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Hey gang,
I've only ever run an Osirion Faction character (as a player). I ran a bunch of sessions for early levels over the past two weeks to start to get accustomed to running them, and I decided to make a new PFS character and give him my GM credit.
What I came up with is a Chaotic-Good Ulfen skald-like viking - a Barbarian/Rogue combo with a fairly bad temper and a bad in-your-face, cocky attitude (think George Clooney's character in Dusk till Dawn, Emilio Estevez' Billy the Kid and especially Kurt Russel's Wyatt Earp in Tombstone) one that favors guile and tact over just brutal savagery. Probably worshipping Gorum. He's come down from the Linnorn Lands - a fish out of water kinda representation.
I'll probably use the Spring Attack tree for feats and/or the mage-slaying ones.
What I don't yet know is which faction is most appropriate for such a character.
I was thinking Andoran has a lot of the same principles as I can envision for this character. But so too does the Shadow Lodge. Both appear to have a strong bias towards being controlled or others being controlled by tyranical powers. So they would be my obvious first and second choice - at least from a flavor standpoint. Both seems to have a great deal of "stealth" needs for their assignments based on the descriptions I've read in the Society Guide.
Osirion, Qadira, and Lantern Lodge just don't make sense for the character's cultural background. Silver Crusade sounds too paladinish and clerical nurturing that my character wouldn't really fit into. Cheliax is obviously too lawful and rigid for a good fit. Taldor too aristocratic and artsy for a scruffy looking nerf-herder like my character.
I can see him as a scoundrel - so Sczari isn't out of the question but I don't think it's the most intuitive to select either. It would have even more needs of stealth and I'm sure a great deal of sleight-of-hand needs. That only leaves Grand Lodge, and I simply don't know enough to form an opinion yet on that one - though it does seem to be more "bard" like with a lean towards knowledge.
So of the four that are possibly most appropriate: Andoran, Shadow Lodge, Sczarni, and Grand Lodge:
Can I get a few examples of some of the expectations of the mission awards so that I can find the most appropriate faction for this character, and of course when I go to "build" him, I cater to that faction in the way of skill points, etc.
As I said I've only ever "played" one faction, and since I ran 6 1st level games (three of which were the Intro mods) I didn't get the luxury of advancing my character by playing so I don't yet know where I need to be focusing my talents and skills etc.
(Due to my experiences as a player, I know Osirion for instance uses a lot of puzzles, history, lore, knowledge, and languages, in their mission needs; and I have a divination specialist wizard who is a perfect fit; I don't know what the bulk of assignments require for these other four - and that's what I'm after).
Any help or direction would be helpful. Thanks
Robert
RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 8
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Generally speaking...
Andoran: keeping their spies hidden/happy (diplomacy, intimidate); collecting information on slavers (diplomacy, bluff); beating up slavers; freeing/caring for enslaved people (diplomacy, heal); finding documents/macguffins (perception); seeing if people are honest (sense motive)
Shadow Lodge: finding dead pathfinders (perception); stealing critical information (stealth, linguistics); destroying evidence (stealth, sleight of hand); discerning what is going on, seeing through lies (sense motive)
Sczarni: protecting interests; killing people that oppose interests; "dealing" with people (diplomacy, intimidate); "acquiring" various goods (intimidate; sleight of hand); finding various macguffins (perception)
Grand Lodge: locating macguffins (perception, knowledge XX); negotiating with pathfinder interests (diplomacy, sense motive); ensuring that the mission goes according to plan.
Also -- remember that for Season 0, 1, and 2 you'll be doing other faction missions if you go with anything other than Andoran. And while Shadow Lodge is right up your alley, being Cheliax isn't. So that might be something to keep in mind.
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Also -- remember that for Season 0, 1, and 2 you'll be doing other faction missions if you go with anything other than Andoran. And while Shadow Lodge is right up your alley, being Cheliax isn't. So that might be something to keep in mind.
Thanks walter.
I'm not sure what you're trying to say here.
I think you're saying IF I take Shadow Lodge, and IF I play a season 2, I will also have to do a Cheliax Faction as well? (I'm guessing since Shadow Lodge didn't exist in Season 2).
Thanks.
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RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 8
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Precisely. So what happens for pre-season 3 is that the 5 new factions get paired up with one of the old factions, and are essentially treated as "that faction" for the purposes of doing that faction mission.
Found in the Guide to Organized Play, under Adapting Season 0-2, pg. 34.
• Grand Lodge faction PCs should treat Osirion faction missions as their own for all Season 0, 1, and 2 scenarios.
• Lantern Lodge faction PCs should treat Qadira faction missions as their own for all Season 0, 1, and 2 scenarios.
• Sczarni faction PCs should treat Taldor faction missions as their own for all Season 0, 1, and 2 scenarios.
• Shadow Lodge faction PCs should treat Cheliax faction missions as their own for all Season 0, 1, and 2 scenarios.
• Silver Crusade faction PCs should treat Andoran faction missions as their own for all Season 0, 1, and 2 scenarios.
So even if you make your character Shadow Lodge, you will end up doing some Chelish faction missions, assuming you play anything out of the first 3 seasons of PFS.
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So even if you make your character Shadow Lodge, you will end up doing some Chelish faction missions, assuming you play anything out of the first 3 seasons of PFS.
Thank you for the head's up. I won't let that make too much of a weight-bearing on my decision; I may play some earlier ones - may not. I don't know - not enough to make that weigh on the decision.
I'm an old-school roleplayer type and just want to make sure the faction I hitch on to is my aleskin of mead! And to that end, I want to make sure the character's type build that I wind up with is capable of doing the missions that are asked of me or that I don't wind up with one that has missions counter to my type of character and I find they're just impossible to perform.
Your guidance will prove invaluable. Most of the diplomacy / knowledge type stuff is certainly not going to be a strongsuit of a loudmouth barbarian and sense motive should be laughable for such a character.
I'm pretty sure I'll now go with either Andoran or Sczarni. It'll depend if I want to portray him more sympathetic to causes perhaps an ex-slave that demands revenge, or a dead-inside apathetic ruthless sort.
Thanks.
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Before picking a faction, try answering this question: why is the character interested in joining the Pathfinder Society in the first place? Why does he have want to be "an agent of the Pathfinder Society, a legendary league of explorers, archeologists, and adventurers dedicated to discovering and chronicling the greatest mysteries and wonders of an ancient world beset by magic and monsters?" [quote taken from the PFSOP Quick Start Guide]
I think answering that will shed more light on the character's motivations and drives, which will help you pick a good faction for him.
That's a good point.
Sadly there is no answer to that. It's merely a means to an end. By that - I mean I (as a player) am forced to select one in order to really be a part of the game.
So then I'm stuck with the lesser of 10 evils.
So he (as a character) is joining the one that will be the least intrusive or obstructive I guess.
This is probably a case of trying to fit a square earth element into into a round hobbit hole because as I'm basing the character after an older home-brew campaign character that I played for a couple years back in 3.5 about 8 years ago. But I'm going to do it anyways.
So I have to come up with a good reason for him.....and at this point I'm been able to discount at least 6 of them - based on what I do know he was like in his previous incarnation.
Now I just have to decide in what way I want to change his loyalties and perspectives. He was always a lone-wolf loyal only to himself and his dog and threw off the desire to work for anyone long ago after he was betrayed by those he trusted and worked for, and as he entered civilized society, every "leader" he encountered throughout the campaign wound up betraying, using him, being corrupt, or having shady personal agenda's for his power. So he learned to hate leaders and organizations.
So due to that - I have to redesign his personality a bit to fit into the campaign paradigm of PFS. So then I just needed to figure out what direction to take him and how to go about doing that. Knowing the types of missions and goals that the factions would have - would help me forge that personality, backstory and wants for the character. Cuz I have to also be eager as a player to do them. For instance I as a player couldn't conceive playing a Cheliax member cuz I'm uncomfortable with a lot of what their group stands for.
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Okay - so I've decided to go Andoran - which was my first choice in the first place.
After re-reading the description of Sczarni in the new PFS guide, I realize that fighting for a cause to control Absalom and limitless wealth.
So with the personality/story changes to my previously played homebrew character, I intend to still give him that same brute ruthless inyourface personality - but rediscovered as a strong-arm tactic justifier-type for the Andoran cause - someone who is just as concerned with slaying slavers as freeing the captives. Someone who is probably considered a maverick among the normal Andoran ranks - certainly no Eagle Knight, someone who is unethical and questionable in his means, but still admired as someone who gets stuff done.
Basically: The Punisher.
Thanks for everyone's help.