How Do I submit suggestions to be implemented in PFS?


Pathfinder Society

Grand Lodge 2/5

I have lots of ideas all the time, but as far as PFS is concerned Self publishing does not contribute to the game. How do I submit something for review/consideration for adding to PFS?

What if there is a third party "Something" I would like to use?
I purchased and downloaded Dream-scared press' ultimate Psionics pdf and I would really love to play a psychic warrior, traceur archetype, with the dervish and ascetic paths (*I could just imagine a varisian woman dressed like a belly-dancer whirling away with two star-knives); just that PFS won't allow it.

Scarab Sages 5/5 5/5 *** Venture-Captain, Netherlands

Third party material wont be accepted. Paizo puts money into PFS, so PFS has to make money. By accepting third party material they will not only sell less themselves, it also means more work for sanctioning and rules checking.

If you have a question about a rule or want to see something revised, the best chance is to make a new thread, explaining what you want as detailed as possible, and hit the FAQ button at the top right of your post. If people agree with you, they can do the same. If enough people press the FAQ button its a signal to Paizo that something needs more qualification and an official explanation, FAQ enty or ruling will be made.

If you have a story idea, there is the open call. Write your story down in the format of a quest, submit it, and if they like it you will get published. You can check out the precise rules for this here: open call
If you have a story for pathfinder in general, you can submit it to wayfinder magazine.

Paizo Employee 4/5 Developer

Woran is right.

New story ideas for Pathfinder Society go through me and then go through an approvals process involving one or more Paizo employees. I am typically the one writing the storyline for the campaign, but I enjoy listening to story feedback (e.g. Which villain do they want another stab at, which organization do they want to see more of, which region would they like to explore, and even more specific things ideas) from the community. The Open Call that Woran referenced is a great way to show me whether someone has the writing skills and ideas to help create a piece of the larger story. As I gain confidence in a freelancer's skills, he or she might become a more active participant in planning the season-long storyline.

For larger rules elements, the Pathfinder Design Team are the main gatekeepers. Introduction of a new class would go through them every time--in large part because we want them to be the leads in designing and balancing the class. A new class is also something that we would have to integrate into our official campaign setting, so we think hard about what role a new class plays in the setting and whether it fits Golarion's vision. We sometimes use a 3rd-party monster or template in an adventure (with due credits), but I do not know of our having adopted and published a 3rd-party publisher's class. As is true for story ideas, the Design Team reads these messageboards and may consider a popular community request for full design and publication.

One thing that you might consider is freelancing for Paizo Inc. The three main avenues we use for finding new authors are the RPG Suoerstar contest, the Pathfinder Society Open Call (linked in Woran's post), and participation in 3rd-party publications. We at Paizo keep in contact with many of these publishers, so impressing them can impress us and open up some neat writing opportunities. From there you might enjoy writing for the Pathfinder Player Companion line, which does a lot with new game mechanics in smaller batches (e.g. Half a dozen new feats rather than a whole new class). I also tend to meet new authors at conventions, and if someone seems professional, I might give them a shot.

If you want to see a mechanic in Pathfinder Society Organized Play, these are the ways to do it. I do not foresee a time when I would be incorporating Ultimate Psionics into the campaign; it is a great book, but it is the creation of Dreamscarred Press, subject to their creative staff's developments, errata, design philosophies, and other professional decisions. Pathfinder Society will stick to Paizo-published material.

4/5

chad hale 637 wrote:
I have lots of ideas all the time, but as far as PFS is concerned Self publishing does not contribute to the game.

It's not that "self-publishing does not contribute to the game", it's that "thousands of players all over the world have to be playing by the same set of house rules." It's exactly the same as any regular GM deciding what is and is not allowed at his table/in his game. The only difference is scale.

PFS is not making any judgement about the quality of your ideas or of any third-party items. It's just deciding what does and does not fit into the campaign.

chad hale 637 wrote:
I would really love to play a psychic warrior, traceur archetype, with the dervish and ascetic paths (*I could just imagine a varisian woman dressed like a belly-dancer whirling away with two star-knives); just that PFS won't allow it.

Why don't you try posting your general character concept on the Advice board and ask for ideas of making it in a PFS legal way? Your initial idea might not be legal, but a lot of people on these boards are quite excellent at getting players very, very close to what they want.

Just make sure to highlight the pieces of the build that matter the most to you. If it's all about the dancing, there are multiple "dancer" archetypes that might fit (e.g., Kapenia Dancer is basically a belly dancing magus, but it uses a bladed scarf), or if you want to focus on the starknife, there are lots of nifty knife builds out there (Knife Master rogue is a favorite, and you could use dancing as your bluff check to Feint and catch people flat footed).

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