.


James Jacobs wrote:

As of right now... I'm thinking there'll be 4 more "dinosaurs": compsognathus, tylosaurus, allosaurus, and some sort of hadrosaur.

Anyone have any other nominations?

Vastatasaurus?


James Jacobs wrote:
As of right now... I'm thinking there'll be 4 more "dinosaurs": compsognathus, tylosaurus, allosaurus, and some sort of hadrosaur.

Compys are my fourth fave, right after the pleisosaur!

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Subscriber

Will there be rules for hippogriff PCs? I ain't buying this book unless I can have a hippogriff character!

Sovereign Court RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8

Looks like the dhampir will have pleanty of company.

Scarab Sages

Ju Ju Zombie?


Nice...helps spice up things for GMs and players alike - this is great news.


F. Wesley Schneider wrote:

(Oh and it does collect in any stray proteans.)

And add how many new ones? A dozen? Or only a handful?

RPG Superstar 2013 Top 8

James Jacobs wrote:
ulgulanoth wrote:
any chance of seeing dinos like Liopleurodon and Postosuchus in the new bestiary James?

Sort of. As in, there'll be a tylosaurus. he's pretty close to liopleurodon.

As of right now... I'm thinking there'll be 4 more "dinosaurs": compsognathus, tylosaurus, allosaurus, and some sort of hadrosaur.

Anyone have any other nominations?

Compsognathus in both regular and swarm-versions would be neat. I'd be all over a therizinosaur.


October, damn. Need NAO plox! ;) Sounds great.


I want rules for the Hippogriff bonded mount personally. Considering that they were a large part of where the very concept came from (the legends of Charlemagne) not having the chance for one is almost a disservice.

RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32

Justin Sluder wrote:
I'm excited to see what the regeneratio universal monster ability does. ;)

I also wish to know what regeneratio is all about! ;D

Scarab Sages

How about more fey? That's always cool.

Sovereign Court

Lord Fyre wrote:
Justin Sluder wrote:
I'm excited to see what the regeneratio universal monster ability does. ;)
I also wish to know what regeneratio is all about! ;D

It's clearly regen that changes based on the ratio between current hp and max hp... at full hp the creature has the standard regen, at half hp it has double, and at 0 hp it has [ERROR: DIVISION BY ZERO] regen.

Dark Archive

I hope that's the final cover art. Awesome!

Dark Archive

srd5090 wrote:
I hope that's the final cover art. Awesome!

No, that's a place-holder. Wayne will do the final cover! :)

Dark Archive

There goes my budget...

Dark Archive

Asgetrion wrote:
srd5090 wrote:
I hope that's the final cover art. Awesome!
No, that's a place-holder. Wayne will do the final cover! :)

Awww, I really like the place-holder art.. Is it already from a previous book?

Either way I hope the new (real) art is as cool.

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Yes, it's artwork from PF 12, Crown of Fangs.


Any chance that we might see a few other Lovecraft-inspired critters in Bestiary II? Maybe Nightgaunts? ;)


Sketchpad wrote:
Any chance that we might see a few other Lovecraft-inspired critters in Bestiary II? Maybe Nightgaunts? ;)

Bwahaha... "Tickle(Su): ..."

Dark Archive

Mikhaila Burnett wrote:
There goes my budget...

Heh, my budget went downhill a long time ago... ever since I ordered my first Paizo product. And this year looks to be even worse -- I'll be dirt-poor by December, but at least I'll be happy with all my Pathfinder books! :)


James Jacobs wrote:
ulgulanoth wrote:
any chance of seeing dinos like Liopleurodon and Postosuchus in the new bestiary James?

Sort of. As in, there'll be a tylosaurus. he's pretty close to liopleurodon.

As of right now... I'm thinking there'll be 4 more "dinosaurs": compsognathus (dinosaur familiar!), tylosaurus, allosaurus, and some sort of hadrosaur.

Anyone have any other nominations?

Rhamphorhynchus, shonisaurus, (and even though the name duckbilled dinosaur is a bit of a misnomer, I'm still amused James suggested a hadrosaur for Bestiary 2 without being prodded into it)

For the hadrosaur I'd say edmontosaurus or kritosaurus would do but include variants for lambeosaurids like parasaurolophus, corythosaurus and /or lambeosaurus; could possibly tweak it into iguanadontids as well: more bang for your entry buck.

One question: I noticed that the avoral got printed in Andoran: Spirit of Liberty-I am guessing this means it won't be in the Bestiary 2? Will there be agathions (leonal, possibly others) in the book and will they have a combined segment (and common traits) like the archons, angels and azatas did in Bestiary 1?

Paizo Employee Creative Director

Steven Purcell wrote:
One question: I noticed that the avoral got printed in Andoran: Spirit of Liberty-I am guessing this means it won't be in the Bestiary 2? Will there be agathions (leonal, possibly others) in the book and will they have a combined segment (and common traits) like the archons, angels and azatas did in Bestiary 1?

Actually, there WILL be an avoral in Bestairy 2; there'll be several agathions, in fact.

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

I initially had no interest in buying new rulebooks for the game because I want to limit the number of books I bring to the table.

Now I find that the Game Mastery Guide has random treasure tables, the Advanced Player's Guide's new classes are awesome, and the Bestiary 2 has the Jabberwock in it.

The freakin' Jabberwock.

You guys are really good at luring me in despite my best wishes to stay away. I'm just thankful you also sell these things in PDF so I can print off what I need and put it in my ever-growing gaming binder.

Silver Crusade

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Will the monsters from Bestiary II be added to the PRD ? I know that jreyst will add them to the pfsrd anyway, but it would be cool to have them all on the main PRD page :).

Thanks for keeping the OGL torch burning bright, folks !

Dark Archive

I'm hoping Divs made the cut because they go well with the other planer families. s for the fourth dinosaur, I wuld like to humbly request the spinasaurus, my personal favorite dinosaur.

Scarab Sages

Serpent folk had an entry in the Darklands book. Will they also get an entry in the Bestiary II?

Also,

- more fey?
- more oozes, slimes, puddings, etc?
- any chance for Neogi?

And, of course, my broken record request....

Spoiler:
...Ju Ju Zombie?

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