Enemies of the Society


Pathfinder Society

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5/5

I spent some time GMing some of season 4's scenarios this weekend for a lot of new-to-PFS players and found myself describing the theme(s) of this season to set the tone for their adventures in Varisia. I spent a fair bit of time describing the common "problems" PFS agents encounter. It all got me thinking about where we've been and what's next. On that note, I wanted to open a discussion about typical Golarion bad guys and how they've fit with PFS organized play. Bare with me, but ultimately, I'm looking for feedback on the types of enemies you most enjoy.

1) Dragons - There are approximately 4 scenarios that feature dragons to date (if you include RftRK Pt 2). These are perhaps the most iconic of enemies, but also one of the most rare. Should dragons be more frequent? Less frequent? Perhaps a large arc dealing with them (either directly or indirectly).

2) Goblins - These little boogers have been everywhere. How's the mix been? Who wants MOAR goblin madness? Anyone actually sick of these guys?

3) Orcs - Can their only place in PFS really be Echoes of the Everwar Part 1? Where else have these guys been? For such a classic monster, they should don't show up much (unless they're cross-bred).

4) Drow - I think these iconic foes have only been featured in a single scenario thus far. I think they suffer from a mainstream burn-out (Drizz't et al.) I know a lot of people love them and a lot of people love to hate them with equal passion. Thoughts?

5) Dinosaurs - They've made an appearance a few times, but never in any force. What say you, should we have more focus on our prehistoric cave-woman stealing enemies?

6) Undead - It seems like one out of every four scenarios includes something that's undead. That's why favored enemy: undead is probably one of the top 3 favored enemy choices (human, evil outsiders). Anyone getting tired of chopping up dead things? Anyone want more dead things? Perhaps there should be more to coincide with the ever growing zombie popularity in mainstream society?

7) Swarms - Right up there with undead. Every seasoned Pathfinder knows to keep a vial of alchemist's fire or acid handy for these buggers. heh. Buggers. Overdone? Anyone want an all swarm scenario? I kid, I kid!

8) Outsiders - Outsiders have been included here and there, but never really en masse or with any real lengthy purpose. Most of the time the Society is dealing with more terrestrial threats. Perhaps Season 4 is different (the whole Lissala stuff), but assuming it's not, what say you about dealing with an Outsider-based threat?

9) Humanoid NPCs - These guys give the biggest variety of foes and often the smartest foes with the most complicated plots. However, sometimes you just want to bash the face in on some freakish monster, you know? Tired of humanoids? Sick of humanoid organizations (Aspis for example)?

What am I missing? Which of the above did my brain not recollect properly?

Grand Lodge 1/5

Abberations get a fair amount of play.

I would like to see more Orc and Hobgoblin foes that said? Those guys are pretty warlike and the PFS do not normally send Pathfinders into a war zone (though that sounds like a fantastic scenario right there).

5/5

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My opinion ...

Swarms are overdone ... same as skeletons, skeletons zombies, ghast, ghouls, simply overdone. If even a 1st level never played character knows to spend starter money on alchemists fire ... time for a new tactic

Dragons -- yes please ... it's something that we haven't seen a lot of, that adds some interesting twists to higher levels and can be a great leveling field for all the over-optimized characters that are out there.

Drow -- They have been underrepresented in society play ... one of my favorite scenarios is drow of the darklands pyramid .. because they are something different and something that you only see with that one scenario.

Orcs -- they fall in the same line as humans.. you've seen one you've seen them all... but they haven't been in that many scenarios so let's bring a few more of them into scenarios.

Dinosaurs -- let's have an all dinosaur scenario.. that could be interesting, but yes ... they are sparse and generally as an AC

so yeah....

Sczarni 5/5

I'd add haunts, even though they are technically undead. They just slow things down.

5/5

I guess I equate a haunt more to a trap, rather than an enemy.

4/5 **

Dragons - There's a red one on the front cover of the manual and they are iconic on the same scale as underground complexes are. Plus like the aboleth, they seem to know everything...

Goblins - They've been iconic to pathfinder since RotRL and make for great psychotic comic relief.

Orcs - More orcs. No question. Played against type would be awesome. There has to be a lost dwarven sky citadel arc in there somewhere...

Dinosaurs - Why not?

Undead - Ranger second favored enemy choice in PFS play. There's enough of a variety and you have absolutely no moral qualms about beating the bejesus from them.

Swarms are annoying and mostly ineffective these days with an optimistised party. Kyle's right, everyone's ready for them these days.

Outsiders make for variety and mostly players aren't as ready for them, mostly because they're no where near as prevalent as humanoids and un-dead.

Humanoids make sense in the way the PFS campaign has been established. Number 1 favored enemy for an optimized ranger would be human. Where are the shorties though?

Grand Lodge 5/5

Personally I'm a big fan of the sort of mixed nature of bad guys. However, I do think there needs to be a bit more consistency within a module and especially with in an arc.

5/5

Daniel Flood wrote:
There has to be a lost dwarven sky citadel arc in there somewhere.

That would be awesome!

5/5

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i agree that undead are probably the most common enemy in the campaign, up there with humans. though i think that's actually somewhat fitting for an organization that deals in antiquities and such. that being said, it would be nice to see the undead downplayed for a while, but be really impressive and unique when they are there.

drow are generally a popular, if not controversial, enemy, though it doesn't feel to me that there would be a lot of story opportunity for Society vs. Drow conflict, as their goals aren't generally in enough opposition to make for more than a few compelling scenarios here and there. i don't mind not having seen them much.

orcs (and hobs, and even gnolls for that matter) are another class of iconic enemy that i think we could see more of, at least in greater numbers. goblins seem to tend to fill the role of "evil humanoid" more often than not.

dinosaurs... well, dinosaurs are cool. but if you're going to doing a dinosaur scenario, it's pretty hard to work in just a single dinosaur encounter. and you've got about two sensible locations that that sort of scenario could take place in. it would be nice to see, but once it's been done, it would be hard to do without it being "oh, this is just like that other scenario."

i think the dragon rarity is about right. yes, they're the most iconic foe (i mean, it's in the name of the original game), but one of the reasons that they're so iconic is their rarity. i think an average of one dragon sighting a season is pretty good.

i gotta say, i'm a fan of swarms. they're most useful as additions to encounters, and not just encounters by themselves, imho (just like traps and haunts). keep the swarms coming, i say. i'll help kyle write the all swarm scenario.

Shadow Lodge 4/5 5/55/5

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1) Dragons - Dragon opponents should remain rare, IMO. And each encounter with one should be memorable and very, very dangerous.

2) Goblins - Goblins get everywhere. They're more like germs than sentient beings and should be treated as such.

3) Orcs - Yes, we need more orcs. They're conspicuously absent so some serious inclusion at some point would be nice. Encounters with them at low levels can be dangerous because they can put out a lot of damage. They're under-represented as higher level minions as well.

4) Drow - I'm ambivalent. If they're introduced more often, then their flavour should be focused each time. Drow shouldn't become a substitute for <insert random monstrous humanoid>. Encounters with them should remain dangerous.

5) Dinosaurs - I prefer them to remain rare unless the scenario is set in an untouched, isolated place: the middle of vast jungles, lost valleys, and so on.

6) Undead - Undead are common but that's a result of Pathfinders continually breaking into ancient crypts and so on, and the fact that undead, along with constructs, are suitable very long term guardians for ancient items/artifacts. Probably can't get around that and it's a result of the set-up of the focus of the Society.

7) Swarms - Yes, they've been done quite a lot but I think the commonness of monsters faced in scenarios should represent their commonness (to a certain degree) on Golarion. I have no problem with swarms per se, but swarms of different types should be used.

8) Outsiders - I like Outsiders but, like drow, their flavour needs to be a focus as well as their effects on the environment around them, including the attitudes and behaviours of the people that they interact with. I don't like it particularly when they're treated like minions, or just summoned in as roadblocks.

9) Humanoid NPCs - Should remain the most common type of enemy IMO, and enhanced by the multitude of flavourful opposing organisations and religions on Golarion.

4/5

1)I think they are great if you can put them in a high enough tier to be able to play them really smart.
2)There is no such thing as too many goblins. :)
3)I think orcs can be a bit boring, but I would love some more humanoid tribes. I am a huge fan of gnolls and lizardfolk.
4)Yes. But keep them in the high tier where they can be really sneaky.
5)Who doesn't like Dinosaurs.
6)I like undead, but it may be a bit too common, so people are overprepared for them. Perhaps some human cannibals that appear to be ghouls but are still humans.
7)I agree the swarms are overdone. I am fond of them being a challenge, but it seems that they are either trivial if you have AOE, or totally derail an adventure if you don't.
8)I think it is a good mix
9)I well played and designed villain is always unique, so I think you can't ever over play these.

One suggestion: One of the best low level adventures I ever played, most of the opponents were normal animals (deer, beavers, house cats, etc.) that were possessed. It was neat to fight a bunch of creatures I had never look at that way before.

3/5

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Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber

A villain is merely as compelling as his story. Certain monsters, like Zombies and swarms, really don't have a story and are only interesting as they pertain to the challenge of overcoming them in miniatures tactics. So, in that regard, I can see swarms as being overdone.

However I would hate to discuss scenarios where we can have individualized villains, be it Orc, Vampire, Lich, Drow, etc. as being on lump category. So I could see discussing the frequency of mindless undead, but not of intelligent undead. If the particular Special Qualities and Immunities that a given stat block designation such as Drow or Undead really become of paramount importance, then I think the focus has drifted too far off of the story, which I tend to worry about in PFS games anyway.

Grand Lodge 4/5

Worn out their welcome:

Swarms- Do I even need to explain why?

Undead- I've GMed more zombies, skeletons and ghouls than I care to count.

Haunts- Too often misused as simple spell traps.

Humans with class levels- I know Golarion is a human-centric world so they're not going to go away completely, but where are the other core races in the memberships of the Aspis Consortium and other enemy organizations?

Underused:

Dragons- An iconic enemy... that never seems to show up.

Dinosaurs and megafauna- I can only think of one scenario they've been in. Need more love.

Lycanthropes- Like dragons, iconic enemies that never seem to show.

Fey- Have these appeared at all except in Tide of Morning/Twilight?

Undecided:

Outsiders- Tend to have a lot of screw-yous in the form of immunities and DR/alignment.

Drow- Should stay in the Darklands... why aren't more Pathfinders sent into the Darklands?

Orcs- Another iconic monster, but could well fall into the same trap as humans with class levels.

Goblins- They were boring as generic minions of the Shadow Lodge in season 2. Seasons 3 and 4 seem to have redeemed them by giving them more personality.

5/5 **** Venture-Captain, Massachusetts—Central & West

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Honestly, I like aberrations and animals as enemies. Nothing like beating a large freak-of-nature in combat. These, however, present a big problem for society play, as the 4-hour scenarios are trying to tell a story. Animals as opponents usually do little to help advance a plot, unless they were, as an example, sent to kill by someone else.

1) Dragons, they are few, in PFS, and I think they should probably stay that way. When a dragon pops up, there is a palpable excitement at the table to see a fabled dragon on the other side of the mat.

2) As for Goblins, people should appreciate their presence. Either people love them or they love to hate them. And nothing brings out the roleplay like an antagonistic goblin, especially when you're forced to deal with them in a peaceful manner. However, we've had about 4 scenarios now with that concept, so it may be a little bit overdone.

3) Orcs aren't that special to me. They seem like any other barbarous humanoid, be it troglogdytes or whatever else. I could appreciate seeing more of them, but not needed for my experience to feel complete.

4) Another fairly rare creature that I'd, personally, like to stay that way. However, there is more room for drow to show up in PFS play. Maybe a minor 3 scenario subplot sometime would be good.

5) Sure, we could use more dinosaurs, but as said above, they will be hard to use to appease both the combat fanatics and those who love solidly moving plot.

6) As a player with a Necromancer Wizard, I love seeing undead, as they'll usually wind up doing my dirty work. However, I think we could stand to lay off just a bit.

7) Overdone, but they do help people keep on their toes when preparing for missions. I can think of a scenario where effectively dealing with a swarm had us in quite the quandary even though we had the means.

8) As you've said, it is pretty rare that the Society has reason to be dealing with Outsiders, but I could stand to see them. I'm fine with their appearance as long as it's not the same usual 4 or 5 types that have shown up so far:

Frequent Outsider Types:
Rakshasa, Erinyes, Barbed Devil, Elementals, Imps

9) I agree with the importance and ease of story moving aspects with humanoids. They usually speak the same language as Pathfinders, and can come up with complex plots. I wish there were a few more organizations to deal with instead of just the Aspis Consortium. Back in earlier seasons, when the Shadow Lodge was antagonistic, it seemed as though the Pathfinder Society was under fire from every angle. I do realize that with humanoids, it allows for more PC-NPC interaction as far as social skills goes, so I can see them having a big role.

Scarab Sages 4/5

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I've only been involved with PFS for about a year now, and have just gotten to see some of these baddies come up.

1 - One "tiny" dragon in a room that could have been by-based is all I have seen of them. So more dragons? Yes please.

2 - Goblins I feel have had a balanced spread of interaction and recently getting to run an adventure with a goblin that had Bard levels was pretty brilliant.

3 - Have yet to see an Orc on either side of the screen. More Please.

4 - Same with Drow. More please.

5 - Im prepping a game for Thursday with my first look at Dinos, being as most of what I have run is low - mid tier stuff, I'm glad there wasn't much. But I hope to see some at higher levels when they can truly be threatening.

6 - Undead have a place everywhere at all levels imo, I would encourage more class level CR bumps instead of 6-8 fodder mobs.

7 - Although I personally do not like swarms, I havnt seen an overwhelming use of them either. And it is a great tool to make players spend resources. And those purchases have lead to some creative uses too.

8 - I would like to see more terrestrial outsiders, tie them in with some of the current lore in place, and please send us off to investigate!

9 - Golarion being humanoid dominant, it only makes sense that this is our largest volume of threats. However, I would like to see us actually put an end to larger organizational threats. Its great to have a recurring thorn in our side, but eventually, we need to stomp a mud-hole in someone like the Aspis so there is room for a NEW recurring pita.

Dark Archive 4/5

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I can find any monster interesting if it makes sense for why it is there. Essentially I have an issue with Gotcha Monsters. I define a Gotcha Monster as one chosen for an ability to hamper or take out the party, not because it is flavorful or a particularly interesting threat.

Here are things I think are overused:

1. Darkness at low levels as a cheap Greater Invis (Dark Stalkers, Derro, etc)
2. Black Tentacles. This has been in most of the latest scenarios. We get it. Stop that. Be creative people. Boneshatter waves of Fatigue me or some other good combo.
3. Harpies. These annoy me, I think the Captivating Lure is massively overused, and Most Harpies 'happen to be in location X' without any real justification. They are mainly used as tough or dangerous opponents not because they *should* be there.
4. Wait for the rise of the Catoblepas. This Monster is going to pop up!

I am also sick of the Aspis Consortium. They are essentially like a rubbish 'Spectre' from James Bond - always around somehow, but for some reason aren't actually competent. At least Spectre got the job done sometimes! The Aspis Consortium/Human organisations have a lot of potential, but their in-game abilities and competence are often not matching their out of game ability to seemingly rock up everywhere the Pathfinders happen to be.

The Aspis Consortium needs an 'Empire Strikes Back' module for me to take them seriously again.

I am not sick of Haunts when used correctly. Haunting of Hinojai - these were awesome! But in some Mods they are clearly just traps that are designed to be difficult to notice. When the Haunt is part of the story or plot exposition, it is cool. I am not in the Haunts are bad camp, I am in the Haunts aren't being used properly camp.

Monsters I really like/would like to see more of:

1. Lissala Cult has a LOT of opportunities. As long as they aren't overusing Black Tentacles, they could be really cool.
2. Giants. We are in Varisia, organised impressive Giants are cool, iconic, and if built right deadly for normal reasons.
3. Organised Devils. Devils are thinkers and Strategists. These guys could be part of more plots.

I really like an organised and consistent Baddy. For example, a Mod in Orc lands where every monster is an ORc or Orc realted beast? AWESOME.

I really appreciate the Lissala angle Mike et Al are taking.. I think if executed nicely, and as long as Lissala doesn't jsut use gotcha monsters, but thematic stuff for the Cult, it could work really well.

My favorite monsters:

1. Human Organisations whose competence match their flavour as being deadly: For Example, Skinsaw Cultists are cool. Statswise in mods they almost always suck. (The Cult of the Ebon Destroyers is a great example of this, a death cult that can actually kill people, refreshing)

2. Giants. Rise of the Runelords sold me on this. They are always fun.

3. Undead as LONG as they are there as part of the flavour of the mod. (Everyone remember a certain Opera House? or the Haunting of Hinjai? both were excellent examples)

4. Wacky Stuff when Wacky stuff is called for. E.g: King Xeros

5. REGIONALLY APPROPRIATE STUFF. Midnight Mirror anyone? Cult of the Ebon Destroyers anyone? Having Monsters that match the region is awesome.

5. Fey that have the real oldschool dark scary Fey flavour. Faire Dragons and Pixies etc annoy me. I want more Skinstealers and Redcaps and real old fashioned Brothers Grimm Fey. (Or even just the Grimm TV series lol)

6. Orcs and Hobgoblins can be awesome. I loved the Red Hand of Doom. But they need to be more than just a bit player and actually ahve the WHOLE mod about them, not just be there for funsies.

Liberty's Edge 5/5

1) Dragons, I believe, should be iconic and only show up rarely. That being said, one a season should be mandatory. However, if we are going to do dragons, then do them right. Make sure they have tactics and environment that make them truly deadly. Although I suppose regardless of how advantageous an author makes things for a Dragon, you'll have a softball GM out there who lets the PCs stomp all over one.

2)Never get sick of killing goblins. They often present some of the most fun and interesting roleplaying in PFS. From We Be Goblins to Frostfur Captives to Rise of the Goblin Guild, these guys are fun, fun, fun! As long as we don't end up with 20 Goblin scenarios, I think one or two a season should be mandatory.

3)Orcs: Meh. I could give or take them. If they are presented in an interesting way (more like Klingons with a dangerous and deadly ancestry than idiot barbaric neanderthals), a very epic story could be realized. But if you just have a scenario with standard Orcs, you could put in any humanoid and get the same result. I think this is why I'm Meh on orcs. Because if you don't do them epic, they are boring.

4)Drow: I'm ok with there only being one scenario with them. I burnt out of them being the evil nasties when just about every module written since they existed had to have them somewhere it seemed. And anytime you give them a spotlight, the Drizzt fanboys(girls) are going to come out and complain about why they can't be a half-drow all over again. And that argument should never unlive again. I suppose I'm kinda with these guys like Orcs. If you do them right, and really make them dastardly and truly, epically, evil, it could make for a very harrowing scenario. But its gotta be a tier 7-11 with perhaps campaign shaking implications.

5) Dinosaurs: Yes Please! I really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really want a real scenario in the Realm of the Mammoth Lords (Shades of Ice Part III doesn't count).

6) Undead: Lazy choice. I'm about tired of 3-ghoul encounters too. Unless they thematically fit the scenario (Among the... and Decline of Glory), Undead should be used sparingly. I'd love to see a Lich or Vampire in a 7-11 though. One scenario I felt "undead" really worked well in when they weren't really expected was The Pallid Plague.

7)Swarms: Way overused, especially at low tiers when characters are least likely to be able to deal with them. Again, like undead, unless there is a good thematic reason (Pirates of the Perilous Pact), these should never be used again. They should never be the "random" or "mook" encounter.

8)Outsiders: This is a very broad category. Demons, Devils, Rakshasa, Elementals, et. al. I'd say that unless the theme of the scenario is revolving around taking out an outsider, or the theme of the badguy is elemental in nature, they should not be seen. Not quite to the scale of a dragon (see what I did there?), but they should be rare. Elementals should not just be throw-in creatures (like swarms). There should be a good reason (almost with Golemworks Incident--accept the "buddy" could have been anything) for an elemental to be around.

9)NPC Humanoids: Because this is a relic hunting campaign, you gotta have your evil humanoids that try to thwart you at every turn. I'd actually like to see a whole season arc centered around the Aspis Consortium (although I suppose most of the tapestry scenarios and season 4 are pretty heavy in this regard). I loved the Grippli but the Vishkanya (could have been any race and still worked) felt thrown in just because. So I guess make sure to pick the appropriate race for the theme of the scenario (Fetchlings in Penumbral Accords or Nagaji in Red Harvest) rather than just picking some new wonky race cause its "cool" (can't think of a scenario other than the Vishkanya right now).

ADDING

10) Monkeys: Gotta have more monkeys. I want to see Vanaran's get a spotlight. I want apes (Azlant Ridge anyone?!) galore! More Mists of Mwangi please! My dream would be to have a scenario with both Monkeys and Dinosaurs!

I love monkeys.

3/5

Dragons: They're probably the most under-represented creature for their iconic status. I wouldn't mind seeing them more. Even throwing a little one at the low tiers would make for some excitement.

Goblins: They are Pathfinder's iconic monster. I'm not sick of them, but I don't necessarily want to see more either.

Orcs: One scenario? Really? I'm guessing that if no one has noticed this before now, they're not particularly missed. That said, I think they do offer some potential plot hooks.

Drow: They don't occupy the same niche on Golarion that the "mainstream" seems to put them in. Like orcs, they offer some great potential plots. An up tick might be nice, but we don't need a sudden spike in drow sightings.

Dinosaurs: I don't know if it's more dinosaurs I want or just more reasons to visit the Mwangi Jungle.

Undead: While undead do seem to be in the top three most popular types of opponents, I don't necessarily mind this. At the same time, though, don't pit me against some skeletons or ghouls just because there are a few dead bodies lying around the room unless it actually makes sense to the plot.

Swarms: Everyone's favorite monsters to hate. Just the way I like it.

Outsiders: A pretty standard and versatile alternative to fighting humanoids. It might be worth exploring the idea of crossing paths with an extra-planar cabal or organization for more than a single scenario.

Humanoids: You're not going to run out of these guys to fight. They're the reason every ranger I know makes humanoid (humans) his first favored enemy. Overdone? Maybe. But that's the world we adventure in. It would be refreshing to see some non-humanoid organizations to go up against though.


1) I (sort of) wish there was a couple more dragons.
2) I find goblins fun to deal with (there was this one goblin I smacked the skull out of his hand just because he annoyed me. He was just silent towards me.)
3) I was under the opinion that Orcs are dumb, and not great at plotting. On the other hand, that's me. Other than that, kind of neutral.
4) Sometimes, I don't even know the race of things we deal with (I didn't tell the party they were dealing with uncommon races once.)
5) Would be cool to see more just on the premise on dinosaurs. But, these "modern" mother-chucking dinosaurs would steal anything (I bet goblins fear them... or not, I can't tell.)
6) Not sure on undead. Often times, it doesn't seem like there's a story behind those undead being there. And of course, depends on character (witch: How 'bout no? everyone else: *Shrug*)
7) I think the number of swarms is just fine. (Quite honestly: I REALLY need to prepare more for them.)
8) With Cheliax often being related to devils, and being a faction of the society, I'm sometimes surprised there isn't more of them.
9) Neutral on humans.

3/5

Andrew Christian wrote:

ADDING

10) Monkeys: Gotta have more monkeys. I want to see Vanaran's get a spotlight. I want apes (Azlant Ridge anyone?!) galore! More Mists of Mwangi please! My dream would be to have a scenario with both Monkeys and Dinosaurs!

I love monkeys.

Love the monkeys.

Scarab Sages 4/5

1)Dragons. No. We don't need more. Dragons are badass and rare. They should stay rare so when you come across one as pathfinder you feel like you've arrived as an adventurer....right before you put on your brown pants and wonder if who in your party will die first.

As to the rest, I don't have a strong preference. I want the enemies to strongly defined by the narrative. Give us a good reason why these monsters are in place X that makes us forget the idea of the CR.

5/5

LeDon Sweeney wrote:
1)Dragons. No. We don't need more. Dragons are badass and rare. They should stay rare so when you come across one as pathfinder you feel like you've arrived as an adventurer....right before you put on your brown pants and wonder if who in your party will die first.

Funny, I don't remember you putting on brown pants..

Silver Crusade 2/5

Orcs? Love to see more of them.

Undead? Make it memorable. A town over run by undead, a mysterious curse, a necromantic plague. Something more than "Look, zombies! Kill em!". Give them a nasty disease, something that slowly turns party members.

Dragons, meh. I can take em or leave em.

Goblins. Can we please be done with them? Or at least return them to their roots as crazy pyromaniacs? I feel like Goblins are becoming plush toys, not monsters. We've over done the "play a race against type" trope, I feel like we're starting to push into "Oh look, another good Drow Ranger on the surface..." territory.

Outsiders? I'd like to see a few more of them. A mission near the worldwound with demons (crank the creepy up!). A pathfinder goes missing with vital information, and the Society sends a team into Hell to bargain for his soul.

Drow. No.

Humanoid NPCs. I'd like more of them. Flesh out the Aspis consortium. Lets see more Elves. Make humans more interesting, lets head to Galt.

Swarms, I think they're fine the way they are used now.

Dinosaurs...we could use them, or we could leave them. I'm not crazy over them, but I know there are authors out there who could make it awesome.

Sczarni 3/5 5/55/5

Having GMed a few scenarios and actually played even fewer, I don't have any impressions of anything being overused.

I would like to see more kobolds and lizardfolk in general, to include a sparse use of dragons.

I am in favor of a good story, and thusly a supporting cast of enemies that fit the story line.

5/5

Oh yeah, kobolds. Forgot about those little guys. Trogs and Lizardfolk as well.

5/5

Dragons - They are rare and I think they should be.

Goblins - It's about right - while fun, I'd rather they not become any more common than they already are. It then gets too easy for them to become purely comical rather than the sadistic, evil creatures they are.

Orcs - It may be too late for season 4 at this point where it would make the most sense, but an Orc-focused mission like sneaking into the hold of Belkzen could be cool.

Drow - I haven't played that scenario yet. As a newcomer to RPGs I don't have any particular desire to see drow featured in a scenario but wouldn't mind it.

Dinosaurs - I could happily do without them.

Undead - Less please. It seems at least a quarter of all scenarios have some undead in them. I would be fine never seeing yet another ghoul in a scenario. Resting in peace seems nearly impossible on Golarion.

Swarms - The more recent scenarios seem to have gotten away from swarms. Having one in a scenario now and then is fine and serves as a nice reminder for parties to be ready for anything. I don't agree that every party runs around prepared for them. It is good though when alternate means of dealing with them is available, such as in a certain season 3 scenario. Having an enemy spell-caster summon an uncontrolled swarm would be interesting and isn't something I have seen.

Outsiders - It would be nice to see some outsiders that aren't automatically enemies and where it matters for the story. Having to acquire an artifact from a Mercane for example.

Humanoids - Kill 'em all. I mean, um, just the bad ones. Yeah, that's it.

Magical beasts and (to a lesser extent) monstrous humanoids - More please. There's lots of variety here that could be used to spice up scenarios.

I think the first priority in selection of potential foes should be fitting to the scenario. All too often some weird creature is put in with a strained explanation of why it's there. Second to that I would like to see increased variety in opponents. Where there is a reason for an undead, maybe it's plausible to not be the same sorts that are so common. For example, put a pack of festrogs in where skeletons or ghouls would otherwise be.

More than anything else I would like to see fewer combats that are more interesting tactically as well as meaning more to the story being told by having a bit more time to explain what's really going on. Two or three interesting combats is better than four or five dull, hack-n-slash combats. Related to that, but slightly off-topic here - give me more story hooks as a GM to explain all the great backstory written into scenarios that I so rarely have any reason to dive into at the table unless a PC asks exactly the right questions.

Silver Crusade 2/5

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Kobolds. With a scenario full of traps. Please. (Played Ogre's scenario with Kobolds. Loved it. Want more like it, but with more traps.)

Shadow Lodge 4/5 *** Venture-Captain, Michigan—Mt. Pleasant

I'd love to see some of the newer monster from bestiaries 2 & 3. Most of the people I've run for have played for years, so they know all the normal monsters. I love throwing them at monsters that they've never seen or heard of before, and watch them try to figure them out.

I've only encountered one dragon so far, though to be honest, we've been forced to keep to the low tiers for the most part. We're only starting to venture into some 7-11s. :)

Goblinoids are always fun, and orcs as well. A scenario set in Katapesh would be a great way to give some gnolls some love.

Yeah, undead are fairly common, but there are so many new types of undead in Best. 2 & 3 that I think we could lay off the skeletons and zombies for a while.

Honestly, maybe its just because I played through Second Darkness, but I'm a little sick of drow. It was played up in that AP that they were legend, so they should be very rare.

I like dinos, I have a Saurian Shaman to prove it. I'd like to see a bit more dino love too.

5/5

1) Dragons are cool and I want to see more of them. I definitely would like to see weaker ones at lower tiers as well as the really nasty ones at higher tiers. More dragons please :)

2) Goblins are fine at the frequency we usually see them I think.

3) Definitely surprised I haven't seen more orcs. They should be out there somewhere...

4) Drow. Meh. Only want to see them if they are really really nasty and evil. Otherwise, don't bother.

5) Dinosaurs. Another meh. Not really interested in these.

6) Undead. I don't mind them and it's part of the job of being a Pathfinder. I do want to see more undead with class levels though rather than lots of the same old same old.

7) Swarms. I dunno, I still see people that are unprepared for these. I prefer them in the mix in other encounters rather than being on their own.

8) Outsiders. Need one of these as the BBEG of a story arc or something. Just saying!

9) Humanoid NPCs. More please! What I really want to see more of is non-human NPCs. Tired of favored enemy human totally rocking a scenario. Would like to see dwarven, elven, gnome, halfling, tiefling, etc enemies, whether they are Aspis or acting for their own purposes. I am really liking the trend of well built NPCs, ones that can actually threaten the PCs some instead of just another 2 round combat...

Shadow Lodge 3/5

My quick vote.

1.) Dragons - More

2) Goblins - Less (Unless there gunslingers)

3) Orcs - More

4) Drow - Lame

5) Dinosaurs - We need a lost world adventure with LOTS of dinos, and/or a dinos loose in big city mod.

6) Undead - Less

7) Swarms - Unless it's an swarm based mod NO MORE SWARMS!

8) Outsiders - About the same.

9) Humanoid NPCs - Have us face some new organizations like the Church of Razamir or the Grey Gardeners.

Suggestion - Themed mods using the monsters from the Classic Monster Series.

Lantern Lodge 4/5

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I think story should drive the campaign, and hence scenarios. Then you populate the scenario with whichever creatures, be they human or otherwise, that support the story being told. While creatures of varied types are important to add interest and challenge, I think the story is the strength of PFS, and helps to differentiate it from previous organised play campaigns.

With that in mind ... scenarios involving Orcs have been extremely rare, given the popularity of half-Orc Society agents. Where are all these half-Orc members coming from? What is their story? I certainly think this is worth exploring.

Drow have a very specific background in Golarion, and shouldn't appear indiscriminately in scenarios without some serious story exploration and relevance.

Similar for Fey and their ties to the First World. Giants and their socio-ecological niche, etc.

Dragons should only appear when ecologically appropriate. The Dragon lairing on the island in the Ruby Phoenix Tournament module seemed appropriate enough, but goblins riding on dragon-back in Year of the Shadow Lodge, stretched credibility for me.

Creatures aren't summoned to provide combat challenge (well, most aren't). This is Golarion, not Pokemon - let's explore the rich history, cultures and ecology of the world.

Liberty's Edge

I'd love to see this, even think it could be an adventure path.

Kyle Baird wrote:
Daniel Flood wrote:
There has to be a lost dwarven sky citadel arc in there somewhere.
That would be awesome!

5/5 5/5 ***

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

So, in general, I think that any enemy, done right, is a good enemy. I'm seeing that opinion be repeated by a number of others here as well. The problem I see is that many scenarios have been putting in enemies that either make no sense or don't fit the plot. Sometimes this appears to be done for CR math (mites from Season 1) and other times its to put out a challenging monster for the party (harpies from every harpy encounter, swarms). Monsters that make sense where they are is more important than hitting some arbitrary quota of, "X number of undead, X number of dragons, X number of mites, and X number of harpies," in a season. That said, from a purely mechanical standpoint I feel some creatures are over or under utilized.

Overused:

1) Mites: I haven't seen them in a scenario since Season 1, and they're still too prevalent. Can we errata the existing ones out?

2) Harpies: See David's post for a more complete discussion of harpies. They amount to a 4,000 gp, "Harpy tax," on adventurers.

3) Swarms: I think swarms can be cool, but the delivery method has been rather underwhelming. Half the time they just show up in a sewer somewhere. If these are going to continue to appear, which is likely because they're very challenging for their CR, then at least deliver them in cool ways. Vomit swarm is a great way to both include swarms in a module *and* let the DM regurgitate plastic spiders onto the map to describe what the spellcaster is doing. Just sayin'.

4) Goblins: While I enjoy a good goblin scenario, I think Rise of the Goblin Guild ruined these for me. Now every time I see them, they're just campy. They need to be shelved for awhile, and I personally believe that there should be NO MORE Drizz't goblins. One is too many!

5) Drow: One drow is one drow too many.

Spoiler:
As an aside, I actually like drow. My home game was drow-heavy for about six months. It was fun and rewarding. The problem is that they never feel really well handled in Organized Play. No matter how well the author does making them well and truly evil, they always seem to come off at the table as just misunderstood. Every player has a different understanding of drow and the inherentness of their evil, and every drow-themed mod will be colored by that more than by the excellent work of the author. I believe the best use for drow is to keep 'em in home campaigns, where they belong. One token nod to them is sufficient for an Organized Play environment.

Just about right:

1) Core Rulebook races: I'm a fan of them. They fit the Pathfinder Society well and Golarion is a human-centric world. That said, more variety among them wouldn't hurt any. I've been jonesin' for a new evil dwarf ever since Obmi was turned into jelly back in 2008. Sad day for all.

2) Undead: I was tempted to put them in the Overused category, but I think the prevalence of undead generally is just about right. They're a really cool iconic enemy for the Pathfinder Society to face, and they drop well into many tomb and ruin settings. The problem, like with the Core Rulebook races, is that its always fast zombies, juju zombies, skeletons, and ghouls. What about allips, spectres, vampires, and wraiths? Or dread wraiths? I haven't seen one of those in too long. There are all kinds of cool undead enemies waiting to be explored in Society play.

3) Dragons: These should be rare, special, and deadly. I almost think these should only appear in Gen Con/PaizoCon specials or other events where PC death/TPK is acceptable. Going against a dragon should have adventurers thinking about running on their first action. They're iconic and scary for a reason.

4) Outsiders: I have only seen them at the mid-high tiers, which is appropriate, but it would be a shame if they became run-of-the-mill. I hope to see more of them as major confrontations of a scenario, especially with the cult of Lissala headlining the new season.

5) Dinosaurs: They're hard to fit somewhere. Seeing a dino-themed scenario every once and a while feels about right for these creatures.

In need of representation:

1) Constructs: Like undead, these drop nicely into many tomb settings. Plus, they're scary when they do. The challenge, I think, is the high CR relative to the level of play we see in Pathfinder. But they can be a great 5-9 or 7-11 enemy and present lots of challenges for parties that aren't well prepared.

2) Orcs, Gnolls, Hobgoblins, and Bugbears: These are a great alternative any time a scenario author is tempted to include goblins. They are warlike evil humanoids who will kill for money, great mercenaries for the Aspis Consortium or Shadow Lodge holdouts. The challenge is presenting them intelligently. Like Andy said, you have to give them character. If all they do is charge and shout, "Waagh!" then they're not interesting and you've probably stolen some intellectual property.

3) Kobolds: Trap-setting dungeon dwellers. 'Nuff said.

4) Giants and Trolls: Seeing them in Storval Stair was cool. Giants used to be an iconic D&D enemy, and a scary one. They scale nicely too, with ogres and trolls at the lower CRs, hill giants in the middle, and frost/fire giants for the very highest tiers. They're just cool, though they're tough to fit into a scenario's plot.

In the end, the most important thing with monster selection is selecting ones that fit the story. Throwing giants or trolls into a Thassilonian relic that hasn't been opened in centuries is ridiculous, and even though they're under-represented that's a bad use of the monster. But the above are my opinions on the kinds of enemies the society has faced thus far, and what we could face going forward. Your opinion may vary. Now watch while Jim Groves or Dennis Baker comes up with some awesome story about ancient giant civilizations unearthed after generations trapped beneath the ruins of Thassilon.

Good Gaming,
Ryan B.

5/5 5/5 ***

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Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Alexander_Damocles wrote:
Goblins. Can we please be done with them? Or at least return them to their roots as crazy pyromaniacs? I feel like Goblins are becoming plush toys, not monsters. We've over done the "play a race against type" trope, I feel like we're starting to push into "Oh look, another good Drow Ranger on the surface..." territory.

This. A hundred times this. I need to go and clone myself, so my clones can all second this.

EDIT: AARG! I hate double-posting. Still, worth it.

Scarab Sages 2/5

Personally, I would like to see more variety in general. Honestly, I'm a little tired of undead and swarms being everywhere. Not only are they incredibly common, they're also very annoying for certain character types to fight; anybody with mind-affecting effects is useless against undead, and anybody who focuses on single-target attacks is useless against swarms. A lot of encounters turn into "everybody stand back while the alchemist/sorcerer nukes it." It also makes it kind of discouraging to even think about playing an enchantment or illusion-focused spellcaster when you know that so many enemies in PFS scenarios will be immune to you.

We've actually got kind of a running joke in my group where several of us have tried to imagine the most annoying possible PFS encounter, and so far we've managed to come up with a fight in an underwater burning building (just pretend it makes sense) that involves undead swarms. Ideally an undead swarm that can cast Deeper Darkness.

Anyway, as for specific enemy types, I'd definitely like to see more orcs. They're an iconic fantasy bad guy and are woefully underused. I think the current level of outsiders and humanoids is about right, but I wouldn't mind more dinosaurs. More drow or dragons might be nice, but I think dragons should still be used sparingly and only as particularly significant encounters.

I haven't done any counts, but based on personal experiences it also seems like I don't see a lot of aberrations. That might just be me, though. It feels like we don't see very many different types of fey, but I suppose there aren't very many of them compared to other types. I'd also like to see a few more constructs, but not too many more -- they're another kind of enemy that make certain character types useless.

5/5

Stephen White wrote:
I think story should drive the campaign, and hence scenarios. Then you populate the scenario with whichever creatures, be they human or otherwise, that support the story being told. While creatures of varied types are important to add interest and challenge, I think the story is the strength of PFS, and helps to differentiate it from previous organised play campaigns.

I agree and I intentionally left that out of this thread. This thread is more for, "If a certain creature would make sense in this story, but could be replaced by something similar." i.e. If haunts make sense but people are tired of them, we could replace them with something else that still fits the story.

Wayfinders 5/5

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

Meh=undead, drow, goblins, orcs, swarms. All are fine, but need to fit with the story or be used in a new way to be interesting. Dont get me wrong, I love PF goblins, but I feel like they have gotten plenty of screen time.

MOAR=dragons (although they should be used sparingly to remain special), outsiders, dinos, humans (endless variety there although give me more than Aspis thugs).

Also enjoy=fey (but not mites!), yuan-ti, giants, dwarves.

And surprises. Baddies that are unexpected or 'play against type' are my favorite.

Silver Crusade 4/5

I wouldn't mind seeing a couple more Dragons. I think a nice arc for Drows would be pretty cool and would allow my Dwarf Paladin to kill some more Elves. Some incursions into the Darklands would be nice.

Grand Lodge 4/5

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We got some AWESOME organizations in the setting that would seem to clash with the Society over some mcguffin or another.

I would LOVE to see a 2 or 3 parter built around the Whispering Way in Ustalav.

5/5

I helped a new player a younger person make a ranger around 2 years ago. This was at a con, we came to Favored Enemy, I suggested undead, he selected dragon. His first scenario he every played had a Dragon. Note favored enemy human is kinda powerfull.

That one choice, his own choice probably rocked for him. I like dragons being rare. But we should have perhaps one a season, even if it a tiny baby dragon, as a pet of a VC.

So more swarms, less outsiders. More NPC's with actually names, less Aspis Unamed Thug types. Authors if you have a human with a single class level give him a name, and a unique set of stats. End rant...

Keep up the good work authors.

Scarab Sages

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

1) Dragons - I think they should be a little more common then they have been, but not overdone. Two per season sounds about right to me.

2) Goblins - There are other monsters out there, the occasional goblin encounter is okay. No more goblin-themed scenarios for a while though please.

3) Orcs - I agree that we could use more orcs, but it's easy to go overboard on them too. Using them in moderation is best.

4) Drow - I always wondered why there weren't more drow. I assumed it was due to the whole Second Darkness issue with Golarion. Drow are very cool antagonists, but just like orcs and goblins, can be overdone. The uncommon, sneaky, underhanded, drow plot is the best way to pull these off I think.

5) Dinosaurs - In my opinion, Dinosaurs are a great way to add verisimilitude to a world. I love throwing dinosaur chases at low-level parties where a T-Rex is chasing a Triceratops or something. The party never directly fights the beasts at that level, but just avoiding a dinosaur romp is cool, thematic, and fun. At higher levels they are usually pretty dramatic encounters. Dinosaurs, GO!

6) Undead - There is nothing more cliche then a zombie fight. At this point, if humanoid zombie fights become as rare as dragon fights have been in the past, I'd be okay with that. Non-humanoid zombies are much cooler, and with the variety of underused non-humanoid zombies still out there, they are still quite viable. I like incorporeal undead, and WELL-WRITTEN haunts. Even though they are used quite a bit, intelligent undead still seem pretty cool to me.

7) Swarms - These should definitely not go away. They keep groups honest, and can be dramatic fights. Used in moderation is the way to go with these as well.

8) Outsiders - Outsiders are one of the few things on this list that I think are being done just about right. They're out there, and when I see them, they make sense, but they aren't overbearing. I think development of these should stay the course they have been.

9) Humanoid NPCs - Welcome to my pet peeve. In my opinion, fantasy roleplaying is about Monsters. That's Monsters with a capital M. Having a non-combatant, humanoid PC give me a mission or a lead, or a tip, is fine. The occasional human leading a band of monsters is okay too. An entire scenario filled with all human antagonists is pure writing laziness in my opinion. If you look at the SRD, Humans are less than 0.1% of the listings. Add more of the other stuff. To clarify, I'm mainly referring to races you can play from the core rulebook. New and unusual races can be very fun.

There's my opinion on the matter. :-)

Have Fun!

Dark Archive 3/5

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I'd like to see more owlbears...personnel request honestly.

I'd like to see more scenario's facing enemies from the rich histories of the world of Golarion.

Fights that take place against creatures from the Goblinblood wars.

I'd like to see more Dragon's, more enemy creatures will spell casting abilities.

I'd like to see more scenario's with interesting terrain effects and landscape that make a normal fight more difficult...and not just taking away my 5 foot step! Things like...on a frozen lake, in a room of mirrors, set against a backdrop of magically controlled dancing short people..................................

On top of that, I want more things set in Varisia. I want that myth and lore and legend of the local folks to be what I am facing, or at least to pull the mask off of Mr. Jenkins, and roll out in my mystery machine when I am done.

You know what else I want as an enemy? Role play encounters. I want there to be a hard "You have to roleplay this appropriately or face a CR 17 creaute" encounter. I want there to be more of a threat from a role playing perspective. More talk your way through the gate keeper of treasure rather then an interrogation using a speak with dead scroll after.

On top of that? I want an enemy I see more then once. Not the shadow lodge, WHO HAVE AGENTS EVERYWHERE, not some shenanigans GMing waving saying the bad guy gets away...I want a legit evil doer who I have to try and catch in several scenario's, and if I catch him in one of them the others are my trying to stop the plans he has put into motion. I want to face professor Moriarty, and I want him to really make me choose between trying to catch him and a morale quandry he has used as a diversion tactic...think of him running one direction while an orphanage is being ravaged by thugs, or better yet...think of something better.

You know what else I want for an enemy? Choices. I want there to be choices I make in a scenario that screw me hard later. I want the easy way out to be a evil boon I get that I go "Crap!, Should of taken the hard way!" I mean hard things like a boon that says "Inform the GM you have this until one GM uses it against you. You must reroll one die the GM requests and take the second result." Or better yet "Add this monster to the next final encounter you face." Or even more fun "Here is a chart. The GM rolls a d20 and records it secretly for you, and that bad thing happens when the GM wants in the scenario." Pipe dreams, I know...but one can dream.

You wanna know want I am tired of seeing? Evil Outsiders, undead, and humans.

Classic answer to your question fellow Kyle? Of course not, it's why I'm the chaotic Kyle! HAHAHAHA!!! AHAHAHAHAA!!! AHAHAHAHAAHA!!!! Nothing can stop K-K-K-Kaptain Khaos!

Liberty's Edge

I would like more scenarios involving conflict between religious,geograhical or political factions, revolutionaries vs. dictatorships, infiltration missions, and also scenarios involving recurrent villains. And, the Pathfinder Society shouldn't automatically win...

Shadow Lodge 4/5

I'd like more unique enemies. After playing this game for so long it is great to encounter something that I have no idea what it is or what it can do. Class leveled enemies can be great for this.

I'd like to encounter organizational opposition where a simple fight won't end the problem.

I'd like to see encounters where you need to run away to survive. Living Dragonstar did this very well.

I truly enjoyed the early scenarios where it seemed that every fight had something else going on it in as well (like keeping a pipe organ playing). I miss that added spice to the encounters.

I'd like more very intelligent enemies. Dragons can fill this role very well.

I'd like more ambush predators (lurker above any one?).

3/5

Dragons would be cool, they can be so much more then mindless final villains. It would be great to see a well made dragon make a run as the villain of several connected adventures.

I HATE SWARMS. If they were never in a scenario ever again then I would be happy..... Ok, used in moderation they are alright.

Outsider, again as with dragons, it would great to see reoccurring villains and outsiders could be perfect!!!!!

I like humanoid NPC's, it creates the world. Sometimes the best monsters are inside us.

Lets see some more orcs. They are very underused in society.

4/5

I personally would like to see more encounters that could be decided by either combat or through diplomacy or intimidation. say the wrong thing and its a fight.

As for creatures I'd like to see a planar story arc where fiends are ever-present and the end boss is a CR15 Aspect/Herald of an Archfiend/Demon lord/Godling, etc

A while back I had made a draft of a scenario called 'Shards of the Silver Mount' which took place in Numeria, it had the metal-men of Numeria, a Technomancer wizard, and barbarians of course! These creatures and the areas they come from is something many PFS players in my area have been asking for.

I wouldnt actually mind Drow since they're not used much in PFS as antagonists.

I'd like creatures that are not found in any other book where we can surprise our players with something they haven't seen or read elsewhere. So have the scenario author make them up!

A highly acrobatic goblin ninja squad each with rings of ferocious action and the 'Roll with it' feat for Gin-su slicing and dicing fun! TMNT gone bad!

I'm also for humanoids that well.....look like our player builds.......even the banned ones! (wouldnt mind seeing a Synthesist Summoner as an adversary.)

Grand Lodge 5/5

First, I like a good story that the players can enjoy too regardless of what type of antagonist is used. The scenarios with copious amounts of backstory that the players never experience are a waste of word count IMO. PFS is good with including the right amount.

When I first started playing in high school 1979-1983. It was all about the monsters for me. I did not enjoy going up against humanoid NPCs. During the Living Greyhawk years I learned to tolerate these adventures and even how to enjoy the roleplay they provided. Now I think I prefer an equal mix of both.

That said here's my list:

1) Dragons - Keep them rare AND special

2) Goblins - Love 'em! Borderline overused, but very well done.

3) Orcs - Yuk. This isn't Lord of the Rings. Keep them rare.

4) Drow - Double Yuk. Hate Drow. Unless maybe for an Underdark series like the old D1, D2, D3 modules.

5) Dinosaurs - Maybe for a Mwangi adventure, but rare is fine for me.

6) Undead - These give Clerics a reason to shine. OK with less, but they should be lurking in the shadows.

7) Swarms (& Haunts) - ONLY if there is a very good reason to use them. I'd like to see a lot less of them.

8) Outsiders - When they have a reason to be there, yes please. LG gave me a taste for them. I'm also a big fan of Planescape.

9) Humanoids - Keep the organized adversaries. They are an integral part of Golarion. But highly complicated NPC stats make for difficult preps and are hard on novice GMs. Perhaps keep those to the Exclusives.

10) Aboleths - We don't see enough Aboleths.

11) Dark Tapestry Creatures - We definitely need to have a few more Dark Tapestry stories. Perhaps combined with the Blackros plotline.

12) Giants, Trolls, Etins, etc. - Love 'em!

13) Beholders, Illithids, Displacer Beasts - If the D&D license ever came up for sale, these would be reason enough for Paizo to buy it.

14) Flumphs - I got a fever. And the only prescription is more Flumphs!

Dark Archive

Dragons-I hate to just repeat what so many others have said more eloquently (which is one reason I don't post often), but dragons should be rare and special. I played in a game once where the gm decided there weren't enough dragons in the world, and wound up putting them everywhere. They became a joke instead of a treat.

Goblins-I don't mind goblins, but there are other low CR monsters out there, right?

Orcs-not done enough, but should be done well. More explorations into and near Belkzen would be fun.

Drow-should only be used in Darklands scenarios. They aren't even supposed to exist (according to surface races.) I guess they would be okay in a Celwynvian scenario as well.

Dinosaurs-I would love a dino scenario, as long as it makes sense.

Undead-without these, I would have an awful time keeping players interested in being Clerics. Nobody wants to be a full time band aid.

Swarms-while overused in the earlier seasons, they do have their place. Keep them around to keep parties on their toes.

Humanoids-Absolutely necessary. The Aspis Consortium needs to be a bit more badass, however.

I also think that ogres and, my favorite, oni should be used more often. I loved the ogre mage at the end of White Plume Mountain. I don't think that oni should only be used in Asian themed adventures. I love the idea of western-style oni.

4/5

Regarding Dragons: I think it would be great to see dragons used more like the way they are in the Shadowrun universe: as ancient, Machiavellian geniuses with their own complex agendas. This would be a great way to incorporate a dragon into a low-level story, wherein the characters never seeing the dragon but discovering a dragon was behind the plot. The PCs are left wondering why a dragon would care about that particular issue, thereby setting up a further adventure.

Regarding humanoid races: I would also like to see more thought/stories about the political and ecological systems of Golarion's intelligent races. There are a RIDICULOUS number of sentient races living in this world, how do they all survive? With the humans so dominant, how have the other races managed to maintain a place in this world? I think it would be great to have a story that explores what the other races have had to resort to to survive. Such a story would be a good opportunity to put the PCs up against morally neutral creatures that are just anti-human, not evil, thereby denying paladins and those with "holy" swords their huge bonuses.

I've only been playing for less than a year, but I am already tired of skeletons, zombies, ghouls and swarms.

Liberty's Edge 2/5

1) Dragons - with the Hobit in theaters soon over the next few years it would be a good time to have a connected series of scenarios related to dragons..

2) Goblins - They are now such an important part of Pathfinder you need one scenerio each season were they play a key role.

3) Orcs - See my comment about dragons..

4) Drow - Unless someone has a new spin on them it's best to leave them out.

5) Dinosaurs - I'll pass.

6) Undead - keep em coming!

I also suggest:
7) Caulborn - from Biestary 3, they would pose a very real existential threat to the Pathfinder Society. Perhaps not every faction would survive... (Hint)

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