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I was curious about a Paladin making use of this ability. In addition, would any Shadowdancer abilities be cause for a loss of Paladin powers?Not as written, but it probably should.James,
Is using the Shadowdancer's ability Summon Shadow an evil act since it creates an undead? Would the answer change depending on the Shadowdancer's alignment?
Again... not as written, but in my games, you wouldn't be able to multiclass between those two classes because they don't mix well.
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I'm no expert on Babylon-era religion. How much of Lamashtu's lore is drawn from real-world sources, and how much is your creation?
Thank you! :)
Most of her is my creation but is inspired by real-world sources. The Wikipedia page for Lamashtu is a great place to start if you wanted to research her more.
The real world version was a lot more frightening, honestly, in how she interacted with babies and children and breastfeeding. Topics we've basically chosen to skirt or avoid in print for the most part, but not always.
The clash between her and Pazuzu is from real-world mythology though...
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James,
I have a question about Rise of the Runelords, specifically about a certain NPC (spoiler set for those playing in the AP)...Spoiler:After assisting Iesha the Revenant in defeating the Skinsaw Man, my character collected her remains in an urn. Now that we are of sufficent level to do so, and my character has the Leadership
Feat, I intend to Resurrect her so she can finally find peace and move on to be judged after living her life.
What class and level would YOU suggest she would be. I am thinking, based on her hubby's level, a 6th level Aristocrat may fit the bill.
Thanks!
She was not an aristocrat at all... she was a very beautiful but relatively unassuming, naive girl who was sorta swept off her feet by a fancy seductive noble.
I would put her at 2nd level expert at best, maybe even just a 2nd level commoner.
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What's your opinion on the artwork of 5th edition D&D? Don't worry you can be very honest. I know everyone has their opinion so I won't be offended.And just curious but did any previous campaign setting inspire the pathfinder setting (ie mystara, greyhawk, forgotten realms, blackmoor, dark sun, etc)?
And I have noticed several times you mentioned you disliked anime elves. I'm just curious as to why?
What would be the reactions of the pathfinder iconic characters if they met the 3.5 D&D iconic characters or if they met Drizzt? What would be their reactions if they met Minsc and Boo?
What I've seen of the art for 5th edition D&D is mostly awesome! As with any game (Pathfinder certainly included) there's always pieces of art that I don't like, but overall, I'm quite happy with the look of D&D today.
The campaign that most heavily inspired Golarion was my own campaign setting, Baria. This setting was itself VERY heavily influenced by Greyhawk and the Forgotten Realms.
As for reactions? We've dozens of iconics now, and each one would have a different reaction. They're all individuals with different personalities, and that means that they'd have individual reactions to meeting someone like Driz'zt or Minsc.
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Which APs besides Wrath of the Righteous (where they feature prominently) would Riftwarden PCs make the most sense? Which APs besides WotR deal most extensively with the planes and the boundaries between them?
Many of our APs have a trip to a minor demiplane or the like but none of them particularly stand out as being as perfect for Riftwardens as Wrath of the Righteous. AKA: They'd all mostly work equally well.
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Mr. Jacobs,
Do you have a group you normally game with? (When you ever get the chance with busy your schedule)
I currently have 4 regularly recurring games that I run and play in. These games are mostly made up of fellow employees. My Thursday night game just switched from Pathfinder to Call of Cthulhu and kept the same group but added one more, and that group's been playing together since 2009.
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Which APs besides Wrath of the Righteous (where they feature prominently) would Riftwarden PCs make the most sense? Which APs besides WotR deal most extensively with the planes and the boundaries between them?Many of our APs have a trip to a minor demiplane or the like but none of them particularly stand out as being as perfect for Riftwardens as Wrath of the Righteous. AKA: They'd all mostly work equally well.
Thought as much. Thank you!
You said catfolk are mostly found in Garund, right?
Mr. Jacobs,
You have mentioned a distaste for the fantasy cliche of arrogant elves who look down on humans and consider themselves so much more enlightened than those hairless apes. You've even worked to avoid this in Golarian, and were annoyed when an example snuck into an Adventure Path. (I believe it was)
Is this distaste simply being tired of such an overused cliche that's so prevalent that it's assumed most of the time? Or is there a more detailed reason, perhaps something about the assumption that never made sense to you?
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Cool! It's nice to know that the creator of Pathfinder is such a cool and awesome person! Thank you for creating such an amazing and awesome game!
Is there a version or equivalent of the temple of elemental evil in pathfinder? Do you plan on making one and if you did what would it be like?
Is pathfinder online a mmo like world of Warcraft? That's what I've heard.
I'm not familiar with Baria. Can you tell me more about it please?
Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.
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Mr. Jacobs,
You have mentioned a distaste for the fantasy cliche of arrogant elves who look down on humans and consider themselves so much more enlightened than those hairless apes. You've even worked to avoid this in Golarian, and were annoyed when an example snuck into an Adventure Path. (I believe it was)
Is this distaste simply being tired of such an overused cliche that's so prevalent that it's assumed most of the time? Or is there a more detailed reason, perhaps something about the assumption that never made sense to you?
Mostly because it's a cliche, but also because elves are chaotic good in the norm and the whole "We're better than the rest" attitude does not seem "good" to me.
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Cool! It's nice to know that the creator of Pathfinder is such a cool and awesome person! Thank you for creating such an amazing and awesome game!
Is there a version or equivalent of the temple of elemental evil in pathfinder? Do you plan on making one and if you did what would it be like?
Is pathfinder online a mmo like world of Warcraft? That's what I've heard.
I'm not familiar with Baria. Can you tell me more about it please?
Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.
There's no version of the Temple of Elemental Evil in Golarion, but the world is similar enough that you could transplant that site into Golarion really quite easily without much problem. In fact, I did just this for a game I'm running here at the office for the developers, where I'm running the 1st edition version of "Temple of Elemental Evil" for them.
Pathfinder Online is indeed an MMO, but it's really NOT that much like World of Warcraft at all. It's much more focused on PVP and crafting and building alliances with other players; there's not really much of an underlying story to the game built in (the expectation being that the player base will generate their own story), nor is questing a big part of the game, really. A closer comparison might be to think of it more as a fantasy setting of EVE Online, I suppose.
Click here for a post about Baria from my blog. A blog I keep forgetting to update.
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I know it would be super niche but what about a paladin that worshipped Tsukiyo?Again... not as written, but in my games, you wouldn't be able to multiclass between those two classes because they don't mix well.I was curious about a Paladin making use of this ability. In addition, would any Shadowdancer abilities be cause for a loss of Paladin powers?Not as written, but it probably should.James,
Is using the Shadowdancer's ability Summon Shadow an evil act since it creates an undead? Would the answer change depending on the Shadowdancer's alignment?
Wouldn't change a thing.
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Thank you for answering my questions.
I heard there's a rumor that y'all are thinking of a pathfinder movie. Is this true?
Are there cults of the dragon similar to the one you found in forgotten realms? And if so how are there similar and how are they different?
A friend of mine mentioned that he thought the elves of pathfinder resembled the ones of Warcraft (due to their eyes having no whites). Was there inspiration from Warcraft in this regard?
Can kitsune and humans have children together?
What is Shalelu's views on half orcs?
There's no version of the Temple of Elemental Evil in Golarion, but the world is similar enough that you could transplant that site into Golarion really quite easily without much problem. In fact, I did just this for a game I'm running here at the office for the developers, where I'm running the 1st edition version of "Temple of Elemental Evil" for them.
Would you mind sharing where in Golarion you placed it?
On another topic, are you familiar with the Unchained Alternate Action Economy? It appears to me to have a high chance of curbing some of the excesses that Mythic brings with it at high levels. Have you had any experience with this new system that you could share?
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I was listening to an audiobook recording of Lovecraft's "The Horror of Red Hook", today, and the story mentioned the Yazidi people of Kurdistan. Lovecraft's treatment of them was less than kind, given his well-known xenophobia. Not looking to derail the thread with anything further on that, but I couldn't help wondering why he described them as devil-worshippers, so it prompted me to do some quick "Google research" on the Yazidis.
Imagine my surprise when I found that the Yazidis religion teaches that the world was created by a single deity who then placed it "under the care of seven holy beings or angels, the chief of whom is Melek Taus, the Peacock Angel." (from the wikipedia article on Yazidis) Melek Taus (or Malak Ta'us) apparently fell from God's grace and spent time in hell before being redeemed by his own remorse.
A religion with seven rulers...one of them is a Peacock "Angel"...that sounds a little familiar.
Were the Yazidis part of your inspiration for the ancient empire of Thassilon?
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Thank you for answering my questions.
I heard there's a rumor that y'all are thinking of a pathfinder movie. Is this true?
Are there cults of the dragon similar to the one you found in forgotten realms? And if so how are there similar and how are they different?
A friend of mine mentioned that he thought the elves of pathfinder resembled the ones of Warcraft (due to their eyes having no whites). Was there inspiration from Warcraft in this regard?
Can kitsune and humans have children together?
What is Shalelu's views on half orcs?
Movie rumors are unsubstantiated, and we've said nothing about any upcoming movie deals. AKA: False rumor.
Not really; that's more of a Forgotten Realms thing.
Not really.
Yes.
She loves everyone. Half-orcs included.
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There's no version of the Temple of Elemental Evil in Golarion, but the world is similar enough that you could transplant that site into Golarion really quite easily without much problem. In fact, I did just this for a game I'm running here at the office for the developers, where I'm running the 1st edition version of "Temple of Elemental Evil" for them.Would you mind sharing where in Golarion you placed it?
On another topic, are you familiar with the Unchained Alternate Action Economy? It appears to me to have a high chance of curbing some of the excesses that Mythic brings with it at high levels. Have you had any experience with this new system that you could share?
I set the temple, Nulb, and Homlett on the Isle of Kortos, about 2 days travel from Absalom.
I'm not familiar with it, nor have I any experience with it.
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I was listening to an audiobook recording of Lovecraft's "The Horror of Red Hook", today, and the story mentioned the Yazidi people of Kurdistan. Lovecraft's treatment of them was less than kind, given his well-known xenophobia. Not looking to derail the thread with anything further on that, but I couldn't help wondering why he described them as devil-worshippers, so it prompted me to do some quick "Google research" on the Yazidis.
Imagine my surprise when I found that the Yazidis religion teaches that the world was created by a single deity who then placed it "under the care of seven holy beings or angels, the chief of whom is Melek Taus, the Peacock Angel." (from the wikipedia article on Yazidis) Melek Taus (or Malak Ta'us) apparently fell from God's grace and spent time in hell before being redeemed by his own remorse.
A religion with seven rulers...one of them is a Peacock "Angel"...that sounds a little familiar.
Were the Yazidis part of your inspiration for the ancient empire of Thassilon?
Nope. It's pretty much coincidence. Turns out, peacocks are striking creatures and it's not uncommon for them to be associated with myths, be they real world ones or made-up ones.
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James, do any of the inner sea countries have trade guilds? Do any of the have thieves guilds or assassins guilds or mages guilds.
Absolutely. Some are widespread, such as the Red Mantis assassins or the Pathfinders. Some are regional, like the Eagle Knights or the Kalistocrats. Some are just local to specific cities, like the Council of Thieves of Westcrown.
There are a LOT of them, though.
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Thank you for answering my questions.
I heard there's a rumor that y'all are thinking of a pathfinder movie. Is this true?
Movie rumors are unsubstantiated, and we've said nothing about any upcoming movie deals. AKA: False rumor.
Besids I already called dibs on making a pathfinder movie ages ago.
But if you WERE thinking of a movie, what do you think the plot would likely be focusing on? The events of RotR? Or something closer to the Society itself?
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Nope. It's pretty much coincidence. Turns out, peacocks are striking creatures and it's not uncommon for them to be associated with myths, be they real world ones or made-up ones.A religion with seven rulers...one of them is a Peacock "Angel"...that sounds a little familiar.
Were the Yazidis part of your inspiration for the ancient empire of Thassilon?
Fair enough. Seven is also a fairly powerful number in a variety of cultures, so that's not too surprising. The juxtaposition just struck me as fascinating.
Do you plan on revealing more about the Peacock Spirit cult in future products?
She loves everyone. Half-orcs included.Thank you for answering my questions.
What is Shalelu's views on half orcs?
I'm thinking the original question meant to say Shelyn, not Shalelu? I'm not sure why Shalelu would love everyone...
I'm thinking the original question meant to say Shelyn, not Shalelu? I'm not sure why Shalelu would love everyone...She loves everyone. Half-orcs included.Thank you for answering my questions.
What is Shalelu's views on half orcs?
No it was meant to be shalelu.
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But if you WERE thinking of a movie, what do you think the plot would likely be focusing on? The events of RotR? Or something closer to the Society itself?
That depends on so many factors that it's impossible to say. An adaptation of an AP would be frustrating, though, since that'd be a better format for a long-running series than for a single movie.
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1)Did you know that Melek Taus is a demigod in the pathfinder setting according to the pathfinder wiki?
2)Why do you use the word "myths"? when i am referring to real world Religion i just use the word "Religions" even if i don't believe it to make sure i am polite and considerate of other people's Religion.
1) Yes. Further evidence that Melek Taus is not the Peacock Spirit.
2) To me... myths and religion are pretty much the same thing, but point taken. I'll try not to do so in the future, and didn't mean to offend. I hope that folks who are religious extend agnostics/atheists the same level of respect as well.
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1)Did you know that according to the pathfinder wiki Uriel is a god who oversees the fifth tier of Heaven and dwells in the Citadel of the Might Righteous?
2)And did you know that according to the pathfinder wiki Jegudiel is a god who oversees the third tier of Heaven and dwells in the Palace of Jegudiel?
3)Also did you know that according to the pathfinder wiki Salaphiel is a god who oversees the seventh tier of Heaven and he dwells in the Winding Tower of Salaphiel?
1) Not off the top of my head, but that's why we write these things down. Wes is the one who's done the most work on the Empyreal Lords, and I trust him 100% to come up with good stuff for them, and thus save my own sanity by not having to micromanage one more element of the world.
2) See #1 above.
3) See #1 above.
BONUS) I'm not sure what you're aiming at with this line of "did you know" questions. The way you phrase them feels like you're trying to trick or entrap me or something... it feels very antagonistic. If that's not your intention, you might want to think about rephrasing them or... if you have another question that you're skirting, just ask that one rather than peck around the corners of the topic.
And keep in mind that the wiki is NOT an official Paizo information source; anyone can add anything there, including well-intentioned fans who misinterpret or misunderstand information we've published, fans who don't realize we're moving away from something we may have published years and years ago, or even people who might be trying to deliberately cause problems. I like to think that the Pathfinder Wiki is not plagued by these situations but it's naive to think that it's not. As with ANY publicly-editable wiki, it's best to use it as the start of your research and to follow up with the citations.
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If i get this straight part of the plot of bloodborne is mortals having sex with a Outer God and and producing half human-half Outer God creatures(sorry if i got that wrong i have not played the game)
1)Is this something common that the Outer Gods in the pathfinder setting do?
2)Is it common for other gods(like the core 20) to have sexual relationship with mortals?
3)How do outsider feel about there god having sexual relationships with there mortal worshipers?
4)What does Iomedae think of gods having such relationship with mortals?
The plot of Bloodborne is NOT spelled out in game. All of the souls games are very subtle in how they tell their stories—there's not really any big information dumps or plot expositions. What you learn from the world in-game comes from brief and always cryptic/elusive/metaphorical conversations with a small handful of NPCs, short snippets (equally cryptic and vague) of information about items you find in the world, and just by observing the world's creatures and architecture and all that. Which leaves the game's meaning VERY open to interpretation on one level... but yes. There's a large element of humanity and the Great Ones interbreeding, similar to elements Lovecraft used in "The Dunwich Horror" but on a much more epic scale.
1) Some of them, yes. In particular, Shub-Niggurath and Yog-Sothoth... the later, again, having done so specifically in "The Dunwich Horror."
2) Not common, no.
3) They don't generally have the free will to disapprove; that's part of what makes them outsiders and not mortals. They almost always approve of ANYTHING their deity master/mistress does.
4) Depending on the deity and the mortal, she'd approve, as long as it was consensual.
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I'm thinking the original question meant to say Shelyn, not Shalelu? I'm not sure why Shalelu would love everyone...She loves everyone. Half-orcs included.Thank you for answering my questions.
What is Shalelu's views on half orcs?
OH! I mis-read that in my rush to answer questions fast.
Shalelu isn't a fan of half-orcs, and likely has yet to meet one that steps away from the cliched big violent brute. She's pretty open-minded though, so when one DOES come along, she'll be pleasantly surprised to have her expectations shown wrong.
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Mr. Jacbos,
If you care to share, what are a couple of the noted differences in how you GM compared to the GMs you get be a player with.
I tend to be more interested in telling a fun and exciting story and less interested in making sure each and every rule is played out according to the rules-as-written in play. I also tend to be more protective of the PCs than many GMs. If I have a TPK, I consider that my own error. But if the players feel like they're invulnerable and can't die, that's ALSO my error. That's why I use hero points or Plot Twist cards... I give the players plenty of resources to combat errors and just bad die rolls.
What are the circumstances that led Sifkesh to abandon Hell and become a demon? I suspect it's probably because of Hell's misogyny but it does intrigue me.
Oh, and was Sifkesh a previous whore queen?
Finally, how did Asmodeus took her desertion?
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What are the circumstances that led Sifkesh to abandon Hell and become a demon? I suspect it's probably because of Hell's misogyny but it does intrigue me.
Oh, and was Sifkesh a previous whore queen?
Finally, how did Asmodeus took her desertion?
Unrevealed, but it likely had a lot to do with Hell being so masculine and misogynistic. She was not a whore queen; she never achieved that level of power in Hell, and it was part of the attraction of the Abyss letting her gain that power that helped convince her to shift teams. Asmodeus probably didn't notice her desertion at all until it happened, and then he was probably a bit blindsided by it but still doesn't take her seriously. That may come back to bite him in the pointed tail at some point in the future.
Did you ever play any of the gold box series of D&D computer games put out by SSI back in the day?
Curse of the Azure Bonds was the primary reason I wanted a computer.
Ha! Same here. My personal faves were Death Knights of Krynn and Secret of the Silver Blades, I think that was the name of it. What were yours?