Sending kindness around

[dirtypool]

Kobold Cleaver wrote:

But that's always followed immediately by, "God, these magazines would be so fantastic if they came out today

You might want to check out Matthew Colville’s company MCDM’s Arcadia Magazine. It’s Patreon funded and very much in the vein of the older magazines - 5e centric though so YMMV with the content.

[TriOmegaZero]

That sounds like it could be up my alley.

[Terevalis Unctio of House Mysti]

Thank you for sending out so much positive smurfiness into the universe!

[Kobold Catgirl]

It's not even "not remembering", to be clear--I don't play PFS, so I honestly don't think I've met Tonya or seen any of her work! I wish I knew everyone at Paizo, honest, but the judge said us kobolds can't camp in that one tree next to the HQ anymore. :(

[Storm Dragon]

I've always preferred the "It's morphin' time!" trigger phrase, personally.

[Reckless]

I want to take a moment to thank all the Paizo staff members over the years that have shared their stories in the "get to know the staff" blogs centered around pride month.

I think it takes a bravery often honed by personal pain to post those experiences, and I know they have expanded my understanding of those experiences as an outsider to said journeys.

[Tonya Woldridge]

@Kobold - I made the update.
Removed a few posts that contained out-dated references and a few others that didn't focus on the OP aim.

[Kobold Catgirl]

Thank you very much, Tonya! I really appreciate it, especially on a Saturday!

[gwynfrid]

I want to thank the entire design team for Pathfinder 2nd edition for their enormous effort in carefully designing every detail to make the rules consistent but elegant, simple but deep, exciting but balanced. Of course these rules aren't perfect and can't make everyone happy, but they come pretty close. It's obvious at the first readthrough that a great deal of thinking and testing went into this beast of a game.

A special thanks goes to Mark Seifter for engaging on the forum when people discovered the rules and came over here to share their impressions. Many of the discussions were rather heated, and some of the feedback sharply negative. Mark calmly and pleasantly addressed concerns and provided clarifications.

Thanks!

[Kobold Catgirl]

Mark was so incredibly patient, and one time basically single-handedly shamed me into mellowing my tone simply by responding to my post extremely graciously--even though I'd very much been writing with the assumption nobody from Paizo would ever see it.

[Reckless]

Mark Seifter is a treasure to be sure.

[Mark Seifter]

://)

Thanks everyone! My rule is to always take things in the best possible light when I see them on the internet because, devoid of all facial or vocal cues, it's super easy for anxiety to whisper in our ear and try to fill in the blanks with the worst possible interpretation instead. It might mean that sometimes someone actually did mean it in a worse way than I read it, like in Kobold Cleaver's example, but the way I see it, what's the harm in that?

[Frazzlerunning]

Kobold Cleaver wrote:

By the way, James, I'm honestly feeling very frazzled by writing all this stuff out, I'm not trying to snub you or anything I promise. ...

you are feeling what now? OoO

But, right you are. Thank you for this thread.

And to keep it coming:

James Jacobs:

Thank you very much for your creation of the Golarion setting and for letting Paizo use it for Pathfinder. I know it's not 100% yours but from what I gathered, Golarion as it is published now is mostly based on your homebrew setting and lore and gods and all that jazz. Paizo and Pathfinder certainly would not be what and where it is today without you.

Pathfinder Design team:

I liked Pathfinder (Legacy) from the very start, as it took up the torch when 3.5 fell (and as far as I felt at the time, WotC tried to stomp it out, with pulling the PDF's from online resources and things). You tried (and very much succeeded) in improving on something good, while also making it your own.
In a way you kept the car running, gave it a new paint-job, and raced with it on new tracks.
And after some years, when the underlying framework gave out because of all the bolt-ons and repairs, you transplanted the engine (after an overhaul and with a new tune-up) into a new body.
Yeah, car analogies are bad. But it's the closest I can think of to make my thoughts known.
Thank you very much, all that worked on the Design team, especially (but not limited to): Jason Buhlman and Mark Seifter

Developers, writers and editors:

I know, I'm bunching a lot of people in one pot Thank you for your work. I love reading those AP's and modules I don't have time to run.
I love it even more when I get a chance to run something and see the reaction of the group.
I have very fond memories of running "The mosquito witch", so special thanks to Eleanor Ferron.
There are so many of you talented people, especially the freelancers, that make it easy for me to run Pathfinder Adventures in Golarion.

Lastly, but most dear to me, because I actually interacted with these people personally (well, via forum posts, email or at one time even telephone):

Paizo Customer Service team:

<3
You rock!
Whenever I had an issue, you would go above and beyond (if possible), to get things worked out. Whether it was missing packages, bent or otherwise damaged books, the problems with the first Starfinder Core rulebook printing, or my bank overreacting to creditcard fraud and blocking all international charges, even those monthly ones I had for years (I think Virginia J. helped me with that one on an international skype call while I was on vacation in Wales).

[Ronnam]

I'd like to echo everyone's praise for Paizo's hard-working employees & creative talents. I'm sure we're missing many, but I'd like to add:

Joe Pasini:

I've had some interactions with Joe Pasini, and always found him to be incredibly friendly, witty and self-effacing. At PaizoCon 2018 he GM'd the Starfinder delve and I was so happy to be at that table playing Keskodai the Mystic, doing all I could to keep the PCs standing with heals while Joe tried to kill us all. I adore the scenario Cries from the Drift he authored, as well as the wealth of other Starfinder works which he authored or contributed to. Thank you Joe!

[keftiu]

James Jacobs, Luiz Loza, Adam Daigle, and Michael Sayre have all been astonishingly polite to me in the face of some pretty exuberant fangirling and lore inquiry; I'm genuinely grateful for pretty much every word any of them have ever sent my way, because it's all either been kind of fascinating. Praying for Adam's swift recovery, also - if folks haven't seen, he's had some pretty gnarly health stuff hit last month, and is raising funds for it here.

While I haven't personally interacted with her much, Jessica Catalan is secretly behind almost all my favorite bits of 2e writing. She rules and I hope she keeps making awesome stuff.

The customer service team solved three problems for me within about a month and a half with zero fuss. Y'all kick ass.

Aaron Shanks has a job I absolutely do not envy, and consistently carries himself in an unflappably respectful way. I hope he enjoys his vacation.

[OCEANSHIELDWOLPF 2.0]

Here’s one for:

Michael Sayre:

Michael is an incredibly articulate designer, impassioned creator and, from every interaction I have ever had with him, a very polite, well meaning and kind human being. From his early days as a “no 3rd party content” stalwart to coming to realise that 3rd party content could be amazingly awesome, Michael has been honest about his change of opinions, and ever humble about his evolution.

I have watched with growing admiration as he followed his path from 3rd party designer for a raft of publishers to employment at Paizo, and then has gone from strength to strength. His encyclopaedic knowledge of the ruleset, his endless creativity, his logical analysis, understanding of the synergies and interactions of the mechanics, and lastly (but by no means the least) of all his incredibly insightful, well stated and unrelentingly moderate answers to the most redonkulous assertions during playtests show him to be a true professional and an absolute asset to this company. Go well Michael.

[WormysQueue]

I know it's not really staff members I want to talk about but still:

I want to thank Kobold Cleaver, Cori Marie, Mergy, dirtypool and everyone else willing to stand up to protect other people of our community (and make no mistake, every former or current Paizo employee IS part of that community), even if that means facing direct or indirect threats made by some individuals that just can't be bothered with basic human decency.

We might disagree here and there, but I hold you all in the highest regards nonetheless and consider me lucky to be part of the same community.

You're beautiful people and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise.

[Michael Sayre]

I'm incredibly touched by the kind words, both those about myself and those directed at my colleagues, who I also deeply admire.

Let me join my voice in giving credit where credit is due:

Logan Bonner is an incredible powerhouse of creativity. Whenever Mark and I run into a wall, it's usually Logan who cuts through the confusion with the simplest and most effective solution. Even when we disagree on a direction I find that my every interaction with him makes me a better designer.

James Case was one of my first and fastest friends at Paizo. It still makes me smile to remember our dawning realization that we had so much in common despite him being from Hawaii and me being from Alaska. Beyond our shared experiences as children of diverse families from the non-continental states, James is someone who has just the right mix of shared strengths and divergent talents that we always seem to elevate each other to better ideas and executions every time we tackle a design or adventure issue together.

Leo Glass is the Lion of Edit, a stalwart warrior for his team and a talented and determined editor who leads by example. He's also humble and resilient, learning from mistakes with just the right amount of frustration coupled with a determination not to repeat them. It's been my privilege every time we've worked together on a project (and yes Leo, that includes the cursed adventure we don't talk about anymore!)

Linda Zayas-Palmer and I worked a lot of incredibly long hours under sub-ideal conditions for pretty much a year straight around the release of PF2, and my ability to analyze adventures, from basic components to predicting ratings and sales metrics, grew immensely as I benefited from her patience and experience.

Jason Bulmahn is someone with a reputation for being arrogant and hard to work with. This may sound like not a compliment, but bear with me. It's true, he can be both of those things. But he's also frequently right, ridiculously insightful, more self-aware and dedicated to self-improvement than anyone I have ever known with his personality type (and coming from the military, I've known a lot), and an absolute guardian minotaur when it comes to protecting his team from outside forces or championing their interests to other departments. Jason is the exact kind of person you need if you're going to try and carve out a space doing something that a mega-corp with 50 years of brand recognition was doing first.

Avi Kool is the secret weapon of Edit. Though they don't get as much spotlight and don't go looking for it, the reality is that Avi is an omnitalent akin to Logan, capable of editing and developing with equal skill and insight. While I can't prove it, I also suspect they'd make a talented designer if they had any interest on that front. Plus, Avi is as much of a Jason Todd fan as I am, so we were always going to be friends.

I'm realizing now how ridiculously big this list would be if I kept going on about everyone at Paizo I have positive things to say about. I'm gonna do a couple more and then get back to work with an apology to the many people I didn't get to.

Luis Loza is my friend and I'm glad our shared love of wrestling and lucha libre finally joined together in Grand Bazaar. Luis is a developer with skill and passion in equal measure, tempered by humility and elevated by creativity. It's always my pleasure to work with him.

Eleanor Ferron is my favorite adventure writer. She's creative, insightful, attentive to detail, and has an editor's eye for structure and phrasing. She's the person you want taking the lead on a project where the risks rival the rewards. She's also a fearless and ferocious developer who constantly fights for better representation in our game and is one of the most effective individuals I've seen when it comes to recruiting voices from diverse communities and helping polish their strengths to become skilled contributors. The Paizo of today was shaped by Eleanor's efforts as much as anyone's.

I really do need to get back to work, but know that this list barely constitutes a highlight reel of the incredible people I work with.

[Michael Sayre]

Actually, I can't not say something about Mark Seifter. Mark is both a ridiculously talented designer with the best memory and math skills out of all of us (I shudder a bit remembering the 3D model of mounted threat ranges we constructed, deconstructed, and then reconstructed with refinements just to do some basic verifications), and also the engine that keeps Design moving. Mark fights for all of us, often at the cost of his own well-being, and is the kind of manager who truly believes that putting his team first is the foundation of his managerial role. We're constantly hitting these wavelengths where we're reaching the same solution at the same time, usually with just enough minor variance that we can combine our shared conclusion into a stronger final product.

[dirtypool]

WormysQueue, thank you for including me in that list - but I definitely don't feel worthy of such inclusion, I'm just trying to shut down some of the truly disingenuous and harmful flak that is being injected into these discussions to try to derail them.

I appreciate everyone who is engaging in the more useful portions of the conversation about expectations and fairness.

[Cori Marie]

Apparently I missed some drama today, thanks to those who flagged it.

[Kobold Catgirl]

It was a good thing to miss.

[Kobold Catgirl]

I wanted to drop something unrelated and pleasant here, so here's a story. A story about cats. Yes, there are pictures.

Spoiler:

So, a few weeks ago, we found a lost cat out wandering the fields. This cat, who we assumed was a girl, refused to come near us but was extremely friendly. It was night, so when she scurried off, we gave up and decided to come back the next night. Because she was hiding amid a field full of Queen Anne's lace, and because she was being such a prissy little thing, I subconsciously named her "Queen Anne".

The next night, we managed to retrieve her. She was super-affectionate, but wary of the crate, so she clawed me pretty good. However, the second she went into the crate? Calm as a doe. We took her home and put her in the bathroom for the night, the only closed non-carpeted room in the house because Open Concept is a blight on the world.

And then she slept for like, a whole day. And showed absolutely no signs of stress or anxiety. She was just so, so tired.

We took her to the vet. Aside from a mild worms problem, she's perfectly healthy. No chip. Nobody looking for her. Box-trained, too! Oh, we also realized she was an un-neutered boy around this time, so the name shifted through committees to become "Princess Meatball", or "Rat Princess". Bureaucracy, am I right?

Gradually, she started to get comfortable. She bonded closely with my roommate, and basically lives in her room most of the time. She's ridiculously cuddly.

Meanwhile, keen detective Ferris Mewller (my girlfriend's cat) could tell something was up. He knew the apartment had been invaded, but by what? He was on the case.

The pair eventually met. We let them be introduced gradually, and so they didn't squabble much. They mostly just watched each other for a while. Cautiously coexisting. Only making conversation now and again.

There have been some battles over custody of Ferris's Castle. Nothing too serious. Unfortunately for Ferris, the dungeons of his castle are impenetrable to the bitterest of assaults.

Overall, they're getting along amazingly now. They squabble, but most cats do. They aren't quite cuddling yet, but they do play together. A lot.

Meanwhile, back at my folks' place, my own cat, GLaDOS, waits for me to bring her up to join us, once rents are slightly less stupid again and we can get somewhere with a yard. Does she suspect that she'll have to get along with two newbies? Is she filled with rage at the thought? Does she even now plot their destruction? I, um. Can't tell. Is this anger? Is it some form of cat protest? You tell me.

[Thomas Keller]

WormysQueue wrote:

I know it's not really staff members I want to talk about but still:

I want to thank Kobold Cleaver, Cori Marie, Mergy, dirtypool and everyone else willing to stand up to protect other people of our community (and make no mistake, every former or current Paizo employee IS part of that community), even if that means facing direct or indirect threats made by some individuals that just can't be bothered with basic human decency.

We might disagree here and there, but I hold you all in the highest regards nonetheless and consider me lucky to be part of the same community.

You're beautiful people and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise.

100% agree with all of this.

[Mark Seifter]

Michael Sayre wrote:

Actually, I can't not say something about Mark Seifter. Mark is both a ridiculously talented designer with the best memory and math skills out of all of us (I shudder a bit remembering the 3D model of mounted threat ranges we constructed, deconstructed, and then reconstructed with refinements just to do some basic verifications), and also the engine that keeps Design moving. Mark fights for all of us, often at the cost of his own well-being, and is the kind of manager who truly believes that putting his team first is the foundation of his managerial role. We're constantly hitting these wavelengths where we're reaching the same solution at the same time, usually with just enough minor variance that we can combine our shared conclusion into a stronger final product.

Thanks Mike, you are too kind ://) That really helped me today.

[Cori Marie]

Adding to this thread, I want to share some love for Heather F, Raychael, Tonya, and Keith for not only manning the customer service lines, but also having to moderate the last three weeks of incendiary posts. I'm sorry that my thread got so derailed that it had to be one that got closed, and I'm sorry for all the venom and vitriol you've had to see these past weeks.

[Today is a good day to... halp]

A much needed thread these days; a wonderful job, everybody. :)

PS. feelin' real generous right about now... haz two "Let It Be" choruses for the relaxation purposes. ;)

[Tonya Woldridge]

Kobold Cleaver wrote:

I wanted to drop something unrelated and pleasant here, so here's a story. A story about cats. Yes, there are pictures.

** spoiler omitted **...

Thank you for sharing. I've come down with a bad cold and was out yesterday (and will be out today) but the cats made the day brighter. Heading back to my blanket fort to sleep some more! Hope everyone has a fantastic day!

[Heather F]

Just popped in to remove a few things. I really want to keep this thread on topic, since so many others have been derailed. All of us here in customer service really appreciate the kind words and support you have given us the last few weeks, so let's all try to be more supportive of each other too. Have a great day!

[Wandering Wastrel]

This is a great thread and I am grateful to the OP for setting it up!

I'd like to add to what others have said in their appreciation for Mark S and others: when the PF2 playtest was being conducted I had, um, opinions on a wide variety of topics and while - to the best of my recollection - I never veered into the personal, I am sure that the dissection of ideas and concepts that they had poured heart and soul into creating probably felt personal on occasion. So I'm grateful to Mark and Jason and all the others not only for not putting my head on a spike as custom and tradition demand, but also for continually engaging in the discussions, explaining where you were coming from and what changes you were making, and coming back for more.

[Kobold Catgirl]

Thank you, Heather. Is there an appropriate place to acknowledge what happened? Or would it be preferred that we move on from it entirely?

[LandSwordBear]

What happened where?

[Rysky]

Unkindness.

It has since been removed.

[OCEANSHIELDWOLPF 2.0]

K

[Set]

Yay to more kindness. Great idea, KC!

The world has it's wrong-headed parts, and we do need to be aware to try not to be party to them, or worse, a part of them, but also helpful to have a place to get away from the constant outrage and recharge the batteries.

We shouldn't just focus on what's bad behavior we want to discourage, without also identifying what's good behavior, to encourage that.

As always, add 'IMO' to every sentence that starts with a capital letter and ends with punctuation.

I couldn't possibly list the Paizo employees I've had positive interactions with. Like, almost all of the times I've interacted with them?

Cosmo's my favorite, but I might be saying that out of Stockholm syndrome, or to avoid the nasty repercussions of not saying that. :)

James Jacobs is about to make me look up how to spell indefatigueable. But I shall resist the temptation and just misspell it anyway, 'cause I'm not James Jacobs and not willing to go that extra mile with nigh-infinite patience for our endless questions!

There was a shining instant, back in the days when 'Favorites' first came out, that Paizo staffers would occasionally favorite a post that amused them, and one week I got 'favorited' by both Lisa *and* Erik, both of whom were sparing with their favorites. I was high as a kite. Sadly, Paizo employees don't seem to 'favorite' much anymore, and those heady days are gone. I wish I could think of something to post that would put a smile on their faces now, with the unfun stuff they've had to deal with in recent days.

[Terevalis Unctio of House Mysti]

Diego and Sara Marie were also kind and helpful in my interactions with them.