Hi James, I'm not sure if it has been asked of you recently, the most recent I could find was a year ago, but have you had a chance to watch Gravity Falls yet? They had a humorous D&D spoof episode that prompted me to ask you about it.
Hopefully you can get around to seeing it some time. Have a good day sir.
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Where in Golarion would one find citrus orchards?As you've likely noticed, we've never really nailed down a regional resource map. That extends to unpublished in-house resources. As a result, I can't really say off the top of my head where one would find them, other than to confirm they exist plentifully.
If you held a gun to my head, I'd say that they likely come from the northern shoreline regions of the Inner Sea; Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, and Qadira.
Excellent; thanks.
I know Varisia is Pacific-Northwesty, but I wasn't sure where the climate swung around to Southern-California-orange-groves.
Not quite; it's a bit north for that. Cheliax is not though.
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Hi James, I'm not sure if it has been asked of you recently, the most recent I could find was a year ago, but have you had a chance to watch Gravity Falls yet? They had a humorous D&D spoof episode that prompted me to ask you about it.
Hopefully you can get around to seeing it some time. Have a good day sir.
Haven't watched it.
As a lovecraft fan, is there any more info you can spill on Chaosium's involvement with Strange Aeons?
Not that I am not stoked about CotCT, but really that was the bit of news that most made me happy. I assume at the least this means some more lovecraftian monsters that might not be completely in public domain or whose design Chaosium was heavily involved with. Or new Great Old Ones even???
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Dear James,
I've never felt the need to do this before, but I wouldn't mind your input. I'm having a bit of trouble settling on a name for a new Society character: She'd be a Vishkanya who was born (hatched?) somewhere in Tian Xia, but adopted by affluent Ustalavic Humans and sent to the University of Lepidstadt, where she'd become an Ustalavic Duelist. I'm not asking you to pick a name for me, but it would help to have a better feel for what Vishkanya and Ustalavic names normally sound like, and what the likely conventions for naming an individual raised under such circumstances might be.
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As a lovecraft fan, is there any more info you can spill on Chaosium's involvement with Strange Aeons?
Not that I am not stoked about CotCT, but really that was the bit of news that most made me happy. I assume at the least this means some more lovecraftian monsters that might not be completely in public domain or whose design Chaosium was heavily involved with. Or new Great Old Ones even???
Chaosium's involvement is more or less them giving us permission to stat up several monsters that they have the RPG license for, notably things that they invented and stuff from older authors like Clark Ashton Smith.
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i don't know if this is the right spot for this but here it goes. if a person (i.e. a monk) uses a trip combat maneuver with Gauntlets, Giant Fist active do they get the free bull rush?
It's not the right spot; I don't answer rules questions here because it weirds some folks out. It's better to ask these questions on the rules forums anyway so they can get tagged for FAQ as needed.
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Creative Director
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Dear James,
I've never felt the need to do this before, but I wouldn't mind your input. I'm having a bit of trouble settling on a name for a new Society character: She'd be a Vishkanya who was born (hatched?) somewhere in Tian Xia, but adopted by affluent Ustalavic Humans and sent to the University of Lepidstadt, where she'd become an Ustalavic Duelist. I'm not asking you to pick a name for me, but it would help to have a better feel for what Vishkanya and Ustalavic names normally sound like, and what the likely conventions for naming an individual raised under such circumstances might be.
Vishkanya names likely wouldn't matter in this case if you were raised in Ustalav. Ustalavic names are generally Varisian, so eastern European/Rommanian/etc. is where to go for inspiration there.
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Art books don't make us money. We've tried several times to do them; folks SAY they want them, but folks don't buy them.
Hey! I bought one!
Are the expanded adventures in the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover going to be optional side treks or full on parts of the plot that are essential to the overall story?Full on parts of the plot essential to the story.
There's simply no room whatsoever to put in "optional side treks." For those, seek out other adventures we've published set in Korvosa or the hinterlands. There are plenty to choose from.
What about a blurb or something recommending various modules or society scenarios that might fit well when adapted for CotCT? Like a small list of adventures that take place in the same region or something.
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What about a blurb or something recommending various modules or society scenarios that might fit well when adapted for CotCT? Like a small list of adventures that take place in the same region or something.Are the expanded adventures in the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover going to be optional side treks or full on parts of the plot that are essential to the overall story?Full on parts of the plot essential to the story.
There's simply no room whatsoever to put in "optional side treks." For those, seek out other adventures we've published set in Korvosa or the hinterlands. There are plenty to choose from.
Might be an interesting blog post, but the book's cram packed already. Not really much room for this type of stuff.
Suli are listed as not having Darkvision in there Race, is this accidental or not? As the Race Point Buy Examples say that they do.
I know not a place for Rules Questions, but wondering if you could clear this up.
1. Who would be more likely to win a court battle, Abadar or Asmodeus?
2. What nation has the best vineyards in the Inner Sea for red wine? White wine?
3. Do you think that a botanist/distiller who attempts to use magical and mundane methods to make new plants and then turns them into new kinds of alcohol would be a good idea for a follower/priest of Cayden Caillean?
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Suli are listed as not having Darkvision in there Race, is this accidental or not? As the Race Point Buy Examples say that they do.
I know not a place for Rules Questions, but wondering if you could clear this up.
The official and primary place to go for monster stats, even for zero HD races like the suli, is their monster entry in the Bestiary. There, in Bestiary 3, they are not listed as having darkvision, and so they do not. The race point buy examples are in error.
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1. Who would be more likely to win a court battle, Abadar or Asmodeus?
2. What nation has the best vineyards in the Inner Sea for red wine? White wine?
3. Do you think that a botanist/distiller who attempts to use magical and mundane methods to make new plants and then turns them into new kinds of alcohol would be a good idea for a follower/priest of Cayden Caillean?
1) Depends entirely what court, but the odds would always be stacked in Asmodeus's favor.
2) Taldor and Cheliax I suspect. I'm not SUPER knowledgeable about wine, but I'd like to think that Cheliax is better at red and Taldor at white... because red wine is tastier and white wine is kinda bland.
3) Sure!
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Do you know why suli don't have darkvision? I'd been wondering that for a while myself, as native outsiders are supposed to always have it. Was this intentional?
Thank you! ^_^
They don't because they don't. I didn't design them, but I actually like the fact that they don't. You can define things as much by what they lack as what they have, and that sulis don't have darkvision, that helps to set them apart and make them unique.
If you want an in-game reason, it's because they are just that much closer to humanity than other native outsiders.
Monsters don't always have all the abilities their type or subtype would suggest.
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Kyonin's army is geared more for woodland skirmishing and guerrilla operations rather than large-scale field engagements where cavalry would be best utilized, right?
Correct. Mostly because elves skew individually more powerful than humans but aren't nearly as numerous.
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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Are you excited about the recently uncovered H.P. Lovecraft manuscript?
Are you excited about the recently uncovered H.P. Lovecraft manuscript?
What I find interesting in the linked article is the reporter thinking it strange that H. P. Lovecraft and Harry Houdini would speak out against superstition and the supernatural. There seems to be an attitude prevalent in Western Culture at least that if you enjoy or work with materials dealing with the weird and supernatural, you must also believe in them completely.
Why do you think this attitude which has expressed itself from extremes like "D&D leads to Satanism," and protests against Star Wars to small comments like that in the article are so pervasive?
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Hey James I have some questions for you.
1. Do some people know about Atoms in the Inner Sea yet, or would that sort of knowledge make Alchemists Chemists?
2. Was Acavna related to Sarenrae in some way? They both seemed to use scimitars and they represented duel aspects of celestial bodies. (Reason why I ask.)
3. Would you say Demigods are more hands on with their followers then gods?
4. Would it be possible to use a tablet(the book computer thing not a hunk of rock) as a spell book or do you have to use special inks while writing spells? One of my players was curious.
5. I am only going to ask this one because you seem to have an answer to most weird fantasy world questions, but if you don't have an answer to it I am completely ok with that. How does the Darklands stay formed with continental drift being a thing?
6. Was Sarkoris the Irish mythology setting style when it was still around?
7. What are your thoughts of I.M.E. as a way of explaining style and magic for a character?
8. The writers for the show Adventure Time (a very odd show) apparently have a white board that has all of the unfinished plot lines of the show to help keep them organized. Do you guys have something similar?
9. Here is a link to a video about 5 of the worlds most dangerous chemicals in 5 separate categories as a thanks for putting up with my stupid questions. They are hilariously dangerous.
Where in Golarion would one find citrus orchards?As you've likely noticed, we've never really nailed down a regional resource map. That extends to unpublished in-house resources. As a result, I can't really say off the top of my head where one would find them, other than to confirm they exist plentifully.
If you held a gun to my head, I'd say that they likely come from the northern shoreline regions of the Inner Sea; Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, and Qadira.
Since we didn't, can we trust that answer? ;-)
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Are you excited about the recently uncovered H.P. Lovecraft manuscript?
I am intrigued and curious, since this is the first I've heard of it.
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Are you excited about the recently uncovered H.P. Lovecraft manuscript?
What I find interesting in the linked article is the reporter thinking it strange that H. P. Lovecraft and Harry Houdini would speak out against superstition and the supernatural. There seems to be an attitude prevalent in Western Culture at least that if you enjoy or work with materials dealing with the weird and supernatural, you must also believe in them completely.
Why do you think this attitude which has expressed itself from extremes like "D&D leads to Satanism," and protests against Star Wars to small comments like that in the article are so pervasive?
Because reading comprehension is hard for some folks, I guess, and they tend to jump to conclusions not supported by facts.
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Since we didn't, can we trust that answer? ;-)Where in Golarion would one find citrus orchards?As you've likely noticed, we've never really nailed down a regional resource map. That extends to unpublished in-house resources. As a result, I can't really say off the top of my head where one would find them, other than to confirm they exist plentifully.
If you held a gun to my head, I'd say that they likely come from the northern shoreline regions of the Inner Sea; Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, and Qadira.
Until someone else writes something different and it gets into print, I suppose so.
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Hey James I have some questions for you.
1. Do some people know about Atoms in the Inner Sea yet, or would that sort of knowledge make Alchemists Chemists?
2. Was Acavna related to Sarenrae in some way? They both seemed to use scimitars and they represented duel aspects of celestial bodies. (Reason why I ask.)
3. Would you say Demigods are more hands on with their followers then gods?
4. Would it be possible to use a tablet(the book computer thing not a hunk of rock) as a spell book or do you have to use special inks while writing spells? One of my players was curious.
5. I am only going to ask this one because you seem to have an answer to most weird fantasy world questions, but if you don't have an answer to it I am completely ok with that. How does the Darklands stay formed with continental drift being a thing?
6. Was Sarkoris the Irish mythology setting style when it was still around?
7. What are your thoughts of I.M.E. as a way of explaining style and magic for a character?
8. The writers for the show Adventure Time (a very odd show) apparently have a white board that has all of the unfinished plot lines of the show to help keep them organized. Do you guys have something similar?
9. Here is a link to a video about 5 of the worlds most dangerous chemicals in 5 separate categories as a thanks for putting up with my stupid questions. They are hilariously dangerous.
1) No
2) No
3) No
4) No
5) The fact that the vault builders were involved in creating a stable set of vaults in Orv and used powerful magic to make these vaults habitable, combined with the fact that the time scale on which continental drift happens is on a time scale much more vast than what you're seeing in Golarion's recorded history, is what makes the Darklands able to be a thing.
6) No
7) Not a fan
8) Yes
9) Thanks
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Is the guided weapon trait, and any traits one might logically derive from it intended to be phased out of pathfinder save for artifacts? (Robe of the rifts)
Just looking for clarification on your post a ways back.
Do you feel such weapon traits add to the game at all? I found the concept interesting, but not fully sure if I like or dislike it.
I think it adds to the game, yes, but also adds a way for folks to abuse the rules in a way that frustrates me. Limiting effects like that to artifacts or the like helps give the GM the ability to throttle things in her/his game without giving players agency to control when and how those game-changing effects get into the game.
I vaguely recall reading an explanation (Perhaps by you) once, but the details elude me.
What was the reason behind removing the 3rd edition D&D Elven need for only 4 hours of sleep, as well as how they 'trance' instead of sleeping? This is, admittedly, assuming you can recall (Given that it's been a while) and that you were instrumental in the change, if not the key figure behind it.
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Given I can figure out ways to hard-spike a build around the guided stylings (I agree with your assessment) do you think some kind of mechanical drawback might be appropriate to offset it on non-artifact items that is scaled to the relevant attribute?
Interesting thought exercise. I like the limiter on guided in the two-handed use, but yeah.
I'm actually using a guided effect in a game I'm playing in (as opposed to running) and am actually looking at ways to make it not automatically the obvious smart choice for someone not strength-based. As a player I'm not fond of the idea of stealing the fighter's thunder, so I'm looking to have compromise points ready if me and the GM decide that the feature is a bit much. I like the idea though.
Drawbacks don't work well in Pathfinder. Players are too smart for them, and there's always ways to minimize or negate them in ways that make them not worth the effort. I don't mind drawbacks when they're used to build character, as in the story/background stuff for Ultimate Campaign, but as ways to "balance" things out, it almost always seems to backfire, either because someone figures out how to negate the penalty or because the drawback makes the thing entirely unappealing.
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I vaguely recall reading an explanation (Perhaps by you) once, but the details elude me.
What was the reason behind removing the 3rd edition D&D Elven need for only 4 hours of sleep, as well as how they 'trance' instead of sleeping? This is, admittedly, assuming you can recall (Given that it's been a while) and that you were instrumental in the change, if not the key figure behind it.
The reason behind the "removing" of it was that it was never a part of the OGL in the first place. "Trancing" and the concept that elves don't sleep was something introduced by the Forgotten Realms, and is thus part of Wizards of the Coast's product identity. We can't really use it any more than we can Elminster, Eilistraee, or Thay.
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So I gotta say again that comic bonus info stuff are awesome, but how well do pathfinder comics sell? I kinda wonder how many people see that awesome info :'D I'm also kinda wondering if that info will ever be explored in other material.
Like, for example, if I understood it right and aren't remembering things wrong(I'm not at home right now so not being able to check comic pdfs)
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So I gotta say again that comic bonus info stuff are awesome, but how well do pathfinder comics sell? I kinda wonder how many people see that awesome info :'D I'm also kinda wondering if that info will ever be explored in other material.
Like, for example, if I understood it right and aren't remembering things wrong(I'm not at home right now so not being able to check comic pdfs) ** spoiler omitted ** Assuming I don't remember completely wrong, that is probably unlikely to show up anywhere else?
The comics sell well enough that we keep doing them, so that's one way to know they're successful. We don't give out the details for sales publicly though.
Glad you like the backmatter stuff though!
ALL of the content I wrote for the early comics regarding Sandpoint and the region is stuff I intend to, at some point, come back to some day.
New lovecraft manuscript found? Someone's going to read that outloud on accident and open a portal aren't they?
I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask or if this is asking too much at this point but here it goes:
Could you possibly share the level milestones that you came up with for the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover?
I am running a group through the 3.5 version, using the Pathfinder Bestiary versions for critters and fan-made conversions for NPCs with class levels. Because I am not a big fan of counting XP, I just level the PCs up whenever it seems appropriate so that they end up at the recommended levels for starting and ending each adventure.
However, the 3.5 level progression does not really seem to line up with the Pathfinder progression in terms of relative power and I feel like they are starting to get too much ahead of the competition.
You did share some milestones for the second part in this post, which helped me out a lot.
Any chance you would could do the same for the rest of the AP? Pretty please?
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I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask or if this is asking too much at this point but here it goes:
Could you possibly share the level milestones that you came up with for the Curse of the Crimson Throne hardcover?
I am running a group through the 3.5 version, using the Pathfinder Bestiary versions for critters and fan-made conversions for NPCs with class levels. Because I am not a big fan of counting XP, I just level the PCs up whenever it seems appropriate so that they end up at the recommended levels for starting and ending each adventure.
However, the 3.5 level progression does not really seem to line up with the Pathfinder progression in terms of relative power and I feel like they are starting to get too much ahead of the competition.
You did share some milestones for the second part in this post, which helped me out a lot.
Any chance you would could do the same for the rest of the AP? Pretty please?
The 3.5 level progression is faster than even our Fast progression. For the hardcover, that means we assume you use the Fast progression, and the expanded size of the product lets us add some more XP awards into the entire thing from start to finish; sometimes as story awards, sometimes as new encounters. The end result is that the level progression more or less works the same.
But as a free preview, and because you caught me in a procratinationary mood before starting to work on Ileosa's stat block...
Level 2 after finishing Old Fishery
Level 3 before visiting Eel's End
Level 4 before exploring Dead Warrens
Level 5 after completing 1st mission against the plague
Level 6 before attempting Carowyn Manor or The Hungry Dead
Level 7 before entering Temple of Urgathoa below the hospice
Level 8 when starting "Escape From Old Korvosa"
Level 9 after dealing with the Emperor of Old Korvosa
Level 10 before entering Vivified Labyrinth
Level 11 at about the point the PCs reach Kallow Mounds
Level 12 after earning Shoanti respect and before returning to Korvosa for secret mission
Level 13 at the start of "Skeletons of Scarwall"
Level 14 during Scarwall exploration and before entering the Donjon or Star Tower
Level 15 before entering the caverns below Scarwall
Level 16 during the halfway point on the assault on Castle Korvosa
Level 17 before exploring the Sunken Queen
Thank you thank you thank you! That is most helpful!
Looks like I am right on track. Though I have to admit, level 5 and 6 just fly right by
which made me worried we were getting ahead of ourselves.
Thanks again! Much appreciated!
Is there anything more frightening than an angry gorilla?
In Golarion, are humans with heterochromia looked on with suspicion, with people assuming them to be changelings?
Hello James, i am GMing kingmaker and one of my player is an asmodean cleric. Said player said that his long term objective would be to turn himself into a devil, possibly a new type, focussed on exploiting mortals lust to corrupt them. In the past i was scarred by allowing players to do whatever they wanted and i am now trying to keep things more balanced.
We had a couple of ideas on how to achieve such a thing and would like to know your opinion on which would be more balanced.
1) turning a part of his WBL in research, providing him with progressive bonus, comparable to those given by magical items
2) creating an 'outsider' prestige class with five or so level culminating in the trasformation into a native outsider
3) adapting the rules for demonics transformation.
4) some other direction?
Thanks for your suggestions!
Oh! Bonus question! Have you ever been to Italy?
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How do I stop thinking from a kind of "Total War: Golarion" mindset when designing characters to play in APs, since, as you've stated before, you and the other devs haven't really placed much consideration towards the various militaries of the Inner Sea region (what weapons are considered "standard issue," preferred tactics, which places have commanders prefer to fight among the infantry as opposed to riding with the cavalry, etc.) beyond broad strokes, especially given that it's a role-playing game centered on the actions and heroics of a small group of individual heroes rather than a wargame about large groups of relatively faceless soldiers grinding each other down with the occasional bout of economics to break up the monotony?
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Is there anything more frightening than an angry gorilla?
No.
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How do I stop thinking from a kind of "Total War: Golarion" mindset when designing characters to play in APs, since, as you've stated before, you and the other devs haven't really placed much consideration towards the various militaries of the Inner Sea region (what weapons are considered "standard issue," preferred tactics, which places have commanders prefer to fight among the infantry as opposed to riding with the cavalry, etc.) beyond broad strokes, especially given that it's a role-playing game centered on the actions and heroics of a small group of individual heroes rather than a wargame about large groups of relatively faceless soldiers grinding each other down with the occasional bout of economics to break up the monotony?
Maybe it's time to scratch your itch for a "total war" game by adding a different game to your passtimes? I mean... if you crave mint, but your favorite ice cream store only sells 10 other flavors that aren't mint... you go to a different store to get your mint ice cream. You don't keep trying to make mint ice cream out of your favorite store's chocolate and strawberry and peanut butter ice creams, and buying mint ice cream doesn't mean you can't go back to your favorite store whenever you want to buy other flavors.
AKA: Try another game?
