Creative Director
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Hello again, James.
I have some questions regarding Belkzen today.
From the ISWG regarding power levels:
The vast majority of humanity are “standard,” ranging in level from 1st to 5th—most with NPC classes like commoner, expert, or warrior (it’s uncommon for a character with only NPC class levels to be above 5th level). A significant number of a nation’s movers and shakers, along with other leaders, heroes, and notables, are “exceptional,” ranging in level from 6th to 10th. “Powerful” characters, ranging in level from 11th to 15th, are quite rare—typically only a handful of such powerful characters should exist in most nations, and they should be leaders or specially trained troops most often designed to serve as allies or enemies for use in an adventure. Finally, “legendary” characters of 16th or higher level should be exceptionally rare, and when they appear should only do so as part of a specific campaign—all legendary characters should be supported with significant histories and flavor.
1. Krun Thuul is a 10th level orc fighter (Black Sun tribe) and has a cohort, an 8th level cleric.
How many more of such a tribe (not asking exactly for the composition of the Black Suns) in the range of 6 to 10 should such a tribe have in its membership?2. About this: "A significant number of a nation’s movers and shakers, along with other leaders, heroes, and notables, are “exceptional,” ranging in level from 6th to 10th." By "nation" is the text (at least usually) referring strictly to nations or in general to regions? This makes me wonder just how many should be expected to be dispersed in countries versus regions.
3. Similarly regarding the text of high level characters "“Powerful” characters, ranging in level from 11th to 15th, are quite rare—typically only a handful of such powerful characters should exist in most nations, and they should be leaders or specially trained troops most often designed to serve as allies or enemies for use in an adventure.
IOW, the wording makes it sound like there should be only a handful of such characters in all of Cheliax but just as many in Korvosa and just as many in Magnamar and just as many in Riddleport and all the way down to each of the River Nations. How is that disbursement supposed to be (other than "whatever is needed for play")?
1) Relatively few. Krun Thuul and his cohort would be "champions" for the tribe. But from a game-design perspective, if you want an adventure where the PCs fight the tribe, it'd be best if the bulk of his tribe were 5th level with a few higher level captians and leaders, so that the PCs would be facing Krun Thuul and his cohort (a CR 10 encounter) as a tough encounter. So that adventure probably works best as one for 7th to 8th level PCs, which implies what levels the bulk of the rest of the tribe would be.
2) "Nation" is referring to any of the 4-page entries for nations and regions... but some of those regions themselves are quite big and contain nations (the Darklands comes to mind, as does the Mwangi Expanse), so it's not an exact thing.
3) The use of the word "handful" is obviously not an accurate term of measurement. It's meant to be a vague form of measurement. Looking at Magnimar, keep in mind that the city's got 16,428 people living in it. A quick flip through of "Magnimar: City of Monuments" reveals that I mentioned by name 11 or so NPCs who are level 11th to 15th. Even assuming there's double this... at 22 such NPCs, that's still only about a tenth of a percent of the city's total population. Now, the spread of levels will vary greatly depending where you are—somewhere like Sandpoint doesn't have anyone that high, even though 0.1% of Sandpoint's population of 1,240 would suggest there's 1 person of that level. Likewise, in a place that naturally skews higher level, like a drow city or the like, it'd probably be much higher than 0.1%. That's why I didn't present those numbers in percentages, and was instead vague—I wanted to leave it so that we (and all GMs) have the flexibility to set up any one region's adventures as they wish to without worrying about whether or not they have enough people in the area to populate the villains with challenges for any one adventure.
Whatever is needed for play is, in fact, the correct disbursement, in other words.
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Creative Director
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So we do have a precedent for the Chainmail Bikini! Thanks Sorshen!Sorshen's followers would have worn revealing outfits and would skew toward the handsome/beautiful end of things.Hi there,
Is there some kind of signature armour type/style that Sorshen would have kitted her minions out in? - Karzoug has gilded plate, Alaznist seems to have red etc
Not what I said.
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Creative Director
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It's actually the other way around. Science Fiction is merely the latest expression, of the millennia old traditions of Fantasy. The only difference between Star Trek and most tales of Faerie is that the magic is garbed in plastic and glass.
And if you want to get SUPER technical, Fantasy is considered a sub-genre of Sci-Fi. That's why you see Fantasy books grouped in the same general location as Sci-Fi books in bookstores.One might even say that the Fantasy Genre is Sci-Fi with an archetype.
Again... let's take this conversation elsewhere to its own thread, and keep this one for questions for me. Thanks!
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Creative Director
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Hey, this is Ask James Jacobs, not Ask Rysky!
And on that note, James, where is the place to post multi-faceted questions regarding roleplaying, storytelling and my hangups with it? I posted just such a question in the Advice section and it appears to have been buried and not received any attention or replies, so I'm concerned I may have made a forum faux pas in that regard. I won't ask here directly because it's really multiple interconnected questions that I think require they're own thread rather than clogging up yours.
There's not really any one spot to post that kind of question—the Advice section is as good a place as any. If it got buried or ignored, it's not because of a faux pas as much as it may just have not caught anyone's interest or may have been overshadowed by something else on the boards.
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Creative Director
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Warforged weren't robots. In S3, again, by the creator of the game, The Police robots (and I quote directly now) had: Built in color card capacity, language translators, atmosphere analysis devices. They have anti grav units built in. They had 2 subdual tentacles, 2 arms, a built in laser pistol, 6 grenades (3 sleep gas, 1 poison gas, 1 explosive, 1 incendiary), a chest paralysis pistol, a tractor beam, a pressor beam and a force field.Those were the FIRST robots in D&D.
Not to derail the purpose of this thread to ask questions to Mr. Jacobs, but even though I like it I think Expedition to the Barrier Peaks is a rather poor justification for things like Numeria in Golarion. One was a relatively short self contained narrowly tailored single quirky module that had almost no impact on anything else other than itself and was very easy to totally dismiss by people that don't like mixing of fantasy and sci-fi or at lest not in their standard fantasy RPG fare.
Numeria is a gigantic country in the middle of a popular living fantasy world used for RPGing where the vast majority of everything else is more or less standard fantasy stuff. Going on the idea that it's almost always easier to add something that's not there in a campaign setting than to try to surgically cut out large things and replace them and all the ramifications and complications that come about because of that I can see where some people would have a legitimate gripe about it. The same goes for Alkenstar and the Mana Wastes.
Ok, I guess I do have a question for James. How do Marut inevitables feel about Sansarans and the way their life cycles work?
And please don't try to justify off-topic discussion by pinning a question for me at the end of your post. That derails the purpose of this thread just as much, especially since when I skim posts here and get the idea that it's an off-topic post about a different conversation, I tend to skip the question.
I won't do that here, though.
Maruts feel fine about samsarans; they're not escaping death or sidestepping death after all.
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There's not really any one spot to post that kind of question—the Advice section is as good a place as any. If it got buried or ignored, it's not because of a faux pas as much as it may just have not caught anyone's interest or may have been overshadowed by something else on the boards.Hey, this is Ask James Jacobs, not Ask Rysky!
And on that note, James, where is the place to post multi-faceted questions regarding roleplaying, storytelling and my hangups with it? I posted just such a question in the Advice section and it appears to have been buried and not received any attention or replies, so I'm concerned I may have made a forum faux pas in that regard. I won't ask here directly because it's really multiple interconnected questions that I think require they're own thread rather than clogging up yours.
What do I do to get answers then without bumping the thread? Posting twice in a row on your own thread is kind of rude, isn't it (except in a thread like this where you're responding to multiple questions from different people)?
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Creative Director
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Oh! I got one. Who is your favorite Villian and why?
Oooh... that's a tough one.
Hmmmm.
I guess I'd have to say Wilbur Whatley, since he's such a cool character and is obviously a villain and not just an impartial alien.
Ten kinda-random runners up off the top of my head (see how many you recognize):
Rasalom
Asenath Waite
Randal Flagg
Joffrey
Iggwilv
The Smoking Man
David Lo Pan
Ash
Tharizdun
Norman Bates
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Creative Director
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What do I do to get answers then without bumping the thread? Posting twice in a row on your own thread is kind of rude, isn't it (except in a thread like this where you're responding to multiple questions from different people)?There's not really any one spot to post that kind of question—the Advice section is as good a place as any. If it got buried or ignored, it's not because of a faux pas as much as it may just have not caught anyone's interest or may have been overshadowed by something else on the boards.Hey, this is Ask James Jacobs, not Ask Rysky!
And on that note, James, where is the place to post multi-faceted questions regarding roleplaying, storytelling and my hangups with it? I posted just such a question in the Advice section and it appears to have been buried and not received any attention or replies, so I'm concerned I may have made a forum faux pas in that regard. I won't ask here directly because it's really multiple interconnected questions that I think require they're own thread rather than clogging up yours.
If it's actually a question for me, and I miss the question or don't answer it, then just re-post it to here.
If you started your own thread, and no one's replying to it, then bumping that thread's the best way to do it.
Question regarding Herald of the Ivory Labyrinth;
Have you seen these two time lapse videos of the Earth as seen from the International Space Station?
I had not. Thanks! Those are incredible!Have you seen these two time lapse videos of the Earth as seen from the International Space Station?
The make me want to run a Desna themed adventure.
[Edit] It also kind of reminds me gaining the Mark of Desna in History of Ashes.
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Creative Director
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Question regarding Herald of the Ivory Labyrinth;
** spoiler omitted **
It could. You know how your players would react to that better than I, and with the way some folks have reacted to the "stern and serious" take on Iomedae as presented in that adventure, whether or not it's a good idea for your group for her to be pre-angered at that PC is best left to you to decide.
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Not what I said.So we do have a precedent for the Chainmail Bikini! Thanks Sorshen!Sorshen's followers would have worn revealing outfits and would skew toward the handsome/beautiful end of things.Hi there,
Is there some kind of signature armour type/style that Sorshen would have kitted her minions out in? - Karzoug has gilded plate, Alaznist seems to have red etc
Lol I know, I just couldn't resist :3
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Lol I know, I just couldn't resist :3Not what I said.So we do have a precedent for the Chainmail Bikini! Thanks Sorshen!Sorshen's followers would have worn revealing outfits and would skew toward the handsome/beautiful end of things.Hi there,
Is there some kind of signature armour type/style that Sorshen would have kitted her minions out in? - Karzoug has gilded plate, Alaznist seems to have red etc
LOL.
Invisible armors? (the armor itself is invisible, but doesn't make the wearer invisible)
If Invisible Christopher Walken is the final boss of D&D, does that mean Imperceptible Nicolas Cage is the final boss of Pathfinder?
I love Invisible Christopher Walken.
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If Invisible Christopher Walken is the final boss of D&D, does that mean Imperceptible Nicolas Cage is the final boss of Pathfinder?Nope It'd be Imperceptible Sam Jackson.
We are screwed. No one can beat that!
Okay, serious question for you James. With how much Cheliax loves their titles and hierarchies, what would the various rankings be within a place like the Imperial Ministry of Historical Accuracy?
If you absolutely had to cast Samuel L. Jackson as the voice actor for one Pathfinder RPG Iconic, who would it be?
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If you absolutely had to cast Samuel L. Jackson as the voice actor for one Pathfinder RPG Iconic, who would it be?
Can it be Lini?
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Creative Director
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Concerning the Succubi's energy drain:
1. Does "Act of Passion" include hugging or cuddling?
2. The text says "lures a mortal", is this just flavor text or are Outsiders immune to this type of energy drain?
1) Yes.
2) "Mortal" in that case means "a person who has a maximum age at which they die of old age." That means it can affect tieflings and outsiders, but not most other outsiders.
It is sad that Sean K Reynolds is leaving...
1- Was he responsible for mythological monsters in Pathfinder Bestiaries? Can you name a few of his works?
2- If not my question is, who is responsible for most of the mythological (and not like Minotaur or Siren mythological, but more like the more rare ones like Buggane, Abaia, Baykok, Akhlut, Bhuta and other rare ones?) creature-entries in the bestiaries?
Who's domain is it the most? Or is it so random that everybody does a small amount of them in each bestiary?
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James,
Two questions
1) I played a lot of D&D as a kid and am now really interested in getting into Pathfinder. I'm up for PFS, but I have a few creative friends that I think would really enjoy a homebrew game. The problem is that a lot of them are unfamiliar with Pathfinder and RPGs in general. What's your best advice for introducing new people to the hobby?
2) Even if you can't/won't tell us what the upcoming APs will be, can you tell us how Paizo chooses it's next AP? One of the methods below, some combination of them, or something totally different?
- Mystical:You travel to the secret dungeon beneath Paizo HQ, where you must overcome traps, face your greatest fear: yourself, and then an oracle
gives you the lost dagger of Ajanti and tells you how to save the Golden Childinforms you of the next adventure path; or - Command and Control:
The PresidentPaizo CEO Lisa Stephens puts down the phone and says, "That was themilitary-industrial complexthird party publishing industry and their profits are hurting. Someone callthe PentagonJames Jacobs! I want a list of options on my desk by morning. We're going toinvade a small countrypublish a new adventure path!"; or - Employee Input:Everyone at Paizo gets together in a big room. Various AP options are presented to the group, each of whom has dots and uses them to vote for the upcoming APs or finalists that will go on for decision by senior management; or
- NSA method:By
listening to Americans' private phone callsreading postings on the public messageboards, Paizo gets an idea of what would be popular for its next AP.
All kidding about how you get there aside, y'all put out amazing work and I'm always amazed at both the high quality and totally different points of view that are melded into a single overarching story/theme in an AP. Thanks for taking the time to answer!
Oh that was a clever tease. :DIf you absolutely had to cast Samuel L. Jackson as the voice actor for one Pathfinder RPG Iconic, who would it be?Limiting myself to the current iconics... Harsk.
(Complete with favored enemy [snakes].)
Questions:
1) When an alchemist drinks an admixture, it says the admixture has "no effect" on his bombs' discovery effects. Does this mean a bomb under the effect of an admixture can only have only one or the other or do they stack?
2) The final bomb admixture is "Caging Bomb Admixture" in the 6th level extract tier. The effects seem a bit sub-par to others, honestly, as it forces the alchemist to use only one bomb and then no more else he risk releasing the creature he'd imprisoned. What were the creative team envisioning with this extract as far as its utility?
3) Alchemist and Arcane Bomber class combo question: arcane bomber reads that its bombs function just about exactly as the alchemist bomb ability (with the only difference being that it basically gets a free alternate elemental type damage discovery). Do alchemist bomb discovery DCs (10 + 1/2 alchemist level + Int mod) scale with levels in arcane bomber since they're basically the same class feature (I.E. it would be 10 + 1/2 alchemist level + 1/2 arcane bomber level + Int mod)? I'm asking because I'm thinking of a future 20+ level campaign and there aren't many classes otherwise that build up on top of an alchemist's abilities (unless there's a prestige class specifically geared toward increasing an alchemist's capability with bomb and bomb-based effects).
4) If an alchemist could get the "Extra Discovery" feat passed level 20, thus qualifying him for a Grand Discovery, would he be able to select a grand discovery?
5) What are the effects of a male being pregnant while polymorphed into a female, assuming you can maintain the polymorph effect? There's a friend of mine whose character is in a homosexual relationship and the talk of children has come up between them.
6) How many Red Bulls, Rock Stars, or other form of sleep-slaughtering concoctions do you go through when you have to meet a deadline?
7) Last but not least, echoing Mikaze here, CURRENT iconics??? There's more core/base classes in store for the future!? (Here's to hoping for some sort of mechanic or psionics!)
Hi James!
Favorite Walking Dead character?
Least favorite?
Whatley is a great choice for favorite villain. Just re-read that story the other day.
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Concerning the Succubi's energy drain:
1. Does "Act of Passion" include hugging or cuddling?
2. The text says "lures a mortal", is this just flavor text or are Outsiders immune to this type of energy drain?
1) Yes.
2) "Mortal" in that case means "a person who has a maximum age at which they die of old age." That means it can affect tieflings and outsiders, but not most other outsiders.
Yay! Sweet death by glomping!
(I'm assuming there was supposed to be a "native" in from the first outsiders?
Oh! I got one. Who is your favorite Villian and why?Oooh... that's a tough one.
Hmmmm.
I guess I'd have to say Wilbur Whatley, since he's such a cool character and is obviously a villain and not just an impartial alien.
Ten kinda-random runners up off the top of my head (see how many you recognize):
Rasalom
Asenath Waite
Randal Flagg
Joffrey
Iggwilv
The Smoking Man
David Lo Pan
Ash
Tharizdun
Norman Bates
Man, I recognize...3 normally, and there are 4 I only know from reading this thread and you mentioning them!
Who is Ash? Do you just really hate Pokemon?
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Creative Director
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It is sad that Sean K Reynolds is leaving...
1- Was he responsible for mythological monsters in Pathfinder Bestiaries? Can you name a few of his works?
2- If not my question is, who is responsible for most of the mythological (and not like Minotaur or Siren mythological, but more like the more rare ones like Buggane, Abaia, Baykok, Akhlut, Bhuta and other rare ones?) creature-entries in the bestiaries?
Who's domain is it the most? Or is it so random that everybody does a small amount of them in each bestiary?
It is indeed sad!
1) The biggest thing he contributed to Golarion (so far!) is that he wrote almost all of the deity articles we've been running in Pathfinder Adventure Path since the start. I'm not sure who designed the Mythic Monsters in Bestiary 4... Sean's monster design is for sure represented in the various deity heralds though.
2) Dunno. That's a question for Sean or whoever on the design team ordered that text.
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Creative Director
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James,
Two questions
1) I played a lot of D&D as a kid and am now really interested in getting into Pathfinder. I'm up for PFS, but I have a few creative friends that I think would really enjoy a homebrew game. The problem is that a lot of them are unfamiliar with Pathfinder and RPGs in general. What's your best advice for introducing new people to the hobby?
2) Even if you can't/won't tell us what the upcoming APs will be, can you tell us how Paizo chooses it's next AP? One of the methods below, some combination of them, or something totally different?
- ** spoiler omitted **
- ** spoiler omitted **
- ** spoiler omitted **
- ** spoiler omitted **
All kidding about how you get there aside, y'all put out amazing work and I'm always amazed at both the high quality and totally different points of view that are melded into a single overarching story/theme in an AP. Thanks for taking the time to answer!
1) I would use the Beginner Box to introduce new players. That's what it's designed to do, after all! :-)
2) Rob McCreary and I handle the Adventure Paths—I do the ones that launch in August, he does the ones that launch in February. When it comes time to choose one, whichever one of us is up basically comes up with an idea, usually one that combines what we want to do and what we're interested in with what sorts of themes management is looking to explore. We'll then involve a few others, like Wes Schneider or Adam Daigle or Erik Mona to help inspire a few more ideas, as needed, then Rob or I writes out a 20,000 word long outline that details the whole thing and then it's off to be assigned to the writers.
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Creative Director
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1) When an alchemist drinks an admixture, it says the admixture has "no effect" on his bombs' discovery effects. Does this mean a bomb under the effect of an admixture can only have only one or the other or do they stack?
2) The final bomb admixture is "Caging Bomb Admixture" in the 6th level extract tier. The effects seem a bit sub-par to others, honestly, as it forces the alchemist to use only one bomb and then no more else he risk releasing the creature he'd imprisoned. What were the creative team envisioning with this extract as far as its utility?
3) Alchemist and Arcane Bomber class combo question: arcane bomber reads that its bombs function just about exactly as the alchemist bomb ability (with the only difference being that it basically gets a free alternate elemental type damage discovery). Do alchemist bomb discovery DCs (10 + 1/2 alchemist level + Int mod) scale with levels in arcane bomber since they're basically the same class feature (I.E. it would be 10 + 1/2 alchemist level + 1/2 arcane bomber level + Int mod)? I'm asking because I'm thinking of a future 20+ level campaign and there aren't many classes otherwise that build up on top of an alchemist's abilities (unless there's a prestige class specifically geared toward increasing an alchemist's capability with bomb and bomb-based effects).
4) If an alchemist could get the "Extra Discovery" feat passed level 20, thus qualifying him for a Grand Discovery, would he be able to select a grand discovery?
5) What are the effects of a male being pregnant while polymorphed into a female, assuming you can maintain the polymorph effect? There's a friend of mine whose character is in a homosexual relationship and the talk of children has come up between them.
6) How many Red Bulls, Rock Stars, or other form of sleep-slaughtering concoctions do you go through when you have to meet a deadline?
7) Last but not least, echoing Mikaze here, CURRENT iconics??? There's more core/base classes in store for the future!? (Here's to hoping for some sort of mechanic or psionics!)
1) I'm not immediately familiar with what an "admixture" is. My gut reaction is to say the less powerful option is the right one though, since alchemists are already plenty tough.
2) Can't really say, since I wasn't involved in that design process. My work on the alchemist was pretty much just writing up the 1st draft of the class itself.
3) They don't scale; they're separate classes. Just like how if you're a wizard/sorcerer, your spellcasting doesn't stack between the classes.
4) Nope.
5) That's up to your GM. If I were your GM, I'd say you have to stay female for the duration of the pregnancy; if you change into a male, your body would absorb and end the pregnancy. But if you stayed female for the duration, you could birth the baby normally.
6) Coffee is my sleep-combatant of choice (I think I'm allergic to Red Bull, and those drinks just taste nasty). I can go through a half-dozen cups or more in a day if it's a busy writing day.
7) Advanced Class Guide is going to introduce 10 new iconics. So... yes.
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Creative Director
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What will you miss most about SKR?
The fact that he's easy to talk to and has a refreshing dose of humility to his design work that doesn't subvert his design convictions.
That, and the fact that he's been playing in one of my campaigns for years, and him leaving is probably gonna also trigger the end of that particular campaign. :(
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Creative Director
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Hi James!
Favorite Walking Dead character?
Least favorite?
Whatley is a great choice for favorite villain. Just re-read that story the other day.
Favorite Walking Dead character, spoilered due to obvious reasons if you're caught up on the show:
Least Favorite:
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Creative Director
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Concerning the Succubi's energy drain:
1. Does "Act of Passion" include hugging or cuddling?
2. The text says "lures a mortal", is this just flavor text or are Outsiders immune to this type of energy drain?
1) Yes.
2) "Mortal" in that case means "a person who has a maximum age at which they die of old age." That means it can affect tieflings and outsiders, but not most other outsiders.
Yay! Sweet death by glomping!
(I'm assuming there was supposed to be a "native" in from the first outsiders?
No... that first outsiders should have been "aasimars."
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Oh! I got one. Who is your favorite Villian and why?Oooh... that's a tough one.
Hmmmm.
I guess I'd have to say Wilbur Whatley, since he's such a cool character and is obviously a villain and not just an impartial alien.
Ten kinda-random runners up off the top of my head (see how many you recognize):
Rasalom
Asenath Waite
Randal Flagg
Joffrey
Iggwilv
The Smoking Man
David Lo Pan
Ash
Tharizdun
Norman BatesMan, I recognize...3 normally, and there are 4 I only know from reading this thread and you mentioning them!
Who is Ash? Do you just really hate Pokemon?
Ash is the android from Alien.
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Creative Director
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James,
Is there a random starting age, aging effects, height/weight charts for the kasatha yet? If not what can I use for reference? Like normal humanoid for height and weight? but what about age and such more human or more elf/dwarf?
Nope; not yet. We're unlikely to do that info anytime soon either. It's probably easiest to assume they're about the same as humans, I suppose.
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Creative Director
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Hi I'm very new to pathfinder and I want to know how I can put together a gaming group I've got one other but none of us want GM since its both of ours first game
That's the big question and the first big hurdle. Someone simply needs to bite the bullet and take on the GM role. You can do something like say "I'll GM this first adventure, then we'll make new characters and someone else can GM the next one," though. Somewhere down that line, hopefully someone finds that they like to be the GM!
Either that, or ask around at your local game store to see if there's a GM looking for a group, or perhaps play some PFS games.
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Isn't it Taldor that was fond of overloading their bureaucracy with meaningless titles and offices? I understand that they still hadn't gotten around to getting rid of the Bishop of Aroden office.Okay, serious question for you James. With how much Cheliax loves their titles and hierarchies, what would the various rankings be within a place like the Imperial Ministry of Historical Accuracy?I don't know yet. They would be very complicated and numerous though.
Not as much as Cheliax, which probably inherited that love from Taldor.