Creative Director
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Have you seen the live action Solomon Kane movie, James? this opening scene REALLY made me think of a live action encounter of Norgorber.Was Norgorber's title "The Reaper of Reputation" inspired by the short story "The Repairer of Reputations" from The King in Yellow?Absolutely and positively.
Other elements of him, particularly his razor stuff and a few parts of his Skinsaw persona, were inspired by Ramsey Campbell's excellent novel "The Face that Must Die."
I have seen it; it's surprisingly entertaining!
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Creative Director
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I don't know how much you'd be willing to say about this but... what drove Cyth-V'sug, Dagon, Yhidrothus, Zevgabizeb, and Jubilex to renounce their qlippoth status and join forces with the demons?
Were these beings of Demon Lord power (that is, challenge rating 26+) when they were still qlippoths? Which of course is a stealth way of trying to pry more information out of you about the nature of true Qlippoth Lords (as opposed to Yamasoth and the Nascent Qlippoth Lords noted in Beyond the Doomsday Door).
Are the qlippoth-turned-Demon-Lords viewed by their former kin as traitors?
I have a feeling most of these questions fall under the "we can't say yet" category, but I figured I'd give it a shot. Thanks as always.
Mostly, it was a question of power—by becoming demon lords, they became much more powerful than if they'd remained powerful qlippoth. Before that, when they were qlippoth, they were not demon lord power. Some of them might not even have been nascent demon lord power, and were CR 20 or lower perhaps, but it's likely they were all in the CR 21–25 range, like Yamasoth.
They are not viewed as traitors; the qlippoth don't think that way. Things like nationalism and patriotism and pride in one's race are far too humanocentric conceits for creatures like the qlippoth. They're just no longer viewed as qlippoth.
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Creative Director
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So, couple of Chaotic Neutral God questions;
I'm aware that elves are your favorite race(for reasons I can't possibly comprehend), and I've seen you say that one of your main intentions for the presentation of elves in Golarion is chaotic good over chaotic neutral. I find it strange, then, that the primary elven deity in Golarion is Calistria, Goddess of Lust and Revenge, while the traditionally chaotic neutral in name only elves of D&D worship Corellon, chaotic good god of art and music. Not that I'm complaining, mind you, as I loathe Corellon with a passion, but why go for a chaotic neutral goddess as opposed to simply making a very different but still chaotic good deity? I find it doubly striking given that Torag is essentially Moradin with the serial numbers filed off.
Oh, another Calistria related question; is Calistria's association with wasps at all a jab at Lolth, being that wasps are well known as predators of spiders?
Moving on; I've had the pdf for ages but I've only just today started looking through The Great Beyond: A Guide to the Multiverse. I find myself very intrigued by the description of Gorum's Domain, the inscription upon the stones surrounding it - “Thus the pledge is sealed, and thus you are accepted, forever with our thanks, come what may.” - and what relation this has, if any, with the Field of Broken Tyrants. Any light to be shed on this?
Turns out, you don't need to possibly comprehend why I (or anyone else, for that matter) likes something you don't like. It doesn't devalue your opinions to allow me to have differing ones from you. The Internet tends to get that confused.
The fact that Calistria is the most popular elven god has less to do with the fact that she's elven and more to do with the fact that her religion's role filled a void in the Inner Sea Region and attracted more worshipers of EVERY RACE rather than just elves. Had elves been the only sociable/intelligent creatures in the region, the mix of deity popularity would be drastically different; the core 20 deities would be fundamentally changed in that theoretical setting. Torag, for example, wouldn't be on the list at all, and the 3 elven deities along with some of the Eldest and several chaotic good Empyreal Lords would dominate that pantheon.
Desna is much more the primary god of the elven lifestyle if I had to choose one of the core 20.
Had we built our core 20 deities with an eye toward a philosophy of "every race needs to have a paragon deity on the list," there would have been a chaotic good elven deity. There would have also been a gnome, halfling, half-orc, and half-elf deity. But that's not the design philosophy we had—it was more "Let's come up with 20 different deities that can cover more or less everything we need them to cover for all races throughout the Inner Sea region!" Of course, we have since gone on to round out those ranks with lots of other deities, but at the time we didn't have the resources to do that nor were we sure Golarion would stick around long enough for us to do so.
Calistria's association with wasps has nothing to do with Lolth, but that's a cute side effect and unintended jab, I guess. It's more that wasps are beautiful looking creatures that pack a powerfuly painful sting, and that paradox fit very well with Calistria's personality.
As for Gorum's domain, we haven't done much more with that yet—there MIGHT be more about that in Inner Sea Gods, but I doubt it. It is, for the time being at least, a compelling mystery and not much more.
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Creative Director
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Does Mummy's Mask have 5 iconics? from looking at the cover art from books 1 and 2 I count 5 individuals. I don't know all the names but from book 1 I see the Paladin, Oracle and Wizard, and on book 2 there is the summoner, oracle and cleric
There are 4 iconics featured in the art of Mummy's Mask.
Book 1's cover features the oracle and the paladin.
Book 2's cover features the cleric and the summoner.
Not sure where you're seeing the wizard on the cover of the first book or the oracle on the cover of the second one, unless you're looking at old, outdated, placeholder cover art somewhere perhaps?
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Does Mummy's Mask have 5 iconics? from looking at the cover art from books 1 and 2 I count 5 individuals. I don't know all the names but from book 1 I see the Paladin, Oracle and Wizard, and on book 2 there is the summoner, oracle and clericThere are 4 iconics featured in the art of Mummy's Mask.
Book 1's cover features the oracle and the paladin.
Book 2's cover features the cleric and the summoner.
Not sure where you're seeing the wizard on the cover of the first book or the oracle on the cover of the second one, unless you're looking at old, outdated, placeholder cover art somewhere perhaps?
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I think he's referring to the khopesh wielding creature directly beneath and facing Seelah. Kind of looks like Ezren, except for the vaguely bony arm and the khopesh.
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Two related questions for you:
1) In Golarion, how common are "adventurers"? I'm sure it's different from country to country, but can you ballpark about what percentage of the population of Golarion (Inner Sea) are adventurers?
2) How common are creatures from the Bestiaries? Back in the old days, I recall creature stat blocks included how common or rare a creature was. Pity such a system has gone the way of the dodo.
I ask these questions for role playing purposes.
When a PC walks into a small town, are the townsfolk rolling their eyes at yet another band of adventurers wandering through town? Or is there an "adventurer season" like a tourist season in, say, Magnimar? Should I be visualizing old men on park benches feeding breadcrumbs to flocks of griffons in the park? :)
Please help me get a feel for the rarity of adventurers and bestiary creatures in Golarion. Thanks!
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Creative Director
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Does Mummy's Mask have 5 iconics? from looking at the cover art from books 1 and 2 I count 5 individuals. I don't know all the names but from book 1 I see the Paladin, Oracle and Wizard, and on book 2 there is the summoner, oracle and clericThere are 4 iconics featured in the art of Mummy's Mask.
Book 1's cover features the oracle and the paladin.
Book 2's cover features the cleric and the summoner.
Not sure where you're seeing the wizard on the cover of the first book or the oracle on the cover of the second one, unless you're looking at old, outdated, placeholder cover art somewhere perhaps?
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I think he's referring to the khopesh wielding creature directly beneath and facing Seelah. Kind of looks like Ezren, except for the vaguely bony arm and the khopesh.
Yeah... that's a monster, not a wizard.
Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
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Creative Director
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Two related questions for you:
1) In Golarion, how common are "adventurers"? I'm sure it's different from country to country, but can you ballpark about what percentage of the population of Golarion (Inner Sea) are adventurers?
2) How common are creatures from the Bestiaries? Back in the old days, I recall creature stat blocks included how common or rare a creature was. Pity such a system has gone the way of the dodo.
I ask these questions for role playing purposes.
When a PC walks into a small town, are the townsfolk rolling their eyes at yet another band of adventurers wandering through town? Or is there an "adventurer season" like a tourist season in, say, Magnimar? Should I be visualizing old men on park benches feeding breadcrumbs to flocks of griffons in the park? :)
Please help me get a feel for the rarity of adventurers and bestiary creatures in Golarion. Thanks!
1) Adventurers vary from region to region, as you suspect. Overall though, they are not all that common. In MOST areas, they're actually pretty rare. Most folks have jobs—and while some of those jobs involve being soldiers or explorers or adventurer-similar stuff, they're not actual adventurers. Why? Because the point is that role SHOULD be played by the PCs. And the fewer adventurers there are competing with them, the more opportunities there are for those PCs to be the ones who get to go on any one adventure.
2) That varies entirely on the monster in question. And since we keep printing new monsters at the rate of 4 or more per month, the total possibility of creatures you can encounter keeps going up. Obviously, something like a dragon or a purple worm would have a huge impact on its environment if it were real, and would edge out other predators and so on and would require a lot of prey, but the game doesn't really benefit from delving that deeply into realism. The best way to get a feel for the rarity of monsters would be to read our adventures and take note of how often and where the monsters show up.
For most small towns, townsfolk would react in different ways. Some might see the PC as a traveler and get excited that they might sell some stuff. Some might assume the PCs is a troublemaker and get nervous. The adventuring lifestyle is not SO rare that folks don't know about it, and there are certainly some places that cater more to adventurers (Sandpoint's Rusty Dragon is a good example) than others... but there's not really such a thing as "adventurer season."
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Two related questions for you:
1) In Golarion, how common are "adventurers"? I'm sure it's different from country to country, but can you ballpark about what percentage of the population of Golarion (Inner Sea) are adventurers?
2) How common are creatures from the Bestiaries? Back in the old days, I recall creature stat blocks included how common or rare a creature was. Pity such a system has gone the way of the dodo.
I ask these questions for role playing purposes.
When a PC walks into a small town, are the townsfolk rolling their eyes at yet another band of adventurers wandering through town? Or is there an "adventurer season" like a tourist season in, say, Magnimar? Should I be visualizing old men on park benches feeding breadcrumbs to flocks of griffons in the park? :)
Please help me get a feel for the rarity of adventurers and bestiary creatures in Golarion. Thanks!
1) Adventurers vary from region to region, as you suspect. Overall though, they are not all that common. In MOST areas, they're actually pretty rare. Most folks have jobs—and while some of those jobs involve being soldiers or explorers or adventurer-similar stuff, they're not actual adventurers. Why? Because the point is that role SHOULD be played by the PCs. And the fewer adventurers there are competing with them, the more opportunities there are for those PCs to be the ones who get to go on any one adventure.
2) That varies entirely on the monster in question. And since we keep printing new monsters at the rate of 4 or more per month, the total possibility of creatures you can encounter keeps going up. Obviously, something like a dragon or a purple worm would have a huge impact on its environment if it were real, and would edge out other predators and so on and would require a lot of prey, but the game doesn't really benefit from delving that deeply into realism. The best way to get a feel for the rarity of monsters would be to read our adventures and take note of how often and where the...
Thanks for taking the time. You've given me a lot to chew on.
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Creative Director
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Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
There's also several myths of giant sea turtles large enough to hold an island or even a small city on their back.
[Edit] Would you be inclined to ever include a Kaiju turtle myth that involves a 'moving island' or 'vanishing city' or something like that in Golarion?
Do all kaiju necessarily have to be CR 26+?
Would you say that all kaiju from movies like Godzilla or Pacific Rim fall into these CR ranges (26-30)?
Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
There's also several myths of giant sea turtles large enough to hold an island or even a small city on their back.
[Edit] Would you be inclined to ever include a Kaiju turtle myth that involves a 'moving island' or 'vanishing city' or something like that in Golarion?
The game already has something similar to that.
Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
There's also several myths of giant sea turtles large enough to hold an island or even a small city on their back.
[Edit] Would you be inclined to ever include a Kaiju turtle myth that involves a 'moving island' or 'vanishing city' or something like that in Golarion?
The game already has something similar to that.
What book is that in?
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Creative Director
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Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
There's also several myths of giant sea turtles large enough to hold an island or even a small city on their back.
[Edit] Would you be inclined to ever include a Kaiju turtle myth that involves a 'moving island' or 'vanishing city' or something like that in Golarion?
Maybe. We've already done one of those monsters in a Pathfinder volume, after all.
What book is that in?Here's maybe a silly but fun question.
If you took the CR 8 Immense Tortoise (the colossal turtle) and advance it all the way to CR 25, how big would you make it?
I probably wouldn't do that. If I wanted a CR 25+ turtle, I suspect I'd make a new kaiju.
There is, after all, a precedent for kaiju turtles.
There's also several myths of giant sea turtles large enough to hold an island or even a small city on their back.
[Edit] Would you be inclined to ever include a Kaiju turtle myth that involves a 'moving island' or 'vanishing city' or something like that in Golarion?
The game already has something similar to that.
Pathfinder #27: What Lies in Dust
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Creative Director
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So to you, does that make him the Rob Liefield of fantasy writing?what do you mean you mean you don't like the author's writing style?what's wrong with it?what do you think about the wheel of time setting and booksHaven't read them. Mostly because I don't like the author's writing style.I find his style unpleasant and dull to read.
Nor am I alone.
I find it interesting, for example, that the first link if you google "Robert Jordan writing style" is a page labeled, "Daily examples of horrible writing from Robert Jordan."
Nah.
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Creative Director
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Why are you so awesome? Will you ever hire an actual person to live as kyra/merisiel/ezren/valereos? Because that would be awesome. Though expensive, the surgery to have people made into halflings/gnomes/elves/dwarves has to cost a lot
Well... we DID just launch the Rise of the Runelords full cast audio drama, which meant that we got to approve of actors playing some of our iconics. Does that count?
Since I brought up Pacific Rim, What CR would you put Slattern at? Assuming you watched the movie.
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Creative Director
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Since I brought up Pacific Rim, What CR would you put Slattern at? Assuming you watched the movie.
I did indeed see the movie, but the fact that the monsters in that movie were so interchangeable resulted in them having an unfortunately "samey" feel to them. Which really kind of surprised me, since I expected more from Guillarmo del Toro.
Using their kaiju scale, though... I'd say that any one CR would equal 25 + the kaiju's rank.
James,
Curious but if a summoner were to ascend to godhood through use of the Starstone or different means, how would that effect their eidolon? would they ascend along with their summoner, merge together into one being, or be something more like a herald?
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Creative Director
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James,
Curious but if a summoner were to ascend to godhood through use of the Starstone or different means, how would that effect their eidolon? would they ascend along with their summoner, merge together into one being, or be something more like a herald?
That'd vary, and would depend as much on the character and the nature of their Starstone test as it would on the GM's whim.
10) The Walking Dead, Planetary, The Dark Tower.
10. Are there any comics you are interested in that you haven't read?
Oooh, all excellent choices (but you already know that). I will say that I highly endorse Planetary - it makes my top 5 list of greatest comic mini-series of all time. Pretty much anything by Warren Ellis is absolute gold, in my opinion; not just his comic work but many of his short stories and both his full-length novels are excellent as well. When it comes to Transhumanism and/or Pulp/Noir/Hardboiled, and the fusion of the two, there are very few in his league (again, just my little opinion).
1) Have you read any of Warren Ellis' other work?
1a) What did you think?
2) Speaking of Hardboiled and Pulp, have you had the chance to start watching True Detectives yet?
2a) If so, what do you think?
As always, cheers, and thanks for being so sporting.
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Creative Director
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10) The Walking Dead, Planetary, The Dark Tower.
10. Are there any comics you are interested in that you haven't read?Oooh, all excellent choices (but you already know that). I will say that I highly endorse Planetary - it makes my top 5 list of greatest comic mini-series of all time. Pretty much anything by Warren Ellis is absolute gold, in my opinion; not just his comic work but many of his short stories and both his full-length novels are excellent as well. When it comes to Transhumanism and/or Pulp/Noir/Hardboiled, and the fusion of the two, there are very few in his league (again, just my little opinion).
1) Have you read any of Warren Ellis' other work?
1a) What did you think?2) Speaking of Hardboiled and Pulp, have you had the chance to start watching True Detectives yet?
2a) If so, what do you think?As always, cheers, and thanks for being so sporting.
1) I have not.
1a) So I can't answer this.2) True Detective? Yes.
2a) It's one of the best shows I've ever seen. In my top 5 best TV shows of all time, up with Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones.
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Creative Director
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James, do you like baby bunnies for snuggling? Because the office could use one of those. Plus, you should sit with me and enjoy some homeade cookies. :D Because you are an awesome person
Nope. Bunnies pee too much and are unusually fond of biting and kicking with their feet.
And I'm still on a pretty restrictive diet for now... but I'll stash those cookies for later in my cookie drawer next to the girl scout cookies and Reeses peanut butter cups I've got stashed there.
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That, my friend, is utter minotaur dung! I worked at an animal shelter for a month. My job was working with bunnies. If raised right, they won't kick or bite. They might pee once or twice when little, but you can litter train them. Litter training bunnies isn't hard. Get an office kitty or somthing. A good workplace has an animal. Because animals are awesome
That, my friend, is utter minotaur dung! I worked at an animal shelter for a month. My job was working with bunnies. If raised right, they won't kick or bite. They might pee once or twice when little, but you can litter train them. Litter training bunnies isn't hard. Get an office kitty or somthing. A good workplace has an animal. Because animals are awesome
Maybe some people at the office are allergic to animal?
James,
Thank you again for taking all these questions from your users and fans! After having tried to communicate with developers in other companies, I have become only more appreciative of your willingness to engage with your community.
1) An artifact was introduced in my home game which took the form of a black tome with a special connection to an (unnamed) infernal lord. Its user may pen a question in blood inside the tome, and receive a clear and unambiguous answer six hours later from the fiend. Thus far it has operated with seemingly perfect omniscience, providing answers to certain intrigues and state secrets that may never have been revealed otherwise. How would you, were you the GM, spin such an artifact such that it remains consistent with its unusually candid and accurate replies, but at the same time is far more than a mere divinatory device?
2) Disregarding schemes for immortal rule, do you feel that Queen Abrogail Thrune would seek to perpetuate her ruling line by marrying a consort and producing an heir to the throne of Cheliax, or is merely the goal of "House Thrune remains in control" sufficient enough from her perspective to allow another relative to take over after her time? In the case of former, what sorts of characteristics, station and pedigree do you think feel she would find desirable? (For example, seeking to wed someone as or less ambitious than herself, or primarily pursuing the political advantages of bringing another vassal into Cheliax's sphere by marrying another monarch, etc.)
3) Would she or any other major ruler in Avistan contemplate wedding one of the more attractive and wealthy Runelords if given the chance? Say, Karzoug or Sorshen, on a voluntary basis (and I'm sure you must agree that Karzoug is a nice-looking gentleman with plenty of financial security).
4) If a mythic character takes the Legendary Item path ability, but later feels another item would be better served as their item of focus, would you as a GM allow them to retrain or alter their Legendary Item ability to apply to the new item instead?
4a) Let's also propose that a mythic character taking the Legendary Item ability wants to apply it to an item which is already a lesser or greater artifact. Do you think that the "item must be a lesser/greater artifact to select this ability" prerequisite for certain abilities would be met by default, or would you feel it more appropriate to require taking multiple instances of the Legendary Item path ability as normal so that an pre-existing artifact is not inherently advantaged over a non-artifact item when selecting its legendary abilities?
5) How do you feel the major Inner Sea nations (Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, Qadira, and Osirion) would regard an Absalom that ushers in a highly nationalist government and began asserting its influence over its neighbors?
Lastly, this is something I have been thinking about for several weeks now and wanted to air out for you. In the past, you have maintained a degree of ambiguity as to just what the Peacock Spirit was/is, whether it was truly a deity or something else. It is also known that Runelord Xanderghul was a worshiper. Acknowledging and paying worship to an obscure power greater than himself - and from a position of rulership - seems slightly uncharacteristic for a Runelord of Pride. However, peacocks as you know are themselves popularly associated with pride... and, in an earlier series of answers, you mentioned that while a mythic character with Divine Source could technically worship himself, such an act would be astonishingly arrogant and worthy of only the most narcisisstic and excessively proud of beings. That so little is known of the Peacock Spirit, and that mythic Runelord Xanderghul, the paragon of pride (and "holder of the Peacock Throne" himself), would deign to both pay and promote its worship, could suggest a more fundamental connection between the two after certain analysis, might you say?
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There's absolutely nothing wrong with fan fic. I've seen lots of fan fiction that's better written than published books by supposedly professional authors.
I...don't know how to respond to that. Part of why I feel nervous running non-AP games is because I don't want to contradict Golarion's canon. I know the setting's just a springboard for other games, but if I were to run something in, say, Korvosa, and then later find out the way my thing played out directly conflicts with the events of Curse of the Crimson Throne, I'd be upset because that means I can no longer use CotCT's stuff in my game. It's one of the things that kind of irritated me when I read Quests and Campaigns. It mentions several things that are covered by APs, like King Irovetti in Pitax and the Wardstones in Mendev. Those can't be utilized at this point. King Irovetti was deposed in Kingmaker, and at the beginning of Wrath of the Righteous the Wardstones were destroyed.
The way to feel confident in playing the game is to start small with a group of friends you trust to help and be patient s you get better at the game. That said, being a GM DOES require you to be confident and quick thinking on your feet. It's certainly not for everyone.
It isn't for me, but I feel like unless I do it, canon will be contradicted and changed.
YOU'RE DOING A RISE OF THE RUNELORDS AUDIOBOOK?!
Shut up and take my money.
*cough* Erm, anyway, I apologize if the following question seems egotistical or overly self-interested.
My character has aspirations for a drug empire using his island in the Shackles to produce his goods. If he becomes Hurrican King and gains the influence needed to proceed unimpeded by competition from the pirate lords (assuming he reaches an accord with them), how would the rest of the world (both underground and public) react to a new kingpin rising up and injecting the market with a previously undiscovered product, particularly one that is highly addictive and hard to copy (a level 17+ alchemist would have a lot of raw talent in creating such things)?
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Creative Director
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That, my friend, is utter minotaur dung! I worked at an animal shelter for a month. My job was working with bunnies. If raised right, they won't kick or bite. They might pee once or twice when little, but you can litter train them. Litter training bunnies isn't hard. Get an office kitty or somthing. A good workplace has an animal. Because animals are awesome
You asked.
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Creative Director
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| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
1) An artifact was introduced in my home game which took the form of a black tome with a special connection to an (unnamed) infernal lord. Its user may pen a question in blood inside the tome, and receive a clear and unambiguous answer six hours later from the fiend. Thus far it has operated with seemingly perfect omniscience, providing answers to certain intrigues and state secrets that may never have been revealed otherwise. How would you, were you the GM, spin such an artifact such that it remains consistent with its unusually candid and accurate replies, but at the same time is far more than a mere divinatory device?
2) Disregarding schemes for immortal rule, do you feel that Queen Abrogail Thrune would seek to perpetuate her ruling line by marrying a consort and producing an heir to the throne of Cheliax, or is merely the goal of "House Thrune remains in control" sufficient enough from her perspective to allow another relative to take over after her time? In the case of former, what sorts of characteristics, station and pedigree do you think feel she would find desirable? (For example, seeking to wed someone as or less ambitious than herself, or primarily pursuing the political advantages of bringing another vassal into Cheliax's sphere by marrying another monarch, etc.)
3) Would she or any other major ruler in Avistan contemplate wedding one of the more attractive and wealthy Runelords if given the chance? Say, Karzoug or Sorshen, on a voluntary basis (and I'm sure you must agree that Karzoug is a nice-looking gentleman with plenty of financial security).
4) If a mythic character takes the Legendary Item path ability, but later feels another item would be better served as their item of focus, would you as a GM allow them to retrain or alter their Legendary Item ability to apply to the new item instead?
4a) Let's also propose that a mythic character taking the Legendary Item ability wants to apply it to an item which is already a lesser or greater artifact. Do you think that the "item must be a lesser/greater artifact to select this ability" prerequisite for certain abilities would be met by default, or would you feel it more appropriate to require taking multiple instances of the Legendary Item path ability as normal so that an pre-existing artifact is not inherently advantaged over a non-artifact item when selecting its legendary abilities?
5) How do you feel the major Inner Sea nations (Cheliax, Andoran, Taldor, Qadira, and Osirion) would regard an Absalom that ushers in a highly nationalist government and began asserting its influence over its neighbors?
Lastly, this is something I have been thinking about for several weeks now and wanted to air out for you. In the past, you have maintained a degree of ambiguity as to just what the Peacock Spirit was/is, whether it was truly a deity or something else. It is also known that Runelord Xanderghul was a worshiper. Acknowledging and paying worship to an obscure power greater than himself - and from a position of rulership - seems slightly uncharacteristic for a Runelord of Pride. However, peacocks as you know are themselves popularly associated with pride... and, in an earlier series of answers, you mentioned that while a mythic character with Divine Source could technically worship himself, such an act would be astonishingly arrogant and worthy of only the most narcisisstic and excessively proud of beings. That so little is known of the Peacock Spirit, and that mythic Runelord Xanderghul, the paragon of pride (and "holder of the Peacock Throne" himself), would deign to both pay and promote its worship, could suggest a more fundamental connection between the two after certain analysis, might you say?
1) By doing what you're already doing. Make the artifact into an NPC of sorts. Make it have a personality. And use it to steer the adventure in the direction you want, which could well include the fiendish author trying to steer the PCS where he/she/it wants to go... for dire purport!
2) I suspect that, eventually, she'll seek to secure an heir. Although she might not be the one to give birth to said heir. She's got access to a LOT of magic that can pass her legacy down to an heir in various ways, I suspect.
3) She would not. Others elsewhere might... but in almost every case, it's the Runelord who'd be calling the shots in that kind of situation.
4) I would allow them only after they complete a quest to make the change.
4a) The second.
5) Very threatened and concerned.
Lastly) That's some good sleuthing. Not gonna say more about it quite yet though!
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There's absolutely nothing wrong with fan fic. I've seen lots of fan fiction that's better written than published books by supposedly professional authors.I...don't know how to respond to that. Part of why I feel nervous running non-AP games is because I don't want to contradict Golarion's canon. I know the setting's just a springboard for other games, but if I were to run something in, say, Korvosa, and then later find out the way my thing played out directly conflicts with the events of Curse of the Crimson Throne, I'd be upset because that means I can no longer use CotCT's stuff in my game. It's one of the things that kind of irritated me when I read Quests and Campaigns. It mentions several things that are covered by APs, like King Irovetti in Pitax and the Wardstones in Mendev. Those can't be utilized at this point. King Irovetti was deposed in Kingmaker, and at the beginning of Wrath of the Righteous the Wardstones were destroyed.
The way to feel confident in playing the game is to start small with a group of friends you trust to help and be patient s you get better at the game. That said, being a GM DOES require you to be confident and quick thinking on your feet. It's certainly not for everyone.It isn't for me, but I feel like unless I do it, canon will be contradicted and changed.
Contradicting canon is something you have to be comfortable with as either a GM or a writer in a shared world. We end up contradicting our own canon now and then, in fact, but when we do it I prefer to think of it as revising or adjusting or Fire Cancering undesirable or erroneous or just plain bad ideas that crept into print.
But it's the nature of the game that once you interact with the world, you change it. Even if you only run one short adventure, the repercussions of how that adventure came to an end will make your version of Golarion different than anyone else's... including the core baseline world.
It might be best if instead each time you write a story or run a game you "reset" the world's canon to the baseline.
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YOU'RE DOING A RISE OF THE RUNELORDS AUDIOBOOK?!
Shut up and take my money.
*cough* Erm, anyway, I apologize if the following question seems egotistical or overly self-interested.
My character has aspirations for a drug empire using his island in the Shackles to produce his goods. If he becomes Hurrican King and gains the influence needed to proceed unimpeded by competition from the pirate lords (assuming he reaches an accord with them), how would the rest of the world (both underground and public) react to a new kingpin rising up and injecting the market with a previously undiscovered product, particularly one that is highly addictive and hard to copy (a level 17+ alchemist would have a lot of raw talent in creating such things)?
** spoiler omitted **
Yup! Doing 6 of them! They're for sale here somewhere...
As for how the rest of the world would react to a Druglord Hurricane King? That's up to the GM... but I suspect that eventually you'd draw some pretty powerful attention.
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I was thinking more of in the style of lord of the rings/harry potter, just tone the CGI down from a billion to maybe ten. Use it when nescesary, not at every chance. For dragons/quipploths/tarraqsues use CGI
Demons,devils,liches,angels and gnomes do not need CGI. Just a good cameraman and a half decent makeup artist. Though you could always use toddlers for gnomes.
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There are bad ideas that made it into print? How is that even possible? You guys are some of the best RPG writers I've ever read!
And how does returning to the baseline give an opportunity for the world to develop and allow for former PCs making cameo appearances? I don't know, maybe BioWare's games and Legend of the Five Rings have spoiled me and I just sort of feel like all RPG games should give similar experiences. Do events in PFS affect what happens in later books? I know there's a lot in the Pathfinder Society book that references what's apparently from the PFS adventures. How am I supposed to keep up with all this stuff if there's a whole subsection of canon being developed that I don't have access to?!
Speaking of canon, how canon is the stuff in Wayfinder?
And on an unrelated note, under the coat of arms on the Korvosan flag, there's this phrase that I assume is Korvosa's city motto or something: "Trosker Ep Styrk." What language is this? What does it mean?
Dear James Jacobs,
As a long time Call of Cthulhu fan perhaps you can tell me if the following is true ----
That in Call of Cthulhu when an elder god is summoned from beyond, they suffer a sort of summoning sickness. They're still unbelievably strong, but can be killed FOREVER if you hit them hard enough?
Such as by detonating a building filled with enough explosives to make Michal Bay blush.