The brutal beasts of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary come alive on your tabletop with this box-busting collection of more than 300 creature pawns for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game or any tabletop fantasy RPG!
Printed on sturdy cardstock, each pawn contains a beautiful full-color image of a nasty monster from the core Pathfinder RPG monster reference. Each cardstock pawn slots into a size-appropriate plastic base, making them easy to mix with traditional metal or plastic miniatures. With multiple pawns for commonly encountered creatures and more than 250 distinct creature images, the Bestiary Box is the best way to ensure you've got the right creatures to push your Pathfinder campaign to the next level!
ISBN 978-1-60125-561-7
Bestiary Box Set List
Hundreds of monsters surge to life on your tabletop! Each has its own identification number for easy sorting. The Bestiary Box includes:
Short Version: If you use maps in your game, this gives a great foundation of enemies for a fraction of the price of minis.
The pawn boxes, particularly this one containing so many oft-used monsters, each replace hundreds (let's be honest, thousands) of dollars in minis in an easier-to-store solution.
There are a few problems that aren't enough to bump the score down, but are worth mentioning. I often find I don't have enough copies of common monsters, although the Monster Codex box helps a great deal there. The lack of gargantuan and colossal pawns is understandable (they'd be a giant pain to fit on sheets), but still felt. And, after years of weekly use, these pawns don't return snugly to the sheets anymore, necessitating different storage.
I'm finding it hard to figure out what to say when reviewing the Pathfinder pawn boxes. The product details are listed on the back of the packaging, so for the Bestiary Box you'll know you're getting 256 different creature pawns, with some of them coming in multiples for a final count of over 300. The pawns are thick, sturdy cardboard and have held up well through months and years of play. They slot neatly into little round plastic bases, and the box comes with 21 small/medium bases, 10 large bases, and 5 huge ones. Although there might be an omission here or there (I haven't cross-checked), almost every creature that appears in the Bestiary will have a corresponding pawn in this set. The only consistent exceptions are any creatures larger than Huge, as Paizo has refused to come out with any pawns that big. The artwork is full-colour and (usually) matches the creature pictures in the book, the pawns are titled and numbered to match the list on the back of the box for easy sorting, and there are little set indicators so you don't get the pawns from this box mixed up with pawns from other boxes. If I had any criticisms of the Bestiary Box specifically, it's that it's not always intuitive why they chose some creatures to have multiple pawns and others to only have one: for example, there are two "Bralani Azatas" (I'm not exactly sure what that is), but only one Shadow and only one Wraith, etc. Still, quibbles aside, this is an excellent set, and having these pawns sure beats checkers, coins, random minis ("Gandalf is the hyena"), and the various other things GMs sometimes have to put on the table. From one point of view, I can see why it sounds ridiculous to spend $ 44.99 USD on little pieces of cardboard. But . . . somehow it's worth it!
I will just drool over these, I'd offer a much more honest rating, but I can't buy them, they are permabackordered. Sooo... they're awesome. Looking. I'll just sit here in my sadness without them. Crying softly. Curled in a ball on the shower floor, cold water and tears running down my face and over my nakedness. I will attempt to carry on. I will survive this. Paizo, you're my only hope. Unless I pay 87.00 on amazon.
A Solid Compromise Between Paper Minis and Solid Minis
I decided to pick this up after I ran the introductory adventure from The Beginner Box. I had a lot of fun assembling the pawns from that box and placing them on the map for use during the adventure. I don't have the storage space or the budget to buy plastic or metal miniatures. I also don't have the craft skills to make paper minis. So, for me, pawns fit my requirements for miniature figures. The artwork is cool and they store easily in the Beginner Box or their own box.
When the clerk at the local game shop told me that the only way I would find a Pathfinder game would be to run one on my own, my mind immediately reeled thinking of the hundreds of miniatures that I would need to properly host a game.
Then I thought about the Pathfinder pawns line and the answer to my problem was in sight! I picked up the Bestiary Box prior to my first session and happily realized that almost every monster that I needed was represented within!
The pawns are sturdy and the artwork is gorgeous. The players really enjoy the added value of seeing the exact creatures they are facing. It makes encounter descriptions a breeze because I just set up the pawns and tell the players "this is what you see"!
You can't beat this selection for the price. Take your game to the next level. This first set is indispensable and will be the only monster box you'll need for a while!
There are also Huge monsters, bigger than the Large-size pawns. The Stirge, though Tiny, is the same size as the Small pawn. I don't have exact measurements, but the Huge size pawns are noticeably bigger than the Large ones.
Nice but do they take up appropriate sizes on the maps (Gamemastery, etc)?
They specifically mention that it includes twenty 1"-bases for Medium and smaller pawns, ten 2"-bases for Large pawns, and five 3"-bases for Huge pawns.
What I'd like to know is if there is any kind of insert inside the box to keep them all sorted, or if they are just in there loose.
I picked this up and in fact subscribed in faith that the pawns would be good quality and worth the money. I received my box on Friday and I'm pretty pleased with the contents. I'm not sure how to resolve the issue of storage yet but I'm thinking of making a foam core insert for the box in order to organize the pawns appropriately. The box itself is pretty heavy duty so can be used for storage pretty easily.
Between these (and the other sets that are being released) the D&D minis I already own and the Reaper minis and Pathfinder minis I'm picking up I should be able to cover nearly every monster that might appear in adventures I run.
If your unable to by the miniatures these are definitely worth the price.
I bought the German version of the Beginner's Box a few days ago, the one made by Ulisses Spiele. It contained a set of green clip-style bases, with a square, not a round base, and smaller than 1" diameter.
I'm really disappointed by those. The color is ugly and distracts from the pawn, the bases are too small, thus being more wobbly and the clip part where you slot in the paper bit of the pawn goes up so far it hides part of the name of the pawn.
If I buy the English version of the Bestiary Box, am I guaranteed the black, round, properly sized bases shown on all the pictures?
I think it's hilarious -- I ordered this from Paizo, declared that I lurved lurved LURVED it, and broke it out for my Kingmaker game!
Encounter #1: Tatzlworm. OK. Not there. No problem...
Encounter #2: Giant Centipede. Oops. That's in the Bestiary, and listed as being in the box, but none of my players could find one...
Encounter #3: Grig and Faerie Dragon. No match again...
Marker #4: A marker for the druid's badger. Oops...
So while what it DOES have is gorgeous, I think subscribing to the Pawns collection for APs is going to be an absolute must. I was a bit disappointed that NOTHING I wanted was in there...
Well - I can vouch that the Bestiary Box mailed from Paizo had beautifully made circular black bases which held the pawn stock cleanly.
Awesome. Thanks! :)
I also noticed that, on the product image, the English Beginner's Box too has those clip-style bases, only in black. It's in the "unpacking" video that I've seen the round ones. Confusing.
As for "Bestiary Box doesn't have all I need": I guess that was kind of to be expected. There's only so much you can print and one of the cool things about APs is that they introduce lots of new monsters which are not in the Bestiary.
As long as the pawns sell well, I'm sure they'll keep pushing out AP-Pawn collections like the RotRL and S&S ones.
Just got an email from Amazon this morning saying delivery of my Bestiary Box -- pre-ordered months ago when it was first announced -- is being delayed to...
(Drum roll please...)
... JANUARY 10, 2013!
I came on here to rage at yet another product delay, only to find the Bestiary Box is already in stores. So I guess the moral of the story is: Never pre-order stuff through Amazon. (I only did so because I had a $50 gift card. I'll now be canceling the order and just buying the pawns the old-fashioned way I guess.)
Just got an email from Amazon this morning saying delivery of my Bestiary Box -- pre-ordered months ago when it was first announced -- is being delayed to...
(Drum roll please...)
... JANUARY 10, 2013!
Yeah, just got that e-mail too. Very disappointing, since I just saw it in my LGS last night and assumed that meant I'd be getting my copy soon. Grrr.
Just got an email from Amazon this morning saying delivery of my Bestiary Box -- pre-ordered months ago when it was first announced -- is being delayed to...
(Drum roll please...)
... JANUARY 10, 2013!
Yeah, just got that e-mail too. Very disappointing, since I just saw it in my LGS last night and assumed that meant I'd be getting my copy soon. Grrr.
FWIW, I received my two preorders yesterday (in CO), direct from Paizo.
They look great, definitely wetting my appetite for Bestiary 2 & 3 boxes and the adventure path boxes.
The Bestiary pawns pretty much rock hard. Though they lack a tiny bit of the appeal of good miniatures, they're way more cost- and space-effective.
Might I suggest not ordering through amazon at times.. especially here in the states as a majority of the times the Brick and Mortar stores will likely get them in first before Amazon ships them for some reason.
It seems inevitable that every time a hot new product from Paizo comes out that someone comes in to the thread for it complaining about Amazon and the lack of shipping and the delays that seems to crop up.
I would suggest not ordering from Amazon if you want the product as soon as it is released, but if the price break is worth waiting 3 weeks then Amazon may be good for you.
Waiting 3 weeks is one thing - waiting FIVE MONTHS is another.
(Cancels Amazon order...)
Amazon always moves the date out to Jan of the next year. Then they come back in a couple weeks and fix it to send out the following week. Based on past paizo products on Amazon you should disregard the January date that Amazon told you and expect them in 3-4 weeks.
Waiting 3 weeks is one thing - waiting FIVE MONTHS is another.
(Cancels Amazon order...)
Amazon always moves the date out to Jan of the next year. Then they come back in a couple weeks and fix it to send out the following week. Based on past paizo products on Amazon you should disregard the January date that Amazon told you and expect them in 3-4 weeks.
Actually, with my order for 4 Beginner Boxes they pushed the date out several times, then said that they weren't sure when they could get it so they had cancelled the order for my convenience. Then after a few weeks they put it back on sale with a lead time of about 4 weeks and a higher price than I had pre-ordered it for. I don't buy RPG stuff through Amazon any more.
Waiting 3 weeks is one thing - waiting FIVE MONTHS is another.
(Cancels Amazon order...)
Amazon always moves the date out to Jan of the next year. Then they come back in a couple weeks and fix it to send out the following week. Based on past paizo products on Amazon you should disregard the January date that Amazon told you and expect them in 3-4 weeks.
I just contacted customer service to see if someone can get to the bottom of this weird delay. Sure, it's cheaper, but I don't want to wait 5 more months, either. If, as you say, they will readjust the date and then ship it out, no problem. Otherwise I'll cancel the order and go buy one at my local FLGS (which is what I usually prefer to do anyway).
Waiting 3 weeks is one thing - waiting FIVE MONTHS is another.
(Cancels Amazon order...)
Amazon always moves the date out to Jan of the next year. Then they come back in a couple weeks and fix it to send out the following week. Based on past paizo products on Amazon you should disregard the January date that Amazon told you and expect them in 3-4 weeks.
I just contacted customer service to see if someone can get to the bottom of this weird delay. Sure, it's cheaper, but I don't want to wait 5 more months, either. If, as you say, they will readjust the date and then ship it out, no problem. Otherwise I'll cancel the order and go buy one at my local FLGS (which is what I usually prefer to do anyway).
I will say the same thing happened to my RotRL AE. It was moved out til January, then Amazon got it in stock and it was delivered to me on August 14th. Not sure exactly when it was released, but it seemed like about 3 weeks. I read a post on these boards that said when Amazon doesn't get a product by the release date, the computers push the date out and it is not based on anything truthful. I also have the Beastiary box on order and I am content to wait a couple weeks for it.
I dont know if it's useful or not (are these intended to be reprinted as necessary?) but the Bat Swarm pawns' identifying tags are all the same color. I havent noticed any others, but figured it would be worth correcting for any potential reprint.
I dont know if it's useful or not (are these intended to be reprinted as necessary?) but the Bat Swarm pawns' identifying tags are all the same color. I havent noticed any others, but figured it would be worth correcting for any potential reprint.
Ah. I've finished unpacking them now and the spider swarm is the other exception. Clearly it's a deliberate choice rather than a problem, so no worries there..
It's superb. I was horrified at first when I saw the red outlines to cut round, but selecting the mini artwork in Acrobat and copying brings it onto the clipboard without the red lines. So I can make high-quality tokens for MapTool in seconds :)
Which creatures got new artwork???? Remorhaz? (say yes) ettin? Barghest?
Because this is a long list:
The following creatures have new artwork:
Ankheg
Ape, Dire
Archon, Hound
Bat Swarm
Bear, Dire
Centaur
Centipede, Giant
Demon, Babau
Demon, Balor
Devil, Ice
Doppelganger
Dragon, Young Black
Dragon, Young Blue
Dragon, Young Brass
Dragon, Young Bronze
Dragon, Young Copper
Dragon, Young Green
Dragon, Young Gold
Dragon, Young Red
Dragon, Young White
Elemental, Air (Small)
Elemental, Air (Medium)
Elemental, Air (Large)
Elemental, Earth (Small)
Elemental, Earth (Medium)
Elemental, Earth (Large)
Elemental, Fire (Small)
Elemental, Fire (Medium)
Elemental, Fire (Large)
Elemental, Water (Small)
Elemental, Water (Medium)
Elemental, Water (Large)
Frog, Giant
Froghemoth
Giant, Frost
Griffon
Herd Animal, Bison
Naga, Guardian
Night Hag
Salamander
Satyr
Spectre
Spider Swarm
Sphinx, Gynosphinx
Wolf
Wolf, Dire
Wraith
The following creatures use artwork from another source than Bestiary 1:
Boggard
Dragon, Ancient Black
Dragon, Ancient White
Ghost
Giant, Cloud (I think this was already used by a Pathfinder Module)
Giant, Storm
Hobgoblin
Lizardfolk
Merfolk Warrior
Oni, Ogre Mage
The following have modified artwork:
Animated Object (skeleton removed)
Archon, Lantern (other lantern archons removed)
Still waiting for this to get to Canada? the local hobby store has it but it's over an hour drive one way, with my gas tank I can buy almost 3 boxed sets from chapters.ca
So the Remorhaz has still human on it? A shame... Barghest and Ettin could use some magic aswel...
But thanks for the list!!! Happy to see the Balor and Babau have new art, they could use it.
Actually, the Remorhaz doesn't have a human in it. It just looked so much like the Bestiary picture I didn't notice the Bestiary had a human in it. The Giant Scorpion, though, still has a hyena in the picture, and the Dire Tiger still has piglets running away.