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Like many others I was a LONG time subscriber to Dungeon and Dragon, 13 years to be exact! When Paizo took over the magazines I saw what I can say were the best issues done to date by a very talented company. As the Editions Wars started I was balls out furious with WotC and decided I couldn't afford to keep my blood pressure so consistently high on their boards. So I came here and found a community that was really close-knit and friendly. Better still the staff actually interacted with us!
Once Lisa and Erik announced they were going to persue updating 3.5 I let my Dunegeon & Dragon subscription transfer over and got the RotRL AP. I loved the quality adventures and I loved that someone was continuing to support the version of D&D I spent the last 2.5 decades playing.
The PFRPG beta playtest was the most awesome, most inclusive move I'd seen a company do with it's customers FOR it's customers. So in summary: Quality, Communication, & Caring.
Solid adventure paths, and good stand-alone adventures. In a sea of third-party 3E crap, I found everything that Paizo did was very, very good. So I subscribed to, well, just about everything.
The shackled city hardcover was impressive. From there I've experimented with most of their product lines and almost immediately subscribed. I don't know 'the moment' but what gets me is the consistency - there have been plenty of good RPG supplements over the years, but I can't think of another publisher who so consistently impresses.
I had a subscription to Dragon for about a year around the time that 3.0 transitioned to 3.5. Then I picked up occasional issues, but I never really bought a lot of Paizo products. I was mostly a first-party-publisher kind of guy. And then I heard about the Alpha. I downloaded the Alpha 2.0, printed it up, downloaded 3.0 and printed it up, and got to really play all of one game before the Beta was in my hot little hands.
Mostly, I love Paizo because of the spirit of the company, the willingness to continue the spirit and feel of the best version of D&D I've ever played (and make it better, even). I like that I can use the rules I've got mostly unchanged, and that the rules that are coming out were built with the company listening to our feedback (though the thing I was most ardently supporting didn't stick, sadly). I like that they're honest about what they like in a game, and they're willing to put it out there for us to play with. And Golarion's a pretty good setting. If I didn't have one of my own, I might even run it.
Oh, and I was looking for something to spend my RPG dollars on that didn't support WotC, whose attitude with the lead-up to 4.0 I found largely frustrating and off-putting.
Strangely, it was RPG Superstar. :D
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I'd say it was reading through the tail end of Dungeon/Dragon and seeing the adds for Pathfinder. Knowing that the people who wrote those magazines and made some of my favorite shelf collapsing 3.5 books would be producing their own adventures and their own world without creative shackles was enough to hook me.
Truth be told, I was pretty much committed to following Paizo no matter what.
Actually, at the goblin takeover incident, I would not have followed them had they gone 4e. I disliked the game so much that I would have considered it a betrayal. And they shared my views, disliking the game and saying they couldn't do what they wanted to do with it, which pretty much sold me on the PF RPG.
For me... well... I was really enjoying the Adventure Paths, with Age of Worms being my favorite. When I saw the advertisements for Rise of the Runelords I was apprehensive until I looked into it more. Then I was hooked. I set up my subscription first thing though I think what cemented the deal for me was reading that first issue, something about it screamed "Play me!" and I was hooked. The only published campaign I've wanted to run more was Legacy of Fire.
What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.
Zero Suit Seela!
What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.
Seoni drew me into Pathfinder, but then I found myself glued here with the afor mentioned Permabond.
What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.Seoni drew me into Pathfinder, but then I found myself glued here with the afor mentioned Permabond.
** spoiler omitted **
Dude, that's mimic slime.
Dude, that's mimic slime.What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.Seoni drew me into Pathfinder, but then I found myself glued here with the afor mentioned Permabond.
** spoiler omitted **
What can I say? The Skinsaw man and Mammy Graul made sure Paizo got my continued support.
By the way... isn't it time Logue and Pett got some no-holds-barred screen time?
I know I risk my brain fleeing through my ears, tearing my eyes with it, merely to escape things man should not see... but oh, the sweetness...
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What can I say? The Skinsaw man and Mammy Graul made sure Paizo got my continued support.
By the way... isn't it time Logue and Pett got some no-holds-barred screen time?
I know I risk my brain fleeing through my ears, tearing my eyes with it, merely to escape things man should not see... but oh, the sweetness...
Razor Coast and the Indulgences might be a good place to look to see them with their restraining bolts popped off. ;)
But seriously, Mammy? Hey, I'm not judgin'! It takes all kinds to make a world.
What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.
They can contort themselves into balls?
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They can contort themselves into balls?What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.
1. Ha!
2. Oh GOD I just had a horrible implosion flashback involving another female paladin!
They can contort themselves into balls?What? Two pages of responses and no one's mentioned Seoni yet? :)Honest Abe Time: I really do find Amiri, Seelah, and Kyra more appealing. Seelah and to a lesser degree Kyra have the Samus Aran thing going for them too.
Maybe they have a screw attack, too?
This thread just reminds me that it will take too long until Trilogy is released around here.
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It is very simple for me. I thought that 3.5 was essentially done with and 4E is... not what I was looking for. So after playing in a rpga session I was thinking to myself on the way home. Man I might have to stop playing DnD for a while. The session went well mind you. We went in, killed the bad guy, you know the usual. You can't expect much more from rpga but seriously, I was a barbarian and I didn't even need a cleric. As long as i was hitting the guy I had 1 million abilities that allowed me to get a healing surge whenever I needed it. And I was on another board giving my thoughts on whats changed between 3rd and 4th and why I preferred 3rd but like some of the mechanics in 4th. Then a board member jokingly gave me these words: "MGyt, Have you let Pathfinder into your life?" I hadn't even heard of it (I can be pretty out of the loop with these kinds of things) I read the Beta, understand what they are doing and gave an applause. Some of the edits in the Beta version had been what was in my post on Castlekeep. What cemented my adoration? Rage Points, Monks with Ki powers, Paladins that continue to get abilities?! What's not to like? Couple that with a feat every level, variations offered right there in the book, a revamped skill system that, I could go on but Beta is what cemented it. It only disturbs me that so many people are ranting about how it doesn't address this problem or that one that they fail to realize that there's probably a good reason they are trying to stick with 3.5, flaws and all. I don't expect Pathfinder to be perfect, but I expect it to be a really good DnD 3.75.
You're welcome, my son...
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I'd heard about Dragon and Dungeon being canceled and brought back in house so dropped by the site to see if there was any more news and saw something about a new AP and the offered subscription. I signed up more out of curiosity than anything else. Got Burnt Offerings via pdf at work which helped cement the deal and was greatly impressed by it, so kept my subscription.
At that point I was wrapping up a Ptolus campaign and when seeing what the group would like playing next I offered to run RoTL and passing round the players guides got everyone interested.
A couple of players since then have said the thing that struck them the most about the setting and Sandpoint was the Pixie's Kitten - they liked it that a company thought its gamers mature enough to deal with a brothel in a published product, then came Skinsaw murders and Hook mountain which just confirmed to them that they liked Paizo's work.
The Beta and the PFRPG are just the icing on the cake, as we as a group took one look at 4th and said not for us thank you.
I love the way that Runelords reminds me of a Final Fantasy game. Vast, sweeping, cool locales, crazy mini- and end-bosses. It's the only AP that I have any knowledge of, but I'm gobbling it up as much as I can. :)
CEO
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What can I say? The Skinsaw man and Mammy Graul made sure Paizo got my continued support.
By the way... isn't it time Logue and Pett got some no-holds-barred screen time?
I know I risk my brain fleeing through my ears, tearing my eyes with it, merely to escape things man should not see... but oh, the sweetness...
You'll be getting some more Richard Pett soon with Council of Thieves #2 and the Carrion Hill Pathfinder module. Should be enough Pett to satisfy any itch. :)
Logue, on the other hand, has been a bit busy with teach in England and trying to get stuff out for his own company, but he found time to write this for the Council of Thieves #2 AP:
"This volume of the Pathfinder Adventure Path also includes an extensive excerpt of The Six Trials of Lazarod with extensive notes on the lines, combats, and traps the characters must endure to successfully complete the play by noted thespian and fan-favorite game author Nicolas Logue. "
-Lisa
I love the way that Runelords reminds me of a Final Fantasy game. Vast, sweeping, cool locales, crazy mini- and end-bosses. It's the only AP that I have any knowledge of, but I'm gobbling it up as much as I can. :)
In my opinion, later APs have been an improvement in many ways.
And I'm someone who really enjoys/enjoyed Runelords. But you won't see as many fatal quasi-mandatory encounters in later APs as you see in the first half of RotRL.
The Brits let him teach? O_o
;-P
Why do I like Paizo? Let me count the ways....
1. Staff - Many of these people were awesome back when I was with WotC and before. Before I was a co-author on a book with Sean K. Reynolds, I was a fan. Erik Mona did great stuff with the Living Greyhawk Journal and then went on to do great things with Dragon and Dungeon. Others who I wasn't familiar with prior to Paizo have since earned by respect - people like James Jacobs and Wes Schneider. I didn't know Lisa or Vic at WotC, but I'm impressed with the way they run Paizo.
2. The game - When WotC decided to abandon D&D, Paizo picked it up, brushed it off, and breathed new life into it. As far as I'm concerned, D&D 4E is called Pathfinder RPG.
3. Not Pulling Punches - One of the things I really like about Paizo is that they aren't afraid to go there. I think that TSR, and even WotC to some extent, didn't let truly horrific stuff out to the readers because they were afraid of the angry letters. I do remember that there was one issue of Dungeon with a cover that I thought just went a little too far in the early days of 3E, but aside from that, they were all pretty tame. Paizo doesn't compromise the artist's vision in favor of sensitization.
4. They use me - Yes it's true, I tend to support companies that give me work. So sue me. I couldn't be happier to work with Paizo. Thank you Paizo! (psst - I'll be searching for full time employment come December. You know, just in case you need some more help or something).
5. They use other designers and authors I've liked for years. Jeff Grubb, J.D. Wiker, Elaine Cunningham. Yes, I'm partial to the people who did great work during the 3E era and before. It's good to see them still generating great work for such a great company.
I think that TSR, and even WotC to some extent, didn't let truly horrific stuff out to the readers because they were afraid of the angry letters. I do remember that there was one issue of Dungeon with a cover that I thought just went a little too far in the early days of 3E, but aside from that, they were all pretty tame. Paizo doesn't compromise the artist's vision in favor of sensitization.
To some extent?
You know, WotC did that Book of Vile, Dark, Evil Darkness thing.
Which was full of evil and nasty.
And by nasty I mean totally evil !
In fact it was so evil, that my copy came with an ice pick and instructions on how to gouge your eyes out after reading that vile, dark and evil book.
That was long ago.
The PF Beta playtest and messageboards. Involving fans in game design was a righteous idea that won my respect and got me excited about Pathfinder.
You know, WotC did that Book of Vile, Dark, Evil Darkness thing.
Which was full of evil and nasty.
And by nasty I mean totally evil !
In fact it was so evil, that my copy came with an ice pick and instructions on how to gouge your eyes out after reading that vile, dark and evil book.
Oh, I forgot about that one. How embarrassing. Incidentally, the only illo in that book that I think merits a good eye gouging is on page 181.
Well, it was only one book and they had to put a sticker on it to warn away all the people who were Bothered about Dungeons and Dragons.
Random fun fact: Most half-orcs are the result of rape!
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Oh gods where to start..
Was it coming back to Dungeon and Dragon at the start of 3.5(i didnt get any 3.0 stuff because I was pissed at WoTC over changing from 2E..but missed my D&D too much so came back just in time for 3.5)
or was it Savage Tide
or was it discovering these boards a year ago when I was directed here from what was a pretty moribund Necromancer Games site(sorry Lord Orcus)
or was it when I downloaded the Beta..
oh hell it was all off the above..Paizo has me more enthused over the direction of the game I love more than anything has since that day in 1974 that I opened up a small white box containing 3 booklets
Thanks guys..all off you
oh hell it was all off the above..
Yeah. Paizo just continues to amaze.
Golem Eternal, I say!
Well, it was only one book and they had to put a sticker on it to warn away all the people who were Bothered about Dungeons and Dragons.
The same sticker they put on the Book of Exalted Deeds ...
Random fun fact: Most half-orcs are the result of rape!
The OGL.
I came to Pathfinder looking for the ultimate fate of the OGL after 4e.
Of course, what I found was an impeccably constructing setting and then ruleset — built for play — by people who really know gaming.
The thing that sets Pathfinder apart, in my mind, is that this setting is made to be played. It isn't just the after-game notes from somebody's private campaign, or the aggregate fiction of a hundred NYT bestsellers. Paizo is the only company with the courtesy to throw down a really great plothook and then announce: "This is for GMs to play with and will not be expanded upon in any of our products."
Bravo.
The atmosphere of these boards and the rule of "don't be a jerk" clearly posted :)
lol...unfortunately jerks still manage to play the flame game on here...reminds me of the wotc boards at times
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What can I say? The Skinsaw man and Mammy Graul made sure Paizo got my continued support.
By the way... isn't it time Logue and Pett got some no-holds-barred screen time?
I know I risk my brain fleeing through my ears, tearing my eyes with it, merely to escape things man should not see... but oh, the sweetness...
And I get to spend this weekend in a room with both of them...can my sanity stand the strain?
This is not so much my love of Pathfinder, but my love of Paizo has to do with the seemingly little things that they do - receiving a get well card after I had an appendectomy less than a week before I was supposed to go to GenCon (to help demo Kill Doctor Lucky). Another board member was shot at his job around this very same time and they sent a card to him as well. When Hurricane Katrina hit in New Orleans, I do recall Paizo organizing a way for gamers to help those gamers who had lost their collections. Another board member had all of his gaming gear stolen out of his car, including all of the Age of Worms AP from Dungeon. Paizo sent him replacements - for free.
More than anything, it's knowing that they are just as passionate about gaming as I am (if not more so), and it's more than just a job to them. That's what makes me love Pathfinder.
Another board member was shot at his job
O_o Where was he working?
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They had me at backwards compatable! I mean come on look at video game platforms always changing and upgrading, and forceing you to buy all new games for a favorite series. Kinda like tabletop gaming, only pathfinder made it possible to blow the dust off my green ronin master class books and bring all the old gang over, and tell them we're not downgrading to 4th (purely my opinion since 3.5 had at the more years of life left).
For me the moment came when my players eyes widened, knowing they could now explore a brave new world with their fave charcaters. Of course some minor revisions were in order (you know, Tuble became Acrobatics, etc.).
The moment I was hooked was seeing the wonderful art, recognizeable classes, and a familiar rules set that somehow felt like I was catching up with an old friend.
Yes senimental as it sounds, I had invested in 3rd to 3.5 and was done gaming if I had to buy all new books for 4th and let my 3.5 ones gather dust. Granted i'm still buying books, but at least it's expanding on the ones I have.
Thank you Paizo!
Another board member was shot at his jobO_o Where was he working?
At a free clinic, IIRC.
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Wayfinder, PaizoCon Founder
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I am reading some of these, and seeing them, in my mind's eye, as really cheesy customer testimonies for some "Only on TV!" products!
"Before Pathfinder, I was a lost and lonely gamer. I thought I'd lost 3.5 forever...but thanks to Pathfinder, I can keep on playing! And my teeth are whiter than ever before!!
"Thanks, Paizo!!" (cue sparkle on smile....DING!)