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I'll give you the ring of the ram, except that we don't know what is attack bonus is.
I'm pretty sure it's just your level+dex.
Some of those others are skill items, which of meant to indicate as "ignore unless they have a power, pay no attention to the skull bonus values."
I have no idea what you mean here about the skill bonuses, but if you don't want to be better at any skills I don't know what to tell you. But all of these skill bonus items also let you cast a spell, and they are mostly good spells which offer the sort of narrative power and combat options that you normally have to be a caster to get in your toybox.
Celestial Armor: 1 action fly.
Cloak of Elvenkind: Ghost sound and Invisibility.
Ring of Maniacal Devices: Glyph of Warding with FIREBALL? Come on.
Daredevil Boots: makes you immune to falling way before Legendary levels.
Horn of Blasting: Spammable sonic weapon, once per day AoE.
Belt of the Five Kings: Dark vision or huge temporary HP bonuses to the party.
Forge Warden: It is a better lion's shield, dealing more damage without an attack roll. Also grants Fire Resistance to you and your allies.
Demon Mask: Casts Fear, which is admittedly not a great spell, but it also boosts the most powerful combat skill in the game. Demoralize alone makes this item worthwhile.
Boots of Bounding: Increases speed and leap distance. The former is obviously good for everyone. Leaping buffs are great for anyone with Sudden Leap, but even without it it still adds 5 feet you can jump without running or rolling, which is awesome for getting over difficult terrain an stuff.
Gloves of Storing: It's basically Quick Draw. Great if you need to switch hit or pivot between weapons for whatever reason. Works well with Doubling Rings, which are worthwhile items unto themselves because they actually let you mix and match weapons on a dual wielder. The gloves also lets you keep a bulk 1 or less weapon available without anyone being any the wiser, which has its uses.
Greater Hat of Disguise: I mean we are talking about the classic Disguise Self here. If you've never been able have fun with this spell, I don't know what to tell you.
Slippers of Spider climbing: Poor Mans flight, though it doesn't cost you an action every round to stay off the ground, so in some situations it is better.
Goggles of Night gives darkvision which 80% of races get for free. I'd have to double-check the rest.
Only 2 ancestries get it for free. The others have to pay with their heritage, and half orcs need to spend a feat on top of that. (Half orcs have soooo many good ancestry feat options, too.) Half Elves, humans, and halflings can't get it through their ancestry at all.
Ghoul Armor is HILARIOUSLY pointlesslb though, as is benefits don't even DO anything. You get a +1 item bonus to disease...on top of you +1 item bonus to all saves because its +1 magic armor...
No one mentioned Ghoul Armor. We mentioned Rhino Hide, which is an extra 2d6 damage whenever you use Sudden Charge.
"Heavily build dependant" covers things sufficiently though
"Anyone wants to fly" or "anyone who wants to turn invisible" don't feel like a very specific build requirements. A couple items are, but even those ones are only build dependent in that they make you incredibly better at your build shtick.
Like, I'm not sure at this point if you just haven't read the items that closely or you and I just have irreconcilably different definitions of what good items are. I will say if its the latter I dunno how you satisfied yourself with PF1 magic items which were pretty much across the board less interesting or less powerful.
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Captain Morgan
I understand that this is the beta or alpha-beta (old grocery store joke).
But why do quite a few people feel underwhelmed with the magic items?
Is it simply because of the scaling of the PF B rules?
Or is it something else?
I really don't know, and I've been wondering about it. My best guess is that a lot of folks had such a visceral reaction to Resonance that they didn't really examine the treasure chapter that closely. I see a lot of people complaining that magic items feel weak or boring, and I'm left trying to figure out what their point of comparison is. It certainly doesn't seem like it can be PF1, because in comparison PF2 items:
--Have better DCs, either approrpriate for the level you get them or just using your own spell DC.
--Rely less on having many incremental items and instead give you single MAJOR items.
--Allows you to cast a limited amount of spells as a martial or seriously expands your spells known/prepared as a caster. (Staffs are so much better.)
--Remain relevant longer: caster level scaling being removed plus wand/scrolls/staff using your own DC means those low level items can actually be worth using in combat at higher levels.
--Are easier to craft, especially for non-casters.
--Are easier to justify purchasing
--Actually facilitate you using properties on weapons and armor
--Let you move enchantments between weapons and armor preventing you from getting disappointing loot hauls
--Seriously buffs classic D&D items like the Cloak of Elvenkind or even the basic +1 weapon.
--Pack skill bonuses that meaningfully influence your degree of success instead of largely being superfluous
--Boost skills with very direct combat applications like Intimidate
--Allow you to cover weaknesses in your character better. A PF1 sneak without dark vision kind of sucked, and fixing it with goggles cost you 12,000 gp worth of gear that could have been allocated towards your combat potential. Now, Goggles are available cheaper and when building a higher level character don't interfere with your potency runes.
I really struggle to see how one can take all that together and feel items are weaker. Like, I actually get the people who complain about mandatory magic items, because items are much, much stronger. (I don't agree that it is a bad thing as a matter of personal taste, but I understand them.)
I just don't get the people who feel the complete opposite. I get people feeling that way about, say, skill feats. But g+# d@%n magic items seem hella good to me. And that's even with Resonance limiting consumable use-- Treat Wounds made that pretty much a non-issue in my experience so far.
I'm pretty sure it's just your level+dex.
I'll give you the ring of the ram, except that we don't know what is attack bonus is.
So, are you trained with the item.....or do you take a -4 untrained penalty? Or do you use the flat +13 mentioned later in the item's description on the bull rush? (A number that is computed in the same way: level+dex+TEML).
Some of those others are skill items, which of meant to indicate as "ignore unless they have a power, pay no attention to the skull bonus values."I have no idea what you mean here about the skill bonuses, but if you don't want to be better at any skills I don't know what to tell you. But all of these skill bonus items also let you cast a spell, and they are mostly good spells which offer the sort of narrative power and combat options that you normally have to be a caster to get in your toybox.
The reason I said this is because skill numerical bonuses are The Big Six which are now The Big Two, so this value shouldn't be relevant to stemming the "excitingness" of the item. If numerical bonuses are to be baked into the character or otherwise reduced, then they should be ignored on this comparison. (That said, a "+1 item bonus to the Heal spell" does not fall into this restriction because it is not a skill ).
I thought that would have been obvious.
Ring of Maniacal Devices: Glyph of Warding with FIREBALL? Come on.
I keep mis-remembering what this item is.
Daredevil Boots: makes you immune to falling way before Legendary levels.
I took this item in chapter 6. It never came up.
Demon Mask: Casts Fear, which is admittedly not a great spell, but it also boosts the most powerful combat skill in the game. Demoralize alone makes this item worthwhile.
I don't disagree with that assessment. I just never saw it in play, and as I can't check the book presently, I suspect that the 'cost' is out of reach for the characters I built.
No one mentioned Ghoul Armor. We mentioned Rhino Hide, which is an extra 2d6 damage whenever you use Sudden Charge.
Yes. I know. I called put ghoul armor separately because it is objectively terrible.
I personally didn't build a Fighter (I built a cleric, a paladin, and two different sorcerers). But I know how good sudden charge is and would have taken that armor for that case. But this is a build dependent option: only Fighter can use it (and multiclass fighters that advance far enough to take the sudden charge feat). It doesn't help paladins at all.
Anyway, I'm not going to try and debate individual items. Every time I've broken PF2 down into its parts I've found that I like the parts and have no qualms with any of them in isolation.
Its some amalgamation that puts the parts into the whole that something goes terribly wrong and becomes unappetizing.
For example (because I've written this out twice before and can articulate):
-I like 4-degrees of success from saves
-I like the three action system
-I like heightening
-I like the removal of "class level ×N" scaling
-I don't disagree that spells or casters generally are too powerful
But I detest the resulting magic system. None of the spells (seem) to have significant impact (aside from damage, the damage numbers seemed fine). I feel that I'm not having meaningful turns when I cast a spell and nothing happens, even when the enemy fails their save.
The same is true for items: each individual item when debated on its own merits looks fine (except some), but on the whole I feel underwhelmed.
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So, are you trained with the item.....or do you take a -4 untrained penalty? Or do you use the flat +13 mentioned later in the item's description on the bull rush? (A number that is computed in the same way: level+dex+TEML).
I'd assume you're trained, but TBH I don't feel like digging through the book to confirm that.
The reason I said this is because skill numerical bonuses are The Big Six which are now The Big Two, so this value shouldn't be relevant to stemming the "excitingness" of the item. If numerical bonuses are to be baked into the character or otherwise reduced, then they should be ignored on this comparison. (That said, a "+1 item bonus to the Heal spell" does not fall into this restriction because it is not a skill ).I thought that would have been obvious.
I see. Well, I actually agree that the game's reliance on item bonuses to skills is unsatisfying and have made threads about it. Luckily, we already know this is changing. And it doesn't change that these items also grant spells. A +3 bonus to stealth may not be exciting, but being able to cast Invisibility is.
Daredevil Boots: makes you immune to falling way before Legendary levels.
I took this item in chapter 6. It never came up.
Yes, falling damage doesn't always come up. That doesn't mean this item isn't exciting. In the course of a full length campaign, I'd expect you can also MAKE it come up. Just find an excuse to jump off of something.
Demon Mask: Casts Fear, which is admittedly not a great spell, but it also boosts the most powerful combat skill in the game. Demoralize alone makes this item worthwhile.I don't disagree with that assessment. I just never saw it in play, and as I can't check the book presently, I suspect that the 'cost'...
Demon Mask is only a 6th level item. You could get it as early as part 3 in Doomsday Dawn.
Yes. I know. I called put ghoul armor separately because it is objectively terrible.
OK? No one said there weren't bad items. You asked for good ones. Which is why no one mentioned the bad ones.
I personally didn't build a Fighter (I built a cleric, a paladin, and two different sorcerers). But I know how good sudden charge is and would have taken that armor for that case. But this is a build dependent option: only Fighter can use it (and multiclass fighters that advance far enough to take the sudden charge feat). It doesn't help paladins at all.
But you asked for items for a Fighter. You didn't ask for items for a Paladin. It's like you asked for items for a paladin and when folks mentioned Holy Avenger you said "but that's useless to a fighter."
Also, Sudden Charge is also a Barbarian feat, and perhaps THE first level barbarbain feat. Kind of a quibble. But on the whole, I don't think items existing for specific builds is a bad thing. Like, I wouldn't expect barbarians to use wands or wizards to use great axes by default. That doesn't mean we shouldn't have wands and great axes.
On the whole though, it seems like your objections to the system come down to gut reactions. Which is fine. But I can't debate your gut and Paizo can't really aim to make a game that pleases you if specific points aren't relevant. It seems like everyone just kind of has to hope the final product hits the ephemeral "draco approved" mark for some reason or another.
But you asked for items for a Fighter. You didn't ask for items for a Paladin. It's like you asked for items for a paladin and when folks mentioned Holy Avenger you said "but that's useless to a fighter."
I said "martial."
That's the entire spectrum of non-spellcasting classes. Of which the Paladin is one.
Yes, that item works for a fighter, but not all martials are fighters.
Demon Mask is only a 6th level item. You could get it as early as part 3 in Doomsday Dawn.
Now that I can crack a book...
Ah. I skipped over this item because I hadn't been building intimidation-heavy characters (it would have violate my cleric's anathema and it didn't fit my paladin's theme).
As for the cast of Fear, it's ok. Once a day isn't great and the fact that Fear has been so heavily nerfed since PF1 I went looking for something else. At higher levels, the DC becomes more and more meaningless (at level 10, that's almost a guaranteed success from most opponents). Cough:
--Have better DCs, either approrpriate for the level you get them or just using your own spell DC.
--Remain relevant longer: caster level scaling being removed plus wand/scrolls/staff using your own DC means those low level items can actually be worth using in combat at higher levels.
Unless these two points were directed at items for casters, they're misleading. Because all of the non-caster spell effects have a fixed DC, and fixed DCs don't scale well.
- Horn of Blasting: bard item (caster)
- Belt of the Five Kings: build-dependent (dwarf)
- Ring of Maniacal Devices: build-dependent (rogue or otherwise doing thiefy things; not broadly applicable)
- Forge Warden: ok, this is broadly applicable, to a degree. It's flavor-wise intended for clerics of Torag (build dependent) but none of its other benefits key off of that (that is, a Paladin of Desna can use it just fine).
- Boots of Bounding: I would have loved these for my dwarf cleric (ch3), but sadly, a level 7 character can't have a level 7 item.
- Boots of Spider Climbing: rogue made use of these in chapter 5.
- Celestial Armor: one more reason why 1 minute buffs are bad. Especially at level 11+ (can this armor be upgraded to +3 or higher? If so, at what level? Do you just add a +3 potency rune (an 11th level item) to it (a 10th level item)? Or does it have to be higher level because it's 3 levels above other +2 armor?)
- Cloak of Elvenkind: I'm pretty meh over ghost sound, but this item is technically better than the PF1 equivalent.
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I don't know what to say other than you're wrong, Draco. You've responded with nonsequiters at best, and have just said stuff that isn't true at worst. You've been wrong about what the book says. You've been wrong about what I've said. And you've been wrong about what you've said.
Case in point:
[QUOTE="Captain
morgan"]But you asked for items for a Fighter. You didn't ask for items for a Paladin. It's like you asked for items for a paladin and when folks mentioned Holy Avenger you said "but that's useless to a fighter."
I said "martial."
That's the entire spectrum of non-spellcasting classes. Of which the Paladin is one.
Yes, that item works for a fighter, but not all martials are fighters.
No, what you said was:
"Seriously, find me four exciting items for a 11th level fighter. Things that let him do cool s@@# and are worth investing resonance in."
You're also wrong about the Horn of Blasting (anyone can use it, no performance check needed) and Belt of Dwarvenkind (which provides a whole Host of benefits to non-dwarves) but it is seeming like I should bow out of the thread because I don't know how to debate you at this point.
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Draco why don't you name some items from the PF1 core rulebook that you find more interesting that the items from the playtest? I'm just not seeing it.
I don't know what to say other than you're wrong, Draco. You've responded with nonsequiters at best, and have just said stuff that isn't true at worst. You've been wrong about what the book says. You've been wrong about what I've said. And you've been wrong about what you've said.
Case in point:
I said "martial."No, what you said was:
"Seriously, find me four exciting items for a 11th level fighter. Things that let him do cool s@@# and are worth investing resonance in."
Me culpa. When I was reviewing prior comments, I only went back as far as here:
Its like all the magic stuff is for magic people and no one sat down and went, "what would a martial character want?" beyond magic weapon and magic armor.
Trying to keep track of specific details across a span of days is difficult and I didn't go back far enough to double check what I'd said.
Now then, we've identified two sets of armor that isn't standard armor that's a good choice, two boots, a ring, and a cloak. Possibly a horn (see below).
Wow, what a diversity of options!
Belt of Dwarvenkind (which provides a whole Host of benefits to non-dwarves)
Really? Also, I assume you mean the Belt of the Five Kings, because Belt of Dwarvenkind doesn't exist any more, and that's what we'd been discussing.
Made from interlocking plates of silver and gold, this heavy
belt bears stylized miniature images of five kingly dwarves. You
receive a +1 circumstance bonus to Diplomacy checks to Make an
Impression with dwarves or make a Request from dwarves, and
a +1 circumstance bonus to Intimidation checks against giants
and orcs.
The belt grants you darkvision and full understanding of the
Dwarven language. If you are a dwarf, you can activate the belt
to gain temporary Hit Points equal to your level and to grant
allies within 20 feet of you darkvision; these effects both last
for 10 minutes.
Everything in italics is what you get if you're not a dwarf. And that sums up to "darkvision" (and oh yes, a +1 bonus when talking to dwarves, and only dwarves, and a +1 when intimidating giants and orcs (you can get these same benefits other ways; e.g. mutagens, which also work against everybody)).
Granted, its not nothing, but that's all you get unless you're actually a dwarf. Being a dwarf is why you buy this item, because then you get the benefits of its activation which are pretty nice (don't misunderstand me, those are some NICE benefits, but you have to be a dwarf).
You're also wrong about the Horn of Blasting (anyone can use it, no performance check needed)
It does, however, require a hand. Earlier I had missed its single target ability and only saw the once-a-day ability (which resulted in confusion: why would you give up a shield in order to carry around a 1/day ability (or spend 4-6 actions pulling it out, using it, and putting it away again)). Even so I'm only half-convinced that 4d6 (fort vs. half; on-level this is about 50% success, as you level up this gets worse) is worth it.
It's also weaker than the PF2 version, which was AOE by default, and deafened by default, and did more damage to "crystaline objects," though your number of uses per day was less certain (I'll give PF2's version a point on that side, but 1? Really? Why not 2 or 3?)
Draco why don't you name some items from the PF1 core rulebook that you find more interesting that the items from the playtest? I'm just not seeing it.
Cackling Hag's Blouse.
Sure, it's a super niche item, but it grants the character wearing it (assuming they're a witch) with a class feature they could have taken. If they HAD taken it, they can use it as a swift action twice a day. Evil Eye + Cackle shuts down one (additional) enemy per turn. Being able to twice a day swift-action-cackle gives you your move action back (assuming the enemy succeeded their save), which can be quite important sometimes. This isn't a numerical increase nor is it a spell effect.Halo of Menace
When combined with the witch's Hexes (cough, Evil Eye, cough) and a ring of invisibility, you wreck people's day. Sure, it's a numerical anti-bonus, but it works differently than "increase your DCs by two." Also, that aura is as effective as a mass Evil Eye targetting every stat Evil Eye can target at once (and it stacks with Evil Eye). Its probably overpowered as hell in the right hands, but it's also 84,000gp.
Robe of Arcane Heritage
Sure, the bonus is numerical, but what it actually does is grant early access to class features. It just does so in a numerical fashion. Every sorcerer would be more than happy to have this when more desirable items aren't available.
Robe of Eyes
Flanking? Flat Footed? Nah, I'm good.
Comes with a downside in order to get those benefits (which, again, aren't numerical or a spell effect) but its at least thematically appropriate.
Headband of Ponderous Recollection
Have a knowledge skill, for free, in a game where knowledge skills actually matter (Lore skills are so pointlessly irrelevant in PF2 that if they were removed no one would miss them except as flavor, and as we all know, you don't spend level up points on flavor). And to ice the cake, 3 times a day as a swift action, make a flat knowledge check (5, 10, 15) against a specific monster.
Headband of Fortune’s Favor
Combos with all sorts of things in a minor way. But it's also dirt cheap (7700gp). Will definitely be trying to find some of THESE for my witch's party! (Less Cackling and more Tactic'ing!)
Jellyfish Cape
Be a squid! I mean jellyfish. You're half-invisible under water and get free damage on anyone who ends their turn next to you. Its not a lot of damage and the price is kind of high, but it makes me giggle.
Cauldron of Flying
Enough said. Its so stupidly pointless to be in that shape that it's amazing. Yeah, it just a permanent Overland Flight spell (with no specified duration limit), but this is way more hilarious than a broom or carpet.
Juggernaut’s Pauldrons
Be a barbarian today!
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Draco, I’m sorry to break it to you man but Dire Urus was asking about PF1 CRB items. Only one of those items is in it. I’ll let you figure out which one. The only hint I’ll give you is that the playtest version is in my opinion as good as or better than the PF1 version.
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Trying to keep track of specific details across a span of days is difficult and I didn't go back far enough to double check what I'd said.
Now then, we've identified two sets of armor that isn't standard armor that's a good choice, two boots, a ring, and a cloak. Possibly a horn (see below).
Wow, what a diversity of options!
Again, you asked for 4 items. I provided that by your own admission. And frankly, you're dismissive of a whole host of other items I named but frankly it isn't worth arguing over specific points with you about all of them. Why you think dark vision isn't significant for example is beyond me. For most ancestries it costs you your heritage at minimum, and some it also takes a feat. If I can get an item that saves me a feat or lets me actually play a human rogue that isn't an embarrassment at sneaking, why would I not want that?
Everything in italics is what you get if you're not a dwarf. And that sums up to "darkvision" (and oh yes, a +1 bonus when talking to dwarves, and only dwarves, and a +1 when intimidating giants and orcs (you can get these same benefits other ways; e.g. mutagens, which also work against everybody)).
Granted, its not nothing, but that's all you get unless you're actually a dwarf. Being a dwarf is why you buy this item, because then you get the benefits of its activation which are pretty nice (don't misunderstand me, those are some NICE benefits, but you have to be a dwarf).
The dark vision alone is significant, as I said. It provided different benefits to different ancestries also makes it a very interesting loot find. My party found one, and we wound up sticking it on the halfling because having everyone rolling with dark vision was deemed more useful than some extra hit points.
It does, however, require a hand. Earlier I had missed its single target ability and only saw the once-a-day ability (which resulted in confusion: why would you give up a shield in order to carry around a 1/day ability (or spend 4-6 actions pulling it out, using it, and putting it away again)). Even so I'm only half-convinced that 4d6 (fort vs. half; on-level this is about 50% success, as you level up this gets worse) is worth it.
It's a backup ranged weapon. Requiring one hand is significantly better than requiring two on a martial, and most ranged weapons require two. It also deals better damage than a shortbow at that level. It also deals sonic damage, which is rarely resisted and can trigger weakness on certain creatures.
It's also weaker than the PF2 version, which was AOE by default, and deafened by default, and did more damage to "crystaline objects," though your number of uses per day was less certain (I'll give PF2's version a point on that side, but 1? Really? Why not 2 or 3?)
...What? The PF1 version became more and more likely to blow up on you (possibly killing you) if you used it more than once. It also only deal 1d6 more damage than the single target reusable PF2 blast. And the AoE blast of the PF2 version does way more damage with it's once per day AoE shot than the PF1 horn did. The PF2 has a much better DC and is significantly cheaper and comes in an item distribution system that makes it a viable pick rather than just sales fodder for the next amulet of natural armor upgrade.
Oh, and I'm positive the PF2 version will do more damage against crystalline opponents. But that is easily accomplished by just giving those creatures Weakness sonic X. I've literally done that already when I converted an alchemical golem.
I really don't know how you take all that in aggregate and think the PF1 version is better.
lists a bunch of niche items
Wait wait wait... For the amount of crap you gave me for items only applying to certain class or ancestries, don't you think its a little hypocritical to start listing a bunch of class specific items? That is not a great look.
Also, almost nothing on your list came out of the core rulebook and the cost on some of them is so high I question how an 11th level character is supposed to be affording them. If I knew we were allowed to go that high, I would have listed higher level/cost items.
When your counterpoint requires numerous splatbooks and backtracking on your own standards and includes 120,000 gp items...
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FWIW, in the playtest I often found it a bit annoying to pick appropriate items for my character, because in many cases there was just one or two decent choices at each allowed item level for my class. This is because I ruled out single-use items, and really there weren't that many other options.
Now... This was just a playtest! The book didn't need to have more items than strictly necessary to build one character of every class and level. This can't be reasonably compared to a full fledged CRB. So, I find that gripe about item diversity rather irrelevant, given the context. Of course if the catalog doesn't get richer in the final version we'd have reason to complain, but that's never going to happen.
FWIW, in the playtest I often found it a bit annoying to pick appropriate items for my character, because in many cases there was just one or two decent choices at each allowed item level for my class. This is because I ruled out single-use items, and really there weren't that many other options.
Now... This was just a playtest! The book didn't need to have more items than strictly necessary to build one character of every class and level. This can't be reasonably compared to a full fledged CRB. So, I find that gripe about item diversity rather irrelevant, given the context. Of course if the catalog doesn't get richer in the final version we'd have reason to complain, but that's never going to happen.
Agreed. But some of the lower level items also are pretty good. My players had so much trouble grabbing two level 2 items and literally asked to instead grab some level 1 items xD
They already had higher level weapons, but yes kits also work but they had two items so basically an kit and had nothing else to pick.
My only real problem with magic items was resonance so when that disappeared I was pretty ok with everything aside from item level since it felt kinda video gamey to me, but the items themselves seemed cool.
Draco, I suggest you look up "moving the goalposts", because you are providing a pretty textbook example right now.
So... I've been in the Playtest forums for a while, and now that the Playtest is coming to a real close, I wanted to write a pretty extensive text on my general impressions and what I'd like to see going foward. I hope this feedback is somehow useful for the Paizo.
First of all, thanks Paizo for providing this Playtest environment and actually hearing and working on the feedback you get. Unfortunately this should be the rule for Alphas and Betas but it isn't (D&D Next Playtest, WoW BFA Beta, etc.). Like everyone I had some things that didn't go the way I prefered, but that's just life. Also thanks to all the other folks in these forums that engaged in civil discussion about all that stuff, both those who agreed and disagreed with my points of view. Without further ado, I can't humanly talk about every thing that I like/dislike, but here are some of the highlights:
The Good
- The general vibe of PF2. I don't know if that's the objective that Paizo is looking for, but the game really felt like and attempt to give depth and choice without unnecessary complexity. As a player/GM who always found PF1 to be too complex for the sake of it in a lot of thingst but also found 5e to be too shallow, that's great.
- The 3-action system. This is probably the single most loved feature of the Playtest and there's a reason for that. It's even simpler than 5e's move, action, bonus action to explain for new players while also giving a huge amount of different options on how you want your turn to go.
- The design on martial classes. The Fighter, Monk and Rogue gain extra points here for me, but all martial classes are miles away from the previous iterations. They are stronger, but not too powerful, and most importantly, they have tons of variety. When I read the Fighter Feats for the first time I was thinking about like 10 different builds and each one of them actually played in a different way in combat.
- No more /caster level scaling on spells. I know this hurts for some people, but this was the root...
This is all brilliant stuff. I hope Paizo considers this beautiful piece of literature.