If I remember right the Adventure Paths are built around a 20-point buy. Not 100% sure, but it's what I have worked with and feels very balanced with a four person party. No need to adjust encounters.
CotCT was written for 3.5 D&D.
I'm assuming you'll be playing Pathfinder. Bear in mind that characters in PF are more powerful and have a wider breadth of abilities than 3.5 characters. I feel that even with 15-pt-buy PF characters, the 3.5 APs can be on the easy side.
If you make a mistake and need to correct mid-campaign, remember it's always easier to power players up, rather than down.
Hope that was helpful.
Hey Guys,
This is my first post so forgive me if this has already been addressed.
I am a new GM about to run Curse of the Crimson Throne. Is there a recommended amount of points (high fantasy, etc.) that I should let my PCs have to generate their characters with point buy? What works best with the published adventure paths in general?
Thanks!
If you run that AP with pathfinder characters it will be easier than expected. Some of the NPC's have been converted by PFSRD.com.
Most AP's are assuming a 15 point buy, but making it 20 might not be a bad idea depending on how good your group is.
I did just notice one more wrinkle. It looks like CotCT references monsters in the Monster Manual which I do not own, rather than the beastiary which I do own. If I use similar monsters from the beastiary won't they be stronger than what is in the MM?
Yeah, it was written for 3.5 D&D rather than Pathfinder. You can find most of those statblocks at d20srd.com still. Check in the CotCT section and see if anyone has done any conversions like they did for Rise of the Runelords.
Sometime last year, I began starting all my games with 15 point buy. I can use Pathfinder adventures right out of the book without having to make the monsters stronger. This saves me a boatload of time, which I can spend either reading the adventure or brainstorming new ways to involve the PCs in more roleplaying -- all wins in my book.
I'm GMing Legacy of Fire using conversions to Pathfinder for six PCs. I used 12 point buy. I adjust numbers of mooks to account for the six PCs (if all are present).
I'm keeping an eye on the PCs success. Like a poster above said, it's always easier to pump up the PCs than to deflate them.
You might want to look through the CotCT forum and see if anyone has converted the AP to Pathfinder RPG.
I did a quick scan of the threads in that forum and found at least one claiming to have converted all six.
Here's the thread:
Conversion thread
The OP has links to his conversions. It may be helpful, may not. But it's a start.