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![Shemhazian](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/B5-Warbeast.jpg)
Has it been revealed yet why we're helping Baba Yaga? Isn't she kinda evil?
I think the following snippet from the product description is key to answering your question:
...or will their failure plunge Golarion into a new ice age ruled by the Witch Queen of Irrisen?
Even if Baba Yaga is an evil evil crone, being evil doesn't necessarily mean yearning for chaos and destruction (which would be the result of a sudden world-spanning ice age). At least not unless it's on her terms and not some upstart who thinks she can outmaneuver the Queen of Witches.
That's my theory, at least. :)
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![Rogue](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Dungeon114RogueTOC.jpg)
Who is Greg A. Vaughan? ;)
Greg Vaughan is awesome. It looks like he has done almost one adventure path per series being the auther of #s 6,11,13,23,29,33,40,46,50,56,61, and now 72 (I could be off by one but don't think so). He is a very good author one of my favorites, he has also done quite a few PFS scenarios and adventures for dungoen and wizards of the coast.
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4 people marked this as a favorite. |
![James Jacobs](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/private/JamesJacobs.jpg)
I am really looking forward to this AP. Irrisen is my favorite themed land. Getting details on Baba Yaga and her history is a dream come through.
Note: This Adventure Path spends only about a sixth of its time actually in Irrisen—it's more accurate to call this the "Baba Yaga Adventure Path" than the "Irrisen Adventure Path."
This message brought to you by the DoEM (Department of Expectation Management).
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![Raistlin](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Face-Offcolor2.jpg)
Since Inner Sea Magic states that Elvanna is a Witch 20+, does that mean that her statblock will use Mythic rules, or she'll be just stated as a lvl 20 witch?
The recently released "Irrisen, Land of Eternal Winter" states she is a Witch 10/Winter Witch 10, I would expect that to be her stats. That's tough enough for a 17th-ish level party, without having to add mythic levels on top of it...
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![Katra Sebine](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/PZO90120-Katra_500.jpeg)
The recently released "Irrisen, Land of Eternal Winter" states she is a Witch 10/Winter Witch 10, I would expect that to be her stats. That's tough enough for a 17th-ish level party, without having to add mythic levels on top of it...
Also doesn't help that she has the backing of a entire nation (even if Irrisen isn't in this particular issue).
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![Gorum](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Gorum_color.jpg)
Toadkiller Dog wrote:Since Inner Sea Magic states that Elvanna is a Witch 20+, does that mean that her statblock will use Mythic rules, or she'll be just stated as a lvl 20 witch?The recently released "Irrisen, Land of Eternal Winter" states she is a Witch 10/Winter Witch 10, I would expect that to be her stats. That's tough enough for a 17th-ish level party, without having to add mythic levels on top of it...
Wasent her daughter also a 20th lvl witch? (Thinking Elvanna will be cr 20-21 with pc wealth and/or 25 point buy)
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RuyanVe |
![Dragon](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Pathfinder5.jpg)
Has it been revealed yet why we're helping Baba Yaga? Isn't she kinda evil? Maybe it has something to do with her being the only person who can stop the region-wide cold snap, or something.
Where do you get that notion from? I always thought of her motives as being too alien to be completely understood by the average inhabitant of Golarion. Looking at where some of the motives for this AP seem to come from (maiden, mother, crone --> greek goddess Hecate), this sheds a new light on Baba Yaga.
Otherwise, it would be the theme of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" which will put some presssure on all the do-gooders in your group.
Ruyan.
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1 person marked this as a favorite. |
![Raistlin](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Face-Offcolor2.jpg)
Wasent her daughter also a 20th lvl witch? (Thinking Elvanna will be cr 20-21 with pc wealth and/or 25 point buy)
Elvanna's daughter, Princess Cassisoche, is listed as a Witch 8/Winter Witch 10.
CR 21 sounds about right, it would put her right on par with Karzoug.
What interests me more is the fact that we will be going up against all of the previous queens of Irrisen. This is interesting because the ninth queen, Tashanna, is heavily implied to be the very daughter of Baba Yaga that has earned some infamy in another campaign setting. A woman many may know under the name Natasha, Tasha (the creator of a funny spell), Louhi, "the mother of witches", and another probably more familiar name.
Tashanna bound the demon lord Kostchtchie to her service when she tried to resist being deposed as queen of Irrisen. Perhaps an early version of her later work with demons and demon lords. She literally wrote the book on demons, and James Jacobs wrote some issues of an article with the same name back when Paizo published Dragon Magazine.
So, yes, it would appear that Tashanna is none other than the witch of Greyhawk infamy, Iggwilv. It will be very interesting to see what happens with Tashanna in this issue. Perhaps James Jacobs could enlighten us on the issue, whether or not they are the same person.
I've heard rumors that if you speak James Jacobs's name three times he will appear.... wait, oh dear! What have I done!?
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![Vic Wertz](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/private/vic_abadar_avatar.jpg)
Since Inner Sea Magic states that Elvanna is a Witch 20+, does that mean that her statblock will use Mythic rules, or she'll be just stated as a lvl 20 witch?
This volume also includes a look at the history and secrets of Baba Yaga (including her stat block as a mythic spellcaster)...
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Toadkiller Dog |
![Rokova](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/PF20-05.jpg)
Toadkiller Dog wrote:Since Inner Sea Magic states that Elvanna is a Witch 20+, does that mean that her statblock will use Mythic rules, or she'll be just stated as a lvl 20 witch?The recently released "Irrisen, Land of Eternal Winter" states she is a Witch 10/Winter Witch 10, I would expect that to be her stats. That's tough enough for a 17th-ish level party, without having to add mythic levels on top of it...
Oh, didn't get that one yet, so I didn't know.
That seems managable. On par with all other end bosses who party faces at lvl 17th.
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Joseph Wilson |
![Svilennius Tripe](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/PZO9528-Alchemist.jpg)
James Jacobs wrote:Will the mythic rules be published by then?Baba Yaga will definitely be mythic...
Elvanna? Not sure yet. She'll likely be above CR 20, but not necessarily thanks to mythic tiers.
The final version will have been written and sent to the printer, so Paizo will have access to the finished version. The Mythic rules themselves, will release the following month.
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Wise Tiki |
![Jigeke the Exile](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/PZO9038-Jigeke.jpg)
Not sure how this is viewed but should it really say that Rasputin is the son of Baba Yaga? That seems like a big spoiler to me.
But then again, I was planning to play a male winter witch PC related to one of the lines in the running for the next queen of Irresen. I would have liked the surpise to find out Rasputen's true origins.
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Kevin Andrew Murphy Contributor |
![Bumbo](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Bumbo.jpg)
Well, if you're character's from Golarion, he'd never have heard of Rasputin anyway so the surprise isn't much of a surprise. Some guy in another world you've never heard of is Baba Yaga's son. Okay.
Rasputin only gets interesting when viewed from the perspective of future history. At the time he was around, he was just a subject of political gossip like when Nancy Reagan was getting advice from her personal astrologer.
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Generic Villain |
Where do you get that notion from? I always thought of her motives as being too alien to be completely understood by the average inhabitant of Golarion.
According to Inner Sea Magic, she's NE. Further, while she may have obscure motives, concurring and enslaving a nation and paving its roads with the bones of its former citizens is evil no matter how you look at it.
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Generic Villain |
1 person marked this as a favorite. |
True dat.
But who knows what would ensue if Baba Yaga lightens her grip...
Surely you can see behind her guise as evil crone and perceive her benevolent nature of the typical fairy tale gran'ma.Ruyan.
It really depends on what route Paizo takes with her. Depending on your interpretation of the folklore, she could be anything from a straight-up murderous boogeyman to a stern guardian spirit. Based on what I know about the PF version, I'd say she falls somewhere in between. Evil in an amoral manner, incomprehensible to most, dangerous but also potentially helpful, and not giving a crap about what others think of her actions.
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Irnk, Dead-Eye's Prodigal |
![Goblin](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Pathfinder1_02a.jpg)
Also, according to Inner Sea Magic, Irrovetti is CN, but when you actually encounter him in Kingmaker he is CE.
Granted, the odds of an immortal, already millennial-aged being going through an alignment change in just a few years are slight, but the odds of such a being who is only encountered once a century & who on that occasion has to ride herd on a NE nation, overseeing a transfer of power at the highest levels, being viewed one way, when if fact she is something else. That chance is actually pretty high.
Hell, we don't even know that Elvanna started out evil. One hundred years, stuck in a job where you are surrounded by enemies on all sides, any action that might be perceived as weakness a danger to you, those you care about & the nation you are charged with. People crack.
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Generic Villain |
...the odds of such a being who is only encountered once a century & who on that occasion has to ride herd on a NE nation, overseeing a transfer of power at the highest levels, being viewed one way, when if fact she is something else. That chance is actually pretty high.
When a character has their alignment listed, that isn't a matter of how s/he is viewed by others. A NE witch queen is NE no matter what others think. However, established PF characters do occasionally have their alignments changed when it makes sense for the story. Irovetti as you mentioned, as well as the BBEG of Skull and Shackles.
Regardless, you know what's funny? The fact that the first ever Mythic character to be statted for PF could be mistaken for the Crazy Cat Lady from the Simpsons. Man I hope Baba Yaga's familiar is a cat...
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Irnk, Dead-Eye's Prodigal |
![Goblin](http://cdn.paizo.com/image/avatar/Pathfinder1_02a.jpg)
You know what's funny? The fact that the first ever Mythic character to be statted for PF could be mistaken for the Crazy Cat Lady from the Simpsons. Man I hope Baba Yaga's familiar is a cat...
Okay, hadn't thought of it that way, but that is kind of funny...
I seriously doubt her Familiar is going to be a cat however.Unless it is one of those ones that only look small & cute, but are actually six different kinds of hell-on-wheels in a fight.