Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
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Welcome to the Starfinder Playtest General Discussion Forum!
Hey everyone, I just wanted to take the opportunity to welcome everyone to the new Starfinder Playtest General Discussion Forum. This is your place to talk about the upcoming Playtest for Starfinder Second Edition, and while it’s a way off from release, this is a great opportunity for people to post their thoughts on the direction of the game and what they’d like to see out of the system.
This is your chance to tell us what’s important to you about Starfinder. While we’re committed to making sure the game is fully compatible with Pathfinder 2nd Edition, we want to make sure that we make adjustments so that our game stands on its own, and that we focus on the elements that make Starfinder shine. I certainly know that Starfinder won’t be the same without us providing robust options for different ancestries throughout the cosmos (especially those who WILL naturally fly at 1st level), as well as recognizing the people in our setting use guns that might have ranges measured in hundreds of feet.
So, feel free to start the discussion! The team will be watching with enthusiasm and getting involved in the discussion as we’re able. We’re committed to making this the most open playtest Paizo has done yet, and while we’re not going to make everyone happy with the decisions we make, we’re going to be communicative about the directions we’re taking and why we’re making the choices we are. We’re all so excited to have you take this journey alongside us.
-Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
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OUTSTANDING!!
Tom
Will class and Ancestry Rarity show split rarities for Starfinder and Pathfinder, or will rarities be aligned? Without that it seems like it will be a lot harder to tell a player that a soldier does not make sense in a campaign.
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"With, um, my uh, rather potentially ah, ironic callsign I am concerned that, well, um, everything that we've done so far with the Society and elsewhere is just going to be, ah, well, flushed rather than um, fleshed out. How do we get remembered in this allegedly, um, brave new setting?"
((Also, does this mean that Heritages for Ancestries will be coming to Starfinder? That'd make a concept I have in SF1 but hard to create viable in an SF2))
EDIT: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not turn SF2 Flight into PF2 Flight ((As currently written)).
I see from the field test that the playtest version of the core rulebook is expected in summer 2024. Was there any indication of when the final version is supposed to release? I'm guessing GenCon 2025, but was there any official word when they made the announcement?
Soldier as a ranged class - kinda fits the theme.
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So why is Starfinder Enhanced a thing? The timing seems really off.
might be because SF2 won't be out until 2025, i.e. it is there to help the transition and tie us over until SF2
Really hope there is some leeway in the "compatibility with Pathfinder". Things like taking the ancestry feat model directly from Pathfinder feels like blatant shooting yourself in the foot when it comes to a game that's meant to try and have loads of species.
It's also concerning to a degree that it looks like Soldier isn't going to be allowed to be a diverse soldier, because of the compatibility meaning it has to not be too close to the Fighter.
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Hello,
I am eager to see next year's playtest and I do have some expectations regarding Starfinder 2nd edition (SF2e)
1) As a GM, have a same engine so that playing PF2e or SF2e would be a smooth experience. And I'd say moving to 100% compatibility is a big announcements
2) Even though SF2e would be 100% compatible with PF2e, I hope we will be able to preserve the starfinder flavors with lots of species, spaceship battles and vehicle chases and getting more emphasis on space exploration (opposed to planet exploration). I think that lots of subsystems should be straight into what would be the GM core (i.e. specific rules from GOP and GEM)
3) I have great expectation regarding spaceships battle and vehicule chase , either a simpler / faster system or a narrative system or both (I know that lots of players like the strategic dimension of spaceship battles, I don't like the time those encounters are taking, with some players feeling excluded because of their build)
4) When looking at the field test document, I can't help wondering about the reactive strike (fka Attack of opportunity), the soldier doesn't seem to have it ... is this disappearing from starfinder ? or a basic for other classes / available for any PC
I honestly hope I'll have the opportunity to test the system as much as possible and provide feed-back
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4) When looking at the field test document, I can't help wondering about the reactive strike (fka Attack of opportunity), the soldier doesn't seem to have it ... is this disappearing from starfinder ? or a basic for other classes / available for any PC
"Punitive Strike" is an ability of the Close Quarters fighting style, but only them.
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"Punitive Strike" is an ability of the Close Quarters fighting style, but only them.
4) When looking at the field test document, I can't help wondering about the reactive strike (fka Attack of opportunity), the soldier doesn't seem to have it ... is this disappearing from starfinder ? or a basic for other classes / available for any PC
As a matter of facts, punitive strike is not a reactive strike as we know it, it is a "Reactive strike" on additional condition, similar to PF2e's swashbuckler opportune ripost (it requires additional conditions).
This first version of Soldier IMO is most AoE range focused maybe that's the why it don't get a pure RS.
The other point is that pretty easier to get the target Supressed with Close Quarters subclass once that you only need to hit a melee Strike with a two-handed weapon.
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Super excited to see more. Everything so far looks great, and very glad that it's going to have full compatibility with pf2e.
This first version of Soldier IMO is most AoE range focused maybe that's the why it don't get a pure RS.
The other point is that pretty easier to get the target Supressed with Close Quarters subclass once that you only need to hit a melee Strike with a two-handed weapon.
I don't know, you're hitting with strength (which won't be your highest attribute) or trying for a failed save against reflex with a DC that does use your highest attribute. And the idea is that you should normally be targeting two or more creatures, so at least one has a decent chance of failing and being supressed.
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Welcome to the Starfinder Playtest General Discussion Forum!
Hey everyone, I just wanted to take the opportunity to welcome everyone to the new Starfinder Playtest General Discussion Forum. This is your place to talk about the upcoming Playtest for Starfinder Second Edition, and while it’s a way off from release, this is a great opportunity for people to post their thoughts on the direction of the game and what they’d like to see out of the system.
This is your chance to tell us what’s important to you about Starfinder. …
-Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
Well, since you asked so nicely…
I was involved in the closed play test for SF1 during the latter half of that process. I am very excited for SF2 and have been wishing for this since PF2 came out after its open play test was concluded. I just thought it was an impossible dream. I played SF1 quite a bit when it first came out, but as much as I love and prefer the Starfinder setting and lore to that of Pathfinder, the rules never quite felt right after our group began a PF2 campaign. So, we never returned to it in earnest again, though I kept my charter subscription, despite not being able to play much anymore; which is a shame because I really really wanted to play my favorite classes in the game that came out after my opportunities to play Starfinder had ended and I never truly got a chance to play them. Recently, I had been contemplating an end to my subscriptions since I have only been collecting them and not really playing anymore. This new edition has reinvigorated my interest in this game; especially since I will be able to incorporate it with the PF2 everyone else I game with wants to play.
A lot of my problems with SF1 sound like they are going to be addressed simply with the edition change and adoption of the PF2 rules, such as no high level spells, the old PF1 archetype rules, the action system, etc. I see a lot of folks complaining in various threads about how they are worried they won’t have that cantina vibe anymore when SF2 comes out. But, SF1 took time to build that up and had no help from PF1. This time is different, since PF2 will be compatible, we can use a lot of those ancestries and SF2 will just add more to that with each new book in the line going forward. So, I am not worried about races/species/ancestries.. I am worried about classes.
I know that when a new edition of a game system and setting comes out there are certain, basic things that must be accounted for and made to build a solid foundation for the game, but there are some things that I wish had been handled differently, though I recognize that they couldn’t have necessarily been handled very differently than they were. The big one for me was how the core rulebook class options were fairly bland with only a couple of exceptions.
What I mean by this is that there were classes with limited spell progression, the Solarian, and some interesting new alien species, but not much else really appealed to me when the shine wore off the core rulebook after a couple months of play. I’m not much for playing variations on the same classes I have played for decades now. I like to try new things and the Starfinder classes didn’t get interesting options for subclasses until things like the Nanocyte, Vanguard, Precog, Biohacker, mecha, and more augmentations came along beside other options for existing classes that finally gave such basic classes like the Soldier, Operative, and others variant class rules and subclass options that mixed more magic and weirdness into them. I mean I like the Technomancer’s theme and flavor quite a lot, but the mechanics never quite delivered it for me. (I like stuff like that and like Galen and the Techno-mages from Babylon 5 with ancient, alien tech so far beyond what the rest of the universe had that it looks like magic to everyone). Early/Core Rulebook SF1 was too SciFi and not enough Sci Fantasy.
It wasn’t until the last couple of years until we started getting stuff like mecha, Vanguards, Precogs, Nanocytes with Eldritch Nanites, Magical Assassin or Spell Thief Operatives, Biohackers that study Thaumapathy, Spellspeaker/Tech Whisperer Envoys, Soldier with Mine Menace, Qi Adept, or Spellbrawler fighting styles, Glitchghost Mystics, Solarians with a Broken Cycle and a Solar Shield or Flare instead of Armor or Weapon, or a Vehicle Mechanics (c’mon that one should of been in core)
I want the weird and I want it right off the bat. I know we can’t get as much weird sci fantasy as I would like, but I don’t want to have to wait for a couple of more years before we get that stuff again. Give me stuff like Psychic Debt Collector Priests of Abadar, Symbiote-wearing/wielding Henshin/Sentai class, Dragon Fighter Pilots, Neural-Networked Necrotic Peacekeepers, Cyberpunks that can see beyond our reality to the underlying, TRON-like matrix of our universe and can hack the code to create or hunt down dimensional glitches and viruses. I know that you can’t do all weird, but please give us options to keep character creation and our adventures more about Sci-Fantasy than SciFi. At least stuff like magical options for subclasses for more mundane sci-fi classes like the operative or soldier. Having some Spell Thief or Spellbrawler early on would be really nice for those of us that like more of the fantasy in our sci-fi.
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Very excited for SF2!
Will Roll20 carry the Playtest when it officially starts Starfinder team?
Thanks
Tom
Anything yet on Roll20 Starfinder team for the Playtest and all of its products?
Thanks
Tom
What is Barathu's land speed supposed to be? The PDF says 25, but the wording of the Adaptable Limbs feat implies it should be less (I assume 5 feet) and currently there's no errata
I'm surprised Golarion Survivor doesn't give you the Additional Lore feat for Golarion lore. Urbanite too. I know they're not ancestral lore feats but in my opinion they occupy a similar niche so I feel like they should act the same. Besides, giving you a higher proficiency in a settlement or ancient civilization lore will hardly brick the game with an overpowered ability or something. I thought besides backgrounds we were done with giving out useless lore proficiencies that nobody is going to advance.
We told you for a year to ditch the 'only 2 hands at a time' rule and the 'spend an action to keep flying' rules, yet you didn't listen to us. Why should we expect you to listen to anything we say NOW?
I enjoy this "while you partied, I mastered the sword" energy.
Who is "we" kemosabe? Both of those are fine and perfectly balanced, as all things should be.
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What is Barathu's land speed supposed to be? The PDF says 25, but the wording of the Adaptable Limbs feat implies it should be less (I assume 5 feet) and currently there's no errata
Thurston Hillman seemed to confirm the land speed on reddit.
While it's definitely common sense, I think there should be clarification that when Lashuntas take Alternate Ancestry Boosts, the set boost and flaw from their heritage doesn't apply. If there is clarification later on, it should be moved to the Lashunta itself, or better yet, the rule itself should get errata/official clarification to be able to handle a generalized version of the problem.
Skittermander's Opportunistic Hug doesn't account for a potential Titan Wrestler! This is an outrage, I should be able to hug huge creatures too. Especially because Skittermander literally has a hug-themed option that gives it Titan Wrestler.
After a cursory perusal, I really like what I see. Maybe some corner cases and a handful of some numbers being high or low (we have months to find that stuff), but I don't really see anything that jumps out as needing to be completely rethought. The "feel" seems fairly spot on from the jump, kudos to the team!
Is it just me or does 1 credit per bullet seem like a typo? That makes autofire soldiers nearly unusable at level 1
I feel multiple arm ancestries need a buff or to do other things with their arms outside of combat with penalties maybe? I mean a Skittermander mechanic would be able to do more then a human but that should be a boon not a 1 action thing to switch primary armsbecause what if they are holding onto a pipe and need to wield something? Would they immedately fall and possibly take falling damage? Just thoughts in among my several posts i made already about the varies classes.
The ammo price is the same between SF2e and PF2e, and is the minimum price for SF2e. Seems fine.In PF2, 1 silver gets you 10 arrows, 10 crossbow bolts, or 5-10 firearm rounds (depending on the type of firearm). In SF2, 1 credit gets you a single cartridge, which is a single shot. Ammo is 5-10x more expensive in SF2 than it is in PF2.
Yeah, it genuinely felt like a typo, but it’s not in the errata. After just armor and a gun a soldier can’t even afford 2 clips.
Yeah, it genuinely felt like a typo, but it’s not in the errata. After just armor and a gun a soldier can’t even afford 2 clips.
I think it was to make projectile weapons cost the same as battery powered weapons to shoot. But batteries can be recharged, so it would make sense to have them cost more per shot. It would be better if projectile rounds cost one credit for 10 and until they fix it, I will house rule that they do.
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Does archaic actually do anything at this point?
Explicitly, archaic gear can have runes, whereas non-archaic (tech, analog but not archaic) cannot have runes.
Implicitly, archaic gear cannot have upgrades, as our only examples of archaic gear are PF gear, and upgrades require an upgrade slot, which PF gear do not have.