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Since it's composed of thought, it doesn't "sound" like anything.Are you a spellcaster, by the way? Should we start calling you Tyrannosaurus Hex?Nope.I guess I jumped to conclusions. You like rogues more, right?
...ohcrapatrexwithSNEAKATTACK! D:
What does the telepathic voice of a pseudodragon sound like? For some reason I imagine them to sound like Sam Lavagnino (Catbug in Bravest Warriors).
I don't follow. Do you mean when someone communicates with you via telepathy you don't hear a voice in your head?
I was thinking of asking you what the central themes would be for an adventure path heavily featuring Arshea, but I suspect you'd answer "check the areas of concern," right?
So, which already published adventure path meshes best with themes of beauty, freedom, and sexuality?
In fact, indeed... check the areas of concern.
Kingmaker might work for those themes, particularly if you amp up the nymph angle. And there's also some themes of that coming up in Hell's Rebels. Arshea would be a pretty spot-on deity to worship in that AP, particularly for the freedom aspect.
1. What nymph angle?: ** spoiler omitted **
2. Speaking of Nymphs, how come, in-setting, they’re all female?3. Will there be a write-up for Arshea win Hell’s Rebels? Pleasepleaseplease?
4. Would Legacy of Fire be an AP that works well with Arshea?
1) Precisely the exact nymph angle you mention. She IS the main bad gal of the entire AP, and even though the PCs may not realize it, she's got machinations (very subtle ones) spread throughout all six adventures.
2) Because of decades of tradition in the game, and because the actual mythological inspiration is of a female spirit.
3) No. She's an appropriate figure to worship in the AP, but no more so than dozens of other options. Furthermore, the 2 deities we chose for the AP have a lot better reason to be the two we chose than her. And no... I'm not ready to reveal who those two deities are. Yet.
4) Why not?
(From way back here, because I got sidetracked, and sick, for a week.
1. You: Precisely the exact nymph angle you mention. She IS the main bad gal of the entire AP, and even though the PCs may not realize it, she's got machinations (very subtle ones) spread throughout all six adventures.
And that’s the problem, they’re very subtle. She’s like one of those Final Fantasy villains you know nothing about until the very last dungeon, meaning she feels forced than as part of the story. So how would you recumbent amping up the nymph angle?
2. You: Because of decades of tradition in the game, and because the actual mythological inspiration is of a female spirit.
No, I already know the real-world reasons, that’s why I tried to word my question so you’d give me a different answer. You always default to the real-world reasons. Why is that?
So, hoping I phrase my question carefully enough this time, if there were to be another sourcebook on fey (purely hypothetical, I’m not asking for one), what would be the reason given for nymph’s monogenderism?
3. You: Why [wouldn’t Legacy of Fire work well with Arshea]?
No reason why not, quite the opposite in fact given that Arshea would seem quite appropriate to an Arabian Nights setting (and an AP where sensuality is encouraged, and romance is the main plot driver anyway). Why’d you think I thought otherwise?
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1) So how do separatists and heretics work in religions? Like, what the heck does the deity think of it if separatist sec wipes out the main sect and replaces it?
2) So do gods have backup plan planned in case Rovagug ever escapes? I mean, his original prison WAS hastily made desperate attempt, so do they have back up prison that should be better planned out? Or are they just too comfortable with how things currently are to do that?
James,
If you could change anything about Tower of Life and Tomb of Death, would you? And what would that be?
Creative Director
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I don't follow. Do you mean when someone communicates with you via telepathy you don't hear a voice in your head?Since it's composed of thought, it doesn't "sound" like anything.Are you a spellcaster, by the way? Should we start calling you Tyrannosaurus Hex?Nope.I guess I jumped to conclusions. You like rogues more, right?
...ohcrapatrexwithSNEAKATTACK! D:
What does the telepathic voice of a pseudodragon sound like? For some reason I imagine them to sound like Sam Lavagnino (Catbug in Bravest Warriors).
You don't hear it, no. No more so than you "hear" your own thoughts.
James, why are you awake so early on a Saturday?
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1. You: Precisely the exact nymph angle you mention. She IS the main bad gal of the entire AP, and even though the PCs may not realize it, she's got machinations (very subtle ones) spread throughout all six adventures.
And that’s the problem, they’re very subtle. She’s like one of those Final Fantasy villains you know nothing about until the very last dungeon, meaning she feels forced than as part of the story. So how would you recumbent amping up the nymph angle?
2. You: Because of decades of tradition in the game, and because the actual mythological inspiration is of a female spirit.
No, I already know the real-world reasons, that’s why I tried to word my question so you’d give me a different answer. You always default to the real-world reasons. Why is that?
So, hoping I phrase my question carefully enough this time, if there were to be another sourcebook on fey (purely hypothetical, I’m not asking for one), what would be the reason given for nymph’s monogenderism?
3. You: Why [wouldn’t Legacy of Fire work well with Arshea]?
No reason why not, quite the opposite in fact given that Arshea would seem quite appropriate to an Arabian Nights setting (and an AP where sensuality is encouraged, and romance is the main plot driver anyway). Why’d you think I thought otherwise?
1) Why do you have to? First, Kingmaker is built the way it is because the customers asked for it. After several adventure paths (ALL of them, in fact) that had themes of "The big bad end boss is looming from day one... oh no you all better race to defeat him/her/it" people were asking for one that didn't have that big of a looming threat. They were also calling for a sandbox. Sandboxes work best when you can explore at your own pace, and if there's a big looming threat the party feels rushed and doesn't get to enjoy the slower pace of a sandbox. If you bolster the nymph's presence in Kingmaker, you run the risk of the players feeling rushed or even resenting a lot of the sandbox elements because they're not part of the "plot." The fact that there's not an obvious villain for much of Kingmaker is one of the campaign's charms and unique facets, in my opinion. For alert and observant players, she's there to pick up on, and by the end players SHOULD be going "OH! So that's what was up with the dead unicorn/strange fey/etc."
2) Because the real world is very influential in inspiring game design. And if we're going to take something from real world mythology, its arrogant and ridiculous to change it so much that it no longer resembles the real world. We'd make up something brand new (and do so) if we want something that doesn't have a specific real-world inspiration.
3) Because you asked if Arshea could , and that implied to me that you didn't think Arshea was a good choice. Arshea is in fact a neutral choice for that campaign—as in "neither on nor off theme."
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1) So how do separatists and heretics work in religions? Like, what the heck does the deity think of it if separatist sec wipes out the main sect and replaces it?
2) So do gods have backup plan planned in case Rovagug ever escapes? I mean, his original prison WAS hastily made desperate attempt, so do they have back up prison that should be better planned out? Or are they just too comfortable with how things currently are to do that?
1) It varies by religion. My favorite heretic is Ayavah, a Nocticulan heretic I created for the Magnimar books. She believes Nocticula is planning on rising up from being a demon lord to become a chaotic neutral deity of outcasts, artists, and the glories of midnight... and she lives a life in hiding, constantly worried that she's gonna be assassinated by the hardliner Nocticulans (who among other things are assassins). So, she basically has to hide her beliefs and keep a low profile. A much larger group would be the militiant, nearly warmongering worshipers of Sarenrae who serve Qadira's government who have lost track of their church's teachings just enough to cause a schism in the church but not enough to lose their clerical power... yet. There's plenty of other examples strewn throughout the books. And they all vary. It really depends on what sort of story we/you want to tell about heretics and separatists.
2) I certainly HOPE they have a backup plan, don't you? And we're surely not gonna find out what it is, because if WE know, the cult of ROVAGUG knows.
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James, why are you awake so early on a Saturday?
One, or perhaps all, of the following:
1) The longer I'm awake on Saturday, the more Saturday I get to enjoy.
2) My cat woke me up for food.
3) Had a stressful dream about walking home in the woods and the road was washed out by the ocean so I had to turn back and then bears started following me, including a weird mutant black bear with a 5 foot long stalked snout.
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I have no idea what you're asking about.James,
If you could change anything about Tower of Life and Tomb of Death, would you? And what would that be?
It was a little tiny thing you had a design credit on for FR in 3E.
James, how many number of different published items have you worked on (estimated)? About how many hours in those projects (estimated)? Do you have an eidetic memory and remember all of it?
a weird mutant black bear with a 5 foot long stalked snout.
Stalked snout?
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1) I kinda meant it from god's perspective though. I mean, the setting gods can message their intent and blessing/curses and stuff to people, so like, if Lamashtu's cult was somehow eradicated and replaced by non evil cult worshiping her, I don't think Lamashtu would be very pleased with that. Or like, if sect is replaced by another sect within same alignment whose interpretation of their god's teachings directly contradict their god's intentions, what would be god's reaction to that? Would the clerics and such just lose their clerical powers and by extension their credibility?
I mean, I find it kinda hard to imagine if god's worshipers' interpretation of the god would radically change that the god in question would just shrug it off and let them interpret them in whatever way they want if their interpretation is directly offensive to them.
2) Oh you :) That does make sense though. Well, let's ask another question then, would Rovagug's release from prison itself destroy Golarion? So even if gods have good backup plan, would all of Golarion still be screwed?
Also, umm, sorry if I'm being rude by butting in, but I think AlgaeNymph is asking if there is in setting lore reason for why nymphs are always female <_< Like, harpies and xills are always female because of way their breeding work so there couldn't really be male harpy or xill. I'm sorry if I misunderstood their intentions and if I'm being rude
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You don't hear it, no. No more so than you "hear" your own thoughts.
I dunno, I think my thoughts have different voices.
Anyway, James, do you know if there are male Shae as well as females? All of the examples so far are female, but I don't think it's ever been specifically stated that they're one sex. As outsiders, though, it's certainly more plausible than with most material races. Actually even for other outsiders it's easier for me to picture a female Bralani or Shield Archon or Astral Deva than a male Peri, Brijidine, or Lillend... I'm sure the former three exist, but not about the latter.
Stalked snout?a weird mutant black bear with a 5 foot long stalked snout.
Perhaps long and thin like an elephant shrew?
I have no idea what you're asking about.James,
If you could change anything about Tower of Life and Tomb of Death, would you? And what would that be?
Oh! I'm talking about the 3.5 Forgotten Realms adventure published for use with Races of Faerun ()!
Design: James Jacobs
<snip the others>
... and...
James Jacobs lives in Seattle, WA, and splits his work days between the Sales department and the Online Media department at Wizards of the Coast. In addition to co-designing Races of Faerun, he designed about two dozen monsters for the upcoming Fiend Folio. He also writes the monthly feature “Far Corners of the World” for the Wizards website and has written numerous articles for DRAGON Magazine and DUNGEON Magazine. He spends his free time devising new ways to forget his dice and character sheets for the five different campaigns he’s currently playing in.
... led me to believe that you were the principal guy behind those two adventure sites.
They involve the "Tiru Tel-Quessir" and the "The Lost Tomb
of Amarak"
It's possible that you've entirely forgotten - I wouldn't blame you! (has it been since 2003? already?) - or weren't really the guy behind them, but I was curious if you'd redo something about one or both of those, if you could (if you remember anything about them).
* This was entirely unknown to her until yesterday.
** Figuratively speaking. She got the literal part out of the way when she let him think he was deceiving her into creating her own death.
*** See above.
**** Figuratively, only. Ew.
Anyway, since I keep coming across your old stuff and going "Awesome!" and then realizing it's you, I guess I had to become a PF/Golarion fan! It was inevitable! :D
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You don't hear it, no. No more so than you "hear" your own thoughts.I don't follow. Do you mean when someone communicates with you via telepathy you don't hear a voice in your head?Since it's composed of thought, it doesn't "sound" like anything.Are you a spellcaster, by the way? Should we start calling you Tyrannosaurus Hex?Nope.I guess I jumped to conclusions. You like rogues more, right?
...ohcrapatrexwithSNEAKATTACK! D:
What does the telepathic voice of a pseudodragon sound like? For some reason I imagine them to sound like Sam Lavagnino (Catbug in Bravest Warriors).
Okay that makes sense. Thank you!
Which River Kingdom is your favorite (besides the Stolen Lands, since thanks to Kingmaker that's everyone's favorite)? Least favorite River Kingdom?
Do boars have any particular symbolism unique to Golarion like how doves are associated with the sun due to being Sarenrae's sacred animal?
Do you think introducing an eagle-themed PC would confuse metaphors considering that there's the Eagle Knights of Andoran, the Eagle Watch in Kenabres and the god Easivra being depicted as a giant eagle? I worry that an eaglely paladin PC unaffiliated with any of the above might draw accusations of "HEY! You're stealing my schtick!"
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I have no idea what you're asking about.James,
If you could change anything about Tower of Life and Tomb of Death, would you? And what would that be?
It was a little tiny thing you had a design credit on for FR in 3E.
James, how many number of different published items have you worked on (estimated)? About how many hours in those projects (estimated)? Do you have an eidetic memory and remember all of it?
I still don't recall it. What book was it from? A lot of the D&D books had multiple authors...
As for how many different published things have I worked on... if you're talking about design work... dozens. If you expand that to things I helped develop and/or edit... it goes up to the hundreds. I doubt it's hit a thousand... but maybe. I don't have anything CLOSE to a perfect memory of them though.
As for how many hours? Well, if you figure I've been working on them for 40 hours a week since 2003 or thereabouts... that's also a big number.
I still don't recall it. What book was it from? A lot of the D&D books had multiple authors...
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1) I kinda meant it from god's perspective though. I mean, the setting gods can message their intent and blessing/curses and stuff to people, so like, if Lamashtu's cult was somehow eradicated and replaced by non evil cult worshiping her, I don't think Lamashtu would be very pleased with that. Or like, if sect is replaced by another sect within same alignment whose interpretation of their god's teachings directly contradict their god's intentions, what would be god's reaction to that? Would the clerics and such just lose their clerical powers and by extension their credibility?
I mean, I find it kinda hard to imagine if god's worshipers' interpretation of the god would radically change that the god in question would just shrug it off and let them interpret them in whatever way they want if their interpretation is directly offensive to them.
2) Oh you :) That does make sense though. Well, let's ask another question then, would Rovagug's release from prison itself destroy Golarion? So even if gods have good backup plan, would all of Golarion still be screwed?
Also, umm, sorry if I'm being rude by butting in, but I think AlgaeNymph is asking if there is in setting lore reason for why nymphs are always female <_< Like, harpies and xills are always female because of way their breeding work so there couldn't really be male harpy or xill. I'm sorry if I misunderstood their intentions and if I'm being rude
1) Whether or not a deity is pleased... and why or why not... isn't really up to us. If a cleric casts spells, then you can be assured the deity isn't displeased. This is also part of why clerics have to usually be their deity's alignment and at worst only one step away. If a heretic went too far, and how far varies according to deity and belief, they'd absolutely lose their cleric powers.
2) Rovagug's release would not in and of itself destroy Golarion. His prison isn't physically inside the planet; it's its own plane, that's accessed via portals inside the planet more or less.
The lore reason why nymphs are always female is because they are. Just the way it is. Part of what makes them nymphs. Look to the satyr for what's kinda in line with a "male nymph" I suppose. Gender doesn't always have to do with sex/breeding, in any event.
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You don't hear it, no. No more so than you "hear" your own thoughts.I dunno, I think my thoughts have different voices.
Anyway, James, do you know if there are male Shae as well as females? All of the examples so far are female, but I don't think it's ever been specifically stated that they're one sex. As outsiders, though, it's certainly more plausible than with most material races. Actually even for other outsiders it's easier for me to picture a female Bralani or Shield Archon or Astral Deva than a male Peri, Brijidine, or Lillend... I'm sure the former three exist, but not about the latter.
"Hearing" is something you do with your ears. Telepathy bypasses that.
There are male shae.
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Perhaps long and thin like an elephant shrew?Stalked snout?a weird mutant black bear with a 5 foot long stalked snout.
Nah...
More like a buopoth's mouth snout...
"Page not found"?
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I have no idea what you're asking about.James,
If you could change anything about Tower of Life and Tomb of Death, would you? And what would that be?
Oh! I'm talking about the 3.5 Forgotten Realms adventure published for use with Races of Faerun ()!
Design: James Jacobs
<snip the others>... and...
James Jacobs lives in Seattle, WA, and splits his work days between the Sales department and the Online Media department at Wizards of the Coast. In addition to co-designing Races of Faerun, he designed about two dozen monsters for the upcoming Fiend Folio. He also writes the monthly feature “Far Corners of the World” for the Wizards website and has written numerous articles for DRAGON Magazine and DUNGEON Magazine. He spends his free time devising new ways to forget his dice and character sheets for the five different campaigns he’s currently playing in.... led me to believe that you were the principal guy behind those two adventure sites.
They involve the "Tiru Tel-Quessir" and the "The Lost Tomb
of Amarak"It's possible that you've entirely forgotten - I wouldn't blame you! (has it been since 2003? already?) - or weren't really the guy behind them, but I was curious if you'd redo something about one or both of those, if you could (if you remember anything about them).
** spoiler omitted **...
Ah... that makes sense. I wasn't the one who designed that. My work in Races of Faerun was the sections on elves and half-orcs/orcs, and a few of the monsters and items. I know that the sharkskin and chitin armor were mine, and I chose to update glassteel and osquip. A few of the feats were mine too (mostly the ones to do with elves and orcs), and I did the bladesinger and elven high mage and orc warlord and spellsinger prestige classes.
And glad you enjoyed Frostburn! I had a LOT more work on that one; my sections were most of chapter 2 (including the neanderthals, uldras, deities, and most, if not all of the feats), several of the prestige classes (cloud anchorite, frost mage, frostrager, knight of the iron glacier, primeval, rimfire witch, stormsinger, and winterhaunt of Iborighu), all of the new weapons, blue ice, rimefire ice, several spells and magic items, some of the monsters (the neanderthal, the rimefire eidolon, the shivhad, the spirit animal, the tlalusk, and the uldra), and both of the adventure sites in chapter seven (the maps are also, essentially, my work as well; this book's my only official cartography credit I believe!).
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Which River Kingdom is your favorite (besides the Stolen Lands, since thanks to Kingmaker that's everyone's favorite)? Least favorite River Kingdom?
Do boars have any particular symbolism unique to Golarion like how doves are associated with the sun due to being Sarenrae's sacred animal?
Do you think introducing an eagle-themed PC would confuse metaphors considering that there's the Eagle Knights of Andoran, the Eagle Watch in Kenabres and the god Easivra being depicted as a giant eagle? I worry that an eaglely paladin PC unaffiliated with any of the above might draw accusations of "HEY! You're stealing my schtick!"
In fact, the Stolen Lands ARE my favorite of the River Kingdoms. I think I like Outsea second best. I don't have a least favorite, since if I said I had a least favorite one, that's the same as Paizo's Creative Director mocking/badmouthing one of our freelancers' hard work.
If I didn't make boars one of the sacred animals of at least ONE deity in that giant hundreds-long list in Inner Sea Gods, I'd be shocked. Can't think of any boar symbolism off the top of my head instantly though.
I don't think it confuses things, but if you do, I can't change that.
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Hi mr Jacobs
Can you tell us the top 5 things that made you more proud of your work in paizo?
My top 5 proudest moments at Paizo are probably symbolized by the following:
Dungeon #112: Maure Castle
Savage Tide AP
Burnt Offerings
Technology Guide
Inner Sea World Guide
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More like a buopoth's mouth snout..."Page not found"?
Bleh... lame. It's on this page; the artist is Mark Ferrari. It's a purple hippo/elephant thingy.
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More like a buopoth's mouth snout..."Page not found"?
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Any other evil outsider race would release Rovagug?Because they're not Rovagug's ally, and he'd likely crush them to atoms. Probably accidentally.WHy not? (sorry if I missed an earlier answer)Would the Four Horsemen release Rovagug from its prison if they had the opportunity and means to do so?No.
Unlikely. MAYBE the qlippoth, but even then unlikely.
If one DID want to try... there would have been attempts already, and those attempts would have been mentioned by us already. Rovagug being locked up is a good thing for pretty much everyone. Except Rovagug.
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Direct linkMore like a buopoth's mouth snout..."Page not found"?
YAY! Thanks!
So yeah... A black bear with a mouth like that was chasing me in a dream this morning.
Welcome to my world, I guess.
a weird mutant black bear with a 5 foot long stalked snout.
So will this be making an appearance in the next Bestiary?
I, uh... I seem to have lost a post. Urg.
Time for a shorter post with some of the same information (but lacking some things)!
Direct linkMore like a buopoth's mouth snout..."Page not found"?YAY! Thanks!
So yeah... A black bear with a mouth like that was chasing me in a dream this morning.
Welcome to my world, I guess.
Anyway, thank you both for the links! Great stuff! Fun picture!
And that dream makes a lot of sense... for dream-logic! :D
Also, you listed most everything that I absolutely loved from Frostburn - all at the same time! So cool! :D
As far as Races of Faerun, the Elven High Mage and Orc Warlord were probably my two favorite prestige classes, and I really appreciated both sets of lore you wrote.
The special materials - especially glassteel! - were wonderful as well (as I love those kinds of things). Thank you!
I... had a question. I've forgotten it now. Do you know what it was?
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Well I'm only through the first 184 pages of this thread so I don't know if this has been asked yet, but I'd like to know why undead always have to be evil? Could they be redeemed in any possible way?
Also ages ago there was a supplement on psionic trex's in my local gaming stores bargain bin. I sadly had no pocket money at the time but did you ever hear of that?
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I, uh... I seem to have lost a post. Urg.
Time for a shorter post with some of the same information (but lacking some things)!
Direct linkMore like a buopoth's mouth snout..."Page not found"?YAY! Thanks!
So yeah... A black bear with a mouth like that was chasing me in a dream this morning.
Welcome to my world, I guess.
Anyway, thank you both for the links! Great stuff! Fun picture!
And that dream makes a lot of sense... for dream-logic! :D
Also, you listed most everything that I absolutely loved from Frostburn - all at the same time! So cool! :D
As far as Races of Faerun, the Elven High Mage and Orc Warlord were probably my two favorite prestige classes, and I really appreciated both sets of lore you wrote.
The special materials - especially glassteel! - were wonderful as well (as I love those kinds of things). Thank you!
I... had a question. I've forgotten it now. Do you know what it was?
I do! The answer is, "23 pugwampies."
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Well I'm only through the first 184 pages of this thread so I don't know if this has been asked yet, but I'd like to know why undead always have to be evil? Could they be redeemed in any possible way?
Also ages ago there was a supplement on psionic trex's in my local gaming stores bargain bin. I sadly had no pocket money at the time but did you ever hear of that?
Undead don't always have to be evil, they're just almost always evil, and the vast majority of those who aren't are ghosts.
The reason is that the process of becoming undead violates the soul in such a vile and harrowing and reprehensible way that it is itself a horrifically evil act. I suppose redeeming one is possible, but in most cases once they're redeemed, they'll want to end themselves to get on with death.
There's been a LOT of dinosaur/tyrannosaurs themed stuff over the years... but a "Psionic Trex book" doesn't ring a bell.