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How exactly do medusas reproduce on Golarion? Is it like with changelings where they can mate with a male of any other humanoid species and the kid's always another medusa, or is there a kind of MANdusa that people just don't see publicly all that often so they're just assumed to not exist?
Since there are male medusas... the same way other creatures reproduce. There's no difference stat-wise between medusa genders, as with most creatures. And as with the vast majority of creatures that, mythologically or traditionally, are single gender, that's not the case in Pathfinder.
Note also that a medusa can deactivate their petrifying gaze, as described on page 234 of the Bestiary under the entry for that aura, so they don't have an issue with constantly petrifying anything and anyone they see.
Have you converted any of the Sandpoint NPCs to PF2 for your personal use? Is that something you would be interested in?
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Have you converted any of the Sandpoint NPCs to PF2 for your personal use? Is that something you would be interested in?
I haven't yet, but I've gotta pass on seeing your versions. I try not to look into content that isn't something Paizo's paying a freelancer to create, as both a time-management thing but also to protect myself and Paizo from potential future legal issues. BUT Have fun with your 2nd edition Sandpoint shenanigans!
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LOL, not me! I was simply inquiring whether that was something you'd like to do or if that part of the setting was over and done with for you.
Do over:
Is that something you would be interested in doing {yourself}?
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LOL, not me! I was simply inquiring whether that was something you'd like to do or if that part of the setting was over and done with for you.
Do over:
Is that something you would be interested in doing {yourself}?
Ah; gotcha! Yup, in time I suspect I'll do just that! I can't stay away from Sandpoint forever.
For Arazni, what are ways she might show interest/annoyance in her followers aside from the boons/curses in the G&M supplement. Basically nearly non-mechanical minor things.Arazni's a complicated character. I've gone into the story before—but the short version is I invented her, never had the chance to tell the story I wanted to tell about her, and then that story got told during an adventure path I wasn't directly involved in, so at this point, while what's in my head about her and what's in print are pretty much the same, I don't feel like the expert in her story anymore. There's been a fair number of misunderstandings in her story over the years as well (we at one point set her up as a mummy after she'd been already presented as a lich, for example), and I did a terrible job at setting up her whole redemption arc (I intended to do something similar to what happened with her story in Tyrant's Grasp but never had a chance to so as I kept getting pulled in other directions by other projects, and it languished long enough that some folks started thinking the whole point of her was to show a woman with no agency over her fate—which was NOT my original intent) and making it clear to others that what we knew about her in print was jsut setting up a more empowering story about her.
That said, I believe we published an article about her during Tyrant's Grasp, but I wasn't part of that AP's direct production so I can't say for sure; I'd go there to look for inspiration if I were you.
As a worldbuilder myself with aspirations of sharing my work with the world someday, and who looks up to what you've created here, this is a thought provoking read.
As a follow-up, assuming you do run Golarion when you run games in Pathfinder, is the version of Golarion you run at home much 'different' than the print version in our hands? are there a lot of areas where stuff like this happens, so your 'take' is a lot different?
I know most DM's do that, but I'm just curious about it from the perspective of the world's originator.
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As a worldbuilder myself with aspirations of sharing my work with the world someday, and who looks up to what you've created here, this is a thought provoking read.
As a follow-up, assuming you do run Golarion when you run games in Pathfinder, is the version of Golarion you run at home much 'different' than the print version in our hands? are there a lot of areas where stuff like this happens, so your 'take' is a lot different?
I know most DM's do that, but I'm just curious about it from the perspective of the world's originator.
I do indeed run Golarion when I run Pathfinder games. The version I run is the same as the print version, and in fact, when I run games in Golarion, they tend to eventually translate into print. A fair amount of the contents of the Sandpoint book I wrote were things I came up with for the office game I ran, as an example.
My "take" on Golarion is the version we publish, in other words.
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I watched Horse Girl on Netflix and the first episode of Tales from the Loop on Prime Video last night. Have you seen them yet and what did you think?
Never heard of Horse Girl, but the trailer looks pretty interesting. I've got Tales from the Loop in my list to watch, but at this point my streaming time is pretty much taken up by Legion, catching up on Jessica Jones and Sabrina, and then the new seasons of Altered Carbon and The Kingdom, while also watching Better Call Saul, Walking Dead, Curse of Oak Island, and Westworld when those episodes air. I'll get to Tales from the Loop eventually.
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Aside from Nioh 2 are you playing any other games currently?
Just beat it last week and this week the DLC for Borderlands 3, Guns, Love, and Tentacles: The Marriage of Hammerlocke and Wainwright.
None, currently. Nioh 2 is pretty much taking all my videogaming up. I've got the new Doom game on deck though.
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None, currently. Nioh 2 is pretty much taking all my videogaming up. I've got the new Doom game on deck though.Aside from Nioh 2 are you playing any other games currently?
Just beat it last week and this week the DLC for Borderlands 3, Guns, Love, and Tentacles: The Marriage of Hammerlocke and Wainwright.
Nice, where are you at in Nioh 2?
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Nice, where are you at in Nioh 2?None, currently. Nioh 2 is pretty much taking all my videogaming up. I've got the new Doom game on deck though.Aside from Nioh 2 are you playing any other games currently?
Just beat it last week and this week the DLC for Borderlands 3, Guns, Love, and Tentacles: The Marriage of Hammerlocke and Wainwright.
Just started the boss fight against the giant titaninc energy spititng kaiju yokai.
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Just started the boss fight against the giant titaninc energy spititng kaiju yokai.Nice, where are you at in Nioh 2?None, currently. Nioh 2 is pretty much taking all my videogaming up. I've got the new Doom game on deck though.Aside from Nioh 2 are you playing any other games currently?
Just beat it last week and this week the DLC for Borderlands 3, Guns, Love, and Tentacles: The Marriage of Hammerlocke and Wainwright.
Ooo, I hate em.
Very cool fight though. What did you think of Kasha?
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In Turn of the Torrent, Octavio Sabinus is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 3. However in The Kintargo Contract, he is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 6 (the same number of Hellknight levels as Kyrre Ekodyre). Is Octavio intended to gain three Hellknight levels over the course of Turn of the Torrent, Dance of the Damned, and A Song of Silver, or is this a typo?
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Creative Director
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In Turn of the Torrent, Octavio Sabinus is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 3. However in The Kintargo Contract, he is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 6 (the same number of Hellknight levels as Kyrre Ekodyre). Is Octavio intended to gain three Hellknight levels over the course of Turn of the Torrent, Dance of the Damned, and A Song of Silver, or is this a typo?
He gained levels, yes. Whether it was as a result of him potentially adventuring with a group of PCs, or simply as a result of what he was up to in the meantime between those installments, he gained a few levels. Remember that NPCs don't earn xp. That's only for PCs (and for cohorts or other NPCs that are played as GM PCs more or less). NPCs get to level up however they need.
Queen Ileosa's a classic example of this.
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In Turn of the Torrent, Octavio Sabinus is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 3. However in The Kintargo Contract, he is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 6 (the same number of Hellknight levels as Kyrre Ekodyre). Is Octavio intended to gain three Hellknight levels over the course of Turn of the Torrent, Dance of the Damned, and A Song of Silver, or is this a typo?He gained levels, yes. Whether it was as a result of him potentially adventuring with a group of PCs, or simply as a result of what he was up to in the meantime between those installments, he gained a few levels. Remember that NPCs don't earn xp. That's only for PCs (and for cohorts or other NPCs that are played as GM PCs more or less). NPCs get to level up however they need.
Queen Ileosa's a classic example of this.
Thanks for the answer, but I actually prefer PC/NPC transparency. Still, it's not hard to feed him levels. The question was whether to bother (whether he was assumed to have gained levels, to which the answer is yes), not how to go about it.
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Thanks for the answer, but I actually prefer PC/NPC transparency. Still, it's not hard to feed him levels. The question was whether to bother (whether he was assumed to have gained levels, to which the answer is yes), not how to go about it.In Turn of the Torrent, Octavio Sabinus is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 3. However in The Kintargo Contract, he is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 6 (the same number of Hellknight levels as Kyrre Ekodyre). Is Octavio intended to gain three Hellknight levels over the course of Turn of the Torrent, Dance of the Damned, and A Song of Silver, or is this a typo?He gained levels, yes. Whether it was as a result of him potentially adventuring with a group of PCs, or simply as a result of what he was up to in the meantime between those installments, he gained a few levels. Remember that NPCs don't earn xp. That's only for PCs (and for cohorts or other NPCs that are played as GM PCs more or less). NPCs get to level up however they need.
Queen Ileosa's a classic example of this.
I can't write games specifically for you (or any other person I don't know). It's expected that an individual GM will go in and adjust their game as needed for their table to make it customized; that's one of the whole points of an RPG having a GM, after all.
Your original question wasn't about how to "go about it" but instead "was it intended" that he gained levels. I'm fine with answering additional questions and clarifications, but it bugs me a little to imply I didn't answer the question you meant to ask when you didn't actually ask that question. It's always good to be precise in questions!
As to whether or not to bother, that's up to you. If you wanna run the adventure path as written, then yes, you should bother. If you want to keep him at a static level as the campaign proceeds, that's fine too. Pick what's going to work best for your players. I can't do that for you.
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Thanks for the answer, but I actually prefer PC/NPC transparency. Still, it's not hard to feed him levels. The question was whether to bother (whether he was assumed to have gained levels, to which the answer is yes), not how to go about it.In Turn of the Torrent, Octavio Sabinus is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 3. However in The Kintargo Contract, he is listed as a fighter 5/Hellknight 6 (the same number of Hellknight levels as Kyrre Ekodyre). Is Octavio intended to gain three Hellknight levels over the course of Turn of the Torrent, Dance of the Damned, and A Song of Silver, or is this a typo?He gained levels, yes. Whether it was as a result of him potentially adventuring with a group of PCs, or simply as a result of what he was up to in the meantime between those installments, he gained a few levels. Remember that NPCs don't earn xp. That's only for PCs (and for cohorts or other NPCs that are played as GM PCs more or less). NPCs get to level up however they need.
Queen Ileosa's a classic example of this.
I can't write games specifically for you (or any other person I don't know). It's expected that an individual GM will go in and adjust their game as needed for their table to make it customized; that's one of the whole points of an RPG having a GM, after all.
Your original question wasn't about how to "go about it" but instead "was it intended" that he gained levels. I'm fine with answering additional questions and clarifications, but it bugs me a little to imply I didn't answer the question you meant to ask when you didn't actually ask that question. It's always good to be precise in questions!
As to whether or not to bother, that's up to you. If you wanna run the adventure path as written, then yes, you should bother. If you want to keep him at a static level as the campaign proceeds, that's fine too. Pick what's going to work best for your players. I can't do that for you.
You did answer the question I asked, in the affirmative. I thanked you for it. We are in violent agreement on this point. Going forward, I will be assuming, as the adventure does, that Octavio levels up over the three books.
The digression about how to justify that, and relatedly about whether we prefer PC/NPC transparency or opacity was just that, a digression. And probably not something that should be further discussed here beyond the staking-out of positions. Which has already been done.
Til next time :)
Mr. James Jacobs,
While no Dead Can Dance is ever just a love song, are there any loves songs from Dead Can Dance that you would recommend?
I have a couple questions about Wands.
I'm playing a White Mage Arcanist, so I can spontaneously cast Cure spells, and I have the Healer's Touch feat that allows me to maximize the effect of healing spells on other creatures.
firstly: Does using a Wand of Cure Moderate Wounds count as casting a spell?
Secondly: Does a White Mage Arcanist need to use UMD to use a wand of Cure Moderate Wounds?
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I have a couple questions about Wands.
I'm playing a White Mage Arcanist, so I can spontaneously cast Cure spells, and I have the Healer's Touch feat that allows me to maximize the effect of healing spells on other creatures.
firstly: Does using a Wand of Cure Moderate Wounds count as casting a spell?
Secondly: Does a White Mage Arcanist need to use UMD to use a wand of Cure Moderate Wounds?
I don't normally answer rules questions here... but here's how I'd answer this if you were in my game.
Firstly: No, because wands are spell trigger items, not spell completion items.
Secondly: Yes, because the archetype doesn't add cure moderate wounds to your spell list, it fakes it for one ability, and that doesn't translate over to wand use.
I have a couple questions about Wands.
I'm playing a White Mage Arcanist, so I can spontaneously cast Cure spells, and I have the Healer's Touch feat that allows me to maximize the effect of healing spells on other creatures.
firstly: Does using a Wand of Cure Moderate Wounds count as casting a spell?
Secondly: Does a White Mage Arcanist need to use UMD to use a wand of Cure Moderate Wounds?
I don't normally answer rules questions here... but here's how I'd answer this if you were in my game.
Firstly: No, because wands are spell trigger items, not spell completion items.
Secondly: Yes, because the archetype doesn't add cure moderate wounds to your spell list, it fakes it for one ability, and that doesn't translate over to wand use.
Fair enough, thanks for answering though!
Do you have a favorite "off-brand" Kaiju-type critter? (Gappa, Yonggary, Pulgasari, that sort of thing)
Hi James,
Since "lie" is explicitly one of Sarenrae's anathemas now, are the secretive Dawnflower Dissidents considered as heretical as the Cult of the Dawnflower?
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Hi James,
Since "lie" is explicitly one of Sarenrae's anathemas now, are the secretive Dawnflower Dissidents considered as heretical as the Cult of the Dawnflower?
They always were heretics; that's nothing new.
They took a god of healing and redemption and tried to turn her into a warmonger. (And this whole storyline never should have popped up in print anyway in my opinion, since it's gross and works against the whole point of Sarenrae's inclusion in Pathfinder as a kindly female sun goddess in the first place; it's a classic example of the era of Pathfinder creation that didn't have strong creative oversight and let some elements get into print that were not appropriate for the setting.)
I get it that the "religion is up to something unusual" is a trope that a lot of folks get a kick out of, and I enjoy that story too... it just needs to be handled more responsibly—both in a responsible way to the world's lore, and a responsible way in how that in-game content mirrors real world events."
Neutral, lawful neutral, and chaotic neutral deities are the best ones to do this storyline with, since their faith doesn't have the word "good" in it, but neither does it have the word evil in it, so there's a lot of flexibility in how their worshipers can be portrayed in the setting.
Hi James,
Since "lie" is explicitly one of Sarenrae's anathemas now, are the secretive Dawnflower Dissidents considered as heretical as the Cult of the Dawnflower?They always were heretics; that's nothing new.
They took a god of healing and redemption and tried to turn her into a warmonger. (And this whole storyline never should have popped up in print anyway in my opinion, since it's gross and works against the whole point of Sarenrae's inclusion in Pathfinder as a kindly female sun goddess in the first place; it's a classic example of the era of Pathfinder creation that didn't have strong creative oversight and let some elements get into print that were not appropriate for the setting.)
I get it that the "religion is up to something unusual" is a trope that a lot of folks get a kick out of, and I enjoy that story too... it just needs to be handled more responsibly—both in a responsible way to the world's lore, and a responsible way in how that in-game content mirrors real world events."
Neutral, lawful neutral, and chaotic neutral deities are the best ones to do this storyline with, since their faith doesn't have the word "good" in it, but neither does it have the word evil in it, so there's a lot of flexibility in how their worshipers can be portrayed in the setting.
Apologies, I caused a misunderstanding. The militant Cult of the Dawnflower is obviously heretical, you made that extremely clear in previous posts in this thread.
My question, though, was centered on the the Dawnflower Dissidents, who, last I heard, quietly infiltrate hostile countries such as Cheliax, Nidal, and Rahadoum to heal and protect the citizenry in secret.
The Dissidents' infiltrations imply at least a bit of deception, which the 2E Core defined as anathema to Sarenrae. That makes me think they're heretics as well, but could I get your own interpretation on that?
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Creative Director
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My question, though, was centered on the the Dawnflower Dissidents, who, last I heard, quietly infiltrate hostile countries such as Cheliax, Nidal, and Rahadoum to heal and protect the citizenry in secret.
The Dissidents' infiltrations imply at least a bit of deception, which the 2E Core defined as anathema to Sarenrae. That makes me think they're heretics as well, but could I get your own interpretation on that?
1) They're not part of the setting anymore, so that's not really a big issue.
2) As with all anathemas, there's degrees to them, extenuating circumstances, and exceptions that should be kept in mind by the GM. If a worshiper has to break an edict or engage in an anathema because of no other choice, or because it's the lesser "evil" and will help the cause in the long run, then the person performing the action should seek to atone and repair or mitigate the damage done as soon as possible. There's a world of difference between a cleric of Sarenrae who has to lie to while she's in a nation where, if she told the truth, she'd be executed, and a cleric of Sarenrae who lies for personal gain or to pursue a non-Sarenrae-approved plot or simply because they enjoy lying.
Things like anathamas and edicts are methods for us all to play and portray characters of faith in ways that make them actually act like they're in that faith. They're not meant to be tools for GMs to use to punish PCs, nor "rules to bend" or to find pedantic exploits to play against type for a player.
Which Pathfinder First Edition Adventure Paths would, in your educated opinion, most benefit from a GM converting the path to Pathfinder Second Edition?
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Which Pathfinder First Edition Adventure Paths would, in your educated opinion, most benefit from a GM converting the path to Pathfinder Second Edition?
Same as before: Second Darkness (since I'd be able to engineer a fix to the level gap between books 2 and 3, shore up the transition from "gambling house mogul" to "world-saving hero", and present elves as they were intended to be in Pathfinder and not carbon-copy them from Tolkein/D&D/Warcraft as isolationist xenophobes—aka have them act chaotic good instead of lawful neutral) and Wrath of the Righteous (which suffered from a misunderstanding of how mythic rules interact with high level characters, and a failure on our part to manage expectations and anticipations for the players and GMs that Mythic rules change the genre of the game from high fantasy to superhero). Has nothing to do with the difference in rules (since the stories we tell in either edition would play out pretty much the same), and everything to do with fixing deeper errors/missed opportunities in the campaign's original execution.
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Which Pathfinder First Edition Adventure Paths would, in your educated opinion, most benefit from a GM converting the path to Pathfinder Second Edition?Same as before: Second Darkness (since I'd be able to engineer a fix to the level gap between books 2 and 3, shore up the transition from "gambling house mogul" to "world-saving hero", and present elves as they were intended to be in Pathfinder and not carbon-copy them from Tolkein/D&D/Warcraft as isolationist xenophobes—aka have them act chaotic good instead of lawful neutral) and Wrath of the Righteous (which suffered from a misunderstanding of how mythic rules interact with high level characters, and a failure on our part to manage expectations and anticipations for the players and GMs that Mythic rules change the genre of the game from high fantasy to superhero). Has nothing to do with the difference in rules (since the stories we tell in either edition would play out pretty much the same), and everything to do with fixing deeper errors/missed opportunities in the campaign's original execution.
I really want to see the fixed version of Second Darkness.
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Which Pathfinder First Edition Adventure Paths would, in your educated opinion, most benefit from a GM converting the path to Pathfinder Second Edition?Same as before: Second Darkness (since I'd be able to engineer a fix to the level gap between books 2 and 3, shore up the transition from "gambling house mogul" to "world-saving hero", and present elves as they were intended to be in Pathfinder and not carbon-copy them from Tolkein/D&D/Warcraft as isolationist xenophobes—aka have them act chaotic good instead of lawful neutral) and Wrath of the Righteous (which suffered from a misunderstanding of how mythic rules interact with high level characters, and a failure on our part to manage expectations and anticipations for the players and GMs that Mythic rules change the genre of the game from high fantasy to superhero). Has nothing to do with the difference in rules (since the stories we tell in either edition would play out pretty much the same), and everything to do with fixing deeper errors/missed opportunities in the campaign's original execution.
I was looking at Wrath of the Righteous (I like Paladins, what can I say). Should the story still work with 2nd Ed removing Mythic?
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I was looking at Wrath of the Righteous (I like Paladins, what can I say). Should the story still work with 2nd Ed removing Mythic?
The story will still work as long as you can stomach the idea of statting up demon lords at much lower levels.
My preference would be to keep that and build a new and better version of Mythic rules; one that's more focused on supporting high level play rather than low level play.
Or even just expanding the level cap from level 20 to 25; 2nd edition's math is less fraught with flaws at high level than 1st edition was, and in theory one could expand levels perpetually as long as you continue to have a robust cast of foes in a level range of +/–4 from the target level.
How do adventuring wizards learn spells? There aren't many opportunities to visit a library while adventuring in the wilderness, plus magic had to start somewhere, so where do wizards learn spells from?
Do any of Golarion’s kaiju have close interpersonal relationships with one another in a similar vein to the relationship between Godzilla and Mothra?
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How do adventuring wizards learn spells? There aren't many opportunities to visit a library while adventuring in the wilderness, plus magic had to start somewhere, so where do wizards learn spells from?
Whether or not there are many opportunities to visit a library depends 100% on the nature of the campaign the wizard is on. Not every wizard spends their time always in the wilderness, as even a casual glance at the adventure paths we've published prove. Beyond that, wizards learn magic by leveling up, by discovering scrolls and spellbooks, and by researching.
If by "off-brand" you mean "non Toho giant monster" from a movie, hmm.
I was also looking to leave Daiei out of the mix...
And speaking of Daiei!
Assuming you have any particular opinions on them, which old-school Gamera adversary would you most like to see get a modernized update like Gyaos did in the 1990s?
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If by "off-brand" you mean "non Toho giant monster" from a movie, hmm.I was also looking to leave Daiei out of the mix...
And speaking of Daiei!
Assuming you have any particular opinions on them, which old-school Gamera adversary would you most like to see get a modernized update like Gyaos did in the 1990s?
I have BIG opinionis.
The old-school Gamera movies are really goofy... REALLY goofy. But the trilogy from the 1990s are among my favorite kaiju movies. The difference between those two is night and day.
That said, the old-school Gamera adversary I'd most like to see get modernized would be Baragon.
How do adventuring wizards learn spells? There aren't many opportunities to visit a library while adventuring in the wilderness, plus magic had to start somewhere, so where do wizards learn spells from?Whether or not there are many opportunities to visit a library depends 100% on the nature of the campaign the wizard is on. Not every wizard spends their time always in the wilderness, as even a casual glance at the adventure paths we've published prove. Beyond that, wizards learn magic by leveling up, by discovering scrolls and spellbooks, and by researching.
I'll elaborate. Whether the adventure path is urban intrigue or wilderness exploration a wizard will learn, on their own, just about any two spells they want per level. This is in addition to scrolls and spellbooks. These spells can be anything, regardless of what they themselves have cast or even witnessed.
So, in terms of in-setting flavor, how would a wizard research magic absent any references? And what is leveling up from a character and story perspective?
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How do adventuring wizards learn spells? There aren't many opportunities to visit a library while adventuring in the wilderness, plus magic had to start somewhere, so where do wizards learn spells from?Whether or not there are many opportunities to visit a library depends 100% on the nature of the campaign the wizard is on. Not every wizard spends their time always in the wilderness, as even a casual glance at the adventure paths we've published prove. Beyond that, wizards learn magic by leveling up, by discovering scrolls and spellbooks, and by researching.I'll elaborate. Whether the adventure path is urban intrigue or wilderness exploration a wizard will learn, on their own, just about any two spells they want per level. This is in addition to scrolls and spellbooks. These spells can be anything, regardless of what they themselves have cast or even witnessed.
So, in terms of in-setting flavor, how would a wizard research magic absent any references? And what is leveling up from a character and story perspective?
Without references? A wizard is limited to the spells they'd learn by leveling up or by those they research on their own. We don't yet have rules for spell research in 2nd edition, as far as I know, but in previous editions that plays out like an author writing a novel–except instead of a novel, a spell is what's being written.
From a character/story perspective, leveling up is "getting better at something you practice at doing."
This is the longest I have seen you not post. Is everything okay?