The dead are rising! This blasphemous tome gives players and GMs everything they need to bring the shambling menace of the undead to their Pathfinder adventures. This book includes tools for fighting against the undead horde, but also options for the players themselves to control or even become undead creatures. GMs will find new tools and haunts, as well as information about the undead-plagued lands of the Lost Omens campaign setting. A massive bestiary section full of undead creatures brings more threats for GMs to use and summonable creatures for players, including more versions of classic undead like vampires, skeletons, and zombies. This 224-page hardcover rulebook also includes a full adventure themed around fighting the undead!
Written by: Jason Bulmahn, Brian Bauman, Tineke Bolleman, Logan Bonner, Jessica Catalan, John Compton, Chris Eng, Logan Harper, Michelle Jones, Jason Keeley, Luis Loza, Ron Lundeen, Liane Merciel, Patchen Mortimer, Quinn Murphy, Jessica Redekop, Mikhail Rekun, Solomon St. John, Michael Sayre, Sen.H.S.S, Kendra Leigh Speedling, Jason Tondro, Andrew White
A 224-page PDF (includes single-file and file-per-chapter versions)
ISBN-13: 978-1-64078-401-7
The adventure contained within this rulebook, "March of the Dead," is sanctioned for use in Pathfinder Society Organized Play. The rules for running this Adventure and Chronicle Sheets are available as a free download (881 KB PDF).
Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:
title says it all, it's a good book but it feels like they were afraid of really committing to the undead vibe for the player options, which is a bummer but far from a deal breaker
The highlight of this book is the archetypes and ancestry for allowing undead PCs. The handling of rejuvenation and soul cage in particular works well, and would work as good inspiration for representing other powerful monsters as PC archetypes. If that's your next campaign, this book could be worth it for the archetypes alone.
For a DM running an undead-heavy campaign, this book works well as an additional bestiary. There are 85 monster entries, as well as alternate ability options for some of the more common undead and some new haunts. None particularly stood out to me, but the sheer number is certainly helpful and in Pathfinder 2E every monster entry has something interesting going for it. The adventure is fine, but Paizo produces so many better adventures in other product lines. (I haven't run this one, so can't judge the difficulty.)
For living PCs, this book isn't worth it. The archetypes are lackluster. There's 2 pages of backgrounds and 3 pages of items, but surprisingly no new spells at all. I didn't dock the book for this. Some books simply aren't for good-aligned PCs.
Most disappointing is the lore section. The cursive font used for some of the in-world lore sections is more legible than previous books, but still difficult to read. I can't imagine trying to decipher it in the pocket edition. Luckily, these in-universe esoteric pieces aren't that interesting to me anyway. Worse is the choice to write almost all of the lore from Geb's highly-opinionated perspective. A light touch might have been entertaining, but in a few places, notably the Deities of Undeath and the shorter entries in the Lands of Undead section, the opinions are so strong that I can't actually tell what he's talking about. I love well-considered lore that inspires characters and plot hooks (Mwangi Expanse was fantastic and Guns & Gears did this well for a book in the rulebook product line), but here it feels like a lazy way to add page count.
Contains cool lore RE: Undead and cool undead creature profiles for GMs
Most of the undead options for players are very weak, sacrifice important flavor for balance, or worse (and more commonly) both. Most of the playable options don't actually feel like undead
If you want this book because you are interested in playing an undead character, save yourself some time and money and just homebrew something better.
A lore-packed book full of undead-centered options
Was hoping for specifics on the player options, but the adventure is a real surprise! Has me worried about our chances for an Impossible Lands AP, unless they really wanna double dip.
Hmmm. This is definitely going to be a pre-order for me.
It would be interesting to see additional player options, such as undead ancestries, new feats to combat the undead, and new backgrounds like Vampire Hunter. Regardless, I'm sold.
I'd chalk it up to Wayne Reynolds's idiosyncratic art style, but there's enough context clues in the picture as a whole (the fact he's all ghostly, the Egyptian-style architecture - Geb was Osirioni after all -, and some of the undead looking similar to those in that one Geb picture in LOWG) for me to think it's him.
Unless he's wearing some kind of mask, that's a completely different look from how he was depicted in Legends and on other products.
Eh, I dunno.
Looking at his profile pic here, there's enough similarity (he's just cleaned up a bit since Arazni is no longer around to rule the nation he named after himself...), as well as context (look at all the ectoplasm slithering off of him!), to guess that that is who is centered on the cover.
Also, it was mentioned by developers--during Paizocon?--that the nation of Geb would get some spotlight in this book (the Grave Lands, too, but that is certainly not Tar Baphon on the cover, so...)
But if you feel differently, that's fine, too. : )
We'll know more once Paizo staff/the developer(s) are ready to say more. <shrug>
this is probably not the final cover. we didn't see GaG's cover until paizocon, about 4 months before its release. Using that same timeframe we'll probably see the final cover for this around november. cool mock-up though.
I think some concept sketches for book of the dead back when it was first announced showed Geb in a similar manner. And I think an aesthetic change makes sense too. He has to actively rule for the first time in centuries and has a chance to finish his business with Nex once and for all, so the change may involve a shift in his role from brooding and reclusive to active leader and a shift in attitude trying to connect to his old traditions and power as he thinks of revenge buried in the past. He looks more tired, more severe, and more concerned with ceremony than the older artwork. I think it's an appropriate change.
I think some concept sketches for book of the dead back when it was first announced showed Geb in a similar manner. And I think an aesthetic change makes sense too. He has to actively rule for the first time in centuries and has a chance to finish his business with Nex once and for all, so the change may involve a shift in his role from brooding and reclusive to active leader and a shift in attitude trying to connect to his old traditions and power as he thinks of revenge buried in the past. He looks more tired, more severe, and more concerned with ceremony than the older artwork. I think it's an appropriate change.
Yeah, I remember the concept art shown during the PaizoCon keynote and the Q&A sections, and Geb did look like that in the cover. So it's most likely Geb.
this is probably not the final cover. we didn't see GaG's cover until paizocon, about 4 months before its release. Using that same timeframe we'll probably see the final cover for this around november. cool mock-up though.
But Secrets of Magic's temp cover was basically the same as the final cover, minus the new border and text. Since this was drawn up by Wayne Reynolds, I'm going to err on the side of this being close to done, maybe with another new fancy border.
^ Yeah. However, even removing the "cdn." doesn't work for me; I have to open it in a private window to see it (& this only works once I've reset/refreshed all cookies for the site...).
Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Pawns, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Really interested in seeing what they do with this. I quite the the idea of “themed” books like this…hopefully we’ll see them continue along this path and cover dragons, demons/devils, etc.
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber
Interesting. An adventure about fight Undead instead of being them? Darn. Granted, still an adventure I didn't expect to receive here! So it's a plus.
This page answers a question I hadn't been able to ask during PaizoCon, being which book set this would fall under. I figured it would be a Rulebook, which I'm glad it is, because it still leaves room for a potential LO: Eye of Dread book. Although, I suppose that was likely to still happen regardless, since not every nation is haunted by Undead in that region.
Is there going to be any advice on good aligned undead in this book? What kind of deities they'd worship, etc? It's hard to believe the entire undead population of Geb is evil!
I like the mural/painting behind the Throne where Urgathoa seems to grant power/knowledge to Geb, if that is Geb sitting on the Throne.
Or possibly being "Ain't no rest for the Wicked, have fun being Ghost"
I wonder if this is where we'll see blood magic since it had to be cut from secrets of magic? I hope that playable vampires give us quasi immortality with mist form at 0 & coffin restoration. same with playable lich and the soul containers
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber
Routamaa wrote:
I like the mural/painting behind the Throne where Urgathoa seems to grant power/knowledge to Geb, if that is Geb sitting on the Throne.
Or possibly being "Ain't no rest for the Wicked, have fun being Ghost"
Also like the Mummy carrying undead cat.
Fairly certain that the ghostly figure sitting in the chair is in-fact Geb. This art does look different from some of his previous depictions; but his identity is certainly solidified, if by nothing else, by the ankh shaped hieroglyph situated at the crown of the throne, which represents the nation of Geb.
I too found the wall art incredibly interesting, as I don't recall it ever being implied that the Pallid Princess had any correlation to the rise Geb and his nation.
I actually hadn't considered that the incredibly tall woman with that cat may be a mummy. Would make sense, given the scarab on her outfit, representing Osirion. But, she actually struck me more as a lich than a mummy, primarily due to the distinct lack of wrappings. Liches aren't unknown in Osirion, but are certainly less common than say a mummy pharoah. But who knows. We are getting variant types of undead, or at least variant types of liches; such as the one Jason mentioned at PaizoCon that affixes and replaces its body parts with magic items. Perhaps we will see one that is more closely related to mummies and maybe store their origans in canopic jars, which function as their phylactery. Side note: the cat, though not exclusive to them, also made me think that she may be a witch; a rarity among liches.
There are a lot of neat details that stand out to me in the cover and I love it. The possible graveknight on the right. The zombie or gurgeist above them, whose engorged appearances reminds me of Bloatmages and Blood Magic (unlikely, I know, as the practice is mostly confined to Varisia). The seeming difference in social status between the two ghouls (ghasts?). The apparent difference in the intellect of the three skeletons, with the one on the left having lights in its eyes, which may indicate sentience compared to the other two. And, what I'm choosing to believe is possibly a Herecite of Zon-Kuthon holding the head as an offering. Not sure what else they could be, as they don't appear to bare the long ears of the ghouls, and the piercings on their back makes me think of the Midnight Lord.
Anyways, simply cannot wait for this book. I hope we get some more spoilers somewhere between now and its release.
Pathfinder Companion, Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber
I was thinking that the undead holding the platter was a nosferatu. Also, it might be unlikely, but I'd like to think the head is that of a newly-made dullahan being offered up to Geb so that it might be added as a new commanding officer for his undead army.
I wonder if this will have what amounts to a PF1 campaign setting book for Geb included? Perhaps not at the same page count, as those were like 64 pages(I think?) but content wise. Book is definitely big enough to fit even 10 pages just on Geb.
I like the mural/painting behind the Throne where Urgathoa seems to grant power/knowledge to Geb, if that is Geb sitting on the Throne.
Or possibly being "Ain't no rest for the Wicked, have fun being Ghost"
Also like the Mummy carrying undead cat.
Fairly certain that the ghostly figure sitting in the chair is in-fact Geb. This art does look different from some of his previous depictions; but his identity is certainly solidified, if by nothing else, by the ankh shaped hieroglyph situated at the crown of the throne, which represents the nation of Geb.
I too found the wall art incredibly interesting, as I don't recall it ever being implied that the Pallid Princess had any correlation to the rise Geb and his nation.
I actually hadn't considered that the incredibly tall woman with that cat may be a mummy. Would make sense, given the scarab on her outfit, representing Osirion. But, she actually struck me more as a lich than a mummy, primarily due to the distinct lack of wrappings. Liches aren't unknown in Osirion, but are certainly less common than say a mummy pharoah. But who knows. We are getting variant types of undead, or at least variant types of liches; such as the one Jason mentioned at PaizoCon that affixes and replaces its body parts with magic items. Perhaps we will see one that is more closely related to mummies and maybe store their origans in canopic jars, which function as their phylactery. Side note: the cat, though not exclusive to them, also made me think that she may be a witch; a rarity among liches.
There are a lot of neat details that stand out to me in the cover and I love it. The possible graveknight on the right. The zombie or gurgeist above them, whose engorged appearances reminds me of Bloatmages and Blood Magic (unlikely, I know, as the practice is mostly confined to Varisia). The seeming difference in social status between the two ghouls (ghasts?). The apparent difference in the intellect of the three skeletons, with the one on the left...
Being one of the few blind players on the boards, I really appreciate this in depth analysis of the cover. It lets me "see" it through your description. Thanks!