Creative Director
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Has anything more been written on the Forever Man from Magnimar? I loved that write up and would love to have an AP based around him.
Is he your personal creation?
On a tangent, in a hypothetical War started between followers of Iomedae and Norgorber, would Iomedae's followers be as disadvantaged as I imagine? I see a bit of a American Guerrilla warfare vs British lines and Iomedae not being fully prepared for what it would entail.
The Forever Man is indeed my creation; he's partially taken from my homebrew setting, in fact, but also adjusted quite a bit for Golarion as well. I do have eventual plans for him, along with for several other characters in Magnimar, and those plans could well hinge on an Adventure Path... but not anytime soon.
As for an Iomedae vs. Norgorber war... it'd depend on where the battles were fought and how they were fought. If they were in an open warfare type battle, Iomedae's faith would have the advantage. But if it were more sneaky and guerrilla style, Norgorber's would.
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Creative Director
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Given the rarity of Apsu's faith, was he known in Sarkoris AT ALL?Terendelev doesn't really worship a deity much at all; she's not that religious. She respects Iomedae and Apsu and Torag, but not enough to carry holy symbols or pray much at all. A crusader who admires Terendelev and wants to emulate silver dragons would most likely worship Apsu.What deity does Terendelev, the silver dragon in Kenabres, venerate, if any at all? Apsu, because she's a metallic dragon? Iomedae, as she's the patron deity of Mendev and the Crusades? Wondering what deity a crusader who admired Terendelev and wanted to emulate silver dragons would pick...
** spoiler omitted **
He was no less or no more commonly known in Sarkoris than anywhere else, so absolutely he'd be known there. And he's "rare" only among humanoids. Most dragons, if not ALL dragons know about him. So if a region has dragons, it has Apsu. And Dahak, by extension.
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Creative Director
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Hello James,
So now we have Skald and bloodrager to add to our Norse themed toolbox. We've had a Land of the Linnorm Kings campaign guide, and touched on the region briefly in a few AP's, and 1 novel (skinwalkers). I was wondering, is there anyone in-house working on some more Ulfen goodness? Perhaps another novel or one of those nice stand alone adventures?Or perhaps a better question is, who among the Paizo staff (if any) is the largest proponent of a Land of the Linnorm-centric Adventure path, and what gods do I have to appease to grant him/her thier wish?
Erik is probably the largest proponent of a Linnorm AP. Rob and I are probably tied for second place. That means it's a distinct possibility of happening sometime soon, but we've got a LOT of other ideas too...
The Forever Man is indeed my creation; he's partially taken from my homebrew setting, in fact, but also adjusted quite a bit for Golarion as well. I do have eventual plans for him, along with for several other characters in Magnimar, and those plans could well hinge on an Adventure Path... but not anytime soon.
Is that something that you're waiting for more pieces to fall into place, or you need people shaking the cage demanding? :3
Honestly, he may be my favorite character in Golarion. The cleverness of his story really amazed me. Are there direct influences that helped develop him?
How was he different in your home game?
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Creative Director
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The Forever Man is indeed my creation; he's partially taken from my homebrew setting, in fact, but also adjusted quite a bit for Golarion as well. I do have eventual plans for him, along with for several other characters in Magnimar, and those plans could well hinge on an Adventure Path... but not anytime soon.Is that something that you're waiting for more pieces to fall into place, or you need people shaking the cage demanding? :3
Honestly, he may be my favorite character in Golarion. The cleverness of his story really amazed me. Are there direct influences that helped develop him?
How was he different in your home game?
Nope. The whole Lost Coast region is something that I've been developing in print and otherwise for years, and there's actually several potential Adventure Paths I'd like to explore there still. No cage shaking is really necessary.
He was inspired by lots of sources, particularly the stories of Fritz Leiber and Raymond Feist. In Feist's stories, there's a guildmaster called the Upright Man, and I always liked the construction of that as a title. The Forever Man though, is pretty much all me—as much as my creations CAN be me and not the sum total of all the fantasy stuff I've read over the ages.
In my home game, Staunton Vhane was actually a commander for a group of hard-case lawful neutral expansionists who himself was lawful evil and became enthralled by devils. I ended up using the name, accidentally, for him and for a bad guy in Wrath of the Righteous, so the one in Magnimar, going forward, is gonna be referred to as the Forever Man from now on out to avoid confusion.
How was he different in your home game?In my home game, Staunton Vhane was actually a commander for a group of hard-case lawful neutral expansionists who himself was lawful evil and became enthralled by devils. I ended up using the name, accidentally, for him and for a bad guy in Wrath of the Righteous, so the one in Magnimar, going forward, is gonna be referred to as the Forever Man from now on out to avoid confusion.
Was there a good amount of material you wrote up for your home world that was never used for a campaign or was most of it developed in the process of running one?
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Creative Director
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Was there a good amount of material you wrote up for your home world that was never used for a campaign or was most of it developed in the process of running one?How was he different in your home game?In my home game, Staunton Vhane was actually a commander for a group of hard-case lawful neutral expansionists who himself was lawful evil and became enthralled by devils. I ended up using the name, accidentally, for him and for a bad guy in Wrath of the Righteous, so the one in Magnimar, going forward, is gonna be referred to as the Forever Man from now on out to avoid confusion.
I've been developing material for my homebrew since 1984 or thereabouts... so there's a LOT that never made the transition, and it's still making the transition.
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He was no less or no more commonly known in Sarkoris than anywhere else, so absolutely he'd be known there. And he's "rare" only among humanoids. Most dragons, if not ALL dragons know about him. So if a region has dragons, it has Apsu. And Dahak, by extension.Given the rarity of Apsu's faith, was he known in Sarkoris AT ALL?Terendelev doesn't really worship a deity much at all; she's not that religious. She respects Iomedae and Apsu and Torag, but not enough to carry holy symbols or pray much at all. A crusader who admires Terendelev and wants to emulate silver dragons would most likely worship Apsu.What deity does Terendelev, the silver dragon in Kenabres, venerate, if any at all? Apsu, because she's a metallic dragon? Iomedae, as she's the patron deity of Mendev and the Crusades? Wondering what deity a crusader who admired Terendelev and wanted to emulate silver dragons would pick...
** spoiler omitted **
So if the guy grew up in Kenabres, regardless of whether he's of Kellid blood or Taldan, he'd probably have heard of Apsu since Terendelev is one of the city's most famous residents?
Hey James, does making an item out of a special material take longer than making the masterwork item?
If it does, are there any people with human lifespans who can craft adamantine weapons out there? Hell, how can an armor made out of horacalcum exist? An adamantine weapon would take nearly a year to craft for a mid-level character, and even for a Super Smith with a +50 craft skill, a Horacalcum suit of Full-Plate would take a century to craft.
Can a simulacrum be made of a vampire ? can they create spawn ?
can simulacrum heal ability damage/drain on their own or would it require an alchemical process?
Silly. Norgorber is not a silly deity.Hey James...I have a crazy theory about Norgorber. He is really 4 halflings who stand on each other shoulders and pretends to be one god.
What do you think about this theory?
Yeah...it is sometimes hard to judge the level of silliness.
Have any of your ideas upon later reflection were just too silly? Care to share any of those ideas?
Hi,
I have a question concerning the Fighter Archetype of the Archer and his trickshot of Sunder.
The common perception is that his damage is halved against objects he is sundering at range, because of what the CRB states on pg 174:
Ranged Weapon Damage: Objects take half damage from ranged weapons (unless the weapon is a seige engine or something similar - see pg 434). Divide the damage dealt by 2 before applying the object's hardness.
I don't think this perception is correct due to this heading is under SMASHING an OBJECT on pg 173 Where it is in the second sentence:
Smashing an object is LIKE sundering a weapon or shield, except that your combat manuever check is opposed by the object's AC.
But the first sentence of Smashing an Object states:
Smashing a weapon or shield with a slashing or bludgeoning weapon is accomplished with the sunder combat manuever (see chapter 8.)
Chapter 8 pg 201 Sunder 2nd paragraph:
If your attack is successful, you deal damage to the item normally.
The Archer when using the Trick Shot of Ranged Sunder is not using the smashing an item rules, he is using the Sunder rules just as if he had a mellee weapon, hence the use of Sunder and not simply smashing a weapon which ANY person with a ranged weapon could in fact do by the rules.
There are no rules prohibiting a character from using a weapon to smash, ranged or not, but they may not use the Combat manuever Sunder to do so at range. Only the Archer Archetype can do this. If he is the only one that can use this combat maneuver to do this, why would he not use the special Sunder mechanics as opposed to the normal Smashing an object rule? Not to mention he takes an additional -4 to hit when using the trick shot Sunder when if he was just using the Smash an Object rule, he wouldnt take that penalty?
Could you perhaps provide some light on this or a ruling perhaps?
Either way is good.
This is what is leading me to beleive that the Archer Archetype, when using his trickshot to sunder, and taking an additional -4 to hit, does not in fact halve his damage vs objects, but treats his damage normally as a mellee weapon for this purpose, doing full damage.
Thanks
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Creative Director
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So if the guy grew up in Kenabres, regardless of whether he's of Kellid blood or Taldan, he'd probably have heard of Apsu since Terendelev is one of the city's most famous residents?He was no less or no more commonly known in Sarkoris than anywhere else, so absolutely he'd be known there. And he's "rare" only among humanoids. Most dragons, if not ALL dragons know about him. So if a region has dragons, it has Apsu. And Dahak, by extension.Given the rarity of Apsu's faith, was he known in Sarkoris AT ALL?Terendelev doesn't really worship a deity much at all; she's not that religious. She respects Iomedae and Apsu and Torag, but not enough to carry holy symbols or pray much at all. A crusader who admires Terendelev and wants to emulate silver dragons would most likely worship Apsu.What deity does Terendelev, the silver dragon in Kenabres, venerate, if any at all? Apsu, because she's a metallic dragon? Iomedae, as she's the patron deity of Mendev and the Crusades? Wondering what deity a crusader who admired Terendelev and wanted to emulate silver dragons would pick...
** spoiler omitted **
It's certainly possible.
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Creative Director
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Hey James, does making an item out of a special material take longer than making the masterwork item?
If it does, are there any people with human lifespans who can craft adamantine weapons out there? Hell, how can an armor made out of horacalcum exist? An adamantine weapon would take nearly a year to craft for a mid-level character, and even for a Super Smith with a +50 craft skill, a Horacalcum suit of Full-Plate would take a century to craft.
The crafting rules break down once you get too far above 1,000 gp. It's a flaw in the system. There are feats and options to speed crafting for more expensive nonmagical items like horacalcum...
...or you can houserule the rules...
...or perhaps yes, part of what makes those rare and exotic materials so rare and exotic is that it DOES take so long to make them.
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Creative Director
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Can a simulacrum be made of a vampire ? can they create spawn ?
** spoiler omitted **
can simulacrum heal ability damage/drain on their own or would it require an alchemical process?
You can make a vampire simulacrum, but it can't create spawn
Healing damage to a simulacrum requires the alchemical process described in the spell; they don't heal from magic or naturally.
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Creative Director
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Is that the reason you feel the way you do about having Paladins as a class?
My preference for fantasy is shades of gray, like you see in Game of Thrones. There's some obvious good and obvious evil, but in most cases, it's a lot more complex than that.
Partially, yes. Paladins limit adventure options and story options more than any other class, in my experience. But also, they tend to attract players who enjoy being difficult or disruptive while also attracting the attention of other players NOT playing them who like to be disruptive.
I've seen paladins played well, and not disruptive, but those are rarities.
Also, chaotic good is the best, so yeah, paladins are meh.
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Creative Director
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Silly. Norgorber is not a silly deity.Hey James...I have a crazy theory about Norgorber. He is really 4 halflings who stand on each other shoulders and pretends to be one god.
What do you think about this theory?
Yeah...it is sometimes hard to judge the level of silliness.
Have any of your ideas upon later reflection were just too silly? Care to share any of those ideas?
Yes, some of them are rejected for being silly. And I'd rather not share them since that'd give them more attention than they deserve and would erode and devalue things in the game I think don't deserve that type of attention.
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Creative Director
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Are you excited about the Merisiel T-Shirt?
I didn't know they were a thing, in fact! Now I am! Wish it wasn't black, though...
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Creative Director
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Hi,
I have a question concerning the Fighter Archetype of the Archer and his trickshot of Sunder.
The common perception is that his damage is halved against objects he is sundering at range, because of what the CRB states on pg 174:Ranged Weapon Damage: Objects take half damage from ranged weapons (unless the weapon is a seige engine or something similar - see pg 434). Divide the damage dealt by 2 before applying the object's hardness.
I don't think this perception is correct due to this heading is under SMASHING an OBJECT on pg 173 Where it is in the second sentence:
Smashing an object is LIKE sundering a weapon or shield, except that your combat manuever check is opposed by the object's AC.
But the first sentence of Smashing an Object states:
Smashing a weapon or shield with a slashing or bludgeoning weapon is accomplished with the sunder combat manuever (see chapter 8.)
Chapter 8 pg 201 Sunder 2nd paragraph:
If your attack is successful, you deal damage to the item normally.The Archer when using the Trick Shot of Ranged Sunder is not using the smashing an item rules, he is using the Sunder rules just as if he had a mellee weapon, hence the use of Sunder and not simply smashing a weapon which ANY person with a ranged weapon could in fact do by the rules.
There are no rules prohibiting a character from using a weapon to smash, ranged or not, but they may not use the Combat manuever Sunder to do so at range. Only the Archer Archetype can do this. If he is the only one that can use this combat maneuver to do this, why would he not use the special Sunder mechanics as opposed to the normal Smashing an object rule? Not to mention he takes an additional -4 to hit when using the trick shot Sunder when if he was just using the Smash an Object rule, he wouldnt take that penalty?Could you perhaps provide some light on this or a ruling perhaps?
Either way is good.This is what is leading me to beleive that the Archer Archetype, when using his trickshot to sunder, and taking an additional -4 to hit, does not in fact halve his damage vs objects, but treats his damage normally as a mellee weapon for this purpose, doing full damage.
Thanks
Long complex rules questions that involve citations of books and interactions of numerous different options and archetypes are best posted to the rules forums for an FAQ tagging.
My take is that it's pretty obvious and that this archetype gets to sunder things at range, and therefore uses the sunder rules for those attacks.
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Creative Director
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But if you're preferred story style is shades of grey wouldn't your preferred alignment be chaotic neutral with a slight amount of redeeming qualities?
Nope.
I prefer chaotic good characters who adventure in a world where shades of gray exist. That's not the same as saying I prefer to play chaotic neutral characters... although they're fun too. Also quite like neutral good.
How many years could you fill with just the APs you currently have planned?
Hi James
i was wondering what are somethings you like to do to cheer yourself up when your sad
Just wanted to let you know i went into the lakewood barnes and nobles the other day..and bam..they have a butt load of pathfinder stuff, i found myself saying under my breath "way to go paizo"
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The crafting rules break down once you get too far above 1,000 gp. It's a flaw in the system. There are feats and options to speed crafting for more expensive nonmagical items like horacalcum...
...or you can houserule the rules...
...or perhaps yes, part of what makes those rare and exotic materials so rare and exotic is that it DOES take so long to make them.
The rules for crafting without magic are broken so badly they continue to cause grief in our weekly gaming group. It doesn't help that a 9th level Wizard can craft just about anything in under a minute using a Fabricate spell.
Q: Any chance of seeing an updated crafting rules subset in Pathfinder Unchained or sometime relatively soon?
If (and this a big if) you did an AP again that bordered on Casmaron, as long as it is appropriate, would it make sense to expand the map east with a Gazetteer article on a Casmaron country? Instead of trying to do a whole book on that continent.
I believe you mentioned one time about maybe only having one god for Iblydos, of course I can't find that reference now, but what if all the gods in Iblydos instead were Mythic Titans? That way you could have the affect where all of the gods in Iblydos would be kill able.
Can a Simulacrum of an Intellect Devourer use the Body Thief ability?
Would Nethys grant powers to Paladins or Anti-paladins?
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Creative Director
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That's not quite the same as a world where shades of grey predominate then, like say Warhammer Fantasy or say any world created by Frank Miller?But if you're preferred story style is shades of grey wouldn't your preferred alignment be chaotic neutral with a slight amount of redeeming qualities?Nope.
I prefer chaotic good characters who adventure in a world where shades of gray exist. That's not the same as saying I prefer to play chaotic neutral characters... although they're fun too. Also quite like neutral good.
Not sure what you're asking in context to my previous post... please rephrase the question?
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Creative Director
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I feel like there's more Golarion than I'll ever get to play in in a lifetime. How do I shake that feeling of being overwhelmed?
By focusing on small parts of it, perhaps? I know that there's certainly more of Golarion than I can devote attention to, and I'm the Creative Director. You kinda have to find the parts you like and enjoy them... pick and choose what gets your attention, and trust the rest will be there to entertain when your interests change.
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Creative Director
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In Bastards of Golarion there are no half-elves subtypes with Vudrani as the human part. Are you saving them for the upcoming Inner Sea Guide to the Mystic Isle of Jalmeray?
I'm not sure why folks put that into Bastards of Golarion... I probably wouldn't have been so hyperbolic about it had I seen that bit. I suspect that plays into the fact that elves aren't really a part of Indian mythology, though... not sure.
We'll see, though.
Hrm, the conversation about Norgorber stealing away the knowledge of how he became a god because he is a god of secrets is interesting. Maybe Iomaedae has a good reason for suspecting that he had something to do with Aroden's death after all.... Maybe he stole that secret of how Aroden died too as part of some larger machination.
Question Time! What's your favorite card in the Harrow deck and why?
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Creative Director
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Hi James
i was wondering what are somethings you like to do to cheer yourself up when your sad
Just wanted to let you know i went into the lakewood barnes and nobles the other day..and bam..they have a butt load of pathfinder stuff, i found myself saying under my breath "way to go paizo"
Playing with my cat always cheers me up. Hanging out with good friends does the same. As does reading a good book or watching a good movie or playing a good video game.
And yay for Barnes and Noble!
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Creative Director
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The crafting rules break down once you get too far above 1,000 gp. It's a flaw in the system. There are feats and options to speed crafting for more expensive nonmagical items like horacalcum...
...or you can houserule the rules...
...or perhaps yes, part of what makes those rare and exotic materials so rare and exotic is that it DOES take so long to make them.
The rules for crafting without magic are broken so badly they continue to cause grief in our weekly gaming group. It doesn't help that a 9th level Wizard can craft just about anything in under a minute using a Fabricate spell.
Q: Any chance of seeing an updated crafting rules subset in Pathfinder Unchained or sometime relatively soon?
If they cause grief for your group, then you need to change them for your group. You know how they're broken better than I do in this case, so there's not much I can do to help there.
I suppose there's a chance that more crafting rules might show up in Unchained, but I'm not sure what the Design guys are putting in there. I'll definitely run it by them to get it in their heads though...
RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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James, I just listened to the Know Direction podcast on "Creating Pulp Adventure", which you crashed, and was wondering if you had ever read Doc Savage, The Shadow, or the Avenger? If so, did you know they were teaming up to form Justice Inc.?
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Creative Director
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Some extradimensional sanctum queries and "how they work" in a planar sense, such as Areelu's mythic path ability or the demiplanes within Baba Yaga's hut (seeded from her own Sanctum ability). Or any demiplane/sanctum, I suppose:
1) Are these actual demiplanes that have a presence on the Astral or Ethereal plane?
2) Is it possible to enter these demiplanes/sanctums from the Astral/Ethereal?
3) Is the mythic variant, in your opinion, something that should be "more secure" than a regular demiplane created with magic? I know that the sanctum ability draws more from a Magnificent Mansion than a Create Demiplane spell, but how far would you take that as a GM?
3a) Could the create demiplane line of spells in theory add extra room, planar traits or similar? (Not necessarily rules-as-written clad in stone, but in your opinion by using the sanctum as a basis to work from?)
4) Would you say it was possible to completely seal a demiplane/sanctum from the Astral or Ethereal? Barring extremely powerful (wish, miracle, high-end mythic, etc.) magic?
5) Do "sanctums" for mythic characters move around with them, or do they have a fixed planar "location" as it were? For example, if somebody uses the power to create a doorway to get there from Axis, as opposed to the Plane of Shadow, or the Astral, or the Material, or another planet in the Material. Is the sanctum always in the same "location" in the multiverse, or is it "wherever the user is" in some extra-physical sense?
6) What happens if somebody were to go into a mythic sanctum (such as Areelu's), and subsequently cast a create demiplane spell? The spell says the user has to be on the Astral/Ethereal, but does creating the door to the sanctum on a particular plane help pattern the "location" (as it's extradimensional presumably to the user's location) to that plane?
6a) Would using a wish or miracle get around this, and if you would allow it, what would the result be?
6b) I have this image of a sanctum that's like an entire world unto itself (or at least a very appreciably large area), once one enters it. As in, city sized or larger, a result of taking the ability and then continually enlarging and expanding on it with one's own magic. Does that sound interesting as a world/adventure location to you?
1) They are actual demiplanes, yes, but not all demiplanes have a "presence" on the Astral or Ethereal. Particularly small ones are lodged inside of their "parent" plane. In most cases, things that require access to the Ethereal and Astral still work; if they don't, we'll say so in the text.
2) Yes, generally; see #1's answer above.
3) I wouldn't make it more "secure" on its own... but a creature that is mythic will by definition have more defenses up in their lair anyway.
4) Yes. But that's tough and can make for some difficult to deal with side effects...
5) The sanctum stays in the same place, relative to the other planes, but the door/portal to it can vary its location.
6) The spell is pretty clear. A place like Areelu's sanctum isn't the Astral or Etheral, and therefore create demiplane would fail.
6a) Maybe. Depends on the power of the wish.
6b) We put demiplanes into adventures a LOT. Some of them are quite huge. So ... yeah, it does indeed sound interesting.
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Creative Director
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If (and this a big if) you did an AP again that bordered on Casmaron, as long as it is appropriate, would it make sense to expand the map east with a Gazetteer article on a Casmaron country? Instead of trying to do a whole book on that continent.
We already did that with Iobaria. So the answer is yes! :-)
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Creative Director
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I believe you mentioned one time about maybe only having one god for Iblydos, of course I can't find that reference now, but what if all the gods in Iblydos instead were Mythic Titans? That way you could have the affect where all of the gods in Iblydos would be kill able.
I'm not sure why I'd say that, since Iblydos, being inspired by Greece, is associated with one of the most well-known RPG-friendly deity pantheons what there is...