Writing NPCs for scenario submission

[Renegade Paladin]

I have one rules question for writing NPCs for a submission I'm working on. That is: Do NPCs get the favored class bonus? I've checked against different scenarios and it seems to be inconsistent. Examples in the spoiler.

Spoiler:

In Ambush in Absalom, Chief Altergrik clearly has a favored class bonus in his hit points - there's no other way that he has to get +18 on six HD with only 12 CON and Toughness - while in By Way of Bloodcove, the Aspis Enforcer in Subtier 6-7 does not; his skill points and hit point bonus add up without it. Of course, By Way of Bloodcove might not be the best choice of example, since the guards that accompany that enforcer have 5d10+10 HP despite having 16 Constitution.

I haven't done a more thorough survey of the scenarios I own than that, but the immediate contradiction I ran into justifies the question. I'd like to be sure that I have everything in order rules-wise before I submit. Thanks. :)

[Renegade Paladin]

A follow up. By the rules, all enemies must be represented by a Pathfinder Battles mini or pawn. That's not a problem, but is there an accepted or preferred format for noting which minis I intend to use? Should I just put it in the stat block?

[John Compton]

NPCs should have a favored class bonus applied. If you spot the FCB no showing up in a particular stat block, it was probably an oversight on our part (or might be an alternate racial FCB option).

The exact format for denoting which mini or pawn to use is not codified or official. Including a note at the beginning or end of the adventure is quite reasonable, as is noting it at the beginning of the encounter. I would prefer it not be incorporated directly into the running text (i.e. appearing as a parenthetical note in the middle of a paragraph).

As Andrew notes in your other thread, much as I value and look for accuracy in one's submission, I value a good story, balance to the expected level range, and engaging ideas even more. I look forward to reading what you send in.

[Renegade Paladin]

Thank you for replying. I value a good story as well, and am working hard to fit one into 2000 words. I'll likely send it in a week or two from now, after I've had time to run it, have someone else run it, and polish it up. I hope you like it. :)

[Renegade Paladin]

Is it okay if I'm around 100 words over? I'm having real trouble not cutting out things essential to the scenario at this point, but if the submission will be rejected out of hand if I don't, then I'll do what I must. (I'm kind of attached to the idea of having two statted out NPCs in the encounter, but the stat blocks for the second one are adding about 500 words; I could cut it down to one and just raise his level but I'd rather not.)

[John Compton]

Consider what the word count represents on the Paizo side of the equation. Were this a submission for a print product, it would mean your text wouldn't fit on the alotted pages. For a digital publication it still means additional editing amd development time. From the perspective of the Open Call, it would mean not following instructions--a warning flag in any developer's mind--and additional time required to give the submission a thorough read-through.

I do reject any over-word-count submissions outright, and I do so for important reasons.

[Renegade Paladin]

I understand. I'll find a way.

[Starglim]

Renegade Paladin wrote:

Is it okay if I'm around 100 words over? I'm having real trouble not cutting out things essential to the scenario at this point, but if the submission will be rejected out of hand if I don't, then I'll do what I must. (I'm kind of attached to the idea of having two statted out NPCs in the encounter, but the stat blocks for the second one are adding about 500 words; I could cut it down to one and just raise his level but I'd rather not.)

Would a character who's statted elsewhere, such as in one of the Codices, fit the plot?

[Renegade Paladin]

Starglim wrote:

Renegade Paladin wrote:

Is it okay if I'm around 100 words over? I'm having real trouble not cutting out things essential to the scenario at this point, but if the submission will be rejected out of hand if I don't, then I'll do what I must. (I'm kind of attached to the idea of having two statted out NPCs in the encounter, but the stat blocks for the second one are adding about 500 words; I could cut it down to one and just raise his level but I'd rather not.)

Would a character who's statted elsewhere, such as in one of the Codices, fit the plot?

Yes, but not at both subtiers. Without giving too much away, I wanted an arcane caster and a finesse fighter for a very specific reason, and I wrote them as siblings, so suddenly changing from an elf to a dwarf based on subtier (thanks to the way the NPC Codex works) wouldn't really work. I'll save the idea for another occasion and rewrite this; I can still make it engaging without the whole gimmick I had in mind. :)

[Renegade Paladin]

One last followup. I've finished writing the quest; it's going to be playtested this weekend and then after any adjustments arising from that I'm going to send it in. Before I do, how should I differentiate box text intended to be read to the players? In my playtest draft I've simply underlined it, but the rules say not to use additional styles beyond bold and italics as they're normally used in the adventure format in submissions (which I take to include things like indenting, etc). Should I just leave that for you to sort out from context?

[Ring_of_Gyges]

Renegade Paladin wrote:

Is it okay if I'm around 100 words over? I'm having real trouble not cutting out things essential to the scenario at this point, but if the submission will be rejected out of hand if I don't, then I'll do what I must. (I'm kind of attached to the idea of having two statted out NPCs in the encounter, but the stat blocks for the second one are adding about 500 words; I could cut it down to one and just raise his level but I'd rather not.)

Trimming sentences may work. Example:

"May I submit 2100 words? My edits risk cutting essentials, but I can comply if length is non-negotiable. I would like two NPC stat blocks, but one adds 514 words. I would rather not cut an NPC."

37 words vs. 88 without an appreciable loss of meaning.