Creative Director
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How fun was last weekend? and why was it so distraction filled?
Reading through the monsters in the Great Beyond, which are pre-PF I have a question: when a converting a NPC/PC/Monster to PF, what do you do when the skills that have been combined aren't the same? obviously it's not that huge a deal, and as GM i'd do it however i please, but what do u suggest? going with the lower number, the higher or a middle ground?
The Astradaemon in there deals Energy Drain with it's three physical attacks, but nothing is listed to explain how much, or exactly what Energy Drain does, in this instance.
Last weekend had a house-warming party and a Call of Cthulhu game. Pretty fun, in other words... but not good for the deadline.
When you're converting a monster from 3.5 to Pathfinder, the main thing to keep in mind is that you should update the monster's purpose, not its rules. If that means rebuilding it entirely in order to duplicate effects... that's fine. Don't worry if the two aren't exact or even close matches rules-wise, if they match flavor-wise, in other words.
In any event, the astradaemon... and ALL of the Great Beyond monsters, for that matter, are in Bestiary 2, updated to PFRPG.
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Creative Director
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I already have one but I think it's a bit too mature. Nidalese prison with kyton torturer jailors run by a heavily "modified" vampire cleric of zon-kuthon prison warden. Don't you think that sounds to mature?So it takes forever for the mail to reach me with my subscription every month, mainly because I live on a god forsaken rock in the north atlantic. So as a result I read through my subscription material pretty quickly and then have to wait weeks for new stuff to arrive. Any suggestion on how to deal with my pathfinder withdrawal in the interim?Hmmmm... start writing adventures for Golarion and then pitching them to the Pathfinder Society?
For Pathfinder Society play, perhaps—depends on how it's handled, really. Doesn't mean you can't do another one!
How do i get something cool next to my name in parenthesis?
Like: Pendagast (NOT Creative Director)?
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Creative Director
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When new designers join rpg companies like WotC or Paizo, what expectation do they usually have that's smashed by the reality (e.g., the high salaries earned by designers, etc.)?
I suspect the fact that no one in the RPG industry makes big money is a severe wakeup call for new hires. You CAN make semi-decent money in this industry if you stick it out long enough, and you can actually make GOOD money if you're unbelievably lucky and the stars are right. If you're looking for a high-paying job... look elsewhere.
Some random Questions:
What are some of your favorite monsters to use? And how do you use them?
How often to you put your PCs vs a group of NPCs w/ class levels?
What is your favorite part of Golarion that you think gets overlooked?
Why does not the natives of Irrisen have their language or it's own ethnic group? Considering alot of the inhabitants are from where ever Baba Yaga is from....is this going to be covered at in the new Campaign guide? Or am I missing something?
Who wins in a fight...Tyrannosaurus vs a Dire Ape advanced to the point of being equal in size? Do you think the depiction of said fight is fairly potrayed in any of the thre versions of King Kong? ( orginal KK fought one...in the 1970's remake he fought two...in the latest he fought three).
Ever get your hands on some Frank Cho artwork? That man can draw some dinos!
Has Paizo approached him to do some work?
Two questions:
1) How come the Sceaduinar speaks Daemon language (listed in its statblock) and Daemons don't?
Or, in another words, is the Daemon tongue existing yet missing in all the Daemons' statblocks, or is it just an error on the Sceaudinar's statblock?
2) Ever thought of adding to the languages list a Tongue of the Dead? One that would be specifically used in dark rituals of death and that would also be the "natural" tongue of those intelligent undead who are detatched enough from their mortal life (Wraiths, Shadows, etc.) to have no sufficient relation with their former knowledges? If yes, why did you guys choose to leave it out of the books? If not, do you like the idea (of course putting aside for a moment the fact that what's done is done and something like this will be obviously forced to remain out of the books).
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Creative Director
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What are some of your favorite monsters to use? And how do you use them?
Froghemoths, aboleths, demons, and anything with tentacles. I generally use a lot of these as single foes for the PCs to face, which lets me get away with making them a couple of CR points higher than normal. For larger groups, I like drow and derros quite a lot.
How often to you put your PCs vs a group of NPCs w/ class levels?
Very very very often.
What is your favorite part of Golarion that you think gets overlooked?
My favorite parts generally don't get overlooked, since I have the power to direct attention and products exactly there. I think the region of the world that I'm most interested to see developed soon, though, is probably Isger.
Why does not the natives of Irrisen have their language or it's own ethnic group? Considering alot of the inhabitants are from where ever Baba Yaga is from....is this going to be covered at in the new Campaign guide? Or am I missing something?
There is indeed more info about Isger (about 2 pages more) in the upcoming Inner Sea World Guide. The short version, though, is that we had enough ethnicities and languages already and didn't need one more.
Who wins in a fight...Tyrannosaurus vs a Dire Ape advanced to the point of being equal in size? Do you think the depiction of said fight is fairly potrayed in any of the thre versions of King Kong? ( orginal KK fought one...in the 1970's remake he fought two...in the latest he fought three).
Tyrannosaurus. And for the record, in the 1970's remake, King Kong only fought a giant snake; that version of King Kong didn't have any dinosaurs at all. Which is why it is the worst one. King Kong, in any event, only won because he was the star of the movie.
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Creative Director
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Ever get your hands on some Frank Cho artwork? That man can draw some dinos!
Has Paizo approached him to do some work?
I'm not sure if anyone in the art department's approached him to do work for Paizo. Although his art looks to me to be a bit too far onto the comic book side of the fence, which doesn't fit Paizo's art style, and would rile up the anti-comic book critics to boot.
James, I want to start a campaign that takes place in the Elsir Vale from your Red Hand of Doom adventure. What country do you suggest I place Elsir Vale in Golarion?
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Creative Director
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1) How come the Sceaduinar speaks Daemon language (listed in its statblock) and Daemons don't?
Or, in another words, is the Daemon tongue existing yet missing in all the Daemons' statblocks, or is it just an error on the Sceaudinar's statblock?
That's a typo. We decided not to bloat the Language List that much and backed off of giving daemons their own language, but it snuck through for the sceaudinar. Simply remove the Daemon language from the sceaduinar and it's all good.
2) Ever thought of adding to the languages list a Tongue of the Dead? One that would be specifically used in dark rituals of death and that would also be the "natural" tongue of those intelligent undead who are detatched enough from their mortal life (Wraiths, Shadows, etc.) to have no sufficient relation with their former knowledges? If yes, why did you guys choose to leave it out of the books? If not, do you like the idea (of course putting aside for a moment the fact that what's done is done and something like this will be obviously forced to remain out of the books).
There is a langauge that the undead speak. It's called "Necril," and it's been in Golarion (in stealth mode, more or less) since it was introduced in "Into the Darklands." The upcoming Inner Sea World Guide adds this language to the core languages spoken in the Inner Sea. It's not really a "common tongue for undead" though... more like the language used by the Whispering Way and the "civilized" ghouls of the Darklands.
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So I got one of the rare opportunities to actually play pathfinder instead of GM. I made a Neutral Good half-elf Ranger from Nirmathas. And loved playing him. Then the GM poke up asking what I was going to multiclass in since I was a half-elf, I explained I wasn't going to multiclass the half-elf part was for story flavor. This made the other players confused as to why I wouldn't use my racials to full benefit. Is it so lost on most players that I could just play a character for the flavor and story? Have you encountered this as well?
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Creative Director
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Although his art looks to me to be a bit too far onto the comic book side of the fence, which doesn't fit Paizo's art style, and would rile up the anti-comic book critics to boot."Anti-comic book critics"?
People on these boards who tear us a new one whenever we print art that they think looks comic booky (has heavy black outlines, or otherwise looks like it comes from a comic book). We had a lot of backlash of this type at the start of Pathfinder, when we didn't have all the resources and artists we wanted and had to go with some artists whose style didn't match what we wanted.
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Creative Director
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So I got one of the rare opportunities to actually play pathfinder instead of GM. I made a Neutral Good half-elf Ranger from Nirmathas. And loved playing him. Then the GM poke up asking what I was going to multiclass in since I was a half-elf, I explained I wasn't going to multiclass the half-elf part was for story flavor. This made the other players confused as to why I wouldn't use my racials to full benefit. Is it so lost on most players that I could just play a character for the flavor and story? Have you encountered this as well?
I have. It's frustrating. To the extent that once folks start talking about "optimization" I tend to check out of the conversation and seek something more interesting to me.
My preferred method of creating a character, be it a PC or an NPC: come up with a cool concept and then optimize for the concept, not for the rules crunch.
Do you think that Harsk was based on (must bold and increase the font size as he is the loudest man in entertainment) after looking at this image .
Do you think that RPG dwarves differ greatly from Tolkiens vision of Dwarves. I think that there are massive differences and that RPG dwarves are very boring.
How would you make Dwarves more diverse and interesting.
When I ran my homebrew world the only Dwarves that had a monolithic culture were the Dark Dwarves and they were a Prussian analogue - Pointy helmets and warmongering. My other Dwarven cultures adapted to what ever was the most successful culture around them with added dwarf spin. So I had bald and beardless Egyptian equivalents, forest dwelling woodworking conservationists, Viking dwarves, and highly cultured and fiercely independent city state dwarves.
I find it sad that other people cant evolve dwarves beyond their trope. Is there any chance of Paizo pushing the envelope in cultural evolution for dwarves?
Are there any plans for a Golarion Comic book? Or any move into other media as of yet?
There is a langauge that the undead speak. It's called "Necril," and it's been in Golarion (in stealth mode, more or less) since it was introduced in "Into the Darklands." The upcoming Inner Sea World Guide adds this language to the core languages spoken in the Inner Sea. It's not really a "common tongue for undead" though... more like the language used by the Whispering Way and the "civilized" ghouls of the Darklands.
Nice, I didn't know about it, and my own idea of that "Tongue of the Dead" was indeed projected to be used particularly by Lichs, so now I like to acquaint this.
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Creative Director
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Do you think that Harsk was based on (got bold and increase the font size as he is the loudest man in entertainment) after looking at this image .
Do you think that RPG dwarves differ greatly from Tolkiens vision of Dwarves. I think that there are massive differences and that RPG dwarves are very boring.
How would you make Dwarves more diverse and interesting.
When I ran my homebrew world the only Dwarves that had a monolithic culture were the Dark Dwarves and they were a Prussian analogue - Pointy helmets and warmongering. My other Dwarven cultures adapted to what ever was the most successful culture around them with added dwarf spin. So I had bald and beardless Egyptian equivalents, forest dwelling woodworking conservationists, Viking dwarves, and highly cultured and fiercely independent city state dwarves.
I find it sad that other people cant evolve dwarves beyond their trope. Is there any chance of Paizo pushing the envelope in cultural evolution for dwarves?
You'd have to ask Wayne Reynolds who he based Harsk on. My guess? Wayne more or less made Harsk up. What dwarves look like is no mystery, and Wayne REALLY gets fantasy art.
I think Dragon Age did a good job making dwarves interesting. Basically... I'd make them crude and foul-mouthed and grubby and kinda filthy, but that's not something that I think a lot of dwarf fans are interested in.
Do fans of dwarves WANT to evolve beyond the dwarf cliche? In my experience... they don't.
Do fans of dwarves WANT to evolve beyond the dwarf cliche? In my experience... they don't.
Neither do I (not a Dwarves' fan; no more than average, I'd say).
If they become different they no longer are Dwarves. They are something else. Of course the same applies to every other race.
... I'd make them crude and foul-mouthed and grubby and kinda filthy, but that's not something that I think a lot of dwarf fans are interested in.
Um...yeah we had those already...they were called Gully Dwarves from the Dragonlance setting. I loved playing elves who could not tell the difference...:)
Anyway...you seem to have some prejudices concerning the game( for instant your views on dwarves stem from how you have seen them played in the past). And I notice first impressions have a lasting effect among gamers...I am constantly running into this alot lately.
Did you have any long held prejudices about any thing gaming that you had to rethink?
RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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Why is there a woman who seems to call my phone every 3-6 months looking for her friend for the past 5 years or so? I can understand a wrong number here and there, but this is the same lady who keeps sporradically calling my number and doesn't seem capable of removing my number from her phonebook.
Follow up question: how can I educate her to remove my number from her phonebook so she doesn't keep calling me looking for Steve?
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Creative Director
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... I'd make them crude and foul-mouthed and grubby and kinda filthy, but that's not something that I think a lot of dwarf fans are interested in.
Um...yeah we had those already...they were called Gully Dwarves from the Dragonlance setting. I loved playing elves who could not tell the difference...:)
Anyway...you seem to have some prejudices concerning the game( for instant your views on dwarves stem from how you have seen them played in the past). And I notice first impressions have a lasting effect among gamers...I am constantly running into this alot lately.
Did you have any long held prejudices about any thing gaming that you had to rethink?
Sure! Dwarves AND Paladins!
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Creative Director
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Why is there a woman who seems to call my phone every 3-6 months looking for her friend for the past 5 years or so? I can understand a wrong number here and there, but this is the same lady who keeps sporradically calling my number and doesn't seem capable of removing my number from her phonebook.
Follow up question: how can I educate her to remove my number from her phonebook so she doesn't keep calling me looking for Steve?
Maybe she's a ghost from the future? Or a time traveller?
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So I got one of the rare opportunities to actually play pathfinder instead of GM. I made a Neutral Good half-elf Ranger from Nirmathas. And loved playing him. Then the GM poke up asking what I was going to multiclass in since I was a half-elf, I explained I wasn't going to multiclass the half-elf part was for story flavor. This made the other players confused as to why I wouldn't use my racials to full benefit. Is it so lost on most players that I could just play a character for the flavor and story? Have you encountered this as well?I have. It's frustrating. To the extent that once folks start talking about "optimization" I tend to check out of the conversation and seek something more interesting to me.
My preferred method of creating a character, be it a PC or an NPC: come up with a cool concept and then optimize for the concept, not for the rules crunch.
Is it wrong I just want to play a character and not some minmaxed unpersonalized piece of paper?
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Is it wrong I just want to play a character and not some minmaxed unpersonalized piece of paper?So I got one of the rare opportunities to actually play pathfinder instead of GM. I made a Neutral Good half-elf Ranger from Nirmathas. And loved playing him. Then the GM poke up asking what I was going to multiclass in since I was a half-elf, I explained I wasn't going to multiclass the half-elf part was for story flavor. This made the other players confused as to why I wouldn't use my racials to full benefit. Is it so lost on most players that I could just play a character for the flavor and story? Have you encountered this as well?I have. It's frustrating. To the extent that once folks start talking about "optimization" I tend to check out of the conversation and seek something more interesting to me.
My preferred method of creating a character, be it a PC or an NPC: come up with a cool concept and then optimize for the concept, not for the rules crunch.
I'll step up and answer this one for you James.
The answer is no, and if that's how you have fun, then it will never be wrong.
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Creative Director
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Is it wrong I just want to play a character and not some minmaxed unpersonalized piece of paper?So I got one of the rare opportunities to actually play pathfinder instead of GM. I made a Neutral Good half-elf Ranger from Nirmathas. And loved playing him. Then the GM poke up asking what I was going to multiclass in since I was a half-elf, I explained I wasn't going to multiclass the half-elf part was for story flavor. This made the other players confused as to why I wouldn't use my racials to full benefit. Is it so lost on most players that I could just play a character for the flavor and story? Have you encountered this as well?I have. It's frustrating. To the extent that once folks start talking about "optimization" I tend to check out of the conversation and seek something more interesting to me.
My preferred method of creating a character, be it a PC or an NPC: come up with a cool concept and then optimize for the concept, not for the rules crunch.
Yup. If you're having fun, you're doing it right.
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RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32, 2011 Top 16
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Maybe she's a ghost from the future? Or a time traveller?Why is there a woman who seems to call my phone every 3-6 months looking for her friend for the past 5 years or so? I can understand a wrong number here and there, but this is the same lady who keeps sporradically calling my number and doesn't seem capable of removing my number from her phonebook.
Follow up question: how can I educate her to remove my number from her phonebook so she doesn't keep calling me looking for Steve?
Wouldn't a ghost from the future already be a time traveller? Just a time travelling ghost?
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Do you think Pathfinder Dwarves could have broken out of the "smelly and dirty" mold had they been redesigned with a -2 dexterity penalty (or other penalty) rather than the charisma penalty? If you could have done it differently for Pathfinder, fans of Dwarves be damned, how would you have liked to see them treated?
Note, I do like Dwarves more than the average person and really appreciate the absolute sinister and conniving way that they are portrayed in Dragon Age. It was a welcome change.
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Space: 1999 had an epsiode where one unlucky crewman was haunted by and ultimately killed by his own ghost.Wouldn't a ghost from the future already be a time traveller? Just a time travelling ghost?Maybe she's a ghost from the future? Or a time traveller?Why is there a woman who seems to call my phone every 3-6 months looking for her friend for the past 5 years or so? I can understand a wrong number here and there, but this is the same lady who keeps sporradically calling my number and doesn't seem capable of removing my number from her phonebook.
Follow up question: how can I educate her to remove my number from her phonebook so she doesn't keep calling me looking for Steve?
Very cool, I never did get into that show, I may have to look that up. Thanks.
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Creative Director
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James, is there one thing you have read, seen or experienced that was truly terrible but was so, so close to being brilliant?
If so, what was it and how could it have been changed to be brilliant?
Plenty of movies have come close to being brilliant but made stupid choices that mired them in the terrible category. Michael Mann's movie version of "The Keep" is a great example; based on a BRILLIANT novel by F. Paul Wilson, Mann made a few choices in making the movie (primarily the change to the ending, but also to the nature of the main bad guy) that ruins what is otherwise a great (if very dated today) movie.
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Creative Director
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Do you think Pathfinder Dwarves could have broken out of the "smelly and dirty" mold had they been redesigned with a -2 dexterity penalty (or other penalty) rather than the charisma penalty? If you could have done it differently for Pathfinder, fans of Dwarves be damned, how would you have liked to see them treated?
Note, I do like Dwarves more than the average person and really appreciate the absolute sinister and conniving way that they are portrayed in Dragon Age. It was a welcome change.
Dwarves exist in Golarion exactly how I wanted to see them treated—with honor and respect to the traditional dwarf, so that folks who do like dwarves won't be annoyed. Dwarves have ALWAYS had a strong role in the game and in fantasy, mostly due to Tolkein, and as such, they didn't need as much of an intervention as, say, gnomes did, who have traditionally been kind of ignored by game designers and left to be "dwarves, but a little more magical." The only time I can really think of that an RPG has come up with a compelling new take on gnomes before Golarion, honestly, was Dragonlance... and they did such a GREAT job (gnomes are tinkers and mad scientists) that that take on gnomes became the baseline.
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Creative Director
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The Charisma penalty doesn't neccessarily mean "smelly and dirty". I'd say Golarian Dwarves get that penalty for the same reason that Azeroth's Night Elves do, they're essentially stand-offish and aloof... even to each other. They simply don't project their personalities as much as the comparative norm.Do you think Pathfinder Dwarves could have broken out of the "smelly and dirty" mold had they been redesigned with a -2 dexterity penalty (or other penalty) rather than the charisma penalty? If you could have done it differently for Pathfinder, fans of Dwarves be damned, how would you have liked to see them treated?
Note, I do like Dwarves more than the average person and really appreciate the absolute sinister and conniving way that they are portrayed in Dragon Age. It was a welcome change.
I've always seen the dwarf charisma penalty as modeling their stubborn, too bound to tradition nature. They're kind of stagnant when it comes to expressing themselves, and when you aren't from those same traditions, they can be argumentative and coarse and frustratingly narrow-minded. Hence... –2 Charisma.
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Creative Director
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That pretty much describes Night Elves to a T. I kind of think of Night Elves as very tall dwarves with a feral fey streak. Their 3.5 adjustments were +2 Wisdom (Spirit) -2 Charisma. for Pathfinder I'd add a +2 Dex (Agility)
Yup. Being the guy who initially designed night elves for the 3.5 rules (back when it was going to be an official Wizards of the Coast product), that's more or less the exact philosophy I took with them. (Of course, the unpublished draft of that book would go on to be heavily revised by Sword & Sorcery studios... so it's hard for me to say exactly what elements of that book's design remain mine or otherwise.)
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Creative Director
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If you had a guess what things should you be doing when playing Dragon Age II instead?
What things should you be doing instead of answering these questions?
PS: Your welcome for the short distraction from your work.
Working on developing "Undead Revisited."
Working on writing "The Brinewall Legacy" and its support articles for Pathfinder #49.
Outlining and beginning design on Tian-Xia.
Starting work on the Jade Regent Player's Guide.
Doing a 2nd development pass on "Acadamy of Secrets."
And that's just for starters.
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So Second Darkness was very heavily elven influenced. Is there any chance (despite your dislike) of having a heavily dwarven influenced adventure path. I for one would buy it.There's certainly a chance. Not much on schedule, though. Honestly, given Second Darkness's warts, there's a better chance I might try to present an elf AP again in an attempt to file off those warts. ;-P
+1 to this idea. Elf politics + Urban + Forest adventures, please!
Perhaps culminating with a big-old-dinosaur-themed Archdemon fight? A certain fella whose name rhymes with "TAZER"?
OT: when GM'ing, do you prefer to use pregenerated maps (Flip-Mats & Map Packs FTW!) or draw them out as you go?
If the former, do you ever have to deal with "future-sight" on the part of the players (who can see the map all laid out to start with)?
If you had a guess what things should you be doing when playing Dragon Age II instead?
What things should you be doing instead of answering these questions?
PS: Your welcome for the short distraction from your work.
Working on developing "Undead Revisited."
Working on writing "The Brinewall Legacy" and its support articles for Pathfinder #49.
Outlining and beginning design on Tian-Xia.
Starting work on the Jade Regent Player's Guide.
Doing a 2nd development pass on "Acadamy of Secrets."
And that's just for starters.
Since I know you can't announce what the Tian-Xia books are going to be called, when roughly will that infromation be announced? And are we looking at a GM, player book combo?
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Creative Director
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OT: when GM'ing, do you prefer to use pregenerated maps (Flip-Mats & Map Packs FTW!) or draw them out as you go?
If the former, do you ever have to deal with "future-sight" on the part of the players (who can see the map all laid out to start with)?
I use a combination of flip maps and maps drawn out on TacTiles or battlemats.
For the former, I generally avoid placing a flip mat on the table until the PCs know all of the locations on the map; most of the time, this isn't an issue since I don't use these for dungeons, but mostly for wilderness encounters. I very much prefer drawing dungeons out one room at a time on a mat or something.
Is Ghol-Gan (the ancient civilization that existed where The Shackles and Mediogalti are now) a reference/homage to G'harne, in Lumley and CoC? There seem to be a few parallels...