Hi James,
The questions upthread about the origins of quasits made me curious.
Are there any other familiars or creatures created that way but drawn from the First World, or from "brushing" against any other planes?
Saw a trailer for the movie "Warcraft" due out later this year. Looked interesting, but trailers often do, and then the movie doesn't deliver. Do you think it'll be worth seeing?
Creative Director
|
What about petitioners (which is more along the lines of what I was thinking)? Can they opt to merge with angels, or other celestials, out of a desire for increased intimacy?
Are you asking about petitioners having sex with angels? Or petitioners physically merging their body into an angel's body. Because that's two different things.
The prior is certainly possible, assuming the angel and petitioner are both consenting.
The latter is not really something that the game models or supports. Absorbing another creature isn't, as far as I know, an ability we've ever given a good aligned creature, much less an angel. It IS an ability we've given plenty of non-intelligent creatures and a lot of bad guy monsters. Make of that what you will, I guess.
Favorite line from Bone Tomahawk?
Mine is
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Saw a trailer for the movie "Warcraft" due out later this year. Looked interesting, but trailers often do, and then the movie doesn't deliver. Do you think it'll be worth seeing?
It looked pretty silly to me, but then again, the story of the humans and the orcs has always been, to me, one of the least interesting parts of Warcraft. I find the elves and the draenei and the gnome stories MUCH more interesting and less cliched.
At this point, whether or not I see it in the theater or wait for Netflix is really going to depend on the reviews, I suppose, but at this point it looks pretty cliched and goofy to me.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Favorite line from Bone Tomahawk?
Mine is ** spoiler omitted **
That is indeed my favorite line from the movie. It's actually my favorite line in a movie that I've heard in a long, long time. It, its delivery, and its timing are pretty staggering in the emotional power in the movie.
Hello James,
Would Psychic magic work in a place like Alkenstar?
How about not-strictly magic abilities like the occult skill unlocks?
Hi James
I had a question about the world wound. I know it has crazy weather from reading the book about it. But I was wondering about seasons. Does the world wound experience seasonal changes like the rest of the world? Or is it allways hot and miserable with the occasional storm of frozen eyeballs or storms of vengeance? If it does have regular seasons what kind of crazy abyssal weather could we expect to see in winter?
|
Creative Director
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Hello James,
Would Psychic magic work in a place like Alkenstar?
How about not-strictly magic abilities like the occult skill unlocks?
Psychic magic is merely a third "theme" of magic that fits in with arcane magic and divine magic. It's still magic. Any thing that affects magic also affects psychic magic. This includes antimagic, dispel magic, and of course, the primal magic and other influences of the Mana Wastes.
If we'd wanted it to NOT be affected in this way, we wouldn't have called it magic.
|
Creative Director
|
Hi James
I had a question about the world wound. I know it has crazy weather from reading the book about it. But I was wondering about seasons. Does the world wound experience seasonal changes like the rest of the world? Or is it allways hot and miserable with the occasional storm of frozen eyeballs or storms of vengeance? If it does have regular seasons what kind of crazy abyssal weather could we expect to see in winter?
It doesn't have seasons, no. The weather there remains crazy and chaotic year-round. That means sometimes it snows or rains or windstorms or acid fogs or bleeds. It's not always "hot and miserable."
|
Creative Director
|
I just saw Wayne Reynold's excellent cover for Ultimate Intrigue! Am I right in thinking the introduction of the Vigilante class marks the return of the Red Raven?
You'll have to wait to see the Meet the Iconic entry, I suppose, for the vigilante, to find out with the rest of the world. I"m not gonna say here.
Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.
Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?
Thanks for the kind words!
I've never run or played "Feast of Ravenmoor." That said... I was originally going to be the one to write the adventure, but for time restraints (was too busy on other projects) I had to hand the writing of the adventure over to Brandon, who knocked it out of the proverbial park.
"Feast of Ravenmoor" is in fact based on a (still unpublished) short story I wrote back in college—the story itself chronicled the events that led up to those presented in the adventure itself, and it did NOT have a happy ending for its protagonist. That story was where I originally invented not only the creepy small village of Ravenmoor, but also where I originally invented Ghlaunder. I've been considering releasing the story into the public for a while... maybe I will do that some day, but not before I give it one more hefty revision round! :-P
|
Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?Thanks for the kind words!
I've never run or played "Feast of Ravenmoor." That said... I was originally going to be the one to write the adventure, but for time restraints (was too busy on other projects) I had to hand the writing of the adventure over to Brandon, who knocked it out of the proverbial park.
"Feast of Ravenmoor" is in fact based on a (still unpublished) short story I wrote back in college—the story itself chronicled the events that led up to those presented in the adventure itself, and it did NOT have a happy ending for its protagonist. That story was where I originally invented not only the creepy small village of Ravenmoor, but also where I originally invented Ghlaunder. I've been considering releasing the story into the public for a while... maybe I will do that some day, but not before I give it one more hefty revision round! :-P
*sigh*
If only Paizo dealt in literature as well as gaming...
Chyrone wrote:
Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?
------------------------------
Thanks for the kind words!I've never run or played "Feast of Ravenmoor." That said... I was originally going to be the one to write the adventure, but for time restraints (was too busy on other projects) I had to hand the writing of the adventure over to Brandon, who knocked it out of the proverbial park.
"Feast of Ravenmoor" is in fact based on a (still unpublished) short story I wrote back in college—the story itself chronicled the events that led up to those presented in the adventure itself, and it did NOT have a happy ending for its protagonist. That story was where I originally invented not only the creepy small village of Ravenmoor, but also where I originally invented Ghlaunder. I've been considering releasing the story into the public for a while... maybe I will do that some day, but not before I give it one more hefty revision round! :-P
I've to express my enjoying playing the misleading and evasive answers on the evil people's behalf.
When i asked in discussion if the players felt their PCs were in a proper horror flick, they admitted that to be so. They were comparing it to the movie The Wickerman.
On top of that, since running it, the idea of building a summoner or blight druid of Ghlaunder came to mind. With the background the PC being from some backwater town, until some adventurers arrived....
|
Creative Director
|
Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?Thanks for the kind words!
I've never run or played "Feast of Ravenmoor." That said... I was originally going to be the one to write the adventure, but for time restraints (was too busy on other projects) I had to hand the writing of the adventure over to Brandon, who knocked it out of the proverbial park.
"Feast of Ravenmoor" is in fact based on a (still unpublished) short story I wrote back in college—the story itself chronicled the events that led up to those presented in the adventure itself, and it did NOT have a happy ending for its protagonist. That story was where I originally invented not only the creepy small village of Ravenmoor, but also where I originally invented Ghlaunder. I've been considering releasing the story into the public for a while... maybe I will do that some day, but not before I give it one more hefty revision round! :-P
*sigh*
If only Paizo dealt in literature as well as gaming...
Paizo does. The problem is that, as with most publishers, venues for short fiction are few and far between.
|
|
Paizo does. The problem is that, as with most publishers, venues for short fiction are few and far between.Good evening mr. James.
I've recently ran Feast of Ravenmoor.
I read we have you to thank for the concept of the blightspawn.Have you ever GM'ed or played this module?
If so on the playing, what did you play?Thanks for the kind words!
I've never run or played "Feast of Ravenmoor." That said... I was originally going to be the one to write the adventure, but for time restraints (was too busy on other projects) I had to hand the writing of the adventure over to Brandon, who knocked it out of the proverbial park.
"Feast of Ravenmoor" is in fact based on a (still unpublished) short story I wrote back in college—the story itself chronicled the events that led up to those presented in the adventure itself, and it did NOT have a happy ending for its protagonist. That story was where I originally invented not only the creepy small village of Ravenmoor, but also where I originally invented Ghlaunder. I've been considering releasing the story into the public for a while... maybe I will do that some day, but not before I give it one more hefty revision round! :-P
*sigh*
If only Paizo dealt in literature as well as gaming...
I know (I'm a Tales subscriber), I was just trying to make a joke and it didn't really work.
Have you and Sutter ever talked about releasing a collection of short stories in the Tales line?
|
So was Abjurant Halls of Envy's destruction's out of story reason that Runeforge was already really large dungeon(page limits and all that) or was it so that there would be asymmetry or something else?
I'm kinda sad about it kinda removes benefits from one of sin/virtue point factors. Though I guess dungeon based on magic that is about removing effects of magic might kinda unbalanced in that the enemies would target spellcasters mostly... Still, all other sins have really weird and cool dungeons, so it makes me wonder what Abjurant Halls would have been like xD
|
Creative Director
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
So was Abjurant Halls of Envy's destruction's out of story reason that Runeforge was already really large dungeon(page limits and all that) or was it so that there would be asymmetry or something else?
I'm kinda sad about it kinda removes benefits from one of sin/virtue point factors. Though I guess dungeon based on magic that is about removing effects of magic might kinda unbalanced in that the enemies would target spellcasters mostly... Still, all other sins have really weird and cool dungeons, so it makes me wonder what Abjurant Halls would have been like xD
Having the Abjurant Halls be somewhat destroyed was entirely a space limitation thing in the original version of the adventure. When I went back and revised the adventure for the anniversary edition, I chose to maintain the destruction rather than actually build out more encounter areas for another wing not because there wasn't room (there certainly could have been room), but because Runeforge is already a GIANT dungeon crawl and one more wing was a bit over the top. Furthermore, it would have changed the nature of the dungeon's original backstory too much—I tried not to change drastically for change's sake when updating the adventure.
The two major changes I made to Runeforge were:
1) I simplified the map of the Ravenous Crypts to make a more interesting game play and less frustrating one of maze exploration + lots of empty boring rooms, but I didn't really change the actual content and theme of the encounters much when compared to the original adventure.
2) I added the sloth wing. In the original adventure, this wing still existed, but it was just not detailed. That's very different than the envy wing, which WAS detailed but was destroyed. Adding details to something that simply wasn't detailed before (which is what I did with sloth) doesn't change the original adventure, it just provides missing details. Undestroying the envy wing WOULD Have changed lots of themes and events in Runeforge's history in a way that I wasn't really all that interested in doing.
AND, by having one of the wings be partially destroyed, we do mess a bit with expectations. If while exploring Runeforge the players encounter a wing that's mostly devastated, then that puts into their minds the possibility that other wings might be destroyed or otherwise not exactly what they expected.
AND, having the wing destroyed allowed us to have some of the internal politics and strife between the seven wings to have real and physical ramifications on the entire structure, which is more realistic than having all seven wings NOT impact one another in any way at all.
AND in the end, having elements in a published scenario that leave areas unexplored for a GM to expand upon and to make his own is a long and time-honored tradition. It's a fine line between "encouraging GM additions" and "lazy adventure design." I think that the first incarnation of the adventure's treatment of the slot wing is more lazy than encouraging, and that's why, when I had the chance (and the extra space), I fixed it. I think that the ruined envy wing is perfectly functional in the grand scheme of the dungeon and doesn't thus feel lazy but still gives eager GMs a place to expand Runeforge if they're inspired to do so.
What would you call wizards who have taken a sub-school as their focus?
For example, a wizard with the Evocation school as their focused school is an Evoker, but what would you call a wizard who has the admixture sub-school as their focus? would they still be an Evoker or would they be an admixturist? Admixer?
Ditto for Sin Magic specialists. Would they be referred to by their sin of focus, the school that sin focuses on, or something else?
|
Creative Director
|
What would you call wizards who have taken a sub-school as their focus?
For example, a wizard with the Evocation school as their focused school is an Evoker, but what would you call a wizard who has the admixture sub-school as their focus? would they still be an Evoker or would they be an admixturist? Admixer?
Ditto for Sin Magic specialists. Would they be referred to by their sin of focus, the school that sin focuses on, or something else?
I would likely still call them an evoker or whatever, but indicate that they have focused their studies into a deeper version of that school.
"Sin Magic" is not actually a term we use—it's something that has kinda popped up in the vernacular of these boards. As detailed in Inner Sea Magic, this older version of wizardly specialization is called "Thassilonian Magic." Practicers of this magic are still called by the name of the school they focus in. You'd call such a wizard a "Thassilonian necromancer" or a "Thassilonian enchanter." Or just a necromancer or enchanter. You wouldn't call them a glutton wizard or a lust wizard.
|
Creative Director
|
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
What character build generator (point buy, 3d6, etc.) do you use for your home Pathfinder games? Also, how is the developer CoC game going? I have not seen it mentioned in a while.
I generally allow players to choose between a 20 point buy or the 4d6/drop the lowest method for generating characters. Personally, for PCs, I prefer the risk and fun of rolling dice for stats over point buy, but intellectually understand that this method can result in player characters with an unfortunate wide range in capabilities.
There is no "developer CoC" game. The game I'm running for the developers is a Pathfinder version of Temple of Elemental Evil; it's going strong, with the next session happening tomorrow night (they're now exploring level 3 of the temple dungeons).
The Call of Cthluhu game I've been running is Horror on the Orient Express, and that's for a much smaller group that includes project managers and publishers and designers and editors and developers and friends who don't even work at Paizo. We just re-started this campaign after a many-months long hiatus brought on by the combination of convention season and holidays; the first game of the year was earlier this January, and before that, the previous game was a few weeks before Gen Con. We were SUPPOSED to play last week but half the group had to bail on the game at the last minute for various reasons. Hopefully we'll get to play next Thursday though.
|
Contributor
|
"Sin Magic" is not actually a term we use—it's something that has kinda popped up in the vernacular of these boards. As detailed in Inner Sea Magic, this older version of wizardly specialization is called "Thassilonian Magic." Practicers of this magic are still called by the name of the school they focus in. You'd call such a wizard a "Thassilonian necromancer" or a "Thassilonian enchanter." Or just a necromancer or enchanter. You wouldn't call them a glutton wizard or a lust wizard.
I believe "Sin Magic" is d20pfsrd's world-neutral term to avoid copyright conflict. :/
As someone running a version of Golarion with ongoing continuity, and who hasn't yet run RotRL...
1) How commonly known are the Thassilonian methods of magic? Are their greed wizards about, or is that specialization not really rediscovered until Rise takes place?
2) How hard is it for anyone to know anything about ancient Thassilon? It's a DC 35 just to learn who Karzoug was. Is this a good guide to Knowledge DCs about Thassilon in a pre-Rise continuity?
3) How well-known were the Whispering Tyrant's links to Thassilon (specifically, the Cenotaph)? About as mysterious? More so?
4) How hard is it to know the true nature of the Grand Mastaba under Castle Korvosa? Same basic difficulty?
Thank you! ^_^
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Sin Magic" is not actually a term we use—it's something that has kinda popped up in the vernacular of these boards. As detailed in Inner Sea Magic, this older version of wizardly specialization is called "Thassilonian Magic." Practicers of this magic are still called by the name of the school they focus in. You'd call such a wizard a "Thassilonian necromancer" or a "Thassilonian enchanter." Or just a necromancer or enchanter. You wouldn't call them a glutton wizard or a lust wizard.I believe "Sin Magic" is d20pfsrd's world-neutral term to avoid copyright conflict. :/
As someone running a version of Golarion with ongoing continuity, and who hasn't yet run RotRL...
1) How commonly known are the Thassilonian methods of magic? Are their greed wizards about, or is that specialization not really rediscovered until Rise takes place?
2) How hard is it for anyone to know anything about ancient Thassilon? It's a DC 35 just to learn who Karzoug was. Is this a good guide to Knowledge DCs about Thassilon in a pre-Rise continuity?
3) How well-known were the Whispering Tyrant's links to Thassilon (specifically, the Cenotaph)? About as mysterious? More so?
4) How hard is it to know the true nature of the Grand Mastaba under Castle Korvosa? Same basic difficulty?
Thank you! ^_^
Ah; that's a good choice for d20pfsrd to call it, but it's a little frustrating to see it cause confusion (and not only because I'd rather folks buy our books, of course!).
1) The basic idea is that until you run Rise of the Runelords, Thassilonian magic is NOT well known in Golarion. The events of Runelords are what brings a lot of Varisia into sharp focus for the rest of the region, as well as re-introduces the legacy of Thassilon to the world. If you don't assume the events of Rise of the Runelords have taken place, knowledge about Thassilon will be in the high DC 30 or above zone, and limited to only the most knowledgable and remote of sages or libraries. As a general rule, there are not a lot of Thassilonian specialists active in the world today, and those who are active are mostly ancient undead leftovers waiting to fight the PCs in forgotten Thassilonian ruins.
2) "Just a DC 35 check" is hardly child's play. Furthermore, that mere check also requires access to an ancient library the PCs have to go on an entire mid-to-high level adventure just to access. As written, learning about Thassilon and its runelords is intended to be a part of an entire long campaign, not merely the results of a few lucky Knowledge checks. If you don't intend to run Rise of the Runelords, you should still study it for advice and examples of the steps a party needs to go through over the course of several adventures to learn about Thassilon.
3) Even more rare and mysterious, in that those links do not exist in Thassilon lore repositories, and only really exist in incredibly dangerous locations like Gallowspire.
4) To learn about the true nature of what lies below the Grand Mastaba would be on par with learning about Xin-Shalast and the Pinnacle of Avarice; aka, it should be something that builds over the course of a campaign and culminates in a high level adventure. Those chambers deep below Castle Korvosa are appropriate for 16th level play on up and NOT below.
4) To learn about the true nature of what lies below the Grand Mastaba would be on par with learning about Xin-Shalast and the Pinnacle of Avarice; aka, it should be something that builds over the course of a campaign and culminates in a high level adventure. Those chambers deep below Castle Korvosa are appropriate for 16th level play on up and NOT below.
Would you say actually exploring what's below the Grand Mastaba should be the end of a campaign, like an adventure path; a megadungeon; or perhaps a high level adventure module?
I'm trying to get a sense of the scope of any future plans you might have for the Grand Mastaba in the chance my CotCT group decides to explore what's under there. I imagine it will be quite some time before it gets explored officially, so if I were to ever have to design it myself, I could know a relative scale of how big it should be. Not sure if I'm explaining myself well here.
|
|
So since some examples for handing out Sin & Virtue points sound kinda like they are aimed at how players react to game mechanics rather than the in character reasons for behaviour (envy for complaining about other players doing more damage at combat, sloth for resting too much between enconters), I've have kinda hard time figuring out what is sufficient in character reason to give points(besides the obvious acts) for some sins or virtues. I've decided on giving characters points if they consistently act in the same way(as in even if actiona themselves isn't big deal, if they consistently act prideful, I will add pride points), though only until first point. If they consistently act the same way, but won't ever do anything greatly sinful, I'll keep them at 1 point. I also am thinking of giving them some starting points based on character backstory and description of how they behave. Also I'm considering Apathy as part of Sloth in the "Doesn't bother to care" way, since that adds more opportunities than if I counted only moments of characters being plain lazy. Any advice on how to handle this? I kinda feel like I'm not sure what I'm doing in regard of this subject :'D
Also, have to check on Thassilonian specialists. Mechanically I don't remember sin points having effect on that, but storywise they do draw powers from sins/virtues? Just checking I have understood right how thassilonian magic works.
So all contact being lost with Grubber's hermitage, is that reference to events from Shadows under sandpoint, does one of Paizo's adventure's go there or is it just adventure hook without canon answer for what is happening?
So Swallowtail Release/Festival takes place in Rova that is equivalent of September? Does it snow in Varisia when they reach winter?
And finally(for this post :D), is it possible to repair Hellfire Flume? I'd guess not since its not anywhere close to its original height, but power source IS nearby, whatever that does.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
4) To learn about the true nature of what lies below the Grand Mastaba would be on par with learning about Xin-Shalast and the Pinnacle of Avarice; aka, it should be something that builds over the course of a campaign and culminates in a high level adventure. Those chambers deep below Castle Korvosa are appropriate for 16th level play on up and NOT below.Would you say actually exploring what's below the Grand Mastaba should be the end of a campaign, like an adventure path; a megadungeon; or perhaps a high level adventure module?
I'm trying to get a sense of the scope of any future plans you might have for the Grand Mastaba in the chance my CotCT group decides to explore what's under there. I imagine it will be quite some time before it gets explored officially, so if I were to ever have to design it myself, I could know a relative scale of how big it should be. Not sure if I'm explaining myself well here.
My plans for what's below the Grand Mastaba are still QUITE some time away from seeing the light of day, and I'm not gonna say much more about them in case they end up being wrong and thus disappointing folks.
If your players want to explore down there, don't wait for me to do it for you; have fun building those dungeons for your group and customizing them to your play style.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
So since some examples for handing out Sin & Virtue points sound kinda like they are aimed at how players react to game mechanics rather than the in character reasons for behaviour (envy for complaining about other players doing more damage at combat, sloth for resting too much between enconters), I've have kinda hard time figuring out what is sufficient in character reason to give points(besides the obvious acts) for some sins or virtues. I've decided on giving characters points if they consistently act in the same way(as in even if actiona themselves isn't big deal, if they consistently act prideful, I will add pride points), though only until first point. If they consistently act the same way, but won't ever do anything greatly sinful, I'll keep them at 1 point. I also am thinking of giving them some starting points based on character backstory and description of how they behave. Also I'm considering Apathy as part of Sloth in the "Doesn't bother to care" way, since that adds more opportunities than if I counted only moments of characters being plain lazy. Any advice on how to handle this? I kinda feel like I'm not sure what I'm doing in regard of this subject :'D
Also, have to check on Thassilonian specialists. Mechanically I don't remember sin points having effect on that, but storywise they do draw powers from sins/virtues? Just checking I have understood right how thassilonian magic works.
So all contact being lost with Grubber's hermitage, is that reference to events from Shadows under sandpoint, does one of Paizo's adventure's go there or is it just adventure hook without canon answer for what is happening?
So Swallowtail Release/Festival takes place in Rova that is equivalent of September? Does it snow in Varisia when they reach winter?
And finally(for this post :D), is it possible to repair Hellfire Flume? I'd guess not since its not anywhere close to its original height, but power source IS nearby, whatever that does.
It sounds like you're doing a pretty good job handing out those points already; I'd keep going like you are. Maybe ask the players what THEY think their characters should be doing, out of character, to see what they're hoping to achieve in their RP?
Thassilonian magic does not draw power from sins or virtues. It's thematically associated with sins, but not mechanically tied to it. There are other things, like runeforged weapons, that do though.
Grubber's Hermitage is indeed a story element that plays into Shadows Under Sandpoint. There's no in-print information about it yet, but I did run a Paizocon game about it a few years back.
Anything is possible, including the repair of a Hellfire Flume. The setting has giant flying dragons and wishes and teleportaiton and so much more; there's plenty of room for a story about the repair or rebuilding of an ancient artifact.
|
|
I'm running for the developers is a Pathfinder version of Temple of Elemental Evil; it's going strong, with the next session happening tomorrow night (they're now exploring level 3 of the temple dungeons).
James I have been meaning to ask you about this game after the Holiday and Fallout 4 break.
Who are your stand ins for Iuz and Lolth in your campaign? I believe you said Zuggtmoy is actually part of this campaign, how is she related or associated to Cyth-V'sug?
Any memorable things that have happened since the players encountered the demon and burned through their Plot Twist cards?
Have the players taken advantage of the seven separate factions within the Temple?
Any memorable players deaths or "Ahhhh" mistakes?
Have they encountered sleeping Prince Thormmel and Answerer?
|
|
Huh, wouldn't that be rather suspicious if I did ask them personality test questions? (though I guess revealing that tracker exists but not what for it is would be kinda fun in a way :D) Or you meant asking it discreetly like "What are you intending?" in response to what characters do?
Ah, remembered a question I forgot to ask in last batch of questions: So umm, how would you stat Aldern Foxglove's menservants on boar hunting trip? I kinda rolled whether they would get the 20% random encounter on return trip after the boar and I did roll under 20, and they might or might not need help with result I got from table :'D
Also, do you use Critical Hit & Fumble Decks in your campaigns?
Hey James,
I was wondering what your thoughts are on a Paladin spuring his mount? I get that sometimes it is needed, but shouldn't it be something that is only done when needed? In other words, not every round.
As an aside, thanks for your help earlier with the player who wanted to be a Paladin of Desna. We scrapped that entirely and he's settled on a Warpriest (Divine Commander) which fits a lot better.
|
Creative Director
|
I'm running for the developers is a Pathfinder version of Temple of Elemental Evil; it's going strong, with the next session happening tomorrow night (they're now exploring level 3 of the temple dungeons).James I have been meaning to ask you about this game after the Holiday and Fallout 4 break.
Spoiler:Who are your stand ins for Iuz and Lolth in your campaign? I believe you said Zuggtmoy is actually part of this campaign, how is she related or associated to Cyth-V'sug?Any memorable things that have happened since the players encountered the demon and burned through their Plot Twist cards?
Have the players taken advantage of the seven separate factions within the Temple?
Any memorable players deaths or "Ahhhh" mistakes?
Have they encountered sleeping Prince Thormmel and Answerer?
Answers!
There was a memorable scene with a filth-filled room with an otyugh, with a rat swarm attacking and one of them trying to run down John's character's throat and throwing up down his throat when he tried to bite it and a long complex battle against the fire temple cultists that spilled over into a salamander infested fire temple and lots of fear about the juggernaut room. They're down on the 3rd level now, and just recently dealt with the groaning spirit that nearly killed 3 people in the party but a swath of plot twist cards save the day there.
They just realized two sessions ago that there are bickering factions, but so far haven't taken any of the factions up on offers to "team up" or help out. They're adopting a "all cultists must perish" approach so far.
No deaths yet. Turns out, having up to 9 players at the table and making heavy use of plot twist cards helps to keep PCs alive. Also turns out, I don't enjoy games where there's lots of player death, and tend to run things challenging but not unfairly deadly, and in fact deliberately hand out lots of plot twist cards to give the players some control over the randomness that can result in PC death.
Nope; not yet. They've heard he's gone missing in the region but that was like a year ago so I'm not sure they remember... unless they remember because they know the adventure, of course.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Huh, wouldn't that be rather suspicious if I did ask them personality test questions? (though I guess revealing that tracker exists but not what for it is would be kinda fun in a way :D) Or you meant asking it discreetly like "What are you intending?" in response to what characters do?
Ah, remembered a question I forgot to ask in last batch of questions: So umm, how would you stat Aldern Foxglove's menservants on boar hunting trip? I kinda rolled whether they would get the 20% random encounter on return trip after the boar and I did roll under 20, and they might or might not need help with result I got from table :'D
Also, do you use Critical Hit & Fumble Decks in your campaigns?
There's nothing about the sin point mechanic that says "You must hide this mechanic and its existence from the players." In fact, if the players get the idea that you ARE tracking certain choices and that their actions ARE going to matter later on, that makes them actually consider and think about certain actions in game that maybe they wouldn't think about. If I were running Runeforge, I'd even keep track of their points publicly so that each player could see where they stand, with the understanding that if they try to game the system too much to gain too many points they'd end up with gluttony or greed points (whichever one they would rather not collect). Each table varies, but completely hiding the fact from the PCs that their RP actions don't carry repercussions is not really the point of this system.
I'd just use a 1st level human expert for his servants, using the Apprentice Jeweler stats from NPC Codex, page 260, but instead of craft jewelry they'd have Profession (servant) or whatever.
I used to use the critical hit deck but gave up on it because it was kinda cluttering up my game play style. I've never used the fumble deck, and think fumbles are a terrible idea for any RPG. They are simply NOT fun.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Hey James,
I was wondering what your thoughts are on a Paladin spuring his mount? I get that sometimes it is needed, but shouldn't it be something that is only done when needed? In other words, not every round.
As an aside, thanks for your help earlier with the player who wanted to be a Paladin of Desna. We scrapped that entirely and he's settled on a Warpriest (Divine Commander) which fits a lot better.
Spurring a mount is part of what riding is about. You can also hurt a mount by abusing it by whipping it or starving it or forcing it to work to exhaustion or making it fight in combat. It's the INTENTION that matters. If the paladin is spurring the mount because he enjoys the sweet, sweet feel of his spurs penetrating the flank of his obedient steed, or because he's too proud to admit that he's losing a race and wants a final desperate gasp at a chance to win, or because he hates his mount, then that is the path to losing paladinhood. Intention is what matters, not the act. As far as I know, there's no mechanic for spurs or tracking spur damage or effects in the game, so it's a topic that I think is best left ignored in the game for sake of not cluttering up game play.
Excellent choice on the warpriest! Glad I could help!
|
Creative Director
|
What style do monks (as in the class) wear in Cheliax and Isger (since Isger's a prime recruiting ground for the Sisters of the Golden Erinyes)? Are their robes more Vudran or Tian in style? If Tian, do they prefer Tian-Min styles? Tian-Shu? Whose monastic traditions inspired Chelix/Isger the most?
Monk styles are determined by their orders, not the nation they live in. A monk of the Golden Erinyes would dress like a monk of the Golden Erinyes regardless of where she lived.
I apologize if this has been asked, or if it's "above your pay grade," so to speak.
One of the most iconic entities in previous d20 systems is a lich of great power. Over the years, players got to watch the lich grow, until at the time of Pathfinder's inception he was a fully fledged deity. That same setting provides a different version of PF's Asmodeus.
Innumerable gamers were fond of the lich's progression, myself included. His ultimate goal, IIRC, was to reshape existence to his own liking, a goal shared with today's Asmodeus.
The brief bit of lore I've found shows that the Church of Asmodeus holds him as one of the chief creator deities. Would it be a stretch to say that, inspired by the rise of the lich of old, the designers of PF's deities took hold of the idea and transformed the Lord of Hell into a unique version of the lich, who successfully (to a degree) reached his goal and remade the universe to his liking?
|
Creative Director
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
Hey James, the Smiad discussion has me curious..
I understand everything Paizo does is a part of a long, organised schedule, but have you guys ever written more about a subject thanks to popularity / fan reaction?
You know, a sort of "the kids want more Smiad! Put it in a book!" situation.
Yes. Quite often.
Kingmaker, for example, came about originally because we'd heard a lot of folks requesting a sandbox campaign or complaining that our adventure paths were too "railroady" and that they were too set on a specific path (hence the fact we call them Adventure PATHS, but whatever). The fact that folks have since complained that Kingmaker's story is meandering or doesn't focus on a long buildup toward a single foe is something I sort of expected, but was still amused by...
Mythic was the result of folks asking for something to do beyond 20th level.
Wardens of the Reborn Forge was the result of folks wanting more info about Alkenstar.
Legacy of Dragons is the result of folks asking for more dragon options for their characters.
Pathfinder Unchained was in part the result of folks complaining about rogues and monks.
Etc.
We do listen to what folks ask for and want, but generally use that information to inform our plans for the future rather than just take a single idea and run with it.
As for Smiad... the previous post was the first I'd heard anyone asking for more about that one, and in fact was the first I'd heard the name entirely. It's a super obscure part of the setting at this point and there's a LOT more in line before that to cover, but absolutely if momentum builds for Smiad lore, then the chances of us doing more Smiad stuff increases.
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I apologize if this has been asked, or if it's "above your pay grade," so to speak.
One of the most iconic entities in previous d20 systems is a lich of great power. Over the years, players got to watch the lich grow, until at the time of Pathfinder's inception he was a fully fledged deity. That same setting provides a different version of PF's Asmodeus.
Innumerable gamers were fond of the lich's progression, myself included. His ultimate goal, IIRC, was to reshape existence to his own liking, a goal shared with today's Asmodeus.
The brief bit of lore I've found shows that the Church of Asmodeus holds him as one of the chief creator deities. Would it be a stretch to say that, inspired by the rise of the lich of old, the designers of PF's deities took hold of the idea and transformed the Lord of Hell into a unique version of the lich, who successfully (to a degree) reached his goal and remade the universe to his liking?
You're talking about Vecna, yes? (We can talk about D&D characters here, no fears!)
In any event, Vecna didn't really inspire Asmodeus at all. The inspiration we've used for our Asmodeus is one part D&D's Asmodeus, one part real-world mythologies about the devil, one part pop-culture lore about the devil, and one part our own spin.
We do have our own homage to Vecna in the game: Tar-Baphon, the Whispering Tyrant.
You're talking about Vecna, yes? (We can talk about D&D characters here, no fears!)
In any event, Vecna didn't really inspire Asmodeus at all. The inspiration we've used for our Asmodeus is one part D&D's Asmodeus, one part real-world mythologies about the devil, one part pop-culture lore about the devil, and one part our own spin.
We do have our own homage to Vecna in the game: Tar-Baphon, the Whispering Tyrant.
Not trying to avoid D&D names would have made that post half as long!
Yes, I did mean Vecna, and I did draw the clear parallels between the two liches. I am a fan of T-B, too, but his story doesn't go back 40 years.
And I figured it was just a flight of fancy on my part, but it was a fun bit of theorizing! The "Serpent" giving Vecna power was Asmodeus all along; his "secret" was knowing this. Looking at Golarion as the newest edition of the multiverse puts Vecna as finally successful, until Asmodeus goes "Nah man, I never promised to take you with me" as he poofs creation into existence.
Thanks!
|
Creative Director
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
You're talking about Vecna, yes? (We can talk about D&D characters here, no fears!)
In any event, Vecna didn't really inspire Asmodeus at all. The inspiration we've used for our Asmodeus is one part D&D's Asmodeus, one part real-world mythologies about the devil, one part pop-culture lore about the devil, and one part our own spin.
We do have our own homage to Vecna in the game: Tar-Baphon, the Whispering Tyrant.
Not trying to avoid D&D names would have made that post half as long!
Yes, I did mean Vecna, and I did draw the clear parallels between the two liches. I am a fan of T-B, too, but his story doesn't go back 40 years.
And I figured it was just a flight of fancy on my part, but it was a fun bit of theorizing! The "Serpent" giving Vecna power was Asmodeus all along; his "secret" was knowing this. Looking at Golarion as the newest edition of the multiverse puts Vecna as finally successful, until Asmodeus goes "Nah man, I never promised to take you with me" as he poofs creation into existence.
Thanks!
Vecna's didn't go back 40 years 30 years ago either. Give Tar-Baphon time. He'll get there! ;-)
|
Hey James, the Smiad discussion has me curious..
I understand everything Paizo does is a part of a long, organised schedule, but have you guys ever written more about a subject thanks to popularity / fan reaction?
You know, a sort of "the kids want more Smiad! Put it in a book!" situation.
Yes. Quite often.
Kingmaker, for example, came about originally because we'd heard a lot of folks requesting a sandbox campaign or complaining that our adventure paths were too "railroady" and that they were too set on a specific path (hence the fact we call them Adventure PATHS, but whatever). The fact that folks have since complained that Kingmaker's story is meandering or doesn't focus on a long buildup toward a single foe is something I sort of expected, but was still amused by...
Mythic was the result of folks asking for something to do beyond 20th level.
Wardens of the Reborn Forge was the result of folks wanting more info about Alkenstar.
Legacy of Dragons is the result of folks asking for more dragon options for their characters.
Pathfinder Unchained was in part the result of folks complaining about rogues and monks.
Etc.
We do listen to what folks ask for and want, but generally use that information to inform our plans for the future rather than just take a single idea and run with it.
As for Smiad... the previous post was the first I'd heard anyone asking for more about that one, and in fact was the first I'd heard the name entirely. It's a super obscure part of the setting at this point and there's a LOT more in line before that to cover, but absolutely if momentum builds for Smiad lore, then the chances of us doing more Smiad stuff increases.
Well then, if you ever do a "monk sourcebook" or something of the like, I'd really want to see the Kusari Gama faction mentioned again, or expanded on a bit :P
Speaking of, is the Kusari Gama composed entirely of monks? Or are there other martial classes and magic users amidst their ranks?
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
As a general rule, there are not a lot of Thassilonian specialists active in the world today, and those who are active are mostly ancient undead leftovers waiting to fight the PCs in forgotten Thassilonian ruins.
"Are the PC's here yet?"
"No."
"Are the PC's here yet?"
"No."
"Are the PC's here yet?"
"No!"