Ah OK. I'm only up to episode 5 on the TOS.
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Master Batier, Trapsmith
Owner - Enchanted Grounds, President/Owner - Enchanted Grounds
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Drogon
I'm watching Kickstarter with s lot of interest as a recent small business owner myself, albeit by far not comparable in experience to you.
I see Kickstarter fullfill two different functions
A) raising money
B) aquiring new customers and generating exposureI can't speak for Paizo - but B) can be as portably a reason - or in case I would ever do one - an even more important reason.
Is it risk free? Looking at this thread it seems that generating exposure also can cause bad press which could defy what you like to achieve.
That last bit is my concern. They are generating negative publicity with what looks like (to the naysayers) a poorly conceived money grab.
But reading through your posts I felt they are only looking at one part. Banks don't get you exposure and customers.
You're right. But that's what a marketing department is for.
And one more aspect - the Kickstarter could attract a different kind if clientele to start with in the game which has more a long term interest in the game in mind and therefore might be more valuable as someone signing up for the same money on 15 month time.
Again, this is what a marketing department is for.
To be fair, they are the leader in the RPG industry. People will cross from platform to platform, so long as the Paizo name is attached to the product they are trying out. The people playing the pen and paper RPG will cross into the MMO; the people playing the upcoming deck building game will cross over into the RPG; etc. This makes perfect sense, and it also makes sense for them to try to take advantage of it by doing what they are doing with this kickstarter.
I still think it is poorly conceived, poorly presented, and poorly executed.
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I'm so awesome I don't need any of your boons!
HA!
Oh, and I think it's okay to give something for a $5 pledge. After all get all kinds of stuff for higher pledges, so why not a boon for a small pledge? Personally I just dislike boons so much I opt to stay away from them, but that's just me. :)
*pats his still unused Kitsune/Wayang/Nagaji GM boon he intends to burn some beautiful day*
Should we be paying to get the boon or paying to help the MMO?
Is that a mutually exclusive sentiment?
If you wouldn't otherwise pay to help the MMO, but you want the boon, and are willing to fork over $5, then that helps the MMO. Brilliant marketing plan IMO.
I would agree that its a marketing plan.
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Master Batier, Trapsmith
Developer
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Removed several posts about who did what and whether others are allowed to take umbrage at comments on the internet. If the conversation continues with personal attacks rather than discussion (and even criticism) of the Pathfinder Society boon reward for the Pathfinder Online Kickstarter campaign, this thread will be locked. I'd rather not do that, however, because I think it's bad form for us to close a thread in which people are expressing their dissatisfaction in our work/strategy/hygiene/etc. Please don't make me do that; keep the focus on the topic at hand and not a meta discussion about the discussion and I won't have to.
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not a meta discussion about the discussion
But...people do this in my Pathfinder games all the time. :p I'm joking of course (kind of).
Anyway, I don't think this is earth-shattering news. It's not directly selling boons, it's a game, and I don't feel their integrity has been compromised by promoting something that they have vested interest in. It's a one-time thing, much like how their other boons have been.
That said, I really have no vested interest in an MMO game. I've played 5 of them and I'm pretty much done with them. Now, if it were a game like Baldur's Gate or Neverwinter Nights, I would be all over it.
I'm tempted to get the boon personally without any regard for the MMO, and people go to cons anyway to get boons and that *definitely* isn't free, and it's also usually a one-time or limited-time thing. This really isn't that far off of that.
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I have no problem with this kickstarter boon, although I'm not going to get it myself.
If Mark/Mike are worried about it getting photocopied and used multiple times (a valid concern), I suggest that the boon should only be valid during a certain time frame, maybe within the next year only.
Well if each one were mailed out, with an embossed seal (like a notary uses), then photocopies couldn't be used.
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And no one mentioned the free boons that are given out by Paizo for PFS?
Free, free, free!
And some of them offer options for some pretty powerful permanent effects. Look at the most recent Holiday boon. "You get to add a spell to your spellbook for no scribing cost." is a permanent effect.
Oh, and no mention of how much the rare ingredients will cost for the permanent booster....
And no one mentioned the free boons that are given out by Paizo for PFS?
There is a lot to read in this thread but several people mentioned these boons already.
A trillion bucks.
Gee thanks for making PFS pay to win for every trillion dollar Nigerian prince. ITS SO UNFAIR!
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Well if each one were mailed out, with an embossed seal (like a notary uses), then photocopies couldn't be used.I suspect that would be impractical and expensive.
On the other hand, it would be pretty awesome.
Note that the kickstarter says you get a PDF, there is neither a need for photocopying or a possibility of such a seal on a PDF.
Pathfinder Society - Pass the time until Pathfinder Online's release in the massively multiplayer OFFLINE Pathfinder Society Organized Play worldwide tabletop RPG campaign! You'll receive a special in-campaign chronicle sheet PDF detailing an unusual one-use magic item called the emerald elixir, stolen from a bizarre pool in the Emerald Spire Superdungeon. When used at an official Pathfinder Society game table, drinking the elixir grants your hero the advanced simple template for the duration of the scenario. Alternately, the elixir can be spiked with experimental agents to trigger a beneficial permanent mutation randomly determined on a huge chart included on the certificate. If more than one player activates an emerald elixir at the same table, all drinkers can choose their preferred mutation from the list rather than roll randomly.
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Venture-Captain, California—San Francisco Bay Area South & West
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I also think there's a difference between this and the reroll granted by simply having a Character Folio laying on the table because I maintain that's an outsized bonus in favor of players--I personally believe the reroll should only be granted if the player is actually using the Folio for the character she's playing--though of course I will always grant it as that doesn't seem to be the way it's generally interpreted.)
That's a road I don't want to go down. If I allow a shirt re-roll no matter what character the player with the shirt is running today, it's hard to argue that a Character Folio is only tied to a single character.
In any case, my Character Folio sees more use as a "table boon" for use by the players when I'm the GM than it does for any of my characters. I don't make the offer every time, but if I'm running something like "Severing Ties" or "In Wrath's Shadow" I'll consider it, especially if the party is mostly inexperienced players, or is missing a key role.
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So... for those who are complaining about Kickstarter in general, I'd like to know, what exactly do you feel is the difference between what Kickstarter does, and what Open Design/Kobold Press does?
Both are Patronage. Both change what you "get" according to what you pay in.
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 32
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So... for those who are complaining about Kickstarter in general, I'd like to know, what exactly do you feel is the difference between what Kickstarter does, and what Open Design/Kobold Press does?
Both are Patronage. Both change what you "get" according to what you pay in.
I'd love to hear your thoughts.
I've supported other Kickstarter projects and enjoyed the results. Generally, I've received some sort of tangible item, and my main goal was the specific item that was being kickstarted, not stretch goals.
Also: This makes me concerned that play of PFO will lead to PFS boons.