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Man, I'm just getting home, and I don't even know where to begin, but it was just an awesome experience. It was great working with Nick and Josh, and I had a blast with the players that came to my table. Paizo has an awesome group of fans, and it was a lot of fun getting to play with them, and seeing their enthusiasm for the setting, and the Society.
It was also great to get a chance to compare notes and share war stories with the other Pathfinder Society GMs that I got to spend time with.
I really, really hope I can come next year because this was one of the best experiences I've had as a gamer. I really hope that I can get the local interest in the Pathfinder society going, because its really something special.
Edit: And how cool is it that I got a real cookie from Lilith?
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Mr. Greg Vaughan was my GM, and, as is to be expected, I think, he killed two of our characters in one of the best (and longest) battles I've had the pleasure of fighting in. I almost became a casualty myself, but the timely help of the cleric was certainly appreciated. Hydra's Fang it was. Fun times...
How was the cookie, by the way?
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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I played in all 4 at Gen Con, and it was great. I had a blast in all of them. While it was awesome to meet some of you in person, I wish I could have put a face to the names of more of you.
Without giving anything away, I have to say that Murder on the Silken Caravan was by far the toughest, and while all 4 were good, my favorite was the Frozen Fingers at Midnight. I'm beat after 4 solid days of gaming goodness, but in the next day or two I'll post more details about PFS from my POV.
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Paizo had a great big sign outside their playroom displaying some of the great WAR art from PF. Every time I walked past the PFS room between 8AM and 5PM (4h games at 8am and 1pm), the place was electric.
A buddy and I played Silent Tide on the second session of second day. Mike Kortez was our GM, so he knew his stuff (and did a great job).
Somehow, I was the only cleric left after all the 4-man teams had filled their tables to 6. That left one cleric for about 30 people. High demand. :)
The module was a blast.
Anyway, thanks Mike and other members of the PC group. You guys were great and I had a good time running around Absolom with ya. Thanks Paizo for making PFS a reality!
We had a GM that was trying to kill us in the first round, so that was a bit stressful. We absolutely loved the other three sessions we played, though I did feel that two of them were very short even with as much goofy roleplaying as we inject into the otherwise combat-oriented scenarios.
I have huge concerns about the "loot" system. For example in one scenario we took a Masterwork Greatsword from one of the NPCs as loot. However, at the end of the adventure this loot was not on the sheet. Our GM explained that this was because we could buy a Masterwork Greatsword whenever we wanted. That's all fine and good, but we found one... (Seems like we should have gotten a discount or something.) However, that wasn't the issue.
On a later session
I'd also like some clarity on the acceptable manner in which we can exchange items and gold. For instance I have a party member who is a Cleric, and I'm a Barbarian, can I buy Scrolls of Cure Light Wounds and give them to him to cast upon me? Can I give him 100 gold for his Scroll Purchasing? Can I give him 1500 gold to buy a suit of Field Plate?
Overall we had a great time, and are looking forward to continuing on in the battle for Absalom.
And thanks, Paizo, for supporting NASCRAG!!
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I found that it was an ideal event for organized play. The OP that RPGA does is very mechanics/combat focused, but the modules and setting that The Pathfinder Society provides allows for RP and in-game thinking. The fact that each different faction has a side-goal in each adventure provides interesting gameplay. Also, the politics in the game are just under the surface of the setting, not too much to cause difficulties with other players, but enough to feel like a member of your faction.
Can't wait to see the rule changes
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I just got home about an hour ago. I wanted to say that we had a GREAT time with the Pathfinder adventures. Managed to get into adventures 1 and 2 with generic tickets.
My only comment is this... Having a special Pathfinder Society room is a great idea. The only problem is that the room has AWFUL acoustics. When play starts it becomes difficult to hear. The GM's did their best, but it was still hard to hear the story.
If the Pathfinder Society has their own room next year, PLEASE see what can be done to help keep the volume down to a low roar.
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I would have to agree with you on that point. Also, I'm not sure what the situation with DM's was(i saw almost every table used in each slot) but the "real" tickets for the adventures sold out in every slot i attempted (except in the one case i ordered a day and a half ahead). I would love to see TPS expand into a better gaming room.
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I played in all 4 at Gen Con, and it was great. I had a blast in all of them. While it was awesome to meet some of you in person, I wish I could have put a face to the names of more of you.
Without giving anything away, I have to say that Murder on the Silken Caravan was by far the toughest, and while all 4 were good, my favorite was the Frozen Fingers at Midnight. I'm beat after 4 solid days of gaming goodness, but in the next day or two I'll post more details about PFS from my POV.
Concur, sir. My friend and I were fortunate enough to get our feet in the door on all four adventures, and to survive all four of them with the same characters, as well. We only made it through Murder on the Silken Caravan by the skin of our teeth, and as Osirians, that setting practically should have been a breeze for a desertborne cleric and rogue.
Due to my poor hearing from playing loud rock music \m/ >_< \m/ and a distracted attention span, the white noise in the Pathfinder Society room was problematic, but I think it comes with the territory. Even still, all four of the games we were in went wonderfully. Kudos especially to, ah, I think his name was Christopher Self? He ran us through Hydra's Fang. Delightful experience.
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Feedback:
1) I thought the sessions were very well organized. I think it was probably easier to muster when everyone was playing the same basic level. Maybe next year it will be more difficult, but I thought Joshua did a good job grouping up people.
2) The GMs new the material well and gave us a good time. Nobody died in any of the sessions I played. Although we didn't have a Cleric so we bought 16 scrolls of CLW and gave them to the bard once.
3) I'm hoping to get to play more, but my local game store(s) are not really an option at this point. I'm hoping to be able to play online. Keep us posted if some sort of online organized play happens.
Thanks again for the great times. See you next GENCON!
docbrown aka
Gladon Brood
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Yeah, the noise is definatly something that comes with the full small room. Strangely upstairs in the much larger Sagamore room were RPGA was sound all but died in there. There are a couple tricks to GMing in rooms like that though and I think we all dealt with it the best we could even with my dying voice on Sunday.
By the way, I think Josh could get a job as a professional marshall at GenCon if he wanted it. He was awesome. Moreso once someone gave him a bullhorn :).
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Hey all! This was my first in-depth experience with the pathfinder society. I was turned on to it by a friend of mine who was with me at GenCon, and I have to say it is an awesome idea! I really like the system they use for short 4 hour adventures. It's a little combat heavy, but it's also very exciting because of it. It never got slow or boring. There was always this sense of urgency that made your character want to keep going for the goal. We were only able to make it to 3 of the 4 games. We played the first one on Friday, finshed it(and loved it! Thanks Mike Kortez!), and went to immediately purchase event tickets for the remaining 3 adventures but they were all sold out-for the entire weekend! Yes, it was that popular. I can see why, but perhaps next time, get a bigger room!:) The noise level was a bit of an issue, but not super bad and it was cool to see how other GM's run their games. Laptops and projectors to dry erase board maps and mini's. It was a really good time and I'm extremely happy that my character managed to survive not 1 but 2 of the adventures with no cleric in the group. Lets hear it for healing potions and meat shields! All in all and excellent time and I'm looking forward to see where the pathfinder society takes us in the future!
Hey all! This was my first in-depth experience with the pathfinder society.
I'm not surprised, considering it was everyone's first in-depth experience with the Pathfinder Society. :)
Sounds like a blast! I hope I can get a home game going...
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Thank you to everyone who ran games and to the brilliant writers who came up with the scenarios. They were all fantastic and I don't think I can single out a favorite. I agree that the noise was a problem.
The Drow adventure was chaotic, messy, violent, offensive, and I loved every minute of it. Especially because I ended up king (well, Queen, actually . . . .)
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I played Silent Tide early Thursday morning, and was slated to DM Frozen Fingers three times throughout the rest of the con. Unfortunately there were two empty tables at the session Thursday afternoon and one of them was mine. But as far as I could tell, those were the last empty PFS tables until late on Sunday. Word spread quickly and by Friday there were lines of people with generics trying to get in and quite a few people wearing their faction T-shirts. Paizo's popularity spread throughout the con and they sold out of all the Pathfinder Beta rules by early Friday, all the Campaign books by noon Friday, and then they capped it all off with 10 Ennie awards on Friday night. And that was only the first half of the con.
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I played with Janxious in the second session of the second day on the Savage Tides module DM'd by Mike Kortez. It was an absolute blast. Mike kept the story moving well and kept us from having to perform some minutia that would have no real effect on the adventure other than to waste time.
Our party didn't have much of an issue with any of the encounters, although the last encounter pushed us a little. I think our success was due to our party playing very well together, despite the fact we were a pickup group as opposed to the adventure being under-tuned.
I didn't have any issue with the noise level in the room, but I was playing on an outside table, so if I was in the middle, I'm sure I'd have a far different opinion.
In closing, I have to give the event two thumbs way up. It was run efficiently and well. The room was always packed, which made me happy I as quite enjoy the Paizo products, so I love seeing them do well. Mike wrote a terribly fun adventure and DM'd it extremely well. It was, without a doubt, the best adventure I've played at any GenCon I've attended.
Thanks for a wonderful job, Mike.
Coeus (aka Elirath Fershaw the Barbarian min/maxed to the extreme)
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I ran Hydra's Fang (for a table of 4) on Saturday and then ran Frozen Fingers (for a table of 6). The mods were great and each had it's own particular mood/feeling as well. The characters all really played their factions well and the faction missions meshed well with both stories.
All-in-all a well organized event. A kudos to Paizo again for starting this up.
Thanks,
Greg Volz
Natural Twenty Gaming
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Question: Are people from Taldor called Taldans, Taldorian, Taldoran, Taldians, Taldese, or what?
As per the PFS Organized Play Player's Guide, people from Taldor are Taldans and they use Taldan items.
Since people will be able to buy the modules today, here's my ever-so slightly spoiler-y opinion on the four modules I played:
Frozen Fingers of Midnight - Good, fun adventure, although I found the plot to be insufficiently clear to successfully complete the Taldor faction mission. The Boss Fight should <i>have the Boss in it</i>.
Murder on the Silken Caravan - Good Rovagug, but that last encounter is a helluva hard fight. But I got to use Prestidigitation earlier, so it's all good.
Silent Tide - If you have a Turn-optimized Cleric, and aren't role-playing <i>heavily</i>, you'll finish this one in about an hour.
Hydra's Fang - A lot of fun, but even with us role-playing a fair amount for a Con scenario, we wrapped this one up in about two hours. The Bard diplomating us past one scenario, and the Rogue one-shotting the first encounter down to half strength in the surprise round probably helped. However, Seebo successfully converted Magnus the dwarven fighter to Rovagug worship through sheer joie de vivre and gnomish brio; Magnus heard the Good News, and liked that it was delivered via Great Axe and Alchemist's Fire.
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I did Silent Tide on Saturday Morning (8:00) and had an utter blast. Our GM (I'm terrible with names which makes me feel bad because I'd play again with him any day) was absolutely spectacular, as was the group. Enough role-playing went on that we nearly didn't finish it in time (which is a testament to one character in particular which deserves special kudos, the bell-wearing-barbarian). Our cleric absolutely decimated all the undead we came across making the module a little easier, but the last fight was really well done and I'd give the whole module a 9/10.
I did Frozen Fingers on Sunday morning (with generics blowing off a game of Cosmic Encounter) and had fun as well (even though I was far more impressed with Silent Tide). The module felt quite a bit more difficult (says the monk critted by the greataxe wielding leader) but quite a bit shorter as well (I think we finished in just under three hours with quite a bit of lead-in time). I'd give the module a 6/10 (fun but just not my cup of tea).
Overall though, the fact that I blew off two other events to get into another Pathfinder game says something about how much I enjoyed it. Great job guys!
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I had a fine time. The guys I got to game with were from the same gaming group out of Boston (sorry guys...names escape me). They were lots of fun and damn fine tacticians. We got through the Silken Caravan scenario without losing any one.....though it came close. :)
We also got to test the d20pro software for online gaming. This thing worked great at the con. Our DM was able to enter everyone's info quickly and got us running. When ever we had a modification that wasn't available in the software, it was a SIMPLE button click away from being added. This was especially true for adding in the bonuses from cleric buffs and bardic music bonuses. HIGHLY recommended and a great time.
By the way, in the back corner of the room, the acoustics were fine. :)
Edit: And how cool is it that I got a real cookie from Lilith?
Yes it was very cool and very tasty. I so wanted to be the first to brag about getting one too.
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I played in 3 of the 4 Scenarios and also played in Ascension of the Drow.
I had a fantastic time in all of them. I did not get to play Murder on the Silken Caravan which I heard good things about. But I have to say Frozen Fingers of Midnight was my favorite scenario and it was an extra treat to have it run by the author, Craig Shackleton.
Ascension of the Drow was just crazy. Drow basically going on an an free for all murder spree. Alliances made and broken in a single breath. I was not actually a drow but rather a Drider Wizard and must say, I think our Driders (+ a Grey Render and Stone Giant) made a good showing for being such a small group with few allies.
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Feedback:
1) I thought the sessions were very well organized. I think it was probably easier to muster when everyone was playing the same basic level. Maybe next year it will be more difficult, but I thought Joshua did a good job grouping up people.
2) The GMs new the material well and gave us a good time. Nobody died in any of the sessions I played. Although we didn't have a Cleric so we bought 16 scrolls of CLW and gave them to the bard once.
3) I'm hoping to get to play more, but my local game store(s) are not really an option at this point. I'm hoping to be able to play online. Keep us posted if some sort of online organized play happens.Thanks again for the great times. See you next GENCON!
docbrown aka
Gladon Brood
I was hoping I'd run into someone that I had GMed for . . . I was your GM for Silken Caravan. ;)
The mass of scrolls for the bard reminded me.
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Aye, it was a pleasure playing in all 4 mods. I must admit that, as Abrax the Chelish paladin of Iomedae, my character choice was immediately tested with the incredible faction-based directives.
All four DM's were awesome and much appreciated.
I'm looking forward to Chelaxian rule over Absalom, and in the shorter term, being able to download the four mods and run them for the rabid Pathfinder fans in the Austin area.
Thank you, and good morning.
Abrax
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My gaming group had a great time. Even not knowing about the PFS ahead of time and having to use generic tickets, we were able to get 5- and 6-person groups in for three out of the four sessions (we never did Hydra, much to our disappointment).
The DMing was great and the adventures were fun. We had the privelege of having our Frozen Fingers game run by the author of the adventure, and our DMs for Silk Caravan (an awesome guy from Tampa) and Silent Tide (an equally awesome guy from Champaign) were equally skilled and easy to get along with.
We're definitely going to be looking at getting modules to run at home and I'm looking forward to participating more thoroughly next year (we'll have to be sure to get registered ahead of time for actual even tickets).
Which character did you play? I'm thinking I was "the guy" from Champaign, since I didn't run into anyone else from my neck of the woods when talking to the other GMs.
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I played in 3 of the 4 Scenarios and also played in Ascension of the Drow.
I had a fantastic time in all of them. I did not get to play Murder on the Silken Caravan which I heard good things about. But I have to say Frozen Fingers of Midnight was my favorite scenario and it was an extra treat to have it run by the author, Craig Shackleton.Ascension of the Drow was just crazy. Drow basically going on an an free for all murder spree. Alliances made and broken in a single breath. I was not actually a drow but rather a Drider Wizard and must say, I think our Driders (+ a Grey Render and Stone Giant) made a good showing for being such a small group with few allies.
I remember you as well . . . Chelaxian elf sorcerer, right? Gotta love the fiendish centipedes.
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Concur, sir. My friend and I were fortunate enough to get our feet in the door on all four adventures, and to survive all four of them with the same characters, as well. We only made it through Murder on the Silken Caravan by the skin of our teeth, and as Osirians, that setting practically should have been a breeze for a desertborne cleric and rogue.Due to my poor hearing from playing loud rock music \m/ >_< \m/ and a distracted attention span, the white noise in the Pathfinder Society room was problematic, but I think it comes with the territory. Even still, all four of the games we were in went wonderfully. Kudos especially to, ah, I think his name was Christopher Self? He ran us through Hydra's Fang. Delightful experience.
As the afortmentioned cleric, I had a lot of fun. I don't know how I survived as a cloth-wearing, staff-swinging cleric, but I'm chalking it up to faith.
Anyway, the first game was interesting enough to get us to sign up for the rest of the adventures, and it just got better as it went along. I think I liked Silent Tide the best for the NPCs and RP, but all of them were good. I agree about the noise, and there was a little confusion at times about how resources can be spent or tranferred between characters that could be cleared up. Still, way more positives than negatives. Now I need to find more chances to play, somehow!
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A merchant of Qadira who picked up every key he found and tried to sell something to everyone he met.
I had the pleasure of playing in Chris' Saturday group (the voice wasn't that bad really, once we tuned everything out). The Qadrian merchant of whom he speaks was absolutely friggin' hilarious ("Mak'mud" or something like that). He even had the accent for it.
I played Frozen Fingers of Midnight with a friend, at Chris' table, and had I known how much fun I was going to have, I would have played the other three as well. As it stands, I'm itching to start an organized play in my area and run some Pathfinder goodness!
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I remember you as well . . . Chelaxian elf sorcerer, right? Gotta love the fiendish centipedes.I played in 3 of the 4 Scenarios and also played in Ascension of the Drow.
I had a fantastic time in all of them. I did not get to play Murder on the Silken Caravan which I heard good things about. But I have to say Frozen Fingers of Midnight was my favorite scenario and it was an extra treat to have it run by the author, Craig Shackleton.Ascension of the Drow was just crazy. Drow basically going on an an free for all murder spree. Alliances made and broken in a single breath. I was not actually a drow but rather a Drider Wizard and must say, I think our Driders (+ a Grey Render and Stone Giant) made a good showing for being such a small group with few allies.
Yes thats me. Were you my DM for Silent Tide? Cool, thanks for the great time. I had such a blast in all my Pathfinder games!
Venture-Lieutenant, Michigan—Warren
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I made my first ever trip to Gen Con just for these events and wasn't disappointed. I managed to play all 4 scenarios as Nikara, an Osirion and really enjoyed myself. The scenarios were concise with interesting encounters and opportunities to role-play. The length of the scenarios was appropriate and my groups managed to finish 3 of 4 on time. The faction goals added role-playing opportunities and subplots that didn't derail the main plot. I'm looking forward to further scenarios and hope to find opportunities in the Detroit area to continue the fun. Thank you to everyone involved in providing so many of us a good time.
As far as the Qadiran merchant, if it's the same guy I'm thinking of, he cracked me up over and over. In the Silken Caravan scenario, our DM, Lou, was extremely descriptive in telling us how poor the Qadiran conditions were. But with each dreary, oppressive sentence, our Qadiran friend chimed in joyously in his accent about how good the conditions were and how good to be home. He totally hammed up the role and managed to spin every negative into a positive.
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I made my first ever trip to Gen Con just for these events and wasn't disappointed. I managed to play all 4 scenarios as Nikara, an Osirion and really enjoyed myself. The scenarios were concise with interesting encounters and opportunities to role-play. The length of the scenarios was appropriate and my groups managed to finish 3 of 4 on time. The faction goals added role-playing opportunities and subplots that didn't derail the main plot. I'm looking forward to further scenarios and hope to find opportunities in the Detroit area to continue the fun. Thank you to everyone involved in providing so many of us a good time.
As far as the Qadiran merchant, if it's the same guy I'm thinking of, he cracked me up over and over. In the Silken Caravan scenario, our DM, Lou, was extremely descriptive in telling us how poor the Qadiran conditions were. But with each dreary, oppressive sentence, our Qadiran friend chimed in joyously in his accent about how good the conditions were and how good to be home. He totally hammed up the role and managed to spin every negative into a positive.
I would have loved to see that. I had Andros for two games and he was great fun as the Qadiran merchant/cleric of Sanrae. His reaction to the Andoran "blood orgy" on the Hydra's Fang was perfect. I loved running Hydra's Fang and Frozen Fingers of Midnight for everyone at the con, and it was a real pleasure to see everyone wearing faction shirts and working hard to earn their prestige (and free re-rolls).
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Question: Are people from Taldor called Taldans, Taldorian, Taldoran, Taldians, Taldese, or what?
It's in the PFS Guide.
(I don't have it with me otherwise I'd answer.)
Reading the entry on the Taldor page, it appears to be Taldans. For completeness, the rest seem to be Osirians, Qadirans, Andorens, and Chelaxians.
I had an absolute blast running these games - everybody that came to my table was excited to play, and that always makes me a better GM. To the players of these characters in my games:
Alynasis
Amun Corfu-Chepseti
Bealzababe
Baydenostasich
Barelston
Black Ear
Brock
Caelum
Cole
Cutter Cutterman
Daffodil
Dax
Desdamona
Ether
Jonas
Ka-Dar the Silent
Keth-tur
Kierdan
Koz
Krasus
Kryst
Marsalis
Michael Benner
Moriden
Neraj
Polo
Ram-kastra the Intercessor
Red Ear
Sartin
Seraphina
Thisten
Tilbin
Truger
Thank you for making my first organized play experience memorable!
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I ran Hydra's Fang (for a table of 4) on Saturday and then ran Frozen Fingers (for a table of 6). The mods were great and each had it's own particular mood/feeling as well. The characters all really played their factions well and the faction missions meshed well with both stories.
All-in-all a well organized event. A kudos to Paizo again for starting this up.
Thanks,
Greg Volz
Natural Twenty Gaming
I was in the table of 4...the guy with the big ear holes, and Chaos tattoo on top of my head. Kudos to you for running such a smooth game. Nicely done sir...I'll look for you next year, and this time we may even have a Cleric so that Drake doesn't have to "meat-shield" for the rest of us.