Thursday, March 28, 2024
Hello, Pathfinders!
You know, I genuinely thought that this column would be much quieter than the delicious solstice report from last time but, by Calistria’s sweet whip, there has been so much hustle and bustle, I barely know where to start!
Okay, so first off: there’s mutterings about sending a group of Pathfinders up to Freedom Town. Apparently Old Baphy is sending more undead to harass them, so I’m hoping this means we’ll be seeing more of Mr. I’m So Handsome Uirch!
Left to Right: Uirch of the Burning Sun by Fabio Di Bernardi, and Watcher-Lord Ulthun by Hassan Tabrizi
Also, I was out and about at the Grand Bazaar, like I usually am on my off hours, poking around who knows what and who knows where and I saw a certain watcher-lord shopping with a fancy lady! Now, we all know there’s been certain glances between this lord and an acting leader, but it seems those may have just been glances, because her arms were very firmly around his (well-built) upper arm.
Oh, and the biggest news is that Eando Kline was seen storming out of a meeting with all of leadership and the Waterfall! He’s extremely displeased about something, and you know I’m on my way to find out! I tried to peek in and see what was occurring, but Old Muttonchops sent me on my way, as usual.
Don’t you worry, I’ll figure out what’s happening and will report on it in my next update!
Keep your eyes peeled for my next column, and enjoy your adventures, Pathfinders!
With adoration,
Your Beloved Venture-Gossip
Explore! Report! Cooperate! Gossip!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, March 27, 2024
One of the theories that I intend to run by my Lady in my compilation of these so-called Godsrain Prophecies is that they may be warnings of some kind. This is a relatively new addition to my admittedly large list of potential reasons for their existence, which range from sensible hypotheses to outlandish theories, including one recent concern that this has all been a test by my Lady to discern whether I am trustworthy and analytical enough to handle some of her more complex research needs. I know she would never do such a thing, in truth, but after a particularly vivid dream (involving my being back in one of Lorminos’s classes and asked to deliver a talk about a research paper I had somehow forgotten to do), my anxiety briefly took hold.
The warning theory is of particular interest to me because it reflects an ongoing scholarly debate about the ability to prevent a true prophecy. As noted in Beyond Aroden (which I believe I have already mentioned in these pages), there are some who believe in the Fate’s Chain theory, which holds that any action taken to prevent a foretelling only hastens its speed and effects. Conversely, others believe that all prophecy presents the opportunity to exert free will. In the words of one notorious scholar, “those who lie down in front of the hooves of prophecy instead of taking the reins of their lives deserve to be trampled to dust, even if only metaphorically.” Fiery words, and ones I am not sure I believe, but given the gravity of this particular set of prophecies, I do like the idea that this might be an opportunity to shift the course of the future.
–Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Desna
The thing about journeys, especially the good ones, was how easy it was to lose track of the past. Hard to move forward while looking behind you. Desna had always believed that. Each new night, each new step, had something new to offer up—a bit of knowledge to excite her, a dark horizon to invite her, a way for love to keep her grounded as she wandered from place to place.
But something else was out there. A threat that she’d forgotten from the void between the stars, seeking only to expand its brutal, ceaseless silence. Not an enemy that could be caught or stopped forever, but something she’d held at bay as it consumed star after star, by making them anew as she had done since the beginning. Back then she’d set the stars like jewels, each a perfect piece of art, and now they were a chorus that only she could truly hear, gentle bells that softly chimed and brought new hope to dreamers.
Except with so much journeying, she’d let the task slide down her list, forgetting to replace the stars that steadily winked out. She hadn’t heard their quiet ringing slowly growing quieter, as something more than silence brought new fury to its form. And by the time it reached her ear, that music wasn’t quite as rich, and starlight twinkled that much less, and butterflies flapped weakly. Absence had turned to abscess turned to deep vulnerability, and what was of the past became the killer of the present. In one fell swoop of emptiness, no longer held back by her lights, something of the Dark Tapestry she thought she’d left behind took her and Cynosure as one, and with her all the stars that filled the skies above Golarion.
Desna was loved by many, and all stepped up to play a part and try to build a new world in the space left by her death. Cayden Cailean raised cups “to Desna and to freedom” (though he stayed still for many months, sometimes with Kurgess by his side, drinking to his memories and running up his tab). Shelyn offered welcome to those who sang in Desna’s name, collecting songs and poems so she would not be forgotten. (And when they sounded out of tune, as if something was missing, she called them Desnal melodies and blessed those who repeated them, ignoring art’s new promise for the haunting elegies). Sarenrae sought her vengeance but had no one to strike out against, and so she turned to healing in its place (by never letting hurt inside, and building walls around her heart she dared Shelyn to climb).
No one could prove the daytime light was any different than before, but even on the fairest day, there was something in the air—a stagnant sort of thickness that weighed upon the spine. Scouts moved slowly, and travelers lingered though they knew to hurry (to get themselves to safety long before the starless night). With no means by which to navigate, sailors called off voyages, reduced to tiny odysseys that kept the shore in sight. And while the feeling dissipated, slowly easing day by day, everything about the world felt dormant for a time.
Even as the pace picked up, no stars returned to fill the sky. At night, only the moon shone down, and paths forward could change in ways unlucky and impossible; more often did travelers disappear from the shadowed roads ahead. And while some blamed her ancient nemesis, Ghlaunder, who was emboldened by Desna’s demise, or Zon-Kuthon, who reveled in the new depth of the darkness, only Desna would have known that what killed her waited, determining its next advance, growing in the spaces left within a starless night.
Do the stars and their keeper, Desna, truly protect the Universe from some fell threat that hides in the darkness beyond them? May the stars shine forever, if so!
The Dark Tapestry? It has been some time since I thought about that void of space, which has long been reported to be the home of godlike beings far beyond my comprehension. Maybe this is why I am the most intrigued about Desna’s seeming knowledge of the place and its dangers. It is the first I am hearing of a potential connection, though that may simply be because I do not attend the right discussion groups. Whether or not this prophecy turns out to be true (or, again, maybe a warning that my Lady might be able to give to Desna to prevent this outcome), I will add a note about the possible link between Desna and the Dark Tapestry to my collected papers covering her works as a deity. I am not sure when or if I will have the time to publish any of the works I have begun to write, or if there will be room in my papers for all of the data I now have, but I am glad that I have at least begun collecting information. If these prophecies make nothing else completely clear, my own takeaway is this: it is important to understand what you know (and don’t) about the gods.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases call on heroes to save the town of Sandpoint, bring a host of remastered monsters to your table, and send you into Azlanti Space!
In celebration of Pathfinder Monster Core’s release, we’ve got a special “Who’s That Monster?!” stream today, March 27th, at 12 p.m. Pacific on twitch.tv/officialpaizo!
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions—for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Seven Dooms for Sandpoint
BACK TO WHERE IT ALL BEGAN...
The town of Sandpoint has seen more than its fair share of danger over the years, including harrowing fires, prolific serial killers, goblin raids, and attacks by giants and dragons, but now the so-called Light of the Lost Coast faces its greatest threat yet! Something sinister has been manipulating events all along, and a new band of heroes must step in to save this legendary small town from seven deadly dooms! Return to the town where it all began with the Seven Dooms for Sandpoint Adventure Path—a full campaign for 4th- to 11th-level characters that’s presented in its entirety in this super-sized volume!
Seven Dooms for Sandpoint is available as a double-sized softcover or an alternate art hardcover edition!
Pathfinder Monster Core
FIGHT FOR GLORY!
Intense battles call for intense monsters! Inside Monster Core, you’ll find over 400 creatures, including fantasy classics like elves, ogres, and all-new dragons; wild animals from giant ants to ferocious wolves; and unique monsters that threaten the world of Pathfinder, like sinspawn and noxious needlers. These creatures cover all levels of play, from the slow and mindless zombie shambler to the ultrapowerful demonic Treerazer! This collection is an ideal resource for Game Masters planning their next battles and player characters looking for monstrous allies to summon.
Pathfinder Monster Core is also available as a Special Edition Hardcover, faux-leather bound with foil debossing and an in-bound ribbon bookmark.
Also, check your FLGS for the hobby retailer exclusive Sketch Cover!
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Shopping Mall
SHOPPING TRIP!
From the hustle and bustle of a busy shopping center to the dilapidated, overgrown shell of a once-appealing plaza, there’s adventure to be found in malls across the galaxy. One side of this Flip-Mat depicts a futuristic mall, with an open entryway for crowds to mingle, numerous shops, and a luxurious food court to enjoy a bite to eat. The opposite side shows an abandoned mall and is the perfect site for a haunting or the remnants of a post-apocalyptic civilization.
Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Shopping Mall, you’ll be ready for the next encounter!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Boarding School
SCHOOL’S IN SESSION!
Whether your players are students themselves or the ones responsible for solving a tricky problem before things get out of hand, turn to Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Boarding School. From frightful legends that students speak of in hushed whispers, to struggles to contain failed alchemical experiments, to lighthearted stories of schoolyard mischief, these school buildings feature everything you need for an academic adventure, including classrooms, dormitories, a lunchroom, and a library.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-15: Extraction from Azlanti Space
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 11th- through 14th-level characters.
The Azlanti Star Empire is a vast union of diverse species, worlds, and star systems under the tyrannical dominion of humans who left Golarion for the stars long before the Gap. Under the leadership of Star Imperators Iorian and Yridela Ixomander, the Azlanti Star Empire seeks to bring all inhabited worlds under its hegemony, exploiting their knowledge, labor, and resources for the good of the empire. With a navy rivaling that of the Pact Worlds and the Veskarium combined, its ruthless legions of gem-augmented Aeon Guard pose a terrifying threat to the inhabitants of the galaxy. Most systems—including the Pact Worlds—have forbidden their citizens from entering Azlanti space, lest they draw the Imperators' covetous eyes.
Yet, a foe as powerful as the Azlanti Star Empire can’t be ignored, and numerous factions have dispatched agents into the Star Empire to operate in secret, acting as the eyes and ears of the Pact Worlds—a first line of defense against invasion.
When an undercover Starfinder broadcasts an emergency call for extraction from New Thespera, at the heart of the Azlanti Star Empire, Venture-Captain Naiaj dispatches a team of highly experienced Starfinders to answer the call. Infiltrate the Azlanti Star Empire, retrieve a Starfinder in peril, and escape with your lives—if you can!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-12: Mischief in the Maze
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
The Maze of the Open Road has mostly been stabilized, and yet agents are still ending up at the wrong destination. While no one has been hurt, Venture-Captain Sigvard Tornkvist fears that it might be a matter of time until injury or worse results. She tasks the PCs with investigating the cause of these mishaps, and dealing with it, if possible. Little do the PCs know what they’ve gotten themselves into, but there’s a nonzero chance they’ll find themselves in a dance-off before their mission is complete.
Starfinder Society Bounty #12: Under Pressure
A Starfinder Bounty designed for 4th-level characters.
Illegal gas mining operations are nothing new on the enormous Pact Worlds gas giant Liavara, but mining platform pilot Alana Eledin thought she had a foolproof plan to get past the mining syndicates’ and the Confluence Agents’ watchful gaze. She and a crew of desperate fortune seekers would power up a derelict platform they used to work on and take it down into the depths, to the limit of the structure. Of course, no plan is perfect, and reactivating the maneuvering systems on the old rig sent out an alert. Now a Confluence Agent, with Deep Station’s troubles still fresh in mind, has assembled a team of deep pressure specialists and the PCs to, if possible, rescue the derelict and learn what sent it plunging into the clouds. What no one involved has realized is that there’s a greater danger than the immense pressure facing everyone involved.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Thick as Thieves
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
The simple mission is: deliver a letter. However, upon entering the magical hedge maze to do so, the Pathfinders find that two of their sticky-fingered friends have arrived at the same time and intend to hide a powerful elemental artifact within the Maze of the Open Road! This completely realigns the keystones of the maze, leading to planar interruptions and wild disruptions to operations. It's up to the Pathfinders to realign the keystones, calm down an angry genie, and help everyone who's been misplaced along the way! (And just maybe get that letter delivered!)
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, and Hero Lab Online are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Pathfinder Gallowspire Survivors
Prepare to face Gallowspire's hordes for as long as it takes…Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors launches on Thursday, April 4. Brave heroes can buy Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors on Steam in Early Access today, or try the demo, as they await the Whispering Tyrant’s return. Wishlist and follow the game on Steam to get notified of the launch. Keep up to date with all the information by joining the official Discord server, Facebook page and following BKOM Studios on X (formerly Twitter).
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Seven Dooms For Sandpoint, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Tuesday, March 26, 2024
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
What is Infinite?
Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite is a program that allows you to create content (adventures and locations; monsters; character classes, archetypes, and backgrounds; fiction; etc.) based on Paizo’s intellectual property (IP), including Pathfinder’s Lost Omens campaign setting, and to make some money while you’re at it. Your work might even be recognized by the community and earn you an invitation into the Infinite Masters elite creator program.
For more info on Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder Infinite, and how to get started, check out the FAQs!
February’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
The ABCDs of Edicts and Anathema•
Dive deeper into the new system of Edicts and Anathema from the Pathfinder Second Edition remaster. Over 700 edicts and anathemas for the ABCD of character creation: Ancestry, Background, Class, Deity.
Faith’s Reward—Nethys
The All-Seeing Eye is often derisively referred to as the "god of wizards." While that's not entirely wrong, it isn't exactly right, either. Faith's Reward—Nethys examines the influence of Nethys as the god of magic, including new spells, new feats, new items, new archetypes, and a new spell research subsystem to allow you to build or modify spells!
Godsrain Contingencies
When Yivali held death in her talons, she feared delivering such terrible warning without also hope. Included in her annotations was research into what the world might become if each god’s death were to occur, and thus what contingencies could be made.
This product contains a handful of player options for each scenario. While there is a primary focus on the fall out for followers of each god, there are options for many types of players. The centerpiece is the return to service ritual and how each god’s death leads to which potential successor gods, what that new relationship looks like, and providing which potential benefits.
Kitsune of Golarion Remastered•
Providing an in-depth expansion of Pathfinder Second Edition's vulpine ancestry, Kitsune of Golarion Remastered provides players and GMs alike with everything they need to make this vibrant ancestry of shape shifting fox folk feel at home in the Age of Lost Omens. Based on Gold Best-Selling product Kitsune of Golarion, this product aims to not only remaster, but redefine the content from this original offering into an indispensable product for the entire table, tailless or not.
Player Core 1 Expanded•
Has inspiration struck, but Player Core 1 doesn't have a subclass to fit? Whether you are looking for a Cleric spy, a swaggering Rogue, or a Druid with a will of steel, you will find myriad options within, made by 4 Infinite Masters and specially tuned for the PF2e Remaster! Feats, subclasses, focus spells, and more for the classes of Player Core 1.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
A Lurker’s Subclasses, Vol III•
A wide variety of subclasses, feats, and alternate class options—whether it comes from mastering the use of sound to bringing religion to the more physical classes. And let us not forget options of various levels of technology, from Steampunk, to tech which is science fiction even to Starfinder, to bringing forward old favorites from Pathfinder.
Enhanced Mechanic•
Experience the new Enhanced mechanic—revised for balanced and easier play. This expansion includes several new and revised mechanic tricks, drone chassis, and drone mods.
Starfinder Infinite Adventure Card Game—Core Set
This is a brand-new adventure card game core set based on the award-winning first Starfinder adventure path, Dead Suns. This game uses the basic ruleset of the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game Core Set, but expands upon it in several ways, with new card types, mechanics, and characters. This download includes all of the rules necessary to play the Starfinder Adventure Card Game, a set of eight characters designed to be used with the game, and three full adventures based on the first three books of Dead Suns.
Starfinder Mission 1: Only Trying to Help
When the lights go out somewhere in Absalom Station, station staff already stretched thin find themselves unable to cope with a forced entry into the maintenance passages. Will the player characters be able to find out what went wrong and start to set things right?
A Tail of Betrayal
In this standalone adventure, the players find themselves as prisoners trying to clear their name. They start their adventure competing in the fighting pits of Akiton in order to survive. Given a mission, will the heroes be able to purge their record of any wrong deeds and escape? What is the mission? How will they complete the task? Can they be sure others will keep up their end of the bargain? Can they track down the real criminals responsible and bring them to justice? bargain? Can they track down the real criminals responsible and bring them to justice?
New & Exciting from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
- Clerics+—The expansion on Clerics from Team+ is now remastered!
- Foam and Fortune: Adventures in Soap Scum Cove—A Pathfinder Second Edition Adventure for 5thlevel characters.
- Interstellar Species: Ogeir (Space Ogres)—A new playable species for Starfinder First Edition.
- Together With Elements Archetypes—12 new archetypes, 123 feats, and a bunch of elemental options!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Tuesday, March 26, 2024
It’s 30 minutes until midnight and the river’s delta is gleaming with bits of gold dust coming off the tips of the fires scattered about. Dragon-tailed lanterns illuminate the paths as multi-generational families recount raucous stories.
Overheard, a gravelly voice mixed with sincerity comes from an elderly kobold: “Do you remember that time when...”
Cut off, an innocent yet bright voice coming from a toddler yells, “We’ve already gone over this, ông nội! I wasn’t even born yet! You and grandma met ages ago...!”
A family of seven bursts out into loud laughter as they filter into the streets, seamlessly mixing in with the noises of carts carrying crafts and garments, silks and spices; from afar, melodies of wood, wind, and percussion firmly grace the air.
It’s the second day of the Festival of the Loss: Xa Hoi’s yearly celebration of the lives of the recently deceased, but also the ancestors that have been watching over the collective for centuries.
Bordering each side of the river, home cooks, restaurant chefs, and food stall owners squat, cooking fragrant foods on portable stoves and fires. Closer to the water are tables draped with lucky red fabric, used year after year, dishes placed carefully. The food is surrounded by burning incense that wafts up to the heavens:
· Pillowy, perfectly cooked rice next to crisped, barbecued game glazed with a translucent, sweet red sauce that reflects all the lanterns and lights.
· Bowls of fragrant broth, simmered for a full day prior to pull the flavor from livestock bones and aromatics into the perfect infusion, filled with tender noodles and garnished with fresh herbs.
· Beautiful golden pancakes still sizzling on the griddle, loaded with glowing leaves and minced meat, folded into half-moon parcels.
· Rice paper rolls stuffed to the brim with fresh vegetables, herbs, noodles, and steamed prawns caught and delivered just the morning prior, served next to a sweet, crunchy peanut sauce.
· A three-layered bean and jelly parfait drizzled with a viscous cream, multicolored glutinous rice dumplings in a ginger syrup, and big, round fried pastries covered with seeds, filled with a mixture of locally harvested sweet beans.
Yet, no one has approached the tablescape. Though outsiders might be curious why this mile-long spread adorning the riverside isn’t being touched, for the people of Xa Hoi, it’s because it’s tradition. You see, the dead always eat first.
Legends have been told of ancestors who moved to the afterlife and existed miserably because they were forgotten. Instead of joining those who've moved on peacefully to look over their family’s health and luck, these now-lost souls are cursed for eternity. Wondering why their families have forgotten them they manifest as bad luck, nightmares, or even come to our mortal plane themselves, seeking attention and respect.
This is why the dead always eat first. The meals are put out under the full moon of the Festival of the Loss to invite those who protect Xa Hoi to join in celebration, feast, and remembrance.
As the hour and minute hand of clocks join at midnight, there’s one more moment of silence. A single, unified prayer. One big breath inhaled together with hands pressed close to the hearts—families are sending final well-wishes to their loved ones. Then, as if on cue, the chaotic symphony of music and laughter and joyous conversation rises back to fill the streets along the river as families take turns making their plates and enjoying the delicious, jubilant dinner.
As some folks go back for seconds, many start making their way toward the center of the city of Ngon Hoa, where the rivers meet. Shining brighter than the lanterns that line the river, a stage next to the water is covered with vibrant tapestries lined with golden trim. Embroidered into the curtains are stitched portraits of dragons and warriors and empresses and flowers, seamlessly flowing into each other like scenes from a play, draping across the fabric.
Though performers have been rotating throughout the night, in and out of the larger festival grounds, with lighter crowds watching and cheering them on, now, people start to enter en masse, staking their place on the damp, grassy ground with blankets and stools to see the annual water puppetry show, Múa rối nước. On stage, the orchestra sets up gongs, wooden flutes, drums, chimes, and string instruments rarely seen outside of Xa Hoi. At the stage’s edge, closest to the water, lie ornate hand-carved wooden puppets, ranging from humans to dragons, merfolk, and nagaji, mirroring the crowd that has gathered around.
The spotlights bolt up and down, right to left, finally converging to shine over the river, and the water seems to slow down. The Sorcerer Storytellers rise enchantingly from below the surface and begin the show to roaring applause. They recount stories over the water to tell of this year’s troubles and successes, their magic manipulating not only the puppets from the stage, but shaping the water itself with swipes of their hands like a timeless dance that’s both familiar and not from this world. Their silken garments, meticulously crafted by masterful seamstresses, almost seem to enhance their dragon-blooded magic, each embroidered stitch exuding small glimmers of light as they perform. Dramatic scenes reenact wars with swelling, cacophonous music and powerful imagery, these darker moments interwoven with flashes of occasional victorious triumphs while plumes of water fly high to the sky in unison with the music.
As the show ends with a magnificent finale, swirls of iridescent water whipping around in a display of elegant magic, the festivities start to wane. At a glance across the river, the ornate and lavish outfits start to dwindle as workers change into their ordinary uniforms. The next day's tasks still must be done. The incense has burned down to the bottom, leaving small piles of gray ash at the base of ceramic bowls. Performers start packing up their instruments and tear down their festival stages. Carts that once held celebratory candies and toys are stowed away for household wares and common fabrics—the tables’ lucky red clothes are folded up and stored for next year’s celebration, too. Farmers head back toward their plots to tend to the crops and livestock. Store owners start opening shops for the last few hours before the sun starts to rise once more in Xa Hoi.
About the Author
Danny Quach (he/him) is a tabletop marketing professional by day and the internet’s emotional support himbo by night. He’s the author of Digital Thiccness, a substack dedicated to making information about marketing, social media trends, and building digital communities as accessible as possible, sprinkled with personal musings and projects and pop culture through a queer lens. When he’s not writing and collaborating on TTRPG projects, Danny can be found lifting heavy things, eating tasty things, watching scary movies, and listening to 2000s emo/screamo music. Follow him on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram.
To bring this and other Tian Xia stories to life in your Pathfinder game, check out the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide (releasing in April) and the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide (releasing in August), both available for preorder now—Customers who subscribe to the Lost Omens product line will receive both books and a complimentary PDF of each upon their respective release!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Tian Xia, Web Fiction
]]>Thursday, November 09, 2023
Are you ready for the return of PaizoCon Online 2024? Join us Memorial Day weekend, May 24th–27th, as we once again bring events to your screen with an amazing long weekend of panels, giveaways, and, of course, gaming!
If you’re new to Pathfinder or Starfinder, PaizoCon is an annual weekend-long event where we celebrate our team, our community, gaming, and all things Paizo!
Like last year, parts of the show you know and love will remain free, but we’re continuing to have a ticketed event with community-run games and activities at the same time!
What to look forward to this year!
Some of you may have attended conventions hosted on Tabletop Events before, but many of us have not! If you haven’t, here’s how to get your badge for the show.
- Visit the convention page at https://tabletop.events/conventions/paizocon-online-2024 (also linked at paizocon.com).
- Click “Get/View Your Badge” under Attend in the top menu bar OR click “Buy Badges” on the right side of the screen.
- There should be one badge type listed: the Attendee badge. Click the green “Buy” button.
- Enter your first and last name, as well as your Discord username. Your Discord username will never be shared publicly, and is just so we can assign you special roles on the Paizo Events Discord server.
- On this screen, you can also purchase a badge for a friend! Information on adding and purchasing badges for friends can be found on this page.
- Click “Add to Cart” when you’ve finished entering your information. Once you have all your badges in the cart, click Checkout.
- Follow the instructions to enter your credit card information, and you’ll be all set! Welcome to PaizoCon Online 2024!
Submitting Community Events
New this year, the community is able to submit events for inclusion in the PaizoCon Online schedule! These can be RPG events featuring Pathfinder or Starfinder, as well as other systems or even other types of games entirely! Want to introduce people to your favorite indie RPG? Looking for players for the new board game you just bought? Finally want to settle who the best Mario Karter in the community is? You can host all these events and more!
- From the PaizoCon convention page, go to “Host” in the top bar, then click “Submissions.”
- Click “New Submission” and choose an event type. For this explainer we’ll be using an RPG event, but most events will ask for the same or similar information.
- Fill in the requested information! Let the staff and prospective attendees know as much as you can about the event you’re submitting. Once you’ve filled in the information, click Create!
- After submission, staff will review events and either approve them (adding them to the schedule), contact you for more information, or reject them. We reserve the right to reject events for any reason.
You can submit events any time before May 24, 2024. However, if you want your event to be on the schedule before it initially gets released, it must be submitted by March 28, 2024.
If you have any questions about event submission, please reach out to us at paizocon@paizo.com.
Other Activities
Portfolio Reviews
After the success of last year’s Friday portfolio reviews, the Art team has added an extra day onto their review schedule! Portfolio reviews will remain free on a first-come, first-served sign up basis, but this year we’re giving ticket purchasers the chance to sign up early.
If you’re interested in having your writing samples reviewed, we’re also offering writing reviews on Friday and Saturday this year as well!
Stay tuned for more information and registration in the coming weeks!
Livestreams
Get ready for a weekend full of fantastic livestream programming including seminars, interviews, liveplays, and the annual weekend opening keynote on the Official Paizo Twitch channel!
Stay tuned for the full stream and activity schedule coming soon!
Friends of Paizo:
We’ll once again be joined by multiple friends of Paizo in the Discord this year! Chat with, ask questions of, and learn more about the amazing work of teams like BKOM Studios, Foundry VTT, Roll20, and more!
Last year’s convention was entirely online, but this year we’re introducing PaizoCon@! Our new pilot program allows you to experience PaizoCon in person with your fellow Pathfinders and Starfinders at participating local game stores! Check back on this blog to learn more.
We look forward to seeing you all online this year! Stay tuned for more updates and announcements about PaizoCon 2024!
Get your tickets for PaizoCon Online 2024 today!
Thursday, March 21, 2024
Hello, Starfinders!
Venture-Captain Naiaj is recruiting experienced agents for a highly classified mission. While details are scarce, whispered rumors circulating through the Lorespire Complex claim this is an undercover rescue mission slated to occur in the Azlanti Star Empire. Sounds dangerous!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-15: Extraction from Azlanti Space is an adventure for 11th- through 14th-level characters written by Quinn Murphy.
Meanwhile, on the gas giant Liavara, a team of desperate fortune seekers have stolen a derelict mining platform and descended deep into the planet’s depths, to the limit of the structure, on the hunt for valuable gases. Reactivating the maneuvering systems on the old rig sent out an alert and now a Confluence Agent has assembled a team of deep pressure specialists to retrieve the mining rig and learn what sent it plunging into the clouds.
Starfinder Bounty #12: Under Pressure is a short adventure for 4th-level characters written by Simone D. Sallé.
Take care, Starfinders!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Greetings once again, Pathfinders!
This month we’re diving deep into the Maze of the Open Road with two scenarios set inside that bizarre extraplanar transport hub. Between the return of two elemental planes and the efforts to stabilize the maze’s magic by setting new exits and entrances, it seems like some uninvited guests have made it in.
First off, someone is sending agents astray. Landmarks and signposts are being moved around, fog is leading people off course, and other similar happenings are causing agents to exit at entirely wrong locations. While no one has been hurt, Venture-Captain Sigvard Tornkvist is at her wits end with these endless mix-ups. It’ll be up to you to find out what’s behind these odd pranks and put a stop to them. But who knows what could be behind all of this? I do have it on good authority that, if you play your cards right, you might end up in a dance-off.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-12: Mischief in the Maze is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Mikko Kallio. What’s more, since you can never have enough mischief, it’s repeatable.
Meanwhile on the other end of the Maze of the Open Road, Gregaro Voth sends agents out to deliver an important letter to Ambrus Valsin, only for those lovable thieves Gedun and Yeyacha from this year’s intro to pop up and accidentally break the planar keys holding the Maze in place! It’s up to you and your party to retune the keys and help anyone else who might have gotten caught up in the elemental chaos. Let’s hope that whatever Gedun and Yeyacha stole this time isn’t something super valuable to someone super powerful…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Thick as Thieves is an adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Caryn DiMarco.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, March 21, 2024
We’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to celebrate one of Pathfinder’s most unique and iconic settings: the steampunk kingdom of Alkenstar! With the Guns of Alkenstar bundle, you can pick up all the books you need to explore this technological wonderland and support a great cause! Whether you’re playing in person or online with the Foundry VTT virtual tabletop, the Outlaws of Alkenstar Adventure Path awaits. What’s more, this bundle features a hardcover copy of Pathfinder Guns & Gears at the highest tier. It’s an opportunity you can’t afford to miss.
What is a Humble Bundle?
Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, whether that be to the publisher, to Humble itself, or even to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get in exchange!
When you make your purchase on Humble Bundle, you’ll receive a series of digital codes to redeem on the Paizo Store, one for each tier of unlocked products, plus at the $30 level, three additional codes to redeem on Foundry VTT.
There are four tiers to this bundle, starting at $5 and going up to a $40 tier. It features the Outlaws of Alkenstar Adventure Path in both PDF and as Foundry VTT modules, Pathfinder Guns & Gears in both PDF and physical hardcover, and the Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands world guide and more!
A portion of your purchase goes to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF), whose mission is to prevent and cure breast cancer by funding the most promising medical research worldwide. It’s a great cause at any time, but especially during Women’s History Month.
Our first Bundle tier starts at $5 and includes a code for four PDFs worth $45, including:
- Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #178:Punks in a Powder Keg (Outlaws of Alkenstar 1 of 3)
- Outlaws of Alkenstar Player’s Guide
- Pathfinder One-Shot #3: Head Shot the Rot
For $15, you'll get the PDFs in the first tier, plus a code for 5 more files worth $120, including:
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #179:Cradle of Quartz (Outlaws of Alkenstar 2 of 3)
- Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook
- Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary
- Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Character Guide
In the third tier, for $30, you'll get codes for the previous tiers, plus a code for additional 5 PDF files and 3 individual Foundry VTT codes, worth another $150, including:
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #180: The Smoking Gun (Outlaws of Alkenstar 3 of 3)
- Pathfinder Guns & Gears
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands
- Pathfinder Second Edition Advanced Player’s Guide
- Pathfinder Second Edition Gamemastery Guide
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #178:Punks in a Powder Keg (Foundry VTT module)
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #179:Cradle of Quartz (Foundry VTT module)
- Pathfinder Adventure Path #180:The Smoking Gun (Foundry VTT module).
Finally, at the $40 tier, we’ll provide you a code for a physical copy of the Pathfinder Guns & Gears hardcover—a $49.99 value—in addition to the digital products from all lower tiers. You’ll be responsible for shipping and handling, which you’ll pay at the time of checkout on the Paizo Store. We only have a limited number of this book available through this Humble Bundle, so don’t wait!
Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout.
Thank you for playing Pathfinder!
—The Paizo Team
Support the Pathfinder Second Edition Guns of Alkenstar Bundle!
Tags: Humble Bundle, Outlaws of Alkenstar, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Something that I have been mulling over for some time (but have yet to mention in these annotations) is the naming of the Godsrain Prophecies. By the time I first heard of them, they had already been given that title, but nothing I have read so far has given me any indication as to how or why. Personally, I would never presume to name a collection of this potential impact and importance without a very clear reason, lest I end up in a repeat of the Fatal Four disaster. (To think that one scribe’s decision to include a bit of wordplay in their recounting of a minor historical prophecy would lead to not one but two assassinations is truly beyond the pale!) Issues like this are the reason that Lorminos insisted I read Notorious Names and Narrative Novelties: Navigating the Nuance of Nomenclature early on in my studies (a book that could easily have been 150 pages instead of over 700, in my personal opinion). While I must make reading these prophecies a priority, I will also endeavor to track down the origin of the word Godsrain. For one thing, it is possible there was a mistaken transcription somewhere along the line. Perhaps they should instead be known as the God’s Reign Prophecies, alluding to the end of a specific god’s reign? It is something to at least consider.
–Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The “Death” of Zon-Kuthon
Shelyn has tried countless times to touch the heart of Zon-Kuthon, but in the end her music is what dooms the Midnight Lord. He’s long ignored his sister’s tears, no matter how they stream or pool, collecting any that he can and using them as salt to rub into followers’ wounds. Her pleading declarations he considers almost background noise, a counterpoint that makes the pain that echoes through the Netherworld sound that much more divine. But when she finds the beauty in the way his Kuthites scream and whimper, weaves together suffering into a string of rousing chords, builds melodies from dripping blood and rhythms from a clanging chain? Only she could find the art in all the suffering he wields, a dulcet murmuring that calls out from an orchestra of pain. Dou-bral, brother, I love you still. Dou-bral, come back to me.
With newfound strength, Dou-bral returns, soul breaking through its cage of bones and kicking out the usurper who’d lived beneath his skin. But even free he’s trapped inside a body built for cruelty, his face a mask of agony that tells a brutal story—scars and cries and sharpened blades, blood and tears and pain. The anguish he has known and caused, the torment Zon-Kuthon embraced—how can he reconcile himself with all he now remembers? He tries to flee back to his cell, to turn back into what he was, but Zon-Kuthon is memory now and only he remains.
Dou-bral can feel divinity like sparks beneath his fingertips, but with all that he’s done and been, he cannot now reward himself and let himself play god. He takes the power in his hands (so good now at destroying things) and rips it from his very being, leaving something more than man but less than deity. He stumbles from the Netherworld, his ears ringing with tortured screams (most of which are not his own), and makes his way to Pangolais, as if Zon-Kuthon’s capital will help him understand the things his other self has done. And when Shelyn walks next to him, her arm outstretched in kindness, the glaive she’d taken from him offered up with open hands, he turns his back and walks away, her music souring in his ears, reminding him of every chain he used to break their father.
Art and beauty pay a price for all that Shelyn’s sacrificed—the nightmares that disturbed her rest as she crafted a song of pain, the knowledge that Dou-bral is back but still wrapped up in suffering, the loss she feels from victory that’s nothing like she’d hoped. In theaters and galleries, on stage and page and instrument, creative minds start struggling—the colors dim, the music fades, the movements don’t flow smoothly—and lovers’ disillusions grow as nothing feels the way it was, until the disappointment drives some life-long pairs apart, an echo of a sadness that she cannot seem to shake.
Dou-bral’s other flesh and blood, the spirit-wolf turned Prince in Chains, roams the grounds of Xovaikain, trying to fill the absence that his son has left behind. But for all his vicious howling, what is left of Thron is not a god, and soon two new contenders come with plans to claim the Netherworld—Asmodeus who wants to bring new pain to the unworthy, adding a few new items to the tools he has for torment, and Iomedae, who seeks to free the souls still left within the realm, turning their search for pain into a sacrifice for glory. Neither willing to back down, they fortify positions, preparing for a battle that will change the Netherworld.
Far from the squabbling of the gods, Dou-bral travels through Nidal, hoping that he will find some path to redemption. Instead, he watches Cheliax, no longer held by ancient pact to stay within its borderlines, begin to take Nidalese lands, while members of the Umbral Court each claim to be Zon-Kuthon’s heir and stab each other in the back to claim his legacy.
Is the tainting of love and beauty worth Shelyn’s sacrifice if the shadow her brother’s replacement leaves behind remains to darken the world?
I will be completely honest here: Zon-Kuthon terrifies me! Always has. And yet this prophecy wasn’t scary at all. At least not to me. My Lady, I know, fears little, but I have been feeling the whole set of emotions during these annotations—terrified one minute and smiling the next. I truly thought I would be shivering after reading this, but I think I feel more sad than anything. Miss Shelyn trying so hard to free her brother and achieving her goal, only for him to reciprocate no love? It almost reminds me of my role in collecting these prophecies. I have wanted to be a part of something big to show my Lady how I can be of help to her for some time, and yet that means collecting a group of so-called prophecies that could be devastating in the wrong hands. It is odd to think of the gods having the same types of problems that the rest of us sometimes do. We revere them, and yet, especially as I read these prophecies, they seem more… mortal somehow? Or not. I hope that doesn’t sound too disrespectful. Best to leave this line of thought behind and move on to the next prophecy.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, March 19, 2024
After a lovely day and night spent in the river canyons, it was time for our next adventure. “What do you think?” I asked Lythea the next morning, spreading the rough map of the coastline that we’d pieced together out on the table in the galley. “The cartography of this region is incomplete, but my notes suggest that several migratory species congregate in and below the cliffs along the shoreline, somewhere—” I gestured diffidently with a claw. “—near here?”
She laughed at my hopeful expression, the water gently sloshing in the supramarine chair she affectionately called her “Little Sea” as she leaned forward and scrutinized my attempts at map-making, tracing the jagged lines with her finger. “We’ll aim for here,” Lythea said, her tone decisive, “and then work our way up the coast if we need to. No need to worry, Baranthet.”
“There’s occasionally some need,” I protested as Grefu approached, his finned arms delicately balancing several platters. “Here, let’s clear some space.”
Our stoic cook grunted his thanks as we swept the papers away and helped him unload the eclectic breakfast he’d prepared. We left the menu up to him, but he always seemed to find a way to accommodate everyone’s favorites (today’s breakfast included multi-seed scones for me and seaweed wraps for Lythea, among other delicacies). The others joined us shortly thereafter: Dr. Pom emerging from her cabin and blinking in the bright sun; Telero and Chari putting away their spyglass and sketchbook, respectively, as they returned from vantage points at the prow; Ten scuttling down from the central mast to arrive before the others and take first pick of the bounty. Grefu’s eyes twinkled as the young surki loaded their plate with one of everything and tucked in, their mandibles moving with wordless delight.
Lythea and I continued to discuss our plans as the others settled in. “With fair winds, it should only take a few hours, but... I’m not sure the weather will hold,” she said, evaluating the horizon with a critical eye.
Grefu politely refrained from smoking his coral pipe during mealtimes, but he was never without it, and now he gestured toward the clouds with it in hand. “She’s right. Storm’s movin’ in.”
This succinct observation complete, he stood and began clearing plates as I looked anxiously at Lythea. “The winds will guide us either way. There’s no cause for concern,” she reiterated with a smile.
Several hours later, I certainly felt there was a cause or two as I clung to the controls on the exterior deck, rain stinging my face. I much would have preferred, dear reader, to pilot the ship from the safety of the main bridge, the Zoetrope's sturdy panes shielding us from the elements, but some curious property of the storm had rendered our instruments erratic and unreliable, leaving us no choice but to conduct an open-air reading. Lythea watched the clouds and the sea below us with unflappable focus, fiercely calling directions over the thunder snatching at her words. But our navigator’s faith in our trusty ship and crew was not misplaced, and—trembling a bit from the effort, but still upright—I managed to set us down precisely where she wanted us with only minimal mishaps.
As I unclipped my safety line and sagged against the helm to catch my breath, Ten scampered by on their way to the engine room, looking as though they’d just had the time of their life despite an obvious abrasion on their arm. Grefu soon joined us, his coral pipe clenched in his mouth, and passed over a thermos of giant swordfish soup. I let the spicy aroma soothe my frayed nerves and permitted myself a moment to reminisce about the thunderstorms I watched in my youth with my pet protoceratops, Lin, my grandmother’s stew simmering away as she told us of the wardens.
Grefu’s gruff voice broke my reverie. “Nice flyin’, you two.”
I toasted him with the thermos. “Excellent cooking. Soup during a storm, imagine!”
He nodded, silently accepting the compliment, but his eyes were on Lythea, who’d accepted a thermos of her own but was staring off at the water.
“Lot of memories in storms,” he said, his voice gentle. “Lot of stories. This recipe was born in one, you know.”
Light writer plates of Grefu and Lythea, from official Zoetrope expedition logs. Art by Gunship Revolution.
Grefu leaned against the control panel, adjusting the satchel of herbs and salts that was always at his hip. His gaze as faraway as Lythea’s, he ventured, “Several generations back, my community was in a great famine. The matriarch of our clan had led us well for many years, but she was old and tired, and so we were looking for new leadership—normally a celebrated transition, but a grim one this time.
“My great-grandmother knew one good hunt could see us through. No one had ever dared to face the legendary swordfish lurking in the depths, beyond the coral walls of our home. Still, she was hopeful it could feed us for many seasons if she could only catch and prepare it properly.”
I was lucky the thermos was keeping my soup warm, because I had completely forgotten about it, so enraptured was I in Grefu’s story! Lythea, too, seemed to be hanging on every word.
Grefu blinked in that slow, measured way of his and continued. “She organized a group of our finest eel riders, even recruiting some from a nearby community, and set off into the dark. I imagine it must have been a terrific battle. But they returned, bearing the great beast—and she prepared and served it for her ascension feast, when the village unequivocally nominated her as our matriarch’s successor.”
“She sounds like an inspiring woman,” Lythea said, a small but genuine smile brightening her face. “Do you miss your family, Grefu?”
He considered this a moment. “It’s natural to do so, when you leave a close-knit community,” he said finally. “And I do. But they’re with me still, when I make a family recipe or repair the same nets their hands worked before mine.”
“Have either of you considered writing down some of your family’s stories?” I asked, ever the librarian.
“I sing of mine,” Lythea said, shaking her head. “That’s what keeps them close, for me.”
Grefu seemed to agree. “That’s more your wheelhouse, Baranthet—or Charikleia’s. Though I’ve thought about putting together a recipe collection, maybe.”
“A cookbook!” I was delighted. “Oh, you must—I’ve never eaten so well in my life as I have on this voyage.”
He huffed in amusement. “We’ll see. Maybe our navigator here can help me find a few of the rarer ingredients I’ve been missin’.”
Lythea’s lyrical laugh filled the bridge as she clinked her thermos to ours. “I’m always up for a dive!”
Baranthet Zamendi cultivated his love of the natural world at a young age, enamored with his grandmother’s awe-inspiring tales of the legendary Wardens of the Wild. He briefly attended Almas University before returning home to rebuild Droon’s public library, eventually becoming its head archivist. His upcoming book on the crew of the Zoetrope and their search for the wardens is his first, but he’s already planning his next adventure.
Support for Mr. Zamendi by
Simone D. Sallé is a senior editor at Paizo and has written for numerous Pathfinder and Starfinder books, including more of Baranthet’s tale in Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, the primal treatise and witch journals in Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, and Starfinder Bounty #12: Under Pressure. When she’s not extolling the virtues of the en dash, she enjoys playing as many narrative games as her schedule allows and wandering the woods with her Disreputable Dog.
Hello again, explorers! Today, we take a look at some of the aquatic content coming in Howl of the Wild: the athamaru ancestry and the merfolk ancestry! First are athamarus, Grefu’s amphibious people, who sculpt coral, communicate (and defend themselves) via scent, and practice eel rearing. Athamaru eel riders are a fearsome force, and your character can saddle up and lead the charge with abilities like Riptide Mount!
RIPTIDE MOUNT [one-action] — FEAT 5
Athamaru
Requirements You are underwater and adjacent to a creature that is at least one size larger than you, has a swim Speed, and is willing to be your mount.After working with aquatic beasts of burden for years, you have learned how to easily mount and dismount them. You Mount the creature and Command an Animal to issue it an order of your choice.
As a merfolk, Lythea has quite the voice. Merfolk are one of the most magical ancestries coming in Howl of the Wild, with abilities like manipulating water, cursing sailors, or turning their tears to pearls. But a merfolk’s most famous ability is their enchanting song—quite literally with the Siren Song feat!
SIREN SONG [three-actions] — FEAT 9
Auditory, Mental, Merfolk, Primal
Frequency once per day
Prerequisites expert in Performance
You can beguile and bewitch with your song. All creatures in a 60-foot emanation must attempt a Will save against your Performance DC. On subsequent rounds, you can Sustain the song, causing each creature in the area currently affected by your song to attempt another Will save. Typically, creatures that have traveled with you for a significant time, such as your fellow party members, are immune to your Siren Song.Critical Success The target is unaffected and becomes immune to your Siren Song for 24 hours.
Success The target is fascinated with you until the end of your next turn.
Failure As success, and the target is stupefied 1 for as long as it’s fascinated.
Critical Failure As success, and the target is stupefied 2 for as long as it’s fascinated.The athamaru ancestry is embodied by the ship’s cook, Grefu, and the merfolk ancestry by its navigator, Lythea! Art by Gunship Revolution.
We’ll continue passing on any reports from the crew that come our way, so keep an eye on the horizon for the next log from the adventures from the good ship Zoetrope.
But that, explorers, is a story for another day.
James Case
Senior Designer
Pathfinder Howl of the Wild releases May 22, 2024 and is available for preorder now. Customers who subscribe to the Rulebooks product line will receive the book and a complimentary PDF upon release!
Tags: Howl of the Wild, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Web Fiction
]]>Monday, March 16, 2024
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders!
March is Women’s History Month here in the United States, and all of us here at Paizo want to take time to uplift and appreciate some of the women who bring our games to your tables!
It’d be silly not to mention that our CEO and Founder, Lisa Stevens, is a prominent woman in the TTRPG community and has been a cornerstone of Paizo since the beginning. You can enjoy some of her stories about her time working in games by checking out Auntie Lisa’s Story Hour!
Now, to showcase and give space to some more of the phenomenal women who make Paizo’s worlds better and brighter! As the theme of this year’s Women’s History Month is “Advocating for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion”, we’re also celebrating the work these people do in those regards!
Caryn DiMarco, she/they
You may have seen my name on PFS scenarios or in Lost Omens Highhelm—or on some soon-to-be-released products! I am so proud of this achievement, but when I'm not writing for Pathfinder, I obviously do play a lot of Pathfinder. This includes Pathfinder Society (forever GMs unite) and one question that's always on my mind is how to make sure every player feels welcome at our games.
I've been at a lot of tables where I'm the only member of a certain group, and that's never a fun situation to be in. But often it's the only way to get more people to show up. I want to thank everyone who's signed up for a table or showed up to GM despite being a minority in their community; it's always a risk, but it's work that makes this community more welcoming for the rest of us. If this doesn't apply to you, I hope you walk up to each table with the goal of getting to know all the players and doing your part to create a safe and welcoming environment for them.
Pathfinder is a game for everyone, but it takes everyone's effort to make that true.
Solatra Lilac Harvinkai, credited as Sasha Laranoa Harving (nov/nov and dune/dune)
To advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the world of women is a difficult topic to broach. I am, personally, as a tall butch nonbinary lesbian who underwent estrogenizing hormone treatments for several years, and who has felt like a boy and a girl and a woman and am none now... am not often advocated for in the inclusion of.
I feel like when people aim to include women, they want to say that anyone who considers themself a woman is welcome. Often, I’ve seen them explicitly turn away trans women who are not able to safely come out for having some facial hair, or implicitly for not speaking the same language as the majority at the function by not having interpreters, or for being disabled by being in a venue with three steps up.
This is me saying to include them. Include everyone affected by misogyny. Fight the venue to get a ramp put in. Yell when they don’t want to spend money for an interpreter. If you have any form of privilege, weaponize it for those without.
We do not win alone. And there will come a day when our voices demand more attention than their silence.
Sara Jeffers (she/they)
Sara Jeffers (she/they) is an Indigenous Two Spirit game designer and graphic designer who utilizes traditional Salish art and storytelling structures to help de-colonize game design and add to the growing representation of First Nations and Indigenous North Americans in the industry. They also professionally GM a number of systems and games, focusing on combining horror with wholesome. When not writing or playing TTRPGs, Sara can be found hanging out with the coolest kids on the planet (theirs) and watching Bluey.
Their previous published work includes Starfinder Bounty #10 and several solo TTRPGs available on itch.io. She is currently writing a full level 1-20 campaign for Pathfinder Second Edition and starting production on a murder mystery Actual Play set in the world of Thedas. Her most recent graphic and motion design work can be seen on an upcoming Thirsty Sword Lesbians Actual Play on Enchanting Sorcery Productions on Twitch and YouTube.
In the future, Sara wants to be part of the movement in the TTRPG industry that leads towards something more exciting and less problematic than 4X play.
Lynne M. Meyer (she/they)
Hello! I’m Lynne, one of Paizo’s editors. I’m a queer femme and an advocate for inclusive games. For over a decade, I worked in higher education as an interfaith and DEI educator—a role that included developing and implementing training programs for students and staff, and directly supporting students of all genders and sexual orientations.
This background now informs what I do in the gaming industry.
I'd been a player for many years, but it was a 2018 call for contributors to what would become Uncaged Anthology that inspired me to start writing for TTRPGs. An anthology of one-shots, each centered on a feminist reimagining of a traditionally female mythological archetype and its origins? I had to do it! I battled my fear and pitched an adventure. Almost everyone on the team was of a marginalized gender, and the support we gave (and still give) each other was life changing. For most of us, it was the first time we’d experienced anything like that.
I then helped edit all the subsequent Uncaged books. That work led to more projects, and more opportunities to grow my skills. Eventually, that led me to Paizo!
Find me on Bluesky (@lynnemeyer.bsky.social) and Twitter (@Lynne_M_Meyer).
Elizabeth V Nold (she/her)
Hello! My name is Betsy (she/her) and I am a player, GM, and freelance writer of TTRPGs. I most recently got to work on [redacted], but, in the meantime, you can check out my work on the Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-05: Inheritor's Rite or Pathfinder Bounty 7: Cleanup Duty. I have also written for the Shadowrun system and contributed to the Attitude sourcebook.
I began my TTRPG adventure when my friend bought an AD&D book for $1.00 at a yard sale. I did not realize until years later how rare my all-girl group was at the time. In my 30+ years playing, GMing, and writing for games, I have seen women go from being a minority to being a common sight. Gaming has given me many opportunities. I have learned that I can write. Through GMing, volunteering as a Venture Officer, and helping to organize Paizo Organized Play Games Conventions (come say hi at Origins), I have learned to be confident in my abilities and how to convey that confidence.
Thanks to all the strong women and allies who have come before that made this possible for me. I hope that I can help keep the progress moving forward.
Jessica Redekop (she/they/he)
Hello! My name is Jessica Redekop (she/they/he), and I was one of two women with a cover credit on Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Women play games and belong in the gaming industry.
This month and every month, we appreciate the contributions women make to our games here at Paizo—and across the games industry!
In Solidarity,
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Marketing & Media Specialist
Friday, March 15, 2024
Greetings! Luis Loza, here! We’re just about done with our draconic tour of Pathfinder Monster Core. Last time, we took a look at the horned dragon, a remastered take on the green dragon of yore. This time around, we’re taking a peek at a brand-new design by checking out the empyreal dragon. Let’s have a look!
Around May of last year, we shared a preview for the diabolic dragon (the first dragon preview blog!). We are only just now getting around to their divine counterparts, the empyreal dragons. These dragons are connected to the plane of Heaven. They’re majestic beings with large, powerful frames and golden scales. Unsurprisingly, their divine nature grants them a breath that unleashes spirit damage with holy sanctification.
Their most noticeable feature is the golden halo that rests above their heads. This halo radiates an inspiring aura that grants allies benefits to saving throws and skills checks. Depending on the power of the empyreal dragon, the dragon can make use of additional abilities that originate from this halo. Some empyreal dragons can create a healing pulse that restores other creatures within the aura’s area. Others use their divine power to push creatures away. Particularly powerful empyreal dragons can even impose a mental burden on creatures in the area, causing them to become slowed. Thankfully, an empyreal dragon chooses who is or isn’t affected by these abilities so they can strategically help allies and hinder foes. The dragon can also deploy the halo, directing it to a nearby area and causing the aura to move with it. This allows an empyreal dragon to help or hinder from afar while focusing on a separate part of the battlefield.
All of these abilities complement empyreal dragons’ benevolent natures. They are compassionate beings who go out of their way to protect others. They even make their lairs particularly accessible, knowing that nearby innocents might someday make use of the treasures within. It’s not unlikely for an empyreal dragon’s lair to contain a multitude of magical armaments so that nearby innocents can stumble upon them in times of need.
That’s our look at the empyreal dragon! We’re just about finished with our look at the dragons from Monster Core, which releases in just a few weeks. We have one last dragon to preview for everyone. As has been foretold, we will take a look at the omen dragon in our final blog. See you then!
Luis Loza
Creative Director, Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, March 14, 2024
Massacre on the Hill — Severe 3
This encounter takes place in the small town of Navendale at the base of the Aspodell Mountains in Andoran not far from the Cheliax border. Your PCs could be passing through town or restocking and relaxing between adventures. Navendale is small, but it gets a fair number of travelers. One of the draws is the Red Rose Refuge, a popular lodge perched high on a rocky peak overlooking the town. The Refuge, as the locals call it, is known for having musicians play nearly every night, and tonight the famed Brastlewark Trio are performing.
The PCs are in the town square below when a stableboy comes running down the steep road to the Refuge shouting for any attention he can gather. He heads straight for the PCs and says, “Hey! You! You gotta help! It’s real bad up there!” If he’s calmed and asked what’s going on, he continues, “I was working in the stables brushing the horses when all of a sudden they got spooked, and then a real bad stink rose up. I nearly urped; smelled like when you stumble across a dead goat out on the mountainside. Then I heard all the yelling and screaming. A couple people stumbled out into the snow all bloody. You gotta get up there and do something!”
The PCs can run up the steep road and get to the Refuge in about two minutes. When the PCs arrive, the first thing they encounter is a stench of death carried on the cold spring wind. The Refuge’s door hangs open and the sounds of gruff voices, sobbing cries, and violence spill from the doorway. Inside, tables sit askew, and chairs are sprawled out on the floor amid broken pottery mugs and shattered glass. Over a dozen bodies lie slumped and bloody on the floor.
Map: This map showcases a portion of the upcoming Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Showtime Multi-Pack, out next month on Paizo.com or your local hobby store!
Creatures: Forced from their warrens, this group of ghouls has been wandering the countryside to find a new home. They’ve also grown hungry, and instead of hunting in town, they decided to target the remote Red Rose Refuge. They slinked out of the woods, passing by the stables before entering the Refuge.
They immediately attacked anyone they could reach, killing a dozen staff and patrons before cornering the frightened gnome singers on the stage. Three of the ghouls have the performers restrained while they whisper into their ears using Ghoul Whispers, while the other three are feeding on their fresh kills so they can use Grave Knowledge to help them find new warrens under an old boneyard. As the PCs enter the room, all six turn their attention to the door and bare their teeth.
Ghoul Stalkers (6) — Creature 1
Medium, Ghoul, Undead, Unholy
Perception +7; darkvision
Languages Common, Necril
Skills Acrobatics +7, Athletics +8, Stealth +7, Survival +5Str +1, Dex +4, Con +1, Int +1, Wis +2, Cha +2
AC 17; Fort +4, Ref +9, Will +5
HP 16, void healing; Immunities bleed, death effects, disease, paralyzed, poison, unconsciousStench (aura, olfactory) 10 feet; A creature entering the aura or starting its turn in the area must succeed at a DC 14 Fortitude save or become sickened 1 (plus slowed 1 as long as it’s sickened on a critical failure). A creature that succeeds at its save or recovers from being sickened is temporarily immune to all stench auras for 1 minute.
Speed 25 feet, burrow 5 feet
Melee [one-action] jaws +9 (finesse), Damage 1d8+1 piercing
Melee [one-action] claw +9 (agile, finesse), Damage 1d6+1 slashing plus Grab)
ConsumeFlesh [one-action] (manipulate); Requirements The ghoul is adjacent to the corpse of a creature that died within the last hour; Effect The ghoul devours a chunk of the corpse and regains 1d6 Hit Points. It can regain Hit Points from any given corpse only once.
ForbiddenCravings (curse) SavingThrow Will, using the high spell DC for the ghoul’s level (GM Core 121); Stage 1 carrier with no ill effects (1 day); Stage 2 2d6 void damage and the target is sickened 1 until it consumes raw meat (1 day); Stage 3 as stage 2; Stage 4 as stage 2 unless the target has consumed raw meat in the past 24 hours, then it takes 4d6 void damage and is sickened 2 until it consumes raw meat; Stage 5 if the creature has eaten raw meat in the past 24 hours, it dies and rises as a ghoul, if not, it returns to stage 4
GhoulWhispers [one-action] (auditory, linguistic, occult) Requirement A grabbed, paralyzed, restrained, or unconscious creature is within the ghoul’s reach; Effect The ghoul whispers dark thoughts and vile cravings into the creature’s ears. The creature must save (DC 17) against the forbidden cravings curse.
GraveKnowledge (occult) Frequency once per hour; Effect The ghoul calls upon knowledge it retains from one creature it has consumed in the past 7 days. The ghoul attempts a skill check using a skill in which the consumed creature was trained (if it’s unclear whether the creature was trained, the GM decides). The ghoul is treated as trained and uses a +7 skill modifier. This takes the same amount of actions or time as usual for the check.
The ghoul can instead automatically learn something specific known by a creature it consumed in the last 7 days, like the location of a hidden treasure or the name of a loved one. The ghoul can do this only once for a given creature, no matter how much of its flesh the ghoul consumed.
SwiftLeap [one-action] (move) The ghoul jumps up to half its Speed. This movement doesn’t trigger reactions.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Encounter, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, March 13, 2023
Welcome to the fourth Starfinder Second Edition Field Test!
As the Starfinder team prepares for the launch of the Starfinder Second Edition Playtest later this summer, we’re releasing small snapshots of our work in progress. So far, we’ve previewed the soldier class, a couple of ancestries, and the mystic. Be sure to check out those Field Tests if you haven’t already! We appreciate all the discussion and hype around the Field Tests, which energizes and motivates our creative processes even more than coffee does (if you can believe it).
Speaking of motivation, Field Test #4 previews Starfinder’s “team player” and “party leader” class, the envoy! Inside, you’ll find our thoughts on the envoy’s role and capabilities, and an alpha version of the first 5 levels of the class, just like our earlier class previews. While you may have seen the envoy in action during the Starfinder team’s livestream playtest in October, or perhaps you were lucky enough to play a demo at a recent convention, this is your chance to see the actual draft of the class!Oh, and did I mention new art? I’m sure you’ve met our iconic envoy, Navasi!
So, what’s the envoy all about? They’re a Charisma-based class, and the Starfinder team generally thinks of envoys as “support” characters, though they’re quite likely to play a leadership role, whether as a mover and shaker in your campaign, as a “party leader” or “face” for the rest of the player characters, or all the above! For envoys in Second Edition, we’re trying a brand new mechanic in the form of “envoy directives.” These abilities—some of which you get automatically, and others which you can select as envoy feats—give some direction to the envoy’s allies and grant the envoy and their allies a small benefit for following through on the orders. Directives have a variety of uses, from singling out targets with “Get ‘Em!” to hustling the team into a better tactical position with “Get in There!” Envoys can also “lead by example,” following their own directive to grant everyone an additional bonus for the round. Combined with numerous other feats that grant envoys combat options (like doling out temporary Hit Points, buffs, and debuffs), the ability to wield awesome sci-fi weapons, and several unique reactions, envoys have a satisfying and flexible action economy. Every team will be happy to have an envoy along, and your ability to build an envoy character to fit a variety of party roles means your envoy will always have a team to call their own!
Envoys must be ready for anything, from performing community service to battling whatever horrifying creatures Thurston decides to throw at the rest of the team during internal playtests! So far, we think envoys are a blast to play. They almost always have time to get into a good position on the battlefield while consistently dishing out damage, granting benefits to their allies, and tackling unexpected situations with their variety of skills and adaptive skill feats. Sometimes a single turn for an envoy has a major impact on a fight, such as by repositioning the entire team after a nasty ambush. We’d love your feedback on how envoys play at your table, especially in different team compositions—or with multiple envoys in the same party!
So, what’re you waiting for? Get in there and read that field test! Finally, if you’re hoping to catch more snippets of the playtest, stay tuned for announcements about future playtest livestreams. We’ve still got more to show you between now and the playtest release at GenCon!
— The Starfinder Team
-Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
-Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer
-Dustin Knight, Developer
-Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society Developer
-Mike Kimmel, Developer
Download The Fourth Starfinder Field Test Here!
Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, March 13, 2024
As I continue reading through the Godsrain “prophecies,” I have begun to develop a troubling new theory about their origin. I will admit up front that this idea may seem more in line with one of those Another Absalom tales of spies and skullduggery than a scholarly review (though I have always believed that those tales should be studied for their ability to keep the reader’s attention, something we researchers often do not do as successfully as we would like!), but I’ve noticed that several of the prophecies seem to strike at the core of what many think about the divine. This is not to say that gods cannot die, or falter, or fail in some way, but the more I read these documents, the more I can imagine negative outcomes that I might once have dismissed as distant possibilities. What if this is deliberate?
Perhaps the author of these works is no prophet at all, but someone who seeks to weaken what we understand of divinity. I am not certain who or what would seek that as an outcome, but any entity that benefits from faltering faith is one that cannot have the best interests of Golarion at heart. Still, if I am being candid, the thought of some mysterious villain appeals to me more than it probably should. Perhaps I simply wish to find a reason for these prophecies outside of any potential truth I might find in their pages. Or perhaps I have stumbled onto a workable theory. I will note the thought, but only as one of many I might bring to my Lady. False comfort can too often be found within visions of conspiracy.
–Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Nethys
Mind. Matter. Spirit. Life. Four essences. Four building blocks. Four cornerstones whose intersections shape the way that magic works. And in that four, two pairs that are too different to be joined together. Matter never blends with Spirit; Mind and Life remain apart. Nethys knows the truth of this, but never quite believes it fully. (Is he not the proof that there is power in duality?)
As the centuries progress, he keeps returning to this quandary, tells himself that he alone can meld the two opposing pairs. He can be the font of knowledge. He can give the world new magic. He can take the contradictions, put them through a transformation. He can start two new traditions. Mind and Body. Heart and Soul.
Does he succeed? Perhaps he does. Perhaps he stands awash with pride, his fingers trembling at the feeling, ready to share something of the magic he has wrought. But if he feels triumphant, it is only for a moment—a breath of jubilation as he soaks himself in magic, followed by a cry of horror as his body falls apart. Nethys, by sheer will and power, holds himself together briefly, fractures crawling down his arms, breaking him to pieces like a chunk of splintered glass. He remains alive just long enough to see the power of his folly, spreading from his fingers to the very building blocks of magic, tearing them asunder as his body turns to ash.
In an instant, magic changes—bends and rips and stretches thin, settling like a shredded cloth pulled tight across the world. Where it is torn, all magic ceases. Long-held items lose their power. Spells are nothing more than words. Spellcasters within these hollows lose all tether to their magic, even if they only cross the boundary in the aftermath. Some regain their skills with time, but others never quite recover, every magic word they utter turned to dust between their lips. Some don’t even make it that far, dying when the magic ends, falling from the skies above, losing shields that keep them safe, gulping down a healing potion turned to flavored water.
At first, the new uncertainty inspires mass devotion, but there is little solace from the other gods. Pharasma asks for a report. Irori swears to make it right. Their followers still cannot cast a single spell within the hollows. And those who lose the taste for magic, prayers dying in their mouth? They do not seem to gain a thing from all their dedication.
For those who never cared for magic, hollows are a place of refuge, leveling the playing field in favor of the fist and sword. Many flock who follow Nethys, loyal to his knowledge still, believing this to be some test that leads them to a new reward.
Many on Golarion relocate from their hollowed homes, fearing what it means to lose the magic in their lives. But travel is no easy thing, not even with the scout and map and herbal kits (now free of magical augmentations) that have become requirements for any trip outside. Rumors abound of hidden dangers scattered through the Great Beyond: places where the magic varies, strong one day and weak the next, turning one night’s cantrip to the morning’s deadly strike; villages consumed by all the magic stolen from the world, drowning in a power they have no way to unmake.
Magic is so fundamental to our reality that the thought of its absence or unreliability on a multiplanar scale is nearly as unfathomable as the concept of Nethys’s own ambition being magic’s undoing!
Magic has never been among my preferred subjects to study, but I now wish I’d learned more of it! It would help me to properly evaluate what, if anything, within this prophecy is truly feasible. Could one death (even the death of a god) create this level of chaos within such a fundamental part of life? This prophecy seems to indicate that magic is forever changed by Nethys’s actions, but even a disaster of the magnitude described seems unlikely to change fundamental principles of magic (a statement I would be much more convinced of were I sure that I fully understood them). While I doubt that this prophecy would come true, I am now curious if there are any projects that Nethys has undertaken that might lead to his attempting something on this scale. Perhaps I judged too quickly, and these are less dastardly plot than desperate warning? I need more information to be sure.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, March 12, 2024
“To the left!”
“His stomach’s open!”
“Pin him down, pin him down!”
The basher arcade was filled with battle cries and frenzied advice from spectators as servers smoothly weaved between groups with cheap drinks for their patrons. Students from all over the city crowded every corner, cheering and booing each game’s combatants. Soo-jin took a long sip of tea, wincing at the strong aftertaste as onlookers shouted at the small figures projected in the middle of their table.
“Get him!” one of the boys from Sage Plum Academy cried as an alley basher kicked her opponent in the head. “To the right, to the right!”
The tiny figures clashed again, fists flying as their players maneuvered them to victory. Nga’s eyes were locked onto the projections as she rolled her fighter into a defensive position, raising his arms to shield his chest. Her opponent grinned, his hands deftly moving levers while his fighter pressed in with punches and kicks.
Soo-jin watched the brawl with gritted teeth, waggling her fingers nervously. One boy’s eyes met hers and he pointed a finger at the SPELLS ARE CHEATING sign; irritated, Soo-jin raised her hands and pointedly showed they were free of magic auras before setting them on the table.
The opposing fighter grabbed Nga’s by the waist. Soo-jin’s nails now clacked against the table in a nervous drum beneath the frenzied shouts for a finishing blow. With a smirk, Nga flipped a lever, and her fighter’s elbow smashed downward, his leg swooping up into a powerful kick. There was a shout—a blare of music—and Soo-jin jumped so fast her chair fell over.
Nga beamed triumphantly as the Sage Plum boy groaned, his friends laughing and sighing at his loss. Nga’s tiny fighter raised his fist, roaring silently in victory, and illusory fireworks exploded across the table to illuminate expressions of both dismay and glee around the table.
“Pay up, all!” Soo-jin laughed. Groans echoed above the victory music, followed by the clink of coins falling into her purse as she collected her friend’s winnings. Another round was suggested and a new challenger was already settling into the open seat, cracking their knuckles dramatically as the battle music started back up. Soo-jin cast a quick cantrip over the purse, checking the total, before nodding a quick farewell to the other students and following Nga toward the exit.
The heavy scent of cheap tea and fried snacks gave way to the aroma of hot buns and saucy chicken. The sun was bright outside the basher arcade, the shouts of stall vendors replacing the cheers of students. Tired laborers grumbled about the lack of progress on the Surepath highway while young children ran past, yelling about spotting a sundaflora in the gardens. A girl from Soo-jin’s cram school waved politely from a shop known for its buns; Soo-jin awkwardly waved back, trying and failing to remember anything except that the girl had a duck as a familiar.
Nga and Soo-jin walked leisurely to their usual kopi-tiam, greeting Uncle Moon as the smell of coffee wafted toward them. Uncle Moon shouted a greeting back, merrily flipping hot taiyaki from a pan into a wax paper bag. Momo slept peacefully on the counter, purring with one small paw curled protectively over a copper piece.
“May I take your order?” a short tengu server asked as they sat down.
“Two taiyaki, one Xa Hoi coffee, and—” Soo-jin looked over the menu, and something newly added distracted her from her usual order “—one sparkle tea, please.” The server nodded and shuffled off, stopping to check on another customer. Soo-jin added the day’s total to a column in her notebook. “We’re so close, Nga. Just a few more silver pieces and we’re set!”
“I’m getting paid for tutoring on Moonday, so you can add that to our current amount.” Nga accepted the arriving tray from the server and took a leisurely sip of coffee. “You know, if you would take up tutoring—”
“I would rather let Mogaru eat me.” Soo-jin looked out the window. It hadn’t been that long since the giant monster’s attack, but she could scarcely see the water for all the bamboo scaffolding that had sprouted up in the aftermath. The city would be back, bigger than ever, in no time.
“Come on! Everyone wants a Willow Branch student to teach their kids, you’d make enough money for a concert ticket after a week.”
“You’re just as good as any twig,” Soo-jin scoffed, biting into her taiyaki and regretting it immediately as piping hot red bean paste scalded her mouth. She gasped, huffing desperately to try and cool down. Momo opened a judgmental eye from the counter. “You should try to test into another school.”
“As much as my parents would love for me to become a ‘twig,’ I’d rather be the best where I am than become average at a fancy academy.” Nga took a smug sip. “Unlike you, I’m in the top ten in my class.”
“Well, Miss Top Ten, keep up the good work and we’ll get our concert tickets in no time.”
Soo-jin’s eyes swept past Nga’s head to the wall of advertisements behind her, lingering on a poster announcing the upcoming Shining Crystal Muses concert in celebration of Harmonious Spring. Vivid ink paintings of the four Muses reached out to a prism floating above them, enchanted pigments creating tiny flecks of rainbow light that danced across the poster. Even in an ink portrait, Haru’s handsome face stood out, smiling coyly.
Goka had everything—peoples and food and buildings and magic from everywhere on the continent—but the one thing it had that Soo-jin cared about more than all of that was the Shining Crystal Muses. In only two weeks, she was going to meet Haru in person. It was a shame the concert hall wasn’t in its full splendor, as the authorities had foolishly deemed it lower priority for reconstruction.
What if that kaiju comes back? Soo-jin’s mother had fretted, but if Mogaru inconvenienced the city at the most important moment of her life, Soo-jin would personally put the kaiju down and no one could stop her. She smiled back at the poster, sipping her sparkle tea as worries of exams slipped out of her mind, and she focused on what really mattered: supporting her favorite band.
About the Author
Michelle Y. Kim (she/her) is a TTRPG writer and developer with a love for folklore and horror. You can find her at https://twitter.com/_missmyk_ or https://bsky.app/profile/missmyk.bsky.social.
To bring this and other Tian Xia stories to life in your Pathfinder game, check out the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide (releasing in April) and the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide (releasing in August), both available for preorder now. Customers who Customers who subscribe to the Lost Omens product line will receive both books and a complimentary PDF of each upon their respective release!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Tian Xia, Web Fiction
]]>Friday, March 8, 2024
Sandpoint is in trouble again—are you the heroes to step in to save the day?
Varisia’s Lost Coast has seen more than its fair share of danger over the past few decades, and the town of Sandpoint, known also as the “Light of the Lost Coast,” has been at the epicenter of much of that danger. Goblin invasions, attacks from giants and dragons, deadly fires, murderous rampages, and natural disasters have tested the limits of those who dwell here, and many have wondered why the Lost Coast, and Sandpoint in particular, has had such a run of bad luck recently.
There is a reason. And now, nearly two decades after Runelord Karzoug rose from his slumber to threaten the realm, those reasons are coming to a boil. A new band of heroes must step up to save the town from a sinister conspiracy that would bring doom seven times over to Sandpoint.
Seven Dooms for Sandpoint is a very special adventure: it marks the 200th volume of the Pathfinder Adventure Paths by returning to the town where it all began! Serving as a sequel to Burnt Offerings, the first adventure in Rise of the Runelords, Seven Dooms for Sandpoint is a fully self-contained campaign in a single 200-page volume that brings your characters from 4th to 12th level. Along the way, you’ll discover the true nature of the supernatural forces that have loomed in the background of all that has occurred in this small coastal town.
Inside the Seven Dooms for Sandpoint Player’s Guide, you’ll find player-friendly, spoiler-free information and tips to help you make an exciting new character perfect for the Seven Dooms for Sandpoint Adventure Path.
This player’s guide contains:
- Character suggestions, including recommendations for ancestries, classes, faiths, languages, skills, feats, archetypes, and gear well suited for this Adventure Path.
- Advice for how to tie your Seven Dooms for Sandpoint campaign to previous adventures, be they recent releases like Rusthenge, or old classics like Burnt Offerings.
- Eight new backgrounds to contextualize your character’s history in Sandpoint.
- A gazetteer of the town of Sandpoint that provides new information on influential factions in the town (from established groups like the Sandpoint Cathedral and the Town Watch to newcomers such as the Runewatchers or the Scarnetti Consortium), details on living in Sandpoint (including tips on earning income, earning reputation with the town’s seven most influential factions, or securing downtime support from individual NPCs and locations), and a gazetteer of 50 of the town’s most important locations.
- An interactive narrative that you and the other players can read through as a group to help generate a brand new “adventuring history” for your first three levels of experience, if you prefer to build brand new 4th-level characters to play this Adventure Path rather than bring in established characters from a previous adventure.
James Jacobs
Narrative Creative DirectorPre-Order The Seven Dooms For Sandpoint Adventure Path and download the Player's Guide Today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Seven Dooms For Sandpoint
]]>Thursday, March 7, 2024
The Whispering Tyrant awaits… Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors has officially launched into Steam Early Access! Developed by BKOM Studios in partnership with Paizo, this roguelite bullet hell survivor game allows you to experience the renowned world of Golarion through a whole new lens. Arm-in-arm with a trusted ally, delve into Gallowspire and confront the legendary villain Tar-Baphon!
As it exits Early Access, Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors introduces a host of highly requested features from the community, as well as UI improvements, overall gameplay balancing, and Steam Deck compatibility. Players may now brave the depths of Gallowspire with a friend in both local co-op and Steam Remote Play. Escape incoming damage in a blink of an eye with the all-new dash mechanic, and gain run-deciding buffs with a strategic sip from the potion belt. With the addition of dedicated chapters, faster character progression, hyper mode, and new Pathfinder collectible cards with official artworks that provide permanent upgrades, every attempt towards sealing away the disgraced lich-emperor brings great reward.
Within the depths of Gallowspire lies the disgraced mythic lich Tar-Baphon, one of Pathfinder’s most ancient and powerful villains. While sealed away beneath his ancient seat of power, he has been deftly plotting his grand return. As the magic that contains him begins to fail, three fearless heroes will rise to the occasion, tasked with venturing into Gallowspire's depths to defeat Tar-Baphon and repair the wards that seal him away.
Step into the role as one of three daring heroes and battle through the horrors of Gallowspire. The Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue all come with their own strengths and talents that will aid them in their efforts against Tar-Baphon. Choose an ally to fight alongside you as you slay hordes of Tar-Baphon’s undead minions, collect and upgrade your arsenal of spells and weapons, and extinguish Gallowspire’s callous bosses. There will be many failures throughout your journey, but aided by an ancient medallion, the heroes can escape death and grow stronger with each attempt.
Prepare to face Gallowspire's hordes for as long as it takes…Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors launches on April 4th. Brave heroes can buy Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors on Steam in Early Access today, or try the demo, as they await the Whispering Tyrant’s return. Wishlist and follow the game on Steam to get notified of the launch. Keep up to date with all the information by joining the official Discord server, Facebook page and following BKOM Studios on X.
Features:
- Choose your class: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue—each featuring unique talents, powers, and playstyles.
- Invite a friend to take over one of your heroes, to act as your companion. Even if you are playing solo, your companion always follows you into battle. Your companions will be as powerful as you have grown them to be!
- Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Delve into battle and overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run.
- Multiple Gameplay mechanics: dash, potion belt, aiming, unique feats for each character, and much more.
- Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run.
- Earn experience to level up your heroes, and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers based on Pathfinder 2nd edition mechanics.
- Collect cards showcasing official Pathfinder art to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes.
- Complete quests, engage in challenging boss fights, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself.
- Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Thursday, March 7, 2024
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on March 27, 2024.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-12: Mischief in the Maze•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Thick as Thieves•Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-15: Extraction from Azlanti Space•
Starfinder Bounty #12: Under Pressure•part of a subscription
Guide Updates
Version 5.10 of the Guide to Organized Play: Pathfinder Society has been published! This version contains some important updates, including removing axiomatic and anarchic runes, which must be returned for a full refund as they no longer function with the removal of alignment; and making some remaster-related changes to Spellcasting Services and PCs with Disabilities.
A full changelog is available here. Please let us know if there are any further questions or concerns!
FAQ Updates
To go along with the Guide, we’ve added a couple new FAQ answers to the Pathfinder Society FAQ page! Specifically, there is now suggested guidance on running Influence encounters in PFS, as well as clarity on how to get items made from special materials.
Sanctioning Updates
February might be our quietest release month in recent memory, with just a single flip-mat on top of our OP scenarios! But of course, that’s all due to next month’s Seven Dooms for Sandpoint, a double-length AP taking you back to where it all began. As such, the sanctioning machine is kicking up again!
We expect Seven Dooms to be sanctioned for PFS play upon release, and players will get access to a pretty cool item for completing the adventure! No spoilers, yet. We’ll also be sanctioning the Pathfinder Monster Core but, other than summoning creatures, there aren’t very many player-facing options in this book.
In April, we expect to drop sanctioning for the Tian Xia World Guide, and then in May we’ll turn our attention to Howl of the Wild as well as our final Starfinder First Edition release, Mechageddon! Lots of new content on the horizon for you all, hope you’re excited!
GM Recognition
GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th rank!
5th Glyph (PFS2): Zackery Kuehn and Jess Miller-Camp
That’s all from me this month, folks! Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! And get ready for convention season!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, March 6, 2024
One interesting line of thought that I have yet to formally consider goes beyond the question of whether these “prophecies” should be considered equally as a whole to whether the whole of each of them should be equally considered. If, for example, I dismiss the effects of a particular god’s supposed death, does this mean that I am dismissing their prophesied death altogether? Does every part of a prophecy have to come true for it to be considered prophetic? If the vast majority proves true, what is wrong could be an error of translation, interpretation, or prophetic understanding. On the other hand, if most of a prophecy is false, what is accurate is likely a lucky guess. The Windsong Corollaries never reach this sort of sentence-level consideration (a gap that I might perhaps publish a small paper in when my Lady does not need me, so long as I keep things strictly theoretical). I expect a reading of Beyond Aroden: Failed Foretelling in the Age of Prophecy is in short order to establish a bit of a baseline, but it will be up to my Lady (with my assistance, I hope!) to determine what level of possibility and accuracy any of these must have to be fully considered a work of prophecy.
–Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Erastil
Erastil runs. Gallops really. Hoof over hoof, his antlers gleaming, bounding over shallow stream and whirling under tree branch, his body flying forward in a streak of joyous motion. He cannot always be the stag, but there are times he needs to run and feel the wind across his legs, familiar as the dawn but as new as any sunrise. He runs until he’s just past tired and ready for a drink of water, shaking leaves from antlers in a spray of autumn colors and transforming back into the form his followers are used to—horned head and wiry body of an age-old master hunter.
But he is not the only age-old creature resting in this wood. Something emerges, slowly, from a refuge it has tired of, assorted sharp and fleshy parts dragging its pouch of hunger up from somewhere down below. Even Erastil’s well-trained eyes do not quite see it slowly crawling, clawing onto haunch and belly, drawing closer to the god and waiting for the perfect moment. Not until the instant that it rises up to strike.
Erastil runs. Scrambles really. Step after step, bow at the ready, preparing even as he flees, trampling through a clutch of bushes, plunging through the river’s cold, trying to stay ahead until he whirls around to face what hunts him, show it that he’s unafraid. But there are things that even Old Deadeye has no defense against. And when that something catches him, its jaw wide and devouring, it turns what once was hunting god to nothing more than helpless prey, only stopping its ravaging to marvel at the flavor. There’s something here it’s never savored, in between the crunch and squelch—divinely filling in a way that it has never known before and now can never be without. Once it has consumed its meal and all that’s left is bits of bone, it scents the air and twists its body, reveling in the aftertaste of something past mortality, and lurches through the undergrowth to find another morsel.
Followers of Erastil who felt his blessings fade track his remaining footprints to the place he fought and fell. (There’s luck in that, or Jaidi’s hand, steady despite a widow’s grief, putting firm hands against their backs until they find whatever place his hint of dust remains.) A hunt is called, a holy ride, in honor of the fallen god, to track and take whatever beast has left their altars bare. But all they find across their path are other grieving worshippers whose gods (most small in name and reach, their purpose only known by handfuls) now are merely carcasses, devoured by some wretched beast that no one ever glimpses. The Hunters offer shelter and a purpose to these wanderers, and some find comfort in the endless chase across the Great Beyond, even as they never seem to find the subject of their search. Whatever killed Erastil, whatever hunts the other gods, is always hidden from their view, is always one quick turn away, is always adding to the trail of carnage just ahead.
The gods take notice of the beast, each readying their own defense. Some draw together, forming pacts and promising to shield each other—the radiance of the Dawnflower reaches the realm of the Midnight Lord, Norgorber and Iomedae draw swords with Cayden Cailean, the half-abandoned Summerlands fill up with frightened deities—but others use the moment as the perfect time to strike. Gorum turns on the cowardly and sharpens blades against their backs, Asmodeus carves clauses into those he has a contract with, Calistria builds safety from the ashes of revenge. Pantheons rise and fall and splinter in the shadow of the beast, endlessly repositioning even when it has gone to ground, its hunger sated only briefly every new time that it feeds.
Among the mortals, fear takes root as one god or another falls, and those who live are sometimes absent, too caught up in safety to give followers their strength. Some flourish in these absences that gods might once have kept in check, selling hope or cruelty as counters to divinity, creating order from the chaos any way they can. And when the gods grow used to fear and venture back into the world (beast still lurking in the corners, drooling at the prey), some find their temples turned to rubble, dusty from years of disuse, or built over to some new purpose they can barely recognize, and must now find a new path in a half-godless Golarion, even as something in the shadows starts to hunt
When the god of the hunt falls prey to an unknown hunter, what chance do the beast’s other quarries have of avoiding a similar fate?
Much as I found it distasteful to read about, I wish this supposed prophecy had gone into greater detail about this “beast” with what I suppose is a taste for divine flesh (a prospect I can barely conceive of, let alone comment on!). While I did attempt to use my rudimentary artistic talents to create some sort of sketch, even my best guess at the appearance of this beast has fallen quite short, as it matches nothing I am currently aware of. Either my skills are not up to the task, the prophecy has purposefully been vague, or this beast has never been seen before. If the latter, this is yet another reason to doubt this prophecy in particular. Anything this powerful would surely be noted in someone’s annals. Beyond that, though, the breakdown of the gods noted here seems very unlikely. In both my studies and experiences of the gods, I have found them to be quite devoted to those who worship them (each in their own way, of course), even when to their own detriment. No matter how horrible the threat, I do not believe mortals would be abandoned in this way, nor that they would abandon their gods in return. Or, at least, I do not wish to believe it. Best, I think, to move on to some new, and hopefully less troubling, prophecy.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, March 5, 2024
To truly immerse oneself in the natural world, one must view it up close! Though our ultimate goal was to find the Wardens of the Wild, we couldn’t neglect the incredible opportunities for study we found over the course of our investigations, and we made frequent stops to survey the wilds on foot (or on fin or wheel, in Lythea’s case). I hesitate to call them “side expeditions,” for they were valuable in their own right; Chari’s notes and sketches filled several folios we’re still disseminating now that we’ve returned—ah, but I outpace myself.
In any case, these excursions were where our scout, Telero, and our scribe, Charikleia, really had a chance to shine. One day, early in our voyage together, we were flying along a river that gradually carved the land into a breathtaking gorge, its cascading tributaries branching like the roots of a great tree in the rocky canyons spread out below us.
“Professor!” called Telero from the starboard rail, his voice ringing bright and eager as always. “This could be the perfect place to look for more sage aconite!”
(I feel I must pause to note, dear reader, lest it cause confusion: I am not, in fact, a professor in any official capacity! A lifelong scholar, certainly, and a dedicated librarian and archivist, but circumstances led me away from my university studies long before I advanced to any sort of teaching career. Nonetheless, I’ve been “the professor” to Telero since our first day aboard the Zoetrope, and I must say I find the epithet endearing, despite its inaccuracy.)
Telero grew up among talented herbalists and knew botany was a special interest of both mine and the doctor’s; we also knew that where interesting flora grew, interesting fauna was sure to follow. Who could say what new discovery might lead us to the wardens? I set us down on the rocky riverbank—my landings were getting smoother with practice—and called our small crew together to prepare for the journey.
We quickly decided that, due to the branching nature of the canyons, a group survey wasn’t the most efficient course of action. “Let me go, Professor,” said Telero, eying the lodestone in his staff and tying off a bearing. “I spotted a waterfall a few miles in when we flew over. I can find it and then come back for everyone else!”
I could tell asking him to wait for someone who hiked at my speed—that is to say, glacial—would be futile. “A wonderful idea, Telero,” I said, smiling at his irrepressible enthusiasm. “But it did look like there were several possible routes. Why don’t you take Charikleia with you?” The two had already bonded over similarities in their childhoods, and the young nomad hung on the more seasoned adventurer’s every word when she shared tales of her exploits before our voyage. I also suspected Chari’s measured and experienced approach would be a good balance to Telero’s hastier decisions on the trail.
My friend and fellow scholar nodded, already tucking her sketchbook into her bag. “I am quite familiar with mazes,” Chari teased, “and I’d love to sketch the falls—”
“Last one there’s an egg full of broodpiercers!” Telero’s hooves thundered down the gangplank as he charged off into the gorge, no longer able to contain his zest for adventure.
“Careful to boil those first!” Grefu warned after him. Chari laughed and waved to the rest of us as the two set off, the clatter of their hooves echoing off the mossy basalt walls of the gorge long after they faded from view.
Dr. Pom and I had barely finished our second leisurely cups of tea when Telero came galloping back. My concern over his haste and Chari’s absence was quickly allayed by the exuberance on his face. “Professor, everyone, we found it! You’ve got to see this!”
Our intrepid scout deftly guided us through the canyon, at times splashing through the river itself as the mossy rock walls closed in around us, only a line of blue sky visible far above. “How did you find it so quickly, Telero?” I asked, marveling at his surety as the canyon widened and the river diverged. He led us down the left-claw path, stopping often so those of us on two legs could keep up.
“It’s easy,” said our young guide, his eyes earnest. “You just have to listen to the river and watch the wind.”
Light writer plates of Charikleia and Telero, from official Zoetrope expedition logs. Art by Gunship Revolution.
I’m afraid this surprisingly poetic insight has not yet improved my own sense of direction, but perhaps it will resonate with you, dear reader. If nothing else, the boy’s words remind us of the importance of being alert and appreciative of the world around us.
The roar of the falls drowned out further conversation as we rounded a final bend and came to a large canyon pool, fed from the endless water cascading over the cliff ahead. Telero beamed as we silently took in the thunderous serenade, the mist covering our awed faces.
It was nearly a full minute before I realized, with a shock, that Chari was sitting on a nearby rock, pencil in hand as she sketched the scene in front of us for our logs. She looked up and smiled as I took a seat next to her. Grefu and Dr. Pom began unpacking our picnic lunch while Lythea, Telero, and Ten charged into the pool, their laughter barely audible as they dove into the spray.
Chari passed me several sketches. “Signs of stony bat spit, similar to those of other gorgon subspecies detailed in the Kirisiel report, but I thought I’d document the flora first and wait for you to investigate.”
I paged through her neat drawings, all precisely labeled in her steady hand. “These are wonderful, Charikleia. How lucky we are to have you along. How was the trek?”
She laughed. “Telero’s a natural. He’d be right at home in the training mazes back home. I’d love to see him race my siblings sometime.”
Though I can’t fathom how he could have heard us over the waterfall, Telero bounded forward from the pool, narrowly avoiding soaking Chari’s sketchbook. “Chari could have found it first!” he protested, shaking water from his hair. “But she had to stop to draw everything.”
I traded a smile with my fellow researcher as she restacked her notes and moved them away from the pool. “I’m glad you’re both so thorough in your own ways,” I said. “The smallest detail could be the clue that leads us to the wardens.” I sighed, equal parts grateful and wistful, the sun warm on my scales. “Now, if only I were as organized as you are, Charikleia. I don’t suppose you know where I placed volume three of The Thrilling Tales of Spiridendra, do you?”
“You’re the librarian, Baranthet, not me,” she joked, standing and offering me her hand. “Care to join us by the falls? I think I saw some likely nesting spots in the rocks behind the water.”
Telero leapt forward. “I saw that too! C’mon, Professor!”
I accepted Chari’s hand with a smile as she helped me to my feet. “Lead the way!”
About the Author
Baranthet Zamendi cultivated his love of the natural world at a young age, enamored with his grandmother’s awe-inspiring tales of the legendary Wardens of the Wild. He briefly attended Almas University before returning home to rebuild Droon’s public library, eventually becoming its head archivist. His upcoming book on the crew of the Zoetrope and their search for the wardens is his first, but he’s already planning his next adventure.Support for Mr. Zamendi by
Simone D. Sallé is a senior editor at Paizo and has written for numerous Pathfinder and Starfinder books, including more of Baranthet’s tale inPathfinder Howl of the Wild, the primal treatise and witch journals in Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, and Starfinder Bounty #12: Under Pressure. When she’s not extolling the virtues of the en dash, she enjoys playing as many narrative games as her schedule allows and wandering the woods with her Disreputable Dog.
Hi everyone—James here! As we get closer to Howl of the Wild’s May release date, we thought we’d share with you some logs of the wildlife expedition of the airship Zoetrope and its crew of naturalists as they seek the mythical Wardens of the Wild, which Simone has diligently sourced. As you may know, Howl of the Wild presents six new playable ancestries , each of whom is represented by a different member of the airship’s crew—alongside Baranthet, the expedition’s iruxi leader.
Since we got a look at Charikleia and Telero today, this seems like a good time to show off feats for the centaur and minotaur ancestries coming in the final book! Centaurs can be pretty competitive, and young Telero’s no exception:
FIERCE COMPETITOR [one-action] — FEAT 9
Centaur, Mental
Frequency once per day
You challenge a single ally to a physical competition. This competition must involve accomplishing a specific goal for a specific use of the Acrobatics or Athletics skill, such as Climbing to the top of a wall, Tripping a specific foe, or Long Jumping across a chasm. You and your selected ally gain a +2 circumstance bonus to the associated skill check for 1 minute or until one of you wins the challenge, whichever is first. If you win this competition, you gain a +2 status bonus to Intimidation checks for 1 hour.
You wouldn’t really expect someone as soft-spoken as Chari to be scary, but it turns out minotaurs are frighteningly good at disappearing into mazes and other cover.
ALARMING DISAPPEARANCE — FEAT 5
Minotaur
Prerequisites expert in Stealth
Your ability to move unseen is startling for one your size, causing panic among your enemies. When you successfully Hide when previously observed, creatures you are hidden from become frightened 1. They are then temporarily immune to Alarming Disappearance for 1 hour.The minotaur ancestry is embodied by the ship’s scribe, Charikleia, and the centaur ancestry by its scout, Telero! Art by Gunship Revolution.
We’ll be checking back in with Baranthet and the crew over the next few weeks, so look forward to getting to meet the rest of our intrepid naturalists in greater detail in the future!
James Case
Senior Designer
Pathfinder Howl of the Wild releases May 22, 2024 and is available for preorder now. Customers who subscribe to the Rulebooks product line will receive the book and a complimentary PDF upon release!
Tags: Howl of the Wild, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Web Fiction
]]>Friday, March 1, 2024
Hola! It’s me, Luis Loza! I’ve been taking you through a grand tour of all our new dragons, such as our look at the fortune dragon last time. This time things are a little different. You’ll see what I mean once I start to tell you about the horned dragon. Let’s have a look!
One of the challenges with the update to the Second Edition remastered rules was having to leave a lot of old favorites behind. In addition to classic spells, notable magic items, and other memorable mechanics, we also had to leave behind some monsters. Unfortunately, in some cases, a variety of reasons makes leaving behind strigiform-ursine hybrids or cuboid gels the best option for us. There are other cases where a bit of cleaning up and a makeover leads to something we can still use in the new remastered environment. That’s the approach we took with the horned dragon—a dragon who you might previously remember for its focus on the color green.
Horned dragons are our second primal dragon offering in Monster Core. Like other primal dragons, horned dragons are powerful and more bestial than other dragons. This manifests most notably in the form of their massive, paired horns. In addition to simply striking others with their horns, a horned dragon charges their prey and impales these unfortunate victims on the horn. Once impaled, the prey is stuck and goes wherever the dragon goes until the prey manages to escape impalement.
Beyond that, the horned dragon should feel relatively familiar. Their personalities are relatively the same, their other abilities such as their poison breath and twisting tail reaction are still around, and they still generally live in forested regions and swamps. When updating monsters for the remaster, we wanted to make these changes as unintrusive as possible and allow updated monsters to generally fill the same role they had prior to their update.
We also took these opportunities to update monsters in interesting ways where we could, thus the shift from the dragon’s color to their horn and the addition of their impaling charge. The change in focus allows us to make the dragon more of our own and even opens them for future possibilities. While the horned dragon in Monster Core is green and lives in forests, there’s a decent chance you could see a blue horned dragon that lives in a lake or a tan horned dragon that lives in a desert sometime in the future!
That’s our look at the horned dragon! Make sure to keep an eye out for this dragon and lots of other new dragons when Monster Core releases in March. Stay tuned for more draconic previews in the coming weeks. Next time, we’ll take a look at the majestic empyreal dragons. See you then!
Luis Loza
Creative Director, Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, February 29, 2024
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases bring the Pathfinder Remaster Project to your pocket (edition) and pit the Starfinder Society in a race against doomsday!
Join us this Friday, March 1st at 4 P.M. Pacific for Paizo LIVE. This month’s topics include Starfinder Mechageddon!, the Wardens of Wildwood AP, and an update on conventions and events!
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions–for everything from rulebooks to accessories!
Pathfinder Player Core Pocket Edition
FORGE YOUR LEGEND!
A world of adventure awaits, but it needs you to be the hero of the story! Take on the role of a daring adventurer with Pathfinder Player Core. This tome contains everything you need to create a player character and outfit them with mighty weapons and powerful spells, and it provides all the tools necessary to survive in a world filled with deadly monsters, nefarious villains, and fabulous treasures! The first page of your amazing adventure starts here.
The pocket edition presents the same contents as the standard edition in softcover and a smaller size for a lower price and better portability.
Pathfinder GM Core Pocket Edition
TELL YOUR STORY!
Creating a compelling tale takes more than just heroes—it requires a complex cast of allies, adversaries, and villains! As the Game Master, your job is to narrate the story, working with the players to imagine an epic adventure. PathfinderGM Core is here to help you with every facet of the game and includes guidelines on story structure, tips on creating thrilling combat, and amazing treasure to reward your heroes for saving the day! This book has everything you need to become a legendary Game Master.
The pocket edition presents the same contents as the standard edition in softcover and a smaller size for a lower price and better portability.
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Temples Multi-Pack
SAY YOUR PRAYERS!
In a world steeped in divine magic, temples serve as centers for the power of the gods. Whether your heroes are in search of a holy place to defend or a profane temple to defeat, Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Temples Multi-Packhas you covered. This trove of temples features a tranquil sanctuary of healing, a rugged seaside temple devoted to a violent god, a temple of undeath nestled in a dilapidated graveyard, and a diabolical temple where the stage has been set for the arrival of hellish terrors.
This set includes two flip-mats, each measuring 24" × 30" unfolded, and 8" × 10" folded. A flip-mat’s coated surface can handle any dry-erase, wet-erase, or even permanent marker. Usable by experienced GMs and novices alike, Pathfinder Flip-Mats fit perfectly into any Game Master’s arsenal!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-13: Beginning of the End
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
Time is running short as the nefarious Order of Dawning Fate turns their experimental doomsday weapon upon a defenseless metropolis in the Vast! With millions of lives in danger, it’s up to the Starfinder Society to navigate the streets of the crumbling city, locate and destroy the doomsday weapon, and save the city from destruction! Yet fate is not on the Society’s side as Kebzec, a founder of the Order of Dawning Fate, oversees the weapon’s deployment and defenses. Will the Starfinders emerge victorious, or will they meet their end at the hands of the Order of Dawning Fate?
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-11: Equal Exchanges—The Hidden Current
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters.
A mysterious abandoned laboratory is discovered in the Arcadian Ocean, with clear signs of occult experimentation having occurred within it at some point. The Waterfall, strangely fascinated by this new find, sends a group of Pathfinders to investigate and gather whatever research they can find inside, while also ensuring that the building poses no further threats. Deep inside, a soul and forgotten memories await, hungry to be found and revealed to the light. The research and artifacts inside seem like they'll lead to answers about the enigmatic Waterfall, though this information may turn out to be unwanted.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-14: The Missing
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
For months, citizens of the kasathan colony ship, Idari, have vanished without a trace, disappearing from the idyllic Sea of Grass for a fate unknown. As the number of missing increases, all eyes turn to the nearby Red Corridors, a subterranean neighborhood home to anarchists, malcontents, criminals, and other kasathas looking to flout the deeply ingrained traditions of modern kasathan society. Representatives from the Red Corridors vehemently deny any involvement in the abductions, but rising tensions and the desperation of those who have lost are primed to spark violence. With citizens of both the Sea of Grass and the Red Corridors distrustful of the ruling Doyenate and refusing to cooperate with ship security, the captain of the Idari calls for help from an old friend: Ehu Hadif, current First Seeker of the Starfinder Society.
Pathfinder Society Quest (Series 2) #17: Escorting a Mirage
A Pathfinder Society Quest designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters, playable in 2-3 hours.
A down-on-his luck Aspis Agent, relegated to Thuvia where Aspis operations have all but ceased, has found an unexpected opportunity for revenge. Zarta Dralneen is making a purchase in Merab, and what her purpose could be is the talk of the town. The vengeful Aspis twists these rumors toward talk of the sun orchid elixir, and while no one of any competence or understanding would ever fall for such a flimsy rumor, Merab has more than its share of desperate fools. As the PCs transport Zarta's mundane purchases back to port, these desperate fools strike, making a simple escort into a fight for survival.
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API, or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Pathfinder Region Dice
Our partners at Q Workshop have released three new sets of dice based on regions in Pathfinder! Get dice inspired by Azlant, Arcadia, and Avistan now on their website!
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price. Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
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Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Eye for an Eye — Moderate 1
Captain Blazo Orane’s career as a notorious pirate captain was cut short when a freak storm capsized his ship not far from the city of Riddleport. As stubborn as he was cutthroat, Blazo went down with the ship but awakened several hours later to find himself in the cave of a sea hag named Cyclona. The hag had spared Blazo’s life, but in return, she demanded the captain’s eye. Blazo balked, of course—like any good pirate, he only had one eye left to spare. Unfortunately, his captor was in no mood for mercy. Cyclona plucked Blazo’s remaining eye from its socket, leaving the now-blind man to bleed out while she transformed her grisly reward into a hag eye.
Miraculously, Captain Blazo managed to free himself from his shackles—striking Cyclona with his cold-iron scimitar in the struggle—and stumbled his way back to Riddleport. Now, still weakened from his ordeal, Blazo hires the PCs to retrieve his stolen eye. If the PCs express doubts Blazo will regain his sight even if his eye is recovered, the pirate seems unconcerned. “If I can’t have my eye,” he grumbles, “I’ll settle for revenge.” Blazo lends the PCs the only thing of value he has left, his cold-iron scimitar, with the promise they can keep the weapon if they return with his eye or proof that Cyclona is dead.
Map: This map showcases one of the maps included in Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Temples Multi-Pack, out this month on Paizo.com or at your local hobby store!
Approaching the Cave: Cyclona’s cave is a half-day’s walk from Riddleport. If Blazo’s understandably vague directions aren’t enough for the PCs, most anyone in the city can direct them to the place.
The remnants of an ancient sea wall stretch to Cyclona’s cave like a trail of stepping stones. Slick with algae, the wall is uneven ground. Once during the crossing, each PC must make a successful DC 13 Acrobatics check to Balance or fall into the surf. Any PC who fails this check alerts Cyclona to the party’s arrival, granting her a +2 circumstance bonus to initiative. Alternatively, the PCs can approach the hag’s cave along the weed-choked shore to the south. This approach doesn’t require skill checks, but the ground is difficult terrain, and the party’s noisy arrival automatically alerts Cyclona.
Creatures: When the PCs arrive, Cyclona lurks in the northern alcove, admiring an amulet set with a blue gemstone: Captain Blazo’s eye transformed into a hag eye. Loath to surrender her new treasure, Cyclona lunges at intruders, opening with her Dread Gaze before slashing with her claws. The hag remembers all too well the bite of Blazo’s scimitar, granting the PC holding the weapon a +1 circumstance bonus to Demoralize the hag. If reduced to 15 Hit Points or fewer, Cyclona dives into the sea, dropping the hag eye in her panic.
Treasure: The PCs might not recognize Captain Blazo’s eye in its current state, but anyone who interacts with the amulet feels its wet, sticky surface, allowing the character to attempt to disbelieve the illusion (DC 19). Like all hag eyes, the amulet produces no direct benefit for the wearer (and doesn’t restore Blazo’s sight if given to him), but it allows Cyclona to peer through the eye using the Seek action. Any damage dealt to the eye destroys it. If this happens while Cyclona is looking through it, the hag is blinded for 1 hour.
Sea Hag — Creature 3
Medium, Amphibious, Hag, Humanoid
Perception +10; darkvision
Languages Aklo, Common, Fey, Jotun, Thalassic
Skills Acrobatics +8, Athletics +11, Deception +10, Occultism +8, Stealth +8
Str +4, Dex +3, Con +4, Int +1, Wis +3, Cha +3Coven A sea hag adds humanoid form, mariner’s curse, and water walk to their coven’s spells. Their spell DC when leading a coven is 20.
AC 19; Fort +11, Ref +8, Will +10; +1 status to all saves vs. magic
HP 45; Immunities polymorph; Weaknesses cold iron 3
Speed 25 feet, swim 35 feetMelee [one-action] claw +12 (agile, magical), Damage 1d10+4 slashing
Dread Gaze [two-actions] (curse, emotion, fear, mental, occult) The hag gazes upon a creature, afflicting it with a gnawing sense of impending doom, with a result depending on its Will save (DC 20). The target doesn’t need to be able to see the sea hag.
Critical Success The creature is unaffected.
Success The creature is frightened 1.
Failure The creature is frightened 1 and is slowed 1 for 1 round. If the target was dying, it remains unconscious for 1 day. At the end of the day, it must attempt a Fortitude save against the same DC; if it fails, it dies.
Critical Failure As failure, but the creature is frightened 2 and slowed 1 for 1 minute.Sea Hag’s Bargain (concentrate, exploration, occult, polymorph) The sea hag can make a bargain with a willing creature who must be of sound mind. The creature gives away a special or cherished quality—such as its courage, its beauty, or its voice. In exchange, the sea hag spends 1 minute polymorphing the creature into a form the target desires.
This functions as Change Shape. It might be a total transformation or just changing one or more aspects of the target’s body, and it can’t make the creature more than one size smaller or larger. The creature changes its Speeds as appropriate for the new form. It doesn’t change the attack and damage bonuses with its Strikes, but it might change the damage type the Strikes deal. This has an unlimited duration, and as long as it’s transformed, the creature is sickened 2 and can’t reduce its sickened condition below 2. The creature can slowly and carefully eat and drink despite being sickened. The only way to restore the lost quality used as payment is to defeat the sea hag or make another bargain for its return. Ending the bargain in this way also removes the transformation.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Encounter, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, February 28, 2024
It may seem odd that I have not made any notes within the margins of the prophecies themselves. It is certainly not for lack of opinions, but out of an abundance of caution; some of the most heated debates that I have ever witnessed during my studies dealt with the supposed impartiality of the researcher, with some believing that we should be as unbiased as my fellow psychopomps in their judgments of souls in the Boneyard and others noting that our beliefs influence everything we do, and should be acknowledged and even used within the way we work. The arguments grew heated more than once, and while it cannot be said for sure that they led to what some call “The Dueling Quills Incident,” they certainly caused plenty of frayed nerves.
This particular debate has taken on new meaning for me now, though, in reading of one supposed divine death after another. Maybe it is something I will grow out of one day, but it is hard not to be affected by these, whether I am mourning the potential loss of the Lady I serve or learning of the potential demise of a god I do not care for. I’m not sure I would ever want to view them and feel nothing but analysis. Passion drove me to this work and passion should be part of it—for all I know, that may even have been what brought me to my Lady’s attention. Still, I will present the prophecy with no further comment, and fear that once I have read it fully, even my small bit of glee will dissipate. As always, momentary gains bring unexpected consequences.
—Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Urgathoa
The feast is a sumptuous spread of delights if that’s the sort of thing you like. Piles of sweets and meats and cheeses, decadence on decadence, to celebrate a distant plague gone better than expected. Urgathoa is smiling as the undead shovel down the food, the flavors barely noticed in their urge to sate their hunger. It would all make Arazni sick, if that was still a thing she felt, and if she wasn’t steeled by something greater than revulsion. For all the gods Urgathoa hates, and all who hate her in return, she hasn’t even bothered to secure her own protection, relying on the undead to sniff out any intruder. Except they know Arazni’s scent. A tiny boon from all her years forced into undead servitude, now sharpened to a weapon to take down the god who dared to bring undeath to the unwilling.
Arazni moves in shadow, and if the diners notice, they barely pause their latest gulp to see her blade unsheathe. Urgathoa dies easily, falls lengthwise on the table, face-first into a centerpiece of something rich and juicy. As panic and dismay begin to spread throughout the Bloodrot, Arazni leaves the way she came, a vengeful shadow baring teeth in something like a smile. Divinity is still a thing she’s learning to inhabit, but this almost makes everything she’s suffered seem worthwhile.
Arazni waits, for…something—some rest for those trapped in undeath, some halt to necromantic work, some alteration in what had been a truly loathsome status quo. And there are places in the world where she can see the fruits of her handiwork—the Whispering Way is driven back, Geb’s Blood Lords struggle for control—until the undead start to rise from any perished soul. Not all, but some, begin to turn without a necromancer’s aid, and stagger from their resting places trying to fill their hunger. Without Urgathoa to lend some order to the chaos, some dead stay locked inside their graves, while others now reanimate with no real rhyme or reason, rising from their tombs and slowly crawling off battlefields, horrified and terrified and sometimes all too eager to see what unholy agenda their new bodies can pursue.
In places where undead have always been a threat to life and limb, the champions against them try their best to hold the line, not looking at the faces that are suddenly familiar, comrades-at-arms turned into bodies cut down by their blades. Some look to magic to protect the bodies of the newly-dead, but magic has its limits, and others fall to the horror they once tried to quell. At least they know how to respond, unlike those who are wrapped in grief, only to see a loved one rise as some new transformation. Do you love or do you fear? Do you watch or do you help? Do you wait or do you run and run and keep on running?
Some families go missing now. Some villages are overrun. Some cities bar their crypts and add guard shifts to every other street. Some call undeath a blessing, see the change as nectar from the gods. Some view it as a threat to something they once lived and died for. Others search for patterns, narrow in on who or what is to blame, let something they don’t understand consume their baser instincts, and rain fire down on those they think have brought this new world forth.
Arazni owns what she has done, seeks out the help of other gods, but they know just as little and have found themselves just as besieged, as undeath spreads like the diseases Urgathoa once held dear, refusing to contain itself to one singular plane. And as the numbers slowly rise, a flood that grows by sodden inches, one undead soul at a time from Axis to the Boneyard, some say the Pallid Princess watches from some place beyond undeath, relishing the moment like a feast to truly savor.
The severity of this prophecy ensures that even I, a loyal servant of the Lady of Graves, take no joy in the foretold destruction of the Pallid Princess. May that these prophecies prove untrue!
That was, to say the least, unexpected. While the horrors of undead potentially coming from every grave are one thing (and something that I know my Lady will not enjoy, no matter how untrue this prophecy may turn out to be), Arazni’s direct role in this cataclysm is not something I am quite sure how to parse. She has broken free from her centuries of servitude as Geb’s unwilling lich queen, and in so doing attained true divinity, a risen herald. With her newfound power, is she capable of slaying a fellow god? Is this merely one facet of the unreliability of these prophecies? Perhaps I should begin watching Arazni more closely, as some sort of harbinger, a sign that this alone among the prophecies is true? Does she have knowledge of this prophecy, and if not, is this something to warn her of? I will be dusting off my copy of What the Future Holds: The Ethics of Prophecy immediately. In the meantime, my Lady will know what to do with this. All I must do now is move forward.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Sichen was three when the grandmasters first clashed in Zhining Village. She remembered it clearly. The magistrate’s villa was torn from the earth like an obstinate weed, which made everyone cheer, then it was thrown into the drinkhouse, which made everyone groan. But the grandmasters didn’t care. On her father’s back, her small body bouncing to the cadence of his footsteps as they fled their family’s inn, Sichen watched the fighters with unafraid curiosity. Even as ceramic shattered and geese honked and people shouted, even as a broken oxcart flew into the air with a braying ox in tow, even as magic tightened like a fist about to strike, the grandmasters had eyes only for each other.
Sichen was fourteen when the grandmasters clashed again. One moment, she was blearily feeding the chickens, catching what she could of the morning light streaking through the yews, and then the earth was shaking and Old Man Ping’s house was gone. He was still there, yawning in bed, before he realized he had no walls. (To this day, the people of Zhining were still finding bits of Old Man Ping’s roof scattered across town, like fragments of broken teeth.) He made a noise Sichen thought only harpies could make, said a word she wasn’t allowed to say, then took off toward the nearest building for shelter, which unfortunately was the inn. As her fathers came out with blankets and mortified expressions, Sichen stared at the rubble, pulverized in a blast of concentrated qi that arced from across town, which could only mean one thing: the grandmasters were back.
Sichen eagerly stepped into the street to get a better look, but then her dad’s hand was on her shoulder and her father was calling her from inside. It wasn’t safe, she was a child, she had chores. “Little Chen,” her dad scolded, guiding her away from the street. “Those grandmasters despise each other. You don’t want to be caught in their fury, do you?”
With a final, forlorn look in the direction of the grandmasters who despised each other, Sichen trudged indoors.
Sichen was twenty-two when the grandmasters clashed again. Old Man Ping’s granddaughter Leyue had come back to Zhining to take care of him and was helping out at Sichen’s inn to earn extra coin. Even outside of work, Sichen found herself spending time with Leyue: wasting coppers at the drinkhouse, laughing about nothing, teaching each other martial forms they’d picked up here and there. Neither were cultivators, but that idle Quain hope was strong in their hearts: “maybe one day.” They were sitting by the docks, the glistening waters of the Dragon Sweat Run as bright and promising as gold. Their hands touched; Sichen’s pulse quickened. She leaned in, but the river surged.
Roaring like a dragon made of shimmering taels, the water smashed onto the bank three hundred bu away. Sichen grabbed Leyue’s wrist and pulled her from the crumbling jetty. Waves undulated, subsuming fishing boats and spitting angry brine at the shouting, fleeing harborside merchants. A cultivator stood on the bank, a single arm outstretched, the pummeling deluge of river water parted in dark slices at her feet. She was a lithe, handsome woman with short black hair and a temperate face that made Sichen think of a temple statue. Sichen recognized her immediately: she was one of the two grandmasters from eight years ago; from nineteen years ago. Her face and body were virtually unchanged. A dim memory rose—her father, pulling her aside, having found the cultivation books Sichen had spent a whole month’s tips on. Cultivators are to commoners as the Dragon Sweat Run is to a single drop of water... and grandmasters are to cultivators what the ocean is to the Run.
A second cultivator flitted above the rushing, swirling water. Colorful robes billowed around her body. She was a fat woman, cloaked in power and magic, her face a pure halo of beauty that left Sichen breathless. Even after she and Leyue ran to safety, Sichen couldn’t shake the image of those two grandmasters glowering at each other, focused and limitless, as though each of them were the only thing the other could see.
Over the course of Sichen’s life, the grandmasters clashed a few more times in Zhining, making all other duels in the village seem trite in comparison. Although their property damage was considerable, the grandmasters’ blows never fell on bystanders. Stories of the decades-long rivalry spread throughout the province, drawing tourists and traders to such an extent that the magistrate’s son (by now the magistrate himself), commissioned the local stoneworker to erect two statues in their honor by the town gates with a simple plinth: “may their mutual hatred feed our village for years to come.” Some villagers even looked forward to the grandmasters’ clashes, taking bets on when they would next hurtle into town like an unexpected typhoon. Sichen always bet, and she always won.
Sichen was eighty-five when the grandmasters clashed for the last time in Zhining Village. She was managing the front desk of the inn when Leyue came out from the office. Her wife kissed her on the cheek and handed her a coin. “Extra from the ledgers,” she said with a smile. Sichen kissed her back and placed the coin on the ancestral shrine, which bore a small painting of her fathers and Old Man Ping. As she turned back to the customer, a cabbage smashed through the front doors before being drawn back by an implosion of air, shattering the windows on its way out.
The customers shouted and ducked for cover. Sichen exchanged a look with Leyue, her eyes bright and shining and eager. “Wait here,” she said, then grabbed her cane and ran outside.
The grandmasters were in the inn’s square—her square—and they were fighting with the same single-minded fervor they had for the past eighty-five years. One held a cabbage cart over her head with one arm. The other turned, tore a stone lion from the inn’s doorstep, and held it like a bat. As the other villagers shouted and ran, Sichen stayed at the threshold, watching intensely. The cart flew, the lion swiped through the air, wood exploded, and vegetables burst everywhere. One of the grandmasters grinned cockily as she ripped up another statue; the other raised a second cart over her head—
“Oh, that’s ENOUGH!” Sichen found herself yelling. “Just admit you like each other, already!”
The grandmasters startled. For the first time since Sichen had known them, they looked away from each other—and at her. The inexplicable courage that had filled her froze, like a stag caught in a hunter’s sights. The immensity of not one, but two grandmasters fixing her with their undivided attention was almost too much for her old, mortal body to handle; her heart palpitated, her nerves sang—
The handsome woman laughed. The woman in the colorful robes looked at her with a stunned expression, then she began laughing as well. The sound made Sichen think of Dragon Sweat Run at twilight, the water rushing over the rocks, Leyue’s head in her lap. Then the grandmasters stopped laughing; they took each other’s hands with an intimacy that made Sichen’s cheeks burn, and then they walked. They walked out of the square, they walked through the streets, they walked past the gates, and they were never seen in Zhining Village again.
Leyue came out of the inn, clucking at the damage. “Aiya! Couldn't they have left a tael or two as an apology?”
But Sichen just smiled. “Grandmasters are to regular people as the ocean is to a single drop of water,” she said. “They’re more powerful than anyone can imagine, but they forget the simplest things, like saying ‘I’m sorry’ or ‘Thank you.’” She turned to Leyue with a glimmering look that made her wife’s heart rise to the surface of her chest. “Or ‘I love you.’”
And with that, Sichen kissed Leyue, and they went back inside.
About the Author
Connie Chang (they/he/she) is a queer and trans Chinese-American actual play Game Master, TTRPG designer, and screenwriter who loves threading black-hearted apocalyptica with queer love. They're the GM and Creative Director for Transplanar RPG, an all-transgender, people of color-led, dark fantasy, TTRPG channel telling stories set in an original noncolonial, antiorientalist multiverse. He's currently working on GODKILLER, a two-person holypunk narrative game for one player, the Godkiller, and one Game Master, God. Check her out on Twitter, Itch.io, and TikTok!
To bring this and other Tian Xia stories to life in your Pathfinder game, check out the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide (releasing in April) and the Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide (releasing in August), both available for preorder now—Customers who subscribe to the Lost Omens product line will receive both books and a complimentary PDF of each upon their respective release!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Tian Xia, Web Fiction
]]>Friday, February 23, 2024
The Deep Levels!
We’ve delved a lot of dungeons throughout Order of the Amber Die’s history. We’ve delved a few megadungeons too. There is this cool thing that happens when you pass the two-thirds mark of a megadungeon; in 2014, it happened when we reached the eleventh level of The Emerald Spire. In our earlier years, it happened when we reached the third poster map of the Ruins of Undermountain. It happened again during this marathon, when we landed on the eighth level of the Abomination Vaults. You’re close to the end. You can feel the immensity of the megadungeon above you, instead of below you. Barring teleportation, it takes longer and longer each time you trek back up to the surface. Everything is a bit more serious—the pressure to succeed is greater. You’re in what we call “the deep levels” of a megadungeon. Just reaching the deep levels is enough for hand-slaps and hugs around the table, but in the back of your mind is what awaits at the bottom.To reach the deep levels of the Vaults, we first had to get past some devils who ran the prison level. Quite a few of them actually, but as devils go, one was more important than the rest. Determined to reach the bottom of this megadungeon and stop Belcorra, we cut a deal…with the devil. This is Order of the Amber Die and we’re playing the Black Powder Cadre, so one deal wasn’t nearly enough. We cut DEALS with devils. You can’t hand our GM a whole section of the Adventure Toolbox titled “Infernal Contracts,” without expecting him to entice us into nearly every contract available. Yet, when Adam asked our party of gunslingers if we had Legal Lore, you’d think the answer would be nothing short of silence and smirks. Instead, our Player Captain argued two marathons ago that every human gunslinger in the group should take Clever Improviser, which Matt said was one of the best feats in Pathfinder 2E. Legal Lore, you say? Why, we seem to have a party of outlaws and aspiring attorneys here!
If you need to get caught up, here is our story from the other levels of the Abomination Vaults:
This marathon saw a couple of gunslinger cameos as additions to the Black Powder Cadre. Grundak, “son of Bashdak,” is an orc gunfighter who joined us with his Barricade Buster from Pathfinder Treasure Vault. It’s worth adding that the clip on the Barricade Buster was impressive; the rest of us were busy reloading while the rookie was plugging away. We were also accompanied by a new companion from Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands, following the Way of the Triggerbrand and offering some potential melee backup. Our final cameo was from Auralee, playing the cocky yet enigmatic “Lady Sniper,” who likes to wait a while before unslinging her arquebus and quick-scoping a kill.
- Adventure: Hands of the Devil/Eyes of Empty Death
- Marathon Length: 59 hours
- Session Hours: 40hrs, 30min
Every marathon feels different, and for this one we played our hours on level seven under the red light, which made for some serious immersion. We spent most of our three-day weekend trying to locate fragments of a pentagram that would allow us access to the levels below—along with permission from Urevian, a phistophilus. Tess Rajani, wife of Carman Rajani (the future mayor of Otari), signed away her firstborn in what she swore was a deal that outwitted even a contract devil. To make this moment even more intense, Adam laid an actual contract in front of Theodora to sign!
Highlights from Marathon 5:
□ Some of the devils in this megadungeon wield wicked Hellforged weapons. On level seven we found the Hellforge itself, then riddled its smith with bullets. Did you think we’d pass up a new forge, when one of us is married to the most famous blacksmith on this side of Kortos? “The Rajani Hellforge” is now operational, and ready to give Carman the boost to his reputation he’ll need in the next run for mayor! Should we mention our ownership of the Hellforge was part of the deal we signed?
□ Just like the levels above, we encountered more bearded devils on level seven. It could be something that every group experiences while playing the Abomination Vaults Adventure Path, but sustaining an infernal wound from a barbazu is definitely a rite of passage in the Black Powder Cadre. Thanks to PathfinderGuns & Gears, Cauterize effectively shuts down the worry of dying from one of these wounds, and it leaves a nice scar – we like to show them off.
□ We came across a gug that wanted nothing to do with us. Out-of-game, our vets have something personal against gugs. We faced them in The Emerald Spire Project, The Giantslayer Endeavor, and The Strange Aeons Experiment. Now one was right in front of us, sitting quietly in some kind of prison cell. We made a firing line and let the powder fly— only to be served once again by the power of a gug, regardless of what Pathfinder edition we’re in! Across the team, its Furious Claws ability spread out 207 damage in a single round with a few critical hits in there. The ground was littered with facedown gunslingers, and it’s the closest we’ve been to TPK.
□ We stumbled across one of the most memorable chambers of the entire Abomination Vaults so far: a stasis prison, holding an array of nasty creatures that formed a threat level high enough to cause the Core Rulebook to combust. Luckily, it wasn’t the prison that opposed us, but its witchfire warden. Our guns have names, and it was Vlai’s scattergun called “Collateral” that lit up the air like flak. Keep flying lady, you’re easier to hit.
□ One of the things we love about delving a megadungeon is how you get to make a different entrance onto each level, and level eight was hard to beat. We descended on an elevator into a large cavern filled with water, docks, and a few boats. Cypress Hill prepped the scene with “Cock the Hammer” as we spotted forms moving below – undead forms to be precise. One ran for a door and only made it to the handle. Another tried to launch a skiff and never had a chance. We dumped lead on them until the shouts of “cease fire!” echoed off the walls.
Character Deaths
□ With the assistance of devils, kind of dying doesn’t count. It’s all in the fine print.
The Arsenal
There were the occasional doubters when we started this all-gunslingers project. After reaching level eight of the Abomination Vaults, it’s about time to take some credit for just how well this party has handled the majority of what this megadungeon has presented. Let’s be clearer: we’ve just downright trashed a lot of encounters. First off, each gunslinger’s Initial Deed means that many of us start combat with hands free, which means on round one we can draw silversheen, a redpitch bomb, or even grab an edge if we need to. Do you think it’s a ghost? Have our Way of the Drifter draw her ghost touch shortsword. Oh, it a levitating seugathi? Pull! A hulking bone gladiator with resistance? Rocked it with concussive weapon traits. Creatures that climb walls? Just lead them a bit. Fearsome gibbering mouthers? Here’s some extra bludgeoning damage from the harmona gun. Mobs that rush you? That’s what hip-firing with Risky Reload is for. Just make sure to act out blowing on the tip of your barrel after the last shot is fired.
Best Quote from Marathon 5
(staring down a denizen of Leng and his companion—a giant crawling hand)
Zoric: “We should try talking to this guy.”
Tess: “Can’t talk to the hand…”
Current Situation
We disembarked from the elevator down to level eight, then Vlai gave the order: search and destroy. After cleaning out a couple of rooms containing bog-soaked undead, we debated whether or not we wanted to use one of the skiffs to explore the waterways down here. Water and firearms don’t mix, so we’ll likely keep scanning for another path around the level.
More Content:
Our table was brought to life with the help of Blue Table Painting for the miniatures, and Black Bard Studios for custom adventure-specific miniatures/terrain.
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-Facebook
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-The Abomination Arsenal thread
Tags: Community, Order of the Amber Die, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, February 23, 2024
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite is a program that allows you to create content (adventures and locations; monsters; character classes, archetypes, and backgrounds; fiction; etc.) based on Paizo’s intellectual property (IP), including Pathfinder’s Lost Omens campaign setting, and to make some money while you’re at it. Your work might even be recognized by the community and earn you an invitation into the Infinite Masters elite creator program.
For more info on Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder Infinite, and how to get started, check out the FAQs!
January’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
The ABCDs of Edicts and Anathema
Dive deeper into the new system of Edicts and Anathema from the Pathfinder Second Edition remaster. Over 700 edicts and anathemas for the ABCD of character creation: Ancestry, Background, Class, Deity.
Eldritch Expansions—Rainbow of Elements•
A kineticist expansion from Eldritch Osiris Games. With 8 new elements, you can become a master of the elemental energies of: aether, awareness, light, shadow, spirit, time, vitality, and void! In addition, you can find expansions for the elements of: air, earth, fire, metal, water, and wood as well as composite elements and expansions to the monk class and houses of perfection!
Kitsune of Golarion Remastered
Providing an in-depth expansion of Pathfinder Second Edition's vulpine ancestry, Kitsune of Golarion Remastered provides players and GMs alike with everything they need to make this vibrant ancestry of shape-shifting fox folk feel at home in the Age of Lost Omens. Based on the Gold Best-Selling product Kitsune of Golarion, this product aims to not only remaster but redefine the content from this original offering into an indispensable product for the entire table, tailless or not.
Player Core 1 Expanded•
Has inspiration struck, but Player Core 1 doesn't have a subclass to fit? Whether you are looking for a Cleric spy, a swaggering Rogue, or a Druid with a will of Steel, you will find myriad options within, made by 4 Infinite Masters and specially tuned for the PF2e Remaster! Feats, subclasses, focus spells, and more for the classes of Player Core 1.
Shattered Omens of Golarion•
The reality of Golarion is coming undone after the loss of one of its greatest deities, and it's up to heroes like you to hold it together. Shattered Omens of Golarion is a collection of over 2 years of work consolidated into one tome. Inside, you'll find over 185 pages of Remastered player options, including new ancestry and class feats, backgrounds, heritages, spells, and magic items.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
A Lurker’s Subclasses, Vol III
A wide variety of subclasses, feats, and alternate class options—whether it comes from mastering the use of sound to bringing religion to the more physical classes. And let us not forget options of various levels of technology, from Steampunk, to tech which is science fiction even to Starfinder, to bringing forward old favorites from Pathfinder.
Creatures from the Drift•
Creatures from the Drift is a supplement for Starfinder players and GMs, introducing a vast array of new foes from the depths of the Drift. Ranging from Cybernetic Fae to Drift-warped animals, these beings are unlike anything seen in the Pact Worlds. But thankfully there are also new feats, themes, and a plethora of companion pets to help you survive the mysterious entities from the Drift—including a whole new playable race!
Enhanced Mechanic
Experience the new Enhanced mechanic—revised for balanced and easier play. This expansion includes several new and revised mechanic tricks, drone chassis, and drone mods.
Galactic Magic: The Feats Chapter
A slew of feats for spellcasters of any class and some love for new classes, designed by Owen K.C. Stephens, Dustin Knight, and Sasha Laranoa Harving.
Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual•
Towering mechs, ancient elementals, territorial kaiju, and many more mech-scale threats can be found in Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual! Inside, you’ll find a spread of the latest mech creations of the Outer Sphere, deadly carnivorous mechform mimics, oozes that can slip inside a mech to throttle the operator or take over the machine entirely, and more. This book provides a variety of themed threats for use in mech combat at all levels of play, and all mechs within were made in accordance with the recommended alternative rules for creating NPC mechs from Starfinder: Tech Revolution.
New & Exciting from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
- The Godsrain Contingencies—Player options based on the Godsrain Prophecies, including archetypes, feats, new deities, and more! Updating with each prophecy.
- The ABCDs of Edict and Anathema—Updated feats and character creation information to expand on edict and anathema.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, February 22, 2024
Hello, Starfinders! We’ve got a packed month for you, so let’s dive right in!
Our metaplot continues as the Order of Dawning Fate progresses their plans, unleashing a devastating disaster weapon against a planet in the Vast. Not yet certain which planet the Order is targeting, the Starfinder Society is forced to dispatch teams to numerous planets, spreading their forces thin. You’ve been assigned the planet of Relthune, which is currently experiencing extensive tectonic activity. Race through a city in chaos to find the Order of Dawning Fate, deactivate their weapon, and bring their schemes to an end. Yet, the Starfinders won’t go uncontested! You will face with enemies old and new and be opposed by one of the founders of the Order of Dawning Fate—the drow Kebzec!
With the fate of an entire city in your hands, every second matters. Better make it count!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-13: Beginning of the End is an adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Isis Wosniakowska.
Meanwhile, back in the Pact Worlds, a team of Starfinders is dispatched to solve a mystery!
For months, citizens of the kasathan colony ship, Idari, have vanished without a trace, disappearing from the idyllic Sea of Grass for an unknown fate. As the number of missing increases, accusations fly at the inhabitants of the nearby Red Corridors, a subterranean neighborhood home to anarchists, criminals, and kasathas looking to flout the deeply ingrained traditions of modern kasathan society. Despite the danger, citizens of both the Sea of Grass and the Red Corridors remain distrustful of the ruling Doyenate and refuse to cooperate with ship security. Fearing that rising tensions could erupt in violence, the captain of the Idari calls for help from an old friend: First Seeker Ehu Hadif and the Starfinder Society. It’s up to you to find the missing!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-14: The Missing is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Kim Frandsen.
Take care, Starfinders!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hello, Pathfinders and welcome to your official second month of the year!
This month, the Equal Exchanges metaplot deepens further as a team of Pathfinders is sent to a strange island that defies all scrying and divination magic. The team is there to document whatever may have been left behind in a laboratory known as the Tsevel Center, previously run by the now-defunct Conference Z, the occult research section of the Aspis Consortium. The Waterfall has also tasked the Pathfinders with locating an artifact for her, that of a small, wooden box. As the Pathfinders explore the center, another soul lingers and watches them, wondering if they’ll prove to be friend or foe. Now’s definitely not the time to lose your head!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-11: Equal Exchanges – The Hidden Current is an adventure for 7th- through 10th-level characters written by Michael Bramnik.
Meanwhile, things are heating up in Thuvia, at least for some unfortunate Pathfinder agents—namely you. Someone has spread rumors that the PCs are transporting the valuable sun orchid elixir, instead of some reference books ordered by Zarta Dralneen. Only the desperate and foolish would fall for such an obvious lie, but, as Pathfinders, they’re excellent at attracting trouble from those types in spades.
Specifically, this quest is set up so the GM has 3 groups of enemies to choose from, each bamboozled by the rumor, but can disrupt the actual mission just as well. Since it's repeatable, there will always be another rumor to squash. Just don't disappoint Zarta and get her books stolen.
Pathfinder (Series 2) Quest #17: Escorting a Mirage is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Glen Parnell.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, February 21, 2024
While it would require someone with far more expertise to confirm this absolutely, I am now convinced that this set of so-called prophecies are all authored by the same hand. Some of this is due to the handwriting on the documents that have been found in more pristine condition (it is perhaps fitting that a prophecy dedicated to the death of the Lucky Drunk was found on a scrap of parchment that looked like it had been dragged through the floor of more than one tavern), but the rest I attribute both to the places in which they were discovered and, I believe, the rhythm of the writing (though I would be a bit more sure of that if I had read The Peculiarities of Prophetic Speech more closely despite what I believe to be a truly excessive number of footnotes). I am sure that Lorminos knows someone who can confirm my beliefs if needed. That is if, of course, my Lady wants a set of writings so inflammatory to be so widely seen. I am far from convinced of the truth of any of them, and a single author could point as much to a singular troublemaker wishing to create strife as someone with a sudden gift of foresight.
—Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Cayden Cailean
Cayden Cailean had never thought himself a liar. A storyteller, sure, in the tradition of the tavern, where convincing someone of your worth might mean a refilled tankard. Who among his fellow patrons hadn’t added enemies to boost their tale of combat or invented some new twice-trapped room deep within the dungeon of a newly fallen foe? To claim that he’d become a god was more than normal boasting, but he couldn’t quite remember what had happened with the Starstone. Maybe he had passed its test and that was what kept him alive. Maybe he’d become a god and godhood felt no different than mortal existence. Maybe he would take another round of good ale on the house (a thank you from the barkeep for the honor of his presence). Maybe as he told his tale he could almost believe it. At least until the nightly dreams began.
They started off as flashes, tiny moments in the dark of night—a clanging sword that echoed down a long and shadowed hallway, the smell of new-cut marble turned impossibly acrid, the taste of blood and honey in the space behind his tongue. And still, no matter what they were, each vision woke him shuddering—skin drenched in sweat, heart racing wildly, cold breeze crawling up his spine, a voice he’d never heard before that whispered in his eardrums—liar, drunkard, cheater, thief. One day you will pay for this with everything you owe.
Cayden Cailean would never call himself a cheater. How could he know belief alone could make a deity? But every time the story spread that he had passed the Test of Starstone, something shifted in him, brought him that much closer to true divinity. By the time he heard his story chanted like a rowdy prayer, he was every inch the god that he had claimed to be. He did his best to share the gift, empower those who followed him, pass blessings out like cups of drink to those who strived for freedom. But no good deed had earned him pity from the voice that stalked his dreams, a whisper he now recognized as that of the Starstone itself, murmuring about the flask that he kept tight against his waist—forbidden, stolen, holy power. There will be a reckoning.
The flask was Cayden’s property from long before the Starstone, but now it held a draft he’d brought back from the Cathedral—a distillation of the power held within its core. And while he still could not remember what he’d done to make or bring it back, he knew that every sip gave him a taste of the divine. His followers’ convictions may have been the thing that made him a god, but all beliefs grow worn and frayed and faded over time. No matter who believed in him, he knew one thing down to his core: the liquid in his flask was what kept his lie alive.
But every tiny sip of nectar took his dreams on twisted paths, until he dreamt of death in the Cathedral every night. And after he had died each way the Test of Starstone could devise—some with the sound of steel on bone, some with the fall of flesh to floor, some with a bargain on his tongue that faded in a gasping breath—it left him with a final and unalterable verdict: time for you to pay your debt, return to mortal life.
Cayden Cailean had never minded being mortal, but as his story shifted, he mourned his legacy. Word spread, as words are wont to do, of his deceitful rise to grace, and those who’d raised his name in praise could barely muster pity. The innkeepers and brewers he’d counted as his worshipers now barred him from their premises, afraid they would be thought of as complicit in his lie, and soon the one-time god had faded out of public life, so far removed that no one knows quite how and where he died. Some say it happened in an alley, slumped over in the pouring rain, while others claim he died in battle fighting for a righteous cause, or braved the Starstone once again in one last fatal try.
Iomedae and Norgorber, as fellow gods Ascended, both moved to quell the rumors that they had also cheated to obtain divinity—Iomedae appearing on the front lines with her champions in tireless demonstrations of her prowess on the battlefield and Norgorber eliminating each one of his followers who dared to voice dissent or wonder who he used to be. But neither sees the true change that still lurks along the margins, as one after another shop begins to claim that, for a cost, you too can be transformed from mortal life to deity. If all it takes is stories and a liquor no one understands (as noted in a few reports of Cayden’s sad demise), then nothing stops a hundred shops from selling sugar water and a complement of town criers to those who feel that being god is next on their agenda—a warlord here, a despot there, the righteous and the vengeful—and what new revolution might they bring if they do rise?
A god created from belief alone? That is both deeply intriguing and somewhat baffling, as this is the first report I’ve read of such an occurrence. Surely if this were truly possible, I’d have encountered it before in my studies. This will require more research, though with what time I will pursue it I know not. It does make me wonder how many believers one might have to acquire to cross the boundary from mortal to god, and whether belief was nearly as important in this case as the Starstone nectar mentioned above. I have no doubt that if someone were able to distill a liquor from a source of pure divine power, it would be Cayden Cailean, but for those of us not blessed with that specific set of skills, I am struck by the idea that you could solve for number of believers and gain divinity simply by exceeding that threshold. Equations are not my strong suit, but I may see if I can find a collaborator and determine what that number might be. Though it might be difficult to do without revealing where the idea has come from. Perhaps it would be better to wait until I have all the prophecies properly analyzed and know what my Lady wishes to do with them before I begin making them a basis for a new research field, but it is hard not to get excited!
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, February 20, 2024
What’s a Desna?
Some two-hundred months ago, I was a wrecked ball of frazzled nerves as I waited for the verdict to come in on the very first Pathfinder Adventure Path. This was before Pathfinder was its own RPG, and while I had experience writing and developing three previous Adventure Paths, this was the first one that wasn’t tied to an established world.
We were starting from scratch.
Not only was my adventure, “Burnt Offerings,” kicking off the first Pathfinder Adventure Path, but that volume also had to present a brand new campaign setting, complete with its own pantheon of gods, new weapons and items, world maps, new monsters, and more, all at the same time. Before “Burnt Offerings,” no one knew what a starknife was, who Desna was, or where Sandpoint was but me. All of those things (and quite a bit more) were part of my homebrew campaign, exported into the new Paizo setting largely as a time-saving stunt so that we didn’t have to build everything from nothing in a few months of frenzied creativity. Fortunately, we had an entire company of incredibly creative folks and amazing artists (in particular Wayne Reynolds and his iconic goblins) to support the adventure, and by the time that first Adventure Path came to a close, Golarion was off to the races.
And so here we are, waiting for the 200th volume of the Pathfinder Adventure Path to hit store shelves, and I just wanted to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of the folks who helped keep this thing going over the years—and to all of the gamers who kept their subscriptions going and spent countless hours exploring the adventures we’ve been creating. You’re all the reason we made it this far, after all, and unlike the first time I wrote about Sandpoint and its many troubles, this time I’m confident it’s here to stay.
Well... unless one of those seven dooms gets loose and has its way!
James Jacobs
Narrative Creative Director
Shadows Under Sandpoint
Coming back to Sandpoint to celebrate the 200th volume of the Pathfinder Adventure Path isn’t just a return to the site of the very first Pathfinder adventure back in our very first volume in 2007—it’s a return to the town where the Pathfinder RPG was truly born, in the very first Paizo office campaign to use the new rules. As players around the world were playing one of our first four Adventure Paths, the Paizo creative staff itself (or at least a very large portion of it) gathered in our office conference room to explore James Jacobs’s Shadows Under Sandpoint campaign.
Players like Jason Bulmahn, F. Wesley Schneider, Rob McCreary, PaizoCon co-founder Tim Nightengale, Sean K Reynolds, Christopher Paul Carey, James L. Sutter, and more gathered weekly to explore the town, facing off against foes like Pillbug Podiker, the menacing undead Kanker, the maddening Red Bishop, and even the Sandpoint Devil itself in a campaign that spanned the first few years of the Pathfinder RPG era. Traces of these adventures have appeared in previous Pathfinder products. The old Pathfinder Chronicles NPC Guide contained early stats for the characters of everyone listed above, and in the few times we’ve revisited Sandpoint in print since Rise of the Runelords, more NPCs and other plot developments have worked their way in, a palimpsest record of our original adventures hidden between the sheets of official Pathfinder material. Heck, my own character in James’s game, Ostog the Unslain, is now a genuine regent in the Land of the Linnorm Kings, a development right out of the final session of that old office campaign.
Now, with Seven Dooms for Sandpoint, James has pulled together all these threads into a new narrative that features many of the same challenges and foes that went into our original game—an office game that literally influenced the development of the Pathfinder rules and world more than perhaps any other.
It’s not every day that a monthly periodical manages 200 volumes. The predecessor to Pathfinder Adventure Path, the venerable Dungeon Magazine, only lasted 150 issues. A rare milestone like this calls for reflection, and for celebration. We hope you enjoy facing off against the Seven Dooms just like we did in the Paizo offices more than a decade ago, when we weren’t even sure Pathfinder would last 20 volumes, let alone 200.
Here's to Sandpoint, to Pathfinder, and to at least 200 more months of adventure on the road ahead!
Erik Mona
Publisher
caption
This is Where I Came In
Let’s fiddle with the Scepter of Ages a little and bounce back to the quieter times of 2007. I learn that the excellent Dungeon and DragonMagazinesare ceasing publication and Paizo, this little company that put the excellence into those magazines says that they’ve got this monthly Pathfinder thing they’re making that will carry the torch of the Adventure Path forward. I liked their stewardship of the magazines, so I took the option to roll my subscription over to this new endeavor. When “Burnt Offerings” (Pathfinder Adventure Path #1) arrived at my house, I was greeted with a tale of evil wizards from a forgotten empire waking into a world already full of uncertainty and hard people eking out a living in a remote corner. And goblins. Delightfully maniacal goblins. I immediately volunteered to run it for my group as soon as we wrapped our current campaign.
Maybe it’s because it was my first taste or maybe it was because the place oozed with colorful characters full of life (and potential conflict), but Sandpoint has been a gold standard of the small fantasy town in my eyes. It’s small enough to have that “everyone knows everyone else’s business” thing going, but big enough that there’s always some shady goings on when the town goes to sleep.
Years later, I joined the company while we were working on “Skull & Shackles”—so, well after most of the foundational Runelords work was done or the return to Sandpoint in “Jade Regent”—but I helped out with “Shattered Star,” wrote for “Return of the Runelords,” and developed both Sandpoint: Light of the Lost Coast and this—the 200th volume of the Pathfinder Adventure Path, a return to Sandpoint to save the first town I came to love in the world of Golarion. I in no way created Sandpoint or the Runelord saga—that’s James’ crown to bear—but I’d like to think I’ve guided it a bit.
Adam Daigle
Director of Game Development
And before any of y’all ask in the comments below... Yes, our digital-play-loving friends, this adventure is getting support from Foundry VTT and it will be available on the same day as the PDF! In fact, since this is a big deal—being the 200th Adventure Path volume and all—the team over there is pulling out all the stops and making this one fancy. In addition to the usual stellar maps and smooth play experience, It will include a fully-integrated, original musical score and special digital dice themed specifically for Seven Dooms for Sandpoint!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Seven Dooms For Sandpoint
]]>Friday, February 16, 2024
Howdy! Luis Loza here! Last time, we peeked at the cover for Player Core 2 and took a look at look at the conspirator dragon that had earned a spot on the cover. This time I’ve decided to share the draconic wealth and showcase the new fortune dragon. Let’s have a look!
Fortune dragons are the other arcane dragon featured in Monster Core. Similar to the mirage dragon, the fortune dragon embodies direct control over magic. Unlike its cousin, the fortune dragon is less about a specific type of magic and more about raw magical power.
Magical energy and magical potential exist everywhere, and much like a person breathing in air, a fortune dragon constantly draws in magical energy from their surroundings. They use these energies to empower their magical abilities, or even heal their wounds. Though they are arcane dragons, their frames are noticeably bulkier than the typical frame of their other arcane cousins, and marked by one distinctive feature: their treasure. The constant drawing of magical energy creates a strange sort of magnetism that causes coins, gems, and magical items to cling to the body of a fortune dragon. This energy even flows through the items themselves, causing many of them to heat up and melt in the process.
Since fortune dragons are constantly drawing on magical energy, they have the capability of actively drawing from large surges of energy and using it for themselves. While they use spontaneous magic, a fortune dragon can recharge their magic by feeding upon other spells that affect them, turning a foe’s magic into fuel for their own spell. More powerful fortune dragons even have an aura of magical disruption, which makes consuming spells in this way an automatic process. Fortune dragons can unleash blasts of pure magical energy, manifesting as force damage, to hurt others. These blasts are disruptive as well, making others stupefied and leading to more disrupted spells that a fortune dragon can consume.
Of course, a fortune dragon has an enormous hoard of wealth in their lair. These hoards are typically larger than those of other dragons. A significant amount of a fortune dragon’s hoard is effectively worthless, however. Countless relics litter these hoards, each drained of their innate magic, with any inherent value left in the form of non-magical materials. A fortune dragon typically keeps their most valued treasures deep within their hoard or even directly attached to their bodies.
That’s our look at the fortune dragon! Make sure to keep an eye out for this dragon and lots of other new dragons when Monster Core releases in March. Stay tuned for more draconic previews in the coming weeks. Next time, we’ll take a look at the mighty horned dragons. See you then!
Luis Loza
Creative Director, Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, February 15, 2024
I’ve always been a fan of the immersion factor that music and sound bring to TTRPGs. I have fond memories from the olden times of collecting sound effect CDs from the Halloween store to use as background ambience for dungeon-crawling sessions (and then probably going through far too much effort trying to make the setting and the encounters at least sort of match the audio). Granted, those weren’t always the best—if you’ve never had the pleasure of engaging in a tense roleplaying session that keeps getting interrupted by random screams and cackling like an extra in a rubber clown mask at a third-tier state fair funhouse, you’re missing out—but fortunately, the breadth and quality of available sound and ambience options have come a long way since then.
Music is the same way. When you’re sitting around the table and your GM hits play on something from the “Conan the Barbarian” soundtrack, you know it’s time for some bad guys to get sworded and/or sorceried. When you hear that Shire theme from the “Lord of the Rings” soundtrack, you know you’re about to enter a pastoral little hamlet full of relatable NPCs that your GM will make you fall in love with before shamelessly brutalizing and/or endangering them to raise the emotional stakes. There’s a track on the “Pirates of the Caribbean” soundtrack that I’ll always associate with a particularly nail-biting combat against a BBEG (more than I associate it with the movie itself) just because it happened to come on at exactly the right time.
Anyway, where was I going with this? If you read the final paragraph of our Season of Ghosts blog last week, you may have caught our announcement that Paizo has officially partnered with Michael Ghelfi Studios—one of the industry’s leading producers of music and audio specifically tailored for TTRPGs—to produce original music for select and upcoming Pathfinder Adventure Paths! You can go check out our official Season of Ghosts Adventure Path trailerfeaturing a taste of that music, and download the first track—aptly titled “Season of Ghosts”—absolutely free, right here!
Well, I’m excited to announce that our next two Adventure Paths—Seven Dooms for Sandpoint and Wardens of Wildwood—will both receive full-length soundtrack albums of their own, which we hope to release alongside the first volume of each Adventure Path so that you can use it to set the stage for your adventures from day one. Each album is being created completely from scratch by a member of Michael Ghelfi’s award-winning team of composers, working from input provided by each Adventure Path’s lead developer on key themes, inspirations, major characters, and story beats. It’s our hope that, not only will this awesome music enhance your games today, but that years from now you’ll be able to listen to a track from one of these albums and immediately associate it with a memorable NPC or moment from your own campaign, much as I associate this track with the time my character critically fumbled and accidentally dropped his weapon off the side of a boat.
We’ll be offering each of these albums as complete downloads on the Paizo store, and shortly after release, they’ll also be available on Michael Ghelfi Studios’ Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube, and probably anywhere else you like to purchase digital music. Oh, and just because we think it’s cool, we’ll also be including the complete Seven Dooms for Sandpoint album with the adventure module for Foundry VTT, all cued up and ready to score your valiant attempts to save Sandpoint from utter destruction.
And there’s more on the way! We can’t share all of our plans just yet, but we can heavily insinuate that we don’t plan on stopping here. Watch this space!
Andrew White
Digital Products Lead
Tags: Music, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, February 14, 2024
The Sound of Love — Moderate 11
This encounter takes place at a shrine for the Black Butterfly. Your PCs could have heard rumors of the shrine or have been invited to a heartbondritual taking place at the sanctuary. The shrine is a series of smaller altars and sanctuaries that were built to be traveled between in utter silence with respect to the Black Butterfly, allowing travelers to meditate on the silence between.
The PCs are given an opportunity to reflect on their previous adventures and meditate on their future choices. If they choose to travel in silence, they become more aware of the beautiful vista before them. They notice how green the trees are and how beautiful the nearby river sounds as it tumbles on its way, unconcerned with the happenings of the world around it. The air begins to smell fresher and cool against their skin. PCs who remain silent during their travels gain a +1 status bonus to Perception checks while traveling between the altars.
When the PCs arrive at the final altar, they are welcomed by a small gathering of nobles who decided this shrine was the perfect location for their heartbond ritual. When the ceremony begins, trumpets are sounded to announce the union to the world. Unbeknownst to the nobles, a quai dau to stealthily hunts nearby, and the sound of trumpets sends it on a rampage. It inflates and flies towards the ceremony with rage in its eyes.
Map: This map uses a portion of the Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Night Market & Shrine
Creatures: The local quai dau to normally hunts the river in peace, leaving the silent visitors of the shrine alone. However, they are very sensitive to loud noises and the trumpets, which caused the beast great distress. The quai dau to will attack the creature making the most noise. PCs can spend an action to calm the beast (DC 32 Nature check), provided they can get everyone else to become completely quiet. This DC is reduced by 5 if the quai dau to is reduced to 150 HP or lower. The beast will flee if reduced to 50 HP or lower.
Illustration by Gunship Revolution Quai Dau To Creature 13
Huge, Beast
Perception +25; darkvision, mist vision, scent (imprecise) 120 feet
Skills Athletics +27, Stealth +25, Survival +24
Str +8, Dex +4, Con +8, Int –3, Wis +5, Cha –1Mist Vision The quai dau to ignores the concealed condition from mist and fog.
AC 32; Fort +26, Ref +19, Will +21
HP 300; Immunities blinded, dazzled; Weaknesses sonic 15Frightful Sight (aura, emotion, fear, mental, visual) 60 feet. This aura functions as a DC 32 frightful presence aura (page 359), but a creature doesn’t attempt its save until it sees the quai dau to.
Reflective Scales [reaction] Trigger A creature within 30 feet casts a spell with the light trait or uses an ability with the light trait; EffectThe quai dau to adjusts its position to reflect the light off their scales in a blinding display. All creatures in a 30-foot emanation must succeed at a DC 33 Fortitude saving throw or become blinded for 1 round.
Speed 40 feet, swim 30 feet; Inflate
Melee jaws [one-action] +27 (reach 10 feet), Damage 3d12+14 piercing
Melee tail [one-action] +27 (reach 20 feet), Damage 3d8+14 bludgeoning
Melee foot [one-action] +27 (agile), Damage 3d8+14 bludgeoning
Drain Water [one-action] (manipulate) Requirements The quai dau to is within 10 feet of a body of water that’s at least 10 feet deep and their water sac is empty; Effect The quai dau to sucks water through their trunk to fill their water sac, lowering the level in the body of water by 10 feet. All creatures in the water within a 30-foot emanation are off-guard until the start of the quai dau to’s next turn.
Inflate [one-action] The quai dau to inflates their body. They become Gargantuan, gain a fly Speed of 30 feet until the end of their next turn, and then Fly. They deflate if they fall unconscious or Dismiss this effect.
Mist Breath [one-action] (primal, water) Requirements The quai dau to’s water sac is full; Effect The quai dau to empties their water sac to breathe out mist in a 10-foot emanation. All creatures within the mist become concealed, and all creatures outside the mist become concealed to creatures within it. The mist dissipates after 1 round.
Spout Water [two-actions] (primal, water) Requirements The quai dau to’s water sac is full; Effect The quai dau to empties its water sac to blast water from its trunk, dealing 9d10 bludgeoning damage to all creatures in a 90-foot line, with a DC 33 basic Reflex save. A creature that fails is pushed 10 feet (or 20 feet on a critical failure).
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Encounter, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, February 14, 2024
As I continue my reading of the Godsrain Prophecies’ dire predictions of the deaths of various gods, it should be noted (and will be, in the compiled report for my Lady), that their existence as a collection brings into question the validity of each one. I believe that a corollary of the Windsong Paradox explains this best (as unsettling as this discovery of “prophecy” has been, I relish the opportunity to apply one of my favorites!): each individual prophecy exists independent of the others, as if they each occur in their own solitary void (note, for example, the mention here of a living Pharasma).This means they cannot all be true and, per the corollary, the chance of any of them being true is lessened¹. A reassuring thought that I am happy to consider!
¹In all fairness, a counter-argument could be made that one of the Godsrain Prophecies is correct in full, with all others either invalidated by its truth or purposefully created to mislead, but I tend to believe my initial theory (perhaps, if nothing else, because it is a bit more comforting).
—Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The wound that kills Asmodeus has ached for countless eons, and still he has no memory of how Ihys drew blood. He knows the war between them, can hear the ringing battle cries as he fought hard for order, and Ihys, sympathetic fool, set chaos in his sights. He sees his brother’s hand outstretched, can feel the arm against his back, remembers what it tasted like to plunge his sword into his kin, but never feels the moment that some blade or nail sliced at his leg, has only blood upon his hands to prove that he was hit.
Some days the cut is barely there, a scratch upon his surface, a moment’s irritation as he moves from place to place. But other days, it festers into leaking, pulsing wetness, a shooting pain that drips and strikes and stops him where he stands. He spends those days in agony, sealed deep within the Catafalque, encouraging the rumors of his secret chamber of delights, returning only when the wound has calmed itself again.
He’s known, somewhere inside himself, that this would be what felled him, but somehow, in his final steps, he still feels disbelief. How can one cut unravel everything that he has been and done, the worlds that he has built and wrecked, the Hell he has created? He stumbles through the empty hall, his body crashing to the ground, a rictus of shocked agony carved deep into his face. Perhaps it is a mercy that he cannot see what happens next, does not perceive the brother who emerges in his place. Ihys, summoned by the force that kept the gash forever open. Ihys, who, with sorrowed glance, replaces him upon his throne. Ihys, who believed in taking mercy on the mortals, giving them their freedom even when they broke and twisted things, seeing good inside their souls as something worth the sacrifice. Ihys, now the Prince of Darkness. Ihys, Lord of Hell.
Deep inside the Catafalque, the new god works deliberately, taking time to understand the Hell his brother wrought. He finds a few things to preserve—the contract of creation and its binding power on the gods, the prison that holds Rovagug, whose key he’s now charged with keeping—and vows he will uphold them in Asmodeus’s name. The rest he’s ready to unmake, but slowly, with the greatest care. This time he will not act in haste. This time Hell works his way.
He first visits the archdevils, his enemies of ages past, who greet him with their surface smiles and offer false obeisance—some dripping poison-syruped words, some sharpening their blades and fangs, some gathering a mass of shades to wait for new wartime demands. But Ihys understands their ways and flaunts his new divinity, his scepter Archstar swinging in a show of all his power, and while the peace he gains from them may be a prelude to a war, he makes each of Hell’s denizens sign contracts to a new decree—a kinder, gentler punishment for those whose souls have damned them there, a way for those to free themselves who want to choose another path, a safe route as they journey back up from the depths of Hell.
He's visited by deities—some curious, some threatening—who see the shifting way of things and wish to understand. And while Pharasma alters how her psychopomps send souls to him and Sarenrae applauds an ancient ally on his newfound life, the Four Horsemen of Abaddon begin to seek advantages, to plan some future action they may one day undertake.
With Hell remade to suit his likings, Ihys settles on his throne, turns the power of his gaze to fixing mortal things. He pores through every contract that he must now enforce, underlining loopholes that invalidate the cruelest clauses, marking for destruction those he cannot bend or change. With every small relinquishing, the power in some region shifts, as those who felt their contract as a prison or a heavy weight now have the chance to change the old direction of their lives. But none change more than Cheliax, where House Thrune used the power gifted by the Lord of Hell himself to make the many contracts that have kept them on the throne. Ihys rescinds this favor and refuses to grant any more, leaves the realm of Abrogail to manage on its own.
As Ihys rests then, satisfied. He does not hear the whispers, as close as Mephistopheles and far off as Egorian, of bitterness and revolution, hanging in the air. Or if he does, he honors them as choices made of mortal will—whatever comes, he lives and breathes, and he can always start anew. If devils come to challenge him, if Cheliax is torn to shreds, he’s happy to rend everything (with Rovagug set free to feed) and make the world again.
While one might assume an end of Asmodeus’s treachery would presage improvements in the multiverse, this prophecy presents a very different potentiality.
I felt such relief while reading this to know that the death of Asmodeus (at least according to this still unproven and unidentified source) might not mean the release of the Rough Beast, only for the prophecy to suggest that Rovagug might still be unleashed? Those who claim that research has no excitement are simply in the wrong field of study. I also must confess that this prophecy has piqued my interest in learning more of the fallen god Ihys—a topic I might not otherwise have considered! It will, though, have to wait. I must reach some conclusion, and still have much to read through, before I can present this to my Lady.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Lost Omens Firebrands, Lost Omens Highhelm, and Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tuesday, February 13, 2024
No fewer than three songs echoed through Hide and the deer kami as they strolled past the vendors lining the streets of Kasai. Unseen drums shook the air, the bass felt as much as it was heard, while flutes and shamisen competed for the rest of the matsuri’s soundscape. Hide’s stomach gurgled, but the festival food they passed—fried chicken, grilled octopus, and omelet-wrapped sausage—were ill-suited to either of their diets.
Ask her if she has one in green. The deer kami’s words appeared in Hide’s mind, as if revealed by receding mist. Similarly, Hide realized they were standing in front of a stall festooned with colorful strings of flowers and staffed by a woman in gray robes.
Nn. I will, Mister Kami.
Because it’s my favorite color.
Nn. I understand. Hide turned to the flower vendor’s stall. If you’d just allow me to—
“Taking your pet for a walk?” murmured the vendor from beneath her mask.
“No, he’s not a pet, he’s...” Hide trailed off as he realized the woman’s eyes were not on him. She snorted and turned her attention to Hide.
“Apologies, sir. I was speaking to your companion.”
“I was the pet?” Hide asked, barely holding his incredulity at bay.
“What can I do for you, sir?” the woman continued, without missing a beat.
“Do you have any green flowers?”
“Not exactly, sir, but I could apply a treatment to some yellow ones. The string won’t stay fresh as long, but—”
The kami pranced excitedly, hooves tippy-tappying in the dirt road. This time, the words he was trying to convey were completely unintelligible to Hide, though the sentiment was clear.
“I think we’ll take one.”
“Wonderful. I’ll just—”
Whatever the vendor said next was lost as the kami’s words washed over Hide. Tell her she doesn’t have to wrap it. The vendor cocked her head slightly and paused gathering her supplies, waiting for her customers’ mental conversation to complete.
“He wants to wear it?” the vendor asked.
“He wants to wear it,” said Hide. “How did you know?”
“Kami often have particular tastes,” replied the vendor. She tugged her mask up a little higher, then laid an ornament of yellow flowers across her table and started waving a wand over it. Blue and green sparks cascaded from her hand, so quickly and brightly that Hide jerked his head away and blinked rapidly. If the sparks caused the masked vendor any discomfort, she didn’t show it. Nor did she show the gold coins that appeared in her hand in a telltale subtle shimmer of transportation magic; they’d disappeared from Hide’s purse while he was blinded by the sparks.
“May I ask,” Hide began, “Why are you dressed in gray while your stall is so colorful?”
The vendor’s eyes sank slightly, and Hide realized the woman had been smiling under her mask until now.
“Life everywhere in Minkai under the Jade Regent was... challenging. We all did what we had to do. And we don’t know what we’ll have to do next.”
Hide was suddenly very aware of the gold chains adorning his robes. His purse felt wrong. The pause lingered too long.
“I didn’t hurt anyone. I just... relocated things and information. Hence the dark gray,” the woman continued.
“I understand. I’ve done similar things. I’m sorry for asking so indelicately.”
“May I ask you a question, sir?” the vendor inquired.
“Of course.”
“Why are you a kami’s traveling companion?”
“This place was all forest once, you know?” said Hide. “That’s a silly statement. I apologize. Obviously, this was once forest. Everything was forest at one time. I mean to say that my friend remembered this place as it was and wanted to return—to see what we humans had done with the space and the trees.”
A smiling crinkle returned to the woman’s eyes. “How nice. I hope he’s not too put off by what he sees.” She paused and shifted her attention to the deer kami. It took a moment for Hide to realize the kami was mentally speaking with her once more.
“That’s a very charitable view of humanity, Mister Kami. Thank you.” The merchant said. She faced Hide again. “Now, it’s my turn to apologize. He pointed out that you didn’t answer my question. Why do you follow the kami?”
“Ah. You’re right. I didn’t,” Hide admitted. He looked to his companion somberly. “It’s something of my calling. After I traded in my sword for a political office, I found myself knowing too much to sleep soundly. I do not think the Empress will return the kami’s lands to them, but that doesn’t mean that kami like Green Rush here should have to stay confined to their forest.”
“So, you’re a chaperone?” the vendor asked.
“Something like that. Perhaps more of a bodyguard, truly.”
Green Rush turned his head towards Hide, as the razor-sharp points of his antlers caught the light. Truly?
“A bodyguard in the same sense that a professional fighter needs someone to limit the danger to would-be aggressors,” Hide answered aloud.
“I thought you said you put down your sword,” probed the vendor as she leaned over her stall’s counter, holding the newly green flower string out for Green Rush.
“I don’t need to use a blade to defend, just as you don’t need to use your hands to collect payment.”
The vendor’s eyes went wide, and she froze as Green Rush’s deadly antlers surrounded her hands. “I—” she started.
“I’m not judging you.” Hide cut her off. “I told you I’ve done similar things. I’m not even upset. You’re doing something nice for our kami guest, making sure he has his favorite color. That’s more than most would do.” Hide lifted his pouch slightly, checking its weight. “Yes, that seems like a fair trade. And it will undoubtedly help you transition to a more... conventional vocation, yes?”
“Yes. Of course, sir,” said the vendor, her relief reducing her voice to a mere whisper. She finished tying the flower string to Green Rush’s antlers, pushed herself upright, and regarded her customers once more. “Will that be all, honored guests?”
“I think there’s just one more detail we need to take care of.”
Beneath the vendor’s mask, a whimper started to form, despite Hide’s calm smile.
“Could I get a receipt? I need one so I can file a reimbursement with the Empress’ government.”
About the Author
Hiromi Cota (they/them) is a writer, developer, and storyteller who has worked on over 100 books and games for Paizo and other publishers. They are proud to have been a part of the phenomenal teams of Asian writers who created the Tian Xia World Guide and Tian Xia Character Guide. Their portfolio of work can be found at hiromicota.com.
Friday, February 9, 2024
Lore Masters is releasing a new question pack, aimed at broadening knowledge and proficiency in the spells featured in Player Core.
The pack contains 1,625 questions, comprehensively covering all 325 spells included in Player Core. Its distinct structure sets it apart from other question packs: each spell is accompanied by five questions, each reflecting a different level of difficulty. This design is beneficial for a wide range of players, from those just beginning their journey in wizardry to more seasoned spellcasters, providing challenges and engagement at various skill levels.
Another notable aspect of this question pack is the option to filter questions based on magical traditions—arcane, divine, occult, or primal. This feature allows players to customize their learning experience according to their specific area of interest or expertise in magic.
While the pack does not delve into every detail of each spell, it serves as a valuable resource for understanding key aspects of spellcasting, such as spell rank, casting time, range, and duration. The questions are carefully crafted to emphasize these essential elements, aiding players in grasping the fundamentals of magic and its use in the game.
This pack is highly recommended for those looking to deepen their knowledge of the magical arts.
Download Pathfinder: Lore Masters here:
App Store | Google Play
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, February 9, 2024
Greetings, adventurers! We’re Natural Pengu, and we’re developing the Natural Pengu Mobile VTT. We want to bring Pathfinder to your phone and make it available for everyone, from beginners to veterans alike.
We’ve been listening, and your feedback has been very valuable. Today, we’re thrilled to share some significant changes to our platform.
1. The Core Platform: Free and Accessible to All
The core platform is now free for all users! Simply log in at https://pengustudios.com, and you’ll have immediate access to Natural Pengu Mobile VTT and the Player Core Toolkit.
Remember, Natural Pengu Mobile VTT is still in Early Access, so there will be missing features and bugs.
2. GM Unlocks Rules for All
We want to make it easy for you to start a game. If you’re the GM of a room and you own Pathfinder Player Core on Natural Pengu Mobile VTT, your players can access those rules while playing in your room. It’s our way of lowering the threshold for your players to join your game.
3. Snack-Sized Adventures
To make it even easier and faster to start playing, we’ll regularly release Natural Pengu content packs. These include snack-sized mobile adventures with stories, maps, monsters, NPCs, and lore that you can access and play immediately on our VTT.
4. Help Us Keep the Dream Alive
Creating and maintaining a virtual tabletop needs funding, and we trust our community to support us in this endeavor. Simply put, we need to make money to survive. Here’s how you can contribute and support us if you like what we do.
- Content Packs: Buy our content packs that give you snack-sized mobile adventures, stories, maps, monsters, NPCs, and lore. You can either access select packs through one-time purchases or subscribe and get every pack upon release. More information on content pack subscriptions coming soon.
- Paizo PDFs & Integrations: Purchase Paizo PDFs and Natural Pengu Mobile VTT integrations from our marketplace.
- Subscription Tiers: Consider subscribing to our Founder or Legend plans. Right now, only Legends can upload their own art and maps to their Natural Pengu Mobile VTT rooms.
- Kickstarter Campaign: You can pledge to support our ongoing development with our upcoming Kickstarter campaign. Your contribution will directly shape the future of our platform. Sign up for our mailing list to stay updated here: https://pengustudios.com/mailinglist.
Thank You for Your Support!
To our incredible community, thank you for your support and valuable feedback. We can’t wait to hear more about your adventures on Natural Pengu Mobile VTT!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Virtual Tabletop
]]>Thursday, February 8, 2024
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders!
February is recognized in the United States of America as Black History Month, a time when we honor the contributions of Black people to culture, cuisine, science, history, and more. The theme of this year’s Black History Month is African Americans and the Arts, focusing on art as a vehicle for empowerment and a way to preserve history and community.The Association for the Study of African American Life and History’s cover image for Black History Month, featuring a collage of photos of Black artists and musicians
In honor of Black History Month, Paizo reached out to our Black contributors, content creators, and community members and asked them to share their projects, their joy, and their art! We’re proud and grateful to have such a phenomenal community here at Paizo.
Basil Wright Basil Wright (he/they/xe)
Basil Wright (he/they/xe) is a Black and Seminole Game Designer and Sensitivity Consultant located in Florida. When writing for Paizo, they wrote The Aucturn Dilemma, a Starfinder bounty. His work has also appeared in All the Witches, Backchannels (Backwater Games), and is forthcoming in Jukebox. Xe has provided sensitivity consulting for MCDM Productions, Brotherwise Games, and many others.
Currently, Basil is finishing Pelogos, their horror TTRPG about death, grief, and the afterlife. Players can either be an underwater paranormal investigator called a Lantern Keeper, or a sea ghost called an Echo, and can help the living come to terms with their loss. Once that project is complete, they'll be turning their attention to Rancher’s Respite: Call of Nature, an expansion to Rancher's Romance; both are a homage to their mother's expansive love of werewolf rancher romance novels. Their other long-term project is The Afrodyssey, where they intend to translate all 24 books of Homer's Odyssey into African American Vernacular English.
When xe's not working on games, Basil is either playing video games (visual novels, horror, etc.) or (lovingly) pestering xir sibling to make xem more banana jam for xir Monte Cristo sandwiches.
Links
- The Aucturn Dilemma: https://paizo.com/products/btq02ete?Starfinder-Bounty-11-The-Aucturn-Dilemma
- Website: https://towerofbasil.wordpress.com
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kobanya_kana
- Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/kobanya.bsky.social
Dan ‘Pan’ Grosset
Dan 'Pan' Grossett started the Cosmopunk podcast (@Cosmopunkpod) with 3 friends and quickly found himself charmed by the passion and friendliness of the Paizo AP Streaming / Podcast community.
A huge fan of science fantasy, they can be found on Twitter (@Stellarencore) taking part in several other Starfinder shows like:
- Emergency Power (@EmergencyPwrPod)
- Horizons Unknown (https://youtu.be/-WNurouqtdQ?si=aFArWg6hD61aFQP4)
- Spaceflix & Kill (https://youtu.be/YF9MZ0sL-W4?si=UMUEPhWgrborzCAN).
They are looking forward to Starfinder 2E while helping set up crossover events and dipping their toes into the world of Pathfinder 2E with Euro-focused group, Hoard Of Tales (@hoard_of_tales).
“Coming to the hobby fairly late, I was kicking myself for not taking up TTRPGs sooner. It's been a great source of new adventures and new friends. If you're even halfway curious but worried about what others may think, or about sticking out at the table, I promise you that if you find a good group and jump straight in, you won't regret it! More and more black folks are making their voices heard in the Tabletop RPG space, so lend us yours!"
Social Media:
Twitter.com/stellarencore
Twitter.com/cosmopunkpod
https://cosmopunk.carrd.co/
Lin and Becka Lin & Becka | Ten Times Ten
Lin and Becka invite gamers of all kinds to where video games and tabletop adventures collide, a channel they have lovingly deemed Ten Times Ten.
While they have over a decade of combined experience, both past and present, as Game Masters, players, and innovative homebrewers, their passions extend beyond the TTRPG space as well.
- Explore their TikTok with their ongoing episodes of Fascinating Playable Races for players, as well as their episodes of Crypt of the Dungeon Master, where they showcase monsters to enhance any game master’s arsenal.
- On Spotify, they host deep conversations related to various forms of media, including video games, movies, and more.
- Join in their Twitch for exposure to their favorite games and to observe local tabletop events unfold.
- On YouTube, their channel offers videos that present a mix of their gaming knowledge, ventures, reviews, experiences taste-testing unusual snacks, and more!
Ten Times Ten is not just a channel; it's a community where gaming enthusiasts can find a fun and unique perspective on the gaming world, all while they keep it 100~.
Quinn Murphy
Quinn Murphy's journey with RPGs started when he "inherited" his brother's copy of Chainmail at the age of 11. He started running games for his friends and hasn't stopped for over thirty years. Though he's been building games his whole life, he started doing it professionally in 2009. Since then, he's written for a wide range of products and companies, including (but not limited to): Paizo (Pathfinder, Starfinder), Wizards of the Coast, Kobold Press, Magpie Games, and Onyx Path Publishing. Quinn loves TTRPGs of all shapes and sizes and relishes the thrill of finding the perfect form-factor to express a setting or idea. He believes that Imagination is for Everyone.
With his own company, Thoughtcrime Games, Quinn is currently running a Kickstarter for Community Radio, a wacky improvisational TTRPG inspired by Welcome to Nightvale.
Shan Wolf (he/they)
Hi everyone, I am a freelance game designer and contributing author on both the Pathfinder and Starfinder Lines. My credits include Starfinder Bounty #4: Poacher’s Prize, the Adventure Toolbox for the first part of the Drift Hackers Adventure Path, Starfinder Ports of Call, the Adventure Toolbox for the second part of the Strength of Thousands Adventure Path, Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, as well as a few other projects.
My primary focus as a writer is in Black and Indigenous liberation narratives, monster creation, archetype creation, history and lore, and writing revolutionary and inherently anti-colonialist themes. Besides that, I am a huge Pathfinder and Starfinder booster. I love these games as they help bring to life amazing fantasies about being heroes and saving the world, or Universe, and that is always something I’m interested in doing, or just talking about in general.
If you’re interested in my work or hearing my views, feel free to take a look at my twitter, @Fenrirs_Chosen.You will see an outspoken and passionate advocate for Black liberation and making the tabletop space more open, safe, and inclusive.
We also want to spotlight some Black content creators and performers in the Pathfinder and Starfinder community! The shows on this list feature Black hosts, GMs, players, and/or producers—give them a listen and support them year-round!
- Tablestory—Gatewalkers Actual Play
- Know Direction
- Cosmopunk: A Starfinder Podcast
- Outcast and Outclassed—Pathfinder Actual Play
- Unwavering Force—Pathfinder Actual Play
- 20XX: A Drift Odyssey—Starfinder Actual Play
- The Atomless & SAGA—Starfinder Actual Play
If you’re a Black content creator in the Pathfinder or Starfinder space, we would love to hear from you! Shoot an email to community@paizo.com and introduce yourselves.
Thank you again to our Black contributors, content creators, and community members!
Wednesday, February 7, 2023
I begin my annotation holding death between my talons. An overly poetic beginning, that, and one I will certainly change when I report back to my Lady. Perhaps this a consequence of reading the Godsrain Prophecies, each with its dire tale of the death of a god and everything that comes after. I am reminded of the year I read What Comes Down: A Treatise on Mortal Falls and used the word defenestrate so often in my papers that Lorminos asked me to limit the word to once per page at most!
As my earlier field notes on these works detail, I learned of the Godsrain Prophecies not long ago, and have acted with great haste to locate as many as possible, despite my many doubts as to their accuracy. I must confess that I have also felt a certain unanticipated exhilaration in bringing rigor to a rumor, despite the grim contents of the documents once discovered. I believe that I may almost understand the impulse of adventurers (a mortal drive that remains an obscure field of study), though I likely took as much joy from detailing my methods as I did in undertaking them. Research rarely moves at such a rapid pace, but then rarely has any researcher been so motivated!
What to make of these “prophecies” is a wholly different matter, and one that I must settle before reporting to my Lady, lest I stir up visions of doom with no attempt at context or framing, no better than a doomsday caller singing in the streets! Any thought of these being accurate seems at first impossible, given the current failure of prophecy overall, and their author has yet to be identified. I immediately recall the many false omens in the years after Aroden’s death, many of which had Golarion perishing brutally a thousand times (and will one day, I assume, make for a fascinating set of studies).
Still, there is something about these pages that makes me ill at ease. The detail, perhaps, or the nature of the futures they forecast. This is heightened, of course, by the subject of the first of them, which I hoped never to find but must still document faithfully, as I have below. Perhaps the thing that troubles me lies in this simple question: how do you tell your Lady that she’s prophesied to die?
—Yivali, Apprentice Researcher for the Lady of Graves
The Death of Pharasma
When Pharasma dies, she dies by inches. She grasps for a prophecy beyond her reach and the skin on her fingertips blisters. She dreams the lost feeling of futures foretold and wakes with a tooth ground to ashes. She feels an uncertainty chilling the air, and her bones grow cold and brittle. What changed with Aroden’s death? Why has prophecy faltered? The questions race and turn and tumble, edges carving at her mind as she tries to judge the mortal souls whose futures she’s unsure of.
Is it any wonder that she shatters?
The god they called Survivor dies alone inside her palace—cold, exhausted, broken. No psychopomps to judge her works, no Atropos to take her reign. Most of her servants lose their power in the instant she dies, and no one comes to place her in a plane for all eternity. The fear of how she might be judged has kept her upright more than once, but in the end it’s simply this—she is and then she isn’t. Pharasma ceases to be.
Death does not pause for the Lady of Graves. Death does not stop for anyone. Mortals succumb to the usual things—some in the arms of those who loved them, some at the hands of those who did not. Some in a show of bravery, some in a haze of regret, some drenched hot with sweat or fear or love or loss or anger. All plunge into the River of Souls like jagged rocks sent tumbling, leaving eddies in their wake that shift and roil the current. The river churns with energy, a swirling froth of rapids, throwing souls from in its midst with no set rhyme or reason. The guardians who watch it pass are nothing more than onlookers, as this soul bound for Heaven is shunted off to Abaddon, and that one at the brink of Hell is flung into Nirvana. With souls no longer guided to the places where they’re most aligned, the outer planes turn turbulent, splintering to factions where they once found harmony. Fights break out, and rescue missions; pacts and trades and promises no sooner made than torn apart—a muddied bloodied mess of souls askew for all eternity.
Pharasma’s former psychopomps, distracted by the chaos or the torrents of the river or the sorrow of their grief, rarely see the predators who feast within the river’s wake—daemons and worse who grab souls up by the handful, taking them to sell or gift or simply disappear with.
Among the mortals, resurrections now begin to falter, as souls are often missing from the places where they’re sought. Even for those who never cared a moment for Pharasmin things, the new finality of death leaves many saying prayers for Pharasma, desperate for a sign that she might one day still reach out.
Her followers are hardest hit—the clerics and diviners, the midwives and morticians—their boons no longer functioning, their spells bereft of power. Those who battle the undead see their advantage dissipate, and some who cannot fight or flee fall easily to undead foes, their victories turned to slaughters in a hundred grim tableaus.
Urgathoa laughs, heartily, to see a foe defeated, declaring 50 days of feasts and manifesting blood-soaked wine in any empty cup. She calls upon her followers to press their new advantages, as those who fought her worshippers are left to face a reckoning—some turning to another god whose purpose fits their calling, some searching for a prophecy or ritual or sacrifice that might bring back Pharasma and the surety she gave them, some finding other pledges for their cause.
Above it all, a visage hangs and grins upon the chaos—Groetus watching eagerly from just above the Spire. Some say the crescent of his moon begins to wax in earnest, as we move ever closer to the end times he desires.
A prophecy foretelling the death of Pharasma specifically caused by the death of prophecy in the Age of Lost Omens certainly poses a paradox.
An unpleasant future, to say the least. I shudder to think of it! Thankfully, much of this prophecy remains questionable at best. Not only are there are many questions raised here, including the likeliness of my fellow psychopomps to simply cease their work and let souls be ravaged, whatever their grief, but this also appears to note the cause of my Lady’s death as indirectly caused by the end of prophecy. And yet if there is no prophecy, then how has this one come to be? A paradox, if I ever knew one, and one that I cannot yet untangle. Perhaps my next annotation will offer greater clarity.
About the Author
Erin Roberts has been thrilled to be able to contribute a few small threads to the fabric of Golarion in the pages of books like Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands, Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, and Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide. In addition to her work for Paizo, she freelances across the TTRPG world (and was selected as a Diana Jones Award Emerging Designer Program Winner in 2023), has had fiction published in magazines including Asimov’s Science Fiction, Clarkesworld, and The Dark, and talks about writing every week on the Writing Excuses podcast. Catch up with her latest at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Tags: The Godsrain Prophecies, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Tuesday, February 06, 2023
Howdy, folks! It’s been a while since we’ve done one of these blogs, and in that time, we’ve added some wonderful new folks to the Creative Department and had a couple of former Paizo creatives return to lend their expertise to Pathfinder and Starfinder. Since it has been a while, some of these folks have been with us for quite a few months, but you didn’t know that and that’s no reason not to join us in welcoming them. It’s been great having new people and new voices on the team in design, development, art, and edit to add their keen experience and varied experiences to the fabric of the Paizo Creative Department.
Michelle Kim
Hey everyone! I’m Michelle, a developer on Pathfinder’s Narrative team. I started off as a freelance writer for Paizo so you’ll see my name pop up in projects like Season of Ghosts, Howl of the Wild, and Lost Omens Divine Mysteries as well as some other unannounced products down the pipeline. I’m a big fan of horror ttrpgs like Call of Cthulhu, Ten Candles, and Bluebeard’s Bride but also a huge sucker for mecha games like Spectres of Brocken. I’ll play almost anything; crunchy? Yes. Narrative? Also yes.I have a few personal projects in the works including a Joseon setting supplement for Good Society: A Jane Austen RPG. If you want to find me on socials, I’m on Twitter at @_missmyk_ and on Bluesky at @missmyk.bsky.social.
Lynne Meyer
Hello! I’m Lynne (she/they), a queer, autistic, chronically ill femme originally from Chicago. Since joining the editing team last June, I’ve been living my best Leslie Knope life in Indiana and working on incredible stuff I can’t wait for you all to see.
Named a 2021 Queer in Games Awardee by Rainbow Game Jam, I’m best known for my work on the ENNIE Award-winning Uncaged: Goddesses and Uncaged Anthology. In my free time these days, I’m usually doing one of three things: playing the Chief Medical Officer in my Star Trek Adventures home game; doting on Izzy, my ancient, beloved kitty; or drinking way too much coffee as I wrap writing for the upcoming All the Witches TTRPG. I’m an unapologetic dice goblin, an em dash enthusiast, and an octopus stan who thinks that the Dumbo Octopus is the cutest thing ever. Come say hello on Bluesky (@lynnemeyer.bsky.social) and Twitter (@Lynne_M_Meyer).
Joshua Birdsong (he/him)
Hello Paizo fans! I am Joshua Birdsong. I am now the newest Designer on the Rules & Lore team. I am very excited to work among such an experienced team, and I am still (and hopefully always will be) learning so much. I cannot wait to help make awesome stuff for our game! I believe my first debut will be in Monster Core! You can find me @impr0phet.
DFTBA
Adriana Gasperi
I am Adriana Gasperi from Caracas, Venezuela, I am a graphic designer, traditional and digital illustrator, and fine artist in Portland, Oregon since 2017. I have been painting cats since 1995 my brand name is Gatos Ilimitados (unlimited cats) https://www.instagram.com/adriana.gasperi.art/ and lately I have been also painting all kinds of animals, and pet portraits. I have been vegan for the animals for about 8 years and belong to an international group of vegan artists called The Art of Compassion Project where we donate art related to animals and veganism. I live with my husband and 6 cats in downtown Portland. I love my job at Paizo and also the diversity and inclusiveness of the company, I enjoy working from home. I am a true crime documentary and podcast fan, Serial Killers is one of my favorite podcasts, as thrillers and horror movies (especially classics), film noir, American Horror Story, and all their new ones like American Crime Story, actually everything Ryan Murphy creates and produces, The Shinning and Psycho are two of my favorite movies.
Jason Keeley
Who, me? I guess you could say that I’m one of those “returning faces,” having come back to Paizo last year to take a position as a Senior Developer on the Pathfinder Rules & Lore Team! In my career at Paizo, I’ve been an editor, a developer of Starfinder Adventure Paths, and more! I’m thrilled to be working with second edition and with the rest of this team, who are an honest-to-goodness bunch of rock stars. You can find me at herzwesten on a lot of the social medias and if you want to see the type of things I get up to in my spare time, check out This Compleat Breakfast (a game about cereal mascots) on my itch.io page!
Felix Dritz (he/him)
Greetings fellow finders of the paths and stars! I’m Felix, one of the editors who sift through the many words you read. This means I check for general errors, discrepancies, formatting, and ensure it has that recognizable Paizo style.
I was first introduced to Pathfinder Organized Play in 2016 by accident, and I never left. So many kind and supportive people adopted me into this community, and I’m overjoyed that I get to support the games they love. It’s been a surreal journey to get here, but now I’m at a desk editing for a game I adore and the community I love.
When not editing for Paizo, I’m usually homebrewing my ever-expanding Pathfinder 2nd Edition setting. If I’m not editing or writing, then I’m likely playing Pathfinder, GMing at local game stores, mashing buttons on a videogame controller, or cooking. I’m not active on social media, but I hope to meet you around the table someday!
Bill Fischer
Bill Fischer has been creating strange and terrifying worlds for role-playing games for over 30 years. He is the author of The Runewild Campaign Setting published by Sneak Attack Press and has done both writing and editing for Kobold Press, Goodman Games, Roll For Combat, AAW Games, and EN Publishing. He lives in Minneapolis, MN with his partner and children.
Mike Kimmel
Hello! I’m Mike Kimmel, and I’m thrilled to be the newest member of the Starfinder team. Since coming on board in September 2023, I’ve been hard at work with my colleagues to create Starfinder Second Edition. While my prior work as a developer for Pathfinder Society Organized Play mostly involved adventure design, I’ve been able to stretch my narrative and game design muscles on the Starfinder team in all sorts of interesting ways these past few months. Alas, I can’t talk much about the things I’m working on—yet—but stay tuned for more Starfinder news in the coming weeks! I can’t wait for you to see what we’ve got in store for you.
Aside from working on games, I like to play them, too! I’m a fan of cooperative games of all kinds, and I also enjoy relaxing with a nice cup of tea and a challenging permadeath videogame. When I get a chance to run an RPG campaign, I tend to lean into horror themes—the spookier the better. If you’d like to chat about games, recommend a good book to me, or play some chess, you can find me on various Paizo-related Discord channels or drop me a line at mike.kimmel@paizo.com. Please note that I am not accepting glitch gremlins or other mischief at this time!
Simone D. Sallé (she/they)
Hi again! I’ve been in the Paizo orbit as a temp, freelance, and full-time contracted editor since 2018. I joined the staff as a senior editor in 2022 and have been having a wonderful time wrangling words with the creative team ever since! While we’ve worked on a lot of great projects lately, I’m particularly excited for everyone to see <em>Pathfinder Howl of the Wild</em> in May, which has some extremely fun new ancestries and mechanics, incredible art, and a heartfelt story.
Unsurprisingly, words and games fill a lot of my time outside of work as well: I have a spreadsheet of SFF book recs for anyone who asks, a handful of Pathfinder and indie TTRPG campaigns on my calendar, and an overflowing queue of Steam games that I frequently ignore to revisit Subnautica (my beloved). I also do freelance editorial work as Wildwood Editing for projects like Queerfinder and Luminant Age. I’m grateful to my Disreputable Dog, Penny Kibeth, for reminding me to take a break from screens and get some fresh air every day.
Editors largely operate behind the scenes, and our best work is invisible, but I can confidently say that I work with some of the finest professionals in the industry, and it’s a delight to learn, grow, and help shape the games I love with them and everyone else at Paizo. I’m not as active on social media these days, but if you track me down I’m always thrilled to discuss conscious language in storytelling, the merits of style guides, and how we can make our worlds—both real and imagined—better for everyone.
Tuesday, February 06, 2024
Hi everyone! We at Paizo love to do community creator shout-outs, and our friends over at Infinite have an amazing team we want to spotlight. So without further ado, we present the February Infinite Team+ spotlight!
Bringing The Flavor
What makes a good meal good? This is the direction from which you should approach any TTRPG writing. After all, it’s not far from the truth! You’re serving up a meal for people, and you have two goals to make sure it pleases your clientele.First off, you have to make sure the meal doesn’t poison them and kill them. Dead clients will not buy your food again, nor will they try your homebrew, third-party publisher (3pp) work, or original writing! In our cooking metaphor, this is the role of mechanics; it’s what provides your meal/TTRPG writing with a healthy structure and makes it “good for you.” It is, fundamentally, the most important part of what you’re making. Without good balance, your feat, item, spell, or whatever it is that you’re making will fall apart. People will look at what it grants, say “this seems busted,” and make a snap judgment on whether the rest of the project is worth checking out. But is a passable structure enough?
Absolutely not. Adding something extra transforms a merely digestible offering into one that’s delicious. And that something extra in both the world of food and writing is flavor.
Flavor text is a crucial ingredient that often goes uncelebrated, but it makes the difference between incredible and bland. But to make the flavor pop, you need to know—what do people like? In this context, I’m going to speak from my personal experience. I write books for the Classes+ series, a line of 3pp books that focuses on expanding existing classes, like witches, clerics, magi, etc. I’ll talk about things I’ve found that have helped me write flavor text that keeps people coming back, and how to give them a go yourself.
First off, you want your flavor to be consistent. This goes for any piece of text, of course, but it’s one that’s often overlooked in fantasy TTRPGs. You want your content to fit into the world within which it’ll exist or most likely be used. For Pathfinder, a lot of people are either going to be playing in Golarion or in a homebrew world most likely based in fantasy tropes. That’s just the kind of setting that Pathfinder most easily lends itself to; the sword and sorcery aspects are the biggest selling point. So, when writing a new option, you want it to be something that can seamlessly fit into this world without breaking its established rules. For example, when writing Archetypes+, we wanted to create something that would expand existing options and add new ones too. One of the new archetypes we decided to make was a clown. This was difficult, because most people have one of two very specific ideas when it comes to clowns: a red-nosed guy in a funny wig, or a murderous slasher with smeared white makeup. While there are places where these could feasibly fit in Golarion, they don’t fit everywhere. Indeed, a standard party with a fighter, wizard, cleric, and then a classic clown might not look right. It’s noticeably “other,” and it had the potential to make people turn up their noses at the product and not include it in their game. So how did we lessen the otherness of it?
That’s where our next point comes into play. Research! This may come as a surprise, but you are not an infinite sponge of all knowledge ever. You need to look up what you’re writing on, give yourself a brief lesson on the topic, and then return to it. So, continuing with clowns: how did we make clowns fit? Pathfinder’s setting ranges from prehistoric times (with the Mammoth Kings) to 1800s-analogous Absalom. As it turns out, clowns have a long history between prehistoric times and the late 1800s! The first clowns were priest-clowns in Ancient Egypt, over 4,000 years ago. Then, throughout the medieval era, there were jesters, who acted as advisors to nobility. In the 16th century, commedia dell'arte was popularized in Italy. These theatrical sketch shows involved masked character archetypes like the daring Harlequin and the glum Pierrot. Finally, in the early 1800s, Joseph Grimaldi introduced face paint, colorful costumes, and all the tropes we associate with the common clown. Once we knew that clowns did exist during the timeframe that Pathfinder likes to play with, we could make something fitting for it! But now, the next question is… how did we make it unique?
One’s work needs to stand out on its own. Yes, the mechanics might be unique, but the dressing over the mechanics needs to be something unlike anything else the game has to offer presently… while, crucially, feeling exactly like something else the game has to offer. It’s extraordinarily easy to go overboard here and quickly go from “Here’s a fun idea” to “What if the clown can use three actions to become a clown elemental?” Mechanically, maybe that’s fine, but it’s a strange idea that breaks the existing lore of the world. The implication of an elemental plane of clown, while itself horrifying, also completely ignores the Golarion setting’s rules and, most likely, the rules of any other setting missing an elemental clown plane.
But then, what if you don’t go far enough? Perhaps clowns can pull tricks to inspire their allies in combat! But… that’s just the bard, another entertainment-focused character option. If you don’t go far enough, your writing will feel unsure of itself. You really need to solidly hit that middle ground. What’s something that’s like existing content, but not so similar as to lack identity, and not so different as to become nonsensical in most settings?
Clowns are meant to be ridiculous, so some of our ideas were naturally going to be a little more comedically toned, but we wanted them to fit most worlds. The feat Rubber Body is a good example of our process—it’s a feat that plays with the raw physicality of clownish performances, which often include over-the-top slapstick. The feat gives the clown resistance to damage as a reaction while also knocking them back 15 feet and rendering them prone. Another feat, Uncanny Legerdemain, allows clowns to seemingly magically transport items from one closed hand to another, or one sleeve to another. This feat not only allows a character to pull off classic magic tricks, it also offers good roleplay opportunities like smuggling, stealing, and otherwise storing items in an extradimensional space in a comical fashion. All of these fit the clown without being too out there, and without feeling exactly like anything presently in the game.
So, that’s what it comes down to. It seems like a daunting task—have the idea, make sure it fits into the world you’re writing for, research it, and then make sure it isn’t too much or too little. It’s not easy to pull off, but you need to be sure to put in the appropriate work here. It doesn’t matter if you have the greatest mechanics in the world—dry oats may be healthy, but they don’t taste great. Thankfully, once you get used to writing flavor, it starts getting easier. It’s like standing in front of an oven and smelling the aroma of the food waft up to you; you’ll feel like there’s no stopping you, and pretty soon, you’ll have made something people won’t forget!
Derry Luttrell (they/he) is an animator, illustrator, and writer from Kildare, Ireland. They are the host of Dice Will Roll, an award-winning Pathfinder Second Edition podcast which has recently passed 400,000 downloads and started its 1970s-inspired run of Abomination Vaults, complete with synth music, VHS sounds, and classic dungeon crawling fun. It was while running Dice Will Roll that Derry decided to make a book of homebrew witch patrons. This eventually bloomed into Witches+, brought to life by an impromptu teamup between Derry and Tony Saunders. Thousands of sales later, Team+ is the most successful duo on Pathfinder Infinite—the first of their brand-new products to reach the mithral and platinum ranks. In Team+ projects, Derry largely tackles flavor and illustration. Their heavily stylized art decorates each release, inside and out. Derry is open for commissions; find them on Discord as @derryzumi.
In the next few months, Derry will be launching Safe Haven: A Weird West Tale, a 200-page book for Pathfinder Second Edition and D&D 5e, with a western-themed adventure that goes from Level 5 to Level 10 and features a setting splatbook for a world where magic has died and the age of the gunslinger is upon us.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite
]]>Tuesday, February 06, 2024
The Starfinder Second Edition Playtest products revealed.
Hello everyone! As some astute fans have already noticed, we’ve uploaded the first products related to the upcoming Starfinder Second Edition Playtest. For those of you who’d like to learn more, the team thought it wise to provide additional context on what to expect!
The first product we’ve announced is the Starfinder Playtest Rulebook. This 264-page softcover playtest book contains a figurative ton of new Starfinder content using the Pathfinder Second Edition rules as a foundation. You’ll notice right away that this book requires the use of Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core. The reason for this is because we wanted to provide as much new content as possible without reprinting massive sections of rules that already exist in Pathfinder rulebooks and on our online PRD at Archives of Nethys. All relevant rules will be reprinted in full for our 2025 release.
Inside this rulebook, you’ll find six classes (including the Envoy, Mystic, Operative, Solarian, Soldier, and Witchwarper)•, new ancestries, new feats, new spells, a new equipment system, and more! The idea is to provide as many tools as possible for a Starfinder game, along with some of the new systems and tweaks necessary for running a science-fantasy game. When 2025 rolls around, we’ll be splitting this content (and more) into appropriate player- and GM-facing books. Please note, the Starfinder Playtest Rulebook will not have any special edition covers or hardback editions and is intended to be released as a softcover book. The PDF for this product will be made freely available at launch.
While many of you have heard about the playtest rulebook already, you probably haven’t heard about our playtest modules and the associated flip-mat. So, let’s talk about those!
Starfinder Second Edition Playtest Adventure: A Cosmic Birthday, written by Paizo senior developer Jenny Jarzabski, is the first of two playtest adventures that we’ll be releasing during the playtest window. This adventure takes place on Absalom Station and is meant to introduce new 1st-level characters to the setting of Starfinder. You’ll explore the station as a setting-shattering event occurs: the hatching of the planet Aucturn and the emergence of a new deity into the Starfinder core pantheon! We’ll have SO much more to share about this in the coming months!••
Our similarly announced Starfinder Flip-Mat: Second Edition Playtest Multi-Pack also has a bit of a spoiler which we’ll talk BRIEFLY about…
Starfinder Second Edition Playtest Adventure: Empires Devoured (product page coming soon!) is our second and final playtest adventure. Written by Thurston Hillman (that’s me!), this 10th-level adventure takes place on the distant world of Kehtaria during the signing of a historic peace accord between two galactic superpowers…let’s just say that things don’t go entirely as planned.
We’ve written each playtest adventure to be like the adventures you’ve come to love from Paizo. These won’t involve slogging out wave-based encounters to stress test combat, but instead, they’ll have narratives and encounters that showcase how we can use the new Second Edition rules to create evocative stories in the Starfinder setting. These include all-new art and major setting events, and it’s our hope that these adventures remain relevant long after our playtest is over and we’re well into the new edition—after all, we need to know where your character was when Aucturn hatched!
Again, we’ll have SO much more to explain in the coming months about all these products. For now, enjoy a quick art preview of what to expect in Empires Devoured…
Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)•Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten the Technomancer and Mechanic and will share our plans as soon as we can!
••You might even get some early hints if you’re involved in Starfinder Society Organized Play…
Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, February 2, 2024
Hello, hello! Luis Loza here! Last time, we jumped into the Monster Core cover and took a look at the adamantine dragon. This time around, we’re going to be jumping into the Player Core 2 cover to look at the conspirator dragon. Let’s get to it!
The conspirator dragon is one of the new occult dragons featured in Monster Core. Occult dragons tap into more mysterious and strange magic, making use of supernatural abilities that sometimes seem alien or off-putting. Most occult dragons have slender bodies. They use their wings as supplementary appendages, somewhat like front legs to keep their proper forward limbs for grasping and other uses.
The conspirator dragon is named such due to their innate desire to see grand plans play out. Conspirator dragons are constantly scheming, either for personal gain or simply because watching a plan come together is exciting. These schemes vary, with some dragons looking toward more benevolent goals, some enacting wicked plans, and others simply scheming for scheming’s sake. Regardless of their goals, conspirator dragons tend to manipulate others, pulling strings from the shadows to get what they want.
A conspirator dragon has a variety of abilities to help them achieve their goals. In addition to using their magic to charm and influence others, these dragons make use of magical disguises. They conjure forth flesh-suit replicas of others and, through the help of magic, squeeze themselves into these suits. This bone-crunching and flesh rending process results in perfect disguises that allow a conspirator dragon to live among populations none the wiser to the dragon’s machinations. If they’re ever found out, the dragon can erupt from the suit in an explosive display that hopefully buys them enough time to flee. If not, they also use their choking breath to create a literal smokescreen for escape.
And that’s our look at the conspirator dragon! Make sure to keep an eye out for this dragon and lots of other new dragons when Monster Core releases in March. Stay tuned for more draconic previews in the coming weeks. Next time, we’ll take a look at greatest treasure hoarders of all, the fortune dragons. See you then!
Luis Loza
Creative Director, Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, February 1, 2024
Hello Starfinders!
As many of you know, Starfinder Second Edition is glowing brightly on the distant horizon, which means that the era of Starfinder First Edition is coming to an end. Never fear! The Starfinder Society won’t let Starfinder First Edition fade into the sunset without a celebration!
With that in mind, it’s my honor to announce the final season of the Starfinder Society for Starfinder First Edition…
Welcome to the Year of Era's End!
The Year of Era’s End is a time to celebrate the end of Starfinder First Edition! It’s a time to revisit old friends, capstone some of our most beloved ongoing storylines, and shine a spotlight on big, exciting events in the Starfinder setting—events that will change the course of the Pact Worlds now and have lasting effects into the future of Starfinder Second Edition!
So, whether you’re a veteran of the Starfinder Society, a newcomer who’s excited to get in on the game, or a fan looking to experience events that directly influence the upcoming Starfinder Second Edition, join us for the Year of Era’s End!
We're going out with a bang!
While much of the Year of Era’s End is focused on closure and big, exciting capstone events—events best suited for mid- to high-level play—our metaplot is focused on low-level play, to accommodate everyone who wants to get in on the game! But low level, however, doesn’t mean low impact!
Under the watchful eye of newly elected First Seeker Sarmak, the Starfinder Society travels to the machine planet of Aballon to undertake an archaeological survey of the ancient city of Eternity—a fabled city of the First Ones! During this three-adventure metaplot, the Starfinders explore mysterious ruins, discover long-forgotten secrets about the First Ones, and clash with a violent faction of anacite extremists named Those Who Call.
The Year of Era’s End begins with Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Era’s End, an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Letterio Mammoliti! This adventure debuts at PaizoCon 2024 alongside one other Starfinder Society Scenario written by our very own Jenny Jarzabski, though we’re keeping that one under wraps for now!
With the launch of Year of Era’s End, the following ancestries will become “always available” for Organized Play: barathu, borai, ghibrani, morlamaw, orc, and prismeni. In addition, be on the lookout for a few new Starfinder Society boons related to the end of the Year of Fortune’s Fall and the launch of the Year of Era’s End, which you’ll be able to purchase online using your Achievement Points!
To learn more about the Year of Era’s End, tune into twitch.tv/officialpaizo on February 2nd from 4–6 p.m. Pacific and watch PaizoLive! Missed the live stream? No worries! You can watch it on demand anytime.
I hope you join me in celebrating the final season of the Starfinder Society for Starfinder First Edition with the Year of Era’s End! Big changes are on the horizon… and you can be a part of it!
It’s going to be a year to remember.
New to the Starfinder Society? Read about the story so far and start playing Starfinder Society today at StarfinderSociety.club!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society DeveloperNew to the Starfinder Society? Read about the story so far and start playing Starfinder Society today at StarfinderSociety.club!
Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, February 1, 2024
OPC Musings
After the longest January in memory (seriously, I swear it was eight weeks long), it’s now the shortest month of the year! Before you know it, it’ll be March, then May… and then PaizoCon… and Gen Con… oh no, I have so much to do. Can I have some of January back?!
We’re currently recruiting GMs for PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indy! Find more on that later in the blog. As convention season begins to rev up its engines, we’re all very excited for what’s in store!
In personal news, last weekend my husband and I welcomed two darling kitties, Mochi and Sasha, into our home! They’re still getting settled but we’re in love with them already. Sorry in advance for becoming an Insufferable Cat Dad, it’s who I am now.
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on February 28, 2024.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-11: Equal Exchanges – The Hidden Current•
Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #17: Escorting a Mirage
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-13: Beginning of the End•
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-14: The Missing•
•part of a subscription
2024 Premier Conventions
Convention Recruitment
2024 is going to be an incredibly exciting year for Paizo. Be part of the excitement by volunteering as an Organized Play GM at our Premier Conventions! Our volunteer GMs are the best of the best, the cream of the crop, and the most helpful skittermanders in the galaxy. Last year, our volunteers ran over 1,000 games online and in person, and we’re looking to exceed that in 2024!
We are currently seeking volunteers for our two Premier Plus conventions: PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indianapolis. Our friends in Columbus are also recruiting GMs for Origins, which I’m thrilled to announce I’ll be returning to this year!
You can get all the information in this blog post. Spots are going fast, so don’t delay, apply today!
PaizoCon @ Your FLGS
We’ve also announced the locations for this year’s pilot PaizoCon @ program! Nine game stores, as well as KublaCon in California, will be hosting PaizoCon events concurrent with the online show. Check out this blog post for the locations, an interactive map and more!
Interactive Special Presentation Survey
As we start to build out the presentations for our interactive specials, we wanted to take the community’s temperature on how they’re working and what improvements can be made. If you’ve played in any of our multi-table specials over the past few years, and especially if you’ve been a House GM, we’d love to hear your thoughts in this brief survey!
2024 GM Boons
With the recent influx of new players, Paizo Organized Play’s biggest problem is that we simply don’t have enough GMs to run games all the time. We’re always looking for ways to incentivize people into the GM chair, and we’ve got a new one this year!
Below are download links for two brand-new boons. These boons will unlock character options as you GM games. While you can run games with your friends and complete the boons that way, they will unlock faster if you GM at RSP-supported locations like your local game store, or at conventions (like, perhaps…Gen Con or PaizoCon).
We hope that those of you who have yet to take the plunge into GMing find this a great incentive to start, and that our long-time GMs are able to enjoy the fruits of their labor. Make sure to tell your friends about the rewards of GMing games for Organized Play!
Download the boons here:
Pathfinder Society (second edition) || Starfinder Society
Sanctioning Updates
New Content
New year, new sanctioning! We’re pleased to announce that sanctioning for our latest two adventure paths has been posted: Season of Ghosts for Pathfinder, and Scoured Stars for Starfinder. Long-time players may notice that the chronicle sheets for the Scoured Stars AP look familiar; in most cases, we took the original scenario chronicles and updated them based on the new content. We’ve also posted boons and sanctioning for the two Dynamite comics: Pathfinder: Wake the Dead and Starfinder: Angels of the Drift.
Updates
We’ve also made a couple of updates to the Character Options pages based on the Remaster and new errata.
For Pathfinder Society, we clarified that legacy bards can still use the Remastered feats in Player Core with bothinspire courage and courageous anthem, to clear up that final bit of confusion. We also added a clarification to the Curse Maelstrom archetype for those who have unlocked it via the GM boons. Finally, it was brought to our attention that a number of 5th-level [Ancestry] Weapon Innovator feats have been included in the 1st-level [Ancestry] Weapon Familiarity feats in Player Core. Any character who has been affected by this may freely retrain their 5th-level ancestry feat out of the Weapon Innovator feat into something else!
On the Starfinder Society side, the recent Starfinder errata allowed us to make a couple of changes. The chlorophyll infusion serum from StarfinderPorts of Call and the Forced Deconstruction mechanic trick from Starfinder Enhancedare now permitted for use with the design team’s changes.
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
This month, a new Campaign Service Coins was awarded! We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay[at]paizo[dot]com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Marc Daoust, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #874
GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th rank!
5th Glyph (PFS2): Federico Grecuccio (who is the first GM I’m aware of to do their three evaluation games in three different languages)
5th Nova (SFS1): Jake Rennels
That’s all from me this month, folks! Until next time—Explore! Report! Cooperate! And stick around for a big announcement later today!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, January 31, 2024
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases revitalize the Starfinder Society, finish the mystery of Willowshore, and give you an elementally exciting board game to pass the time while you wait for that player to show up!
We’ve got a couple of exciting streams coming up in February on twitch.tv/officialpaizo, and wanted to keep you posted on those:
- Join us Friday, Feb 2nd at 4 P.M. Pacific for PaizoLIVE—featuring Starfinder Society, Elemental Stones, and Seven Dooms for Sandpoint!
- Drop in Friday, Feb 9th at 4 P.M. Pacific for a special Lunar New Year stream, showcasing some of the amazing designers of the Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide.
- Bring your (romantic) rivals for a Valentine’s Day Elemental Stones stream—Wednesday, February 14that 11:30 A.M. Pacific.
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions – for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Starfinder Scoured Stars Adventure Path
A WAKING GOD!
With most of the Starfinder Society’s agents trapped by an impenetrable force field in a distant star system, it’s up to a new generation of heroes to step forward and uncover the mystery within the Scoured Stars. Facing the merciless Jinsul Hierocracy while rebuilding an interplanetary adventuring guild and dealing with the emerging threat of a slumbering deity—it’s all in a day’s work for a Starfinder!
The Starfinder Scoured Stars Adventure Path is also available as a faux-leather, debossed Special Edition, with an in-bound ribbon bookmark.
Pathfinder: Elemental Stones
Take on the role of an elemental sovereign, shaping the very nature of reality in this fast-moving board game!
2 to 4 players take turns to draft and play colorful (and colorblind-friendly) hexagonal tiles to match specific patterns and meet their own secret objective. With several dozen pattern cards, variable objectives, and a game state that's constantly in flux, you'll never play the same way twice. Simple setup, easy-to-learn rules, and a short play time of around 30 minutes means there's always time for one more game…Watch Lead Designer Joe Pasini lead Alex, Katina, and Josh through a game of Elemental Stones!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #199: To Bloom Below the Web
NEW LIFE AND FRESH DEATH
The eerie curse that afflicted the town of Willowshore might have been defeated, but the dangers facing the rural settlement are far from over. As the first days of spring arrive, conflicts with bandits and political perils threaten the town even as a greater supernatural peril begins to prey upon its citizens. Can Willowshore’s heroes save their hometown from its greatest threat to date? The Season of Ghosts Adventure Path comes to a shocking conclusion with “To Bloom Below the Web,” a complete adventure for 10th- to 12th-level characters.
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Data Center
PROTECT YOUR DATA!
Whether it’s digital information stored on computer servers or ancient magical relics
that hold the hidden language of the cosmos, someone out there always needs to store
their data somewhere safe and secure. This double-sided map presents two such places! One side features a futuristic data center with a back room full of servers, large open foyer perfect for a long-range gunfight, and countless vents and access points. The other side depicts a more mystical repository containing ancient relics, lost tomes, strange bio-vats, and evena portal to dimensions unknown! Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Data Center, you’ll be ready for the next encounter!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Arcane Dungeon
MAGICAL ESCAPES!
Now your players can explore an archmage’s vaults, delve through magical dimensions, or solve fiendish arcane traps! Whether used as a complete dungeon or piecemeal puzzle, Pathfinder Flip‐Mat Classics: Arcane Dungeon is the perfect place for all manner of magical confrontations and conundrums!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Equal Exchanges – Skymetal Hoard
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
As part of the secret agreement between the underworld dragon Valashinaz and the Waterfall, a group of Pathfinders is sent to a small island off of Minata to gather a collection of skymetals from an abandoned temple to Valashinaz. The island should be uninhabited, but the Pathfinders quickly discover that someone has made it their home. The Pathfinders need to dodge these new inhabitants and avoid Valashinaz's beloved pet squishies while collecting the treasure. Those akatas have one rough bite...
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-12: Yesteryear’s Hope
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
The insectile ghibranis of Elytrio live divided, with husk ghibranis living in the harsh desert wastelands and membrane ghibranis living a pampered life in automated cities. Inspired by positive relations with the Starfinder Society, two ghibranis are spearheading a social movement aimed at bridging this cultural divide—with limited success. Undeterred, the ghibranis Dystane and Klarima are planning a joint cultural event intended to mend bridges, forge friendships, and foster understanding between their people. Who better to help them than the Starfinder Society? It’s time to put on the grandest celebration Elytrio’s seen since the Gap!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-10: The Crocodile’s Smile
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
After ensuring that Fasiel ibn Sazadin saw Qadiran justice for his crimes, the Pathfinder Society received a mysterious letter from his benefactor detailing that she now sees the Society as a formidable opponent. After receiving this, Venture-Captain Safa spent some time traveling and researching across Qadira and Nex, only to find that the benefactor resides in Jalmeray and is a rakshasa with fine tastes. In order to find out more information about her, Safa and Rashmivati are sending a small crew of Pathfinders to attend a local auction in order to do some reconnaissance. However, while attending the formal event, the Pathfinders notice that one of the guests might have some sticky fingers!
Starfinder Society Bounty #11: The Aucturn Dilemma
A Starfinder Bounty designed for 4th-level characters.
The adventurers are hired by the mysterious Clearbright Institute of Discovery to investigate and secure a wing of their testing facility on Aucturn, where the staff has mysteriously stopped all communications with the corporation. Aucturn is a strange world full of dangers and occult secrets, ruled by cultists of eldritch gods and wrapped in a toxic atmosphere.
The mission takes the adventurers to a corporate testing facility in the wilderness, just outside of the mobile fortress Grindhold, itself a strange place for newcomers. To complete their job, the heroes explore the facility, facing dangers and unexpected discoveries around every corner.
Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #199: To Bloom Below the Web (Season of Ghosts 4 of 4). And don’t forget about our Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our adventure paths!
Our latest standalone adventure, Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge, is now available on FoundryVTT.
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
What is Infinite?
Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite is a program that allows you to create content (adventures and locations; monsters; character classes, archetypes, and backgrounds; fiction; etc.) based on Paizo’s intellectual property (IP), including Pathfinder’s Lost Omens campaign setting, and to make some money while you’re at it. Your work might even be recognized by the community and earn you an invitation into the Infinite Masters elite creator program.
For more info on Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder Infinite, and how to get started, check out the FAQs!
December’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
Apocryphal Archetypes: The Magus and Sorcerer
This expansion on the magus and sorcerer classes includes a whole host of new content! Turn the pages on a new class archetype for the magus that focuses on inherited power—the eldritch scion. Or build a sorcerer from one of eight new bloodlines—two for each tradition of magic. This expansion also has new feats for each class, and Foundry VTT support!
Eldritch Expansions—Rainbow of Elements
A kineticist expansion from Eldritch Osiris Games. With 8 new elements, you can become a master of the elemental energies of aether, awareness, light, shadow, spirit, time, vitality and void! In addition, you can find expansions for the elements of air, earth, fire, metal, water, and wood as well as composite elements and expansions to the monk class and houses of perfection!
Player Core 1 Expanded•
Has inspiration struck, but Pathfinder Player Core doesn't have a subclass to fit? Whether you are looking for a cleric spy, a swaggering rogue, or a druid with a will of steel, you will find myriad options within, made by 4 Infinite Masters and specially tuned for the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster! Feats, subclasses, focus spells, and more for the classes of Pathfinder Player Core.
Shattered Omens of Golarion•
The reality of Golarion is coming undone after the loss of one of its greatest deities, and it's up to heroes like you to hold it together. Shattered Omens of Golarion is a collection of over 2 years of work consolidated into one tome. Inside, you'll find over 185 pages of Remastered player options, including new ancestry and class feats, backgrounds, heritages, spells, and magic items.
The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands•
Golarion is a fantastical place, full of wonder and the unknown. In The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands, join Alphonse Lord Tabbington in an exploration of the Darklands, a place of untold beauty amid fearsome dangers.
From the pen of an all-star crew of Pathfinder designers, players and GMs alike will find options to bolster their adventures to the darkness below.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
Enhanced Mechanic
Experience the new enhanced mechanic—revised for balanced and easier play. This expansion includes several new and revised mechanic tricks, drone chassis, and drone mods.
Fright Finder: The Radiating Abyss•
A research facility named DMEI-4 has gone dark. This derelict space station contains room after room of nightmares, the unfortunate aftermath of research without morals. If you need to put the fear of the gods into your players, or just want to show them what horrors magic and science can truly create, then introduce them to The Radiating Abyss.
Monstercology Galacica: Autumn Aliens•
The Monstercology Galatica is an attempt to catalog and describe all of the many and varied creatures that we share the galaxy with. We understand that with millions of stars and billions of worlds—plus those that visit the galaxy from other planes—this is a nearly impossible endeavor. But if we do not try it, then we can never succeed. This is but one small excerpt of the greater Monstercology Galatica, focusing on creatures most often seen during the later parts of the year.
Space Cowboy’s Arsenal•
A certain type of adventurer resides in the vast frontiers of space—wayfarers and drifters, hunters whose next meal rides on their cunning, their aim, and the price on their bounty's head. They carve out their existence beyond the fringes of civilization; the easy life is as alien to them as another man's gun, and just as fickle. They prefer the unpredictable and uncharted, far from prying eyes and folks what ask too many questions. Never tied to one place, these vagabonds stay strange and savvy, doing what they can to keep alive. When the galaxy needs a job done, they call for the rough and tumble space cowboy.
Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual•
Towering mechs, ancient elementals, territorial kaiju and many more mech-scale threats can be found in Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual! Inside, you’ll find a spread of the latest mech creations of the Outer Sphere, deadly carnivorous mechform mimics, oozes that can slip inside a mech to throttle the operator or take over the machine entirely, and more. This book provides a variety of themed threats for use in mech combat at all levels of play, and all mechs within were made in accordance with the recommended alternative rules for creating NPC mechs from Starfinder Tech Revolution.
New & Exciting from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
- Born of Impossibility—Volume 2: Crystevolved – A versatile heritage and thirty-two ancestry feats.
- Starfinder Planet Sheet – A reference sheet for keeping track of visited planets.
- Heroes of Omen: The Vanguard – A conversion of the Starfinder class of the same name for Pathfinder First Edition.
- Witches+ (Remaster Update) – A remaster-compatible update for Witches+. If you already own this supplement, get the update for free!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, January 25, 2024
Hello Starfinders!
We’re kicking off the year with a return to fan-favorite planet Elytrio to visit some old friends—the endearing ghibranis Klarima and Dystane. Join this dynamic duo as they spearhead a social movement aimed at bridging the cultural divide between their people. The next step in their plan? They’re hosting a massive community festival—and you’re invited! It’s time to mend bridges, forge friendships, foster understanding, and—let’s face it—probably hit some stuff! Travel to Elytrio to help some friends put on the grandest celebration Elytrio’s seen since the Gap!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-12: Yesteryear’s Hope is a repeatable adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Hilary Moon Murphy! Check out the art below to get a sneak peek at some of the friendly ghibrani you’ll meet in this delightful adventure.
Yesteryear’s Hope is dedicated to the memory of Jack Brown, a passionate and much beloved member of our Organized Play community who passed away in 2023. It’s our honor to bring one of Jack’s memorable characters into this adventure as one of the three special guests that you can show around the festival. Much thanks to Hilary Moon Murphy, to Thurston Hillman, and especially to Jack’s family for letting us introduce Jack’s character Lucius to the world.
Take care everybody. Thanks for making our community one I’m proud to be a part of.
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
We’ve also got another Starfinder Bounty for all of you
Aucturn isn’t usually a great place to set up shop, but some corporations see the complete lack of regulations as a plus. When things go wrong, though, it’s up to “independent contractors” to deal with the issues. That’s you. Things have gone wrong, and Agent Bright, a representative of the Clearbright Institute of Discovery, a corporate conglomerate shrouded in mystery, contacts the PCs with an offer. It’ll be up to you to see if various deeds done on Aucturn ever see the light of day. This will likely be the first time on Aucturn for most of you, but I wouldn’t recommend taking in the sights.
Starfinder Bounty #11: The Aucturn Dilemma is an adventure for 4th-level characters written by Basil Wright.
Hope those corporate intrigue lovers amongst you enjoy it!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer
Hello, Pathfinders and welcome to the new year!
This month is a double feature of scenarios, so buckle up!
First, the Pathfinder Society is paying Valashinaz a favor by traveling to an old temple that used to be a place of worship for her, but has since been abandoned after a terrible tempest! The Pathfinders will need to travel to her temple and collect the large collection of skymetals that were left as offerings long ago, while making sure that they don’t anger the spirits that still linger on the island. The Pathfinders have been warned that there may be akatas on the island, but since there aren’t any inhabitants, they should all be hibernating, right?
...right?
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Equal Exchanges – Skymetal Hoard is an adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Ianara Natividad.
During those misadventures, the Pathfinder Society will also be sending a group of junior agents to attend and poke around a high-society auction in Niswan, in the hopes of collecting more information about the mysterious Benefactor that appeared at the end of the last year. It should be a night of elbow-rubbing, delicious pink chai, and gawking at fancy baubles; however, it wouldn’t be a party with Pathfinders if nothing went wrong! It seems that the auction may be attended by some partygoers that have no plans to pay for their treasures!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-10: Crocodile’s Smile is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Ruvaid Virk.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Logan Bonner here. Your Pathfinder Lead Designer is on the run from creatures ghastly and ravenous. That can only mean that Pathfinder Monster Core is drawing nearer! On March 27, prepare to get raided by everything from aeons to zombies! This is the third of the core books for the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project. It compiles monsters from the Bestiary series along with some choice cuts from other books and some brand-new creatures.
Left to right: a Vordine Devil illustrated by Gunship Revolution, Smaranava Naga illustrated by Ivan Koritarev, redcap illustrated by Gunship Revolution, caldera oni illustrated by Gunship Revolution, and sedacthy marauder illustrated by Sammy Khalid
Design Goals
Overall, monsters were working well statistically and thematically, so there weren’t any changes to the basics of how monsters work. Instead, we focused on making the book gorgeous, expansive, and full of great monsters! We had several big goals for Monster Core.
Match the Remaster Rules: We adjusted monster rules that needed to match new terminology or rules. For instance, changing “negative healing” to “void healing,” using “Reactive Strike,” and swapping out spells that were in Core Rulebook, but not Player Core.
Collect the Greatest Hits: The most classic monsters mingle with new creations! This book is focused on creatures that you can use over and over in all sorts of games. Most creatures came over from the first Bestiary, with some updates. But we also graduated some monsters that appeared in Bestiary 2 and Bestiary 3 to the main monster book, including serpentfolk, herexens, marsh and shadow giants, phantoms, scarecrows, and more! Monster Core also brings several Pathfinder First Edition monsters into Second Edition, including bogwids and the sargassum heap (formerly sargassum fiend).
Replace Some OGL Monsters: We cut several creatures that we were using from the OGL as we move to the ORC license and a set of creatures more specific to Pathfinder and Golarion. Where possible, we put in creatures that fill a similar role in adventure-building. For example, the sargassum heap mentioned above replaces another lurking 6th-level plant creature! We’ve also created exciting new devils, dragons, and other new threats in classic categories.
Match the Mythology: For a great many creatures that originated in folklore, their abilities and look were based on sources like pulp novels and TV shows. Eleanor Ferron spearheaded an effort to take creatures like rakshasa, oni, dragon turtles, and coatls closer to their source material. Making them more authentic while ensuring they still match Golarion’s lore was a massive undertaking!
Pack it Full!: Lastly, we wanted to include as many monsters as we could reasonably fit. Variety makes for memorable campaigns, adventures, and encounters, so getting more monsters in the book was great. The book is longer than the first Bestiary, but beyond that, we fit more stat blocks into several sections—dinosaurs have the same number of pages, but 10 creatures instead of seven.
There were also some changes that weren’t primary goals. Low-level monsters had high AC too often, and Michael Sayre did a pass to make the low-level experience more even. There wasn’t a level –1 plant or fungus for summon plant or fungus, so Landon Winkler made the sprigjack, a weaker twigjack.
Wrap Battle
On streams and other previews, we’ve talked quite a bit about hags, devils, and other monsters that had pretty big revisions. Let’s take a moment to go over an example of a smaller change. Mummies, beyond being classic horror monsters, make for great undead to include in musty tombs and dungeons. But the Bestiary version was primarily based on causing despair and imposing a rotting curse. They can be pretty static, so we were looking for something new to put into our basic mummies to make them more interesting, much like we reassessed them when creating new mummies for Book of the Dead.
Since the mummy guardian and mummy pharaoh were originally created with sophisticated chemical processes, we landed on an alchemical theme. You can see the special actions the mummy guardian can now use in combat, and how they reinforce the creature’s theme in a unique way!
Mummy Guardian — Creature 6
Medium, Mummy, Undead, Unholy
Perception +16; darkvision
Languages Necril, plus any one language they knew while alive
Skills Athletics +15, Stealth +11
Str +4, Dex +0, Con +2, Int –2, Wis +4, Cha +2
AC 23; Fort +14, Ref +10, Will +16HP 125, void healing (page 360); Immunities bleed, death effects, disease, paralyzed, poison, unconscious; Weaknesses alchemical 5 (see alchemical weakness), fire 5
Alchemical Weakness The guardian’s weakness to alchemical items not only applies to damage from alchemical items, but the guardian also takes 5 damage when splashed with non-damaging alchemical items or dosed with alchemical poisons, even if they’re immune to their other effects.
Blighted Consumption [reaction] (curse, divine, poison) Trigger A creature within 30 feet eats or drinks (including an alchemical item or potion); Effect The food or drink burns like the caustic substances fed to the mummy before its death. If the creature fails a DC 24 Fortitude save, they become sickened 2 after they finish the consumption and can’t reduce their sickened condition while within 30 feet of any mummy.
Speed 20 feet
Melee [one-action] fist +16 (agile), Damage 2d10+7 bludgeoning plus Choking Pain
Choking Pain [one-action] (divine, illusion, mental, void) Requirements The mummy’s last action was a successful fist Strike; EffectThe mummy shares the pain of its dying moments with the target of that Strike. That creature takes 3d8 void damage with a DC 24 basic Will save. If the creature critically fails the saving throw, it can’t speak for 1 round, including to Cast a Spell.
More Monsters!
If you’d like some extra looks into what we’re cooking up for this book, check these out!
- Blogs on the new dragons debuting in Monster Core: diabolic dragon, mirage dragon, adamantine dragon.
- Watch the Paizo LIVE stream in which Eleanor Ferron and I talk more about the book.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, January 24, 2023
The final adventure of the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, To Bloom Below the Web, arrives with hints of spring and hope in the new year! Of course, as I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, this Adventure Path is filled with more surprises and plot twists than most, and this final adventure is one that’s especially tricky to talk about without spoiling those developments. Folks have been great about helping to keep the campaign’s twists secret as well, and though I expect that we’ll talk more openly about the narrative stunts and risks we pulled with this Adventure Path sometime in the future, that time isn’t quite here yet.
Of course, we wouldn’t have been able to pull this off at all without having such an amazing group of authors working on the adventures and their support articles. So instead of dancing around spoilers and trying to figure out what to say about this final adventure without revealing too much, let’s hear from two of the authors for this book!
(A final note about the art I’m featuring in this blog post—none of it is technically from the adventure itself, but from support articles, so there shouldn’t be anything in these images that will particularly spoil things for anyone who’s eager to discover Season of Ghosts’ surprises as players!)
James Jacobs
Pathfinder Narrative Creative Director
Jeremy Blum
I'm Jeremy Blum and my articles in Season of Ghosts volumes 3 and 4 will be my first published Paizo projects! For volume 3, I got the chance to flesh out nindorus based on James Jacobs' initial notes, and detailing the intricacies of a delicious new fiend variant was a blast. As for volume 4, let's just say that I was able to write up character options inspired by aspects of Buddhism. I look forward to seeing how players use them!
Aside from Season of Ghosts, I've penned portions of the upcoming Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian XiaWorld Guide and Tian Xia Character Guideas well as Pathfinder Howl of the Wild. I've also designed Pathfinder conversions for the Korean-themed Undying Corruption setting by Nine Heavens Press, contributed lore to the Chinese-inspired Banner Clans faction in Three Sails Studios’ miniatures wargame Margrave: The Marcher Lords, and most recently worked on several Renegade Games Studios projects that are still under wraps. Check out my portfolio and feel free to follow me (I use the name Pixel Grotto on Twitter and Bluesky) to share stories of how nindorus have made your life miserable.
Liane Merciel
I was both super excited and nervous to be asked to contribute to this Adventure Path.
Like a lot of you, I have been a Forever GM for a... well, forever, basically. I think the last time I got to be a PC was, uh, 2006 maybe? No, wait, I did get to play Fumbus for 20 glorious minutes at PaizoCon 2019. So yeah, that’s the last time I was a player in a tabletop campaign.
Possibly because of this (vengeful? Me? Never!), my home campaigns are skewed heavily toward horror in all its many and glorious forms. If my players aren’t white-knuckling it and/or grossed out at least once per story arc, I believe that I have failed.
Trying to pull off a horror game as a published adventure, though, was a totally different kind of challenge. My GM’ing style is reactive: I see how the players respond to NPC X or Encounter Y and tailor the interaction accordingly. Writing an adventure for players I’ve never met, at tables I’ll never see, using a set of rules that was in flux at the time, was probably more terrifying than anything I’ve ever inflicted on my PCs.
But I look forward to putting them through the game later, just to make sure.
One final note: If you’re the kind of person who enjoys a good Adventure Path trailer (that is, a person of culture and taste), you may have taken special notice of the music underscoring the visuals of our latest Season of Ghosts trailer. Those haunting melodies were composed by Filip Melvan of Michael Ghelfi Studios, with whom we’re excited to announce we’ve entered into an official partnership! Beginning with Season of Ghosts, Michael and his team of award-winning composers will be composing all-new original soundtracks uniquely tailored to accompany selected past and future Pathfinder Adventure Paths!
We’ll have plenty more to say in the weeks to come, but for the time being, we’ll leave it at this: players who like to incorporate music into their games can expect a lot of exciting auditory surprises in store!
Actually, you know what? That’s not fair. We can’t just tell you about this amazing music and not give you a sample to whet your appetite. Here’s the title track from the upcoming “Season of Ghosts” album right now, suitable for all your ghost-thwarting, village-protecting, below-the-web-blooming needs!
Check Out The Season Of Ghosts Adventure Path
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts
]]>Tuesday, January 23, 2023
Here’s a look behind the scenes at our PAX Unplugged demo!
Hiya, it’s me Jenny Jarzabski (Senior Developer) reporting in from the field! I got to spread some Veskmas cheer by running the playtest demo at Pax Unplugged, and I’m here to tell you all about it! This playtest is an encounter designed to test out some of the basic rules of Starfinder Second Edition. Reading on might spoil the demo’s content, so for those of you planning to attend Owlcon (in February) or Norwescon (in March) where some Starfinder team members might be running this demo, you’ve been warned!
PAXU Demo
Map: Starfinder Flip-Mat: Mining Operation
Character Level: 3rdThe goal of this demo was to test out what we’ve been working on internally with a wider pool of players and see some early reactions from the community. I won’t be going into extreme detail about everything we tested in the demo, especially since some of those rules may have changed after we implemented feedback and prepared the Playtest Rulebook for the printer over the past two weeks! If you want the full experience, you’ll have to find me or one of my teammates at an upcoming convention or wait for the next batch of demos we’ll no doubt be cooking up for GenCon!
Players chose from the following premade characters:
- Envoy
- Mystic
- Operative
- Solarian
The Fight
The players approached from the north of a seemingly abandoned mining site strewn with cranes, vehicles, crates, and other large objects providing that sweet, sweet cover. A massive pit in the center of the map created an obstacle for characters favoring melee combat styles. But these lucky gamers were playing a game that favors ranged combat (YEEHAW!) so they all had a ranged damage option in the form of guns! Pew pew pew! Even so, some attacks and abilities perform better in closer quarters. The solarian’s playstyle focuses on getting close to enemies and hitting them with powerful attacks from their solar weapons, and some of the mystic’s spells don’t work from too far away—so not everyone thought it was a good idea to camp out at the edge of the map behind the safety of cover. (Just the operative. Always. So tacticool.)As the players investigated the mine, a trio of pirates popped out from behind cover and fired the first shots of the battle. These pirates were packing guns of their own—machine guns! This meant they could shoot from a distance or get close and unleash a rain of bullets on multiple targets with automatic fire. The pirates’ tactics were to shoot once from a distance, then move in and switch to spraying auto-fire to pew pew as many of their enemies as possible.
Tactics and Playtesting
Changing the pirates’ tactics changed the encounter. I experimented with some different tactics and eventually settled into a routine of two pirates following their normal tactics, while a third perched behind a toolchest (cover) on top of the crane. Sometimes, it was like running two battles in one: a sniper fight between crane guy and the operative, and the chaos of machine gun space pirates versus everyone else. Other times, the players disrupted this setup—they gravity welled crane guy off his perch, attacked him with his own shadow, and more! Poor crane guy!The point is, different groups always used different tactics. Patterns emerged, of course. Generally, the operative hung back and kept in cover while sniping, while the mystic slung spells and pew pew’d from a medium distance. Sometimes the mystic even got into melee and used their painglaive to share their emotions with the enemy on a more personal level. The solarian usually charged into battle, either going after the sniper (RIP crane guy) and using abilities to try to drag him off his perch or intercepting the gunners on their way toward the party. The envoy had a lot of choices between shooting and giving directives like Get in There! to boost everyone’s speed, or Kiss It Better to “heal” someone with temporary HP. No two groups I GM’d for used exactly the same combination of actions. Considering each premade character only contained a snapshot of the rules we’ll be playtesting later this year, you should expect a lot of fun choices when you build your first playtest characters.
A Note About Pregens
he StarFriends (as we members of the Starfinder team call ourselves) each designed one of the premade characters available for the demo. Dustin created the mystic, Jessica whipped up an envoy, Mike crafted a solarian, and Jenny built an operative. Thursty designed the encounter, so we gave the boss a pass this time!
Bonus Encounter
If the players ROFLstomped the pirates, say with a string of crits, the demo had a second encounter loaded in the chamber so the demo wouldn’t run disappointingly short. A fourth pirate gunner and his hacked robot ally emerged from a building and attacked the party right after they defeated the pirates. The robot advanced and went pew pew pew with its laser rifle while the pirate crept up behind it, using her hacked tank-bot as mobile cover until she reached spray-and-pray range. The robot might power down at half HP or use its healing nanites to keep fighting longer, depending on the group. Only a handful of groups played the bonus encounter, including the Cosmic Critters. More about that in a minute.A Veskmas Miracle
Playing games with nufriends in the community is always a great time. Thanks to all you gamers at PAX: Unplugged who wandered over to the Paizo tables to try Starfinder 2. Thank you to the GMs who volunteered their time to run demo tables—y’all are some space badasses!Speaking of space badasses, in addition to the public playtests, I had the honor of playing the demo with the wonderful casts of Atomless, Cosmic Crit, and No Quest for the Wicked. They really kept me on my toes with their rolls and roleplay. You can listen to the Cosmic Critmas demo here; my sessions with Atomless and No Quest are coming soon!
But I Want More!
Do you want more teasers about the playtest rules? Are you looking for spoilers before release? Interested in more detailed notes about our internal playtesting? Stay tuned to this space for more news from the StarFriends SOON™!Jenny Jarzabski
Senior Developer (Starfinder)
Tags: Conventions, Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, January 19, 2024
Hey everyone, Luis Loza here! A while back, I shared some previews for the diabolic dragon and mirage dragon, two of the new dragons premiering in Monster Core in March. I figured that I’ve kept the public waiting long enough for more dragon previews, so let’s take a look at another fun dragon!
Speaking of Monster Core, you might have seen the big dragon on the cover. This is an adamantine dragon, one of the new primal dragons in the book. Primal dragons draw on the magical energies of the natural world. These dragons tend to be the most bestial among dragons. As a result, they tend to be bulkier with more animalistic features like horns and spines. Some primal dragons even grow natural features on their bodies, like small plants.
The adamantine dragon—one of the skymetal dragons—got its name due to the adamantine that covers its body. The magic that flows through them draws adamantine to their bodies like a magnet, though some of these dragons naturally grow adamantine on their body, slowly replacing their hard scales with the skymetal as they age. Regardless of how the adamantine clings to their bodies, these dragons are tough. They’re so tough that they have a strong resistance against physical attacks. The claws and jaws of an adamantine dragon also allow them to burrow through dirt or even solid stone, sometimes emerging from beneath the ground to ambush their prey.
Adamantine dragons tend to use their shovel-like mouths to scoop up chunks of earth, consuming whatever rocks and unfortunate creatures are swept up in their bites. Instead of a typical dragon breath, adamantine dragons belch up all of these rocks, unleashing a veritable avalanche from within their bodies. While adamantine dragons typically don’t have the ability to cast spells, they make up for it with their hardy bodies and powerful blows.
So, that’s a little bit on the adamantine dragon! Don’t forget to check out this dragon and all of its draconic friends when Monster Core releases in March. Stay tuned for more draconic previews in the coming weeks. Next time, we’ll take a look at the mysterious and cunning conspirator dragon. See you then!
Luis Loza
Creative Director, Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, January 18, 2024
Hello, Pathfinders and Starfinders! 2024 is going to be an incredibly exciting year for Paizo. This year, we’re releasing major Pathfinder rulebooks, including Howl of the Wild, the Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide, and Player Core 2, as well as launching the playtest for Starfinder’s new edition!
We’d like to invite you to be part of the excitement by volunteering as an Organized Play GM! Our volunteer GMs are the best of the best, the cream of the crop, and the most helpful skittermanders in the galaxy. Last year, our volunteers ran over 1,000 games online and in person, and we’re looking to exceed that in 2024!
If you love our games so much that you want to introduce new players to them, and if you’re ready to GM on the biggest stages we can offer, then we want you to join the team! Even if you’ve never run Pathfinder or Starfinder Society before, our support team will make sure that you have everything you need to run your best games ever.
New this year, all GMs who run games at Premier or Premier Plus events will receive a $15 paizo.com voucher per block, which can also be spent in the Paizo booth at Gen Con in Indianapolis. Those who volunteer for more blocks may receive badges to the show, PDF or print products, or hotel rooms based on their commitment.
At this time, we’re accepting GMs for PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indianapolis; information about Gen Con Online will come once Gen Con provides more information about the event. We’ve also included information from our friends at Origins; while Paizo won’t have an official presence there, we’re recognizing them as a Premier event, which means additional rewards for GMs and players. Who knows, maybe you’ll even see some Paizo staff at the event!
PaizoCon Online 2024
PaizoCon Online 2024 will take place online from May 24-27, 2024. It will have a physical component in the form of our PaizoCon@ program; see last week’s blog for more details. New content at this show includes the launch of Starfinder Society Year 7 (the final year for Starfinder first edition), the new Starfinder Society interactive special, and new Pathfinder Society scenarios.
Please note that this year we will be scheduling all PaizoCon Online events on Tabletop.Events. As such, GMs will need to create a free account prior to completing the volunteer form.
We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios, Bounties, and Quests.
- Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion.
Please read this important information before applying:
- Volunteer applications will be reviewed and accepted or rejected by the PaizoCon Organizing Committee. Filling this form out does not guarantee acceptance; you will receive an email with further information from the PaizoCon committee.
- PaizoCon Online schedules will be assigned by the committee. You will be asked for your preference of system and level, but you will not necessarily be able to choose the specific scenario(s) you run. There is a free-form field at the end of the form to enter specific requests, though there’s no guarantee they will be honored.
- Reward information is listed in the table below. GMs who do not qualify for a badge will still need to purchase one if they wish to play games.
- Applications will be processed on a rolling basis, beginning no later than March 1. The earlier you get your application in, the more likely it is you’ll get the scenarios you want. Please be patient while we put the final details of the convention together internally before we send out GM emails!
- Adventure authors interested in running tables of scenarios they have written should fill out this form and then follow up by emailing paizoorgplayhq@gmail.com. Anybody interested in running games outside of the Organized Play offerings (such as Infinite content, homebrew content, or games from other publishers) will be able to propose events once tickets go on sale. Stay tuned for future information!
- Any questions about the GM signup process should be sent to the committee at paizoorgplayhq@gmail.com.
Rewards Table
Blocks
PDF Product
Player Badge
Early Sign-Up Access
In-Game Reward
Voucher
6+ blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
5 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
4 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
3 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
2 blocks
✓
✓
✓
1 block
✓
✓
•Definitions for rewards:
- PDF Product: A PDF of any Paizo product valued at $29.99 or less.
- Player Badge: A badge for the duration of the event. GMs must have a badge before registering to play games.
- Early Sign-Up Access: One week before signups open, GMs may sign up for one game per block they are running.
- In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current Organized Play program GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (First Edition) is paper boons, and Pathfinder Society (Second Edition)/Starfinder Society (First Edition) is Achievement Point rewards at the Premier Plus (2.0x) level.
- Voucher: Earn one voucher for $15 that is spendable on paizo.com for every block run.
Important Dates
Please note that these dates are tentative and subject to change.
- April 10 (Wed): Early player signups begin for GMs.
- April 17 (Wed): Player signups begin for all badge holders.
- May 24-27: PaizoCon Online!
PaizoCon Online 2024 Volunteer Application
Gen Con Indy 2024
Gen Con Indianapolis will take place in Indianapolis, Indiana from August 1-4, 2024. While we intend to participate in Gen Con Online, this application is only for the in-person show. New content at this show includes the launch of Pathfinder Society Year 6, the new Pathfinder Society Special, and the second run of the Starfinder Society interactive special. It will also feature the launch of the Starfinder Second Edition Playtest!
We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios, Bounties, and Quests.
- Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion.
- Demo GM: Run quick demos for new players, giving them a short Pathfinder/Starfinder experience before quickly turning the table over for the next group. Our Demo GMs may receive an Exhibitor badge in compensation for the fast and furious nature of the position, subject to availability.
- Board Game Demo GM: Run demo tables for Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones. Applicants should have strong board game knowledge (both our games and general board games) and preferably have related demo experience.
- Academy GM: Run games for young children (under 18) and their families, and provide a safe, welcoming environment for our youngest gamers. This position requires proof of a completed background check (employment in education, public service, or something similar may be accepted as verification that you have completed a background check).
Please read this important information before applying:
- Volunteer applications will be reviewed and accepted or rejected by the Gen Con Organizing Committee. Filling this form out does not guarantee acceptance; you will receive an email with further information from the Gen Con committee.
- Gen Con Indy schedules will be assigned by the committee. You will be asked for your preference of system and level, but you will not necessarily be able to choose the specific scenario(s) you run. The committee’s intention is to assign people to run the same scenario multiple times during the weekend, to minimize the amount of preparation required. There is a free-form field at the end of the form to enter specific requests, though there’s no guarantee they will be honored.
- Reward information is listed in the table below. GMs who don’t qualify for a badge will still need to purchase one.
- Volunteers will be accepted on a rolling basis, and schedules should be assigned within two weeks of your application. Once your schedule is assigned and you confirm, you are considered committed to attending the event.
- Adventure authors interested in running tables of scenarios they have written should fill out the volunteer form and then follow up by emailing genconleads@gmail.com. Please note that we have a limited number of tables and that the schedule is fairly locked-in at this stage, but we’ll do our best to get you slotted into your scenario if it’s on the schedule.
- Any questions about the GM signup process should be sent to the committee at genconleads@gmail.com.
Rewards Table
Blocks
Housing
Product
Dice Bag•
Player Badge
Volunteer Attire
In-Game Reward
Voucher
7+ blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
6 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
5 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
4 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
3 blocks
✓
✓
✓
✓
2 blocks
✓
✓
✓
1 block
✓
✓
✓
•Definitions for rewards:
- Housing: GMs will be housed at two volunteers per room. More volunteers (up to four) may be added to one room if all volunteers agree. More information is available on the application form.
- Product: A physical copy of a Paizo product, chosen from a list of recent releases prior to the convention.
- Dice Bag: A custom handmade dice bag with Pathfinder or Starfinder logo. Available to volunteers for 4 or more blocks who also commit to remaining masked while volunteering.
- Player Badge: A badge for the duration of the event. GMs must have a Player badge before registering to play games. Demo GMs may receive an Exhibitor badge if our allotment allows for it.
- Volunteer Attire: One shirt per day of volunteering (unless you received shirts in the previous year).
- In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current Organized Play program GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (First Edition)/Pathfinder Adventure Card Society is paper boons, and Pathfinder Society (Second Edition)/Starfinder Society (First Edition) is Achievement Point rewards at the Premier Plus (2.0x) level.
- Voucher: Earn one voucher for $15 that is spendable on paizo.com or at the Paizo booth for every block run.
Important Dates
Note that these dates are from Gen Con directly; other dates specifically relevant to us may be added.
- February 11: Indy badge registration begins.
- TBA: Indy housing portal opens.
- TBA (May): Indy event catalog goes live.
- May 19: Indy event registration begins.
- August 1-4: Gen Con Indy!
Gen Con Indy 2024 Volunteer Application
Origins 2024
Ohio Org Play will again be sponsoring Pathfinder and Starfinder Society at Origins Game Fair from June 19-23, 2024, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
For those who have not been to Origins in the past, the convention runs from mid-day Wednesday to mid-day Sunday, for a total of 12 event slots. We set our scenario-length slots up as 5 hours of gaming, with 1 hour meal breaks between sessions to give our GMs plenty of time to eat and re-energize. More about Origins can be found here: https://www.originsgamefair.com/
We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios, Bounties, and Quests.
- Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion.
Volunteer applications will be reviewed by the organizing committee. Filling the volunteer form out does not guarantee acceptance. As this is a large con with many moving parts, GM schedules will be assigned by the committee and sent out in order of volunteering. Volunteer early to lock in your preferences! Once your schedule is assigned and you confirm, you are considered committed to attending the event.
We value each of our volunteers who help to make this event happen. As a reward, we have Ohio Org Play shirts, water bottles, badges, accommodations for you or your vehicle, and bonus Achievement Points to send your way. But wait! This year, there’s more! Paizo has generously stepped in to provide voucher rewards to our GM volunteers this year, as well as free product for those who volunteer for more slots. Here’s a grid to keep track of everything:
Origins Rewards Table
Blocks
Ohio Org Play Water Bottle
¼ Hotel or Parking Pass
Paizo Product
Origins Badge
Ohio Org Play T-Shirt
Paizo Vouchers
In-Game Reward
10
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
9
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
8
X
X
X
X
X
X
7
X
X
X
X
X
X
6
X
X
X
X
X
5
X
X
X
X
4
X
X
X
X
3
X
X
X
2
X
X
X
1
X
X
Reward Details:
- Origins Badge: A weekend badge for the event. All attendees and GMs must have a badge. Those volunteering for 4 or more slots will receive a free badge. All others must purchase a badge on their own. Most Origins events are included in the base badge price.
- In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current Organized Play program GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (First Edition)/Pathfinder Adventure Card Society is paper boons, and Pathfinder Society (Second Edition)/Starfinder Society (First Edition) is Achievement Point rewards with a 1.75 multiplier.
- Vouchers: Earn one voucher for $15 that is spendable on paizo.com for each GM slot completed.
- T-Shirt: All volunteers for 2 or more slots will receive 1 Ohio Org Play 2024 t-shirt to wear on Saturday.
- PDF Product: A PDF of any Paizo product valued at $29.99 or less.
- Hotel/Parking: Volunteers for 7 or more slots will have the option of shared hotel space or a free parking pass. Hotel space is Wednesday night to Sunday Morning. We will work with volunteers who select this option to arrange rooming assignments.
- Water Bottle: Volunteers for 9 or more slots will also receive a Custom Ohio Org Play reusable water bottle to keep you hydrated all weekend long.
Important Dates
- Volunteer ASAP to lock in your scenario/slot preferences!
- April 13: Event registration opens.
- June 19-23: Origins Game Fair!
Please contact OhioOrgPlay@gmail.com with any questions.
Premier Conventions Planning Server
Anybody interested in volunteering at PaizoCon Online or Gen Con should join the Premier Conventions planning server by clicking the image below. Follow the instructions in #welcome to get access to the relevant channels. All important information will be conveyed on this server as well as via email, so please join the server!
Thank you all so much for volunteering! These events can’t happen without our volunteer GMs and organizers, and we’re so lucky to have you all. We’re looking forward to another fantastic year of conventions!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorDavid Peever, Adrian FireclawDrake, and Jocelyn Hamilton
PaizoCon Online CommitteeHeather Vigil, Kevin Baumann, Rebecca Fehn, and Joe Mathos
Gen Con Indy CommitteeJanice Piette
Venture Captain–Ohio
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Tuesday, January 16, 2024
One might think that the elements strive for balance, to find harmony in all things, with each being represented in equal measure. But that is not the truth of things. In reality, the elements are in a constant struggle for dominance, each according to their own secretive plan. Only from our perspective do things seem balanced, but the fight rages on for all eternity.
Elemental Stones is an abstract tile-placement and pattern-matching game for 2 to 4 players, in which you take on the role of powerful elemental sovereigns by placing and transforming tiles of five elements (fire, water, earth, wood, and metal)—with air as a sixth, wildcard element—in a constant struggle for dominance. Today we want to give you a peek into how the game came to be and what you can expect find inside the box.
Designed by me (Joe Pasini) along with Jason Bulmahn, Elemental Stones is the first release in the Paizo Games line, which will consist of tabletop games designed, developed, and published by Paizo. We’re excited to bring you all-new game expressions that, while inspired by and connected to the rich worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder, explore the opportunities presented by modern games, separate from pen-and-paper roleplaying games.
Elemental Stones began life as an inkling of a game inspired by the Rage of Elements hardcover book, which dives deep into the system of elements in Pathfinder (including two newly supported elements, metal and wood). We knew we wanted a simple-to-learn, highly replayable game that would involve the elemental cycle, placing satisfying objects on a board, and competing for elemental dominance, in the form of—what else—victory points. Early prototypes of a dotted grid with constellation-like patterns grew into a more robust hex-shaped grid and tokens with a relatively simple ruleset. With just a few tweaks along the way, this design allows for nuanced strategy and tactics each time you play.
Of course, as with any idea making its way from concept to concrete creation, there were some growing pains. Various card types were added, patterns shifted and changed, scoring metrics were constantly in flux, and the component list was rather fluid throughout early playtests. For example, we realized players would end up with extra stones at the end of most games and, as a result, would have less meaningful choices when choosing stones in later rounds. We eventually hit upon the idea of awarding points for having majorities in each type of stone as a way to solve two problems with one solution (if only there were a stone-related idiom for that… oh well). Everything about the game went through similar iterations, from the several other ways you can score points all the way to the production side, where we worked diligently with our manufacturer to create tiles that are just the right weight, size, and feel. In the end, we created a game that is quick and easy to play with up to four players in about 30-40 minutes, making it a perfect warm-up to your Pathfinder game night—or you can play multiple rounds for a whole evening of fun.
We’ve had a great time demoing the game at conventions and online, and can’t wait to hear your stories of elemental struggle around the table! You can preorder the game here and check out an explanation of the rules (from one of our streams). And keep an eye out for more news about upcoming Paizo Games, we cannot wait to show you what we have coming up next!
Joe Pasini
Lead Designer of Paizo Games
Friday, January 12, 2024
Greetings Pathfinders! We are Natural Pengu and we are working on bringing the world of Pathfinder into our mobile Virtual Tabletop (VTT). We are excited to announce:
- All Pathfinder Player Core classes, ancestries, and heritages are now available in our Player Core Toolkit!
- Early Access for the Natural Pengu Mobile VTT will be available on Monday!
Great for Players and Game Masters on the Go
Designed for the modern player and Game Master, our Mobile Pathfinder VTT is a great solution for those seeking the thrill of Pathfinder on the go. When you’re playing with our Mobile VTT, you can play anywhere, anytime.
Computers and laptops have always been the main devices to play, while mobiles and tablets have been companion devices.
We are turning that concept on its head. A mobile phone is all you need to play.
The Player Core Toolkit - The Entry Phase
Our Player Core Toolkit is the entry phase of our VTT. It contains character creation, character sheets, dice rolling with automatic modifiers, and integrated rules accessible on the fly.
The Character Creator now contains all classes, ancestries, and heritages available in Pathfinder Player Core with assisted level-up on the way.
You can access some rule snippets without owning Paizo’s Player Core. More in-depth rules are accessible for free if you have purchased the Player Core PDF from Paizo•, or you can purchase the Player Core PDF with integration to our platform from us at Natural Pengu for $19.99.
The Next Phase - Mobile VTT Coming On Monday!
But that's not all. We're not just offering a character sheet – we are a full-fledged Virtual Tabletop. Maps, tokens, Game Master tools, and everything you need to create an immersive campaign are on the way with a basic early access version opening on Monday. We are committed to providing a comprehensive Mobile VTT experience that caters to every aspect of your Pathfinder adventure. With these coming functionalities, you can play with a complete VTT, all easily used through a web browser on your phone.
Early Access: Shape the Future with Us
Even though all classes have been tested, our VTT remains in the beta phase with many bugs to be found. You can choose a free plan, or a $1 plan, and get Early access to all of the Player Core Toolkit features.
By choosing our $2 plan you will also get Early access to the Natural Pengu Mobile VTT, when it becomes available on Monday.
These are limited time offers and prices may increase with time as the platform evolves. So get these low prices while you can! With your support we can keep developing the Natural Pengu Mobile VTT into something truly great.
Click the link below to join Early Access and join the adventure today!
Or sign up to our e-mail list to be notified once Early Access opens for the full Natural Pengu Mobile VTT on Monday!
•Unfortunately, we cannot connect owners of the physical core books to our in-depth rules—a PDF version is required to gain access for the $0 price point.
Thursday, January 11, 2024
Hi everyone, and a belated Happy New Year!
I wanted to take a moment to talk about something new we’ll be doing to help parents and educators who play our adventures with their kiddos. While we aim to hit a “PG-13” level of maturity for our standard adventures, there are plenty out there that are perfectly suited for those young adventurers out there, and we know it’s hard for someone to know which ones qualify without reading the adventures themselves or asking others in the community. In upcoming quests, we’ll be creating an image for the cover and product page that indicates the quest is suitable for All Ages, as well as tagging the adventure with that label.
While working on quests, we realized that their 2-hour length was a good sweet spot for younger attention spans, and so we decided to start using this new label on qualifying quests. What that means to us is that the adventure in question should be suitable for younger players without turning off veterans. It should avoid themes of horror or violent imagery, encourage creative solutions, and also employ nonviolent resolutions wherever possible. If there’s a fight, it shouldn’t be against something too scary or too human. The goal here is that if you’ve got a younger child, student, or sibling who can do the addition required to play the game, you can pull out one of these adventures and feel confident that they’ll have as much fun as you will.
Happy gaming to all our players, no matter how old!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, January 10, 2024
Header avatar art by Brian Patterson
Roll20 is dropping in with an update on the redesign of their Pathfinder Second Edition character sheet. The devs are diligently wrapping up the last pieces of work for our community preview release. We expect you’ll see the new sheet very soon—sometime this month! This is just a preview release, so you won’t see all features of the existing sheet available on release. Because of that, the current sheet isn’t going anywhere; the last thing we want to do is disrupt your ongoing games!
We hope you’ll try the new sheet out, though, and make note of all the things you wish the current sheet could do while comparing it to the new sheet. There will be a feedback form, easily accessed within the community preview sheet, where you can submit your thoughts directly to the team. They plan to adjust their roadmap frequently to ensure you’re getting the features you want the most!
In case you haven’t seen the original blog post, this initial community preview of the sheet will include a couple of exciting improvements over the existing sheet:
- Improved automation: modifications are propagated more intelligently and completely throughout the sheet
- Overhauled conditions: conditions will better apply modifiers to all affected stats and calculations (this will apply to default conditions first and later be applied more broadly through our upcoming releases)
- Better bonus and penalty calculations: modifier types (e.g. Status, Circumstance, Item) will correctly apply throughout the sheet
Until then, we hope everyone has a nice holiday season and a happy new year!
The Roll20 Team
Tuesday, January 9, 2024
Greetings, Paizoverse! I’m very excited to announce the locations for this year’s PaizoCon@ program! This pilot program will allow you to experience PaizoCon in person with your fellow Pathfinders and Starfinders while supporting your local game stores.
All PaizoCon@ locations will be running Pathfinder and Starfinder Society games during the weekend, including exclusive runs of our May releases. Highlights include the launch of Starfinder Society Year 7, as well as the new Starfinder Society special and an exclusive rerun of Pathfinder Society Special #2-00: The King in Thorns. If you’re interested in volunteering to run games at your local store, please reach out to the listed contacts!
PaizoCon@ KublaCon
Location: Burlingame, CA
Website: https://kublacon.com/
Contact: John and Wendy-Ann Francis, sfbayareaVC@gmail.comOur exclusive convention partner this year is KublaCon in Burlingame, California! KublaCon has one of the largest Paizo Organized Play presences in the country, and we’re enhancing it with all that PaizoCon has to offer. Join them to watch our streamed panels in the viewing space, as well as participate in the specials and Organized Play scenarios!
PaizoCon@ FLGS Locations
Head out to one of our pilot stores and join in on the PaizoCon excitement! If you’re more of a visual learner, here’s a map of the locations!
PaizoCon@ Cardboard Corner Cafe
Location: Overland Park, KS
Website: https://cardboardcornerkc.com/
Contact: Darrel Curry
Signup form:
PaizoCon@ Dragon’s Lair Austin
Location: Austin, TX
Website: https://www.dlair.net/austin/
Contact: Milan Badzic
Signup form: https://forms.gle/9BcDzKyQRtg42YVEA
PaizoCon@ Fanboy3
Location: Manchester, United Kingdom
Website: https://www.fanboy3.co.uk/
Contact: Ian Hawthorne, Islesregionpaizo@gmail.com
PaizoCon@ Fox Den Board Game Cafe
[Logo Coming Soon]
Location: Burnsville, MN
Website: https://www.foxdenbgc.com/
Contact: Bret Indrelee, old.codger.coa@gmail.comPaizoCon@ Game Kastle
Location: College Park, MD
Website: https://gamekastle.com/pages/college-park-md
Contact: Nicholas Ruchlewicz, novaorganizedplay@gmail.com
PaizoCon@ Gaming Etc
Location: Acton, MA
Website: https://www.gamingetc.com/
Contact: Adam Yakaboski, madcapmachinations@gmail.com
PaizoCon@ Mighty Meeple
Location: Concord, NC
Website: https://www.mightymeeple.com/
Contact: Doug Edwards & Peter Ramon
Signup form: https://forms.gle/iDFD4g49wWCNXfqD6
PaizoCon@ Mox Boarding House
Location: Bellevue, WA
Website: https://www.moxboardinghouse.com/bellevue/
Contact: Aaron Sadler, velisruna@gmail.com or @Velisruna on Discord
PaizoCon@ The Collective
Location: Orlando, FL
Website: https://www.thecollectivecomics.com/
Contact: Greg Ferguson, @greg_f_mco on Discord
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Thursday, January 4, 2024
OPC Musings
Happy 2024, everybody! I don’t know about you all, but I’m still writing 2023 on my checks. Or I would be, if we wrote checks still.
We’ve got a great year coming up for you all! The Pathfinder Remaster continues to roll out, the Starfinder 2 playtest will launch, and we’ve got several great conventions spinning up. Not a lot has happened since our last blog (and not to give too much away, but I’m actually writing this four days after the December update went live), so let’s focus on what’s coming soon!
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on January 31, 2024.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Equal Exchanges – Skymetal Hoard•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-10: The Crocodile's Smile•Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-12: Yesteryear's Hope•
Starfinder Bounty #11: The Aucturn Dilemma•part of a subscription
Premier Plus Convention Recruitment
Are you interested in joining the legion of Paizo volunteers to help us put on some of the best conventions around? Then tune into the blog on January 18, when we’ll be posting recruitment for PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indy GM volunteers! Our volunteers run Pathfinder and Starfinder Society games for hundreds of players, and we’d love to have you join us. Whether it’s your first time GMing or you’re a seasoned veteran, our team will welcome you and give you everything you need to give the players a fantastic experience.
This year, I’m pleased to announce that GM rewards for each slot will be increased to a $15 voucher. That means for every slot you run, you get $15 to spend on our webstore or in our booth at Gen Con on anything you like!
Pathfinder Remaster & Guide to Organized Play Updates
At the end of December, we published some updates to the Pathfinder Society Character Options page and the Remaster Guidelines page. The primary change here was to re-allow certain spellhearts we previously banned, with some clarifications about how to handle them after the Remaster’s removal of spell schools. It’s heartening to see that we’re getting fewer and fewer questions about rules clarifications, that means things are being answered in a timely manner! Please don’t hesitate to let us know about any outstanding issues.
The Guide to Organized Play has also been updated! Primarily, this change is to bring text in line with the remaster: changing “flat-footed” to “off-guard,” “spell level” to “spell rank,” and so on. We’ve also added citations referencing both the Player Core and the Core Rulebook where appropriate.
Sanctioning
After a quiet December, the sanctioning machine roars back to life! This month, expect to see the release of sanctioning documents for the Starfinder Scoured Stars Adventure Path, which I’m extremely excited about, as well as the Pathfinder Season of Ghosts Adventure Path. Additionally, the Starfinder Society Character Options page will be updated with sanctioning for the material found in the Angels of the Drift comic series.
In March, we’ll be dropping sanctioning for Seven Dooms for Sandpoint, as well as the new Pathfinder Monster Core.
GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th rank!
5th Glyph (PFS2): Landon Hatfield, Eric Parker
Happy new year, everybody! Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! And get ready for convention signups!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Happy New Year! Welcome to the exciting reveal of our third Starfinder Second Edition Field Test.
It’s a new year and a new Field Test release! The Field Tests include early, behind-the-scenes previews of rules the Starfinder development team is playtesting internally in preparation for the Starfinder Playtest Rulebook release later this year. Our latest offering includes a preview of two ancestries appearing in the Playtest Rulebook, as chosen by community vote. We’re excited to announce the winners of that vote and the ancestries we’ll be featuring in today’s Field Test: the android and vesk!
Ancestries are the updated version of what were known as species (also called races in older products) in Starfinder First Edition. Ancestries are an important part of Starfinder’s “cantina feel,” a term referring to the sci-fi trope of a spaceport bar packed with all kinds of aliens. In this context, it means players get to create and play as alien characters, and every planet or space station in the setting is teeming with weird and wonderful sapient lifeforms that player characters might interact with. Our goal is to keep the cantina open, so to speak, while we update existing Starfinder ancestries to be compatible with the new edition.
Starfinder ancestries might look familiar to those of you who play Pathfinder Second Edition. Starfinder First Edition players might notice the new ancestries are a bit of a departure from what you’re used to, but don’t panic! In Starfinder Second Edition, each ancestry entry includes more content than the small sidebar allotted to them in Starfinder First Edition.
In existing Starfinder books, you’ll often see a species boiled down to a list of statistics with a handful of abilities. Presenting species this way allowed the Starfinder team to introduce many playable options right away, but there was little players could do to define their character’s progression—via their species—beyond the initial selection. In some specific cases, a species was so numerically superior that they were the obvious “best” choices (we’re looking at you, SROs!). This was fantastic for certain players but didn’t always reward players interested in exploring different options. In the new edition of Starfinder, we want to create deeper meaning and context for ancestries that you’re going to play or feature in your campaigns. This means including more space for narrative lore related to each ancestry and information on how it fits into the setting, as well as progression-based selections to help further customize a character of that ancestry.
In addition to a set of starting adjustments and abilities, ancestries in Second Edition get access to ancestry feats. A character gains an ancestry feat at 1st level and then another at 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th-level. Ancestry feats explore different paths within each ancestry and grant more powerful abilities as a character progresses—allowing you to customize your character beyond what was possible in Starfinder First Edition. The team’s been experimenting with some interesting new options, like expanding lashunta psychic powers or introducing a type of shirren that grows wings!
Today’s Field Test focuses on the constructed androids and the reptilian vesk. Androids and vesk are both staple ancestries in Starfinder, but each represents a very different part of the design spectrum. Androids already exist in Pathfinder Second Edition (see Pathfinder Lost Omens: Ancestry Guide), so the Starfinder team updated the ancestry to be compatible with the “ancient androids” who once walked lost Golarion while creating new options to represent the changes in culture and technology that separate the Starfinder setting from its distant past.
Meanwhile, vesk is an ancestry that’s never appeared in Pathfinder Second Edition, giving us a blank canvas to work with. Our intent was to keep the spirit of the First Edition vesk while exploring new build types, from movement-based shenanigans to different forms of natural melee attacks, and more.
The team is excited to see what you think of our initial foray into ancestry design for the new edition. We also strongly suggest you read the foreword in this document, which may reveal some important news related to what ancestries you can expect to see in the Starfinder Playtest Rulebook releasing this summer!
Stay tuned for our upcoming Paizo Live! where members of the Starfinder team will further discuss the Field Test, as well as give more hints about what we have planned for the new edition of Starfinder.
— The Starfinder Team
-Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
-Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer
-Dustin Knight, Developer
-Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society Developer
-Mike Kimmel, Developer
Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, December 27, 2023
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
What is Infinite?
Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite is a program that allows you to create content (adventures and locations; monsters; character classes, archetypes, and backgrounds; fiction; etc.) based on Paizo’s intellectual property (IP), including Pathfinder’s Lost Omens campaign setting, and to make some money while you’re at it. Your work might even be recognized by the community and earn you an invitation into the Infinite Masters elite creator program.
For more info on Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder Infinite, and how to get started, check out the FAQs!
November’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
Eldritch Expansions—Rainbow of Elements
A kineticist expansion from Eldritch Osiris Games. With eight new elements, you can become a master of the elemental energies of aether, awareness, light, shadow, spirit, time, vitality, and void! In addition, you can find expansions for the elements of air, earth, fire, metal, water, and wood, as well as composite elements and expansions to the monk class and houses of perfection!
Kitsune of Golarion•
Living clandestinely among Golarion’s ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. An expansion on Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide penned by the same authors who pen the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
Player Core 1 Expanded
Has inspiration struck, but does Pathfinder Player Core not have a subclass to fit? Whether you are looking for a cleric spy, a swaggering rogue, or a druid with a will of steel, you will find a myriad of options within, made by four Infinite Masters and specially tuned for the PF2e Remaster! Browse feats, subclasses, focus spells, and more for the classes of Player Core within!
Shattered Omens of Golarion
Golarion’s reality is coming undone after the loss of one of its greatest deities, and it's up to heroes like you to hold it together. Shattered Omens of Golarion is a collection of over 2 years of work consolidated into one tome. Inside, you'll find over 185 pages of Remastered player options, including new ancestry and class feats, backgrounds, heritages, spells, and magic items.
The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands•
Golarion is a fantastical place full of wonder and the unknown. In The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands, join Alphonse Lord Tabbington in an exploration of the Darklands, a place of untold beauty amid fearsome dangers.
From the pen of an all-star crew of Pathfinder designers, this guide provides options to bolster the adventures of players and GMs alike as they explore the darkness below.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
Absalom Drift: Turbocharged
Every hero needs friends. And every group of friends needs a set of engines. How else will you race off to the edges of the galaxy and save the day? Too bad you can’t afford them on your own.But one of your old friends has picked up a lead on a starship that you just might be able to "acquire." What's the harm in hearing them out?
Absalom Drift: Turbocharged is a special starting adventure for Starfinderwhere the heroes obtain their first ship through a starship heist, potentially leading them into either the Dead Suns or Drift Crashers Adventure Path.
Deep Space Adventurers: Eldritch Emissaries
Eldritch emissaries are known by many names. Depending on who is being referred to, these include terms such as champion, channeler, hand, invoker, legate, paladin, pledgemage, proctor, voice, and warlock.
Wielding ancient knowledge and mystical power, eldritch emissaries are individuals who have made deals and agreements with otherworldly forces that often stay hidden in the fabric of the multiverse to fulfill their own ends, but they are in turn manipulated by those same forces.
Space Cowboy’s Arsenal•
A certain type of adventurer resides in the vast frontiers of space—wayfarers and drifters, those hunters whose next meal rides on their cunning, their aim, and the price of the bounty their heads. They carve out their existence beyond the fringes of civilization; the easy life is as alien to them as another man's gun, and just as fickle. They prefer the unpredictable and uncharted, far from prying eyes and folks what ask too many questions. Never tied to one place, these vagabonds stay strange and savvy, doing what they can to keep alive. When the galaxy needs a job done, they call for the rough and tumble Space Cowboy.
Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual•
Towering mechs, ancient elementals, territorial kaiju, and many more mech-scale threats can be found in Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual! Inside, you’ll find a spread of the latest mech creations of the Outer Sphere, from deadly carnivorous mechform mimics to oozes that can slip inside a mech to throttle the operator or take over the machine entirely, and more. This book provides a variety of themed threats for use in mech combat at all levels of play, and all mechs within were made in accordance with the recommended alternative rules for creating NPC mechs detailed in Starfinder: Tech Revolution.
Starship Maps III•
This set of ship maps features hover trains, wheeled transports, and ships of all kinds, asl well as asteroids and space stations. There are lots of places for the party to explore and many ships to pilot. All come in grid and gridless maps.
New & Exciting from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
- Witness the Pale Festival—A spooky encounter based on the Night of the Pale holiday celebration.
- Tools of the Elements—Over 50 new items connected to the six elemental planes!
- Warfare Lore—A new class, new archetypes, and new character options for tactical combat.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Tuesday, December 26, 2023
Wayfinder Kickstarter from TYPE40
TYPE40's Wayfinder Compass, in Collaboration with Paizo, coming this December on KickstarterLaunching Today!
Greetings, adventurers and Pathfinder enthusiasts! The day has finally come to unveil something truly special—a collaboration that bridges the gap between fantasy and reality. TYPE40, known for their exquisite craftsmanship, has teamed up with Paizo, the creators of the beloved Pathfinder role-playing game, to bring you an exclusive Kickstarter: The Pathfinder Wayfinder Compass!
A Collaboration of Epic Proportions
This isn't just any ordinary compass. It's a symbol of exploration, crafted with the intricate details and including many features of lore for you to discover. TYPE40's commitment to quality and Paizo's rich storytelling combine to create a piece that's not only a tool for your tabletop adventures but also a collector's item.
The Magic of the Wayfinder Compass
Inspired by the iconic Wayfinder, this compass is more than a navigational tool, it's a piece of the game's history. Designed with meticulous attention to detail, each compass features symbols and engravings true to the Pathfinder universe.
In-Game Utility
The Pathfinder Society is an important part of both the world of Golarion and the Paizo community and your Wayfinder compass will combine the fun of having a real Wayfinder at the table with you along with it acting as an “other” object during Organized play, affording it’s holder with a free heal between encounters.
Exclusive Kickstarter Rewards
By backing this project, you're not just getting your hands on this unique Pathfinder item; if we can hit our stretch goals there will be additions and addons available from included game cards to alternative aeon stones.
Join the Adventure!
Prepare to embark on a journey with the Pathfinder Wayfinder Compass. This is more than just a Kickstarter; it's a celebration of adventure, storytelling, and the spirit of exploration that lies at the heart of the Pathfinder universe. Join us, back this project, and hold a piece of Pathfinder history in your hands!
Visit our Kickstarter page and let's bring the Pathfinder Wayfinder Compass to life!
Friday, December 22, 2023
Lore Masters is releasing an exciting new update, right in time for the holidays!
This update brings a new question pack specifically crafted to enhance understanding of the Kingmaker Adventure Path. This pack contains 1,000 questions focusing on the lore of Brevoy, the Stolen Lands, and the River Kingdoms. It emphasizes the narrative and background of the game's world, covering eight categories: Geography, Religion, History, Government, Economy, Inhabitants, Society, and Military.
Importantly, the content is designed to be spoiler-free, ensuring that the integrity of the Kingmaker Adventure Path is maintained.
The question pack is accessible to all, regardless of previous experience with the Kingmaker Adventure Path.
Additionally, this update includes updates from Pathfinder Player Core to the core question pack, refined filters for class-specific questions, a new feature for reporting questions, and updated Daily Challenges.
The team looks forward to the community's reception of these updates and remains committed to further enhancing the Pathfinder experience in the coming year.
Download Pathfinder: Lore Masters here:
Good luck!
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Kingmaker, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, December 21, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders!
This month is full of new gossip and fascinating new people popping up and around the Grand Lodge!First off, we’ve been sending so many people over to Jalmeray and I am so jealous. I bet the weather is warm and lovely and the people are handsome and beautiful and gorgeous, and the food is delicious! But, alas, your Venture-Gossip must stay where their heart is: Absalom!
(At least until I get shipped off again for sneaking into private areas…)
Who have I seen lately? Well!
A new socialite has appeared on the scene! I haven’t actually seen her in person, since last month I was in the Mwangi Expanse talking about ships, ugh. But she’s apparently quite wealthy and quite lovely, keep your eyes peeled for Duchess Hesla Embersplitter!
Oh, right, I was asked to mention this:
If any of you have seen Kitsch’s favorite marble pestle, she’d appreciate it if you’d make sure it makes its way back to the Office of Procurement and Supplies before the end of the year. She needs it to powder some poison arrows and help prepare her popular ginger and cardamom cookies for the holiday party. She last saw the pestle when she was putting it in her left cheek pouch.
Anyway!
The Waterfall has been wandering around the Grand Lodge lately, sending people on all sorts of missions to various islands! I tried to poke my head into a meeting and was informed by her that my “natter wasn’t currently required for such a delicate meeting.” If any of you know what that word means, I’m eager to learn myself.
A handsome visitor has come to visit our own Fola Barun, perhaps for a lovely Crystalhue dinner? He’s a lovely fellow by the name of Yellick Broadcoat and seems to have rolled into town just in time for the festival of the winter solstice!
I’m eager to see who gets up to what and with whom, though I know for sure that a certain Miss Decemvirate Petulengro will be accompanied to the festival on the arm of Miss Kinlynn Silverstride!
That’s all I have for now! Have a merry solstice and a happy new year, Pathfinders!
With adoration,
Your Beloved Venture-GossipExplore! Report! Cooperate! Gossip!
This is our last Organized Play blog of the year! From all of us to all of you:
Happy new year! We’ll see everyone in 2024!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, December 20, 2023
The third part of the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, No Breath to Cry, both takes place during winter and comes out as winter arrives for me and many other Paizo employees and freelancers! Fortunately for most (hopefully all) of us, we won’t have to worry about the supernatural threats that are coming to a head in the poor little town of Willowshore, during which the story finally reaches its climax and the PCs must grapple with a revelation that hopefully comes as a surprise to all who play this Adventure Path! As with previous volumes, please make liberal use of spoilers if you’re talking about this Adventure Path in public, because there are a LOT of plot twists to protect. (In particular, I had to be very choosy with deciding what pieces of art to show off in public this month! Fortunately, there was another cat illustration to share!)
The original plan to present Season of Ghosts as a four-part Adventure Path was originally born out of a desire to set up the 200th volume of Pathfinder as a special double-sized book (more on that in a few months), but now that Season of Ghosts is coming out, I’m particularly pleased with two things that came about because of this choice. First, it let me organize the Adventure Path according to the four seasons, which gave the adventure authors some fun themes to work with and encouraged everyone to come up with some memorable uses for downtime in the campaign. Second, it let me structure the story using kishotenketsu (special thanks again to James Case for the great suggestion)! This is a traditional four-act story structure used in Chinese, Korean, and Japanese narratives in which the major turning point/narrative crescendo/plot twist of the story happens not in the final act, but the penultimate one. Hence my comment in the previous paragraph about this adventure serving as Season of Ghosts’ climax! This gives us an entire adventure (coming next month) to focus on the results and ramifications of the story and wrap things up with some new and intense developments of their own, resulting in what I think is not only a truly memorable campaign, but in what is certainly one of the Adventure Paths I’m the proudest to have been a part of. (And not just because it let me get a lot of cat artwork in print!)
As in the past few months, I’d like to introduce some more of this Adventure Path’s amazing and incredible authors—they’re the ones who did the heavy lifting and wrote the campaign, after all!
James Jacobs
Pathfinder Narrative Creative Director
Dan Cascone
Hi everyone! I’m Dan Cascone, and I’ve crawled out from under my rock to join Eleanor Ferron in writing No Breath to Cry. You may remember me from contributions to books such as Pathfinder Dark Archive, Pathfinder Treasure Vault, Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, and the upcoming PathfinderHowl of the Wild. I look forward to hearing about all your horrible deaths and triumphant victories over the challenges we’ve put in the adventure.
Eleanor Ferron
Hello! I'm Lost Omens senior developer Eleanor Ferron, and I teamed up with co-author Dan Cascone to write the third volume of the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, No Breath to Cry. As a fan of Asian horror and horror-adjacent media such as Onmyouji, Kuon, and Fatal Frame, as well as the supernatural shenanigans of Inuyasha and Goblin: The Great and Lonely God, I enjoyed getting to bring all these inspirations into the world of Pathfinder. I hope you survive your time in Willowshore, and hopefully even have fun doing so. Be nice to foxes, don't go near the baskets, and always carry a camera to catch ghosts.
Michelle Y. Kim
Hi, this is Michelle! I’m a Korean American TTRPG writer and designer who contributed some backmatter to Season of Ghosts, and I am so excited for you all to meet some truly terrible little guys (and maybe not so little guys) in the haunted lands of Shenmen. As a lover of both folklore and horror, this project was a delight, and I look forward to hearing about everyone’s adventures. Currently I'm working on a Joseon Dynasty setting supplement for Good Society: A Jane Austen RPG by Storybrewers Roleplaying, which I talked a bit about on the Asians Represent! Podcast. You can find me on Twitter as @_missmyk_ or at Bluesky at @missmyk.bsky.social. I've recently joined the Paizo team as a developer and will be helping create more wild adventures from the other side of the screen!
Check Out The Season Of Ghosts Adventure Path
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts
]]>Friday, December 15, 2023
Season’s greetings, Pathfinders and Starfinders! It’s December, which puts us right in the middle of a whole host of holidays and celebrations. We’ve reached out to our staff and contributors to ask about their favorite traditions for the winter (or, in the case of our southern hemisphere friends, summer) holidays!
Eren Ahn (they/them)
Hello! I’m Eren (they/them, primarily), and you’ll see some of my work in the upcoming Lost Omens Tian Xia books for Pathfinder Second Edition. My family didn’t have too many winter traditions growing up (I got presents on Christmas for the first ten years of my life and tteokguk (rice cake soup) on New Year’s after that), but since I started living on my own, I adapted some traditional dongji rituals to celebrate the solstice. For me, this means making patjuk (red bean porridge) and leaving a small bowl of it on my windowsill overnight for any wandering spirits. I’m fond of winter, cold snaps and polar vortexes and all, and it’s a calming ritual to look forward to in my generally fast-paced life.
James Jacobs (he/him)
I’m James Jacobs (he/him), Narrative Creative Director for Pathfinder, and for me, the winter holidays are traditionally when I wander some 800 miles south to spend time with my family and to relax in my hometown of Sandpoint/Otari/Point Arena. There were a few years there during the pandemic when this tradition got interrupted, but things are mostly back to normal there. Bad weather might step in to keep me here in Washington (as it has a few times in the past), but otherwise the long journey south beckons with its promises of hanging out with family, relaxing in the redwoods of Northern California, visiting some local landmarks (during Thanksgiving I visited the Point Arena Lighthouse, which is the tallest lighthouse on the west coast of the United States, and which you’ve also seen if you watched movies like Forever Young or Need for Speed), and hoping for a bigfoot sighting or two.
Joshua Birdsong (he/him)
Hi everyone, I’m Joshua Birdsong. I am a designer for Paizo. I am very excited and humbled to be part of such an amazing team, and I look forward to helping create some awesome books for all of you! My favorite holiday tradition is consuming an entire container of chocolate hazelnut pirouline wafers on Christmas day! If you need to get in touch, you can find me on Twitter at @impr0phet. Don’t forget to be awesome!
Lynne M. Meyer (she/they)
Hello! I’m Lynne (she/they), the newest member of Paizo’s editing team. I’m pagan but grew up in a Protestant family. My holidays aren’t complete without pfeffernusse, a traditional German spice cookie. When I was growing up, my German grandmother lived with us and taught me to bake. She had pfeffernusse every Christmas—and only at Christmas. I looked forward to it every year.
When she passed, the tradition stopped. Years later, when I started dating the man who’d become my husband, I decided to bring it back. I even used my grandmother’s antique measuring cups.
It turned out that pfeffernusse is his favorite cookie! Pfeffernusse became my signature bake. Pre-pandemic, I’d make as many as ten dozen to share with our families. Times are different now, and those celebrations are happy memories. Circumstances make it difficult to see our families in person, and I’ve since lost my father as well as a brother.
Yet pfeffernusse remains part of my Yule. It’s the one holiday tradition I keep without fail. It ties me to my past and my present with love. Every year, when the aroma of anise hits me, I’m a little girl again, celebrating Christmas with my family.
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Growing up and living in a very mixed-culture household means I celebrate a wide variety of holidays during December (Christmas Eve with my in-laws, Chanukah, the Solstice, and “Witch-mas” with my mom—Christmas day, but it’s goth and we make hot chocolate and exchange gifts). One tradition that transcends all of these holidays, though, is making fudge!
I use my grandmother’s fudge recipe (included below), which has been handwritten, photocopied several times, and taken a picture of via a phone to wind up in my hands. It makes 5 pounds of fudge—no more, no less, and no ratio editing allowed. And now you can make it too!
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups of white sugar
- 2 cubes (8 oz) of butter
- 1 (12 oz) can of evaporated milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 18 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped)
- 1 (7 oz) jar of marshmallow fluff
- 2 cups chopped nuts (optional)
Steps
- Cook the sugar, butter, evaporated milk, and vanilla over medium heat until the mixture comes to a slow boil.
- Beat with electric mixture for seven (7) minutes, continuously.
- My wife and I take turns holding the mixer for this step, as it can start to ache.
- Remove from heat.
- Add in chocolate chips, marshmallow fluff, and nuts (optional).
- Stir until all ingredients are well mixed.
- Pour into 13” x 9” baking pan and chill in fridge until set (about 2 hours).
- If you’re like me and want to eat hot, kind of un-set fudge, half an hour on the counter is enough to make it cool enough to eat, but still warm and soft.
- Cut into cubes and enjoy.
(Makes five pounds)
Tomas Gimenez Rioja (he/him)
Tomas (he/him) has written for Pathfinder Lost Omens Divine Mysteries.
Here in Argentina the holidays are during summertime. In the coast city in which I live, we usually spend the days going to the beach, and resting at home after that. Some card and board games are often played as well. On Christmas and New Year's Eve I meet with my family, and many others from my father's family, and get some asado (fantastically grilled meat from here). After midnight, once presents are opened, or exchanged, or a toast is made if it's New Year's Eve, it's time to meet with friends, where we spend the rest of the night playing games, might get a holiday-themed one-shot going, and go see the sunrise together when it comes.
Whatever you’re doing for the holidays this season, we hope you have a wonderful season! And to sweeten things up a bit, Paizo is offering our annual midwinter holiday sale!
Holiday Sale!
From now (Friday 12/15) through Monday, January 15, take 10% off a single order• on Pathfinder and Starfinder products at the Paizo Store using the code holiday24 at checkout.
• The holiday24 code stacks with Paizo Advantage and other discounts. Not valid on subscriptions, preorders, backorders, Foundry VTT products, or non-Paizo downloads. Code expires at 11:59 p.m. Pacific on January 15.
Thursday, December 14, 2023
Hello Starfinders!
Now, I don’t know who’s to blame, but someone’s been leaving disgusting “gifts” around the Lorespire Complex! Sure, sure, the first few were funny. Sparkles, explosions, stink-bombs—we all laughed—but that last one could’ve hurt somebody! I don’t know what—BOOM!
Alright, that’s it! Someone’s got to put a stop to this! Get out there, Starfinders! Find the culprit behind these offal pranks and get them to cut it out! And someone get in here and clean this mess up!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-11: Gifts Ungiven is a light-hearted adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Jeremy Corff.
Enjoy!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hello again Pathfinders!
This month we’ve got another quest for you. It turns out the previous queen of Irrisen left numerous magical dollhouses in storage within her palace at Whitethrone. The current queen, Anastasia—short on allies and trying to make sense of the strange magics of the land she now rules—has turned to the Pathfinder Society to investigate, and sent one of the dollhouses over to Absalom. However, with the various threats to the Society that have occurred in the past year, both the dollhouse and the investigation have been largely ignored. This is quite unfortunate for you, our intrepid adventurers, for magical schemes of the hag we all love to hate, Aslynn, have inadvertently reactivated the dollhouse’s magic. As it turns out, these dollhouses were once magical prisons, shrinking prisoners down to doll size. Can you find a way to escape the Winter Queen’s Dollhouse?Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #16: The Winter Queen's Dollhouse is an adventure suitable for even our youngest Pathfinders (and any others who happen to be 1st- through 4th-level) written by Brite Cheney.
We hope you all love it!
Over in Arcadia this month, the Pathfinder Society has been asked to participate in an old ceremony meant to reestablish good relations with local spirits and ensure the continued safety of the settlement of Niishan. This is a great honor, one bestowed on the Society for their work last year to repatriate the star gun Hatahasi back into their home. As the Pathfinders explore the village and work to prepare for the first night of the festivities, they’ll need to contend with a spirit of the land who’s not so sure about their presence.
Once the sun goes down, a spirit of unnerving size and unwavering fury awaits, ready to see Niishan’s ceremony fail so that he may seek revenge…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-08: Protecting the Firelight is a repeatable adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Jacob W. Michaels.
Happy adventures, Pathfinders! And keep warm during these long nights!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, December 14, 2023
OPC Musings
Hello everyone, and happy December! This blog is a week later than usual because I’ve just returned from PAX Unplugged, which was a tremendous success! It was our first visit since 2019, as well as my first visit overall, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. My worst fear was that nobody would be interested in our games, and we’d be sitting around all day bored out of our skulls.
I am delighted to report that we had the exact opposite problem. We got a ton of attention from attendees, many of whom were excited to talk about the Pathfinder Remaster and pick up the newest books. Our retail partner, Card Titan, ran out of books by the end of the show!
But by far the biggest star throughout was Starfinder 2! We ran alpha demos of the game, which were a roaring success. We had attendees waiting hours in line to play, and everyone who walked away from the table was excited about the new edition. I can’t wait until we get to start showing it off to a wider audience!
With that said, let’s dive into our update!
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on December 20, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-08: Protecting the Firelight•
Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #16: The Winter Queen's Dollhouse
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorStarfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-11: Gifts Ungiven•
•part of a subscription
Lorespire Wiki
Last month, the hosting for the Guides to Organized Play went down for a couple of very chaotic weeks. I’m delighted to announce that they are back online in their new home, the Lorespire Wiki! You can access this wiki at lorespire.paizo.com. This is a Paizo-hosted server, so it should remain online for as long as the rest of our website is.
Our Guide Team has been hard at work both restoring service and updating the Pathfinder Society Guide to be in line with the Remaster. In coming weeks we’ll also be looking at hosting additional resources here, such as region homepages to help players find games. Stay tuned for new and exciting things on this front!
Pathfinder Remaster
The Pathfinder Remaster launched last month to great success! The books have been flying off the warehouse shelves, and Pathfinder Society characters are converting like never before! A reminder that the guidelines for these changes are available on the Lorespire Wiki.
We’ve made a couple of updates to the Character Options and FAQ pages since the launch, so be sure to keep an eye on those for future changes. Thank you all for your patience and understanding, and for your helpful questions in the forum threads as we stamp out any issues. It’s our hope that all this work will make the launch of Player Core 2next summer as smooth as possible.
2024 Major Conventions
This is just a heads-up that very soon, we’ll be soliciting GMs for PaizoCon Online as well as Gen Con Indy! Stay tuned to the Paizo blog for more information on this in January but mark your calendars now. We’re hoping to make both conventions better than ever before, and to do that we need talented volunteers like you!
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
This month, several new Campaign Service Coins were awarded at local conventions! We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether they are a Venture Officer or not), send an email to organizedplay[at]paizo[dot]com with their name and the reasons they deserve the award.
Congratulations to:
Wally Waltner, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #872
Barb Crase, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #901
and Nicholas Ruchlewicz, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #906GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 must be special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th rank!
5th Glyph (PFS2): Doug Edwards (our third 5/5/5 GM!)
That’s all from me! Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! I’ll see you next year!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, December 13, 2023
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases bring some elemental accessories to your table, continue the hauntings of Willowshore, and toss some holiday cheer your way!
We previewed two of the Organized Play adventures at PAX Unplugged 2023! Catch the VODs on our YouTube:
Just like the last couple of months, our digital-only releases are on a later cycle than our print products. Our Pathfinder & Starfinder Society digital products will release on Wednesday, December 27th.
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions—for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Pathfinder Spell Cards: Rage of Elements
Seize control of the elements with the Rage of Elements Spell Cards! This accessory is a must have for spellcasters seeking to wield the powers of the elemental planes: Air, Earth, Fire, Metal, Water, and Wood! Containing over 240 spell reference cards of all the traditions of magic, this deck gives you unparalleled insight into the elements!
Pathfinder Flip Mat: Planes of Metal and Wood
NEW REALITIES BECKON!
Otherworldly realms exist beyond the edges of the Universe, realities where the very structure of the worlds themselves are made entirely of metal or wood!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Planes of Metal and Wood measures 24" × 30" unfolded, and 8" × 10" folded. A Flip-Mat’s coated surface can handle any dry-erase, wet-erase, or even permanent marker. Usable by experienced GMs and novices alike, Pathfinder Flip-Mats fit perfectly into any Game Master’s arsenal!
For more elemental adventuring, pick up a copy of Pathfinder Rage of Elements!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #198: No Breath to Cry (Season of Ghosts 3 of 4)
AMID THE CRUELTIES OF WINTER
With knowledge gained from a haunted monastery, the heroes of Willowshore are finally ready to take steps toward lifting the curse that’s afflicted their hometown since the first day of summer, but now that winter has arrived, attempts to battle the supernatural forces that stand against them are complicated by the cruel realities of the year’s most deadly season of all. The Season of Ghosts Adventure Path continues with “No Breath to Cry,” a complete adventure for 7th- to 9th-level characters.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-08: Protecting the Firelight
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
The Pathfinder Society is invited by Mayor Deyahi to take part in a special traditional ceremony known as the Festival of Fire! This ceremony has been performed for generations and is always an honor for the group of warriors chosen to defend the sacred bonfire. While it's expected that there will be several spirits and undead appearing throughout the evening, what Niishan is unaware of is the fact that an unknown figure has been watching the ceremony for its entirety, waiting for the time that the warriors are weak enough to make their move. With the Pathfinders appearing to fill this role, they see their chance to attack and make Niishan feel their ancient wrath. It's up to the PCs to hold off this villain and the other spirits, ensuring that the ceremony is successful and Niishan remains safe!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-11: Gifts Ungiven
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
Glitterslime surprise! Rancid meatball bombs! Piñatas stuffed with toxic runoff! Someone’s pulling disgusting pranks around the Lorespire Complex, and you might be next! When Radaszam, leader of the Acquisitives faction, is caught in the (smelly) crossfire, he tasks a team of rookie Starfinders with finding the prankster and putting an end to their foul mischief!
Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #16: The Winter Queen’s Dollhouse
A Pathfinder Society Quest designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters, playable in 2-3 hours.
The ruler of Irrisen, Queen Anastasia, found a number of strange dollhouses when going through her aunt's vaults. She sent one to the Pathfinders for study. When Aslynn's magic was unleashed in the vaults of Skyreach, the dollhouse's magic was reactivated. In reality, these dollhouses were prisons that would shrink down those who angered Elvanna, the former queen. Now the magic is poised to ensnare the PCs. What's more, the animate doll servants have awakened as poppets, and while some are happy to help, others are not so welcoming.
Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #198: No Breath to Cry (Season of Ghosts 3 of 4). And don’t forget about our new Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our Adventure Paths!
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table. Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price. Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Coming soon from Ninja Cat Games—Pathfinder Myths: The Shining Crusade! This JRPG-styled computer game rooted in Pathfinder lore launches on Kickstarter on January 16th!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Tuesday, December 12, 2023
Greetings, Starfinders! I’m proud to announce substantial updates to the Starfinder Roleplaying Game posted to the Starfinder FAQ and Errata page! You can read the details of these errata in full by expanding the dropdown menus of each product, and you can further filter your results using the search bar at the top of the page.
Starfinder Enhanced takes center stage this go around. This includes clarifications on how the enhanced witchwarper can take advantage of their alternate class features, some significant boosts to biohacker snipers and medics, and fixes to the DC of some troublesome feats. We also updated the back-matter of a handful of Adventure Path volumes, including the starsinger archetype from Starfinder Adventure Path #47: Nightmare Scenario and the plane-touched species from Starfinder Adventure Path #46: The Perfect Storm. Almost every hardcover has some level of errata, but perhaps the biggest change involves some clarifications to the Starfinder Roleplaying Game system itself, including official clarification that you can now intentionally hit a willing ally without an attack roll, and an explanation of how characters with a 0 ft reach can engage in melee combat! There are many other changes and, as always, we welcome more questions, comments, and feedback on our Rules Questions forums. And feel free to discuss this errata right here on this blog post!
Continued thanks to our Organized Play Program for finding many of these concerns!
Dustin Knight
Developer
Thursday, December 7, 2023
We’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to celebrate four years of Pathfinder Second Edition with a special digital offer to help you and your friends catchup on Pathfinder’s past and support a great cause!
What is a Humble Bundle?
Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, whether that be to the publisher, to Humble itself, or even to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get in exchange!
The Pathfinder products in this bundle are all digital PDFs that you can redeem with codes at the Paizo Store; you’ll receive one code per tier. There are three tiers to this bundle starting at $5 and going up to a $25 tier. It features the Pathfinder Age of Ashes Adventure Path, Bestiary 3 rulebook, Crown of the Kobold King Adventure, Lost Omens Legends and Lost Omens Monsters of Myth world guides and more!
A portion of your purchase goes to ComicBooks For Kids!, which is the largest charity in the world for comic books and pop culture materials! We’ve been supporting them for a few years now and we know your support has made a difference. Learn more about ComicBooks For Kids! in our past blog, Support ComicBooks For Kids!
Our first Bundle tier starts at $5 and includes a code for five PDFs worth $70, including:
Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box, Hellknight Hill (Age of Ashes 1 of 6), Age of Ashes Player’s Guide, The Fall of Plaguestone, and the Fall of Plaguestone Flip-Mat.
For $15, you'll also get the PDFs in the first tier, plus a code for 8 more files worth $165, including:
Cult of Cinders (Age of Ashes 2 of 6), Tomorrow Must Burn (Age of Ashes 2 of 6), Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook, Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary, Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary 2, Lost Omens World Guide, Lost Omens Character Guide, Pathfinder One-Shot: Mark of the Mantis.
In the third tier, for $25, you'll get codes for the previous tiers, plus a code for additional 11 ePub files, worth another $130, including:
Fires of the Haunted City (Age of Ashes 4 of 6), Against the Scarlet Triad (Age of Ashes 5 of 6), Broken Promises (Age of Ashes 6 of 6), Pathfinder Second Edition Advanced Player’s Guide, Pathfinder Second Edition GameMastery Guide, Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary 3, Crown of the Kobold King, Crown of the Kobold King Flip-Mat, Lost Omens Legends, and Lost Omens Monsters of Myth.
The digital files are associated with your account when redeemed. They are watermarked with the redeemer’s email address when they are downloaded. As such, if you want to give these to someone else as gifts, you’ll want to give them the codes themselves.
Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout.
Thank you for playing Pathfinder!
—The Paizo Team
Tags: Humble Bundle, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Beginner Box, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, December 6, 2023
The Scoured Stars Adventure Path tells the story of the Starfinder Society, a group of galactic explorers dealing with the aftermath of a catastrophic mission that lost 80% of the organization’s personnel and resources. The players take on the role of new agents working to uncover the mystery behind the disaster and eventually mount a rescue mission for the trapped survivors. In the end, it’s up to the player characters (PCs), now the Society’s most experienced agents, to defeat a threat accidentally unleashed by the Society and prevent their newfound foes from gaining the power of a slumbering god. All in a day’s work for your average Starfinder!
FIRST SEEKER JADNURA
Jadnura began his Starfinder agent career as a solitary explorer. A kasatha who wanted to share his knowledge with the wider galaxy, Jadnura always went about his missions on his own and rarely interacted with fellow Society members. As his expeditions became more and more dangerous, Jadnura eventually came to rely on his fellow Starfinders and developed a genuine love of the organization that allowed him to explore his passion for archaeology and exploration.
Over a career spanning nearly two decades, Jadnura excelled at two things: his solarian training, and his ability to fill the Starfinder Chronicles broadcasts. Anyone reading the Chronicles over the last decade had likely seen Jadnura’s name countless times as the leader of an expedition or a wise voice adding opinion or additional fact to a specific chronicle. Throughout the Society, Jadnura was a respected leader and was often nominated for a position in the Forum.
Everything changed when Jadnura undertook his mission to the moon of Kukanou-2b. On that mission, Jadnura uncovered the mentrasi Tear, though he didn’t yet realize the full implications of the relic’s discovery. Returning to the Lorespire with the Tear, Jadnura dedicated himself to uncovering its mysteries. Though he barely scratched the surface of its true powers, Jadnura discovered a strong connection to the mysterious region of space known as the Scoured Stars. Dreams and waking visions drew Jadnura’s attention to the region, and as the current First Seeker stepped down, Jadnura took his first grasp at leadership by nominating himself as a successor.
The Society’s membership overwhelmingly supported Jadnura, and many saw the quest to the previously forbidden Scoured Stars as the start of a new chapter in the Society’s history. They weren’t wrong.
THE MISSION
Jadnura assembled an overwhelming force to travel to the Scoured Stars. Every major starship and group of agents was prepared to descend on the abandoned worlds of the trinary star system to catalogue data and uncover the truth of the mysterious Tear relic. Jadnura himself took charge of the mission, leaving behind only what assets were already committed to other missions, or those too unsuited to travel (such as the Wayfinders’ flagship, the Master of Stars).
Upon entering the Scoured Stars, Jadnura began to coordinate missions across the three systems. However, in the expedition’s opening hours, the Tear relic started to act in a strange manner. Soon all sorts of horrors, from fiends to robotic defenders to enraged fauna, began to assail the Society’s expedition. Before Jadnura could call for a general retreat into the Drift, all communication stopped. Later expeditions would find the Scoured Stars inaccessible, the system entirely covered in a shield of aurum energy that prevented any means of entry. The Society lost most of its agents and resources in a handful of hours
AFTERMATH
The chaos that followed the Scoured Stars incident almost tore the surviving Society membership apart. The few members of the Forum who hadn’t taken part in the mission openly debated how to handle the situation. Debates turned to bickering and then into outright hostility as members of the Society proclaimed their vision for the future as the only right way forward. Much time was spent on infighting or trying in vain to breach the Scoured Stars, instead of stabilizing the fractured Society.
With creditors and outside forces poised to take the venerable institution of the Starfinder Society down for good, one agent stepped forward. Luwazi Elsebo was an experienced Starfinder who had been on a long-range mission near the Azlanti Star Empire’s space at the time of the Scoured Stars incident. She ended her mission early and returned to the Lorespire Complex when the news reached her. When she saw the squabbling members who fought for power, she stepped away and focused on keeping the Society intact.
Calling in favors from across the Pact Worlds, Luwazi managed to keep the Society financially solvent while also sponsoring new missions to restore faith in the fractured organization. She went on to stabilize each of the Society’s internal factions, which had each suffered greatly from the recent losses. Finally, she engineered the use of mercenaries to act as temporary agents, directly leading to the formation of the Acquisitives faction.
For her efforts, the remainder of the Society rallied around Luwazi and nominated her as First Seeker. However, Guidance refuses to acknowledge the appointment until the matter of the Scoured Stars incident can be truly resolved.
Starfinder: Scoured Stars collects 12 adventures from the first season of Starfinder Society, telling the story of the Starfinder Society as it rebuilds from a great tragedy. This hardbound adventure path takes PCs from 1st to 15th level with over 70 hours of playtime.
Get Starfinder: Scoured Stars in PDF, standard hardcover edition or faux leatherette bound Special Edition. Starfinder: Scoured Stars is also part of the Starfinder Adventure Path Subscription.
Blast into space, January 31st 2024!
Tags: Scoured Stars, Starfinder, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Tuesday, December 5, 2023
“There’s more to life than fighting monsters and looting treasure. What happens when a PC wins a deed to a tavern in a game of cards, crafts a magical item, builds a home, or pursues a relationship? All these goals and more are resolved by running downtime. Downtime is the space between adventures, where your PCs take a step back before the next chapter starts. In downtime, you can sum up the important events of a whole day with just one roll. Use this mode when the characters return home or otherwise aren’t adventuring.” —Pathfinder GM Core
With the lowest stakes and longest time covered, downtime is a great way to start sessions, or take a break between major beats of a campaign. While most groups will do downtime activities in a few minutes, some downtime periods may last an entire session to suit the story beats. Just like exploration mode, downtime mode can be interspersed with encounters and roleplay beats to keep things moving.
There are a variety of tasks characters can take during downtime, such as taking long-term rests, earning income through a variety of avenues, going shopping, and retraining skills! Some of these tasks take longer than others—happening over a series of days or weeks, rather than hours in game. But take care not to linger too much in downtime at the table—15 minutes to half an hour is a good baseline for most downtime activities.
Downtime should always start with each player deciding what activity their character doing—or a group of characters deciding to collaborate on a downtime activity, like putting on a show to earn income. Some downtime tasks only require a simple roll and a little embellishment; for example, rolling a 22 to Earn Income via Crafting only requires the character stating what they’ve made and what it looks like. The GM might choose to roleplay a short scene of the buyer complimenting the work.
This is also a great time for daily preparations, such as choosing spells. Players should decide on a standard set of daily preparations, which will then be assumed to be the default unless the player states otherwise during a given downtime.
For longer periods of downtime that may take place over weeks, months, or even years, the GM and players should check in about long-term goals for the downtime. Then, rather than rolling for every single day and activity, the GM can lay out specific events that are bigger stepping stones to that end goal.
Using downtime is a great way to slow the game down after a stressful adventure or battle, as well as ease players into the session at the beginning of a new chapter! Pathfinder GM Core goes into detail about running downtime, to support GMs as they help characters achieve long-term and short-term goals. Pathfinder Player Core outlines some basic downtime activities for player characters, as well as suggestions for thinking outside the box!
Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core are available now on paizo.com and at your friendly local game store!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, December 1, 2023
“So the shiny runes are… the reflection on the water?”
“Precisely! But there are many varieties and states of water, yes? How to maintain a reflection upon the frothing waves, or to split one across all the drops in a storm so that they fall in unison? What if one could calm and freeze the sea, carve off a piece of that reflection, and deposit it in another, still liquid sea—and have it continue reflecting that original sea? With a more expansive view of magic, one not held captive by axioms or collecting dust in a university library, one begins to see the hidden world truly unfold."
“Ez, I don’t wanna be in this chair all day.”
“Yes, yes.” Ezren scowled at his subject. “‘You can talk and tattoo at the same time,’ I believe were the exact words. Very well.”
Tak.
A precise blow, and Ezren’s needle once more pierced Valeros’s skin to deposit a drop of ink. Ezren placed the instrument on the work table, lifted another from a pot of sparking red liquid, muttered over it, and then the stuff turned just as black as any other ink. Valeros had asked about this about half an hour ago, which had earned him the lecture on magical theory.
Valeros wasn’t sure what hurt more, Ezren’s needle or the knowledge that he still had hours of pontification to sit through before the tattoo was done.
Illustration by Ian Perks
Tak.
Tak.
Tak.
Ezren lifted the striking rod, sighed brusquely, and set aside his tools. “Valeros, this patronage lasts for weeks. Can you at least try to be a good conversation partner?”
Valeros went to massage his temples, remembered he couldn’t move his right arm, and growled in frustration. “That’s rich. I tried with your big wet mirror analogy, you know! Hard to stay engaged when I can’t get a word in edgewise. Plus what do I know about magic theory? You want to have a proper conversation, you need to—"
The workshop’s southern face exploded inward in a storm of wood and dust. A ceiling joist smashed onto one end of Valeros’s chair, knocking it over and sending him rolling across the floor. Ezren hit the far wall, followed by several pots of ink—one of which hit the man square in the head. He folded like an anemic bird.
Valeros, dazed, opened an eye. No sign of sword: bad. Shield nearby: good. Shield slightly bent: standard.
Nothing broken, good. Lotta shallow stinging cuts, fair enough, not great.
Heavy, gurgling breathing, and what sounded like tightening rope.
Valeros rolled. A gnarled and glowing fist smashed through a fallen bookshelf and practically disintegrated the floor where his torso had been. He kneeled, lifted his shield, and turned to face his opponent.
Then swore. “Oh, give me a break.”
The person in front of him—he was almost certain it was a person—needed to crouch to fit in the cramped workshop. Which they were not doing, having instead used their neck and head as a battering ram. They had ploughed through roof and wreckage in their attempt to crush Valeros. Human-shaped, their body was covered in thick, obsidian scabs, viscous blood pouring from fissures like molten steel into a mold. They radiated heat like a furnace.“Ez,” he called. “Ez!”
No sound but the hot roar of the giant’s breathing—and another tightening rope. He whipped his shield up, caught part of the blow, spun, and let the monstrosity stagger past him.
Fast not nimble. Probably too big to take out himself? Outmaneuver it, check on Ezren. Yeah.
Deep breath. Shield set. Knife out. Keep moving. In, sting. Out, shield up, make space. He was the horsefly, the heaving thing was the horse. Each bite of the blade loosed a cascade of blazing sludge that burned its way through the floor.
Sting, make space. Stay hard to see. Avoid the—
Valeros’s bones rattled inside his flesh and his vision exploded with hot, angry light.
“Back!”
Ezren’s voice rose over the assailant’s furnace rage. Valeros dipped in and out of consciousness, the ringing in his ears sometimes giving way to the whoosh of fire magic. He caught glimpses of Ezren wreathed in blue-white symbols, launching gouts of flame from one hand. His other held the snake-head staff, its eyes sapphire coals, surrounded in a blazing corona that flared every time the creature swung at Ezren. The fists seemed to hit an invisible barrier, and light erupted in a crackling flash.
It was pretty impressive, honestly. But Ezren was going to run out of steam soon.
The broken armor stand was leaning against the wall nearby, Valeros’s breastplate wrapped around it by the force of the giant’s initial entry. He lifted it, tested its weight. It was no sword, but it would do.
Valeros charged, makeshift weapon high, and brought it down on the thing’s spine. It screamed in a blast of sparks and spun toward him. Ezren continued raining flame into it. With each one, those internal fires grew hotter, and Valeros hoped that Ezren knew what the hell he was doing.
Then the tattoo started moving. Almost tickled, at first. It pulsed in time with Ezren’s magic, flared when those blue-white runes did. The tiger stripes slithered down his arm and up the erstwhile mace, and now each blow brought its own arcane heat. In, body blow, out. In, pull attention, out.
Then he raised the makeshift weapon high and brought it down on the creature’s leg. It stumbled forward and fell, now almost too bright to look at, its fissures incandescent, limbs churning on the splintered floor, little fires beginning to sprout around it.
It howled and launched its entire body at Valeros. At the same time, those tiger stripes leapt onto the shield Valeros was already raising. Monster met metal, and there was a deafening thunderclap.
Ezren said it was like a kettle with no lid. Too much steam, boom. Valeros didn’t know why you’d make a furnace-thing weak to fire, but hey, spell people were weird.
“So then what was the twisty tattoo thing?”
Valeros was mopping up ink, again. The last mop had melted after he’d tried to use it on the purple stuff.
Ezren looked up from the singed diagrams he was attempting to reconstruct. “I… honestly don’t know, which is very exciting! I think the tattoo was mimicking the ablative properties of my spellshaping. Which shouldn’t have been possible, given the crystallization matrix I established, but it was a tattoo, and blood, flesh, and hair are all traditionally puissant."
“Huh, I s’pose I could see that. So you moved the wet reflection to my big red mirror?”
“…so, my friend, you were paying attention!”
“I mean, kinda. Just… next time make it interesting, y’know? Say what the magic does, not just how it works in the fantastical and esoteric realms of the mind or whatever. You’re attaching it to my body, so tell me what it does, how I can use it. That’s the interesting stuff. Sorta like learning how someone fights.”
Ezren smiled and tapped the head of his staff on the pewter mug hanging from Valeros’s belt.
“Well, then. What say we talk the finer points of steel and ritual over a drink?”
Valeros held out a hand, offering to carry Ezren’s pack on the rough road into town.
“Maybe touch on who wants us dead so bad, too. Since we’ll be here for weeks and all. But, yeah,” he said, smiling, “that sounds good.”
About the Author
Andrew Mullen has been freelancing for Paizo and other publishers since 2017. He brings a keen interest in language and the interplay of geography and culture to his work, as seen in the Magaambya section of Lost Omens Character Guide, the xulgaths in the Extinction Curse Adventure Path, and numerous other monsters over the years. As a full-time parent, his daughter is his most important monster
About Iconic Encounters
Iconic Encounters is a series of web-based flash fiction set in the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder. Each short story provides a glimpse into the life and personality of one of the games’ iconic characters, showing the myriad stories of adventure and excitement players can tell with the Pathfinder and Starfinder roleplaying games.
Tags: Iconic Encounters, Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Thursday, November 30, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
Earlier this year we announced the upcoming retirement of Ehu Hadif, the current First Seeker of the Starfinder Society. Real life participants in the Starfinder Society Organized Play Program were invited to submit their experienced Starfinders for consideration for the next First Seeker election, and from them, four were selected as potential candidates for First Seeker. Over the past few months, Starfinder fans have had a chance to meet these candidates, learn about their platforms and interests, and cast their vote for who they believe should lead the Starfinder Society. Now the election is over, the ballots have been tabulated, and the results are in!It is my pleasure to announce that Sarmak has been elected the next First Seeker of the Starfinder Society!
Sarmak is a curious and passionate Starfinder. He’s a hunter, engineer, and electrician, but his primary interest is in archaeology, with a focus on the exploration of ancient civilizations who possessed advanced technology, such as the First Ones of Aballon, and the exploration of ancient megastructures, such as the Worldshards of Arshalin. Exploring forgotten sites built by his people, the izalguuns of the Scoured Stars, is also a passion.
Sarmak is currently in the process of organizing an expedition to a city of the First Ones on Aballon.
Sarmak will officially step into the role of First Seeker at the beginning of the seventh season of the Starfinder Society Organized Play Program, launching at PaizoCon in 2024!
Congratulations, Sarmak!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Wednesday, November 29, 2023
The second part of the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path kicks off with your characters having started to build their reputation in the town of Willowshore. Whether they’ll be known as heroes or otherwise depends on how your group’s been playing, of course, but regardless of that choice, everyone in Willowshore is increasingly aware of the looming threat posed by the coming season. If the mysterious curse afflicting the town can’t be lifted in time, it might be a difficult winter indeed, and preparations to contend with a worst-case scenario must begin at once!
But not every day of fall must be spent seeking a solution for a frightening curse or dealing with the dangerous situations that crop up in town to threaten your neighbors (including strange new horrors like the ones you see above). There are plenty of new friends waiting to be made and numerous opportunities to build your reputation even more by participating in some of the town’s most beloved annual traditions.
Of course, the whole Season of Ghosts Adventure Path would never have existed in the first place without its amazing and incredible authors. Let’s hear from two more of this Adventure Path’s creators!
James Jacobs
Pathfinder Narrative Creative Director
Tan Shao Han
Hi! I'm Shao Han, a Paizo freelancer from Singapore who's been happily at work on the new Tian Xia books. For the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, I contributed to the rituals, festivals, daily life, and customs of Willowshore, as well as provided my insights and opinions on Asian ghosts, monsters, and folklore as a sensitivity and cultural consultant.
In my day job, I teach college students anthropology, philosophy, and Southeast Asian history, and in my free time, I enjoy traveling to villages, palaces, temples, and sacred sites across Asia to learn about art, culture, and the environment. I hope some of my love for the rhythms, echoes, and struggles of my home region will resonate with you when you play these games and help you understand a little more about the everyday lives of Asia's peoples. Thank you!
Grady Wang
Hi, I’m Grady Wang. I’m a second generation Taiwanese American, and Buddhism and Taoism were both strong influences in my household growing up. I was always excited to see authentic representations of Eastern thought about life, death, and reincarnation in Western media, so I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to contribute to that legacy by fleshing out Sangpotshi for Pathfinder (expanding on its first appearance in Pathfinder Second Edition in Lost Omens Gods & Magic)! Since Season of Ghosts presents so many amazing opportunities for character-centric storytelling, this content should give you lots of new options for playing someone in Tian Xia!
If you’d like to see my other work, I’m the co-founder of the Gallant Goblin alongside my partner, Theo Thourson. The Gallant Goblin is a TTRPG review channel on YouTube and other social media platforms; we are also the makers of kuddly kobold plushies via our Hero Plush line—you can find all our links at linktr.ee/thegallantgoblin. We also publish our own supplements, including Pathfinder Infinite community content that seeks to promote diverse voices, such as the Queerfinder series and Adventures in Jalmeray.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts
]]>Tuesday, October 28, 2023
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
October’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
Combination Weapons Unleashed•
Leaping into battle using the recoil of their weaponry and carving down enemies with bullets and steel, Blitzfire Warriors are a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. From the Gunpowder Combination Weapons of Alkenstar or the Transforming Combination Weapons of Ustalav, these weapons take great skill to master. If you want to make the most of Combination Weapons in Pathfinder 2e to bring out their full, unrealized potential, Combination WeaponsUnleashed is for you!
Kitsune of Golarion•
Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. An expansion on Lost Omens Ancestry Guide penned by the same authors who pen the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
New Magic of Thassilon: A Reimagining of Sin and Virtue Magic
In the realm of Golarion, sin and virtue represent more than just morality — they can serve as a wellspring for potent magic and spellcraft, and have done for thousands of years. Aspiring wizards, take up this mighty grimoire and venture into the world of rune magic!
New Magic of Thassilon presents seven schools of magic, each built around the sins and virtues held in Thassilonian culture and magical tradition. It reimagines the Runelord archetype, giving it an exciting new ability that allows wizards to apply buffs and benefits to their allies.It also includes items for wizards of all stripes to use, five new backgrounds to ground your character in the world of New Thassilon, and original lore and NPCs connected to the College of Sin and Virtue, a real place nestled in the hinterlands of New Thassilon.
The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands
Golarion is a fantastical place, full of wonder and the unknown. In The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands, join Alphonse Lord Tabbington in an exploration of the Darklands, a place of untold beauty amid fearsome dangers.
From the pen of an all-star crew of Pathfinder designers, players and GMs alike will find options to bolster their adventures to the darkness below.
The Voidbound Isle•
The Voidbound Isle is an exploration-focused adventure that takes players from level 1-13 as they discover the secrets and mysteries of a vast, cursed island. This adventure is setting-agnostic; it can take place in Golarion or in your own original world. The bulk of its content involves exploration and wilderness survival as the party ventures throughout a strange and perilous new land, but this adventure also includes an optional city-management element, numerous side quests, and the overarching goal of uncovering the secrets of this curse-haunted isle and ultimately confronting the dark entity at its core.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
FrightFinder: The Radiating Abyss
A research facility named DMEI-4 has gone dark. This derelict space station contains room after room of nightmares, the unfortunate aftermath of research without morals. If you need to put the fear of the Gods into your players, or just want to show them what horrors magic and science can truly create, then introduce them to The Radiating Abyss.
Monstercology Galactica: Autumn Aliens
The Monstercology Galatica is an attempt to catalog and describe all of the many and varied creatures that we share the galaxy with. We understand that with millions of stars and billions of worlds – plus those that visit the galaxy from other planes – this is a nearly impossible endeavor. But if we do not try it, then we can never succeed. This is but one small excerpt of the greater Monstercology Galatica, focusing on creatures most often seen during the later parts of the year.
Space Cowboy’s Arsenal•
A certain type of adventurer resides in the vast frontiers of space - wayfarers and drifters, hunters whose next meal rides on their cunning, their aim, and the price on their bounty's head. They carve out their existence beyond the fringes of civilization; the easy life is as alien to them as another man's gun, and just as fickle. They prefer the unpredictable and uncharted, far from prying eyes and folks what ask too many questions. Never tied to one place, these vagabonds stay strange and savvy, doing what they can to keep alive. When the galaxy needs a job done, they call for the rough and tumble Space Cowboy.
Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual
Towering mechs, ancient elementals, territorial kaiju and many more mech-scale threats can be found in Starfinder Infinite: Mech Threat Manual! Inside, you’ll find a spread of the latest mech creations of the Outer Sphere, deadly carnivorous mechform mimics, oozes that can slip inside a mech to throttle the operator or take over the machine entirely, and more. This book provides a variety of themed threats for use in mech combat at all levels of play, and all mechs within were made in accordance with the recommended alternative rules for creating NPC mechs from Starfinder: Tech Revolution.
Starship Maps III
This set of ship maps features hover trains, wheeled transports, and ships of all kinds, asteroids, space stations. Lots of places for the party to explore, and ships to pilot. All come in grid and gridless maps.
New & Exciting from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
Congratulations to Team+ for Witches+ being the first Pathfinder Infinite book to reach Mithral Medal Sales!
- Ruins of the Enigmatic—An encounter based around Amgine, a strange floating island that appears along the coastline.
- Shattered Omens of Golarion—The reality of Golarion is coming undone and it’s up to heroes like you to hold it together.
- Eldritch Expansions Rainbow of Elements—An expansion for the kineticist class featuring 8 new elements.
- Rare Ancestries: Ifrit Genies—Play an actual fire genie, developed to accompany the lore in Pathfinder Rage of Elements, and fully Remastered.
- Player Core 1 Expanded—A myriad options for the classes included in Pathfinder Player Core.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite
]]>Wednesday, November 22, 2023
“Neth, also known as Joya, is named for the two-faced Nethys, god of magic. A fitting tribute to the dual nature of this 30-day month, the name evokes the world outside growing starker, even as relationships between friends and family grow stronger with the shared harvest.”
“We begin with Moonday, which is straightforward enough. While it may be a day for work, it’s also the night when worshippers of Desna, Ketephys, and night-loving religions hold ceremonies, often with only the moon as a silent witness. Always helpful if you’re looking to dispatch a target in the dark.”
“Fireday is market day in most places, and a great time to put eyes on a target who’s trying to lay low. Apparently, it’s impossible to resist the smell of honeycakes and the cries of cloth hawkers peddling their wares, no matter who you’re on the run from.”
—Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide
Greetings!
In the marking of time in Golarion, we find ourselves in the month of late Neth, or Joya. Here on Earth (a planet dear to us in Pathfinder Reign of Winter canon), many of us in the United States find ourselves on the cusp of celebrating Thanksgiving, which leads to Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This sale is brought to you by Abadar, Master of the First Vault, and by Triune, the All-Code. Actually, given their portfolios, one could argue all our sales are sponsored by them. Chances are they’ll both survive until next year to sponsor it again. Or not—just wait until you see our Death and Dying rules for deities.Kidding!
In this vault, you’ll find 15% off gorgeous hardcover, Special Edition, and Pocket Edition print books as well as digital versions of products, when available:
Pathfinder Secrets of Magic
Pathfinder Guns & Gears
Pathfinder Book of the Dead
Pathfinder Dark Archive
Pathfinder Treasure Vault
Starfinder Drift Crisis
Starfinder Starship Operations Manual
Starfinder Galaxy Exploration Manual
Select Pathfinder Foundry VTT products in our store
A fortune dragon’s hoard of maps, cards, and other accessories!
The sale starts and link goes live at 12:01 AM Pacific on Thursday, November 23 and ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific on Monday, November 27.
As with every year when we hold our fall and winter holiday sales, please remember that the additional volume of orders will result in increased response times for our customer service department, as well as increased shipping times. While we are taking steps to mitigate this as much as we can, we also thank you in advance for your patience as we strive to make sure that these effects affect as few customers as possible.
If you don’t see everything you’re looking for, don’t forget that our annual Holiday Discount Code Sale is just around the corner in mid-Kuthona (that’s December for you earthlings.)
Get Ready To Shop the Black Fireday to Cyber Moonday Sale!
Tags: Paizo, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Greetings, Starfinders and Pathfinders! With just a little over a week until PAX Unplugged (I’m not anxious, you’re anxious), we’re here to give you an easy guide to all things Paizo at the show!
Games and Demos at Booth 22A!
Paizo’s booth space at PAX Unplugged is focused on games and demos! We’ll be running Organized Play adventures, board game demos, and Starfinder Second Edition demos all weekend!
- We’re excited to bring Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society to PAX Unplugged! Players can pre-register for games, or join a table as a walk-up throughout the day!
- Drop in to try out one of our board games—Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones! This will be the first physical demo of Elemental Stones, after the digital-only demos during PaizoCon 2023.
- Get an early access first look at Starfinder Second Edition! Paizo staff will be running Starfinder Second Edition demos throughout the weekend.
Paizo Unplugged Live Plays
Paizo is excited to present two live play shows at PAX Unplugged—one Pathfinder and one Starfinder! Join us in the TTRPG Live Play Theatre, or watch the stream from twitch.tv/officialpaizo or twitch.tv/pax3.
Starfinder: Gifts Ungiven | Friday, December 1st from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. (EST)
Join Starfinder Senior Developer Jenny Jarzabski as xe leads a party of Starfinders through this mischievous winter pranking spree! Featuring: Andre Rivera as Obozaya, Dain Miller as Zemir, Matthew Ekberg as Altronus, Niall Spain as Navasi, and Noordin Ali Kadir as Raia.
Pathfinder: The Winter Queen’s Dollhouse | Saturday, December 2nd from 3 to 5 p.m. (EST)
Queen Anastasia of Irrisen has sent the Pathfinders one of many strange dollhouses from her aunt’s vaults—and Aslynn’s magic has brought that dollhouse’s magic back to life. Rue, Paizo’s Marketing & Media Specialist, leads a party of iconic adventurers through a poppet-sized house of mysteries. Featuring: Alex Speidel as Merisiel, Erin Roberts as Lini, Jess Redekop as Feiya, and Luis Loza as Valeros.
Retail Location & Licensed Partners
Get your Pathfinder and Starfinder books from our retail partner, Card Titan (Booth 3208). Card Titan will have a stock of Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core in standard, special edition, and hobby retail exclusive sketch covers! Other highlights of Paizo products available at Card Titan include Starfinder Enhanced, Goblin Firework Fight, and more!
A collection of Paizo’s licensed partners will also be attending PAX Unplugged! Get your licensed Paizo products at the following booths:
- Alchemy RPG @ Booth 3714
- Beadle & Grimm’s @ Booth 3647
- Fanroll Dice @ Booth 3601
- Foam Brain Games @ Booth 3047, Hall C
- Level Up Dice @ Booth 2848
- Q-Workshop @ Booth 3739
- Savagesparrow Studios @ Booth 4231
- Steve Jackson Games @ Booth 2746
- Wizkids @ Booth 2636, Hall C
We’re looking forward to seeing you at PAX Unplugged 2023!
Tuesday, November 21, 2023
“Exploration mode is the connective tissue of your adventure or quest—everything that happens as the characters move between encounters. It could be looking for a rare book in a library, trailblazing through a spooky forest, fortifying a castle before a monster attack, or canvassing the city for a missing person.” – Pathfinder GM Core
Last month’s blog touched on encounter mode, the highest-stakes mode of play in Pathfinder Second Edition. Today, we’re slowing down a bit to talk about exploration mode, which is more free-form and presents unique challenges to player characters.
Exploration mode is a low-to-moderate-risk way to engage with the environment and encourages players to learn about and interact with their surroundings. Rather than measuring time in seconds and rounds, exploration mode uses 10-minute intervals as the smallest unit of measurement, with longer activities such as traveling between locations measured in hours or days.
Gameplay will often transition between exploration mode and encounter mode, with activities in exploration mode leading to encounters—such as stumbling across a den of giant rats while exploring underground tunnels. When transitioning back into exploration mode from an encounter or downtime, players can choose an exploration activity to be pursuing, such as avoiding notice, investigating, or sustaining a spell or effect. These are only examples, and players may also use any other actions or reactions they have that fit the situation.
Pathfinder GM Core provides the following list of guidelines for game masters to consider when running scenes in exploration mode:
- Evoke the setting with vivid sensory details.
- Shift the passage of time to emphasize tension and uncertainty, and speed past uneventful intervals.
- Get players to add details by asking for their reactions.
- Present small-scale mysteries to intrigue players and spur investigation.
- When rolls are needed, look for ways to move the action forward, or add interesting wrinkles on a failure.
- Plan effective transitions to encounters.
A key part of exploration mode is creating engaging environments and situations for characters to explore. Pathfinder GM Core includes a table of environmental details for a variety of different settings and biomes—with sight, sound, smell, texture, and weather details for each. If players are exploring an area with some amount of risk, changing hazards, traps, and potential encounters to match these areas’ themes and sensory descriptions increases immersion at the table.
All of the above and much more are possible in exploration mode—find more details on running exploration mode in Pathfinder GM Core, and more details of exploration activities for characters in Pathfinder Player Core, available now on paizo.com and at your friendly local game store.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, November 17, 2023
Koonííni'ííni, Pathfinders and Starfinders!
November is recognized in the United States of America as Native American Heritage Month—a celebration of the indigenous peoples of Turtle Island and our contributions to art, culture, environmental conservation, and more! This year’s theme is Celebrating Tribal Sovereignty and Identity—showcasing the wide diversity of indigenous cultures and ways of life.In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, we’ve reached out to some of our Native contributors, who have built items inspired by their cultures!
David N. Ross
I write for Pathfinder, Starfinder, and sometimes other games, and am a whiz a converting between systems. When I’m not working on freelance for various clients, I am developing a storytelling card game with my husband. You can find me on Twitter @DavidRossWorlds Bluesky @davidnross and via other contact options on my linktree: https://linktr.ee/davidnross
My mother’s family has always kept at least one dreamcatcher, a traditional Anishinaabe ward against bad dreams. It’s true that nightmares have always been fortuitously rare for me at least, especially since my grandma gave me one of my own. It certainly doesn’t hurt that mine reminds me every day I see it of family even when I am far away.
Dreamcatcher — Item 6
Magical
Price 180 gp
Usage affixed to a structure, tent, or tree; Bulk LThis willow hoop is strung with a web of plant fibers and fragrant sweetgrass and adorned with beads. The dreamcatcher automatically attempts to counteract any spell or magical effect that would force a sleeping creature within 10 feet of it to attempt a saving throw (counteract DC 20, counteract level of 3). An effect counteracted by the dreamcatcher creates a minor decoration representing it to appear in the dreamcatcher’s web, wobbling occasionally like a fly in a spiderweb, that vanishes when exposed to sunlight. A creature adjacent to the dreamcatcher can study such a decoration to attempt to Identify the Magic that triggered its creation. The dreamcatcher only triggers once per night.
Mahpiya
Bannock holds a special place on the prairies as a symbol of our adaptability and resilience. We were introduced to the food through the fur trade, and it stuck with us as we were forced into the reservation system, turning government rations into nourishment for our people. The process of making bannock itself is the process of learning our history. I carry memories of listening to my mothers, my grandmothers, and the other elders in my life (pidamayeye, Kokum Brenda and Grandma Bear) as we cooked together, shared food, and shared stories, both of our own lives and the lives of those who came before. Through food we remember our past, and the stories that guided us through it.
You can find me slowly trying to figure out bluesky @Mahpiya. Just don’t ask me for the recipe, it’s a family secret.
Bannock of Echoing Wisdom — Item 3
Alchemical, Consumable
Price 10 gp
Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk L
Activate 10 minutes (manipulate)Cooked over a campfire and dipped into wozapi, bannock of echoing wisdom instills you with voices of the past, allowing you to recount any story you’re heard.
After eating the bannock, your mind is filled with the images, words, body language, and cadence of a story you have previously heard, allowing you to recount the story effortlessly with perfect memory. You gain a +1 item bonus to Performance checks to recount this story and a +1 item bonus to Recall Knowledge about subjects discussed within the story. These bonuses last 24 hours or until you make your next daily preparations, whichever comes first.
Marlowe Miller
Nawwih! The sun-blessed corn pounder is based on one of my favorite and most memorable Caddo stories, "The Young Man and the Cannibals." In it, a young man is trying to find his brothers and finds they've been eaten by a family of cannibals. The young man is saved by an unseen, unknown force (later revealed to be the Sun) from death by long-nosed iron mask and told to run, take a corn pounder from an old woman cannibal, and kill the cannibal family. I love this story because of the iconic symbols of the corn pounder and the long-nosed iron mask, and how it speaks to the running theme in our cultural hero stories of taking leaps of faith and persevering even in the direst of situations.
I'm a pretty solid social media hermit, but I can be found on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter @diwasti_ or on bluesky @diwasti.bsky.social. Alternatively, I can be emailed directly at genesysfrog@gmail.com!
Sun-Blessed Corn Pounder — Item 5
Uncommon, Magical
Price 150 gp
Usage held in 2 hands; Bulk 2
Nine rings line the haft of this mighty wooden corn pounder (a +1 striking greatclub), topped by a broad head with sun symbols burned into the surface. The narrow end is worn smooth from years of use. A very long time ago, this corn pounder was used to slay cannibalistic undead in an act of desperate survival by a young man, and the nine rings represent the nine brothers killed by the cannibalistic undead. While wielding the sun-blessed corn pounder, you gain a +1 circumstance bonus to attacks against undead creatures.
Activate—Beseech the Sun [free-action] (concentrate, fire, light) Frequency once per day; Trigger You critically succeed at a Strike against an enemy; Effect You call upon divine powers to aid you in your time of need. Searing sunlight erupts from the broad head of the sub-blessedcorn pounder. After the normal effects of the critical hit, the target must attempt a DC 21 Fortitude save.
Failure The target is stupefied 1 until the end of the target’s next turn.
Critical Failure The target is stupefied 1 until the end of your next turn, and you deal an additional 1d4 fire damage to your next damage roll against that creature before the end of your next turn.
Shay Snow
Not many Caddo recipes have survived to the current day, so the few recipes I have access to, I treasure. Caddo fish relish is a recipe I remember my aunties and Yeye preparing in large batches before canning it in mason jars and storing it away to eat with pretty much anything. It’s spicy and briny and we’ve always joked could be used as a weapon in a pinch! Some Caddo language learning time: this relish is made with daháw (onion), hasahk’uh ch’ántinu’ (unripe green tomato), and kah’án:k’as (spicy pepper)!
Fish Relish — Item 1+
Acid, Alchemical, Bomb, Consumable, Splash
Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk L
Activate [one-action] StrikeThis canning jar is secured with a screw top metal lid and filled to the brim with a chopped mixture of onions, green unripe tomatoes, various hot peppers, and plenty of spices and vinegar to ensure a spicy, pickled mix perfect for eating with freshwater fish. In a pinch, the relish can additionally be used as an offensive bomb that will also perfectly complement an unconscious enemy.
Type mild; Level 1; Price 4 gp
The mild fish relish bomb deals 1d4 bludgeoning damage, plus 1d4 persistent acid damage and 1 acid splash damage.Type spicy; Level 3; Price 10 gp
You gain a +1 item bonus to attack rolls. The spicy fish relish bomb deals 2d4 bludgeoning damage, plus 2d4 persistent acid damage and 2 acid splash damage.Type well-preserved; Level 11; Price 250 gp
You gain a +2 item bonus to attack rolls. The well-preserved fish relish bomb deals 3d4 bludgeoning damage, plus 3d4 persistent acid damage and 3 acid splash damage.
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Hey all! Rue here again, still a proud Indiginerd and the Marketing & Media Specialist here at Paizo! One of the joys of my experience as a game designer is getting to see my cultures brought to the table in a variety of systems and settings. Finally, the stories that we were punished for singing can be told to new generations.
The ghost dance was part of a resurgence of Arapaho culture in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and remains a cultural tradition and festival for North and South Arapaho peoples. Through the ghost dance, we reconnect with our ancestors, as well as send our energy forward to future generations, so that our knowledge can be shared, along with our triumph and sorrow. An act of protest at its inception, the ghost dance remains a symbol of Arapaho culture’s resilience. As the sun sets only to rise again, we too shall continue to rise.
Ghost Dance Dress — Item 5
Invested, Magical
Price 125 gp
Usage worn; Bulk LThis flowing dress is fringed in ribbons with beads and feathers woven in. Delicate hand-embroidery, beadwork, and dyeing turns this garment into a moving representation of the cycles of life and death, rain and drought, growth and burning. The ghost dance dressconnects the living and the dead. You gain a +1 item bonus to Diplomacy checks against spirits.
Activate—Ghost Dance [one-action] (concentrate) Frequency once per hour; Effect The rhythm of your ancestors’ feet upon the ground spurs you on, giving you a +1 circumstance bonus to your next melee Strike before the end of your turn.
Activate—Wind Cry [two-actions] (manipulate) Frequency once per day; Effect The wind whips up around you, whispering and shrieking of the shadows that have passed here. The ghost dance dress casts fear with a DC of 21.
Thank you so much to our contributors for sharing these snippets of their culture with us (and giving us more items for our game tables).
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Marketing & Media Specialist
Arapaho Nation
Thursday, November 16, 2023
Hello Starfinders!
Breaking News from the Vast!The planet Kortus IV, (which the Starfinder Society previously visited in Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten), is under attack by the nefarious Organization—now revealed as the fanatical Order of Dawning Fate! First Seeker Ehu Hadif has put out an emergency call, asking all experienced Starfinders and available allies of the Society to travel with all haste to Kortus IV and evacuate as many civilians as possible!
Spoilers
Reports indicate that this horrific assault is being led by one of the founders of the , the undead dragonkin Sozirenn! According to Ongie, a one-time inhabitant of the town of Braerton on Kortus IV, “The Order believes that Kortus IV has outlived its usefulness, and is moving to eradicate all signs of their presence from the planet.”
Judging by the fleet of starships that just departed Absalom Station, a large number of Starfinders have answered Ehu Hadif’s call, and are en route to the besieged planet as we speak.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-10: The Death of Kortus IV is a metaplot adventure for 9th- through 12th-level characters written by Alison Cybe. (Note that due to this adventure’s themes, it has a content warning. See the adventure’s product page for more information.)
In other news, Aballon’s governing Insight Array has hired a team of freelance investigators to track down a missing shipment of machine parts which would have been used in the creation of a new wave of anacite citizens. Clues indicate that someone intentionally diverted this missing shipment to an unknown location, no doubt for nefarious purposes!
Starfinder Bounty #10: Those who were Taken is a short adventure for 4th-level characters written by Sara Jeffers.
Take care out there, Starfinders! It’s a dangerous galaxy.
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Greetings, Pathfinders!
During a routine investigation mission, a new portal was located in the Maze of the Open Road that seemed to have a deeply strange aura to it. A team of senior Pathfinders has been put together to travel through the portal, only to realize that it led to Ukuja, the first wall of the country of Nine Walls, the home of the Matanji orcs. A strangely well-coordinated attack by demonic forces has hit Ukuja, and it’s up to the Pathfinders to help stop it and investigate this violence further.Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Ukuja, the First Wall is a metaplot adventure for 7th- to 10th-level characters written by Shan Wolf.
Meanwhile, the Sewer Dragons are back front and center.
When last we left our favorite kobolds, they weren’t in the best of shape. Their underground warrens had been devastated by a terrifying excavation mechanism accidentally unleashed beneath Absalom (in Pathfinder Quest #10: The Broken Scales), and their greatest ally in the Pathfinder Society lost nearly all of his political power and was exhausted by evil machinations (in the Season 2 metaplot, starting with Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-05: Balancing the Scales). Chief Yiddlepode has done her best to hold the Sewer Dragons together, expecting the Society to provide swift aid, but the Society was beset by enemies of their own, and help did not come. Now Trapmaster Tok has again been emboldened to seek leadership and a break from peaceful relations. Drandle Dreng, much of his power lost due to his unmasking and the toll that possession took upon him, now turns to Pathfinder agents to help restore what he feels he has failed. Will the Sewer Dragons remain staunch allies, or will the jeers of Tok’s faction prove true? Only the Pathfinders can determine the kobolds’ future.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-07: Sewer Dragon Crisis is an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Genevieve Rudat Olejnik.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, November 15, 2023
It’s November 15th, and that means that Player Core and GM Core are now officially out! These remastered products bring a lot of exciting changes to Pathfinder Second Edition, but that doesn’t mean you have to ditch your older books or stop using the classes that don’t appear in Player Core. To help you use classes and other options that are affected by the Remaster changes, we’re presenting a handful of compatibility errata for the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, Advanced Player’s Guide, Secrets of Magic, and Dark Archive on the Pathfinder FAQ!
Wide, sweeping changes to the game (such as the renaming of “flat-footed” to “off-guard” and the removal of spell schools) aren’t detailed in the compatibility errata pages, though you can find a summary of that info in our previous Remaster Core Preview PDF. Instead, the errata are meant to help you use options from those books in conjunction with remastered material from Player Core and GM Core.
For instance, the removal of alignment drove a lot of our changes to the cleric, but the champion is also highly tied to alignment. While a fully remastered champion is coming in Player Core 2, what’s a champion player to do until then? Don’t worry! The guidance presented in the Remaster compatibility errata provides some suggestions for how to play your redeemer or antipaladin until next August!
In addition, we’ve made some tweaks to the magus’s Arcane Cascade and Arcane Shroud actions to compensate for the removal of spell schools. Furthermore, since produce flame and ray of frost got replaced with other cantrips, and since dancing lights was subsumed into the new light cantrip, we’re also presenting ways for psychics of the oscillating wave and tangible dream conscious minds to use ignition, frostbite, and figment in those cantrips’ places!
Finally, in the process of getting Player Core and GM Core into everyone’s hands, we made a few errors here and there, so we also have some errata for those books. This isn’t comprehensive errata for everything in those two books, just a list of changes that we want to call out where it might impact gameplay. Here are two of the largest fixes.
- We added “slowed” to the list of conditions that can be counteracted with 4th-rank clear mind, sound body, and sure footing
- We revised the text to say that the wounded condition should increase your dying value only when you are knocked out.
That’s all for now! I hope that you’re all as excited for the future of Pathfinder Second Edition as we are!
Jason Keeley
Senior Developer
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, November 15, 2023
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases build a new foundation for playing Pathfinder, gust the Season of Ghosts into fall, and send Starfinders on a dangerous mission to save a whole planet!
It’s Pathfinder Remaster Project release date—something we’ve all been looking forward to since the project was announced! Many of our licensed partners are also releasing their remastered content today, so be sure to check if a service you use has been updated.
Our friends at Natural Pengu start their fully remastered actual play today on twitch.tv/officialpaizo! Join us at 12 p.m. Pacific for their opening session of Rusthenge!
Just like the last couple of months, our digital-only releases are on a later cycle than our print products. Our Pathfinder & Starfinder Society digital products will release on Wednesday, November 29.
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions—for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Pathfinder Player Core
FORGE YOUR LEGEND!
A world of adventure awaits, but it needs you to be the hero of the story! Take on the role of a daring adventurer with Pathfinder Player Core. This tome contains everything you need to create a player character, outfitting them with mighty weapons and powerful spells, providing all the necessary tools to survive in a world filled with deadly monsters, nefarious villains, and fabulous treasures! The first page of your amazing adventure starts here...
Pathfinder Player Core comes in standard hardcover, as well as a Special Edition hardcover with a foil debossed leatherette cover and ribbon bookmark. Plus, hobby retailer exclusive sketch covers are available now at your FLGS!
We have released some Day 1 Errata that covers some important changes. Read the errata here, and look out for a blog later today from the design team!
Pathfinder GM Core
TELL YOUR STORY!
Creating a compelling tale takes more than just heroes—it requires a complex cast of allies, adversaries, and villains! As the Game Master, your job is to narrate the story, working with the players to imagine an epic adventure. GM Core is here to help you with every facet of the game, including guidelines on story structure, tips on creating thrilling combat, and amazing treasure to reward your heroes for saving the day! This book has everything you need to become a legendary Game Master.
Pathfinder GM Core comes in standard hardcover, as well as a Special Edition hardcover with a foil debossed leatherette cover and ribbon bookmark. Plus, hobby retailer exclusive sketch covers are available now at your FLGS!
We have released some Day 1 Errata that covers some important changes. Read the errata here, and look out for a blog later today from the design team!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #197: Let the Leaves Fall (Season of Ghosts 2 of 4)
BEYOND THE WALL OF GHOSTS
The town of Willowshore is cursed! As fall begins, the town’s newest heroes find themselves in the position of leading preparations for the lean times to come. Yet the curse itself must be investigated as well, and when it becomes apparent that the answers might lie in a ruined monastery, the heroes must find a way to pass beyond the eerie Wall of Ghosts that blocks the only path! The Season of Ghosts Adventure Path continues with “Let the Leaves Fall,” a complete adventure for 4th- to 6th-level characters.
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Night Market & Shrine
PURCHASES OR PRAYERS?
Whether it’s the bustling wonders of a night market in the middle of a city or the idyllic scenery along a secluded path to a remote shrine, danger can strike where you least expect it!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Night Market & Shrine measures 24" × 30" unfolded and 8" × 10" folded. A Flip-Mat’s coated surface can handle any dry-erase, wet-erase, or even permanent marker. Usable by experienced GMs and novices alike, Pathfinder Flip-Mats fit perfectly into any Game Master’s arsenal!
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Living Starships
IT’S ALIVE!
Blending complex biology and cutting-edge technology, living starships aren’t traditional spacefaring creatures but act as self-sustaining transports to which crews often form deep connections. These vessels can often gather power from solar energy or even regrow damaged systems—just like biological organisms! This double-sided map presents two such living starships—one grown from plant-like components and the other being the adapted interior of a traveling space whale. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Living Starships, you’ll be ready for the next encounter.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Ukuja, the First Wall
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters.
A new portal has been discovered in the Maze of the Open Road, and the Society has sent the PCs to investigate what secrets remain on the other side. The PCs discover the settlement of Ukuja, first of the nine walls that make up the Matanji orcs' aptly named Nine Walls nation. There, the PCs fall under scrutiny for a fiendish plot to destabilize the fortress settlement and must work to prove their innocence, all while discovering the true villain behind a fiendish invasion!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-07: Sewer Dragon Crisis
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
Drandle Dreng's unmasking as the member of the Decemvirate known as Sapphire has left the Sewer Dragons in a sort of limbo, with one of their strongest political allies largely stripped of influence. Chief Yiddlepode still believes that these agreements with outsiders is the best way to keep the Sewer Dragons strong, but, while that was an easy case to make before their territory was devastated, doubts have arisen among other members of the tribe in the ensuing years. Trapmaster Tok especially has begun to blame the Pathfinder for their misfortune. He has issued a challenge to Yiddlepode for the leadership of the Sewer Dragons, and she has turned again to the Pathfinders. The conflict brewing beneath the streets of Absalom threatens to destabilize the whole city. The PCs need to prove to the beleaguered kobold allies that the best way forward is together.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-10: The Death of Kortus IV
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 9th- through 12th-level characters.
Today, a planet dies!
After suffering a devastating setback at the hands of the Starfinder Society, the Organization, <spoiler>now revealed as the mysterious Order of Dawning Fate,</spoiler> move to cut ties with their mining outpost on Kortus IV—and salt the earth as they go.
Enacting a brutal assault on the planet, <spoiler>the Order of Dawning Fate</spoiler> intend to slaughter the planet’s entire population, scouring the city of Braerton from existence. Unwilling to stand idly by, the Starfinder Society mobilizes a fleet, bringing their strength to bear to hold back the barrage. From the bridge of the Master of Stars, First Seeker Edu Hadif oversees the rescue mission in person. The objective is simple—evacuate as many people as possible. But with one of the Order’s founders leading this devastating purge, victory is far from certain.
The fate of Kortus IV is in your hands!
Starfinder Bounty #10: Those who were Taken
A Starfinder Bounty designed for 4th-level characters.
In the wake of the Drift Crash, the three main anacite factions are barely avoiding open conflict, and the guidance of the Insight Array, the governing entity of Automatrix, can offer no clear path forward.
A criminal hacker took advantage of the holes in Automatrix security left by the squabbling and diverted a shipment of important parts needed for the creation of new anacites to an unknown location. The Insight Array hires a group of adventurers to track down the missing parts and find evidence of who stole them. The heroes explore the factory-cities of Aballon to find the missing parts.
Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #197: Let the Leaves Fall (Season of Ghosts 2 of 4). And don’t forget about our new Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our adventure paths!
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Remaster Partner Products
Our partners at Roll20 are also releasing Pathfinder Player Core & Pathfinder GM Core on their platform today. If you already own the Pathfinder Core Rulebook on Roll20, you can choose to upgrade to the remastered rules for free—though this does not sync with the PaizoConnect API and will not get you free PDFs via our webstore.
Demiplane is also offering a similar deal. Players who already own the Pathfinder Core Rulebook can upgrade to Pathfinder Player Core & Pathfinder GM Core for free—this does not connect with Paizo’s site and will not grant free PDFs via our webstore.
FoundryVTT and Fantasy Grounds will also be supporting the launch of the remastered content.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Haunted Manor!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Tuesday, November 14, 2023
Tomorrow, Paizo will release our first books using the Open RPG Creative license (ORC), which, like the OGL before it, will allow other publishers to use some of Paizo’s copyrighted material (specifically, rules expressions) in their own products. There are several extant licenses that allow other parties to use Paizo’s IP, including the OGL, Pathfinder/Starfinder Compatibility Licenses, and Paizo Community Use Policy. But today, I’d like to address some questions we’ve been receiving from creators releasing content under the Community Content Agreement for Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite, on those respective marketplaces. Specifically, I want to answer everyone’s burning question, from the newly updated Infinite FAQ:
How does Pathfinder Infinite interact with the Open RPG Creative License (ORC)?
The Open RPG Creative License and Pathfinder Infinite are two distinct and separate things that allow you to use rules and IP owned by others.
The ORC allows publishers to use material designated as Licensed Material in ORC-licensed Paizo publications in their own ORC publications. This is restricted to only Licensed Material, which is nearly always copyrighted expressions of game mechanics. While Paizo now releases game rules under the ORC, the Community Content Agreement for Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite already grants you the right to use this same content and more. As such, you do not need to cite the ORC when using any Paizo-owned material that was otherwise released under the ORC.
This means that you can already use anything Paizo owns under the terms of the Infinite License, including game rules. Thus, you don’t need the ORC to be able to publish derivative material on Pathfinder Infinite.
In fact, as of the publication of this FAQ, you are expressly prohibited from releasing any content in your Pathfinder Infinite or Starfinder Infinite product as Licensed Material under the ORC.
This ensures that what you release on Pathfinder Infinite or Starfinder Infinite remains within this closed ecosystem, as required by the Infinite license. It also ensures that you or another Infinite publisher don’t inadvertently release something you or Paizo don’t own, that wasn’t previously ORC-Licensed Material (like OGL-based Open Game Content) under the ORC license. Doing so would put you in violation of the OGL, which doesn’t allow Open Game Content to be released under a secondary license.
This also means that you can’t use any ORC Licensed Material that didn’t originate in a Paizo publication, as the Infinite License doesn’t grant you the rights to that material, and you can’t comply with the ORC by passing that open content through to downstream users.
This is a lot of FAQ text to say, basically, that the Infinite license already does what you want the ORC to do when making products for Pathfinder Infinite. By ensuring products released on Infinite are subject to only a single license (the Community Content Agreement for Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite), we actually make a cleaner process for everyone, because it means that you don’t have one license telling you that you need to make all your game rules open for anyone to use anywhere, and another telling you that what you release on Pathfinder Infinite needs to stay on Pathfinder Infinite.
For publishers looking to release content based on or supporting the Pathfinder Player Core and/or Pathfinder GM Core, this doesn’t really change anything for you. Paizo has already ensured that there’s nothing in those books that would require you to use a secondary license like the OGL or ORC to reprint or iterate on their content; it’s all 100% created by and owned by Paizo, so the Infinite license already lets you do whatever you want with it.
For publishers who had hoped to make ORC conversions of OGL content, I’m afraid you’re not going to be able to do so. But technically neither the OGL nor the ORC nor the Infinite license allow you to do that anyway! At this time, we are not restricting the use of the OGL or inclusion of Open Game Content in Infinite releases, because we still have classes and monsters and other game and setting elements that creators will need access to in order to make content for Pathfinder. You just can’t cross the streams, and you’re required to adhere to all the rules of the OGL, as normal.
We understand that there are going to be a lot of questions about this policy, and because IP law is complicated and hard to put into text, I’ll be hosting a Twitch stream next Tuesday, November 21, at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST)—with Meredith from DriveThruRPG—to answer any questions we receive in the comments below or via other channels. This will be a live stream, but not a live Q&A, so if you have questions, please ask beforehand. I’ll do my best to clear things up in comments, but for frequent or complex questions, you may have to wait a week.
In the meantime, we’ve updated the FAQ for both Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite with this policy as well as some clarification on older questions, and a few other news ones. Check that out here.
We are excited about Pathfinder Infinite’s future, and how the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project is already a vitalizing force in the community, and we want to make sure everyone has the tools they need to participate and help Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, and their own products reach their full potential.
Mark Moreland
Director of Brand Strategy
Monday, November 13th, 2023
We are increasing the difficulty for our fourth weekly challenge! This week, test your knowledge against the books that were used for our first 3 challenges: the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide, and Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Complete the adventure for a chance to win a copy of the Core Rulebook!
To participate simply click the following link: https://loremasters.com/pathfinder/play/multiplayer?data=d9b8fffb-df2e-4712-838a-2b278586d16b
For more information on this week's prize and where/when the winner will be announced please visit the Lore Masters blog: https://www.loremasters.com/news/
Good luck!
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, November 09, 2023
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! We’re excited to bring you some news about next year’s PaizoCon Online.
PaizoCon Online 2024 will take place May 24–27th.
Our theme for this year’s PaizoCon Online is “Educate, Entertain, Inspire!”—and we’ll be theming our content to match. Learn the basics of Pathfinder and Starfinder, enjoy broadcasted actual plays, and find out what the future holds here at Paizo!
This year we will be expanding the selection of panels and events being held in our Paizo Events Discord server. On top of public panels on our Twitch channel and the free, no ticket required hangout spaces and staff AMAs, we will be hosting ticketholder-exclusive games, panels, and social events via the Discord! Purchasing a ticket to PaizoCon Online allows you to participate in these events, as well as Organized Play and Community Play games throughout the weekend.
Introducing “PaizoCon @”
We tested the waters of a concurrent in-person event last year, partnering with KublaCon in California. This year, we’re excited to announce “PaizoCon @”, a program that brings PaizoCon Online gaming to a selection of in-person events!
We will once again be partnering with KublaCon in 2024—not only offering in-person Organized Play gaming, but also a physical space within the con to watch our livestreamed PaizoCon Online panels!
We are also very excited to be partnering with a selection of local game stores throughout the United States and beyond! Be on the lookout for an upcoming list of participating friendly local game stores!
As PaizoCon Online gets closer, we’ll have more news about the panels, events, and more! We’re looking forward to seeing you at our annual celebration of all things Paizo!
Wednesday, November 08, 2023
It begins as a spark—whispered words in a tavern, a slogan scrawled in a sordid alley, a quiet conversation in one of the great halls of power. It can sweep through neighborhoods like a fire, taking over entire cities with a rapidity that can scarcely be believed. Rulers may fear it, and the populace may hope to control it, but kings and paupers alike can be consumed by it. This powerful force has many names, but it’s most commonly known as . . . Revolution!
The time has come! Steve Jackson Games is thrilled to announce the release of our latest game: Pathfinder Revolution! Based on Revolution!, a game designed by Philip duBarry and edited by Steve Jackson, Pathfinder Revolution! engages players in a game of subterfuge and political scheming. While the original game took place in an unnamed colonial city, Pathfinder Revolution! transports players to the city of Korvosa, home of the Crimson Throne itself. This means that fans of the classic Adventure Path Curse of the Crimson Throne will be able to experience the setting of Korvosa in an entirely new way. And if you haven’t played that Adventure Path, don’t worry—you don’t need to know anything about the history of Korvosa to enjoy this new game.
So, what is Pathfinder Revolution! all about? The premise of the game is simple: use gold, blackmail, or force to gain control of key areas of the city. During each turn, players secretly bid for influence by using the resources at their disposal. Their bid boards list prominent characters and organizations, some of which are exclusive to Korvosa (such as the Hellknight and the Catsdew Lofties). These individuals and groups can be swayed with the right combination of resources, but successful players must strategize to prevent their competitors from outbidding them. Players win if they have earned the most support by controlling enough of the key areas of Korvosa.
I’ve been excited about Pathfinder Revolution! since I started at Steve Jackson Games back in May of this year. I love games with interesting mechanics, engaging premises, and unique theming, and Pathfinder Revolution! combines all three. If you’re looking for a game that gives you a new perspective on Korvosa, or that just gives your gaming group a reason to get together between campaigns, you’ll definitely want to check out this board game on the Paizo store, at your FLGS, or at Warehouse 23, the official online retail store for Steve Jackson Games.
Katie Duffy
Marketing Manager at Steve Jackson Games
Tuesday, November 07, 2023
As we cruise into the final days before the release, we’re getting to the end of these preview blogs, but we figured there’s probably still a few things we can talk about. How about orcs and the updated mixed ancestry rules?
Orcs are a common ancestry now, and appear among the Player Core options alongside dwarves, goblins, elves, humans, etc. This reflects not just a mechanical change, but also the ever-evolving state of our lore. With the undead hordes of the Whispering Tyrant seething outwards from the Gravelands, the orcs of Belkzen have seen their home transformed into one of the primary battlegrounds, raising their axes and torches high to fend off the encroaching darkness.
In becoming the vanguard of one of the greatest ongoing struggles threatening the Inner Sea, Belkzen’s orcs have also formed an ever-increasing number of alliances with their neighbors—something that is a source of contention for some of the less friendly holds…but that’s a story for later!
To help our new orcish allies with their battles, we’ve brushed up a few of their feats, as well. The old Hold Mark feat wasn’t great, especially in the context of some of the improvements we’ve made to ancestry feats; the Orc Weapon Familiarity feat now automatically gives you the benefits that used to require taking Orc Weapon Carnage as soon as you hit 5th level, without needing to spend any further feats. So, we reworked Hold Mark into a new 1st-level feat based on some of the orc holds of Belkzen that gives you training in a key skill and a constant bonus to saves against a specific type of magic—which does stack with the bonus from Orc Superstition, if you want to go that route, allowing orcs to be particularly resilient against certain types of magic!
As orcish heroes have spread across the Inner Sea, the opportunities for heroes of mixed orcish ancestry to carve out a place for themselves have also multiplied. Dromaars, as children of mixed orc and human ancestry are known in Belkzen, are one of the mixed ancestry examples provided in Player Core. The word dromaar is an orcish word, referring to those drummers whose music sends the hordes marching to war; many of the current generation of dromaar adventurers view themselves as heralds of a new age for orcs in the Inner Sea region.
While most dromaars from Belkzen have either one human parent and one orc parent or two dromaar parents, dromaars from other parts of Golarion might have some other ancestral mix; orcs and dwarves in Arcadia, for example, have a much more cooperative history together than the orc and dwarf nations of the Inner Sea, and it’s possible that the dromaars on that continent might have a significant population whose ancestry is of mixed dwarf and orc descent.
Dromaars aren’t the only example of a mixed ancestry presented in Player Core; aiuvarins are people of mixed elven ancestry, typically having a human parent on one side and an elven parent on the other, though other mixes are entirely possible.
While introducing the aiuvarins, we took the opportunity to clean up some confusion around options like the Elf
Previously we’d presented options like aiuvarin and dromaar as human heritages, specifically half-elves and half-orcs. By pulling them out of the human ancestry and making them the first two heritages of the new Mixed Ancestry option, we open up a whole new world of possible options to customize your characters and your worlds. Currently, if you want to make a new Mixed Ancestry that represents people of partial dwarven, gnome, goblin, or other descent, you’ll need to use the example set by the aiuvarin and dromaar heritages to create your own, but in days to come I wouldn’t be surprised to see more mixed ancestry options appearing as we push back the edges of the map and do deeper explorations of Golarion’s other continents.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Monday, November 6, 2023
Greetings fellow adventurers and heroes! We’re about to share some thrilling news! Paizo has joined forces with Natural Pengu to bring you cart loads of live play Pathfinder content ( https://www.twitch.tv/naturalpengu ) AND the ultimate Pathfinder virtual tabletop experience (https://naturalpengu.com )!
Natural Pengu is the emerging champion in the world of virtual tabletops with an unwavering quest to make playing Pathfinder a breeze! Whether you’re a newcomer or a veteran to the realm of dice and soaring dragons under the open skies, you can dive right in without hesitation. No more battling a horde of browser tabs and spending hours merely preparing for the game. Natural Pengu caters to all your Pathfinder needs on one heroic platform. You can just start playing!
On November 15th, the early access Natural Pengu - Player Core Toolkit will be launched. This is the first of the three phases for releasing the full-blown Natural Pengu Virtual Tabletop.
If you thought convincing your friends to finally jump into playing Pathfinder was a difficult task, think again! With the Player Core Toolkit at your fingertips, character creation, character sheets, and calculating dice roll modifiers become a walk in the park. If you already have purchased the Pathfinder Player Core rulebook, you're in for a treat! Natural Pengu integrates the new rulebook seamlessly into the platform, providing you with on-the-fly access to all the rules you need. It's like having a personal bard at your side, always ready to recite the right verse to guide your adventure. Say goodbye to interrupting the flow of your story with sifting through a pile of rulebooks.
And the best part? No downloads necessary! Natural Pengu Player Core Toolkit operates right on your web browser, whether you're on your computer, laptop, tablet, or even your mobile phone. The choice is yours, and the fun is limitless.
Ready to embark on your journey?
You can subscribe to the Player Core Toolkit for $1.99 per month on November 15th at naturalpengu.com . BUT if you sign up to our email list today, you get your Founder Player Core Toolkit subscription for only $0.99 until the end of time as we know it!
But there's more! Natural Pengu has accepted the quest for making the new remastered Pathfinder Core rulebooks easy to read (and looking as close as possible to their sweet original Paizo layouts) even on your mobile phone! Latin American Spanish translations are also in the works.
Sign up to the mailing list today, and you’ll get to buy Pathfinder Player Core with Natural Pengu integrations for only $21.99 on November 15th! ($2.00 if you already own the book.) On the day, you can download your PDF from paizo.com, see all the remastered Player Core rules on Natural Pengu Player Core Toolkit, AND you will be among the very first to get early access to all the added Player Core treasure mentioned above (interactive mobile Player Core etc.) as soon as they are up on Natural Pengu VTT.
Stop by the Natural Pengu Twitch channel to join the fellowship, or find some TTRPG goodness on the Natural Pengu YouTube channel.
With Paizo's Remastered Pathfinder rules and Natural Pengu Player Core Toolkit, your adventure is just a click away. This is your chance to step into a world of adventure, magic, and camaraderie. So, what are you waiting for, dear heroes? Sign up for the release of the Natural Pengu Player Core Toolkit and get 50% off the subscription when it drops, and a great deal on the new amazing Pathfinder Player Core book! Let the dice roll and your stories unfold!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Monday, November 6, 2023
Take a tour of the Inner Sea region through our third weekly challenge! This week, test your knowledge against the Pathfinder Lost Omens: World Guide. Complete the adventure for a chance to win a copy of the Pathfinder Lost Omens: World Guide.
To participate, simply click the following link: https://loremasters.com/pathfinder/play/multiplayer?data=c4f67e83-4620-4905-931d-e7bfffc33307
For more information on this week's prize and where/when the winner will be announced, please visit the Lore Masters blog: https://www.loremasters.com/news/
Good luck!
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, November 3rd, 2023
GOBLIN DOWN!
The Black Powder Cadre took a hit in this marathon, and lost one of its founding members. Like we said in our last report, author Vanessa Hoskins will surprise you. No finger-pointing amongst the team here—we got surprised—plain and simple. Before we get to what happened, this daring all-gunslingers project has lasted longer than many of us expected, so get caught up if you need to:
Summer marathons are usually grinders for us, and that’s exactly what we did for this one. It was too hot for any post-session fire pit gatherings, so we just kept playing until enough voices called it. The second day of this marathon saw an eighteen-hour run, and came within sight of our record for the longest session on the Paizo blog. We even had our friend Joe O’Brien—from the Glass Cannon Network—with us again, returning as Axayaca, the Beast Gunner from Arcadia. Joe wanted the full Order of the Amber Die (OAD) experience this time, so on the day he was here we decided to push until O’Brien threw in the towel. We’ll offer this to Glass Cannon fans: Joe can grind!
If you’ve read our reports from years past, you’ll know one of the main secrets to playing the longest sessions in the industry is actually our GM. It’s Adam who will drag you long into the wee hours of the morning, jumping around behind the screen at every natural 20 along the way. He’s just been this way since ’87, and we keep making the mistake of thinking he’ll slow down.
- Adventure: Hands of the Devil
- Marathon Length: 63 hours, 40 minutes
- Session Hours: 44 hours, 30 minutes
It’s for extreme marathons like this one, that we keep a couple of critical care nurses in the Order—you probably think we’re kidding. Now we can officially welcome our newest member, who can roleplay all day, straight after a night shift: Theodora Marcantonis! We’re always on the lookout for hardcore gamers, and while vetting Theodora, we learned she possessed a platinum trophy in God of War: Ragnarök, and spent her precious time between shifts playing Pathfinder:Kingmaker and Pathfinder:Wrath of the Righteous on PlayStation. SOLD! Everyone in OAD gets the team jersey of their choice, and we’re proud to have pink as the newest color at our table. Tess Rajani, Way of the Drifter, has moved from a cameo in our project to a full-time gunslinger in the Black Powder Cadre!
Highlights from Hands of the Devil:
□ We finished out the last blog on level five, with the party having woken a massive amalgamation of discarded flesh and bone. The behemoth surged to life, possessing unexpected speed and maneuverability. We opened with a torrent of gunfire from the balcony, but it responded with a salvo of its own: shards of bone that tore through the Cadre, forcing us into a fighting retreat. We leapfrogged back through the level, managing to hold the monstrosity’s advance at a couple of key locations where it couldn’t afford to press into our firing line. When our options dwindled, we made our final stand on the staircase up to level four. It closed with the party, and Vlai plunged his scattergun into its gooey hide. Click – BOOM! The resulting explosion caused the behemoth to decompose into a necrotic gas that curdled the flesh of the closest gunslingers. You get one Hero Point for an entire day during a marathon, and we burned them all here.
□ The Laboratories level of this megadungeon means you’re really in it now, and level six did more than any level so far to put the “Abomination” into Abomination Vaults. Disgusting fleshwarps of varying sizes, seugathi researchers performing experiments best left off this blog, and even scientific viewing galleries were intermixed within the chambers we explored. We use our soundtrack to stay immersed, and there’s good reason why we chose Chevelle’s Peach as the song for this level.
□ You know that rule about not stepping into a portal by yourself? Yeah, well this is OAD and we’ve always said that there are few absolutes in Pathfinder. Tess strode right into a teleporter that landed her in some kind of testing grounds, complete with a seugathi taking notes on how quickly its destrachan subject would annihilate her. She decided the best course of action was to run like hell and lead the reptilian aberration toward our party; after all, we brought guns to this megadungeon. As it turned out though, the destrachan brought artillery. It let rip with 201 damage to the Cadre in a single area-of-effect blast from its Destructive Harmonics, creating a new pedestal of statistics among our enemies so far. For the record, you can go through a portal by yourself in this game and survive.
□ In case you needed more from our “Vanessa will surprise you” theme, here it is: there is a tavern in this megadungeon. Yup, full of morlocks and such, ready to kill you or crack a beer—your choice. Stay long enough, and you’ll end up in a battle of the bands versus Shadow Malice. Think of an all-star lineup that only the Darklands can produce: duergar on drums, xulgath on guitar, caligni on bass, and ratfolk on vocals. We survived the solo portion of the competition due to the adept acrobatics of gunslingers, but the group section was a major problem—made worse when Shadow Malice let it rip with “Shout at the Devil” at full volume, even out-of-game. It was daunting to try and show them up with just one roll and a +8 Performance modifier. That is, until Breen’s natural 20 made us the hottest new band of the Abomination Vaults! When the crowd yelled for our name, we looked to Zoric, the naming phenom who once accidentally coined us “The Blue Coat Adventurers.” This time, he looked right back at the party and made it clear: "hey, don’t look at me.” The bartender screamed out Zoric’s response in Undercommon. Then several other denizens screeched the name in unison: “DON’T LOOK AT ME!” It was too late; Zoric had done it again.
□ While confronting a seugathi and its latest fleshwarp creations known as dreshkhans, we once again met our match in the ballistics department. Dreshkhans have an ability known as Needle Spray, or “Death Blossom” as those of us who grew up watching The Last Starfighter call it. If it wasn’t for our Player Captain making Risky Reload a mandatory feat in this party, we might have needed more word count for the Character Death section.
Character Deaths:
If you give our GM an assassin with free reign to target a single PC, murder will happen. Adam already proved it when he was given a carte blanche assassin during Strange Aeons. This time it was Maloika the Miserable, our ever-curious goblin, who squeezed through an arrow slit into a series of long-unused guardrooms. Inside, lingered Siora Fallowglade, the greater shadow and chief assassin of Belcorra herself—determined to slay again after 500 years. Adam claims that, because he acted out a kill emote from Assassin’s Creed, that’s why he rolled a critical hit to open combat against the goblin. At least it was quick.
The Arsenal:
Maloika is gone, and it sits hard with us, perhaps hardest with his Sniping Duo partner: Zoric. The goblin had grand plans to hang up his guns, then use his relationship with the market owner to open his own megadungeon collectibles store in Otari. We’re carrying on Maloika’s dream, by continuing to take advantage of the organization rules in the PathfinderGamemastery Guide. Our newest followers and lieutenants have overseen construction, which was built over the ruins of the Thirsty Alpaca. We’ve already named the store: Ayla’s Oddities & Collectibles. We even have plans to haul the giant gong out from the arena level, the same one the goblin shot with his harmona gun to wake the behemoth. We’ll make sure it rings every morning when the store opens—in honor of Maloika.
Best Quote from Marathon 4:
(after Vlai managed to hit three party members with one blast from the scattergun)
Axayaca: “Why do you shoot your friends? Do you derive some pleasure from it?”
Vlai: “It’s nothing personal.” (reloads)
Current Situation:
We blasted our way through levels five and six, and just set foot on level seven. It smells like soot. The temperature feels warmer here for some reason, and runes are carved on the walls. Lock and load…
More Content:
Our table was brought to life with the help of Blue Table Painting for the miniatures, and Black Bard Studios for custom adventure-specific miniatures/terrain.
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-The Abomination Arsenal thread
Tags: Community, Order of the Amber Die, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, October 5, 2023
OPC Musings
I am very sorry to report to you all that Linda Zayas-Palmer’s last day with Paizo was October 20th. Linda has been with Organized Play for more than a decade, from her time as a GM to being hired at Paizo and eventually leading development. She's launched two separate Organized Play programs, which is a feat few can match. We will miss her terribly, and I will miss her especially as a partner in crime (metaphorically, of course; we never did any crimes that you can prove). If you are so inclined, please leave a nice message for her in the comments below!
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on November 29, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Ukuja, The First Wall•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-07: Sewer Dragon Crisis•Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-10: The Death of Kortus IV•
Starfinder Bounty #10: Those who were Taken•part of a subscription
Organized Play Foundation/Guides to Organized Play Down
The Organized Play Foundation website, which hosts the Guide to Organized Play, is currently down. At press time, we do not yet have a timeline for restored service. As I have updates to share, I will post them in this thread.
That thread also contains PDF exports of the most recent editions of the Guide we have archived. We’re aware they are not the most up-to-date versions, but they should work for the time being. We’re actively working to get the Guides back up and running for you all!
Pathfinder Society and the Remaster
Last week, we released the first broad strokes of our plans to update characters to the Pathfinder Remaster! It’s a very long blog and I could recap it here, but really, it’s best if you just read it yourself; I promise it’s painless. When the books release on the 15th, these rules will be added to the Guide to Organized Play in much more detail.
Also announced in that blog was the removal of Pathfinder Schools, which are to be replaced with the easier and more fun Pathfinder Provisions. Enjoy the new consumables, whose guidelines will be ready for use in play on November 15 alongside Player Core and GM Core! For the earliest access to the new content, subscribe to the Pathfinder Rulebook line today.
PAX Unplugged
Next time a monthly update posts, I’ll be at PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia! You can register for the Warhorn and sign up for games here.
Note that we are offering only a limited number of early signups for our scenario tables. Per PAX Guidelines, demo offerings such as Pathfinder Bounties, board game demos, and Starfinder 2 demos are strictly on a walk-up basis. We’re also reserving a couple of seats at our scenario tables for walk-up players as well.
We’ve still got room for a few more volunteers as well! If you’re interested in helping us show off our games to the PAX Unplugged audience, get all the info and register to volunteer here.
Sanctioning
October was a big month for us! Both Starfinder Enhanced and Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge hit shelves, and both are now sanctioned for use in Organized Play! Starfinder Enhanced’s rules can be found on the Starfinder Society Character Options page, and Rusthenge’s sanctioning documents can be downloaded from the product page.
Next on our list is more adventure content, with both the Season of Ghosts AP and the long-awaited (by me) Scoured Stars hardcover compilation dropping in January. After that, Tian Xia and the second half of the Pathfinder Remaster await us!
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
This month, several new Campaign Service Coins were awarded at local conventions! We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether they are a Venture Officer or not), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Amie Tracey, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #880
Robert Weishugel, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #881
Amber Howell, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #882
and Jim Dick (Xathos), who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #905GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th rank!
5th Glyph (PFS2): Half the Sky (Charlene)
That’s all from me! Until next time: Explore! Report! Cooperate! And get ready to Remaster!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, November 1st, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders and Starfinders! We’ve got a few streams coming your way this month—mark your calendars to keep up with everything happening here at Castle Paizo!
Follow us on Twitch to keep up with these streams as they air, and keep an eye out for the VODs, posted to YouTube afterwards.
Paizo LIVE! – Friday, November 3rd at 4-6 p.m. Pacific.
Join us for this month’s Paizo LIVE! November’s topics include an update on the Remaster just before the release of Pathfinder Player Core & Pathfinder GM Core, a delve into Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge, and some Starfinder Society news! Plus, get special live election updates from Organized Play Coordinator, Alex Speidel, as we reveal the newly elected First Seeker!
Starfinder 2e Special Livestream — Date TBA
The Starfinder team is excited to bring more live playtests from their Foundry VTT table to your screens! When we have dates and times lined up, we will update this blog with the information. Did you miss our last live playtest? Watch the VOD here on our YouTube.
Excited for Starfinder Second Edition? Make sure you take a moment and vote for your two favorite ancestries and versatile heritages—the results of this poll will help the team determine which to include in the next Field Test.
Remaster Launch Day Surprise — Wednesday, November 15th at 12 p.m. Pacific.
In celebration of the launch of Pathfinder Player Core & Pathfinder GM Core, we will be hosting a very special stream with one of our Paizo partners. Stay tuned for more details as we get closer to the launch!
We’re looking forward to all of this and more here at Paizo! Good gaming!
Tags: Paizo Twitch, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, November 1st, 2023
Howdy, everyone! It’s the Starfinder team reporting in. We got a lot of great data from our recently streamed playtest as well as from comments you’ve sent in on our past Field Tests. We’ve enjoyed sharing these experiences with you. Right now, we need your help to decide the content for our third Starfinder Second Edition Field Test.
If you didn’t already know, we’re creating a new edition of Starfinder, with an open playtest scheduled to begin next year. We’ve released two snapshots of some new rules we’re testing internally as early previews called Field Tests, and we’re looking to release our third preview.
Field Test #3 will include a preview of two Starfinder Second Edition ancestries. We know how important the cantina feel is to the Starfinder community, and we agree that having a plethora of playable alien ancestries is a core part of the game. There are MANY options to choose from and we all have our personal favorites, but we’ve decided to start with the ones that resonate most with the Starfinder community. To that end, we’d like to invite you to vote on which ancestries you would most like to see covered by our upcoming Field Test.
Follow the link HERE to vote for your top 2 ancestries or versatile heritages. The two with the most votes will appear in Field Test #3, releasing January 2024. Please choose from the following options:
Android: Androids are synthetic beings with souls. Most androids look like humans with glowing circuitry beneath their skin.
Barathu: Barathus are floating beings that evolved on the gas giant Bretheda. They rewrite their own genetic code instinctively, shaping their bodies into bizarre forms.
Human: Humans are adaptable, ambitious, and endlessly curious. Originally from lost Golarion, they maintain a robust presence across the galaxy.
Kasatha: Kasathas are four-armed humanoids steeped in the ancient traditions of a distant homeworld orbiting a dying star.
Lashunta: Lashuntas are psychic humanoids who live on Castrovel. Lashuntas evolved a unique dimorphism, choosing whether they grow up to be burly, athletic korashas or graceful, willowy damayas.
Pahtra: Pahtras are a humanoid feline species from Pulonis, known for their achievements in magic, music, and war.
Shirren: Shirrens are a psychic insectile ancestry who split from the Swarm to end a cycle of stellar war and pursue their own identities.
Vesk: Vesk are a warmongering reptilian people who conquered the eight worlds in their solar system shortly after they developed spaceflight. They have claws, scales, and powerful tails.
Ysoki: Once known as ratfolk, ysoki thrive on countless worlds thanks to their flexibility, cleverness, and willingness to accomplish tough tasks.
Borai (Versatile Heritage): A borai is an undead soul possessing a living body. Most borai are created by botched resurrection attempts, necromantic experimentation, or stubborn spirits refusing to die easily.
Prismeni (Versatile Heritage): A prismeni is suffused with the energy of the Drift, a recently discovered hyperspace plane. They are spiritual kin to the spectra who call the Drift home.
Don’t forget to vote for your top two choices here, and bookmark this page for news about Starfinder 2E! We look forward to hearing about your favorite ancestries and versatile heritages. Voting will close on November 15th.
— The Starfinder Team
-Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
-Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer
-Dustin Knight, Developer
-Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society DeveloperCast Your Vote Here!
Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>Tuesday, October 31, 2023
“Can you at least tell me what it does?”
Lem frowned down at the talisman. Feiya had just handed him a cord of braided sinew hung with scraps of fabric and a small yellowed fang.
“All in due time.” Feiya’s coyly reassuring smile almost achieved its goal. Her eyes betrayed her, preoccupied as they were with scanning the darkened corners of the shop. She was on the hunt, and even more terse than usual.
“Out of sight, fang near a vein, yes? Parallel. When the entity manifests, draw its attention. Then,” she growled through a predatory smile, “it’s mine.”
“So,” she chirped, malice evaporated, “the surprise is intentional!”
“Do consider how it might behoove you to be a bit more forthright?” Lem offered cheerfully, shirt pulled over one shoulder as he tied the charm around his bicep. “People appreciate directness! For instance, a witch might clearly label her concoctions in order to assure others that… hrm. Feiya?”
His willowy companion had drifted off around a rack of hats, their broad brims embroidered with scenes of local myths and histories. Lem sighed, dropped his shoulders slightly, and allowed a frown to darken his face. He sidestepped in front of a fitting mirror.
“She’s not listening, is she, Lem?” he asked his reflection morosely.
“No, Lem, I don’t believe she is.” The mirrored image of Lem in the glass straightened, adopting a genteel tone. “Foregoing the pleasure of our company to go ask a spider for its gallbladder. Or some such.” Lem wrinkled his nose at himself. “Remember the rat?”
“How could I forget?” Mirror Lem mourned anew. “All that chittering, night after night. Daji said they preferred the ferns, but I think he just wanted an excuse to make noise when we were sleeping.”
They’d been tracing the Crushing Shadow for a few weeks, following a trail of property damage and strangulations across inland Ravounel. As best they could tell their quarry wasn’t a person, but some sort of magical force. Lem had picked up traces of hatred and want from the recent murder sites, not as acrid as one would expect from a mortal actor. They were attenuated—just not by time. With the most recent victim, they’d arrived right as her gaze became still and empty, yet even with violence so fresh, the emotions were wan and… dusty, was how he’d described it to Feiya. She had immediately agreed, then started down the path that had led to his strange new accessory.
An integral part of this was her nine-tailed fox’s repeated interviews with a rat. It was of utmost importance, Feiya had said, that the rat give the fang of its own free will. Mostly this had meant Lem got to practice the flute and forage for mushrooms for a few hours a day, and eventually Daji had returned triumphant from his protracted negotiations.
Feiya’s “other source” had revealed that, apart from the deceased’s, no flesh or blood were present at the killing. Lem had overheard Feiya mumbling in her sleep twice. The first time, she had mentioned “the lady’s dark and diaphanous wings,” and the second was something about traveling a path of stars. Then Lem shifted in his bedroll and saw Daji’s little red eyes peering at him over his pack. Since then, he’d done his best to ignore her troubled sleep.
Now, here they were in some packrat’s palace, searching hatboxes for traces of an invisible and apparently unliving force with a particular love for flattened tracheae.
“Come now, Sad Lem, your tenebrous friend seems to have it all well in hand,” Mirror Lem reassured. “Just make sure that little—hey!”
A flash of white flitted behind a neat stack of bones. Muddy pawprints led from the ossuary and back to…
Real Lem looked down. “I just washed my feet! Do you know how long it takes to style my hair?” he groaned. “‘Back in a town,’ I thought, ‘do something nice for yourself after weeks of rainy roads.’ Should have known.”
A vulpine snicker sounded from the bones. A pair of red eyes glittered between them, then Daji strolled out into sight, nine tails swaying languidly.
“But Lem, practice makes perfect. Consternation builds character. That is my gift to you—the chance to grow as a performer and a person.” The fox knelt, wriggled as if to jump, then paused. “It was both, by the way. They liked ferns, and I liked needling you.”
Daji launched himself upward with a little yipping laugh, landing both atop a bookshelf and above the pincushion Lem had thrown at him. There was a dejected pah, pahf as the makeshift missile bounced off the shelf and fell to the floor.
Feiya snorted in amusement. Daji and the affable musician clearly enjoyed their verbal sparring. Truthfully, Lem was better company than she was used to. He didn’t ask uncomfortable questions, and if she shied away from a topic, he never brought attention to it; he just steered clear in future conversations. With him, the shadows of her past weren’t quite so deep, and it was easier to tend the cold and righteous fire at her core.
Never to gutter, never to rage, a still and safe anger to burn ‘til the day.
That was why they were here, really. She had been tracing a ley line when she stopped in a village for supplies. She’d entered the provisioner’s to find a red-jacketed halfling gentleman consoling a weeping shopkeeper. Townsfolk were hauling a body out the door and, being a curious sort, Feiya asked some questions. Seems the insightfulness of her queries impressed Red Jacket and suggested she might be able to help.
She was going to say no. Then she’d heard a child crying upstairs.
Certain things could stoke that cold fire until it blazed through her, and no fuel was greater than a child’s distress. Her face must have twisted, because Red Jacket paused, gave her a curious look, then handed her a torn scrap of the victim’s scarf.
“What do you make of this?” he’d said. “You know, magically. I’m guessing you’ll pick up some of the same things I did.”
Then he’d quickly closed and opened one eye at her? It was oddly endearing.
Now they were traveling companions, at least until this Crushing Shadow was found—assuming Lem didn’t strangle Daji first. She could hear her two companions locked in another of their philosophical debates, this one on the relative merits of mortal works.
Lem was lifting a gleaming sword from its velvet cradle. “…Yes, mortal work, and mortals perish. Yes, steel, and steel rusts. But the meaning we attach to the steel, to the sword and whatever violence it wreaks, that meaning grows tall and wide as wild rose, becomes a vast and tangled thing of beauty and danger both.”
Lem didn’t think Feiya was listening, but that never stopped him from talking all the same.
Illustration by Firat Solhan in Pathfinder Player Core.
“That is one of this great symphony’s mysterious movements!” Lem was winding himself up, gazing into the blade’s mirrored surface, talking as much to his reflection as to the witch’s familiar. “What may we mortals work that outlasts and out grows us? How privileged those few who see how the first stone they lay grows into a road, hear their song a continent and a lifetime away. Why, it reminds me of…”
Daji was weaving toward Feiya between the skulls and candlesticks of a high shelf.
“I walked away after the first sentence.”
He hopped down to sit in front of a black cloak with a vaguely sinister air, and cocked his head at it.
“Smells dangerous.” He nosed the dark fabric, which rippled in a disappointingly fabric-like manner. “Alas. Your new friend talks a lot, by the way.”
“Friend? But yes, he does. I think I like it? It’s comforting. And he makes me laugh in a way that feels good.” Feiya chewed on her lip. “You make me laugh like a cat who’s not done with their dinner. And that usually feels good, too. Mostly.”
She walked her finger under Daji’s chin and gave him a scratch. He made his I am pleased sound, though he’d never admit it. They sat a moment, just the two of them, in the quiet. It was almost like those first days, together in the snow.
“You’ve come far, little one, and she’ll lead you farther still,” purred the fox.
“…Why is it quiet?”
Feiya turned to see the cloak strangling Lem.
It was wrapped around his neck, a sooty version of that eight-legged fish he’d been trying to explain to her the other day, and he was scrabbling at it to no avail.
She reached into herself for the cold anger that was always there. In her mind's eye it rose from the depths, trailing mist, and curled into long and wicked needles to jab into the minds of those who had wronged her. She snarled, and an invisible fang streaked toward the belligerent garment.
It ricocheted harmlessly off the utter void where the thing’s intent would have been, if it were a thinking, feeling creature.
“Daji!” She yelped, and her familiar responded with his own hungry growl.
Woe, woe, for the snuffing of a short-burned flame, the flower plucked before it blooms.
Red and black flames licked slowly at the edges of Lem’s darkening vision.
Enough, Sad Lem. Ideas?
Not a one! Oh, but I think he has some.
Daji was crouched on some taxidermized creature, his nine tails waving slowly back and forth, that bright red coloration crawling across his fur. His eyes glimmered bright as dying stars.
“A creature in sharp artifice will gnaw a limb to aid its flight,” said the fox, words smoldering and spreading. “A last gasp caught twixt death and life can tear as tender as a saw.”
One of Lem’s ragged breaths splintered, somehow, and then each splinter spread knife-like wings to launch itself at the cloak twisted about his neck. It writhed as the magic tore through stitch and seam. Fabric turned rotten and brittle, and the tightness around his neck eased.
The thin trickle of air into his lungs was all it took. The curiosity, the wonder, the desire to live and find out rose from his throat. He fumbled with numbing fingers, but his flute was unreachable. Still, he wasn’t without tools.
A single clear note sounded from his pursed lips. It shimmered against the ear, brittle, a raindrop brimming with the vast waters of mortal emotion and experience. Even standing as he was in death’s threshold, he marveled at how the smallest part of something could reflect the beauty of the whole—
echo of malice pale stitched heart wounds reflection of right that’s it—
“Feiya!” he rasped. “Not possessed, an echo! Recall the sound, remember your—” He stopped, unable to name the thing he had seen in her eyes that first day. He’d carried it himself, once.But as the note faded, Lem saw the realization spread across her face. She stepped forward, lifted one cool, sharp claw—she had claws?—in front of his face, then sliced it downward. The tip bit into the writhing fabric of the cloak.
His bicep went cold, and that little yellow fang on the sinew thong ripped its way through his shirt. It, too, splintered, and suddenly he was surrounded by whizzing shards of bone, all tearing through gaps left by Daji’s spell. Between the talisman, the magic, and Feiya’s claws, the malicious thing was nothing more than gray tatters, some silver, and a few rapidly darkening red gems.
Lem slumped to the floor and took in a ragged breath.
“Maybe ‘all in due time’ could happen a bit sooner?” The gleam of candleflame across dully metallic nails caught his eye. “And since when did you get so pointy?”
“I’m not certain. It’s been a while.” Feiya lifted her hand to watch her nails lighten and retract. “Thank you for that final piece of the puzzle. I thought it was possession, but when you said to… you know.”
“Yes.” Lem’s bushy eyebrows scrunched together. “Feiya, I can only guess at what’s happened, and I truly don’t mean to pry, but with the strangling…”
A newly lengthened nail pressed against his lips, but Feiya’s expression was calm.
“It’s alright. Thank you,” she whispered, smiling slightly, “friend. Now, we should probably leave before—”
A shadow fell across the shop door’s stained-glass window. The key turned in the lock with the smoothness of an old habit, and a stout man stepped into the building. One look, and his face was rapidly darkening with anger.
“Mmm,” mused Lem, surrounded by shredded garments, bone fragments, and broken glass. “Bit late for that.”
Lem has the maestro muse, not enigma. The previous bit about life’s great mystery is fine rephrased as I did, but this is clearly a spell Lem doesn’t have access to.
About the Author
Andrew Mullen has been freelancing for Paizo and other publishers since 2017. He brings a keen interest in language and the interplay of geography and culture to his work, as seen in the Magaambya section of Lost Omens Character Guide, the xulgaths in the Extinction Curse Adventure Path, and numerous other monsters over the years. As a full-time parent, his daughter is his most important monster.
About Iconic Encounters
Iconic Encounters is a series of web-based flash fiction set in the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder. Each short story provides a glimpse into the life and personality of one of the games’ iconic characters, showing the myriad stories of adventure and excitement players can tell with the Pathfinder and Starfinder roleplaying games.
Tags: Iconic Encounters, Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Monday, October 30, 2023
This week, test your knowledge of the elemental planes in our second weekly challenge! Complete the adventure for a chance to win a copy of Pathfinder Rage of Elements.
To participate, simply click the following link: https://loremasters.com/pathfinder/play/multiplayer?data=bfeb89e9-fa40-439a-8979-e6bd8ac9d4f6
For more information on this week's prize and where/when the winner will be announced, please visit the Lore Masters blog: https://www.loremasters.com/news/
Good luck!
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, October 27, 2023
"Ready to keep going? Break time’s done.” Kyra straightened from her meditative stance in the darkened, deadened grass.
Merisiel had been pacing for the past few minutes already, eager to continue onward, muscles twitching in anticipation—chomping at the bit to keep going. Kyra had seen the elf’s posture like this many times and already knew the answer before it was voiced. Still, Merisiel turned an analytical eye toward her companion.
“That’s on you,” Merisiel said. “You used some magic back there. Are you ready to keep moving?”
“I’m ready,” Kyra confirmed, stretching away the stasis in her limbs, chuckling to herself as Merisiel practically leapt forward.
Kyra hung back a step, letting the elf take lead this time. The light was dim and muted here, and Merisiel was far better trained to step silently. Not that they particularly needed to, but it was generally good practice, especially here. This woodland commanded an almost reverent silence.
It wasn’t like other places Kyra had visited. She’d certainly seen her share of forest travel, but the Uskwood—and this particular part of it—was something different. Trees grew tall but held an innate roughness to them; branches twisted, splintered, or hunched as though in pain, yet still reached hopefully to the sky.
She couldn’t blame the trees for reaching toward the light. She would, too, if this was her home. Even the air felt heavier here than it did in sun-touched lands. Blue-gray fog wisped lazily at her feet and slithered away like a living creature. It made travel difficult for the two of them, obscuring the distance but offering a dim, hazy reflection of the light. Small comfort there.
There were stretches of Nidal and the Uskwood where the border between their universe and the shadowy realm of the Netherworld grew thin. While several of these rifts were already known and studied, the two adventurers knew there might be others that would randomly appear.
They’d just hoped to avoid them. Alas.
“It’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live here,” Merisiel said, smirking as she made her way forward step by careful step. In the unsettling silence, she didn’t have to speak loudly for her words to travel.
Kyra smiled despite herself. It was technically Merisiel’s fault they agreed to this mission in the first place; she wouldn’t have found herself in the Uskwood under normal circumstances. She responded quietly, “Definitely not.”
Silence descended on them again, smothering and cumbersome. Step by step, they proceeded alertly in this sinister quietude. The shadow-swept wood played with their senses; several times already during their trek, they’d both caught motion out of the corners of their eyes, only to find a disturbing lack of anything substantial. Whispers just on the edge of hearing teased them, only to result in nothing: no one there and little more than a persistent feeling of disquiet and of being toyed with by forces ever out of sight.
It was starting to grate on them both.
“Sooo,” sighed Merisiel quietly, “not to alarm you, but I’ve started to see things again.”
“Me too. Eyes watching in the trees,” Kyra answered. “More this time.”
Meri nodded agreement and both women moved their hands toward their respective weapons in preparation for a fight. During the last few hours, the appearance of the wispy illusions had all been false alarms, but to relax now would be foolish.
The Netherworld is no place for a casual forest stroll. Illustration by Emile Denis from Pathfinder GM Core.
As if guided by the hands of divinity, Kyra caught sight of strange, glowing eyes at the corner of her vision, then turned to look in the opposite direction—just in time to watch the nearby shadows spit out a giant, color-drained cat, its jaw extended and its long, misshapen claws stretching out for her, mid-pounce!
She met the strange creature with a startled cry. Her scimitar flashed in her hand, angled between them. It was an imperfect defense, she knew, even before her sword arm complained from the sharp sting of claw and tooth. At least the creature was wounded as well; its red blood turned gray and shadowy as it met the dark ground and melted into it.
If I’d hesitated but one second longer...
But then Merisiel was beside her, jumping from the fog-filled shadows behind the beast. Her face was contorted into a vicious snarl, and her daggers were lightning-fast, stabbing at the creature who attacked her wife before she retreated out of sight again.
Kyra’s mind whirled as quickly as her scimitar. They’d already encountered a small group of similar creatures, bleached of their color yet somehowharder to see in the dark mists of the forest, which commanded the shadows at their will and were, in turn, twisted by them. The previous attack had come from a sickly-looking stag who needed reminding that deer did not typically hunger for flesh. It was surely a mercy to put the crazed, blood-hungry creature to rest. They’d learned a lot from that battle.
It was the Netherworld’s influence on the real world, she knew. The animal inhabitants of the shadowy plane were bizarre, distorted beings that were a strange mirror to their own. When the planes bled into each other, as they did so strangely here… Well, it was no surprise there was some intermingling of worlds.
That didn’t make it any easier, though.
“It brought a friend!” Merisiel emerged from the shadows again, this time sending two daggers flying. One sank into the meaty, pale shank of the shadow-cat, and the other flew right past Kyra’s ear, hurtling toward the new enemy. “I think you’d be better handle that one, my love!”
With Meri commanding the feline’s attention, Kyra whipped around to follow the line of the elf’s weapon, though the crawling feeling along the back of her neck already told her the nature of the enemy behind her.
The creature was difficult to pick out at first, as it seemed to be merely the shadow of a nearby tree. Kyra’s eyes caught the strange, liquid movement of the being as it slithered from its base, all harsh angles and thorny, smoky darkness made manifest and given horrible life.
Horrible unlife, Kyra corrected herself, already feeling the burning heat of holy purpose filling her breast. Her right hand clenched around the golden idol of Sarenrae and thrust it up and outward. The Dawnflower’s magic answered, and the cleric focused it onto the shadow. A holy nimbus surrounded her clenched fist, and golden, magical fire lashed toward the creature, hungrily seeking to purge the corruption with its own radiant force. The undead reeled as divine magic lashed it, leaving it wounded and weakened.
Between the two of them, their enemies stood no chance. Merisiel’s seemingly endless supply of daggers, combined with her supreme agility, allowed her to easily get herself into advantageous positions. Kyra’s battle might shone as brightly as the angelic ankh idol in her hand, held aloft and glowing with sanctified cleansing magic.
It never failed to impress her how good of a team she and Merisiel made. In short time, their enemies were conquered, their weapons were cleaned, and their wounds were healed with a few, warming words and channeled magics.
Kyra sighed, worn down from a long day of exploration and battle. With a weary smile, she insisted, “Next time, love, I choose the mission.”
“How was I to know it was going to be this exciting?” Merisiel playfully retorted before dropping back into a more serious tone. “Look, we’re almost there. Just think: soon we’ll be at Volsazni Dezarr’s country home. We’ll enjoy a nice, long rest, a good meal, and we’ll be able to ask him more about the artifact we’re looking for. Easy!”
Kyra released a long breath. They could both use a good rest, she admitted to herself.
She had no idea how true that would become by journey’s end.
About the Author
Rachael Cruz is an award-winning writer / game designer whose TTRPG work can be found in Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed-Of, Dune: Adventures in the Imperium, Fantasy Age, RuneQuest, Star Trek Adventures, and more! She loves to help people of all ages play pretend and tell amazing stories together. For contact info, social addresses, and general writerly stuff, visit rachaelcruz.carrd.co.
About Iconic Encounters
Iconic Encounters is a series of web-based flash fiction set in the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder. Each short story provides a glimpse into the life and personality of one of the games’ iconic characters, showing the myriad stories of adventure and excitement players can tell with the Pathfinder and Starfinder roleplaying games.
Tags: Iconic Encounters, Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Thursday, October 26, 2023
Welcome to the Future, Starfinders!
It’s time to celebrate the release of the incredible Starfinder Enhanced! This book gives so many awesome options to any and every class in our game, and none of it would be possible without a squadron of fantastic authors. I’m personally honored to have helped develop their work following the legendary developers John Compton and Joe Pasini, who went above and beyond bringing this incredible book to life. Without further ado, let’s give our amazing authors the opportunity to show us all the awesome projects they have and help celebrate the release of their wonderful work. If you liked a section, consider letting them know in the comments and following them on social media!
Dustin Knight
Developer
Illustration by Paulo Magalhães Ivis K. Flanagan
Hi all! I'm Ivis K. Flanagan, freelance writer and teacher. Working on Starfinder Enhanced was an awesome highlight for me, as I got to work on a variety of sections: Themes, the Mystic Class updates, and some new creature companions. The creature companions were probably my favorite—and I cannot wait for everyone to get a look at the new furry (and not so furry) friends that I, among others, have gotten to bring to your table.
Outside of Starfinder Enhanced, you can find my work in other Starfinder releases, as well as Pathfinder and other companies. A full list of my current credits can be found here. As for me, when I'm not writing, you can often find me GMing games for anyone who wants to play! If you want to reach out about future projects, playing games, or just to chat, you can find me on Bluesky or email me at ikflanagan at gmail.com.
Jason Keeley (he/him)
Hi folks, I'm Jason Keeley (he/him) and come with me... to the stars! I contributed the narrative starship combat section to Starfinder Enhanced and it was an interesting challenge to streamline the normal starship combat rules while retaining some of the use of currently printed starship stat blocks. Hopefully, those who are looking for a more condensed experience will enjoy it! When I'm not doing things for Paizo, I spend my time recording for the Know Direction network, collaborating with Joe Pasini on puzzles, and generally working on other TTRPG projects—like my cereal mascot game This Compleat Breakfast, available for free at https://herzwesten.itch.io/this-compleat-breakfast! You can usually find me under the name "herzwesten" on most social media platforms.
Jessica Catalan
Hi everyone! My name’s Jessica Catalan and I’m the Starfinder Society Developer and a freelance author who primarily writes for the Pathfinder and Starfinder RPGs. My past works as a freelance author for Paizo include eight Organized Play scenarios, one adventure module, five Adventure Path volumes, cover credit on two hardcover books, and a whole lot more! Starfinder Enhanced is very much a love letter to Starfinder, and is packed to bursting with new options for every aspect of the game, as well as new subsystems, alternate ways to play, and enhanced versions of a few classes. Whatever kind of characters you play, and whatever kind of games you run, there’s something in Starfinder Enhanced for you. In addition to working on Starfinder Enhanced on the clock as a member of the Starfinder team, I worked on it as a freelance author. In short: I wrote a LOT for this book. Picking a favorite contribution is a challenge, but I’m most proud of creating novians and holograms (including initial pitching of these species) and writing the new uses for Resolve Points, which will provide players of all classes and builds a lot of fun new tricks. I hope the love and enthusiasm that everyone put into this book resonates with you and that you enjoy the huge amount of new options at your disposal. Now get out there and make some novians! Until next time, Starfinders!
Illustration by Sammy Khalid John Compton
I’m John Compton, and Starfinder Enhanced was my final project as a Starfinder developer. What a fitting finale, too! Starfinder Enhanced gave me space to explore several big ideas that I’d aways wanted to see in the game, particularly the custom and upgradeable weapons and armor. You’ll also see my handiwork in the enhanced envoy, solarian, and witchwarper, as well as the several sections I developed before blasting off to the Pathfinder narrative team.
John Curtin (he/him)
Hi, my name is John Curtin (he/him) and I had a blast contributing some of the feats and nanocyte options to Starfinder Enhanced! My primary design driver here was asking myself "what, as a player, would make me really excited to see as a potential option," and I my most fervent that at least one GM out there finds out about one of my options from a player and goes "...you can do what now?? That's awesome!!" Here at Paizo, I’ve got more Starfinder credits upcoming, but in true freelancer fashion, the projects I’m most excited to tell everyone about are still under NDA. To hear about my latest and greatest, you can follow me on BlueSky @curtinwrites, on the remains of Twitter @Curtin_Writes, and explore the currently inactive @StarfinderFacts.
John Godek III (he/him)
Hi! I’m John, a gamer, gamemaster, freelance author, and podcaster in the Seattle area. I earned my 5th Nova for Starfinder Society two years ago and have worked on a dozen freelance assignments for Evil Robot Games, Legendary Games, and Paizo. My most recent work includes this summer’s Starfinder Society Scenario #6-04: Secrets Long Submerged and next year’s Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Character Guide. For Starfinder Enhanced, I had the opportunity to create new class options for the mechanic, technomancer, and vanguard, plus new augmentations, magic items, and hybrid items.
When I’m not playing, GMing, or writing, I produce three podcasts on the Know Direction Network: Digital Divination, a Starfinder talk show with Paizo Senior Developer Jason Keeley; Intrepid Heroes, a Starfinder actual play whose cast has included Eleanor Ferron, Rob Helm, Scott Keim, Ron and Stephanie Lundeen, Jason Tondro, and Mark Woolcott; Presenting - Gamers Making Games, an interview show where I chat with game designers, developers, artists, and editors.
You can reach me on X (Twitter) @JohnGodekIII and find my podcasts at KnowDirectionPodcast.com or on YouTube at GamingDivination.com. I am always looking for folks to interview!
Illustration by Sammy Khalid Kate Baker
Hello! I’m Kate Baker, and I was delighted to contribute to Starfinder Enhanced! There is so much cool stuff coming your way in this book. I specifically worked on new grenades, and with so many grenades in the system already, I got to be very creative with introducing new options. I hope your PCs have fun with the new bombs! You can follow more about what I’m up to on BlueSky at @katebakerGM.
Kim Frandsen (he/him)
Hello everyone, I'm Kim, and I'm from Denmark. I've been writing since 2016 when I took part in the RPG Superstar competition (finished in the top 32 too!) and I've been writing, editing, and laying out books ever since. I worked on the Envoy, Operative, and Soldier options and I hope you like what we all made. If you want to see more of my work or get hold of me, you can find me through my beloved Beyond the Horizon over at https://www.beyond-the-horizon-games.com/ — You might have seen my work in various places as well — I freelance a lot and I'm one of the Infinite Masters on PathfinderInfinite. :)
Michael Bramnik (he/him)
Hello there! This is Michael Bramnik, often writing for Paizo's organized play adventures and elsewhere, but now I am here helping Enhance your Starfinder experience! For this book, I had the privilege of writing the Archetypes and Tech Items, and can't wait to see what you think of all of them. From the Major League Coach (who draws on sci-fi sports from other books as well as ones influenced by my SFS experiences) to the musical Audocyte (who emulates my constant need for music almost everywhere I go), each of these archetypes enhance aspects of the science fiction/fantasy genre in ways I hope each of you will love!
Feel free to keep up with my ongoing projects if you'd like (https://canisdirus.carrd.co/), and happy gaming!
Tags: Authors, Community, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, October 26, 2023
Ever since we announced the Pathfinder Remaster project, my inbox has not known peace. Every day I get asked by the Pathfinders worldwide, “how will Pathfinder Society handle the Remaster?” Every day I must give the same answer, “I don’t know yet! Ask me in 1d4 months!”
It’s now 1d4 months later and I can finally start to answer this question! With the assistance of some incredibly dedicated Additional Resources volunteers and no less than six members of Paizo staff, we are here today to present the broad strokes of our plan to convert (or not convert) your Pathfinder Society characters to the brand-new Remastered rules. While we don’t intend for our scenarios to be written using the Remastered rules until Year 6 begins at Gen Con 2024, we know the characters will need to make the switch faster.
Before we get into it, I’d like to offer a couple of disclaimers. First, the rules we’re sharing today are the broad strokes. There will be more specifics to come on release date, but we’re still working our way through specific questions like “what happens to my staff of transmutation now that transmutation isn’t a school?” We’re sharing this today to get you ready for what’s to come.
Second, these rules are still in flux. We have a pile of questions yet to answer internally (we’re having weekly meetings to do nothing but answer them), and we expect more will come from the community as time goes on. We expect this to happen! Our intention is for these guidelines to live in a subpage of the Guide to Organized Play, to allow them to be a living document we’ll update as time goes on.
Finally, we will not be able to answer every single question that comes up. Rules discrepancies and questions come up all the time at tables, and the Remaster will increase the odds of that happening. The GM always has the power to make calls on rules questions at the table. While we strive for the Pathfinder Society experience to play out the same at every table worldwide, we need to accept as a community that there will be some variance, and be patient with each other as we figure things out. This is a game, we’re here to have fun, let’s all keep that in mind as we play!
With all that out of the way, here are the current planned guidelines for Pathfinder Society and the Remaster. If you have questions/comments/concerns, drop them in the comments of this blog and we’ll do our best to answer them. Once the Remaster drops, we’ll create a separate thread in the Pathfinder Society forum for those specific rules interactions that we won’t discover until they come up in play.
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Objectives
When considering the Pathfinder Remaster, our intent is as follows:
- To ensure that players are not forced to rebuild characters
- To ensure that as much previous material as feasible is still useable
- To incentivize adoption of the new, Remastered ruleset
- To provide an optional method to rebuild characters into Remaster rules
General Guidance
- Game Rules
- Players and GMs must use the remastered rules of the game immediately where possible.
- Example: Recall Knowledge has been updated with additional guidelines. These take effect immediately at all PFS tables.
- Example: The Refocus activity and the focus spell rules have been updated to be more intuitive. All characters immediately begin using these rules.
- Example: Monster abilities such as Grab are no longer automatic, but allow a free skill check to attempt the action. GMs immediately begin using this new version of the rules.
- Character Options
- Beginning on November 15, 2023, no new characters may be created using the class chassis printed in the Core Rulebook if the class has been reprinted in the Player Core.
- This affects the following classes: bard, cleric, druid, fighter, ranger, rogue, witch, wizard.
- Characters with at least 1 game reported prior to November 15 may be built using the Core Rulebook chassis.
- Previously-existing characters with at least 1 game reported may continue their progression using the Core Rulebook chassis. They may not use the chassis in the Player Core without rebuilding.
- If a character option has been reprinted with the same name, use the new version as if it were errata. No additional retraining is necessary.
- Example: divine lance has been reprinted with new Remaster-compatible rules. All PCs with divine lance must update the spell accordingly.
- If a character option has not been reprinted, characters are free to use the option as previously printed, or to select it at any time.
- Example: the brooch of shielding has not been reprinted. Characters may still purchase and use a brooch of shielding.
- Example: the produce flame spell has not been reprinted, but ignition takes its place thematically. Characters may learn either spell anytime they would learn a new spell, and could learn both spells if they chose.
- Example: the oracle class has not yet been remastered. Players may still build and play oracles using the rules in the Pathfinder Advanced Player’s Guide.
- An oracle who learns divine lance must still use the remastered version of the spell.
Specific Rules
- Alignment: Alignment has been removed from the game. PCs and NPCs no longer have alignment.
- Edicts and Anathema: To replace certain aspects of alignment, edicts and anathema are being emphasized. These are voluntary and optional, though deities and classes may introduce specific edicts and anathema which are not optional.
- Holy and Unholy: Many previously-aligned options now have either the holy, unholy, or sanctified traits. At a GM’s discretion, enemy abilities which previously had the good or evil traits may now have the holy or unholy trait.
- Example: A quasit’s strikes previously had the evil trait. A GM may choose to give them the unholy trait, as quasits are demonic creatures. Similarly, a quasit’s weakness to good should now be considered a weakness to holy.
- Wizards
- Wizards built using the Core Rulebook chassis may continue to treat spells that had their spell school removed as part of the Remaster as if they have spell schools. They must otherwise fully update their remastered spells.
- Example: An evocation wizard may still select electric arc as an evocation cantrip. They must use the new damage as printed in the Player Core.
- Wizards built using the Core Rulebook chassis may learn new spells printed in remastered books, but they can never treat them as having a school spell if they did not previously have one.
- Runelords
- On November 15, 2023, the Runelord boon will be removed from the Achievement Points store. No new Runelords may be created after this date until/unless the archetype is reprinted.
- Campaign-Specific Rules and Clarifications
- Pathfinder Society characters may not be sanctified to unholy. This is the spiritual successor to the previous rule forbidding PCs of evil alignment.
Rebuilding
- On November 15, 2023, all characters with at least one game reported are granted one free rebuild. This is a full rebuild; you may completely alter a character’s ancestry, class, background, and any options selected. You may not alter the adventures a character has participated in, nor may you alter a character’s Reputation earned.
- Upon rebuilding, your character starts with gold equal to Table X.X[Alex note: this table will be published with the full rules, and is built on our baseline assumption of earning 8 TB per scenario].
- Alternatively, a player character may sell any and all currently-held items at face value and purchase new items as normal.
- If you use this rebuild, indicate “Remaster Rebuild” on your character’s most recent Chronicle Sheet.
- If, in the course of this rebuild, you wish to refund any purchased boons, please email orgplayreportingerrors[at]paizo[dot]com with your character’s name, OP ID and character number, and the boon(s) you would like to refund.
- This rebuild must be used before December 31, 2024. A second rebuild of this type will not be granted following the release of Player Core 2.
One Final Change
While this isn’t a direct result of the Remaster, we’re taking the opportunity to make another change. Beginning on November 15, we will be removing the Pathfinder Training from the Guide to Organized Play. Your characters who are already Field Commissioned may still take bonus downtime, and we’re not going to take away the bonus Lores or feats your characters may have already gained. However, new characters may not use this system. Quite simply, it’s an extra layer of complexity that most players aren’t engaging with, and that doesn’t add much to the program.
However, we know everybody loves free items, so they will remain in the form of Pathfinder Provisions! We’ll have a pared-down list of consumables which all agents (including formerly Field Commissioned agents) may choose from at the start of a mission. By default agents will receive healing potions, though they may choose another item or items if they prefer. The Society wants to ensure its agents come home safe!
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, October 25, 2023
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
September’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a bestseller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
Combination Weapons Unleashed•
Leaping into battle using the recoil of their weaponry and carving down enemies with bullets and steel, Blitzfire Warriors are a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. From the Gunpowder Combination Weapons of Alkenstar to the Transforming Combination Weapons of Ustalav, combination weapons take great skill to master. If you want to make the most of Combination Weapons in Pathfinder 2e to bring out their full, unrealized potential, Combination WeaponsUnleashed is for you!
Cooking Unleashed•
Across Golarion, various delicious cuisines and meals are made every day by chefs from different cultures and backgrounds. Some alchemists dedicate themselves to mixing the art of alchemy with the culinary arts to create delicious and potent treats! While halflings may have been some of the earliest trailblazers of this blend of alchemy and cooking, many others have adopted these techniques throughout the Inner Sea! If you wish to play a cook who can make use of potent alchemical foodstuffs or simply gain access to new options for alchemical food through feats and items, Cooking Unleashed is for you!
Kitsune of Golarion•
Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. An expansion on Lost Omens Ancestry Guide penned by the same authors who write the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
New Magic of Thassilon: A Reimagining of Sin and Virtue Magic
In the realm of Golarion, sin and virtue represent more than just morality—they can serve as a wellspring for potent magic and spellcraft, and have done so for thousands of years. Aspiring wizards, take up this mighty grimoire and venture into the world of rune magic!
New Magic of Thassilon presents seven schools of magic, each built around the sins and virtues held in Thassilonian culture and magical tradition. It reimagines the Runelord archetype, giving it an exciting new ability that allows wizards to apply buffs and benefits to their allies.It also includes items for wizards of all stripes to use, five new backgrounds to ground your character in the world of New Thassilon, and original lore and NPCs connected to the College of Sin and Virtue—a real place nestled in the hinterlands of New Thassilon.
The Voidbound Isle
The Voidbound Isle is an exploration-focused adventure that takes players from level 1-13 as they discover the secrets and mysteries of a vast, cursed island. This adventure is setting-agnostic; it can take place in Golarion or in your own original world. The bulk of its content involves exploration and wilderness survival as the party ventures throughout a strange and perilous new land, but this adventure also includes an optional city-management element, numerous side quests, and the overarching goal of uncovering the secrets of this curse-haunted isle and ultimately confronting the dark entity at its core.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
Absalom Drift: Turbocharged
Every hero needs friends. And every group of friends needs a set of engines. How else will you race off to the edges of the galaxy, and save the day? Too bad you can’t afford them on your own.
But one of your old friends has picked up a lead on a starship that you just might be able to "acquire." What's the harm in hearing them out at least?
Absalom Drift: Turbocharged is a special starting adventure for Starfinderin which the heroes obtain their first ship through a starship heist, potentially leading them into either the Dead Suns or Drift Crashers Adventure Path.
Cotton Candy Crash Landing (Winner of Roll20 Design Dash, Pathfinder/Starfinder Infinite)
Cotton Candy Crash Landing is a short and sweet adventure pitting the Starfinders against a rogue blob of cotton candy headed straight for a helpless town!
In a well-meaning attempt at distributing the sweetest treat across the Pact Worlds, a group of skittermanders crashed their spaceship onto the planet Triaxus.
Fortunately, their NanoCotton Candy cargo cushioned their landing.
Unfortunately, that NanoCotton Candy mixed with the nearby saltwater air, creating a deadly plague of nanobots that coalesced into a giant blob that's headed straight for the city!
Creatures from the Drift
The Pact Worlds are full of myriad species, numerous planes of reality, and mystical forces. Perhaps the strangest is the Drift, the mysterious realm by which travel through the stars is possible. But the energies of the Drift are enigmatic, even to those who study it. And more peculiar, still, are those that dwell within…
Creatures from the Drift is a supplement for Starfinder players and GMs, introducing a vast array of new foes from the depths of the Drift. Ranging from Cybernetic Fae to Drift-warped animals, these beings are unlike anything seen in the Pact Worlds. Thankfully, there are also new Feats, Themes, and a plethora of Companion Pets to help you survive the mysterious entities from the Drift—including a whole new playable race!
Necromantic Conductor
This Starfinder companion presents a total conversion of the mechanic's drone class feature, turning it into a connection for the mystic class that enables them to raise an undead minion to accompany them.
In addition to rules for raising undead minions and customizing them using threnodies—a mystical counterpart to drone mods—this companion also includes an Undead Summoning Graft, for use with the summon creature spells from Alien Arch.
Space Cowboy’s Arsenal
A certain type of adventurer resides in the vast frontiers of space—wayfarers and drifters, hunters whose next meal rides on their cunning, their aim, and the price on their bounty's head. They carve out their existence beyond the fringes of civilization; the easy life is as alien to them as another man's gun, and just as fickle. They prefer the unpredictable and uncharted, far from prying eyes and folks what ask too many questions. Never tied to one place, these vagabonds stay strange and savvy, doing what they can to keep alive. When the galaxy needs a job done, they call for the rough and tumble Space Cowboy.
New from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters—and some pieces that have caught their eyes!
- The 4724 AR Men of Golarion Calendar—An accurate 12-month calendar of the Golarion year, featuring 12 hand drawn illustrations of canonically male NPCs across Pathfinder Lore.
- The Traveler’s Guide to the Darklands—An exploration of the Darklands, including ancestries, heritages, archetypes, items, and more. All proceeds of this project benefit Owen K.C. Stephens’ cancer treatment.
- Heroes of Omen: Golarion Karotajs—This book introduces an homage to 3.x’s sohei to the Pathfinder Second Edition Roleplaying Game.
- Archetypes+ (FoundryVTT & Pathbuilder Support)—This massive supplement with Archetypes and Feats now has FoundryVTT and Pathbuilder support included for no extra charge!
- Novel Swarmicist—Become one with the swarm. A class archetype for the kineticist that adds three new gates: beasts, insects, and undead.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Wednesday, October 25, 2023
By which, of course, I mean the spooky season, but also the new Pathfinder Adventure Path, Season of Ghosts! This is the first Adventure Path I’ve been the lead developer on from the very start since Age of Ashes, back when we were launching Second Edition Pathfinder. Since then, I’ve worked on hardcover compilations, written for other Adventure Paths, and developed ones that started with other folks who moved on to other opportunities. All of which was a lot of fun, of course, but it’s nice to be back in the proverbial saddle, creating outlines and plots from the start.
An Adventure Path set in the spookiest of all locations in the continent of Tian-Xia is something I’ve been eager to get moving for many years, and despite some schedule hiccups, I’m delighted the campaign is finally here for folks to enjoy. There’s quite a lot of plot twists and surprises in store for all of you destined to play through this campaign—I’m eager to hear how things went down at all of your game tables, but I also ask folks to make liberal use of the spoiler tag technology when speaking about these adventures, so we can all preserve those surprises for players to uncover as they progress through these four upcoming seasons of horror.
One of the most exciting parts of the process for me, though, was getting to work with such a wide range of amazing and talented writers! It’s been eye-opening, educational, and wonderful to see what the authors’ various adventures and support articles have brought to each volume of Season of Ghosts, bringing in an incredible range of inspiration from throughout Asia. So, for the next four months, I’ve invited the authors of Season of Ghosts to introduce themselves as the volumes they contributed to come out. In some cases, authors wrote for multiple volumes, while in others (like this first one), only a single author tackled the contents of the volume. So without further ado, take it away, Sen H.H.S.!
James Jacobs
Pathfinder Narrative Creative Director
Sen H.H.S.
Happy spookiness everyone! I'm Sen H.H.S., the writer of the first volume of Season of Ghosts, “The Summer that Never Was.” I welcome you all to your beloved town of Willowshore and the town's lovely inhabitants... along with the first three months (or more!) of fears, horrors, and thrills you are about to face. As someone who generally avoids ghost stories and the horror genre, writing this adventure was an interesting challenge, though one I gladly took on to help establish a baseline for how our PCs and the folks of Willowshore generally survive haunted Shenmen day-to-day. Now that those usual strategies don't work though, it's time to step up to the challenge. If you are interested in what I'm up to, you can follow me on Bluesky at senhhs.bsky.social or you can see what I'm retweeting on Twitter @SenHHS. For my past works, check out my website at https://senhhs.carrd.co/. Otherwise, I'll see you all in the upcoming Tian Xia books AND [falls into the NDA pit].
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts
]]>Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Hi, this is Landon! As Halloween and the Remaster approaches, one question burns in our minds: who’s going to torch all these undead while simultaneously healing the entire party? As you can probably guess, that’s still going to be the party’s cleric, but let’s dive into some changes.
The cleric remains defined by their god, so before we get into the cleric, we should talk about the Remaster’s changes to deities and the cosmos. While the Remaster sees the removal of the nine alignments, edicts and anathemas still provide descriptions of a god’s desires and prohibitions to guide their followers’ behavior at a much finer level than alignment. But there’s still an endless struggle over the souls of the planes. The new system of divine sanctification (whether holy or unholy) represents a dedication to join that fight. Some gods now allow for sanctification—even when serving a goddess like Sarenrae who rose through the angelic ranks, joining her in the fight is ultimately a personal choice—where some gods now require that their clerics swear allegiance actively, like Asmodeus and Iomedae.
Alignment damage used to be a major tool here, but it sometimes got in the way of the cleric’s story. A cleric of Lamashtu might have dealt evil damage to scatter those standing up against the Mother of Monsters, but that often didn’t reflect the god’s will. Some gods were neutral, and all gods had enemies who opposed to their beliefs but weren’t of an opposite alignment. The Remaster’s new spirit damage type lets gods’ wrath manifest much more broadly, harming anything with a spirit, down to oozes that need to be scoured away. Clerics who undergo divine sanctification can infuse many of their spiritual abilities with holy or unholy power, so a divine lance cast by a holy character will still damage almost anyone, but it will also trigger the weaknesses of demons and devils. On the flip side of the coin, divine wrath excludes the allies who are helping a cleric do their god’s work, even if the alliance is a little peculiar.
Beyond these changes, we also took the opportunity to smooth out some rough edges. All clerics will see their divine font simply give them a number of bonus heal (or harm) spells regardless of their Charisma score, giving clerics a little more flexibility in how they allocate their attributes. The warpriest got improved weapon proficiencies where it could, raising martial weapons to expert at 7th level and their deity’s favored weapon to master at 19th. Along with Focus Point recovery becoming a bit easier for everyone in the Remaster, quite a few domain spells were improved or replaced, like pulse of civilization now giving wide access to the lore of nearby cities rather than one public fact and ignite ambition working as a reaction that the target notices only on a critical success.
A lot of the remastered classes have gotten a few new feats to help tell their stories better. Even with its changes, the cleric didn’t get left out on this front. As a powerful cleric, your god might protect you so dearly that they punish those who harm you, or you might reinforce your shield with the strength of your divine font. But there are also smaller miracles, like blessing the area around you to heal your allies out of combat or presenting your religious symbol to protect against the world’s varied hardships.
Raise Symbol [one-action] — Feat 4
Cleric
Requirements You are wielding a religious symbol.You present your religious symbol emphatically. You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to saving throws until the start of your next turn. While it’s raised, if you roll a success at a saving throw against a vitality or void effect, you get a critical success instead.
If the religious symbol you’re raising is a shield, such as with Emblazon Armaments, you gain the effects of Raise a Shield when you use this action and the effects of this action when you Raise a Shield.
Sacred Ground — Feat 4
Cleric, Consecration, Divine, Exploration
Prerequisites harmful font or healing font
Frequency once per 10 minutesYou pray continuously for 1 minute to call a subtle shadow of your deity’s realm over a 30-foot burst centered on you. It lasts for 10 minutes, and a creature that remains in the area for the entire 10 minutes regains Hit Points equal to your level.
If you have a healing font, this activity has the healing and vitality traits and heals living creatures. If you have a harmful font, this activity has the healing and void traits and heals undead creatures (or other creatures with void healing). Clerics with Versatile Font can choose either or both. It can’t damage creatures in any case.
Even my personal favorite cleric feat, Channeled Succor, spent some time in the fires of the Remaster to rise again as Restorative Channel, which interacts with the new, broader curative spells like cleanse affliction and clear mind. I’m stoked to have a new toolbox to channel all my new healing goodies. Especially with those spells all still helping when the counteract check doesn’t quite come through, it’s a good time to be freeing your friends from vexing conditions.
I hope you enjoy all these new options next month when Pathfinder Player Core is released. In the meantime, may your injured party be surrounded by a horde of low-level undead.
Cheers!
Landon Winkler (they/them)
Developer
Monday, October 23, 2023
Our first weekly adventure challenge awaits! This week, test your knowledge against the Core Rulebook. Complete the adventure for a chance to get a prize.
To participate simply click the following link: https://loremasters.com/pathfinder/play/multiplayer?data=4b510808-234d-4386-a5d7-f845d12068bf
For more information on this week's prize and where/when the winner will be announced please visit the Lore Masters blog: https://www.loremasters.com/news/
Good luck!
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, October 20, 2023
Hello Pathfinders! Did you miss our Lost Omens Special stream this past Friday? Worry not—we’ve got all the reveals and surprises for you here on the Paizo blog!
Want to watch the stream for yourself? Catch the VOD on Youtube!
Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide
Coming Spring 2024, PathfinderLost Omens Tian Xia World Guide details the many nations and cultures of Tian Xia. During our stream, we showcased three of these regions!
Minata
Eleanor gave us an overview of Minata—a nation with a wide diversity of cultures and heritages. Once ravaged by natural disasters and fighting, Minata now enjoys a time of peace and prosperity, protected by reefs said to be made of the bodies of dead dragons. Minata is known for its feasts, festivals, and celebrations.
Seafaring is a vital part of Minatan culture—ingrained so deep because the first humans came to Tian Xia via Minata and then sailed further in. Because of Minata’s wide diversity of islands and accessibility by water, a variety of ancestries live here—including one as-yet-unannounced ancestry coming in the Character Guide.
Valash Raj
Next, Luis took us into the Valashmai Jungle. This great forest was long thought to have no inhabitants save kaiju and monsters, but we can see that the Valash Raj civilization has flourished within these dangerous conditions.
Kaiju are still a big part of the Valashmai Jungle—so big, in fact, that there are whole cultural elements and occupations that relate to them. One such occupation is the kaiju caller, people who can communicate with the kaiju to direct them around settlements, helping communities co-exist.
The Valash Raj is still a place of many dangers—not the least of which is “dinosaur season,” the time when all of the dinosaur eggs hatch and the new babies go hunting for food. But the people of the Valashmai Jungle have made lives for themselves out of the danger, and there is a rich world to explore there.
Wanshou
Our third region, special for this Friday the 13th stream, is Wanshou—an agricultural district with “nothing else going on,” or so says its leadership. Wanshou was devastated by over-taxation and flooding before it was brought back to prosperity by Zhanagorr, an elder kraken known throughout the land as Wanshou’s divine savior.
Lots of the cultures and clothing of various Tian Xia regions take inspiration from real world cultures. James took some time to show off some of Kent Hamilton’s concept art for the denizens of Wanshou—showing a variety of headwear designed to keep citizens safe from the near-constant rains, inspired by real-world mino coats.
One of many ways Zhanagorr maintains his grip on Wanshou is by careful manipulation of the ruling class, including the three noble houses given the honor of directly communing with him. As a result, political intrigue abounds, leading to the cultural role of a gift receiver—someone whose duty is to accept gifts (and the curses that may come with them) on behalf of the intended recipient, similar to a food taster.
Deities
Luis, Eleanor, and James each introduced one new deity from the Tian Xia World Guide.
The three deities chosen for this stream were Lady Nanbyo, Yamatsumi, and Baekho. Lady Nanbyo is the goddess of plagues, disasters, and bad luck. Yamatsumi is the god of mountains, volcanoes, and winter. Baekho is the god of harmony, mending rifts, and the transition between seasons.
The Tian Xia World Guide also includes new rituals. One such ritual, the trial of the unseeing blade master, was shown off during the stream. To fulfill the ritual, you must defeat 20 enemies while blindfolded, which then grants you the Blind-Fight feat.
Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide
Coming Summer 2024, the PathfinderLost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide adds a variety of character options to Pathfinder! We’re saving some of these reveals for later, as we get closer to the book’s release, but the team brought a couple of new options to the table!
First, a heritage for poppets: tsukumogami! Tsukumogami are objects that are granted sentience and life due to being well cared for—or neglected and treated poorly. Their heritage abilities include giving a bonus to a skill that corresponds to the object you once were (for example, a kitchen knife tsukumogami granting a bonus to cooking), as well as sprouting a ghostly face to terrify newcomers. The team also talked about one feat from each of the currently announced ancestries: whether that’s the ability for samsarans to remember how to use the ancestral weapons of other people through their Samsaran Weapon Memory, wayangs’ ability to briefly become two-dimensional with Palm Leaf Silhouette, or tanuki’s Rolling White Bottle Form, which lets them transform into a wine bottle to roll away from harm before resuming tanuki form face-down on the ground.
One of the new options for familiars in Tian Xia are paper familiars, with some sub-groups based on the various different paper dolls and paper crafts of the area, including shikigami familiars that can bear elemental seals or shadow puppets that can grasp objects by extending their shadows.
Pathfinder Lost Omens Divine Mysteries
After the Q&A, Luis Loza took the end of the stream to make a surprise reveal—the cover and title of the third Lost Omens book for 2024: PathfinderLost OmensDivine Mysteries.
As part of this announcement, Luis confirmed that the book is tied into the War of Immortals event. While the deity who dies is still shrouded in mystery, Luis has revealed who will be taking their place—Arazni is joining the core twenty.
Divine Mysteries will update Gods and Magic to the remaster, giving sanctification information, remastered statblocks, and more lore to the existing deities, while also adding more divine content in the form of new gods and a few character options.
The book is narrated by Yivali, a nosoi psychopomp of Pharasma. Divine Mysteries is essentially her graduate thesis, which she will present to Pharasma to become a full psychopomp.
We’re so excited for all that’s coming in 2024! We’ll have more to share about Tian Xia, Divine Mysteries, and more as time goes on.
Written by: Misha Bushyager, Jessica Catalan, Carlos Cisco, Rue Dickey, Aoife Ester, Ivis K. Flanagan, Tomas Gimenez Rioja, Leo Glass, Alastor Guzman, Thurston Hillman, Laura Lynn Horst, James Jacobs, Michelle Y. Kim, Monte Lin, Luis Loza, Stephanie Lundeen, Poorna M., Adam Ma, Jacob W. Michaels, Zac Moran, Jon Morgantini, Matt Morris, Morgan Nuncio, Daniel “Drakoniques” Oleh, Pam Punzalan, Jessica Redekop, Jaime Reyes Mondragon, Kevin Thien Vu Long Nguyen, Erin Roberts, quinn b. rodriguez, Michael Sayre, Mark Seifter, Austin Taylor, Isis Wozniakowska, and Sebastian Yūe.
Original Gods & Magic writing and design by: Robert Adducci, Amirali Attar Olyaee, Calder CaDavid, James Case, Adam Daigle, Katina Davis, Leo Glass, Joshua Grinlinton, James Jacobs, Virginia Jordan, Jason Keeley, Jacky Leung, Lyz Liddell, Ron Lundeen, Stephanie Lundeen, Jacob W. Michaels, Matt Morris, Dave Nelson, Samantha Phelan, Jennifer Povey, Jessica Redekop, Nathan Reinecke, Patrick Renie, David N. Ross, Simone D. Sallè, Michael Sayre, David Schwartz, Shahreena Shahrani, Isabelle Thorne, Marc Thuot, Jason Tondro, and Diego Valdez.
Tags: Lost Omens, Paizo Twitch, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Tian Xia
]]>Thursday, October 19, 2023
Hey there adventurers,
Today is the day, and we are excited to announce that Pathfinder Lore Masters is live on both iOS and Google Play stores!iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pathfinder-lore-masters/id1671004225
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.loremasters.pathfinder2e
The team has been working hard over the last year to bring you a great experience and to make the gameplay and content enjoyable and varied. We have been busy fine-tuning the little things like response time, visual improvements, and clearing out those pesky bugs. Finally, here we are, waiting for you to get hands on with it and to show us how well you know the rules and lore of Pathfinder!
If you aren't familiar yet with the core features of the Pathfinder Lore Masters trivia game, here's what to expect:
- Thousands of Pathfinder questions (lore and rules)
- Tailor your session towards a specific class, difficulty level, or book
- Easily share your match with friends and challenge their knowledge
- Play any challenge shared with you, even if you don't own the content
- Competitive gameplay through in-game leaderboards
- Customizable profile images and profile names
- Level progression and unlocks
- Pathfinder 2E Core Rulebook, Lost Omens World Guide, and Rage of Elements questions
Be on the lookout for our question of the week campaigns, new dev announcements regarding upcoming features, new question packs, and more, while we work to continue to bring new content and updates to you throughout the year.
All of your feedback matters, so please take the time to leave comments, write reviews, and suggest improvements. We can't wait to hear what everyone has to say and will be looking at feedback from everyone as we start working on the next updates and planning for new features.
Thanks all for the support and good luck on your perfect run. So to kick things off, here's an easy set of questions for you!
https://loremasters.com/pathfinder/play/multiplayer?data=3bb1c2a6-a946-4aea-b87b-afae0da795b2
Good Luck.
The Lore Masters Dev Team
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, October 19, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
This month, we’re sending something spooky your way!
Travel to the fringes of the Pact Worlds system to explore two mysterious starships. First up is the Revelry, a massive luxury cruise liner that vanished during the Drift Crisis. Second is the Vigilance, a Starfinder Society vessel that discovered the Revelry amid frozen detritus on the very edge of the Pact Worlds system and set out to investigate. Communications with the Vigilance have gone silent, and a rescue mission has been sanctioned. Get out there, Starfinders! Fingers crossed that you make it out alive!Starfinder Society Scenario #6-08: Lost Revelry is a horror adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Mikko Kallio.
Meanwhile, a potential Starfinder Society ally, the scrappy ysoki Ongie, has been spotted on the planet Vesk-7. Ongie possesses intel on the mysterious Organization, a secretive and dangerous criminal syndicate that the Starfinders are working to oppose. Ongie’s intel could give the Starfinders the edge they need to turn the tables on the Organization—if they can convince her to help. Unfortunately, Organization assassins have been hot on Ongie’s trail since she faked her death and escaped their clutches on Kortus IV. If you don’t act fast, Ongie and the information she possesses will be lost forever. No pressure!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-09: Ridgerock Rescue is a metaplot adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Charlie Brooks.
Best of luck, Starfinders!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hello, Pathfinders, and welcome to the spookiest time of the year!
To herald in our thrills and chills season, we see the return of our old ghoul friend, Marcon Tinol! He comes to the Pathfinder Society in desperation, looking for assistance with what seems to be an invasion from unknown forces into his home among the Azlanti islands. Traveling through the Maze of the Open Road leads the Society to the Island of the Vibrant Dead, a burial island for important Arodenite clergy and, more importantly, the home of Deadhaven, a community of ghouls looking to live apart from the living. Teaming up with the lacedon Barnacle Barnaby, the Pathfinders will meet a diverse collection of ghouls and research the mysterious Ghessa, who seems to not be taking part in the Feast of the Vibrant Dead…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-05: The Island of the Vibrant Dead is a metaplot adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Joe Blomquist.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases expand your Starfinder horizons, dig up evils from long past, and save your home from an isolating curse.
Keep an eye out as we shift our release dates back in the coming months to accommodate the winter holidays! While our physical releases drop today, our digital-only products such as Organized Play Scenarios will release next Wednesday, October 25.
Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions – for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Starfinder Enhanced
UPGRADE YOUR GAME!
Enhance your Starfinder experience with this invaluable game resource covering all aspects of the Starfinder rules! From totally revised fundamentals like core classes and starship combat to brand-new systems for expanding the way you play, this 192-page hardcover rules resource offers fresh ideas while still blending with the existing system. With Starfinder Enhanced at hand, you’ll be ready for the countless challenges of infinite space!
Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge
FEAR IN A HANDFUL OF RUST
The ruins of Rusthenge have stood silent and mysterious for eons, dating back to the era of the runelords of ancient Thassilon. Now that New Thassilon has risen from the depths of the past, something below Rusthenge’s strange metallic ruins has begun to stir—and that bodes ill for the nearby village of Iron Harbor. What deadly legacy lies hidden within the unknown ruins below Rusthenge, and can it be stopped before a new evil is unleashed upon the land? Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge is a standalone adventure for 1st- to 3rd-level characters that includes a selection of new magic items, character backgrounds, and monsters for any Pathfinder campaign.
Pathfinder Adventure Path #196:The Summer That Never Was (Season of Ghosts 1 of 4)
A HOMETOWN HAUNTING
Your hometown of Willowshore has always observed the final days of spring with a festival known as the Season of Ghosts—a celebration of life that honors and placates the region’s many spirits. This year, something goes horribly wrong, and when you awake in the woods alone after a night of festivities, you find that your hometown is in dire need of heroes! The Season of Ghosts Adventure Path begins with “The Summer That Never Was,” a complete adventure for 1st- to 3rd-level characters.
Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide Special Edition
YOUR JOURNEY BEGINS!
Don’t let the best of Golarion pass you by! This handy book presents the highlights of the Inner Sea region to help curious travelers plan where to go and what to see. Gain local insights into the most extravagant festivals, the greatest hits of a storied theater scene, and the delicacies of fine restaurants. Discover notable athletes featured in upcoming sports competitions or the latest trends in fashion essential for dazzling onlookers at balls. Explore the vast, rich variety the Inner Sea has to offer!
The Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide is now available in deluxe special edition, bound in faux leather with metallic debossing and a bound in ribbon bookmark.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-08: Lost Revelry
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
At the outset of the Drift Crisis, many ships were thought lost forever. Among them was an enormous recreational vessel, the Revelry, with thousands aboard. As the Drift Crisis recently came to an end and the Drift stabilized, the ship fell out of the Drift, and briefly transmitted a garbled signal before suddenly falling silent. Now it floats among icy bodies beyond the fringes of the Pact Worlds system.
It was the Starfinders who first heard and reacted to the signal. The Vigilance, an Exo-Guardian vessel, went to investigate. Neither ship nor crew has reported back since their arrival on site, save for one incredibly garbled message. Ixthia the Unbreakable tasks the PCs with unraveling this mystery. They must journey to the now-silent Vigilance and Revelry, where they will discover that the latter's name is now a supreme irony, and—at the center of it all—a cold malevolence that seeks to spread its despair through the Pact Worlds and beyond.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-05: The Island of the Vibrant Dead
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
During routine study on the Maze of the Open Road, a lecture is interrupted by the old Pathfinder ghoul ally, Marcon Tinol. Through discussions with him, the Society learns that he and Drandle Dreng established an island haven in Azlant for ghouls wishing to live apart from humans—the Island of the Vibrant Dead. Marcon reports that a strange new ghoul named Ghessa has arrived on the island but her story about her death and undeath isn't adding up, and he fears that she may be up to something sinister. The PCs must travel to the island, where the residents maintain a ghoulish existence celebrating their undeath, and dig into Ghessa's story and her trips into the vaults of the long-dead Arodenite priesthood.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-09: Ridgerock Rescue
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
For the past year, the Starfinder Society has been searching for Ongie, a ysoki engineer on the run from the corporate overlords that have ruled Ongie’s hometown of Braerton for nearly a century: the Mongers. The Starfinder Society has recently come to suspect that the Mongers are the same group that they’ve been hunting all year—the mysterious Organization. If this is true, it’s likely that Braerton has an important role to play in Project Dawn, an ongoing plan enacted by the Organization that will result in the death of millions if they’re not stopped. Finding Ongie has become a matter of life and death.
Unfortunately, the Starfinders aren’t the only ones hot on Ongie’s trail. Organization assassins have been after Ongie since her escape from Braerton three years ago, and now they’ve finally cornered her on Vesk-7. If the Starfinders don’t act fast, Ongie and all the information she possesses will slip through their fingers.
Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #196:The Summer That Never Was (Season of Ghosts 1 of 4). And don’t forget about our new Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our adventure paths!
From Our Partners:
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API—or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Haunted Manor!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, October 18, 2023
It’s that time of year where company presidents look into the future, comparing what it costs to produce and create game products today versus what it did last year–and how those costs will change in the year to come. No one likes to raise prices, but doing so is a necessity. Paizo is not immune to economic factors like inflation, nor industry-wide fluctuations in cost-of-goods, labor, or shipping and logistics, and we must periodically adjust our prices to reflect rising costs. Let’s break things down.
Bounties, Quests, and Scenarios (PDF)
Bounties and Quests are standalone short digital adventures, usually designed to be played for up to 2 hours. We’ll be increasing the price of these from $4.99 to $5.99.
Society scenarios are adventures suitable for a single gaming session of around 4-5 hours. Many are part of an overarching theme for a particular year, so it’s possible to weave an entire campaign out of these scenarios one session at a time. Currently, scenarios are priced at $5.99 for “regular” scenarios and $7.99 for higher-level scenarios, which are generally longer and take longer to develop and edit. Very soon, we will standardize the price for ALL Society scenarios (regardless of level) to $8.99. Special “interactive” scenarios will increase from $14.99 to $19.99.
These price changes will be retroactive for all previously released products as of October 25th. If you have some gaps in your collection going back to the very beginning of Pathfinder Society in 2007, you may wish to backfill your collection before these new prices go into effect.
Other PDF Products
We don’t plan any other PDF price changes beyond what we announced last year.
Price Changes
We will be increasing prices on accessories, softcover, and hardcover books. The amount of this increase varies by product type, but here are some examples.
- Flip-Mats: $19.99 (+$3)
- Flip-Mat Multi-Pack: $29.99 (+$5)
- 96-page Adventure Paths: $29.99 (+$3)
- Pocket Editions will range in price from $26.99 to $34.99 based on page count.
- Hardcover prices will vary in price based on page count. That might seem obvious, but it’s a change from us keeping MSRP the same across wide page counts. Here are a couple of baseline examples.
- 128-page: $44.99
- 192-page: $59.99
- 256-page: $69.99
- 304-page plus map: $79.99
- Special Edition covers add an additional $20 to the retail price.
You’ll see the above price changes reflected in products that begin releasing in April of 2024, as well as reprints of older products.
Holding the Line on the Core
Contrary to what I’ve outlined above, we’ll keep the price of the hardcover Core books (Player Core, GM Core, Monster Core, and Player Core 2) at $59.99 through at least the first printing. We feel these books are essential first purchases for Pathfinder players and want to hold the line on price increases as long as possible to reduce the barrier of entry for new players.
Paizo and the Environment
For years, Paizo has printed our products using ecologically friendly soy-based ink rather than petroleum or other vegetable-based inks. Soy ink results in richer and more vibrant colors that require less ink on every page. We’ll definitely keep soy inks in Paizo products, but I wanted you to know about it, since it’s not something we’ve made a big deal about or discussed in the past.
What is new is that we’re changing to FSC-certified paper. This means that the paper Paizo uses will come from ecologically sourced forests that prohibit deforestation (replacing the trees they harvest with new growth), require biodiversity and old forests to be protected, protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and ensure that Paizo has a sustainable source of paper for many years to come. To learn about the Forest Stewardship Council or delve into the certification process visit their website.
Paizo is not switching to recycled paper, which is significantly more expensive and has a vastly different look and feel. FSC paper is a mix of new and recycled paper, and you won’t be able to tell the difference between new products and old ones without looking for the FSC label.
We’re making changes in shipping supplies as well. We’ve switched to using starch peanuts and air pockets in store shipments. We’re also phasing out the use of foam packing corners (for cardboard ones) and have switched all of consumer box packaging from U-Line to Alliance Packaging, who use an average of 50% recycled paper in their boxes. Your products will continue to be shipped as safely and securely as we can make them, only with more thought put into the environmental and social impacts of what we do.
Thanks again for supporting Paizo!
Jim Butler
President
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
When every individual action counts, you enter the encounter mode of play. In this mode, time is divided into rounds, each of which is 6 seconds of time in the game world. Every round, each participant takes a turn in an established order. During your turn, you can use actions, and depending on the details of the encounter, you might have the opportunity to use reactions and free actions on your own turn and on others’ turns. — Player Core
Of Pathfinder’s three modes of play, encounter mode is the most highly structured and often used for combat or other stressful situations. Basic encounter rules assume that they are being used in combat, but for social scenarios or other situations, you might adjust the basic structure to use longer rounds or different actions.
Encounter mode follows this basic structure:
- Roll initiative. When the GM calls for an initiative roll, make a roll to determine your place in the initiative order—the sequence in which all participants take their turns. Usually, this roll is Perception, but in some cases your GM might call for Stealth, Diplomacy, or other skills for initiative.
- Play a round. Beginning with the highest initiative roll, all participants take a turn in order. Certain free actions and reactions might also let a character act outside of their turn.
- Begin the next round. Once each participant has taken a turn, the round is over and the next begins, proceeding in the same order. Repeat this cycle until the encounter ends.
- End the encounter. Encounters can end when the foe is defeated, a truce is reached, or some other event ends combat. At this point, the initiative order is dropped and participants can act in a more free-form manner. GMs will often award Experience Points or treasure to the party for successfully overcoming the encounter.
Turn Structure
When your turn comes around in the initiative order, you have three actions to use. These can be spent on single actions, or you might spend two or three actions at once for short activities. You also have a reaction, which you can use when a given trigger occurs (even if it’s not your turn), and free actions (which cost no actions to use).
- Start your turn. Some things happen automatically at the start of your turn, such as reducing the number of turns remaining on an effect or making recovery checks. Do these “at the start of your turn” tasks in any order, then regain your 3 actions and 1 reaction.
- You can use actions in any order, but you must complete one action or activity before beginning another. Once you have spent all three actions, your turn is over—or you can choose to end your turn early and lose your remaining actions. You cannot split a two- or three-action activity between turns.
- End your turn. After your actions are completed, you can take the “end of your turn” steps in any order you choose. These steps could include ending spells that you chose not to sustain, taking persistent damage, and attempting saving throws for existing conditions.
Some combat encounters in unusual settings might require additional rules—Pathfinder Player Core also includes guidance for aerial combat, mounted combat, aquatic combat, and more.
Outside of encounter mode, a GM might transition the party into exploration mode or downtime—which we’re excited to cover in blogs to come!
Pre-order the remastered Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core today, or ask your FLGS about our hobby retailer exclusive Sketch Covers!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, October 13, 2023
It's October, and you know what that means—the leaves are falling, pumpkin spice floats on the wind, and the scourge known as candy corn is appearing on store shelves, and so I, James, am here to put on my pointy hat and talk about all things witchy coming in the Remaster!
As we've mentioned in some of our past material, the witch was a class we were excited to put into the first book of the remaster, the Player Core. The witch is a really iconic fantasy theme with a ton of historical and cultural grounding, and a popular player archetype for many characters. Unfortunately, we were also aware that the witch class has not quite always done the best at living up to this fantasy. The Remaster sees the witch as one of the most heavily changed classes, in ways that aim both to increase the class’s overall power budget as well as to express the witch’s unique flavor in an evocative way.
In Pathfinder, the witch’s defining feature is their relationship with their familiar and their patron—the witch does not get power from study, or from inherent gifts, but as part of a bargain made with a mysterious patron entity, with a magical familiar there to both provide power and make sure the witch is advancing the patron’s agenda. To highlight the fact that the witch is the premier familiar user in the game, we’ve increased the capabilities of their familiar from its original version. Now, the witch’s familiar gains even more abilities, one of which is wholly unique to the patron. These unique familiar abilities both help to express the patron’s theme, and they generate a passive effect every time the witch Casts or Sustains one of their hex cantrips. For example, a familiar granted by the Silence in Snow patron is forever cold to the touch—it might be the color of ice or its breath might crystallize in the air—and so every time you cast your sustain one of your hex spells, frost will form next to your familiar, creating difficult terrain. Many of these abilities are strong, but have very short ranges from your familiar, so be sure to keep your little shadow cat or curséd raven safe with spells like phase familiar or patron’s puppet, which can help to shield them from damage or let them dart quickly in and out of safety.
We’ve taken advantage of the Remaster to also do some general quality of life changes to the witch and make their abilities a little easier to use. Many hex cantrips now no longer make enemies temporarily immune to their effects once cast, as we felt that having to sustain them and having the limit of 1 hex cantrip per turn (it turns out, your patron doesn't like being pestered for supernatural favors three times in a six-second window) was already enough of a limit for most abilities. We also expanded some hex cantrips that were overly narrow, like wilding word, which used to function only against animals, fungi, or plants, but now function against any creature, with animals, fungi, and plants being especially vulnerable to its effects. Between loosening these restrictions and the unique abilities from familiars that happen when you Cast or Sustain a hex cantrip, the witch should be seeing a fair bit of hexing during their turns.
But of course, as your witch grows in power, so too can your familiar, which can gain various special abilities through higher-level feats. Some of these feats let your patron themself manifest through your familiar, to spooky effect. For instance, the new Patron’s Presence feat directs your patron's baleful attention to the battlefield, partially disrupting the magic of other spellcasters.
Patron’s Presence — Feat 14
WitchYour patron can direct its attention through your familiar, and its mere presence becomes an ominous weight on the minds of other beings to distract them and blot out their magic. Your familiar gains the following activity.
Patron’s Presence [two-actions] (aura) Frequency once per hour; Effect A palpable weight extends from your familiar in a 15-foot emanation. Enemies who enter or start their turn within the aura must succeed at a Will save against your spell DC or become stupefied 2 as long as they remain within the aura, or stupefied 3 on a critical failure. The aura lasts until the end of your next turn, but the familiar can Sustain it up to 1 minute.
Beyond some of these feats that lean on the Pathfinder side of witch mythology, we also wanted to go back to the rich folklore of witches worldwide and draw on this when we were giving witches new feats—and they’re getting quite a fair number of them! It would be remiss of me not to call out my very witchy colleagues Simone D. Sallé and Shay Snow, who drew on their deep knowledge of folk magic to suggest the seeds that grew into abilities like Ceremonial Knife, which allows a knife or dagger to direct magical energies like a magic wand; the new iron teeth Witch’s Armaments (supplementing eldritch nails and living hair); or Witch’s Broom, which lets you anoint a broom with flying ointments to transform it into a flying broomstick that you can ride through the night sky (this also works with a staff, polearm, or other broom-like object—not saying there are vacuum cleaners in Golarion, but I am saying the book gives you what you need to live your best Mary Sanderson life).
And with that, I think it's time for me to get into my Witch’s Hut and use its new Leap option to spin thrice and cast a 10th-rank teleport away! Be careful not to get cursed out there, and keep your eyes of newt on this space for more Remaster news!
The shadow remains cast,
James Case (he / him)
Senior Designer
Thursday, October 12, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders!
We have a special treat this week, as good old Drandle Dreng stopped by the Grand Lodge and an interesting flier slipped out of his pocket while he was chatting with some of the newer recruits. Let’s lean in together and see what it says, hm?Welcome to Deadhaven!
This undead island paradise is blessed by our own beloved Pallid Princess and kissed by the waves of the Arcadian Ocean!
Come and experience our once-in-a-death experiences!
Ride the Ghoulship Rapscallion!
Experience fine, classical Chelaxian dining at Bone Appetite!
Dance your skin off during the Celebration of the Vibrant Dead!
Take part in the Feast of the Faithful!
Tour the Deadend Village!
Get caught up in our Parade of the Undead!
Grab a drink at the Dead Ringer!To experience a little bit of Deadhaven right in your own home, Lord Walsam Calendrieu has graciously included two of his world-famous Dead on Demand cocktails! Below you’ll find his personal favorite, the Patella Colada, as well as his boyfriend’s favorite, the Necromintsy Julep.
Patella Colada
A fine cocktail invented by Lord Walsam himself and never before shared across Golarion.
1 ounce Fine Azlanti Rum
1 and 1/2 ounces pineapple juice
1/2 coconut cream (fresh cracked!)Fill your preferred shaker with ice cubes from your icebox. Add your rum, pineapple juice, and coconut cream and shake vigorously! (Don’t lose your arm!) Then strain the concoction into a lovely classic Taldan highball glass and garnish it with chunks of fresh pineapple!
If you can’t find the correct rum (or, Urgathoa forbid, if you don’t care for rum), simply replace the rum with more pineapple juice! Pineapples from Xopatl would be best, but your local strain will do just fine.
Necromintsy Julep
My beloved’s favorite drink from his time living in Absalom. What a city!
8 Absalomian mint leaves
1 sprig of Absalomian mint
2 ounces Fine Andoran Bourbon
1/4 ounce simple syrupIn a Petals cup or a rocks glass, lightly muddle the mint leaves and simple syrup before adding the bourbon. Finely crush your ice cubes from your icebox and tightly pack the glass. Stir until the cup is frosty on the outside, then top it with more crushed ice to form a dome (like that skull of yours)! Lastly, garnish the drink with your sprig of mint.
If you cannot use Andoran Bourbon, or if you simply wish for a less tipsy time, replace the bourbon with ginger beer!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Thursday, October 12th, 2023
Hey folks, Michael Sayre here again.
Thanks for an exciting playtest of the animist and exemplar classes! We had a ton of responses that we’re busy sifting through as we open these classes back up and start delving into what their futures might hold. We’re busy keeping the Remaster ball rolling right now, so we’re going to be pretty brief on the feedback here, but we can give you some insights into what we’ll be looking to refine and what the future might hold.
The Animist
The animist feedback has been very interesting. Most of you rated it as being moderately complicated, but there was also overwhelming support for almost all the major class features (apparitions, spellcasting, and vessel spells in particular). As such, we’re likely to keep the main chassis with a few targeted areas of improvement. Here’s what we might be changing and what might be staying the same.
- Practices: Folks have generally liked all the other individual pieces of the animist but noted that it’s very complicated. Practices are one area where I think we might be able to trim out some unnecessary complexity and tighten up the chassis. There are a couple directions we might go here, but the one I’m currently eyeing most closely is removing the practices entirely, standardizing the proficiency progression of the class, and replacing practices with invocations—unique prayers that speak to how each individual animist communes with their apparitions. This could likely be a place where a refined version of Apparition’s Possession and Apparition’s Whirl would live. It might also be the new home for Sustaining Dance; this would move it to an even more class-specific resource that is part of the main chassis instead of a feat. I’d likely be looking at introducing a few entirely new invocations here as well to speak to other types of personalized rites and prayers.
- Vessel Spells: Triple-casting the same vessel spell is something a lot of you noted as leading to degenerative play loops, and that was frankly something we’d always intended to put tighter limitations on. For the final version, we’re looking at putting some stricter limitations in place so that animists who focus on a single apparition are more heavily encouraged to use their spell slots and animists who change rapidly between different apparitions are more strongly encouraged to use a variety of vessel spells.
- Spellcasting: The animist’s spellcasting, which was a split between prepared spellcasting and spontaneous casting of apparition spells, was extremely popular with a super-majority of players. We’re likely to keep this as close to its current form as we can. I think there are a few places we can probably smooth things out to make it easier for folks to grok how the spellcasting actually works, but given the popularity of the progression itself I suspect we’ll focus on refinements here rather than big changes.
- Apparitions: We’re likely to significantly expand the number of apparitions compared to those that appeared in the playtest. We were very focused on testing out specific functions in this space to make sure all the foundational pieces worked well; now we’ll be refining the ones from the playtest and bringing in all kinds of new spirits for a variety of different themes and environments. (There’s a Lurker in Crushing Dark apparition that’s been on my idea board for a while now that I think is a shoo-in for folks who want either a deep-sea predator vibe or a Dark Tapestry association, and a crafting-oriented apparition I’m tinkering with that may or may not fit this space quite right… We’ll have to see!)
Those are the major areas of potential change I see us working on for the animist as we go forward. We’re still working our way through some of the more nuanced pieces of your feedback, though, so nothing is set in stone quite yet! Now I’m going to kick it over to James Case to talk about the exemplar.
The Exemplar
Hi everyone, James here. Let's talk about the exemplar! As always, the goal of the playtest exemplar was to test a number of mechanics in service of a strong final draft, rather than ensuring everything in the playtest was perfectly balanced. Many of you found the core mechanic of moving your divine spark—the focus of your power—into various sacred ikons to gain different effects to be fun and a fresh take on a martial character, so let’s dig in a bit deeper.
- Rarity and Tone: The exemplar has a pretty bombastic tone drawn from larger-than-life folklore and mythology. This seemed to be a big selling point in favor of the class! A few people noted that this tone means the exemplar might not fit into every campaign, though. This is intentional! We’re aware that tonally and narratively, the exemplar might not be for every single campaign, and therefore it’s pretty likely it will be staying with its current rarity to signal to GMs and players alike that this class would benefit from a brief check-in to see how it fits into the story—whether that's as one PC in a party of other classes, or in an all-exemplar party. (Now I’m thinking of the Golarion version of the Argonauts.)
- Power Spikes: To go with this bombastic tone, the exemplar was intended to have a pretty dynamic combat loop, with their defenses and offenses fluctuating to make for high highs and low lows. While the idea of dynamically changing your focus between offense and defense was very popular, we also think that we might want to ensure this isn't too swingy, so we will be stabilizing a little bit of the exemplar’s power. We're looking at increasing their defenses a tad and giving them a wider range of abilities for each of their ikon types, ensuring that you have less of a “downturn” between your Big Transcendent Weapon Moves (which, let's be honest, was what you were trying to use anyway), as well as a slightly wider range of useful supplementary abilities that you get all the time, not just when an ikon has your spark in it.
- Domain Spells: Domain spells are in an odd place—people thought they were useful, but also that they were a little boring, which makes sense since these are shared with other classes. The exemplar already has a lot to track with its spark placement and is primarily a martial character, so we’d rather lean into this as their main gameplay hook and will be removing domain spells from the exemplar in the final version of the class. However, the theme of “gaining a domain for yourself” was a popular one, so like our approach with the thaumaturge and its pact feats in Dark Archive, we will be moving this theme to an archetype later in the book that thematically aligns with the exemplar’s whole “reach into the heavens and seize godhood” thing in a very natural way.
- Epithet Recasting: A lot of you seemed to like using epithets to shape your character's story, and in fact, many people wanted these to be an even bigger part of the class. With the removal of spells, we have a little room to play here with the epithets—I have a couple of ways I'm thinking about going with it, and I don't know quite which one it's going to be yet, but I think it's a fun idea!
- MORE MORE MORE: Yes, there will be more. We know that there was not the widest selection of ikon types for the playtest, because we were looking at testing out the basic primary colors—major categories of weapon, for example—but with everyone’s feedback from the playtest, we can look at some more shades, like ikon types that are a bit more niche. Yes, there will be unarmed attack exemplars in final (however would I do my Bull of Heaven exemplar without it?), and yes, there will be a greater variety of ikon and epithet choices (however would I do my Demeter “the turbulent pinwheel of the seasons’ change” exemplar without it?) as well.
Thank you for coming along for the ride and for all your feedback! There was a lot to test with the exemplar, but with everyone's responses, we're in a good place to move forward with polishing the class up. I'll pass things back to Mike for some final notes!
And Mike takes the mic for the final thoughts!
The TLDR on this one is that it was a great playtest with a lot of positive responses and a lot of useful feedback to get these things refined. These were some of the highest-scoring classes we’ve put out as far as overall satisfaction ratings go, and we’re really pleased that so many of you were excited about these ideas and so eager to share your thoughts and experiences. Take care all, and we’ll see you next October when these classes take up arms to defend Golarion during the War of Immortals!
Michael Sayre
Design ManagerJames Case
Senior Designer
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Playtest, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Yoon’s target lay broken in the soot in front of her. She felt the air enter her lungs, but she didn’t pay it any heed, only the energy it held. The breath circulated through the young kineticist’s veins, coursing through her organs and flickering with the faintest traces of elemental power as it passed through each—at least, until it reached her heart and the gate within it. The energy ignited within Yoon, blazing as her body briefly became one with the Plane of Fire itself. Yoon’s eyes danced with embers as she set them on her target, thrusting her fist forward in a practiced stance and letting her breath out with a shout.
The log was no match, and it burst into flames.
“Do it again! Do it again!” Behind Yoon, the twins jumped up and down. Yoon smiled. The girls were growing up, and though they weren't quite as big as those two oni that Yoon had fought on the outskirts of Tsukiwa, they were about as relentless.
“OK, just one more,” Yoon drew her arms back, sweeping one leg in an exaggerated spiral she’d learned from a dancer at a roadside tavern (though she edited this part out for the twins’ young ears). “What should your eonni call this one?” Flames began to gather at her fingertips. Kyung-ja and Kyung-ok opened their mouths excitedly, but—
“Yoon! Ease up on the stove!” Yoon’s aunt turned around from where she was chopping vegetables. “Any more and we’ll burn our bottoms when we sit down to eat!”
Groans of disappointment came from the twins, deprived of their chance to see another of their cousin’s moves in action. “But dinner’s almost ready. Why don’t you three set the table?” The groans turned to cheers as food made its way out of the oven and delicious smells spilled forth.
“So there I was, the Gunpowder Gang all around me! They'd been skulking around the outskirts of Okim for weeks, and they had made off with the latest shipment of firearms. We tracked them to the edge of the forest, but they were holed up in a fort that was covered in giant spiked walls and surrounded by explosive mines. The rest of my team was stuck picking their way through the traps, but they couldn't keep out Yoon! I gathered my flames below me and blasted into the air—you know, your eonni can fly, sometimes.” She winked at the twins, whose mouths were hanging open so wide that a bean sprout fell out onto Kyung-ja’s plate.
Yoon took a spoonful of piping hot stew from the table, putting it over her rice, before shifting a bit to pull her leg off the floor and onto a cushion. She hated to admit it, but her aunt had been right, she really had gone a little overboard with the stove that was now merrily warming the floors. “I landed in the middle of more hobgoblins than you’ve ever seen! They were all around me, so Gom-Gom came out to help.”
“Gom-Gom... came out?” Kyung-ok looked at the ragged stuffed animal attached to the side Yoon’s bag.
“Yeah, like this! I needed the backup,” Yoon waved her hand, conjuring flames in the shape of her beloved stuffed toy. The flame jumped from her hand to land on the table, where he struck a fighting pose.
Yoon’s uncle coughed once as he poured Yoon a glass of clear spirits. “Yoon, Gom-Gom’s melting the ice, and I’d hate to drink this expensive liquor at room temperature after you brought it all the way here.”
“Ah, sorry, Imobu.” Yoon nodded as she took the glass, turned away from the table, and drank it down. She turned back to the twins. “Anyway, there we were, just me and Gom-Gom. He watched my back, breathing out fire like PWOOSH, PWOOSH!” Yoon blew air in her little cousins’ faces. “I faced forward and saw the Gunpowder Gang’s leader, a hobgoblin who was six—no, seven—feet tall, holding a bomb in either hand. Do you know what I did?”
Yoon’s aunt wiped at Kyung-ja’s mouth, “Did you shoot the bombs in his—”
“I shot the bombs in his hands! They blew him backwards into the wall, putting him down for the count! But his lackeys were spilling out, running around and trying to arm their cannons. Gom-Gom and I leapt into the air as they fired and the cannonballs exploded around the fort, and then I reached into the Plane of Fire, pulling out as much flame as I could. Then—what should I call this one?”
“Super-duper Phoenix Detonation!”
“Million Billion Shooting Stars!”
“Gom-Gom Blaze Crusher!”“Solar Flames in a Swirling Sphere!”
“Eonni Blows Up the World!”
Yoon chuckled. “Let’s go with Solar Detonation.” She continued the story of her overwhelming victory, while her aunt rolled her eyes, her uncle laughed, and warmth filled the house.
The twins yawned as Yoon drew the covers up. “Do you really have to go in the morning?” Kyung-ja asked.
Yoon ruffled her cousin’s hair. “I promised old man Lim that I’d help guard his caravan on the way to Haseong. Not everyone’s as invincible as me, you know, so I gotta help look out. But I'll be back before the seasons change.” Kyung-ok opened her mouth to protest. “Before I go, what colors do you two want?”
The protest turned to excitement. “Blue!”
“Purple!”
“Blue and purple, coming right up.” Yoon reached inwards, and with the slightest of breaths pulled two sparks forth, one in either hand. With the gentlest of motions, she spun them, one into a soft blue flicker and the other into a warm purple glow, and she set the two spheres above each mattress, dimming them as she did so. It took a little bit of her power, but Yoon had more than enough to spare on two nightlights for the important task of watching over her cousins while she was away.
“Be good now, the lights will know if you're naughty, and then I won't bring you a present back from the city.” The nightlights had no such power, but the girls didn't know that. The twins nodded vigorously, and soon were off to sleep.
Yoon shut the door and went back to the dining table. The morning would bring more journeys and battles, but for tonight, she could go for another drink with her uncle and another bite of her aunt's stew.
James Case (he / him)
Senior Designer
Tags: Iconic Encounters, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Monday, October 9, 2023
Koonííni'ííni, Pathfinders and Starfinders!
Today, October 9th, is recognized as Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the United States of America. In honor of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the Paizo offices are closed today. While we’re closed, we wanted to take a moment to recognize this holiday and suggest some resources for you to learn more!
Firstly, we would like to acknowledge that Paizo’s headquarters in Redmond, WA lies within the traditional homelands of the Duwamish and Sammamish tribes of Coast Salish peoples. Following the Treaty of Point Elliot in 1855, these tribes and others were consolidated and relocated to the Tulalip Tribes of Washington Indian Reservation. Since time immemorial, they have hunted, fished, gathered, and taken care of these lands.
If you are interested in knowing about the tribes and nations whose land you may be living on, here is an interactive map tool.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day honors the indigenous peoples of Turtle Island, Alaska, and Hawaii for their contributions to art, culture, history, and society. It also acknowledges the solemn truth of the atrocities committed against indigenous peoples over the course of this nation’s history. By celebrating the indigenous people of this country—past and present—we honor our ancestors and keep Native traditions of land, air, and water sovereignty alive.
If you have the means, a wonderful way for those settling in these lands and their children to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day is to donate money, time, or community service to your local tribal community, or participate in an environmental conservation project in your community.
Some larger scale non-profits and organizations to support nationwide include:
- Native American Rights Fund
- Redhawk Indigenous Arts Council
- National Urban Indian Family Coalition
- Indigenous Justice
- Spirit of the Sun
As we take today off here at Paizo, thank you for taking a moment to read this blog and celebrate the work of our indigenous relatives and ancestors, not to mention the work of indigenous people across the games industry. We look forward to showcasing some more indigenous creatives here at Paizo for Native American Heritage Month in November!
Hohóu, in solidarity
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Marketing & Media Specialist
Friday, October 6, 2022
"And then he walked face-first into a swarm of mosquitos, just like that!” Lini chuckled. “I remember the first time I did that, so many years ago! It nearly scared the life out of me. He’s fine, though; just rattled from the experience.”
The orange-haired dwarf grunted acknowledgement, pausing in his forward motion long enough to ask, “This was while I was scouting?”
“Right,” the lively gnome confirmed. “That’s why Valeros and Ezren stayed back at camp. Val wanted to sleep off the mosquitos…”“…and Ezren wanted to avoid getting his shoes wet again,” her friend grumbled.
“You’re not wrong.” Lini grinned, hopping over an old, grounded vine. “But I can’t really blame him for wanting to stay behind, Harsk. He’s been seeing enemies everywhere. Every plant’s a flesh-eater and each low-hanging vine’s a snake to the poor guy.”
“He’s not like us,” Harsk summarized.
Straight to the point as usual, the little druid mused, but no less correct for it. The three of them—her beloved companion Droogami, the ranger Harsk, and she—had already fallen into a comfortable pattern. Each of them knew the best places to set one’s feet to keep their steps as unobtrusive as possible, and they had a general knowledge of what to watch out for in this environment. Each was more comfortable here, in the middle of the thick-grown jungle, than in the chaos of “civilized” settlements. Likewise, they each trusted the other to be competent in their own skills.
“Right. And it’s never good to be alone, so I didn’t really mind them hanging back at camp while we went ahead,” Lini finished. She saw the momentary flicker of a grin cross Harsk’s face and knew he’d been thinking much the same thing about their traveling companions.
Exploring the jungle had been a lot easier since letting Ezren and Valeros stay back, she had to admit.
A short, sharp hiss of sound from the dwarf interrupted the conversation. Lini crouched instinctively and then rolled her eyes at herself; she was the one holding the torch. Most obvious target, anyone?
Fortunately, the ranger’s quick warning was not immediately followed by an attack. It was just a signal for her to be cautious. Moving forward quietly, keeping low, the green-haired druid soon discovered what Harsk had seen: through the darkness ahead, a stone monolith reached up through the shadows, impeding their chosen path.
Lini’s curiosity tingled through her, the thrill of discovery barely held at bay until she received an all-clear signal from Harsk and saw Droogami return from circling in the opposite direction. She practically bounced as she approached, hopping atop a nearby root, a thick but sturdy remnant from a long-fallen tree. At this greater height, she raised her small hand and gently cleared away a curtain of overgrown moss, then rested it along the edge of the strange, sculpted rock.
“Another one in the distance,” Harsk said, pointing out a similar shape at the edge of their vision. “Wonder how far these go.”
“Droo, look at this,” she breathed, running her fingers along the rock. “How old do you think this thing is?”
As ever, the snow leopard refused to lend her appraisal to the situation. Lini chuckled. “I bet Ezren’s kicking himself now. He’d have wanted to see this.” Though, she had to admit to herself, he’d have certainly seen that vine over there as another snake, that plush leaf as a squirmy caterpillar, that hanging bit of moss as a bat…
“We’ll bring them tomorrow. More light then,” Harsk said.
Nodding, Lini’s hand brushed over a dip in the stone’s surface. Following a hunch, the gnome cleared away more of the moss. “Hang on a tic...! Hey, Harsk, there’s some sculpted stuff on the monolith! Kinda looks all swirly and serpentine. Come and look!”
“One moment,” answered the ranger. His own exploration had turned up something odd: dark, splotchy stains on an otherwise-green leaf. Blood...? He looked up, trying to locate the source of any drip, but found nothing of interest above. His stomach tensed, as it often did when he realized there was likely danger nearby.
You never know what you’ll find in the heart of the jungle. Illustration by WIll O'Brien from Pathfinder GM Core.
Meanwhile, Lini’s eyes shifted, focusing just beyond the edges of the monolith, past the normal spectrum of light, into the space that allowed her to detect the presence of magic. What she found drew a thoughtful sound from her. “Huh. There’s a faint magical aura on it, too...”
Harsk’s warning whistle came just in time. Lini dropped down and saw the emerald green blur of a reptilian tail jam into the stone right where her head had been. Instinctually, she pulled magic around her, drawing from the earth and tightening her skin to mimic the stony strength of the monolith. If not for Harsk’s well-timed warning, she’d have been mincemeat! The creature righted itself along the side of the stone and reared up over the top, its bright, leathery wings catching the torchlight.
“Drake!” the ranger called. As if in answer, a second serpentine hunter launched itself from the trees, angling towards him. That was a mistake; lightning quick, Harsk brought his axes to hand and left a long wound along the creature’s side as it flew by, hearing a satisfying shriek in reaction.
Meanwhile, Droogami launched herself towards the perched dragon threatening Lini, deftly avoiding the swing of the creature’s stinger and swiping at it with her mighty claws.
Despite the danger she was in, Lini had to admit that jungle drakes were simply gorgeous creatures. Sure, they were larger than she was by a notable amount, and sure, their stingers hurt like nobody’s business and had enough goopy venom in them to sicken even the hardiest body. But they were just trying to eat, after all, and a dwarf, a gnome, and a big cat sure seemed like an easy meal. Lini could totally understand how tempting a target she must make. Still, how majestic they looked when they—Oops, it’s diving again!
Rolling clear of claws and dodging the drake’s stinger, Lini gathered her magic and aimed it at Droogami. Focusing nature’s might, she used herself as a conduit, feeding power into the great snow leopard. The little druid felt her bond with the cat strengthen, their shared energy invigorating her friend. “Droo!” she called. “Like we practiced!”
Her stalwart companion and protector stood between Lini and the hungry drake. Fixing the creature with its most menacing gaze, Droogami let loose a long, primal growl, a burst of sound that shredded the air before her. You are not hunter, the magically enhanced noise insisted as it tore into the drake. You are prey.
Even Harsk had to glance over his shoulder at the great cat; he’d never heard Droo do that before. He was glad he wasn’t the target of her aimed, pain-inducing yowl.
The drake, however, wasn’t so fortunate: it reeled, knocked off balance and startled by the painful sound. Its eyes widened with fear, and for a moment, it seemed to reconsider its options. Jungle drakes typically didn’t prefer to stay and face down their prey, instead opting to fly by, letting their venom do the work for them. This one’s meal had just become more trouble than it was worth.
Noting the creature’s hesitation, Lini pressed the attack, pulling her sling and sending sharpened, stinging rocks hurtling towards it. “Harsk, watch for the stingers and the spit,” she called.
“D’ya think?” countered Harsk, diving out of the way of a flailing stinger. He rolled closer to the great creature, angling his axes with the movement, and was rewarded with a horrible screech—and a spray of hot blood as he severed the drake’s stinger from its tail. Using his momentum, he leapt from the ground, slicing his weapons upward and catching the creature’s wing. It was all but done for, and the ranger wasted no time finishing the job.
That left the one facing Lini and Droogami. By now, the gnome had moved into a flanking position, sending stinging stones at its back while Droo slashed and clawed at the creature’s front. It was going to lose.
This was too much for the creature. In perhaps the smartest choice of its entire life, the drake decided that the small, helpless meal was neither as small nor as helpless as originally thought. It displayed its wings broadly to buy itself some space and, hissing, leapt into the canopy above, beating a hasty retreat.
The victory didn’t make the druid or her friends feel much better. Taking only a moment to catch his breath, Harsk asked tersely, “You hurt?”
“No,” breathed Lini, turning her attention to Droogami. A few moments reassured her that her friend was in healthy condition. “We’re both good. You?”
Harsk nodded, voicing the thought in the same moment Lini had it: “Strange that it chose to retreat so suddenly. I don’t like it.”
“I mean, we were more than it bargained for,” Lini said. “But I don’t like it either. They love to fly-by and poison, but it’s very rare for those things to only fly in twos.”
“Then there might be more,” Harsk said. “It might be getting friends. Let’s get back to camp.”
“And quickly,” agreed Lini. “Ez and Val may be in danger!”
Wasting no more time, Harsk bounded away. Lini hopped onto Droogami’s back and the giant cat was quick to follow. Tomorrow, they could return, clean the carcass, and continue exploring the ruins. Tonight, Ezren and Valeros might need help, and neither Lini nor Harsk intended to let their teammates down.
About the Author
Rachael Cruz is an award-winning writer / game designer whose TTRPG work can be found in Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed-Of, Dune: Adventures in the Imperium, Fantasy Age, RuneQuest, Star Trek Adventures, and more! She loves to help people of all ages play pretend and tell amazing stories together. For contact info, social addresses, and general writerly stuff, visit rachaelcruz.carrd.co.
About Iconic Encounters
Iconic Encounters is a series of web-based flash fiction set in the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder. Each short story provides a glimpse into the life and personality of one of the games’ iconic characters, showing the myriad stories of adventure and excitement players can tell with the Pathfinder and Starfinder roleplaying games.Tags: Iconic Encounters, Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Web Fiction
]]>Thursday, October 5, 2023
OPC Musings
The weather’s taken a dramatic turn here in Seattle. Just a week ago it was bright sunshine and beautiful skies, but now things are dark, gloomy, dramatic, and chilly. It’s the perfect weather to curl up inside with your friends and family and play some games! We’ve got some great spooky scenarios for you this season, and some wintery adventures coming up to chill your bones. Let’s get into it!
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on October 25, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-05: The Island of the Vibrant Dead•
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-08: Lost Revelry•
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-09: Ridgerock Rescue•
•part of a subscription
PAX Unplugged
We're just under two months until PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia! Today we’re excited to let you know that pre-signups for our scenarios will open this coming Tuesday, October 9. You can register for the Warhorn and get ready for signups here.
Note that we are offering only a limited number of early signups for our scenario tables. Per PAX guidelines, demo offerings such as Pathfinder Bounties, board game demos, and Starfinder 2 demos are strictly on a walk-up basis. We’re also reserving a couple of seats at our scenario tables for walk-up players as well.
We’ve still got room for a few more volunteers as well! If you’re interested in helping us show off our games to the PAX Unplugged audience, get all the info and register to volunteer here.
Organized Play: Now Streaming on Foundry VTT
To show off our brand-new Society Foundry modules, the marketing team decided to put together a couple of very special liveplays for you! The first episodes of both our Pathfinder Society[[Maryssa: link to YouTube]] and Starfinder Society liveplays have already aired, featuring a colorful cast of Paizo staffers capably led through our adventures by GM Jason Keeley! You can catch the conclusion to those adventures this Tuesday, October 10, and next Tuesday, October 17, on our Twitch or YouTube channel!
We hope you enjoy them—and hey, if you let my boss know you like them, we might get away with running some more…
The Perks of Board Gaming
As Paizo continues to release board games, as well as bring new licensed partners and their games into the fold, we thought we should look at how to reward players who own or play these games! As such, we’ve added a new category to the Accessory Perks page for board games!
Each current program has a listed benefit, and players who own a game and bring proof may select this benefit. However, to encourage actually playing the games, any participant in a session of a Pathfinder or Starfinder board game gains the benefit for 24 hours following the session. Why not get in a quick game of Goblin Firework Fight before your next convention slot?
Toys of Boundless Wonder 2023
For the past two years, the Northern Virginia lodge has organized a Toys for Tots event, bringing in the League of Aroden last year. This year’s event has just been announced, and they’re hoping to make it bigger and better than ever! If your local store or lodge is interested in helping to support a wonderful holiday program, and getting a chance to run this year’s Pathfinder Society special, read up on the event on the League of Aroden's blog.
GM Recognition
Order of the Wayfinder
In addition to the Campaign Service Coin, we also have one other award: the Order of the Wayfinder. This award is given out only once per year, and it recognizes a member of the community who has provided exceptional service. Typically, we give this award to individuals who have taken on a particular project and knocked it out of the park. Previously, this award has been awarded to the head of our Additional Resources review team and our Regional Venture-Coordinator for the Online region, among others.
This year’s Wayfinder was awarded at Gen Con Indy, but apparently I neglected to announce it widely until today. This year’s recipient was Heather Vigil. Heather has been the lead on our Gen Con Committee since before I was hired, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that I couldn’t run the show without her. Her depth of knowledge keeps the show running smoothly every year, and her dedication to the program is unmatched. On top of Gen Con, she runs two other conventions in Cincinnati each year, and finds time to make beautiful custom dice bags for the volunteers. She’s an absolute treasure to this organization and I’m so pleased to recognize her with this award, even if she’ll never forgive me for it.
Campaign Service Coins
This month, one new Campaign Service Coin was awarded at a local convention. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay[at]paizo[dot]com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Gary Bush, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #884GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th rank!
5th Nova (SFS1): Noah Posthuma
5th Glyph (PFS2): Stephan V
That's all from me! Until next time—Explore! Report! Cooperate! And play some games!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, October 4th, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders and Starfinders! Now that we’re getting back into the swing of regular streams here at Paizo, I thought it best to make an announcement post each month for upcoming streams. This way, you can mark your calendars in advance for all the amazing content coming your way!
Follow us on twitch to keep up with these streams as they air, and keep an eye out for the VODs, posted to YouTube afterwards.
Paizo LIVE!—Friday, October 6th 4–6 p.m.
Join us for this month’s Paizo LIVE! October’s topics include an update on Starfinder Second Edition from Dustin and Jenny, a look at the Pathfinder Season of Ghosts Adventure Path from freelance author Sen H.H.S, and a glimpse at the upcoming Pathfinder: Elemental Stones board game from designer Joe Pasini! Bring a beverage and your questions and get settled in for this monthly fireside chat.
]]>Gayming Live—October 7
Paizo is excited to be participating in Gayming Live, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ gaming and geek convention! Join us Saturday, October 7 at 11:15 a.m. Eastern for Queer Characters, Queer Stories, Queer Worlds—a panel discussing inclusive and diverse world building in TTRPGs. Also on Saturday, October 7, join us at 6:15 p.m. Eastern for In the Footsteps of Horror—a pre-recorded actual play of Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #15.
Lost Omens Special—Friday, October 13th 4–5 p.m.
Take a trip to Tian Xia for this special Lost Omens Showcase Stream! Creative Director Luis Loza talks to Senior Designer James Case and Senior Developer Eleanor Ferron about the upcoming Pathfinder Lost OmensTian Xia World Guide and Pathfinder Lost OmensTian Xia Character Guide.
Starfinder Society Foundry Showcase—Tomorrow’s Seekers, Episode 2
Did you miss the first episode of our Starfinder Society Showcase? Watch the VOD here to catch up.
Having assisted Aurora and Sarmack, our party of bright-eyed Starfinders continue their adventure by aiding Nykiti and Doctor Sevaille on missions of their own. Who will win the Starfinders’ hearts—and their votes?
Pathfinder Society Foundry Showcase—Intro to Year of Unfettered Exploration, Episode 2
Did you miss the first episode of our Pathfinder Society Showcase? Watch the VOD here to catch up.
In their quest to show Venture Captain Taiwalei the Maze of the Open Road, our Pathfinders find themselves at an elemental intersection. Looking for a collection of elemental wisps, they journey back into the maze, astounded by what awaits them.
Tags: Paizo, Paizo Twitch, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siex?Field-Test-2-Putting-the-Fantasy-in Field Test #2: Putting the Fantasy in Science-Fantasy 2023-10-04T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-10-04T13:00:00.000-04:00 Field Test #2: Putting the Fantasy in Science-Fantasy Wednesday, October 4th, 2023 Starfinder releases its second Field Test! Hey everyone! Welcome to the exciting reveal of our second Starfinder Second Edition Field Test. If you didn’t already know, there's a new edition of Starfinder on the way. We’ve previously released a Field Test document that highlighted a work-in-progress snapshot of the new soldier class, plus some new firearms. Today we’re taking a similar approach and releasing the first five levels of the new mystic class, along with a handful of Starfinder 2e spells. Concept Sketches by Kent Hamilton Mystic is a class that we’re really interested in getting more feedback on. As a spontaneous caster, its connections currently give it access to the divine and primal traditions. However, regardless of the chosen connection, the mystic gains powerful healing in the form of its vitality network ability. Mystics can further customize how they use their vitality network through their connection and feat choices, but you’ll have to download the Field Test to learn more! In our playtests, the mystic has been exceptionally efficient as a healer, in part because its powerful vitality network ability has the potential to restore large sums of Hit Points as a single action. However, the mystic is also a class that manages its resources, either doling out Hit Points in smaller chunks or saving up for a big heal that depletes the vitality network entirely. We found that in challenging encounters, the mystic might easily deplete their vitality network and need to decide whether or not keeping allies alive at low Hit Points is worth the risk. This new rendition of the mystic relies on its connection and forming bonds with fellow party members. It shares a lot of the same design space as the First Edition mystic, just reworked to fit the Second Edition engine and to mesh in a broader sense with the setting. We’re taking some steps to allow for mystics to be more directly connected to deities, which wasn’t entirely possible in the past. This means that a player can create a mystic character who is a priest or follower of a deity and gain many of the same benefits that a cleric might enjoy. Don’t worry, mystics won’t be required to worship a deity. Along with the mystic, we’re also including some new spells for everyone to check over. Some of these are spells we mentioned in our prior Field Test, now with actual stats included. In addition, we’ve included some fun thematic spells like doom scroll and motivating ringtone, which really show what Starfinder has to offer in terms of a truly different type of spellcasting—not to mention the modern and futuristic themes we want to explore with our new rules. As always, we’re excited to see fan feedback on our work and can’t wait to see the thoughts people share with us in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for our upcoming Paizo Live, where members of the Starfinder team will further discuss the Field Test, as well as give some hints on exciting up-and-coming content for the new edition of Starfinder. — The Starfinder Team -Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder) -Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer -Dustin Knight, Developer -Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society Developer Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition Field Test #2: Putting the Fantasy in Science-Fantasy
Wednesday, October 4th, 2023
Starfinder releases its second Field Test!
Hey everyone! Welcome to the exciting reveal of our second Starfinder Second Edition Field Test.If you didn’t already know, there's a new edition of Starfinder on the way. We’ve previously released a Field Test document that highlighted a work-in-progress snapshot of the new soldier class, plus some new firearms. Today we’re taking a similar approach and releasing the first five levels of the new mystic class, along with a handful of Starfinder 2e spells.
Mystic is a class that we’re really interested in getting more feedback on. As a spontaneous caster, its connections currently give it access to the divine and primal traditions. However, regardless of the chosen connection, the mystic gains powerful healing in the form of its vitality network ability. Mystics can further customize how they use their vitality network through their connection and feat choices, but you’ll have to download the Field Test to learn more!
In our playtests, the mystic has been exceptionally efficient as a healer, in part because its powerful vitality network ability has the potential to restore large sums of Hit Points as a single action. However, the mystic is also a class that manages its resources, either doling out Hit Points in smaller chunks or saving up for a big heal that depletes the vitality network entirely. We found that in challenging encounters, the mystic might easily deplete their vitality network and need to decide whether or not keeping allies alive at low Hit Points is worth the risk.
This new rendition of the mystic relies on its connection and forming bonds with fellow party members. It shares a lot of the same design space as the First Edition mystic, just reworked to fit the Second Edition engine and to mesh in a broader sense with the setting. We’re taking some steps to allow for mystics to be more directly connected to deities, which wasn’t entirely possible in the past. This means that a player can create a mystic character who is a priest or follower of a deity and gain many of the same benefits that a cleric might enjoy. Don’t worry, mystics won’t be required to worship a deity.
Along with the mystic, we’re also including some new spells for everyone to check over. Some of these are spells we mentioned in our prior Field Test, now with actual stats included. In addition, we’ve included some fun thematic spells like doom scroll and motivating ringtone, which really show what Starfinder has to offer in terms of a truly different type of spellcasting—not to mention the modern and futuristic themes we want to explore with our new rules. As always, we’re excited to see fan feedback on our work and can’t wait to see the thoughts people share with us in the coming weeks.
Stay tuned for our upcoming Paizo Live, where members of the Starfinder team will further discuss the Field Test, as well as give some hints on exciting up-and-coming content for the new edition of Starfinder.
— The Starfinder Team
-Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
-Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer
-Dustin Knight, Developer
-Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society DeveloperTags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siew?Player-Core-Preview-The-Remastered-Ranger Player Core Preview: The Remastered Ranger 2023-10-03T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-10-03T14:00:00.000-04:00 Player Core Preview: The Remastered Ranger Tuesday, October 03, 2023 Hello all! Mike Sayre here to give you your next peek into the Remaster project with a look at the updated ranger, appearing in Pathfinder Player Core this November. The ranger is a wilderness warrior, a character who’s good with weapons, good with animals, good in the wilds, and who can sprinkle just a little bit of magic into their repertoire if they feel like it. By and large, this is one of the classes that most people consider to be solid and effective, good at its role both thematically and mechanically. While we’re not inclined to fix things that aren’t broken, the ranger being a generally solid and effective class pre-Remaster didn’t mean we didn’t have some notable opportunities to go in and spruce a few things up, improving the general progression and experience. I’ll be talking about a few of those things here. The magical element of the ranger is often one of its more understated aspects, but it’s one people really care about. Originally, ranger focus spells, called warden spells, were added to the class after the fact in the Advanced Player’s Guide, and one of the downsides to this was that since they weren’t built into the class originally, the class didn’t have mechanisms in place to ensure that the ranger’s spellcasting proficiency improved as the character leveled up. In the Remaster, we’ve baked the spellcasting progression directly into the ranger’s core chassis, ensuring that class features like Ranger Expertise and Masterful Hunter naturally progress the ranger’s spellcasting proficiency all the way up to master. We also streamlined the feats that the ranger uses to accrue their warden spells and recategorized the spells into easily referenced groups; the 1st-level Initiate Warden feat allows you to choose from any of the initial warden spells (which are all of the ranger’s focus spells that start at 1st rank), and there are regularly paced feats all the way up to the 10th-level Peerless Warden feat that gives you access to the strongest ranger focus spells available, which are focus spells that all start at 5th rank. Along with the general improvements to spellcasting, we also added some new feats to help make certain builds pop and shine a bit more brightly. Precision rangers who like combining warden spells with big shots from crossbows will likely appreciate the Warden’s Reload feat shown below, which allows them to reload as a free action once per round when they cast a warden spell; this combines nicely with staple spells like gravity weapon to increase your weapon damage or spells like ranger’s bramble that damage and immobilize your foes, making them easy targets for you to pick off from a safe distance! Ranger snares are going to be the one thing not appearing in Player Core that were originally available to the class; snares were kind of the least satisfying of the options available to the ranger and the least used options, so we’ve pulled those out of the class. They’ll be appearing in Player Core 2 alongside the Snarecrafter archetype, with a much-needed facelift. There were also a few places where we had feats that many people saw as being taxes that you had to pay to accomplish a specific flavor. For example, the Crossbow Ace feat that originally appeared in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook was written under the assumption that all crossbows were simple weapons, and so it provided a damage bonus that essentially converted those simple weapons into martial weapons whenever you took certain actions like using Hunt Prey or reloading. This ended up having a couple issues. On the one hand, the damage bonus was big enough that the feat felt like a “must have” if you were going to be using a crossbow, crowding out build versatility and other options. On the other hand, the feat was actively fighting with the ranger’s play loop; if you were Tracking your prey before combat began and you had your crossbow in hand loaded and ready for the fight, you didn’t have any way to get your damage bonus! Playing the character the way that everything in the game was telling you to play your character was leading to situations where you couldn’t use the abilities you were supposed to be using in the situations you were supposed to be using them. To address those issues, we added a martial crossbow, the arbalest, so that you could expect a more reasonable damage output without needing to pay a feat tax. While we had the patient open on crossbows, we also adjusted them to make them their own weapon group, with a damage-oriented critical specialization that deals 1d8 persistent bleed damage plus additional bleed damage equal to the weapon’s item bonus to attack rolls. If you preferred the bow critical specialization they had before, you can add that back onto your crossbow with the grievous rune, which makes it so that getting a critical hit with your crossbow when you have the critical specialization adds the bleed damage and also pins the target to an adjacent surface until they Interact to pull the bolt free. With the basic damage outlay on crossbows addressed via the core weapon system, we were able to make reloading more fun and tactical with the feat space that was opened up. In addition to options like the Warden’s Reload feat I mentioned previously, we’ve also reworked Crossbow Ace and similar options to function more like the gunslinger’s various reload abilities, giving you additional things you can do to reinforce your playstyle with reload weapons while improving your ability to achieve the kind of cinematic tactical maneuvering that the class was always aiming to provide. So that’s everything I’ve got for you on the ranger! Thanks for tuning in and stay tuned for upcoming looks at the rest of what we’ve got coming to you in the Pathfinder Remaster. Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Player Core Preview: The Remastered Ranger
Tuesday, October 03, 2023
Hello all! Mike Sayre here to give you your next peek into the Remaster project with a look at the updated ranger, appearing in Pathfinder Player Core this November.
The ranger is a wilderness warrior, a character who’s good with weapons, good with animals, good in the wilds, and who can sprinkle just a little bit of magic into their repertoire if they feel like it. By and large, this is one of the classes that most people consider to be solid and effective, good at its role both thematically and mechanically. While we’re not inclined to fix things that aren’t broken, the ranger being a generally solid and effective class pre-Remaster didn’t mean we didn’t have some notable opportunities to go in and spruce a few things up, improving the general progression and experience. I’ll be talking about a few of those things here.
The magical element of the ranger is often one of its more understated aspects, but it’s one people really care about. Originally, ranger focus spells, called warden spells, were added to the class after the fact in the Advanced Player’s Guide, and one of the downsides to this was that since they weren’t built into the class originally, the class didn’t have mechanisms in place to ensure that the ranger’s spellcasting proficiency improved as the character leveled up. In the Remaster, we’ve baked the spellcasting progression directly into the ranger’s core chassis, ensuring that class features like Ranger Expertise and Masterful Hunter naturally progress the ranger’s spellcasting proficiency all the way up to master. We also streamlined the feats that the ranger uses to accrue their warden spells and recategorized the spells into easily referenced groups; the 1st-level Initiate Warden feat allows you to choose from any of the initial warden spells (which are all of the ranger’s focus spells that start at 1st rank), and there are regularly paced feats all the way up to the 10th-level Peerless Warden feat that gives you access to the strongest ranger focus spells available, which are focus spells that all start at 5th rank.
Along with the general improvements to spellcasting, we also added some new feats to help make certain builds pop and shine a bit more brightly. Precision rangers who like combining warden spells with big shots from crossbows will likely appreciate the Warden’s Reload feat shown below, which allows them to reload as a free action once per round when they cast a warden spell; this combines nicely with staple spells like gravity weapon to increase your weapon damage or spells like ranger’s bramble that damage and immobilize your foes, making them easy targets for you to pick off from a safe distance!
Ranger snares are going to be the one thing not appearing in Player Core that were originally available to the class; snares were kind of the least satisfying of the options available to the ranger and the least used options, so we’ve pulled those out of the class. They’ll be appearing in Player Core 2 alongside the Snarecrafter archetype, with a much-needed facelift.
There were also a few places where we had feats that many people saw as being taxes that you had to pay to accomplish a specific flavor. For example, the Crossbow Ace feat that originally appeared in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook was written under the assumption that all crossbows were simple weapons, and so it provided a damage bonus that essentially converted those simple weapons into martial weapons whenever you took certain actions like using Hunt Prey or reloading. This ended up having a couple issues. On the one hand, the damage bonus was big enough that the feat felt like a “must have” if you were going to be using a crossbow, crowding out build versatility and other options. On the other hand, the feat was actively fighting with the ranger’s play loop; if you were Tracking your prey before combat began and you had your crossbow in hand loaded and ready for the fight, you didn’t have any way to get your damage bonus! Playing the character the way that everything in the game was telling you to play your character was leading to situations where you couldn’t use the abilities you were supposed to be using in the situations you were supposed to be using them.
To address those issues, we added a martial crossbow, the arbalest, so that you could expect a more reasonable damage output without needing to pay a feat tax. While we had the patient open on crossbows, we also adjusted them to make them their own weapon group, with a damage-oriented critical specialization that deals 1d8 persistent bleed damage plus additional bleed damage equal to the weapon’s item bonus to attack rolls. If you preferred the bow critical specialization they had before, you can add that back onto your crossbow with the grievous rune, which makes it so that getting a critical hit with your crossbow when you have the critical specialization adds the bleed damage and also pins the target to an adjacent surface until they Interact to pull the bolt free.
With the basic damage outlay on crossbows addressed via the core weapon system, we were able to make reloading more fun and tactical with the feat space that was opened up. In addition to options like the Warden’s Reload feat I mentioned previously, we’ve also reworked Crossbow Ace and similar options to function more like the gunslinger’s various reload abilities, giving you additional things you can do to reinforce your playstyle with reload weapons while improving your ability to achieve the kind of cinematic tactical maneuvering that the class was always aiming to provide.
So that’s everything I’ve got for you on the ranger! Thanks for tuning in and stay tuned for upcoming looks at the rest of what we’ve got coming to you in the Pathfinder Remaster.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siev?Introducing-the-Season-of-Ghosts-Player-s-Guide Introducing the Season of Ghosts Player’s Guide 2023-10-02T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-10-02T13:30:00.000-04:00 Introducing the Season of Ghosts Player’s Guide Monday, October 02, 2023 Your hometown is in peril, and needs you to come to its rescue! The remote town of Willowshore is nestled on the banks of the Ceiba River. Founded by religious pilgrims and host for a time to a bustling lumber business, in the first few years after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens, Willowshore’s fate looks grim. Already faced with fears about political upheaval due to the collapse of the empire of Lung Wa, and fearful of rumors that monsters from the deeper reaches of Shenmen are preparing to seize control of the land, Willowshore is ill prepared for a horrific new curse about to engulf the region. In the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, each player character calls Willowshore their home—be it one their family has lived in for generations or a place they’ve only recently arrived at. When your group awakens on the first day of spring in the nearby woods, what at first seems like the aftermath of a night spent too energetically during a festival reveals itself to be something much more sinister. Wildlife is acting strange and aggressive. Thick fog has descended upon the region. And at night... things get worse. Can you help your hometown escape from this sinister curse? Or are you and your homes equally doomed to fall into the clutches of sinister forces in this horror-themed Adventure Path set in the heart of the continent of Tian Xia? Inside the Season of Ghosts Player’s Guide, you’ll find player-friendly, spoiler-free information and tips to help you make an exciting new character perfect for the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, which is set just over a hundred years in the past, not long after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens itself! This player's guide contains: Information about local customs in the rural town of Willowshore, and background on the state of the region in the years directly after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens, over 100 years in the past. Character suggestions, including recommendations for alignments, ancestries, classes, languages, skills, and feats well suited for this Adventure Path. Six new backgrounds to contextualize your character’s history with Willowshore, including additional benefits you can draw upon once per season, advice on how to integrate your character’s family and home into the town of Willowshore, and details on heirlooms you might begin the campaign with. A detailed gazetteer of the town of Willowshore and its hinterlands, including maps of the town and surrounding region and player-friendly notes and descriptions for thirty locations in the town itself! Download The Player's Guide Today! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts Introducing the Season of Ghosts Player’s Guide
Monday, October 02, 2023
Your hometown is in peril, and needs you to come to its rescue!
The remote town of Willowshore is nestled on the banks of the Ceiba River. Founded by religious pilgrims and host for a time to a bustling lumber business, in the first few years after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens, Willowshore’s fate looks grim. Already faced with fears about political upheaval due to the collapse of the empire of Lung Wa, and fearful of rumors that monsters from the deeper reaches of Shenmen are preparing to seize control of the land, Willowshore is ill prepared for a horrific new curse about to engulf the region.
In the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, each player character calls Willowshore their home—be it one their family has lived in for generations or a place they’ve only recently arrived at. When your group awakens on the first day of spring in the nearby woods, what at first seems like the aftermath of a night spent too energetically during a festival reveals itself to be something much more sinister. Wildlife is acting strange and aggressive. Thick fog has descended upon the region. And at night... things get worse. Can you help your hometown escape from this sinister curse? Or are you and your homes equally doomed to fall into the clutches of sinister forces in this horror-themed Adventure Path set in the heart of the continent of Tian Xia?
Inside the Season of Ghosts Player’s Guide, you’ll find player-friendly, spoiler-free information and tips to help you make an exciting new character perfect for the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, which is set just over a hundred years in the past, not long after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens itself!
This player's guide contains:
- Information about local customs in the rural town of Willowshore, and background on the state of the region in the years directly after the onset of the Age of Lost Omens, over 100 years in the past.
- Character suggestions, including recommendations for alignments, ancestries, classes, languages, skills, and feats well suited for this Adventure Path.
- Six new backgrounds to contextualize your character’s history with Willowshore, including additional benefits you can draw upon once per season, advice on how to integrate your character’s family and home into the town of Willowshore, and details on heirlooms you might begin the campaign with.
- A detailed gazetteer of the town of Willowshore and its hinterlands, including maps of the town and surrounding region and player-friendly notes and descriptions for thirty locations in the town itself!
Download The Player's Guide Today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Season of Ghosts
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sieu?Ancestries-and-Heritages-Preview-A-World-of Ancestries and Heritages Preview: A World of Possibility 2023-09-29T15:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-29T15:00:00.000-04:00 Ancestries and Heritages Preview: A World of Possibility Friday, September 29, 2023 Your character’s ancestry determines which people they call their own, whether it’s diverse and ambitious humans, insular but vivacious elves, traditionalist and family-focused dwarves, or any of the other folk who call Golarion home. A character’s ancestry and their experiences prior to their life as an adventurer—represented by a background—might be key parts of their identity, shape how they see the world, and help them find their place in it. Ancestries Pathfinder Player Core introduces a variety of ancestries, each with their own heritage subgroups. These ancestries and heritages express a character’s culture and influence their attributes and abilities. You can get special attribute boosts and flaws for your ancestry, such as a goblin getting better Dexterity and Charisma and worse Wisdom, or you can freely customize your attributes for any ancestry to play exactly the character you want. The ancestries included in Pathfinder Player Core are: dwarf, elf, gnome, goblin, halfling, human, leshy, and orc. Versatile Heritages The peoples of Golarion are many, and they have a long history of intermingling or dabbling with forces capable of altering the very fabric of a mortal body or soul. The children born to such parents might have traits from each of their parents or physiological manifestations of the forces their ancestors were influenced by, manifesting as a specific heritage. In order to reflect the great diversity of ancestries and cultures in Golarion, Pathfinder Player Core introduces versatile heritages—extra options including mixed ancestries and extraplanar origins. The most common among these are aiuvarins and dromaars, which represent a mix between human heritage and elven or orc heritage, respectively, in whatever way best fits the story of your character and their family. Though a character can have only one heritage and one lineage feat, the possible permutations of a character’s background and family tree are virtually unlimited. An aiuvarin character might still have a changeling parent whose nature is visible in the coloration of their eyes even if they don’t have access to changeling ancestry feats, and a pitborn dwarf might very well have an ancestor with fey influences on their bloodline, reflected with a fey muse or patron gained through their class alongside their ancestral fiendishness. Whether you’re looking to play a human fighter or a grimspawn leshy cleric, Pathfinder Player Core has a comprehensive guide to the ancestries and heritages of Golarion, opening new doors of possibility for your game! Preorder Pathfinder Player Core on paizo.com or at your friendly local game store! Or, join the Pathfinder Rulebook Subscription and never miss a rulebook release! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Ancestries and Heritages Preview: A World of Possibility
Friday, September 29, 2023
Your character’s ancestry determines which people they call their own, whether it’s diverse and ambitious humans, insular but vivacious elves, traditionalist and family-focused dwarves, or any of the other folk who call Golarion home. A character’s ancestry and their experiences prior to their life as an adventurer—represented by a background—might be key parts of their identity, shape how they see the world, and help them find their place in it.
Ancestries
Pathfinder Player Core introduces a variety of ancestries, each with their own heritage subgroups. These ancestries and heritages express a character’s culture and influence their attributes and abilities.
You can get special attribute boosts and flaws for your ancestry, such as a goblin getting better Dexterity and Charisma and worse Wisdom, or you can freely customize your attributes for any ancestry to play exactly the character you want.
The ancestries included in Pathfinder Player Core are: dwarf, elf, gnome, goblin, halfling, human, leshy, and orc.
Versatile Heritages
The peoples of Golarion are many, and they have a long history of intermingling or dabbling with forces capable of altering the very fabric of a mortal body or soul. The children born to such parents might have traits from each of their parents or physiological manifestations of the forces their ancestors were influenced by, manifesting as a specific heritage.
In order to reflect the great diversity of ancestries and cultures in Golarion, Pathfinder Player Core introduces versatile heritages—extra options including mixed ancestries and extraplanar origins. The most common among these are aiuvarins and dromaars, which represent a mix between human heritage and elven or orc heritage, respectively, in whatever way best fits the story of your character and their family.
Though a character can have only one heritage and one lineage feat, the possible permutations of a character’s background and family tree are virtually unlimited. An aiuvarin character might still have a changeling parent whose nature is visible in the coloration of their eyes even if they don’t have access to changeling ancestry feats, and a pitborn dwarf might very well have an ancestor with fey influences on their bloodline, reflected with a fey muse or patron gained through their class alongside their ancestral fiendishness.
Whether you’re looking to play a human fighter or a grimspawn leshy cleric, Pathfinder Player Core has a comprehensive guide to the ancestries and heritages of Golarion, opening new doors of possibility for your game!
Preorder Pathfinder Player Core on paizo.com or at your friendly local game store! Or, join the Pathfinder Rulebook Subscription and never miss a rulebook release!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siet?A-VentureGossip-Briefing A Venture-Gossip Briefing! 2023-09-28T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-28T13:30:00.000-04:00 A Venture-Gossip Briefing! Thursday, September 28, 2023 Hello, Pathfinders! What’s this month’s new gossip, you ask? Well, sit tight and I’ll dish it all out! The air is growing cooler and with that, more and more of our little Society seems to be cozying up together and I, for one, am so pleased to see it! Your lovely Venture-Gossip spent a little time in Mendev these past few months, helping out around the Starrise Spire, shuffling around some documents about demons and the Worldwound and such, and I was able to get a few drinks with the lovely Sorranda Forgeheart, our steadfast leader of the Sibling Spears. We had a raucous good time, and she was willing to tell me that she might have gotten a kiss from a certain handsome knight who spends far too much time working and not enough time laughing. Of course, I can never stay away from the Grand Lodge for too long, and I’m always eager to see who’s popping up and causing a ruckus. And wouldn’t you know it, I showed up just in time to see a royal carriage out front! I hid behind my packages (lots of boring manuscripts of demons and boats and hurricanes), and out stepped none other than Grand Princess Eutropia! She was accompanied by Lady Gloriana Morilla and her faithful companion Taldogis, and seemed to enjoy a conversation with Society leadership and a brief tour of the Lodge. What was just fascinating was the small carriage that arrived not two blocks away and had a pair of conspicuously inconspicuous humans mirroring her movements. Perhaps some of those handsome Lion Blades? Illustration by Katerina Kirillova Romance also seems to be blossoming among the Grand Lodge, but to whoever sent Kreighton Shaine flowers, I must warn you—that man consumed them immediately and had no idea that they were from a paramour. However, to the lovely person who sent Urwal flowers, he immediately recognized their worth and meaning and then consumed them with a passion and ardor I haven’t seen in decades! Illustration by Raphael Madureira For my final update before I really get into some trouble: A beautiful woman from Jalmeray arrived recently, telling everyone that she was close friends with our own Venture-Captain Safa and dropping off a birthday gift of a gorgeous, jeweled tiger statue for her quarters within the Grand Lodge. I got a good look at it before it was moved, and the eyes are made of rubies that catch the light and seem like they’re looking right at you! That’s everything I have for now! Next time we’ll take a dive into everyone’s plans for the Winter Solstice and which couples might be cuddled up together through the cold nights! With adoration, Your Beloved Venture-Gossip Explore! Report! Cooperate! Gossip! Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios A Venture-Gossip Briefing!
Thursday, September 28, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders!
What’s this month’s new gossip, you ask? Well, sit tight and I’ll dish it all out!
The air is growing cooler and with that, more and more of our little Society seems to be cozying up together and I, for one, am so pleased to see it! Your lovely Venture-Gossip spent a little time in Mendev these past few months, helping out around the Starrise Spire, shuffling around some documents about demons and the Worldwound and such, and I was able to get a few drinks with the lovely Sorranda Forgeheart, our steadfast leader of the Sibling Spears. We had a raucous good time, and she was willing to tell me that she might have gotten a kiss from a certain handsome knight who spends far too much time working and not enough time laughing.
Of course, I can never stay away from the Grand Lodge for too long, and I’m always eager to see who’s popping up and causing a ruckus. And wouldn’t you know it, I showed up just in time to see a royal carriage out front! I hid behind my packages (lots of boring manuscripts of demons and boats and hurricanes), and out stepped none other than Grand Princess Eutropia! She was accompanied by Lady Gloriana Morilla and her faithful companion Taldogis, and seemed to enjoy a conversation with Society leadership and a brief tour of the Lodge. What was just fascinating was the small carriage that arrived not two blocks away and had a pair of conspicuously inconspicuous humans mirroring her movements. Perhaps some of those handsome Lion Blades?
Romance also seems to be blossoming among the Grand Lodge, but to whoever sent Kreighton Shaine flowers, I must warn you—that man consumed them immediately and had no idea that they were from a paramour. However, to the lovely person who sent Urwal flowers, he immediately recognized their worth and meaning and then consumed them with a passion and ardor I haven’t seen in decades!
For my final update before I really get into some trouble: A beautiful woman from Jalmeray arrived recently, telling everyone that she was close friends with our own Venture-Captain Safa and dropping off a birthday gift of a gorgeous, jeweled tiger statue for her quarters within the Grand Lodge. I got a good look at it before it was moved, and the eyes are made of rubies that catch the light and seem like they’re looking right at you!
That’s everything I have for now! Next time we’ll take a dive into everyone’s plans for the Winter Solstice and which couples might be cuddled up together through the cold nights!
With adoration,
Your Beloved Venture-GossipExplore! Report! Cooperate! Gossip!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sies?Infinite-Top-Performers-August-in-Review Infinite Top Performers: August in Review! 2023-09-27T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-27T14:00:00.000-04:00 Infinite Top Performers: August in Review! Wednesday, September 27, 2023 Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers! We’re changing the format of this a bit so that we can showcase an equal number of Starfinder and Pathfinder Infinite titles. August’s Top Performers Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all! Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers Classy Dragons Dragons have existed for millennia and are well known for being majestic, powerful, imposing, and dangerous... but now it's time for them to get classy! A variety of dragons exist across Golarion, each with their own story to tell and role to play! Why just throw a red dragon at your players for the sake of it when they could interact with an interesting NPC such as the curious and friendly Paatic, with their hoard of plants and baubles, who could serve as an ally for your party? If that’s not your speed, maybe terrifying Rike, the Bitter Behemoth, might be just the thing for you! Faith’s Reward — Irori Celebrate and serve the Master of Masters with this document that details his followers and allies, including some that might surprise you. This book presents new ways to express your faith in Irori or in one of his surprising allies and includes denominations and a pantheon. Kitsune of Golarion• Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. This supplement expands the work presented in Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide and is penned by some of the same authors who write the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more! Smoke and Sail: A Pathfinder 2e Naval Warfare Sourcebook• Few environments conjure feelings of excitement and trepidation more acutely than the ocean, with its endless rhythm of churning waves and all its possibilities for adventure. Tenacious crews sailing ships of all sizes make perilous journeys across the majestic vastness that stretches from horizon to horizon, certain that their vessels will carry them to shore under any sky and over any sea. This sourcebook provides a comprehensive ruleset for running such a vessel and engaging in thrilling, ship-based combat encounters. Starfinder Infinite Top Performers Barlow Gryffynkritz’s Guide to Xenofactors Engineering Is your Starfinder character an enterprising dreamer dually fascinated by psychology and science? Or, like the slacker students at the antiquated and underfunded Akiton University of Technology and Technomancy, is your character utterly clueless about their life’s direction? Then Barlow Gryffynkritz, an overly enthusiastic career expert, thinks the path of xenofactors engineering will be a perfect fit! Deep Space Adventurers: Grand Promenade Summer Catalog: 323 AG This Jamfinder Game Jam entry features a collection of magical and hybrid items for summer-themed adventures! From magical tattoos and dawnflower sashes to leaf blades and rhythm sticks, this menagerie of items has everything a summer game needs! FrightFinder: The Radiating Abyss FrightFinder: The Radiating Abyss is a gruesome horror adventure designed for four 5th level Starfinder characters. As this is a horror adventure, please make note of the listed content warnings. A research facility named DMEI-4 has gone dark. Past the final planet of the Pact Worlds system, this derelict space station contains room after room of nightmares, the unfortunate aftermath of research without morals. Good luck, Starfinders. You'll need it. Into the Void - A Starfinder Adventure Into the Void is a beginning adventure for Starfinder and can serve as a starting point for the Dead Suns Adventure Path. The Lazarus, the ship that the heroes find themselves aboard, suffered a catastrophic problem before it arrived at its intended destination and crash-landed on a desolate planet in The Vast. Now they must figure out who they are, repair their ship with the help of the locals, and return to Absalom Station. Starfinder - Planar Powers• Harness the power of the Planes in your Starfinder game! Play a conrasu or tap into the power of the Maelstrom with Chaos, become a totemist, or upgrade your character with elemental augmentations! Within this supplement, you’ll find 30+ pages of content, including a new playable species, alternate class paths for mystic, soldier, and solarian, 10 pages of new feats, and 6 new augmentations. New from Infinite Masters! Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters! A Little Book of Festival Games brings nuance and depth to festivals and celebrations with three fully fleshed out festival games. Festival of the Butterflies is a single-session encounter based around Desna’s Swallowtail Release Festival. Combination Weapons Unleashed brings out the full potential of combination weapons with new archetypes, feats, weapons, and more! Votefinder provides a new election subsystem for Pathfinder Second Edition, along with player options and potential candidates for local office. A Class of Species — Instance 02: Kobold Evolutionists presents new options for the evolutionist class, popularized by specific species. Tags: Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Infinite Top Performers: August in Review!
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers! We’re changing the format of this a bit so that we can showcase an equal number of Starfinder and Pathfinder Infinite titles.
August’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Pathfinder Infinite Top Performers
Dragons have existed for millennia and are well known for being majestic, powerful, imposing, and dangerous... but now it's time for them to get classy! A variety of dragons exist across Golarion, each with their own story to tell and role to play! Why just throw a red dragon at your players for the sake of it when they could interact with an interesting NPC such as the curious and friendly Paatic, with their hoard of plants and baubles, who could serve as an ally for your party? If that’s not your speed, maybe terrifying Rike, the Bitter Behemoth, might be just the thing for you!
Celebrate and serve the Master of Masters with this document that details his followers and allies, including some that might surprise you. This book presents new ways to express your faith in Irori or in one of his surprising allies and includes denominations and a pantheon.
Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. This supplement expands the work presented in Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide and is penned by some of the same authors who write the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions
Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more!
Smoke and Sail: A Pathfinder 2e Naval Warfare Sourcebook•
Few environments conjure feelings of excitement and trepidation more acutely than the ocean, with its endless rhythm of churning waves and all its possibilities for adventure. Tenacious crews sailing ships of all sizes make perilous journeys across the majestic vastness that stretches from horizon to horizon, certain that their vessels will carry them to shore under any sky and over any sea.
This sourcebook provides a comprehensive ruleset for running such a vessel and engaging in thrilling, ship-based combat encounters.
Starfinder Infinite Top Performers
Barlow Gryffynkritz’s Guide to Xenofactors Engineering
Is your Starfinder character an enterprising dreamer dually fascinated by psychology and science? Or, like the slacker students at the antiquated and underfunded Akiton University of Technology and Technomancy, is your character utterly clueless about their life’s direction? Then Barlow Gryffynkritz, an overly enthusiastic career expert, thinks the path of xenofactors engineering will be a perfect fit!
Deep Space Adventurers: Grand Promenade Summer Catalog: 323 AG
This Jamfinder Game Jam entry features a collection of magical and hybrid items for summer-themed adventures! From magical tattoos and dawnflower sashes to leaf blades and rhythm sticks, this menagerie of items has everything a summer game needs!
FrightFinder: The Radiating Abyss
FrightFinder: The Radiating Abyss is a gruesome horror adventure designed for four 5th level Starfinder characters. As this is a horror adventure, please make note of the listed content warnings.
A research facility named DMEI-4 has gone dark. Past the final planet of the Pact Worlds system, this derelict space station contains room after room of nightmares, the unfortunate aftermath of research without morals. Good luck, Starfinders. You'll need it.
Into the Void - A Starfinder Adventure
Into the Void is a beginning adventure for Starfinder and can serve as a starting point for the Dead Suns Adventure Path.
The Lazarus, the ship that the heroes find themselves aboard, suffered a catastrophic problem before it arrived at its intended destination and crash-landed on a desolate planet in The Vast. Now they must figure out who they are, repair their ship with the help of the locals, and return to Absalom Station.
Harness the power of the Planes in your Starfinder game! Play a conrasu or tap into the power of the Maelstrom with Chaos, become a totemist, or upgrade your character with elemental augmentations! Within this supplement, you’ll find 30+ pages of content, including a new playable species, alternate class paths for mystic, soldier, and solarian, 10 pages of new feats, and 6 new augmentations.
New from Infinite Masters!
Want to see what’s been cooking in the Infinite Masters’ alchemy lab? Here’s a selection of new products from some of our Infinite Masters!
- A Little Book of Festival Games brings nuance and depth to festivals and celebrations with three fully fleshed out festival games.
- Festival of the Butterflies is a single-session encounter based around Desna’s Swallowtail Release Festival.
- Combination Weapons Unleashed brings out the full potential of combination weapons with new archetypes, feats, weapons, and more!
- Votefinder provides a new election subsystem for Pathfinder Second Edition, along with player options and potential candidates for local office.
- A Class of Species — Instance 02: Kobold Evolutionists presents new options for the evolutionist class, popularized by specific species.
Tags: Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sier?GM-Core-Preview-Tell-Your-Story GM Core Preview: Tell Your Story! 2023-09-26T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-26T14:00:00.000-04:00 GM Core Preview: Tell Your Story! Tuesday, September 26, 2023 Creating a compelling tale takes more than just heroes—it requires a complex cast of allies, adversaries, and villains! As the Game Master, your job is to narrate the story, working with the players to imagine an epic adventure. The GM Core is here to help you with every facet of the game, including guidelines on story structure, tips on creating thrilling combat, and amazing treasure to reward your heroes for saving the day! This book has everything you need to become a legendary Game Master. —GM Core Pathfinder GM Core releases this November 15 at your favorite local game store, bookstore, and the Paizo Store along with Pathfinder Player Core. As part of the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project, it offers a fresh entry point to the Pathfinder Second Edition roleplaying game for Game Masters! Customization and support are at the foundation of Pathfinder, and this book provides you with numerous ways to customize your game. Select whatever parts you need for the game you’re running with the toolbox nature of GM Core. This blog will guide you in navigating the chapters of the GM Core, just like a trusty wayfinder! If you’re brand new to tabletop roleplaying games, read our summary on Archives of Nethys. Introduction The focus of every Pathfinder game is the player characters—they’re the stars of the show and appear in every scene that plays out in-game. But what about those scenes? What stories are being told? What old legends are being discovered, and what new ones are being forged? Who are the villains, the allies, the traitors, the lovers, the monsters, and the gods? Who runs the world? When you’re the Game Master, that’s all up to you! — GM Core Here you will find the basics of what it means to be a GM and guidance from the authors on how to use the book. They help you choose your tools whether you are a new GM, running a published adventure, making your own, or just need items. Running the Game The focus of every Pathfinder game is the player characters—they’re the stars of the show and appear in every scene that plays out in-game. But what about those scenes? What stories are being told? What old legends are being discovered, and what new ones are being forged? Who are the villains, the allies, the traitors, the lovers, the monsters, and the gods? Who runs the world? When you’re the Game Master, that’s all up to you! — GM Core Here you will find the basics of what it means to be a GM and guidance from the authors on how to use the book. They help you choose your tools whether you are a new GM, running a published adventure, making your own, or just need items. Running the Game As Game Master, you run each session of Pathfinder, providing the link between the players and the world of the game. It’s up to you to set the scene as the player characters battle monsters, interact with other people, and explore new locations. — GM Core This chapter provides tools to create a welcoming environment, prepare adventures, create characters, and plan and run sessions. You will find one of the best guides in the industry on special considerations, running encounters, exploration, downtime, difficulty classes, and rewards. You will also find sidebars on topics such as Tools for Responsible Play, Collaboration During Play, and more! Building Games Game Mastering can be an extremely creative endeavor, and this chapter gives you a suite of tools to make your own campaign or adventure. You can even create your own creatures, hazards, and items to populate your game, or even make your own game world! — GM Core This chapter covers everything you need to build an adventure of your own, from campaign structure to encounter design, world building, variant rules, and more. While you may need to make something from scratch, you can also adapt existing material using the guidance from this chapter. Build your own hazards, items, and creatures using GM Core’s in-depth developer advice and mathematical benchmarks. The Rewards section gives you all you need to distribute Experience Points, Hero Points, and treasure throughout your campaign. Age of Lost Omens Ten thousand years ago, the world of Golarion came close to ending. Earthfall, as this extinction-level event came to be known, saw the world pummeled by a shower of falling stars that sank continents, hollowed out new seas, and destroyed civilizations. It took centuries for the world to recover, and centuries more for society to rebuild, but recover it did. — GM Core Though the Building Games chapter includes everything you need to create your game world, the Age of Lost Omens is a fully developed setting that’s ready to use and has vast amounts of support across Paizo’s adventures and Lost Omens books. Explore the Inner Sea Region and beyond, learning about the rich cultures, religions, and factions therein. Use tools like nation and settlement stat blocks to understand our locations or flesh out your own realms. This chapter also covers extraplanar setting elements, taking your campaign into the Great Beyond. Subsystems When your game goes into uncharted territory or you want to emphasize an element of gameplay that usually gets overlooked or condensed into a single check, you can use a subsystem. As the name implies, subsystems are extensions of the main rules system that allow you to explore a particular topic or style of play at your table. — GM Core Part of Pathfinder’s robust game engine lies in its ability to explore elements of gameplay that are not always in the forefront. The Subsystems chapter gives Game Masters a diverse set of tools to tackle any in-game challenge and to track progress on tasks using Victory Points. Where some systems may leave you in the lurch wondering “what should my players roll for this?”, Pathfinder’s subsystems provide support for Game Masters and players alike. Subsystems covered in this chapter include Influence, Research, Infiltration, Dueling, and more. Treasure Trove Characters acquire treasure from the glittering hoards of their foes, as rewards for defending the innocent, and as favors from the grand personalities they treat with. As they progress through their adventures and improve their station in the world, characters collect ever more fabulous items, from enchanted armor and weapons to spell-infused wands and staves. — GM Core The Treasure Trove is a Game Master’s guide of alchemical and magical items and how to use them. Not only does this chapter cover a large range of treasure—ranging from potions and magical staves to apex items and more—but it’s also a comprehensive guide to reading item stat blocks and understanding how items work. Finally, GM Core is complete with Treasure Table, Glossary, and Index sections as additional tools for you to use on the fly. Inside GM Core you’ll find the guidance you need to build and run the fantastic stories you wish to tell! —The Paizo Team P.S. After you’ve devoured GM Core, get started with the Pathfinder Society to find games and hone your skills. Don’t forget to subscribe or preorder today to get Pathfinder Monster Core in March 2024 and Pathfinder Player Core 2 in July 2024! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition GM Core Preview: Tell Your Story!
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Creating a compelling tale takes more than just heroes—it requires a complex cast of allies, adversaries, and villains! As the Game Master, your job is to narrate the story, working with the players to imagine an epic adventure. The GM Core is here to help you with every facet of the game, including guidelines on story structure, tips on creating thrilling combat, and amazing treasure to reward your heroes for saving the day! This book has everything you need to become a legendary Game Master.
—GM CorePathfinder GM Core releases this November 15 at your favorite local game store, bookstore, and the Paizo Store along with Pathfinder Player Core. As part of the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project, it offers a fresh entry point to the Pathfinder Second Edition roleplaying game for Game Masters!
Customization and support are at the foundation of Pathfinder, and this book provides you with numerous ways to customize your game. Select whatever parts you need for the game you’re running with the toolbox nature of GM Core.
This blog will guide you in navigating the chapters of the GM Core, just like a trusty wayfinder! If you’re brand new to tabletop roleplaying games, read our summary on Archives of Nethys.
Introduction
The focus of every Pathfinder game is the player characters—they’re the stars of the show and appear in every scene that plays out in-game. But what about those scenes? What stories are being told? What old legends are being discovered, and what new ones are being forged? Who are the villains, the allies, the traitors, the lovers, the monsters, and the gods? Who runs the world? When you’re the Game Master, that’s all up to you!
— GM CoreHere you will find the basics of what it means to be a GM and guidance from the authors on how to use the book. They help you choose your tools whether you are a new GM, running a published adventure, making your own, or just need items.
Running the Game
The focus of every Pathfinder game is the player characters—they’re the stars of the show and appear in every scene that plays out in-game. But what about those scenes? What stories are being told? What old legends are being discovered, and what new ones are being forged? Who are the villains, the allies, the traitors, the lovers, the monsters, and the gods? Who runs the world? When you’re the Game Master, that’s all up to you!
— GM CoreHere you will find the basics of what it means to be a GM and guidance from the authors on how to use the book. They help you choose your tools whether you are a new GM, running a published adventure, making your own, or just need items.
Running the Game
As Game Master, you run each session of Pathfinder, providing the link between the players and the world of the game. It’s up to you to set the scene as the player characters battle monsters, interact with other people, and explore new locations.
— GM CoreThis chapter provides tools to create a welcoming environment, prepare adventures, create characters, and plan and run sessions. You will find one of the best guides in the industry on special considerations, running encounters, exploration, downtime, difficulty classes, and rewards. You will also find sidebars on topics such as Tools for Responsible Play, Collaboration During Play, and more!
Building Games
Game Mastering can be an extremely creative endeavor, and this chapter gives you a suite of tools to make your own campaign or adventure. You can even create your own creatures, hazards, and items to populate your game, or even make your own game world!
— GM CoreThis chapter covers everything you need to build an adventure of your own, from campaign structure to encounter design, world building, variant rules, and more. While you may need to make something from scratch, you can also adapt existing material using the guidance from this chapter. Build your own hazards, items, and creatures using GM Core’s in-depth developer advice and mathematical benchmarks. The Rewards section gives you all you need to distribute Experience Points, Hero Points, and treasure throughout your campaign.
Age of Lost Omens
Ten thousand years ago, the world of Golarion came close to ending. Earthfall, as this extinction-level event came to be known, saw the world pummeled by a shower of falling stars that sank continents, hollowed out new seas, and destroyed civilizations. It took centuries for the world to recover, and centuries more for society to rebuild, but recover it did.
— GM CoreThough the Building Games chapter includes everything you need to create your game world, the Age of Lost Omens is a fully developed setting that’s ready to use and has vast amounts of support across Paizo’s adventures and Lost Omens books. Explore the Inner Sea Region and beyond, learning about the rich cultures, religions, and factions therein. Use tools like nation and settlement stat blocks to understand our locations or flesh out your own realms. This chapter also covers extraplanar setting elements, taking your campaign into the Great Beyond.
Subsystems
When your game goes into uncharted territory or you want to emphasize an element of gameplay that usually gets overlooked or condensed into a single check, you can use a subsystem. As the name implies, subsystems are extensions of the main rules system that allow you to explore a particular topic or style of play at your table.
— GM CorePart of Pathfinder’s robust game engine lies in its ability to explore elements of gameplay that are not always in the forefront. The Subsystems chapter gives Game Masters a diverse set of tools to tackle any in-game challenge and to track progress on tasks using Victory Points. Where some systems may leave you in the lurch wondering “what should my players roll for this?”, Pathfinder’s subsystems provide support for Game Masters and players alike. Subsystems covered in this chapter include Influence, Research, Infiltration, Dueling, and more.
Treasure Trove
Characters acquire treasure from the glittering hoards of their foes, as rewards for defending the innocent, and as favors from the grand personalities they treat with. As they progress through their adventures and improve their station in the world, characters collect ever more fabulous items, from enchanted armor and weapons to spell-infused wands and staves.
— GM CoreThe Treasure Trove is a Game Master’s guide of alchemical and magical items and how to use them. Not only does this chapter cover a large range of treasure—ranging from potions and magical staves to apex items and more—but it’s also a comprehensive guide to reading item stat blocks and understanding how items work.
Finally, GM Core is complete with Treasure Table, Glossary, and Index sections as additional tools for you to use on the fly.
Inside GM Core you’ll find the guidance you need to build and run the fantastic stories you wish to tell!
—The Paizo Team
P.S.
After you’ve devoured GM Core, get started with the Pathfinder Society to find games and hone your skills. Don’t forget to subscribe or preorder today to get Pathfinder Monster Core in March 2024 and Pathfinder Player Core 2 in July 2024!Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sieq?Fear-in-a-Handful-of-Rust Fear in a Handful of Rust 2023-09-25T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-25T16:30:00.000-04:00 Fear in a Handful of Rust Monday, September 25, 2023 An unusual surprise came to Osprey Cove the morning after the storm. On an early dawn walk to appraise the storm’s damage, Elder Johedia stumbled across a gravely wounded man at the edge of town. Suffering from exposure, two infected crossbow bolt wounds, and a strange sickness that left rust-red splotches all over his body, the man gasped an unsettling warning before he died: “Iron Harbor... rust... ship... all dead... before... too late... Illustration by Luis Salas Lastra The man was dressed in rusted armor and clutched an equally rusted religious symbol of Gorum in one hand. This, and his final words, suggested something dreadful had occurred in the nearby village of Iron Harbor. Osprey Cove’s youngest leader, Elder Ordwi, quickly organized an expedition to make the daylong trip east to Iron Harbor, in order to offer aid as needed but also extend overtures of peace, hopefully bringing an end to the yearslong feud between the two Kindred Coast villages. illustration by Firat Solhan Whether you volunteered or were recruited, your group is now well on their way along the Old Coast Road as Elder Ordwi’s escorts. What awaits your arrival at Iron Harbor? Illustration by Luis Salas Lastra Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge is a deluxe standalone adventure for 1st-level characters, designed by Vanessa Hoskins. This adventure was specifically created to be an introduction to Pathfinder and the Age of Lost Omens, perfect for new players! Seasoned Pathfinder adventurers will enjoy the callbacks to the era of the runelords and new monsters tied to Rusthenge’s notorious history. Explore New Thassilon and Osprey Cove to discover the secrets of a mysterious rusting illness before it’s too late! This adventure is available as part of our Pathfinder Adventures subscription line. Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Fear in a Handful of Rust
Monday, September 25, 2023
An unusual surprise came to Osprey Cove the morning after the storm. On an early dawn walk to appraise the storm’s damage, Elder Johedia stumbled across a gravely wounded man at the edge of town. Suffering from exposure, two infected crossbow bolt wounds, and a strange sickness that left rust-red splotches all over his body, the man gasped an unsettling warning before he died: “Iron Harbor... rust... ship... all dead... before... too late...
The man was dressed in rusted armor and clutched an equally rusted religious symbol of Gorum in one hand. This, and his final words, suggested something dreadful had occurred in the nearby village of Iron Harbor. Osprey Cove’s youngest leader, Elder Ordwi, quickly organized an expedition to make the daylong trip east to Iron Harbor, in order to offer aid as needed but also extend overtures of peace, hopefully bringing an end to the yearslong feud between the two Kindred Coast villages.
Whether you volunteered or were recruited, your group is now well on their way along the Old Coast Road as Elder Ordwi’s escorts. What awaits your arrival at Iron Harbor?
Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge is a deluxe standalone adventure for 1st-level characters, designed by Vanessa Hoskins. This adventure was specifically created to be an introduction to Pathfinder and the Age of Lost Omens, perfect for new players! Seasoned Pathfinder adventurers will enjoy the callbacks to the era of the runelords and new monsters tied to Rusthenge’s notorious history.
Explore New Thassilon and Osprey Cove to discover the secrets of a mysterious rusting illness before it’s too late!
This adventure is available as part of our Pathfinder Adventures subscription line.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sien?Celebrating-Hispanic-Heritage-Month-2023 Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2023! 2023-09-22T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-22T14:00:00.000-04:00 Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2023! Friday, September 22, 2023 ¡Feliz Mes de la Herencia Hispana! September 15th through October 15th is recognized in the United States as Hispanic Heritage Month, recognizing the independence dates of many Latin American countries, including Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Chile. Since 1988, the United States has celebrated Hispanic and Latine contributions to American culture during this month. The theme of this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month is Prosperity, Power, and Progress! In celebration, we’ve invited some of our Latine contributors and coworkers to speak on our blog. Joseph Blomquist (he/him) ¿Qué es la que hay corillo? This month’s theme of prosperity, power, and progress is a chance to talk about growth in my freelance work. I’ve worked for a slew of companies over the years on reviews, rules, and narrative work. I’ve had the chance to include elements of the islands I love in the games I love. And over time, my stories, word counts, and NPCs have (some literally) grown. If you’ve played my previous adventures here at Paizo, you know that I try to toss in a lot of theme and character into the background. For example, in SFS 2-21 Illegal Shipment, I leaned into the claustrophobia of Fogtown; in PFS 4-02 Return to the Grave, the dark haunted forests of the Gravelands were as much a character as the fallen NPCs you face; and the upcoming PFS 5-05 The Island of the Vibrant Dead is set on an island inspired by the Caribbean paradises I only visited in my youth. Yet how much can ambiance prepare you for what is to come? How ready are you for giant robots versus kaiju in both Mechageddon! and Pacific Rim coming for you ahorita? Everything that went into my scene building has grown to encompass the scale of what is coming soon. And I can’t wait to share it with you. Carlos Cabrera (he/they) Hi everyone. I am a third party and Paizo freelancer for Pathfinder, voice actor, and as of last year and concurrently along with my daughter, burgeoning board game designer! With this year’s theme I thought I would highlight where I’ve come from personally, professionally, and culturally. The board game design I sold felt more my own than my usual work. It was made without outline or prompt, pitched, and sold, and not so much a piece of a greater whole as RPG books go (which I still do, gratefully). Then a cousin of mine reminded me I said at 9 years old I wanted to make my own game. I was 39 then, so you can imagine how emotional I was that it took me that long. In addition to that accomplishment, I have special reason to be proud this month. As a mixed-race person of color, I have had my words in print, my voice and likeness in video games, and I’ve become more comfortable with myself, using aspects of my own culture in the characters I create—be it in LARP or future works. Eventually that will include my own logo, and for my daughter’s works as well. To see more of what our Latine contributors bring to Paizo, take a look at these previous Hispanic Heritage Month blogs: Hispanic Heritage Month 2022 Hispanic Heritage Month 2021 We’re so happy to have a diverse set of voices contributing to the games we make here at Paizo, because we know their perspectives make our worlds richer and better! Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2023!
Friday, September 22, 2023
¡Feliz Mes de la Herencia Hispana!
September 15th through October 15th is recognized in the United States as Hispanic Heritage Month, recognizing the independence dates of many Latin American countries, including Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Chile. Since 1988, the United States has celebrated Hispanic and Latine contributions to American culture during this month.
The theme of this year’s Hispanic Heritage Month is Prosperity, Power, and Progress! In celebration, we’ve invited some of our Latine contributors and coworkers to speak on our blog.
Joseph Blomquist (he/him)
¿Qué es la que hay corillo?
This month’s theme of prosperity, power, and progress is a chance to talk about growth in my freelance work. I’ve worked for a slew of companies over the years on reviews, rules, and narrative work. I’ve had the chance to include elements of the islands I love in the games I love. And over time, my stories, word counts, and NPCs have (some literally) grown.
If you’ve played my previous adventures here at Paizo, you know that I try to toss in a lot of theme and character into the background. For example, in SFS 2-21 Illegal Shipment, I leaned into the claustrophobia of Fogtown; in PFS 4-02 Return to the Grave, the dark haunted forests of the Gravelands were as much a character as the fallen NPCs you face; and the upcoming PFS 5-05 The Island of the Vibrant Dead is set on an island inspired by the Caribbean paradises I only visited in my youth.
Yet how much can ambiance prepare you for what is to come? How ready are you for giant robots versus kaiju in both Mechageddon! and Pacific Rim coming for you ahorita? Everything that went into my scene building has grown to encompass the scale of what is coming soon. And I can’t wait to share it with you.
Carlos Cabrera (he/they)
Hi everyone. I am a third party and Paizo freelancer for Pathfinder, voice actor, and as of last year and concurrently along with my daughter, burgeoning board game designer! With this year’s theme I thought I would highlight where I’ve come from personally, professionally, and culturally.
The board game design I sold felt more my own than my usual work. It was made without outline or prompt, pitched, and sold, and not so much a piece of a greater whole as RPG books go (which I still do, gratefully). Then a cousin of mine reminded me I said at 9 years old I wanted to make my own game. I was 39 then, so you can imagine how emotional I was that it took me that long.
In addition to that accomplishment, I have special reason to be proud this month. As a mixed-race person of color, I have had my words in print, my voice and likeness in video games, and I’ve become more comfortable with myself, using aspects of my own culture in the characters I create—be it in LARP or future works. Eventually that will include my own logo, and for my daughter’s works as well.
To see more of what our Latine contributors bring to Paizo, take a look at these previous Hispanic Heritage Month blogs:
We’re so happy to have a diverse set of voices contributing to the games we make here at Paizo, because we know their perspectives make our worlds richer and better!
Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siek?Player-Core-Preview-Spells-and-Spellcasting Player Core Preview: Spells and Spellcasting, Remastered 2023-09-21T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-21T16:30:00.000-04:00 Player Core Preview: Spells and Spellcasting, Remastered Thursday, September 21, 2023 Hello, there! I’m Logan Bonner, Pathfinder Lead Designer, here to discuss some of the changes to spells and spellcasting in the remastered books, especially Pathfinder Player Core. James recently went over some details about the remastered wizard, and I’m going to cover the changes to spellcasting overall. If you want to read some more on the subject, the Core Preview file goes into detail about the term “spell rank” replacing “spell level,” the removal of spell schools, the new spell format seen in the following examples, and some more information about focus spells and the remastered Refocus action. Spellcasting As we’ve mentioned in several places, we’ve removed spell components from spells for several reasons: They were highly tied to OGL content. We’re moving away from them. They were mostly redundant with traits. Though there were some shades of nuance here, most of the time, the player needed to remember that material, somatic, and focus components added the manipulate trait to a spell and verbal components added concentrate. The new system adds those traits directly and cuts out the middleman (the components). There were a ton of exceptions to make classes play as intended. You can see in the sidebar on page 303 of the Pathfinder Core Rulebookthat the bard, cleric, druid, and sorcerer all had exceptions for how their components work. This removal lets the classes work as intended without having to learn the system and then having to learn which parts of that system you could ignore. Classes wanted more freedom to define how they cast spells. As the game has grown, both over the course of 1st Edition and 2nd Edition, more class concepts came up that wanted to cast spells with different particulars and presentation. Ultimately, we decided we preferred to let the classes define how they cast and let the theme dictate their mechanics rather than to have a “consistent” system that must either restrict classes or be undermined by them. Lini casts wall of thorns to impede charau-ka adversaries! Illustration by Firat Solhan Spell Statistics If you’ve looked at the War of Immortals playtest classes, you may have noticed that the animist is “Trained in spell attack modifier” and “Trained in spell DC.” Why doesn’t it say “divine?” This represents a change to spellcasting for all characters who get spells, whether it’s from a class, innate spells, an archetype, or any other source. You no longer need to track proficiency separately for each tradition; there’s just one proficiency now. To update an existing character, you’ll simply use the highest proficiency you already have for all your spells. Why has this changed? Reduce tracking. Having multiple proficiencies could be annoying to keep track of, especially for a complicated character. Enable interesting character concepts. Though you might think it would be fun to play a cleric with a bard archetype, the spell statistics could be so much worse that it wasn’t worth pursuing. Let the attributes do the work. We already have another way that the secondary spells you acquire can be worse—they likely use different attributes. In the above example, you’d still need Wisdom for cleric spells and Charisma for bard spells. That’s enough of a difference to account for without tossing in a gulf between proficiencies that pushes the stats further apart. It also allows you to eliminate the gap entirely if you choose options that use the same attribute. Cantrips We’ve made several revisions to damaging cantrips, with the broadest change being to use only damage dice rather than adding an attribute modifier. Like with most changes we made to the system, this was decided after examining multiple factors that were causing problems together. Consistency with how other spells work. Most spells deal just dice for damage, and cantrips were an outlier. Making spells look and function more consistently across the board helps in understanding the rules, especially for new players. Match their damage to our intended spell benchmarks. One-target cantrips were supposed to deal around 6 damage, with focus spells and spell slots dealing a bit more. Adding the spellcasting attribute modifier pushed all the damage numbers off their baseline. Avoid penalizing characters who have damage cantrips from innate spells or multiclassing twice. Characters who got damaging cantrips from multiclassing or as innate spells from ancestry feats or the like often have a lower attribute modifier than a dedicated spellcaster and were dealing with both a lower chance of success and lower damage if they hit. This is a smaller issue, but often led to players being unhappy with their character options. Cleaning up how cantrips work for monsters. This is another smaller issue, but a pain point for GMs. It was unclear how to apply the spellcasting attribute modifier for monsters with cantrips. A good example of a cantrip built in a new manner is caustic blast, which now uses a burst and works a bit more like other spells rather than having a player need to learn how splash damage works for the purposes of a single spell the way acid splash did. Caustic Blast [two-actions] Cantrip Acid, Cantrip, Concentrate, Manipulate Traditions arcane, primal Range 30 feet; Area 5-foot burst Defense basic Reflex You fling a large glob of acid that immediately detonates, spraying nearby creatures. Creatures in the area take 1d8 acid damage with a basic Reflex save; on a critical failure, the creature also takes 1 persistent acid damage. Heightened (+2) The initial damage increases by 1d8, and the persistent damage on a critical failure increases by 1. We’ve also revamped many of the non-damaging cantrips. Here you can see both read aura, which needed adjustment due to the removal of spell schools and now speaks more directly to identifying the item, and light, which incorporates both parts of the original light spell and the removed spell dancing lights to provide players with an alternative that allows for more creativity and flexibility. Read Aura Cantrip 1 Cantrip, Concentrate, Detection, Manipulate Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal Cast 1 minute Range 30 feet; Targets 1 object You focus on the target object, opening your mind to perceive magical auras. When the casting is complete, you know whether that item is magical. You (or anyone you advise about the aura) gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Identify Magic on the item. If the object is illusory, you detect this only if the effect’s rank is lower than the rank of your read aura spell. Heightened (3rd) You can target up to 10 objects. Heightened (6th) You can target any number of objects. Light [two-actions] Cantrip 1 Cantrip, Concentrate, Light, Manipulate Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal Range 120 feet Duration until your next daily preparations You create an orb of light that sheds bright light in a 20-foot radius (and dim light for the next 20 feet) in a color you choose. If you create the light in the same space as a willing creature, you can attach the light to the creature, causing it to float near that creature as it moves. You can Sustain the spell to move the light up to 60 feet; you can attach or detach it from a creature as part of this movement. You can Dismiss the spell. If you Cast the Spell while you already have four light spells active, you must choose one of the existing spells to end. Heightened (4th) The orb sheds light in a 60-foot radius (and dim light for the next 60 feet). Focus Spells We’ve already mentioned and shown several changes to how Focus Points work in the Core Preview document. Mainly, the number of points for your focus pool is always equal to the number of focus spells you know, to a maximum of 3, and you can Refocus for 10 minutes to regain 1 Focus Point regardless of how many points you’ve already spent. If you want to see the new Refocus rules for yourself, take a look at the Core Preview document. This alone should make focus spells more dependable and simpler to use and track. Additionally, we’ve taken a look at a few of the focus spells that didn’t function well as focus spells and tuned them up. Let’s look at waking nightmare, for example. It can now make a creature paralyzed instead of fleeing and can make the creature take extra mental damage. Waking Nightmare [two-actions] Focus 1 Uncommon, Cleric, Concentrate, Emotion, Fear, Focus, Manipulate, Mental Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature Saving Throw Will; Duration varies You fill the creature’s mind with a terrifying vision. The target must attempt a Will save. A creature frightened by this spell takes 1 additional mental damage each time it’s hit by a Strike. Critical Success The target is unaffected. Success The target is frightened 1. Failure The target is frightened 2. If it’s asleep, it wakes up and is paralyzed for 1 round. Critical Failure As failure, but frightened 3. Heightened (+1) The mental damage increases by 1. Many focus spells with longer casting times, like read fate and safeguard secret, have had their casting times reduced, so you can use them in the middle of an encounter or scene. What About Normal Spells? So, you’ve heard about cantrips and focus spells, but what about all those other spells? For the most part, spells cast from slots work similarly to how they did before. Let’s look at a couple of those spells! First is thunderstrike, which replaces shocking grasp. It starts off with lower damage, but it becomes ranged instead of being a melee spell and heightened versions increase its damage output. Thunderstrike [two-actions] Spell 1 Concentrate, Electricity, Manipulate, Sonic Traditions arcane, primal Range 120 feet; Targets 1 creature Defense basic Reflex You call down a tendril of lightning that cracks with thunder, dealing 1d12 electricity damage and 1d4 sonic damage to the target with a basic Reflex save. A target wearing metal armor or made of metal takes a –1 circumstance bonus to its save, and if damaged by the spell is clumsy 1 for 1 round. Heightened (+1) The damage increases by 1d12 electricity and 1d4 sonic. Second, we have tree of seasons, which we’ve previously mentioned in streams and such. It’s taking the “explosive seeds” spot formerly held by fire seeds, but with a bit more variety, higher damage, and the option to create the tree farther away from you. Tree of Seasons [two-actions] Spell 6 Concentrate, Manipulate, Plant, Wood Traditions primal Range 60 feet Duration 1 minute You cause a Small tree to instantly sprout in an unoccupied space on the ground. Four seedpods grow from the tree, each filled with the magic of a different one of the four seasons. A creature can Interact to pluck one of the pods and can then either throw it up to 30 feet as part of the same action or do so with a separate Interact action later. When thrown, a pod explodes in a 5-foot burst, dealing 6d6 damage with a basic Reflex save against your spell DC. The damage type depends on the season of the pod: electricity for spring, fire for summer, poison for autumn, or cold for winter. When the spell ends, the tree withers away and any remaining pods rot, leaving behind non-magical seeds. Heightened (+1) The burst’s damage increases by 1d6. Logan Bonner) Pathfinder Lead Designer Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Player Core Preview: Spells and Spellcasting, Remastered
Thursday, September 21, 2023
Hello, there! I’m Logan Bonner, Pathfinder Lead Designer, here to discuss some of the changes to spells and spellcasting in the remastered books, especially Pathfinder Player Core. James recently went over some details about the remastered wizard, and I’m going to cover the changes to spellcasting overall.
If you want to read some more on the subject, the Core Preview file goes into detail about the term “spell rank” replacing “spell level,” the removal of spell schools, the new spell format seen in the following examples, and some more information about focus spells and the remastered Refocus action.
Spellcasting
As we’ve mentioned in several places, we’ve removed spell components from spells for several reasons:
- They were highly tied to OGL content. We’re moving away from them.
- They were mostly redundant with traits. Though there were some shades of nuance here, most of the time, the player needed to remember that material, somatic, and focus components added the manipulate trait to a spell and verbal components added concentrate. The new system adds those traits directly and cuts out the middleman (the components).
- There were a ton of exceptions to make classes play as intended. You can see in the sidebar on page 303 of the Pathfinder Core Rulebookthat the bard, cleric, druid, and sorcerer all had exceptions for how their components work. This removal lets the classes work as intended without having to learn the system and then having to learn which parts of that system you could ignore.
- Classes wanted more freedom to define how they cast spells. As the game has grown, both over the course of 1st Edition and 2nd Edition, more class concepts came up that wanted to cast spells with different particulars and presentation. Ultimately, we decided we preferred to let the classes define how they cast and let the theme dictate their mechanics rather than to have a “consistent” system that must either restrict classes or be undermined by them.
Spell Statistics
If you’ve looked at the War of Immortals playtest classes, you may have noticed that the animist is “Trained in spell attack modifier” and “Trained in spell DC.” Why doesn’t it say “divine?” This represents a change to spellcasting for all characters who get spells, whether it’s from a class, innate spells, an archetype, or any other source. You no longer need to track proficiency separately for each tradition; there’s just one proficiency now. To update an existing character, you’ll simply use the highest proficiency you already have for all your spells. Why has this changed?
- Reduce tracking. Having multiple proficiencies could be annoying to keep track of, especially for a complicated character.
- Enable interesting character concepts. Though you might think it would be fun to play a cleric with a bard archetype, the spell statistics could be so much worse that it wasn’t worth pursuing.
- Let the attributes do the work. We already have another way that the secondary spells you acquire can be worse—they likely use different attributes. In the above example, you’d still need Wisdom for cleric spells and Charisma for bard spells. That’s enough of a difference to account for without tossing in a gulf between proficiencies that pushes the stats further apart. It also allows you to eliminate the gap entirely if you choose options that use the same attribute.
Cantrips
We’ve made several revisions to damaging cantrips, with the broadest change being to use only damage dice rather than adding an attribute modifier. Like with most changes we made to the system, this was decided after examining multiple factors that were causing problems together.
- Consistency with how other spells work. Most spells deal just dice for damage, and cantrips were an outlier. Making spells look and function more consistently across the board helps in understanding the rules, especially for new players.
- Match their damage to our intended spell benchmarks. One-target cantrips were supposed to deal around 6 damage, with focus spells and spell slots dealing a bit more. Adding the spellcasting attribute modifier pushed all the damage numbers off their baseline.
- Avoid penalizing characters who have damage cantrips from innate spells or multiclassing twice. Characters who got damaging cantrips from multiclassing or as innate spells from ancestry feats or the like often have a lower attribute modifier than a dedicated spellcaster and were dealing with both a lower chance of success and lower damage if they hit. This is a smaller issue, but often led to players being unhappy with their character options.
- Cleaning up how cantrips work for monsters. This is another smaller issue, but a pain point for GMs. It was unclear how to apply the spellcasting attribute modifier for monsters with cantrips.
A good example of a cantrip built in a new manner is caustic blast, which now uses a burst and works a bit more like other spells rather than having a player need to learn how splash damage works for the purposes of a single spell the way acid splash did.
Caustic Blast [two-actions] Cantrip
Acid, Cantrip, Concentrate, Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 30 feet; Area 5-foot burst
Defense basic Reflex
You fling a large glob of acid that immediately detonates, spraying nearby creatures. Creatures in the area take 1d8 acid damage with a basic Reflex save; on a critical failure, the creature also takes 1 persistent acid damage.
Heightened (+2) The initial damage increases by 1d8, and the persistent damage on a critical failure increases by 1.We’ve also revamped many of the non-damaging cantrips. Here you can see both read aura, which needed adjustment due to the removal of spell schools and now speaks more directly to identifying the item, and light, which incorporates both parts of the original light spell and the removed spell dancing lights to provide players with an alternative that allows for more creativity and flexibility.
Read Aura Cantrip 1
Cantrip, Concentrate, Detection, Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Cast 1 minute
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 object
You focus on the target object, opening your mind to perceive magical auras. When the casting is complete, you know whether that item is magical. You (or anyone you advise about the aura) gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Identify Magic on the item. If the object is illusory, you detect this only if the effect’s rank is lower than the rank of your read aura spell.
Heightened (3rd) You can target up to 10 objects.
Heightened (6th) You can target any number of objects.
Light [two-actions] Cantrip 1
Cantrip, Concentrate, Light, Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Range 120 feet
Duration until your next daily preparations
You create an orb of light that sheds bright light in a 20-foot radius (and dim light for the next 20 feet) in a color you choose. If you create the light in the same space as a willing creature, you can attach the light to the creature, causing it to float near that creature as it moves. You can Sustain the spell to move the light up to 60 feet; you can attach or detach it from a creature as part of this movement.
You can Dismiss the spell. If you Cast the Spell while you already have four light spells active, you must choose one of the existing spells to end.
Heightened (4th) The orb sheds light in a 60-foot radius (and dim light for the next 60 feet).
Focus Spells
We’ve already mentioned and shown several changes to how Focus Points work in the Core Preview document. Mainly, the number of points for your focus pool is always equal to the number of focus spells you know, to a maximum of 3, and you can Refocus for 10 minutes to regain 1 Focus Point regardless of how many points you’ve already spent. If you want to see the new Refocus rules for yourself, take a look at the Core Preview document.
This alone should make focus spells more dependable and simpler to use and track. Additionally, we’ve taken a look at a few of the focus spells that didn’t function well as focus spells and tuned them up. Let’s look at waking nightmare, for example. It can now make a creature paralyzed instead of fleeing and can make the creature take extra mental damage.
Waking Nightmare [two-actions] Focus 1
Uncommon, Cleric, Concentrate, Emotion, Fear, Focus, Manipulate, Mental
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature
Saving Throw Will; Duration varies
You fill the creature’s mind with a terrifying vision. The target must attempt a Will save. A creature frightened by this spell takes 1 additional mental damage each time it’s hit by a Strike.
Critical Success The target is unaffected.
Success The target is frightened 1.
Failure The target is frightened 2. If it’s asleep, it wakes up and is paralyzed for 1 round.
Critical Failure As failure, but frightened 3.
Heightened (+1) The mental damage increases by 1.Many focus spells with longer casting times, like read fate and safeguard secret, have had their casting times reduced, so you can use them in the middle of an encounter or scene.
What About Normal Spells?
So, you’ve heard about cantrips and focus spells, but what about all those other spells? For the most part, spells cast from slots work similarly to how they did before. Let’s look at a couple of those spells! First is thunderstrike, which replaces shocking grasp. It starts off with lower damage, but it becomes ranged instead of being a melee spell and heightened versions increase its damage output.
Thunderstrike [two-actions] Spell 1
Concentrate, Electricity, Manipulate, Sonic
Heightened (+1) The damage increases by 1d12 electricity and 1d4 sonic.
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 120 feet; Targets 1 creature
Defense basic Reflex
You call down a tendril of lightning that cracks with thunder, dealing 1d12 electricity damage and 1d4 sonic damage to the target with a basic Reflex save. A target wearing metal armor or made of metal takes a –1 circumstance bonus to its save, and if damaged by the spell is clumsy 1 for 1 round.Second, we have tree of seasons, which we’ve previously mentioned in streams and such. It’s taking the “explosive seeds” spot formerly held by fire seeds, but with a bit more variety, higher damage, and the option to create the tree farther away from you.
Tree of Seasons [two-actions] Spell 6
Concentrate, Manipulate, Plant, Wood
Traditions primal
Range 60 feet
Duration 1 minute
You cause a Small tree to instantly sprout in an unoccupied space on the ground. Four seedpods grow from the tree, each filled with the magic of a different one of the four seasons. A creature can Interact to pluck one of the pods and can then either throw it up to 30 feet as part of the same action or do so with a separate Interact action later. When thrown, a pod explodes in a 5-foot burst, dealing 6d6 damage with a basic Reflex save against your spell DC. The damage type depends on the season of the pod: electricity for spring, fire for summer, poison for autumn, or cold for winter. When the spell ends, the tree withers away and any remaining pods rot, leaving behind non-magical seeds.
Heightened (+1) The burst’s damage increases by 1d6.Logan Bonner)
Pathfinder Lead DesignerTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siem?September-2023-Digital-Adventure-Previews September 2023 Digital Adventure Previews 2023-09-21T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-21T13:00:00.000-04:00 September 2023 Digital Adventure Previews Thursday, September 21, 2023 Hello, Starfinders! This month, we’re sending one lucky team of Starfinders to Akiton to participate in the inaugural Dustwarren Cup, a three-day boat race across the vast, shifting sand dunes of Akiton’s Dustwarren silt sea. Organized by retired racer Mimli Nurkop, eccentric scion of the fabulously wealthy (and much-gossiped-about) Nurkop ysoki clan, the Dustwarren Cup is drawing plenty of attention. So, hop aboard your racing yacht, set sail across the Dustwarren, and keep an eye out for danger! In a race this big, there’s bound to be trouble! Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup is an adventure for 7th- through 10th-level characters written by Solomon St. John. Jessica Catalan Starfinder Society Developer Illustration by Tom Ventre Greetings Pathfinders! This month we’re going back to Magnimar, to Heidmarch Manor, where a simple delivery task will probably turn out to be anything but. Sheila Heidmarch has prepared a gift for a very discerning dragon, but a master thief has his eyes on that prize. In Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03 Heidmarch Heist, an adventure for PCs 5th– through 8th level, it’s up to you and your fellow PCs to ensure that the Pathfinder’s chosen gift doesn’t end up as bragging rights for an up-and-coming gang of escapees from Xin-Edasseril. Hilary Moon Murphy has put all of the flavor of Magnimar that could possibly fit into this scenario, so whether you’re a Society veteran, you’ve never set foot in the city, or anything in between, you’ll love the city as much as you hate the thief trying to ruin everything Left to right, illustrations by Benjamin Olson and Josef Kucera Speaking of plans gone awry, we’re also bringing you Pathfinder Quest #15 In the Footsteps of Horror. A repeatable 2 hour adventure for PCs levels 1–4, this is the second release of our new Series 2 quests, and author Shan Wolf has crafted a wonderful dungeon crawl that starts, as all excellent stories do, when the unexpected completely sends all plans off the rails. You and your fellow PCs will have to put your mission on the backburner as you fight to survive, and hopefully to find a way back home. If you were looking for an offering in our new quest series heavier on combat, then this is the adventure for you. Left to right, illustrations by Nicolas Espinoza and Allan Santos da Silva And for our final option for this month, we have a trip planned for Hwanggot! Pathfinders will meet with Venture-Captain Yi Da Som and the Waterfall in order to help them prepare for a meeting with Valashinaz, the underworld dragon of myth and legend. However, upon arriving, it seems her assistant Purepurin has not only forgotten the meeting, but is busy contending with a legion of pests! Among pickle jars and treasure piles, where could this kobold be? Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges – Necessary Introductions is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Michelle Y. Kim. That’s all for now, Pathfinders! See you in October! Josh Foster Pathfinder Society Developer Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios September 2023 Digital Adventure Previews
Thursday, September 21, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
This month, we’re sending one lucky team of Starfinders to Akiton to participate in the inaugural Dustwarren Cup, a three-day boat race across the vast, shifting sand dunes of Akiton’s Dustwarren silt sea. Organized by retired racer Mimli Nurkop, eccentric scion of the fabulously wealthy (and much-gossiped-about) Nurkop ysoki clan, the Dustwarren Cup is drawing plenty of attention. So, hop aboard your racing yacht, set sail across the Dustwarren, and keep an eye out for danger! In a race this big, there’s bound to be trouble!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup is an adventure for 7th- through 10th-level characters written by Solomon St. John.
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Greetings Pathfinders!
This month we’re going back to Magnimar, to Heidmarch Manor, where a simple delivery task will probably turn out to be anything but. Sheila Heidmarch has prepared a gift for a very discerning dragon, but a master thief has his eyes on that prize.
In Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03 Heidmarch Heist, an adventure for PCs 5th– through 8th level, it’s up to you and your fellow PCs to ensure that the Pathfinder’s chosen gift doesn’t end up as bragging rights for an up-and-coming gang of escapees from Xin-Edasseril. Hilary Moon Murphy has put all of the flavor of Magnimar that could possibly fit into this scenario, so whether you’re a Society veteran, you’ve never set foot in the city, or anything in between, you’ll love the city as much as you hate the thief trying to ruin everything
Speaking of plans gone awry, we’re also bringing you Pathfinder Quest #15 In the Footsteps of Horror. A repeatable 2 hour adventure for PCs levels 1–4, this is the second release of our new Series 2 quests, and author Shan Wolf has crafted a wonderful dungeon crawl that starts, as all excellent stories do, when the unexpected completely sends all plans off the rails.
You and your fellow PCs will have to put your mission on the backburner as you fight to survive, and hopefully to find a way back home. If you were looking for an offering in our new quest series heavier on combat, then this is the adventure for you.
And for our final option for this month, we have a trip planned for Hwanggot! Pathfinders will meet with Venture-Captain Yi Da Som and the Waterfall in order to help them prepare for a meeting with Valashinaz, the underworld dragon of myth and legend. However, upon arriving, it seems her assistant Purepurin has not only forgotten the meeting, but is busy contending with a legion of pests! Among pickle jars and treasure piles, where could this kobold be?
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges – Necessary Introductions is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Michelle Y. Kim.
That’s all for now, Pathfinders! See you in October!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siej?Pathfinder-Playtest-Halfway-There Pathfinder Playtest: Halfway There! 2023-09-20T17:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-20T17:30:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Playtest: Halfway There! Wednesday, September 20, 2023 Hello all! Michael Sayre here, Design Manager for the Pathfinder Rules & Lore team, and the lead on the upcoming Pathfinder War of Immortals. I’m chiming in to remind you all that we are now a few days past the halfway point of the playtest for the new animist and exemplar classes. If you haven’t seen the playtest yet, make sure to head to https://paizo.com/pathfinderplaytest and download it now! If you have seen the playtest, head to that same link to leave your survey feedback. We’ve already gotten hundreds of responses and we’re very pleased with the positive response. The team has already begun sifting through some of your insights in preparation for the next steps, when we continue developing these classes after the playtest closes. As normal for these playtests, we’ll tell you a bit more about the insights we’ve derived from your feedback once the playtest closes. For the sake of keeping that data as strong as possible, we don’t want to bias the results by saying too much, too early. There are a couple common questions I think we can answer for you now, though. Will the animist get more apparitions in the final version? Absolutely! Right now, the apparitions we’ve packaged with the playtest are testing specific dynamics of play, with a focus on specific roles we think the animist is likely to fill. You can definitely expect to see more apparitions in the final release. Will the exemplar get more ikons and epithets? The exemplar will definitely see new ikons post-playtest, and the chances of new epithets are pretty high, though we’re still sifting through data about the degree to which these mechanics are working for folks. The final form that epithets take based on your feedback might have some influence on how many are published in the final product. What about new feats? Again, the chances are really high. Some of the feats we put out for the playtest were very experimental, so it’s possible that you might see some feats go away and other feats take their place in the final product. Other feats might have aspects of their level, functionality, or other parameters change. Our playtests are playtests, not previews, so while there’s often certain elements of what we present that we’re pretty confident will stick around in some form for the final version, anything might change based on the feedback you give us and the general satisfaction levels our players are finding within the playtested classes. Illustrations by Wayne Reynolds And that’s about all I’ve got for you, folks! Though, maybe… So, sometimes we have more ideas than fit in a book, and I’ve certainly had some ideas that I think are fun but unlikely to make it to print. The circus-themed apparition below is one such idea, so you tell me, folks: on a scale of 1–10, where 1 is “evil circus spirits don’t belong in my game” and 10 is “GIMME ALL THE EVIL CLOWNS!!!”, how much do you think something like the Reveler in Lost Glee should be in the final product? Reveler in Lost Glee Revelers in lost glee are twisted apparitions that arise in desolate and abandoned places where people once found great joy. They find immense mirth in causing harm or discomfort to others and don’t enjoy being attuned to animists who fail to laugh at their antics. Apparition Skills Circus Lore, Fortune-Telling Lore Apparition Spells Cantripprestidigitation; 1stdizzying colors; 2ndlaughing fit; 3rdhypnotize; 4thconfusion; 5thillusory scene; 6thvibrant pattern; 7thwarp mind; 8thquandary; 9thwails of the damned Vessel Spell trickster’s mirrors Avatar Ringmaster of the Dark Celebration Speed 50 feet, ignore difficult terrain and greater difficult terrain; Melee [one-action] ringmaster’s whip (reach 15 feet, trip), Damage 6d10+6 slashing; Ranged [one-action] feast of the lost (acid, range 120 feet, versatile void), Damage 6d6+6 acid Apparition Vessel Spell Trickster’s Mirrors [one-action] Focus 1 Uncommon, Animist, Focus, Illusion, Mental, Visual Defense basic Will Duration sustained up to 1 minute You are surrounded by up to 3 mirrors that reflect twisted and distorted images of you, making it hard to tell where you actually are within your space and potentially causing those who attack you to hit one of the mirrors instead. You start with one mirror and gain an additional mirror each time you Sustain this spell, up to a maximum of three mirrors. Any attack that would hit you has a random chance of hitting one of your mirrors instead of you. With one mirror, the chances are 1 in 2 (1–3 on 1d6). With two mirrors, there is a 1 in 3 chance of hitting you (1–2 on 1d6). With three mirrors, there is a 1 in 4 chance of hitting you (1 on 1d4). Once a mirror is hit, it is destroyed. If an attack roll fails to hit your AC but doesn't critically fail, it destroys a mirror. If the attacker was within 5 feet, it must succeed at a basic Will save or take 1d4 mental damage as it believes itself cut by a shower of glass shards from the breaking mirror. A damaging effect that affects all targets within your space (such as a caustic blast) destroys all of the mirrors. Heightened (+1) The mental damage dealt by a broken mirror increases by 1d4. Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Playtest, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Pathfinder Playtest: Halfway There!
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Hello all!
Michael Sayre here, Design Manager for the Pathfinder Rules & Lore team, and the lead on the upcoming Pathfinder War of Immortals. I’m chiming in to remind you all that we are now a few days past the halfway point of the playtest for the new animist and exemplar classes. If you haven’t seen the playtest yet, make sure to head to https://paizo.com/pathfinderplaytest and download it now! If you have seen the playtest, head to that same link to leave your survey feedback. We’ve already gotten hundreds of responses and we’re very pleased with the positive response. The team has already begun sifting through some of your insights in preparation for the next steps, when we continue developing these classes after the playtest closes.
As normal for these playtests, we’ll tell you a bit more about the insights we’ve derived from your feedback once the playtest closes. For the sake of keeping that data as strong as possible, we don’t want to bias the results by saying too much, too early. There are a couple common questions I think we can answer for you now, though.
Will the animist get more apparitions in the final version? Absolutely! Right now, the apparitions we’ve packaged with the playtest are testing specific dynamics of play, with a focus on specific roles we think the animist is likely to fill. You can definitely expect to see more apparitions in the final release.
Will the exemplar get more ikons and epithets? The exemplar will definitely see new ikons post-playtest, and the chances of new epithets are pretty high, though we’re still sifting through data about the degree to which these mechanics are working for folks. The final form that epithets take based on your feedback might have some influence on how many are published in the final product.
What about new feats? Again, the chances are really high. Some of the feats we put out for the playtest were very experimental, so it’s possible that you might see some feats go away and other feats take their place in the final product. Other feats might have aspects of their level, functionality, or other parameters change. Our playtests are playtests, not previews, so while there’s often certain elements of what we present that we’re pretty confident will stick around in some form for the final version, anything might change based on the feedback you give us and the general satisfaction levels our players are finding within the playtested classes.
And that’s about all I’ve got for you, folks! Though, maybe…
So, sometimes we have more ideas than fit in a book, and I’ve certainly had some ideas that I think are fun but unlikely to make it to print. The circus-themed apparition below is one such idea, so you tell me, folks: on a scale of 1–10, where 1 is “evil circus spirits don’t belong in my game” and 10 is “GIMME ALL THE EVIL CLOWNS!!!”, how much do you think something like the Reveler in Lost Glee should be in the final product?
Reveler in Lost Glee
Revelers in lost glee are twisted apparitions that arise in desolate and abandoned places where people once found great joy. They find immense mirth in causing harm or discomfort to others and don’t enjoy being attuned to animists who fail to laugh at their antics.
Apparition Skills Circus Lore, Fortune-Telling Lore
Apparition Spells Cantripprestidigitation; 1stdizzying colors; 2ndlaughing fit; 3rdhypnotize; 4thconfusion; 5thillusory scene; 6thvibrant pattern; 7thwarp mind; 8thquandary; 9thwails of the damned
Vessel Spell trickster’s mirrors
Avatar Ringmaster of the Dark Celebration Speed 50 feet, ignore difficult terrain and greater difficult terrain; Melee [one-action] ringmaster’s whip (reach 15 feet, trip), Damage 6d10+6 slashing; Ranged [one-action] feast of the lost (acid, range 120 feet, versatile void), Damage 6d6+6 acid
Apparition Vessel Spell
Trickster’s Mirrors [one-action] Focus 1
Uncommon, Animist, Focus, Illusion, Mental, Visual
Defense basic Will
Duration sustained up to 1 minute
You are surrounded by up to 3 mirrors that reflect twisted and distorted images of you, making it hard to tell where you actually are within your space and potentially causing those who attack you to hit one of the mirrors instead. You start with one mirror and gain an additional mirror each time you Sustain this spell, up to a maximum of three mirrors. Any attack that would hit you has a random chance of hitting one of your mirrors instead of you. With one mirror, the chances are 1 in 2 (1–3 on 1d6). With two mirrors, there is a 1 in 3 chance of hitting you (1–2 on 1d6). With three mirrors, there is a 1 in 4 chance of hitting you (1 on 1d4).
Once a mirror is hit, it is destroyed. If an attack roll fails to hit your AC but doesn't critically fail, it destroys a mirror. If the attacker was within 5 feet, it must succeed at a basic Will save or take 1d4 mental damage as it believes itself cut by a shower of glass shards from the breaking mirror. A damaging effect that affects all targets within your space (such as a caustic blast) destroys all of the mirrors.
Heightened (+1) The mental damage dealt by a broken mirror increases by 1d4.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Playtest, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siei?Find-Your-Path-Sept-2023 Find Your Path, Sept. 2023 2023-09-20T15:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-20T15:00:00.000-04:00 Find Your Path, Sept. 2023 Wednesday, September 20, 2023 Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases place you at the breaking point of a centuries-old conflict, the front lines of a brand-new race, and the middle of a heist! Keep an eye out as we shift our release dates back in the coming months to accommodate the winter holidays! Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions—for everything from rulebooks to accessories. Pathfinder Adventure Path #195: Heavy is the Crown (Sky King’s Tomb 3 of 3) HISTORY SEALED IN STONE! A sorcerous rival threatens to breach the Sky King’s Tomb ahead of the PCs, turning its contents and legendary guardian against all dwarves. The PCs must raise an army, venture into the Darklands’ depths, and clash with a titanic beast if they’re to defeat their enemy, explore the tomb, and uncover a lost legacy that could rewrite dwarven history! The Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path concludes with “Heavy is the Crown,” an adventure for 8th- to 10th-level characters. Starfinder Flip-Mat: Mining Operation DRILLING DOWN All the ore and crystal that get fashioned into your characters’ high-tech equipment has to come from somewhere! Whether on a distant asteroid or in the mountainous region of a well-known planet, this mining operation is the perfect place for investigating subterranean dangers or industrial saboteurs. This double-sided map presents the surface structures of a mine on one side and a series of underground tunnels on the other. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Mining Operation, you’ll be ready the next time your player characters want to dig deep for adventure! Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Haunted Dungeon FRIGHTS BELOW! The reputed horrors of ancient dungeons—and the forgotten treasures within—are enough to attract any group of adventurers. But regardless of a party’s foolhardy urge to delve into places better left alone, no Game Master wants to spend time drawing every creepy crypt or sinister hallway the characters explore. Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist A Pathfinder Society Scenario for 5th through 8th level characters. The PCs are tasked with escorting a valuable item slated to be gifted to a powerful potential ally of the Pathfinder Society, but as they are being briefed on their mission, an unknown thief is pulling off a heist within Heidmarch manor, and the item the PCs were to escort has been stolen just as Venture-Captain Shiela Heidmarch goes to show them the item. The PCs must pick up the thief's trail in a race across Magnimar to recover the treasure they haven't even had the opportunity to see, much less guard. Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters. The Starfinder Society has been invited to participate in the inaugural Dustwarren Cup, a three-day boat race across the vast, shifting sand dunes of Akiton’s Dustwarren silt sea. Hosted by wealthy eccentric and retired racer Mimli Nurkop, scion of the fabulously wealthy Nurkop ysoki clan, the Dustwarren Cup boasts an impressive prize and is drawing plenty of attention—not all of it wanted. As Mimli and the other racers prepare to brave the elements, battle local wildlife, and outrace their competitors, a band of pirates plots to abduct the Nurkop heiress! Weigh anchor, hoist the sails, and set sail for adventure! The stakes are high in the Dustwarren Cup! Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges — Necessary Introductions A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters. Since the defeat of Aslynn, the Waterfall has become more of a staple around the Grand Lodge, starting to hold strange, isolated meetings with leadership and seemingly putting together some plan. Her most recent request is that a team of Pathfinder agents journey to Hwanggot and meet with the underworld dragon, Valashinaz as an introductory team. Venture-Captain Yi Da Som arranged the meeting through Valashinaz's kobold assistant, Purepurin. Unfortunately, between then and the PCs arriving, Purepurin forgot about them in the midst of pickling recipes from goblins and creepy crawlies invading the vaults! It's up to the PCs to help Purepurin bring Valashinaz's vaults under control while she summons the dragon to ensure these introductions go off without a hitch! Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #15: In the Footsteps of Horror A Pathfinder Society Quest designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters, playable in 2-3 hours. A group of powerful Pathfinders had to abandon the exploration of an underground complex after defeating a powerful lich and stopping a devatating ritual by the skin of their teeth. The PCs are tasked with exploring this complex, now cleared of threats, and cataloging what's there. The ritual, though incomplete, has still linked the site to its counterpart in the Netherworld, and once they enter, the PCs find that their task will not be as simple or boring as promised, as they have to fight through the shadowy mirror of the Netherworld complex just to get back home, with unknown threats that most assuredly were not cleared out. Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #195: Heavy is the Crown (Sky King’s Tomb 3 of 3). And don’t forget about our new Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our adventure paths! Speaking of Organized Play, we’ve updated our Amazon apparel store to include new merchandise with this year’s new Organized Play logos and imagery! Take a moment to browse the wares of our online merchandise store. We’re also excited to showcase some apparel options from our licensed partners! Pegasus Publishing recently debuted two designs—the Pathfinder Mirage Dragon and the Starfinder Captain Concierge—at Dragon Con and in their online store! Look forward to more licensed apparel designed by our art team through Pegasus Publishing coming soon! Savage Sparrow, another of our licensed apparel designers, recently released a new Pathfinder goblin design—Dice Goblin! Along with the prior apparel from Savage Sparrow’s Kickstarter, available now online and at select conventions, these shirts are sure to be a hit! Face the Whispering Tyrant! Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors now live! A new roguelite survivor game set in the beloved fantasy world of Pathfinder. Enter Gallowspire, Pathfinder’s legendary tower of darkness, alongside your fearless companion. Slay hordes of enemies, upgrade your arsenal, and overcome deadly bosses to seal away the ancient king of undeath! Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store. Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide! Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Wight Boss Battle! In celebration of The Glass Cannon Network’s new season, we’re running a special sale on the paranormal mystery-themed Pathfinder Dark Archive and the Gatewalkers Adventure Path! Get 10% off all physical, PDF, and Foundry VTT versions of these products with the code DarkGatePaizo, now through October 31st. Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder! Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Find Your Path, Sept. 2023
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Hail and well met, Pathfinders and Starfinders! This month’s new releases place you at the breaking point of a centuries-old conflict, the front lines of a brand-new race, and the middle of a heist!
Keep an eye out as we shift our release dates back in the coming months to accommodate the winter holidays! Never miss a release with our Paizo Subscriptions—for everything from rulebooks to accessories.
Pathfinder Adventure Path #195: Heavy is the Crown (Sky King’s Tomb 3 of 3)
HISTORY SEALED IN STONE!
A sorcerous rival threatens to breach the Sky King’s Tomb ahead of the PCs, turning its contents and legendary guardian against all dwarves. The PCs must raise an army, venture into the Darklands’ depths, and clash with a titanic beast if they’re to defeat their enemy, explore the tomb, and uncover a lost legacy that could rewrite dwarven history! The Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path concludes with “Heavy is the Crown,” an adventure for 8th- to 10th-level characters.
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Mining Operation
DRILLING DOWN
All the ore and crystal that get fashioned into your characters’ high-tech equipment has to come from somewhere! Whether on a distant asteroid or in the mountainous region of a well-known planet, this mining operation is the perfect place for investigating subterranean dangers or industrial saboteurs. This double-sided map presents the surface structures of a mine on one side and a series of underground tunnels on the other. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Mining Operation, you’ll be ready the next time your player characters want to dig deep for adventure!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Haunted Dungeon
FRIGHTS BELOW!
The reputed horrors of ancient dungeons—and the forgotten treasures within—are enough to attract any group of adventurers. But regardless of a party’s foolhardy urge to delve into places better left alone, no Game Master wants to spend time drawing every creepy crypt or sinister hallway the characters explore.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist
A Pathfinder Society Scenario for 5th through 8th level characters.
The PCs are tasked with escorting a valuable item slated to be gifted to a powerful potential ally of the Pathfinder Society, but as they are being briefed on their mission, an unknown thief is pulling off a heist within Heidmarch manor, and the item the PCs were to escort has been stolen just as Venture-Captain Shiela Heidmarch goes to show them the item. The PCs must pick up the thief's trail in a race across Magnimar to recover the treasure they haven't even had the opportunity to see, much less guard.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters.
The Starfinder Society has been invited to participate in the inaugural Dustwarren Cup, a three-day boat race across the vast, shifting sand dunes of Akiton’s Dustwarren silt sea. Hosted by wealthy eccentric and retired racer Mimli Nurkop, scion of the fabulously wealthy Nurkop ysoki clan, the Dustwarren Cup boasts an impressive prize and is drawing plenty of attention—not all of it wanted. As Mimli and the other racers prepare to brave the elements, battle local wildlife, and outrace their competitors, a band of pirates plots to abduct the Nurkop heiress! Weigh anchor, hoist the sails, and set sail for adventure! The stakes are high in the Dustwarren Cup!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges — Necessary Introductions
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
Since the defeat of Aslynn, the Waterfall has become more of a staple around the Grand Lodge, starting to hold strange, isolated meetings with leadership and seemingly putting together some plan. Her most recent request is that a team of Pathfinder agents journey to Hwanggot and meet with the underworld dragon, Valashinaz as an introductory team. Venture-Captain Yi Da Som arranged the meeting through Valashinaz's kobold assistant, Purepurin. Unfortunately, between then and the PCs arriving, Purepurin forgot about them in the midst of pickling recipes from goblins and creepy crawlies invading the vaults! It's up to the PCs to help Purepurin bring Valashinaz's vaults under control while she summons the dragon to ensure these introductions go off without a hitch!
Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #15: In the Footsteps of Horror
A Pathfinder Society Quest designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters, playable in 2-3 hours.
A group of powerful Pathfinders had to abandon the exploration of an underground complex after defeating a powerful lich and stopping a devatating ritual by the skin of their teeth. The PCs are tasked with exploring this complex, now cleared of threats, and cataloging what's there. The ritual, though incomplete, has still linked the site to its counterpart in the Netherworld, and once they enter, the PCs find that their task will not be as simple or boring as promised, as they have to fight through the shadowy mirror of the Netherworld complex just to get back home, with unknown threats that most assuredly were not cleared out.
Browse all of our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #195: Heavy is the Crown (Sky King’s Tomb 3 of 3). And don’t forget about our new Organized Play Scenario Season Passes, which give Organized Play scenarios the same deluxe treatment as our adventure paths!
Speaking of Organized Play, we’ve updated our Amazon apparel store to include new merchandise with this year’s new Organized Play logos and imagery! Take a moment to browse the wares of our online merchandise store.
We’re also excited to showcase some apparel options from our licensed partners! Pegasus Publishing recently debuted two designs—the Pathfinder Mirage Dragon and the Starfinder Captain Concierge—at Dragon Con and in their online store! Look forward to more licensed apparel designed by our art team through Pegasus Publishing coming soon!
Savage Sparrow, another of our licensed apparel designers, recently released a new Pathfinder goblin design—Dice Goblin! Along with the prior apparel from Savage Sparrow’s Kickstarter, available now online and at select conventions, these shirts are sure to be a hit!
Face the Whispering Tyrant! Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors now live!
A new roguelite survivor game set in the beloved fantasy world of Pathfinder. Enter Gallowspire, Pathfinder’s legendary tower of darkness, alongside your fearless companion. Slay hordes of enemies, upgrade your arsenal, and overcome deadly bosses to seal away the ancient king of undeath!
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price! Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Wight Boss Battle!
In celebration of The Glass Cannon Network’s new season, we’re running a special sale on the paranormal mystery-themed Pathfinder Dark Archive and the Gatewalkers Adventure Path! Get 10% off all physical, PDF, and Foundry VTT versions of these products with the code DarkGatePaizo, now through October 31st.
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sieh?Player-Core-Preview-The-Wizard-Remastered Player Core Preview: The Wizard, Remastered 2023-09-19T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-19T13:30:00.000-04:00 Player Core Preview: The Wizard, Remastered Tuesday, September 19, 2023 Hi everyone! James here to talk a little bit about the Remaster project. We're getting closer and closer to Pathfinder Player Core and GM Corereleasing in November. To shine a little more light on what's coming, the marketing team and us thought we would kick off a blog series going into some of our changes in a little more depth. We'll start things off with a class, the wizard! The wizard is the classic arcane spellcaster who learns magic in the most academic way: institutions, tomes, tutors and the like, and we wanted this to come through in how the class feels to build and play, so expect to see some more references to training, incantations, runes, spell formulas, and the like in the feats and features. Ezren, the iconic wizard. Art by Wayne Reynolds While the wizard was generally already providing a satisfying play experience at the table, it was also a class that interacts very heavily with one of the larger changes we’re making in the Remaster, which is the removal of the eight schools of magic that were deeply tied to rules we were using via the OGL. Though this presented a big challenge in remastering the class, it also let us solve one of the biggest frustrations of the wizard, which is that there wasn't a whole lot of space left for them to expand. One of the most commonly requested expansions for any class is additional major paths to build your characters along, but because the wizard schools already had all eight schools of magic that could ever exist in the setting (plus universalist), we could never increase the number of wizard schools or explore more interesting options beyond those preset themes. The new role for arcane schools is as just that: actual mages' curricula in Golarion. This allows us to make much more tightly focused schools that really let you sell the theme of your wizard, from the tactical spells of the School of Battle Magic (fireball, resist energy, weapon storm, true target and the like) to the infrastructure-focused spells of the School of Civic Wizardry (hydraulic push for firefighting, summon construct and wall of stone for construction, pinpoint and water walk for search and rescue, and earthquake and disintegrate for controlled demolitions). We've also rearranged the existing wizard focus spells and, in some places, changed them a little bit to fit their new locations—the School of Mentalism's charming push focus spell functions much like the original enchanter's charming words, but the new spell doesn't have the auditory or linguistic traits, since the School of Mentalism is much more about direct mind magic. This also opens the door to create more schools in the future based on the specific schools of magic in the setting, and I know my colleagues in the Lost Omens line have already started thinking of what some of these might be (they have, as yet, sadly rejected my suggestion for a goblin-themed wizard school containing mostly fire and pickling spells). We haven't just remastered the schools; we wanted to go through the feats as well and give the wizard a few fun toys to underscore how they're nerds their academic mastery of magic. Some of these are tools originally developed in other places that make perfect sense for a wizard to have, like the Knowledge Is Power magus feat (with a few wizard-specific adjustments). We also gave the wizards some new feats, like the following: Secondary Detonation Array [one-action] Feat 14 Manipulate, Spellshape, Wizard You divert some of your spell’s energy into an unstable runic array. If your next action is to Cast a Spell that deals damage, has no duration, and affects an area, a glowing magic circle appears in a 5-foot burst within that area. At the beginning of your next turn, the circle detonates, dealing 1d6 force damage per rank of the spell to all creatures within the circle, with a basic Reflex save against your spell DC. If the spell dealt a different type of damage, the circle deals this type of damage instead (or one type of your choice if the spell could deal multiple types of damage). This feat ties into some of the flavor tweaks we've made to wizards to have them talk about their abilities a little more academically, and it's burst of damage is one that requires a little bit of forethought in strategy to get the most out of, something that a spellcaster whose key attribute is Intelligence might gravitate toward. That's our look at the wizard! Of course, what would a wizard be without their spells? Check back in on Thursday, where we'll go over some of the updates to magic coming in the remaster, from new spells to some of the new rules for spellcasting! James Case (he / him)Senior Designer Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Wizard Player Core Preview: The Wizard, Remastered
Tuesday, September 19, 2023
Hi everyone! James here to talk a little bit about the Remaster project. We're getting closer and closer to Pathfinder Player Core and GM Corereleasing in November. To shine a little more light on what's coming, the marketing team and us thought we would kick off a blog series going into some of our changes in a little more depth. We'll start things off with a class, the wizard!
The wizard is the classic arcane spellcaster who learns magic in the most academic way: institutions, tomes, tutors and the like, and we wanted this to come through in how the class feels to build and play, so expect to see some more references to training, incantations, runes, spell formulas, and the like in the feats and features.
Ezren, the iconic wizard. Art by Wayne Reynolds While the wizard was generally already providing a satisfying play experience at the table, it was also a class that interacts very heavily with one of the larger changes we’re making in the Remaster, which is the removal of the eight schools of magic that were deeply tied to rules we were using via the OGL. Though this presented a big challenge in remastering the class, it also let us solve one of the biggest frustrations of the wizard, which is that there wasn't a whole lot of space left for them to expand. One of the most commonly requested expansions for any class is additional major paths to build your characters along, but because the wizard schools already had all eight schools of magic that could ever exist in the setting (plus universalist), we could never increase the number of wizard schools or explore more interesting options beyond those preset themes.
The new role for arcane schools is as just that: actual mages' curricula in Golarion. This allows us to make much more tightly focused schools that really let you sell the theme of your wizard, from the tactical spells of the School of Battle Magic (fireball, resist energy, weapon storm, true target and the like) to the infrastructure-focused spells of the School of Civic Wizardry (hydraulic push for firefighting, summon construct and wall of stone for construction, pinpoint and water walk for search and rescue, and earthquake and disintegrate for controlled demolitions). We've also rearranged the existing wizard focus spells and, in some places, changed them a little bit to fit their new locations—the School of Mentalism's charming push focus spell functions much like the original enchanter's charming words, but the new spell doesn't have the auditory or linguistic traits, since the School of Mentalism is much more about direct mind magic.
This also opens the door to create more schools in the future based on the specific schools of magic in the setting, and I know my colleagues in the Lost Omens line have already started thinking of what some of these might be (they have, as yet, sadly rejected my suggestion for a goblin-themed wizard school containing mostly fire and pickling spells).
We haven't just remastered the schools; we wanted to go through the feats as well and give the wizard a few fun toys to underscore
how they're nerdstheir academic mastery of magic. Some of these are tools originally developed in other places that make perfect sense for a wizard to have, like the Knowledge Is Power magus feat (with a few wizard-specific adjustments). We also gave the wizards some new feats, like the following:
Secondary Detonation Array [one-action] Feat 14
Manipulate, Spellshape, Wizard
You divert some of your spell’s energy into an unstable runic array. If your next action is to Cast a Spell that deals damage, has no duration, and affects an area, a glowing magic circle appears in a 5-foot burst within that area. At the beginning of your next turn, the circle detonates, dealing 1d6 force damage per rank of the spell to all creatures within the circle, with a basic Reflex save against your spell DC. If the spell dealt a different type of damage, the circle deals this type of damage instead (or one type of your choice if the spell could deal multiple types of damage).
This feat ties into some of the flavor tweaks we've made to wizards to have them talk about their abilities a little more academically, and it's burst of damage is one that requires a little bit of forethought in strategy to get the most out of, something that a spellcaster whose key attribute is Intelligence might gravitate toward.
That's our look at the wizard! Of course, what would a wizard be without their spells? Check back in on Thursday, where we'll go over some of the updates to magic coming in the remaster, from new spells to some of the new rules for spellcasting!
James Case (he / him)
Senior DesignerTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Wizard
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siee?Rosh-Hashanah-Jewish-Contributors-Blog Rosh Hashanah Jewish Contributors Blog 2023-09-15T12:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-15T12:30:00.000-04:00 Rosh Hashanah Jewish Contributors Blog Friday, September 15, 2023 L’shana tova! September 15th at sundown marks the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of a new year, and the beginning of the High Holy Days for Jewish people. In celebration of the new year, we’ve gathered submissions from some of our Jewish employees and community members! James Beck (he/she/they) And for my first action, I blow the shofar to inspire courage. Hello! My name is James Beck. I am a Jewish author who wrote for Lost Omens Firebrands (specifically the Fire’s Finest & Passenger). I felt at home to tell Jewish stories in Numeria as I related to the story of the androids and the struggles they went through with the Technic League. In my works either with Paizo or Eldritch Osiris Games, I try to bring in themes and values of Jewish culture that I grew up with such as tikun olam (repair the world). Pathfinder/Starfinder have greatly emphasized the idea of adventurers trying to make the world or universe a better place to live in. Jewish culture teaches us to be curious and to explore and I feel honored to be part of this community where I can explore different ideas and learn about all that has come before. Thank you Pathfinder and Starfinder community for giving me a chance to learn and grow not only as a writer but as a person as well. You can find me @geekjames513 on twitter! Michael Bramnik (he/him) Why is this knight different from all other knights? I know, I know—wrong holy day! Hello there, and L’Shana Tova! I’m Michael Bramnik (https://canisdirus.carrd.co), a Jewish freelancer for Paizo and elsewhere in the industry. I’ve had the privilege of writing for Starfinder Enhanced and several other things this past year, but the one that stands out for me today is Pathfinder Society #4-05: The Arclord Who Never Was. Though far from being a universal opinion, I have heard firsthand that RPGs aren’t as popular in our communities because of things taken from Jewish myth or folklore and then “twisted.” The character Vrisk was my way of putting a positive spin on golems in RPGs to combat this—something I’m very proud of. Beyond that, I’d like to offer something fun to help celebrate the new year. This probably won’t ever become PFS-legal, mind you, but maybe it could be a fun addition to your home game? Ram's Horn Uncommon, Concussive, Nonlethal, Propulsive Price 10 gp; Damage 1d4 B; Bulk L Hands 1; Range 10 ft.; Reload 0 Type Ranged; Category Simple; Group Brawling Each of these eloquently-crafted horns curves in unique ways. They can play musical notes as well as rupture eardrums in combat through staccato blasts. Rue Dickey (they/he/xe) Wishing a happy new year to all of my fellow Jewish nerds—may your apples be crisp and the honey linger on your lips. As a practicing Jewish witch, I have a deep love for the spirituality of our religion and culture, and how the world’s cycles interact. Jewish ritual magic—for protection, for wellness, for family and love—inspires a lot of my design work when it comes to magic in fantasy games. It is equally important to get the sigils and designs right as it is to have the right thoughts held in your heart and mind while completing them. Rituals in Judaism are rooted in tradition, but like all aspects of our faith, are deeply personal, and every family—or even every person—might practice them slightly differently. No one ritual is correct, there is never only one answer—and there is always room for change. I love getting to incorporate this philosophy in my work, and remind everyone that questioning the world and “the way things are” is a vital part of living. Avi Kool (they/them) Hi all, Avi again, still here at Paizo, still Jewish. I’ve had the privilege of bringing a Jewish perspective to my work from my heritage as both an Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jew, and from my upbringing in Reform Judaism. This includes the opportunity to write characters inspired by my family history (see Arhan Benimaya in the Kraken’s Ink Tattoo section of Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar), and I hope we can bring more aspects of Jewish folklore and history into Pathfinder as time goes on. I’m particularly interested in telling accurate folklore around Jewish monsters, because Judaism is full of monsters! Whether that be the terrifying “biblically accurate angels” (a misnomer, because these descriptions aren’t from the Bible originally, they’re from the Torah) or golems or the Leviathan, Jewish lore is bursting with material suited for TTRPGs. I’ve even recently been learning about the history of dragons in Judaism—believe it or not, many medieval Jewish manuscripts feature illustrations of dragons in the marginalia! They didn’t teach me about that in Hebrew school. There’s also the shedim, Judaism’s precursor to the Christian demons. Shedim are shapeshifters that can turn invisible, and it’s said that you could throw ashes to the ground to render their footsteps visible. I have also read that the tradition of using salt to ward off spirits originates in Judaism. As you can see, Jewish lore contains bountiful material to be adopted respectfully in TTRPGs, far beyond what we’ve seen published by any company. I might just write it myself! Jacob W. Michaels (he/him) Shana tova (happy New Year), Paizo community. I’m Jacob W. Michaels, one of Paizo's Jewish freelancers. I’ve gotten to work on a number of products for Paizo; this year, that includes the potions section in Pathfinder Treasure Vault, the Findeladlara article in Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires, and Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle! Part of what I love about Judaism is our tradition of telling stories, and particularly stories that provide meaning. I like to think I bring that tradition to role-playing games. We tell stories together—and part of that is just for fun (though fun is 100% reason enough for some of the stories we tell together), but part of it reaches deeper. We build a sense of community through our stories, hopefully finding things we have in common, even when we live across the world from each other. Through these games, we find friendship. And I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Judaism in my work. May this coming year bring more sweetness, more joy, more games, and more time well spent together. For all those celebrating—Shana tova! Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Rosh Hashanah Jewish Contributors Blog
Friday, September 15, 2023
]]>L’shana tova!
September 15th at sundown marks the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of a new year, and the beginning of the High Holy Days for Jewish people. In celebration of the new year, we’ve gathered submissions from some of our Jewish employees and community members!
James Beck (he/she/they)
And for my first action, I blow the shofar to inspire courage. Hello! My name is James Beck. I am a Jewish author who wrote for Lost Omens Firebrands (specifically the Fire’s Finest & Passenger). I felt at home to tell Jewish stories in Numeria as I related to the story of the androids and the struggles they went through with the Technic League. In my works either with Paizo or Eldritch Osiris Games, I try to bring in themes and values of Jewish culture that I grew up with such as tikun olam (repair the world). Pathfinder/Starfinder have greatly emphasized the idea of adventurers trying to make the world or universe a better place to live in. Jewish culture teaches us to be curious and to explore and I feel honored to be part of this community where I can explore different ideas and learn about all that has come before. Thank you Pathfinder and Starfinder community for giving me a chance to learn and grow not only as a writer but as a person as well. You can find me @geekjames513 on twitter!
Michael Bramnik (he/him)
Why is this knight different from all other knights? I know, I know—wrong holy day!
Hello there, and L’Shana Tova! I’m Michael Bramnik (https://canisdirus.carrd.co), a Jewish freelancer for Paizo and elsewhere in the industry. I’ve had the privilege of writing for Starfinder Enhanced and several other things this past year, but the one that stands out for me today is Pathfinder Society #4-05: The Arclord Who Never Was. Though far from being a universal opinion, I have heard firsthand that RPGs aren’t as popular in our communities because of things taken from Jewish myth or folklore and then “twisted.” The character Vrisk was my way of putting a positive spin on golems in RPGs to combat this—something I’m very proud of.
Beyond that, I’d like to offer something fun to help celebrate the new year. This probably won’t ever become PFS-legal, mind you, but maybe it could be a fun addition to your home game?
Ram's Horn
Uncommon, Concussive, Nonlethal, Propulsive
Price 10 gp; Damage 1d4 B; Bulk L
Hands 1; Range 10 ft.; Reload 0
Type Ranged; Category Simple; Group BrawlingEach of these eloquently-crafted horns curves in unique ways. They can play musical notes as well as rupture eardrums in combat through staccato blasts.
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Wishing a happy new year to all of my fellow Jewish nerds—may your apples be crisp and the honey linger on your lips. As a practicing Jewish witch, I have a deep love for the spirituality of our religion and culture, and how the world’s cycles interact. Jewish ritual magic—for protection, for wellness, for family and love—inspires a lot of my design work when it comes to magic in fantasy games. It is equally important to get the sigils and designs right as it is to have the right thoughts held in your heart and mind while completing them. Rituals in Judaism are rooted in tradition, but like all aspects of our faith, are deeply personal, and every family—or even every person—might practice them slightly differently. No one ritual is correct, there is never only one answer—and there is always room for change. I love getting to incorporate this philosophy in my work, and remind everyone that questioning the world and “the way things are” is a vital part of living.
Avi Kool (they/them)
Hi all, Avi again, still here at Paizo, still Jewish. I’ve had the privilege of bringing a Jewish perspective to my work from my heritage as both an Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jew, and from my upbringing in Reform Judaism. This includes the opportunity to write characters inspired by my family history (see Arhan Benimaya in the Kraken’s Ink Tattoo section of Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar), and I hope we can bring more aspects of Jewish folklore and history into Pathfinder as time goes on. I’m particularly interested in telling accurate folklore around Jewish monsters, because Judaism is full of monsters! Whether that be the terrifying “biblically accurate angels” (a misnomer, because these descriptions aren’t from the Bible originally, they’re from the Torah) or golems or the Leviathan, Jewish lore is bursting with material suited for TTRPGs. I’ve even recently been learning about the history of dragons in Judaism—believe it or not, many medieval Jewish manuscripts feature illustrations of dragons in the marginalia! They didn’t teach me about that in Hebrew school. There’s also the shedim, Judaism’s precursor to the Christian demons. Shedim are shapeshifters that can turn invisible, and it’s said that you could throw ashes to the ground to render their footsteps visible. I have also read that the tradition of using salt to ward off spirits originates in Judaism. As you can see, Jewish lore contains bountiful material to be adopted respectfully in TTRPGs, far beyond what we’ve seen published by any company. I might just write it myself!
Jacob W. Michaels (he/him)
Shana tova (happy New Year), Paizo community. I’m Jacob W. Michaels, one of Paizo's Jewish freelancers. I’ve gotten to work on a number of products for Paizo; this year, that includes the potions section in Pathfinder Treasure Vault, the Findeladlara article in Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires, and Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle! Part of what I love about Judaism is our tradition of telling stories, and particularly stories that provide meaning. I like to think I bring that tradition to role-playing games. We tell stories together—and part of that is just for fun (though fun is 100% reason enough for some of the stories we tell together), but part of it reaches deeper. We build a sense of community through our stories, hopefully finding things we have in common, even when we live across the world from each other. Through these games, we find friendship. And I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Judaism in my work. May this coming year bring more sweetness, more joy, more games, and more time well spent together.
For all those celebrating—Shana tova!
https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2901 The Crazy Book Lady (Acworth) 9/16 2023-09-15T12:11:52.000-04:00 2023-09-15T12:11:52.000-04:00 Sorry for the late notice on this one. I'm scheduled to run a Starfinder table at The Crazy Book Lady in Acworth tomorrow (9/16). I had to cancel last month's session due to a death in the family, and I have to back out of tomorrow's session to take care of a dog who just had major surgery yesterday, so I'm looking to see if anyone can step in. The game is listed on Warhorn but can easily be changed if you're able to run and want to do something other than the scenario I'd selected. Thanks!
I'm scheduled to run a Starfinder table at The Crazy Book Lady in Acworth tomorrow (9/16). I had to cancel last month's session due to a death in the family, and I have to back out of tomorrow's session to take care of a dog who just had major surgery yesterday, so I'm looking to see if anyone can step in. The game is listed on Warhorn but can easily be changed if you're able to run and want to do something other than the scenario I'd selected.
Thanks!]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sief?Face-The-Whispering-Tyrant-in-Pathfinder Face The Whispering Tyrant in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors 2023-09-14T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-14T13:00:00.000-04:00 Face The Whispering Tyrant in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors Thursday, September 14, 2023 The roguelite bullet hell survivor launches into Steam Early Access today! The Whispering Tyrant awaits… Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors has officially launched into Steam Early Access! Developed by BKOM Studios in partnership with Paizo, this roguelite bullet hell survivor game allows you to experience the renowned world of Golarion through a whole new lens. Arm-in-arm with a trusted ally, delve into Gallowspire and confront the legendary villain Tar-Baphon! Within the depths of this gothic tower lies the disgraced lich-emperor Tar-Baphon, one of Pathfinder’s most ancient and powerful villains. While sealed away beneath his ancient seat of power, he has been deftly plotting his dark return. As the wards that contain him begin to fail, three fearless heroes will rise to the occasion, tasked with venturing into Gallowspire's depths to defeat Tar-Baphon and repair the wards that seal him away. Take up arms as one of three daring heroes and battle through the horrors of Gallowspire. The Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue all come with their own strengths and talents that will aid their efforts against the disgraced lich. While they’re all skilled heroes, the task of sealing the Whispering Tyrant away is too much to bear alone. Choose an ally to fight alongside you as you slay hordes of Tar-Baphon’s undead minions, collect and upgrade your arsenal of spells and weapons, and extinguish Gallowspire’s unyielding bosses. There will be many failures throughout your journey, but the heroes can escape death and grow stronger with each attempt by using the power of an ancient medallion. Only those who find the strength to break through Gallowspire may face the Whispering Tyrant himself. But one victory will not be enough to seal him away forever. The heroes must confront him over and over to buy Golarion the time it needs to prepare for Tar-Baphon’s seemingly inevitable return. Fall, rise, and grow ever stronger… Face Gallowspire's hordes again and again—for as long as it takes! Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors is now available on Steam Early Access for $6.99. Brave heroes can take advantage of a 20% launch discount for a limited time. Additionally, a special Bullet Hell Survivor Bundle with Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors, Soulstone Survivors, and 20 Minutes Till Dawn is available at a special 10% discount. Keep up to date with the game’s development by joining the official Discord server and following BKOM Studios on X. Features: Choose your class: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue. Each features unique talents, powers, and playstyles. Select a second hero to fight alongside you as a companion character. Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run. Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run. Earn experience to level up your heroes and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers. Collect and spend treasure to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes. Complete quests, defeat bosses, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself. Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless! Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games Face The Whispering Tyrant in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors
Thursday, September 14, 2023
The roguelite bullet hell survivor launches into Steam Early Access today!
The Whispering Tyrant awaits… Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors has officially launched into Steam Early Access! Developed by BKOM Studios in partnership with Paizo, this roguelite bullet hell survivor game allows you to experience the renowned world of Golarion through a whole new lens. Arm-in-arm with a trusted ally, delve into Gallowspire and confront the legendary villain Tar-Baphon!
Within the depths of this gothic tower lies the disgraced lich-emperor Tar-Baphon, one of Pathfinder’s most ancient and powerful villains. While sealed away beneath his ancient seat of power, he has been deftly plotting his dark return. As the wards that contain him begin to fail, three fearless heroes will rise to the occasion, tasked with venturing into Gallowspire's depths to defeat Tar-Baphon and repair the wards that seal him away.
Take up arms as one of three daring heroes and battle through the horrors of Gallowspire. The Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue all come with their own strengths and talents that will aid their efforts against the disgraced lich. While they’re all skilled heroes, the task of sealing the Whispering Tyrant away is too much to bear alone. Choose an ally to fight alongside you as you slay hordes of Tar-Baphon’s undead minions, collect and upgrade your arsenal of spells and weapons, and extinguish Gallowspire’s unyielding bosses.
There will be many failures throughout your journey, but the heroes can escape death and grow stronger with each attempt by using the power of an ancient medallion. Only those who find the strength to break through Gallowspire may face the Whispering Tyrant himself. But one victory will not be enough to seal him away forever. The heroes must confront him over and over to buy Golarion the time it needs to prepare for Tar-Baphon’s seemingly inevitable return.
Fall, rise, and grow ever stronger… Face Gallowspire's hordes again and again—for as long as it takes!
Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors is now available on Steam Early Access for $6.99. Brave heroes can take advantage of a 20% launch discount for a limited time. Additionally, a special Bullet Hell Survivor Bundle with Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors, Soulstone Survivors, and 20 Minutes Till Dawn is available at a special 10% discount. Keep up to date with the game’s development by joining the official Discord server and following BKOM Studios on X.
Features:
- Choose your class: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue. Each features unique talents, powers, and playstyles.
- Select a second hero to fight alongside you as a companion character.
- Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run.
- Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run.
- Earn experience to level up your heroes and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers.
- Collect and spend treasure to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes.
- Complete quests, defeat bosses, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself.
- Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sied?The-Ragin-Writers The Ragin’ Writers 2023-09-13T15:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-13T15:00:00.000-04:00 The Ragin’ Writers Wednesday, September 13, 2023 Hello, elementonauts! Pathfinder Rage of Elements has been out for a while now, and we hope you’ve been having a great time with your kineticists, elementals, travels to the elemental planes, and all sorts of new spells, items, and monsters. We wanted to take this chance to recognize the great authors who came together to make this project special. This book was initially concepted by Mark Seifter (who you’ll hear from shortly) before he headed over to his current gig. I took over as the design lead to shepherd the book along. Most of my work was outlining, coordination, and a massive amount of changes to switch the book to the Remastered rules late in the process. Before we get into everyone’s bios, I must talk about the contributions of Jessica Redekop and Sen H.H.S., who share cover credit with me. Getting that level of credit requires a massive amount of work, and they were both wonderful to work with and superb writers. Jess’s enthusiasm for the planes and building out fun characters made the book such a fun read, and Sen H.S.S.’s ideas for putting the elemental cycle into the game and Pathfinder setting and creating the Plane of Wood were invaluable and incredibly creative. I’d also like to shout out Paizo’s own Andrew White, who brought the Plane of Metal to life, and James Case, who plunged into the Plane of Water with aplomb. And Kent Hamilton’s beautiful concept art for elemental metal and wood helped guide designs throughout the process, especially of monsters and locations. In addition to the authors with full bios below, this book features excellent writing by Jason Bulmahn, James Case, Jessica Catalan, Andrew D. Geels, Luis Loza, Michael Sayre, Shay Snow, Levi Steadman, Mari Tokuda, and Linda Zayas-Palmer! Logan BonnerPathfinder Lead Designer Illustration by Lucas Melo Logan Bonner (he/him) (That’s me.) I’ve been designing tabletop RPGs since 2006, and am the Pathfinder Lead Designer, doing overwatch on the game rules as a whole. Lately I’ve been blooding, sweating, and tearing the Pathfinder Remaster books. After being one of the four designers of Second Edition, I’ve led Pathfinder Secrets of Magic to help set the template for how we could stretch our legs with rulebooks in Second Edition, and later led Pathfinder Book of the Dead, the remastered books, and at least one upcoming, unannounced tome. My biggest writing contribution to Rage of Elements was the kineticist class (with some expert help from the rest of the design team, so you can blame/thank Michael Sayre for the Ambush Bladderwort). You can find me on Twitter as @loganbonner and on Bluesky as @loganbonner.bsky.social. Patrick Hurley Along with previous Paizo publishing credits, Patrick Hurley has had short fiction appear in dozens of magazines and book anthologies, including Factor Four, Galaxy's Edge, Abyss & Apex, and New Myths. As well as being managing editor at Paizo, Patrick is a graduate of the 2017 Taos Toolbox Writer's Workshop and a member of SFWA. To read more of Patrick's stories, check out his author website: www.patrickhurleywrites.com. Jason Keeley (he/him) Hi folks, I'm Jason Keeley and I'm excited to have contributed even a small part to Rage of Elements. I've recently returned to Paizo as a Senior Developer for the Rules & Lore team, which means that all I've written for Pathfinder Second Edition has been training for this time! When I'm not doing things for Paizo, I spend my time recording a couple of podcasts in the Know Direction network, collaborating with Joe Pasini on puzzles, and generally working on other TTRPG projects—like my cereal mascot game This Compleat Breakfast, available for free at https://herzwesten.itch.io/this-compleat-breakfast! You can usually find me under the name "herzwesten" on most social media platforms. Jon Morgantini Hello there! I'm Jon, the Community and Social Media Manager here at Paizo. My work was focused on creatures of air and earth for Pathfinder Rage of Elements. It was my first freelance writing opportunity and it was so much fun! It's been very heartening to see the reaction to the book from everyone. I definitely have other projects coming down the line so you will just have to keep an eye out for my name in other places! When I'm not writing, I'm usually lost in Hyrule or perhaps some far corner of the galaxy, if not rereading the Wheel of Time series or whatever the dark fantasy du jour is. You can find me @loremasterjon over on Bluesky, where I soon hope to pontificate about writing my own Pathfinder Second Edition–compatible setting. In the meantime, play ALL the games! AJ Neuro (he/him and they/them) Pura Vida! I'm AJ, a Costa Rican game designer. Writing the elemental backgrounds for Rage of Elements was my first official contribution to Pathfinder, but I've also written for the recently announced Pathfinder War of Immortals! A few of you might have also seen some of my free resources for the Pathfinder community. I'm also a professional GM, and I run both official Pathfinder Second Edition adventures on Golarion, and adventures of my own making in my setting of Ex Nihilo! If you'd like to join one of my groups, or would like me to GM for your group, don't be shy and shoot me a message. By the way, we're actually a DID system, but we generally prefer to present as an individual; it's just easier for us (waves at all the other plurals reading this) :) Illustration by Ivan Koritarev Jessica Redekop (she/they/he) Hello! I'm Jess, and I like elementals, the planes, and the elemental planes. I got to write a lot of Rage of Elements (enough to get my name on the cover!) but my favorite section is the introduction to the air chapter, with the mercurial air narrator, Shanaria. I love this book and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to write such a large portion of it. A book focused on the elemental planes, giving them the compelling and interesting presentation they've always deserved, is like my ultimate dream project. It's weird to feel so early in my career but to have already achieved something so monumental and important to me. I hope Rage of Elements helps to open the elemental planes in your games as fun, cool places your characters want to explore! When I'm not writing, you can find me on the Know Direction podcast network as a cohost of Legend Lore and cast member on Tavern Rats, a new actual play. On the social medias, I'm @tectonomancer.bsky.social. Mark Seifter Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here! For those who don't know me, I've been the design lead on over 100 tabletop RPG game titles and worked on even more for Paizo and various other companies in the tabletop RPG industry, and I was one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I love writing about elemental options, and in Rage of Elements, I especially enjoyed working on the elemental eidolon, which I hope gives you a fun and different playstyle than the existing options. I also authored the Lysianassa deity entry, the aether and void sidebar in the introduction (which turned out even more interesting with the advent of void damage), and more! I hope you enjoyed them. You can check out my Twitch stream, Arcane Mark, with Linda Zayas-Palmer at twitch.tv/arcanemark and the Roll for Combat Live stream with Stephen Glicker at www.youtube.com/@RollForCombat. Sen H.H.S. Hi all! Sen H.H.S. here and long time no see! Working as the cultural consultant and cover author of Rage of Elements was a wild ride, and I'm delighted that everyone is enjoying the book. I hope to hear your stories about your adventures in the returning Planes of Metal and Wood sometime in the near future. As a cover author, I worked on a little bit on everything, from some metal, wood, earth, fire, and water spells and items, to the four elemental lords Ayrzul, Kelizandri, Laudinmio, and Shumunue. I also did the introductions for the Plane of Wood and the Churn of Elements, plus creatures such as the nightwood guardian, ore louse, marajau, and some fire elementals. (Lava otters are the best!) I hope all of those help make your upcoming planar adventures all the more exciting! As for what's coming up, please mark your calendars for the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, which begins with Pathfinder Adventure Path #196: The Summer That Never Was at the end of this year! You can find me nowadays on Bluesky at @senhhs.bsky.social or you can see what I'm retweeting on Twitter @SenHHS. My website is https://senhhs.carrd.co/. Illustration by Ivan Koritarev Shahreena Shahrani (she/her) Marhaba everyone! I’m Shahreena and I've been freelancing for Paizo for about five years. Rage of Elements was a particularly exciting project to work on, as I was not only involved as a writer, but also as a cultural consultant. I was inspired by the creative muse in pre-Islamic poetic traditions to create gennayn; by stories of nightmarish spirits to contribute to jaathoom; by Middle Eastern hospitality to create faydhaan shuyookhs; and by the storyteller Shahrazaad, from Alf Layla wa Layla, or 1001 Nights, to develop Shazathared. Beyond writing, I helped reconceptualize the genies. You may have noticed the cleanup of similar-sounding genie names, new genie lore and abilities more engaged with folklore, and old genie names changed to theme-appropriate names. (As someone raised in a Muslim household, I was especially happy to contribute to the removal of “shaitan” for earth genie!) I also engaged in Arabic grammatical discussions on nonbinary terms of address in search of ways to address genie nobles—fun times! I hope you enjoy these genies as much as I enjoyed working on them. If you're looking for a Middle East specialist for freelance work, feel free to contact me on Discord at Shahreena1. Solomon St. John (they/them) Greetings internet. I go by Sol day-to-day and, in addition to being one of the freelancers who contributed to Rage of Elements, I was also the editing lead, a role I also fill for both Pathfinder and Starfinder Society over in Organized Play. Versatile heritages are one of my favorite features in all of Pathfinder Second Edition, so I leapt at the chance to write the talos heritage; I also wrote the accompanying creature stat block, the section on zuhra genies, and all of the wood elementals from wood wisps to the twins of rowan. That last bunch was especially fun, since I could draw inspiration from all sorts of places—from wooden dolls and obscure folklore like the vegetable lamb, to clonal organisms like the IRL “trembling giant” and the existential concept of growth itself. It’s my largest Paizo writing contribution to date and I’m delighted you all finally get to enjoy the fruits of our hard work. My next Paizo project is just around the corner, so keep an eye out for Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup. Find me online @stjohnsol.bsky.social for a quiet feed of reblogs and cat photos. illustration by Zach Causey Ruvaid Virk Hiya folks! My name's Ruvaid, and I've been a writer for Paizo for a little while now. You might have seen some of my past work like the alter ego archetype from Pathfinder Dark Archive, the retrieval prism talisman, or a large part of the Niswan entry for Jalmeray in Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands. It was a blast working on Rage of Elements with a lot of awesome people. This time, I got to really light the spark of imagination to bring you the entry for Ymeri, Queen of the Inferno, some of the new fire spells (like one where you can summon a bunch of fire ants at someone), a giant metal puzzle cube (the pelegox), and a fiery barbecue spitmaster (the brochmaw, who is also unofficially named Chimothy Chunger). If you want to see more of me and my work, I'm on Twitter (for now) @Darth_Ruvaider and BlueSky @darthruvaider.bsky.social. Andrew White (he/him) Hello! I’m Andrew, full-time member of Paizo’s tech team (and, lately, project coordinator for a bunch of Paizo’s virtual tabletop projects, most notably our premium Foundry adventure modules) and freelance contributor to 15+ Pathfinder and Starfinder releases that you know about so far, including Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, Pathfinder Book of the Dead, the upcoming Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, Starfinder One-Shot #2:The Great Grav-Train Robbery, and Starfinder Adventure: Drift Crisis Case Files. Rage of Elements was one of my favorite projects to date, and I had an absolute blast (this is not a kineticist joke, unless you want it to be) writing the lore of the Plane of Elemental Metal, its thirteen new elementals, and its divine reality-munching isopod Ferrumnestra, the Lady of Rust. You can find me on Twitter at @plaguecontrol (or Twitter-but-not-on-fire at @plaguecontrol.bsky.social), or you can listen to the Elemental Metal playlist that I made just for you at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6BahPTNUQjId2OIurnKMrJ. Tags: Authors, Community, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition The Ragin’ Writers
Wednesday, September 13, 2023
Hello, elementonauts! Pathfinder Rage of Elements has been out for a while now, and we hope you’ve been having a great time with your kineticists, elementals, travels to the elemental planes, and all sorts of new spells, items, and monsters. We wanted to take this chance to recognize the great authors who came together to make this project special.
This book was initially concepted by Mark Seifter (who you’ll hear from shortly) before he headed over to his current gig. I took over as the design lead to shepherd the book along. Most of my work was outlining, coordination, and a massive amount of changes to switch the book to the Remastered rules late in the process.
Before we get into everyone’s bios, I must talk about the contributions of Jessica Redekop and Sen H.H.S., who share cover credit with me. Getting that level of credit requires a massive amount of work, and they were both wonderful to work with and superb writers. Jess’s enthusiasm for the planes and building out fun characters made the book such a fun read, and Sen H.S.S.’s ideas for putting the elemental cycle into the game and Pathfinder setting and creating the Plane of Wood were invaluable and incredibly creative. I’d also like to shout out Paizo’s own Andrew White, who brought the Plane of Metal to life, and James Case, who plunged into the Plane of Water with aplomb. And Kent Hamilton’s beautiful concept art for elemental metal and wood helped guide designs throughout the process, especially of monsters and locations.
In addition to the authors with full bios below, this book features excellent writing by Jason Bulmahn, James Case, Jessica Catalan, Andrew D. Geels, Luis Loza, Michael Sayre, Shay Snow, Levi Steadman, Mari Tokuda, and Linda Zayas-Palmer!
Logan Bonner
Pathfinder Lead Designer
Logan Bonner (he/him)
(That’s me.) I’ve been designing tabletop RPGs since 2006, and am the Pathfinder Lead Designer, doing overwatch on the game rules as a whole. Lately I’ve been blooding, sweating, and tearing the Pathfinder Remaster books. After being one of the four designers of Second Edition, I’ve led Pathfinder Secrets of Magic to help set the template for how we could stretch our legs with rulebooks in Second Edition, and later led Pathfinder Book of the Dead, the remastered books, and at least one upcoming, unannounced tome. My biggest writing contribution to Rage of Elements was the kineticist class (with some expert help from the rest of the design team, so you can blame/thank Michael Sayre for the Ambush Bladderwort). You can find me on Twitter as @loganbonner and on Bluesky as @loganbonner.bsky.social.
Patrick Hurley
Along with previous Paizo publishing credits, Patrick Hurley has had short fiction appear in dozens of magazines and book anthologies, including Factor Four, Galaxy's Edge, Abyss & Apex, and New Myths. As well as being managing editor at Paizo, Patrick is a graduate of the 2017 Taos Toolbox Writer's Workshop and a member of SFWA. To read more of Patrick's stories, check out his author website: www.patrickhurleywrites.com.
Jason Keeley (he/him)
Hi folks, I'm Jason Keeley and I'm excited to have contributed even a small part to Rage of Elements. I've recently returned to Paizo as a Senior Developer for the Rules & Lore team, which means that all I've written for Pathfinder Second Edition has been training for this time! When I'm not doing things for Paizo, I spend my time recording a couple of podcasts in the Know Direction network, collaborating with Joe Pasini on puzzles, and generally working on other TTRPG projects—like my cereal mascot game This Compleat Breakfast, available for free at https://herzwesten.itch.io/this-compleat-breakfast! You can usually find me under the name "herzwesten" on most social media platforms.
Jon Morgantini
Hello there! I'm Jon, the Community and Social Media Manager here at Paizo. My work was focused on creatures of air and earth for Pathfinder Rage of Elements. It was my first freelance writing opportunity and it was so much fun! It's been very heartening to see the reaction to the book from everyone. I definitely have other projects coming down the line so you will just have to keep an eye out for my name in other places! When I'm not writing, I'm usually lost in Hyrule or perhaps some far corner of the galaxy, if not rereading the Wheel of Time series or whatever the dark fantasy du jour is. You can find me @loremasterjon over on Bluesky, where I soon hope to pontificate about writing my own Pathfinder Second Edition–compatible setting. In the meantime, play ALL the games!
AJ Neuro (he/him and they/them)
Pura Vida! I'm AJ, a Costa Rican game designer. Writing the elemental backgrounds for Rage of Elements was my first official contribution to Pathfinder, but I've also written for the recently announced Pathfinder War of Immortals! A few of you might have also seen some of my free resources for the Pathfinder community. I'm also a professional GM, and I run both official Pathfinder Second Edition adventures on Golarion, and adventures of my own making in my setting of Ex Nihilo! If you'd like to join one of my groups, or would like me to GM for your group, don't be shy and shoot me a message. By the way, we're actually a DID system, but we generally prefer to present as an individual; it's just easier for us (waves at all the other plurals reading this) :)
Illustration by Ivan Koritarev Jessica Redekop (she/they/he)
Hello! I'm Jess, and I like elementals, the planes, and the elemental planes. I got to write a lot of Rage of Elements (enough to get my name on the cover!) but my favorite section is the introduction to the air chapter, with the mercurial air narrator, Shanaria.
I love this book and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to write such a large portion of it. A book focused on the elemental planes, giving them the compelling and interesting presentation they've always deserved, is like my ultimate dream project. It's weird to feel so early in my career but to have already achieved something so monumental and important to me. I hope Rage of Elements helps to open the elemental planes in your games as fun, cool places your characters want to explore!
When I'm not writing, you can find me on the Know Direction podcast network as a cohost of Legend Lore and cast member on Tavern Rats, a new actual play. On the social medias, I'm @tectonomancer.bsky.social.
Mark Seifter
Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here! For those who don't know me, I've been the design lead on over 100 tabletop RPG game titles and worked on even more for Paizo and various other companies in the tabletop RPG industry, and I was one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition.
I love writing about elemental options, and in Rage of Elements, I especially enjoyed working on the elemental eidolon, which I hope gives you a fun and different playstyle than the existing options. I also authored the Lysianassa deity entry, the aether and void sidebar in the introduction (which turned out even more interesting with the advent of void damage), and more! I hope you enjoyed them.
You can check out my Twitch stream, Arcane Mark, with Linda Zayas-Palmer at twitch.tv/arcanemark and the Roll for Combat Live stream with Stephen Glicker at www.youtube.com/@RollForCombat.
Sen H.H.S.
Hi all! Sen H.H.S. here and long time no see! Working as the cultural consultant and cover author of Rage of Elements was a wild ride, and I'm delighted that everyone is enjoying the book. I hope to hear your stories about your adventures in the returning Planes of Metal and Wood sometime in the near future. As a cover author, I worked on a little bit on everything, from some metal, wood, earth, fire, and water spells and items, to the four elemental lords Ayrzul, Kelizandri, Laudinmio, and Shumunue. I also did the introductions for the Plane of Wood and the Churn of Elements, plus creatures such as the nightwood guardian, ore louse, marajau, and some fire elementals. (Lava otters are the best!) I hope all of those help make your upcoming planar adventures all the more exciting! As for what's coming up, please mark your calendars for the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path, which begins with Pathfinder Adventure Path #196: The Summer That Never Was at the end of this year! You can find me nowadays on Bluesky at @senhhs.bsky.social or you can see what I'm retweeting on Twitter @SenHHS. My website is https://senhhs.carrd.co/.
Illustration by Ivan Koritarev Shahreena Shahrani (she/her)
Marhaba everyone! I’m Shahreena and I've been freelancing for Paizo for about five years. Rage of Elements was a particularly exciting project to work on, as I was not only involved as a writer, but also as a cultural consultant. I was inspired by the creative muse in pre-Islamic poetic traditions to create gennayn; by stories of nightmarish spirits to contribute to jaathoom; by Middle Eastern hospitality to create faydhaan shuyookhs; and by the storyteller Shahrazaad, from Alf Layla wa Layla, or 1001 Nights, to develop Shazathared.
Beyond writing, I helped reconceptualize the genies. You may have noticed the cleanup of similar-sounding genie names, new genie lore and abilities more engaged with folklore, and old genie names changed to theme-appropriate names. (As someone raised in a Muslim household, I was especially happy to contribute to the removal of “shaitan” for earth genie!) I also engaged in Arabic grammatical discussions on nonbinary terms of address in search of ways to address genie nobles—fun times! I hope you enjoy these genies as much as I enjoyed working on them.
If you're looking for a Middle East specialist for freelance work, feel free to contact me on Discord at Shahreena1.
Solomon St. John (they/them)
Greetings internet. I go by Sol day-to-day and, in addition to being one of the freelancers who contributed to Rage of Elements, I was also the editing lead, a role I also fill for both Pathfinder and Starfinder Society over in Organized Play.
Versatile heritages are one of my favorite features in all of Pathfinder Second Edition, so I leapt at the chance to write the talos heritage; I also wrote the accompanying creature stat block, the section on zuhra genies, and all of the wood elementals from wood wisps to the twins of rowan. That last bunch was especially fun, since I could draw inspiration from all sorts of places—from wooden dolls and obscure folklore like the vegetable lamb, to clonal organisms like the IRL “trembling giant” and the existential concept of growth itself. It’s my largest Paizo writing contribution to date and I’m delighted you all finally get to enjoy the fruits of our hard work.
My next Paizo project is just around the corner, so keep an eye out for Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup. Find me online @stjohnsol.bsky.social for a quiet feed of reblogs and cat photos.
illustration by Zach Causey
Ruvaid VirkHiya folks! My name's Ruvaid, and I've been a writer for Paizo for a little while now. You might have seen some of my past work like the alter ego archetype from Pathfinder Dark Archive, the retrieval prism talisman, or a large part of the Niswan entry for Jalmeray in Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands. It was a blast working on Rage of Elements with a lot of awesome people. This time, I got to really light the spark of imagination to bring you the entry for Ymeri, Queen of the Inferno, some of the new fire spells (like one where you can summon a bunch of fire ants at someone), a giant metal puzzle cube (the pelegox), and a fiery barbecue spitmaster (the brochmaw, who is also unofficially named Chimothy Chunger). If you want to see more of me and my work, I'm on Twitter (for now) @Darth_Ruvaider and BlueSky @darthruvaider.bsky.social.
Andrew White (he/him)
Hello! I’m Andrew, full-time member of Paizo’s tech team (and, lately, project coordinator for a bunch of Paizo’s virtual tabletop projects, most notably our premium Foundry adventure modules) and freelance contributor to 15+ Pathfinder and Starfinder releases that you know about so far, including Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, Pathfinder Book of the Dead, the upcoming Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, Starfinder One-Shot #2:The Great Grav-Train Robbery, and Starfinder Adventure: Drift Crisis Case Files. Rage of Elements was one of my favorite projects to date, and I had an absolute blast (this is not a kineticist joke, unless you want it to be) writing the lore of the Plane of Elemental Metal, its thirteen new elementals, and its divine reality-munching isopod Ferrumnestra, the Lady of Rust. You can find me on Twitter at @plaguecontrol (or Twitter-but-not-on-fire at @plaguecontrol.bsky.social), or you can listen to the Elemental Metal playlist that I made just for you at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6BahPTNUQjId2OIurnKMrJ.
Tags: Authors, Community, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siec?Pathfinder-and-Starfinder-Society-Now-on Pathfinder and Starfinder Society Now on Foundry VTT! 2023-09-08T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-08T14:00:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder and Starfinder Society Now on Foundry VTT! Friday, September 8th, 2023 Hello, finders of (digital) paths and stars! As you may have heard, we recently announced our intention to provide full support for both Pathfinder Society’s Year of Unfettered Exploration and the Starfinder Society’s Year of Fortune’s Fall on Foundry Virtual Tabletop. If you’ve had the opportunity to check out one of our premium Adventure Path modules or our first foray into Pathfinder and Starfinder Society support earlier this year, you might know what this entails, but what if you haven’t? Also, what’s with all of these different versions? What’s a Deluxe Edition? An Asset Pack? Settle down there, hypothetical question asker, and allow us to answer those inquiries with words and screenshots. Browse all Foundry Virtual Tabletop products here! First, let’s talk about the plethora of cool features you get from every Paizo Foundry module (most developed by our good friends at the Sigil Entertainment Group). Included with each module, you’ll find detailed, high-resolution maps for every encounter, pre-rigged with walls, lighting, and ambient sound effects. You’ll find custom battle tokens for every monster and NPC appearing in any scenario, even those without art in the published adventure. You’ll find a suite of powerful macros to automate hazards, scene transitions, audio triggers, and more—our Organized Play modules even include macros to automatically place tokens on the battlefield and scale your encounters to challenge parties of any size and level, as well as full support for Society boons and printable Chronicle Sheets for recording and reporting your Society-legal escapades. Each of our Organized Play Foundry modules is a single purchase that will grant you support for every adventure released so far in the season, with more automatically added in free updates as they release in PDF format. That means that if you buy our full-season Pathfinder Society module today, it will include only the first two scenarios, but by the time the season wraps up next year, it’ll contain all 20. If you’re not ready to commit to a full year of content up front, that’s OK; we’re also offering modules that only grant the scenarios released during the first (or latter) half of the season. We’re also offering different versions of each module to cater to different audiences. When we released our first Starfinder and Pathfinder Society modules at PaizoCon, we released them as “assetpacks” that contained all of the tokens, maps, and other goodies but didn’t include the actual adventures, allowing us to offer them more cheaply to players who already had the PDFs or preferred to purchase them separately (or who weren’t interested in Society Play at all and just wanted a collection of prepped high-quality maps and tokens to incorporate into their own campaigns). We’re still offering that option, but by popular demand, we’re alsooffering each module in a “deluxeedition” that bakes in everything you need to run the adventures, including every scenario converted into a beautifully styled journal that’s been fully integrated with all of the supplementary content from the asset pack. For just $2.50 more than the cost of a Society PDF ($1.50 if you grab the whole season at once), you’ll get everything you need to run your games with the click of a mouse—zero setup required! Sounds cool, right? Want to see them in action? Well, good news: we’ll be showcasing these awesome offerings in two upcoming live-streamed sessions GMed by esteemed Paizo developer and virtual tabletop veteran Jason Keeley (dates TBD). First we’ll have a group of adventurers played by Paizo employees Katina Davis, Emma Simpson, Rue Dickey, and Jackson Wood as they try not to get themselves killed playing through Pathfinder Society 5-01: Year of Unfettered Exploration. And then following that, a different group played by Sol St. John, Dustin Knight, Jenny Jarzabski, and Jessica Catalan will also try not to die, but in space, as they help choose a new First Seeker in Starfinder Society Scenario 6-06: Tomorrow's Seekers! We’re super proud of our first-party Foundry VTT content, but that’s not the only way to play Pathfinder and Starfinder online. If you prefer another platform, don’t worry – there’s a ton of Paizo content to choose from on Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, Alchemy RPG, and nearly every other virtual tabletop out there, with more being added every day. Excited? So are we! The future’s looking bright for Paizo content on virtual tabletops, and we’re all looking forward to bringing you lots more of it in the near future! Tags: Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Pathfinder and Starfinder Society Now on Foundry VTT!
Friday, September 8th, 2023
Hello, finders of (digital) paths and stars!
As you may have heard, we recently announced our intention to provide full support for both Pathfinder Society’s Year of Unfettered Exploration and the Starfinder Society’s Year of Fortune’s Fall on Foundry Virtual Tabletop. If you’ve had the opportunity to check out one of our premium Adventure Path modules or our first foray into Pathfinder and Starfinder Society support earlier this year, you might know what this entails, but what if you haven’t? Also, what’s with all of these different versions? What’s a Deluxe Edition? An Asset Pack? Settle down there, hypothetical question asker, and allow us to answer those inquiries with words and screenshots.
Browse all Foundry Virtual Tabletop products here!
First, let’s talk about the plethora of cool features you get from every Paizo Foundry module (most developed by our good friends at the Sigil Entertainment Group). Included with each module, you’ll find detailed, high-resolution maps for every encounter, pre-rigged with walls, lighting, and ambient sound effects. You’ll find custom battle tokens for every monster and NPC appearing in any scenario, even those without art in the published adventure. You’ll find a suite of powerful macros to automate hazards, scene transitions, audio triggers, and more—our Organized Play modules even include macros to automatically place tokens on the battlefield and scale your encounters to challenge parties of any size and level, as well as full support for Society boons and printable Chronicle Sheets for recording and reporting your Society-legal escapades.
Each of our Organized Play Foundry modules is a single purchase that will grant you support for every adventure released so far in the season, with more automatically added in free updates as they release in PDF format. That means that if you buy our full-season Pathfinder Society module today, it will include only the first two scenarios, but by the time the season wraps up next year, it’ll contain all 20. If you’re not ready to commit to a full year of content up front, that’s OK; we’re also offering modules that only grant the scenarios released during the first (or latter) half of the season.
We’re also offering different versions of each module to cater to different audiences. When we released our first Starfinder and Pathfinder Society modules at PaizoCon, we released them as “assetpacks” that contained all of the tokens, maps, and other goodies but didn’t include the actual adventures, allowing us to offer them more cheaply to players who already had the PDFs or preferred to purchase them separately (or who weren’t interested in Society Play at all and just wanted a collection of prepped high-quality maps and tokens to incorporate into their own campaigns). We’re still offering that option, but by popular demand, we’re alsooffering each module in a “deluxeedition” that bakes in everything you need to run the adventures, including every scenario converted into a beautifully styled journal that’s been fully integrated with all of the supplementary content from the asset pack. For just $2.50 more than the cost of a Society PDF ($1.50 if you grab the whole season at once), you’ll get everything you need to run your games with the click of a mouse—zero setup required!
Sounds cool, right? Want to see them in action? Well, good news: we’ll be showcasing these awesome offerings in two upcoming live-streamed sessions GMed by esteemed Paizo developer and virtual tabletop veteran Jason Keeley (dates TBD). First we’ll have a group of adventurers played by Paizo employees Katina Davis, Emma Simpson, Rue Dickey, and Jackson Wood as they try not to get themselves killed playing through Pathfinder Society 5-01: Year of Unfettered Exploration. And then following that, a different group played by Sol St. John, Dustin Knight, Jenny Jarzabski, and Jessica Catalan will also try not to die, but in space, as they help choose a new First Seeker in Starfinder Society Scenario 6-06: Tomorrow's Seekers!
We’re super proud of our first-party Foundry VTT content, but that’s not the only way to play Pathfinder and Starfinder online. If you prefer another platform, don’t worry – there’s a ton of Paizo content to choose from on Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, Alchemy RPG, and nearly every other virtual tabletop out there, with more being added every day.
Excited? So are we! The future’s looking bright for Paizo content on virtual tabletops, and we’re all looking forward to bringing you lots more of it in the near future!
Tags: Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sieb?September-2023-Organized-Play-Monthly-Update September 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update 2023-09-07T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-09-07T13:30:00.000-04:00 September 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update TThursday, September 7, 2023 OPC Musings Happy September! Objectively the best month of the year, and I’m not biased because it’s my birth month. With the change to fall comes a much shorter monthly update. Traditionally the winter is a quieter time for us in Organized Play, but there’s still plenty going on! September and October are big months for local conventions, so check out our conventions calendar to find one near you! I’ve already attended Dragonflight in Bellevue, WA and Gateway in Los Angeles, and I’m looking forward to SkålCon in Minneapolis at the end of the month. After that, we’ll be knuckling down on the Pathfinder Remaster and getting ready for…pitching next year’s Starfinder and Pathfinder Society storylines? Already?!? Digital Adventure Releases These adventures will be available on September 27, 2023. Pathfinder Society Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist• Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges – Necessary Introductions• Starfinder Society Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup• •part of a subscription It’s Called Fashion, Agents We’re excited to announce some new apparel for all our Pathfinders and Starfinders! The logos for the Year of Unfettered Exploration and Year of Fortune’s Fall have been added to our Amazon store, along with the Paizo Organized Play logo. We’re working on getting these added to our main Amazon landing page, but for now the links below should take you to where you need to go. Remember that wearing these shirts, hoodies or tote bags qualifies you for the Vestments boon in the Accessory Perks! Pathfinder Society Year of Unfettered Exploration Starfinder Society Year of Fortune’s Fall Organized Play Logo Sanctioning Updates All’s pretty quiet on the sanctioning front this month! We’re in an unusual lull between our big Gen Con releases and the Q4 major releases of Starfinder Enhanced and the Pathfinder Remaster. We do have one update to the Starfinder Society Character Options, however: the blessing of youth spell is now available for all precogs! This spell may only be cast from spell slots, not purchased in spell gems or similar consumables. Precog characters who wish to swap in this spell may do so the next time they level up as normal. Pathfinder and Starfinder Society on Foundry VTT At long last, adaptations of our Organized Play adventures are now available on Foundry VTT! The modules are available in two forms: an asset pack, which just contains the map images and tokens, and a deluxe version, which also includes the full adventure text in beautifully-styled journals. Stay tuned to the Paizo blog for more news on how you can see these in action very soon! First Seeker Election The election for the Starfinder Society’s next First Seeker continues apace! Ballots are starting to roll in from all over the world and, I’ve gotta tell you, the race is neck and neck (and neck and neck). Remember that ballots close on October 31, so get out there and play SFS #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers to meet the candidates! GM Recognition Campaign Service Coins This month, two new Campaign Service Coins were awarded to volunteers at local conventions. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons. Congratulations to: Joel Hager, who now holds a Campaign Coin and OP ID #900 and Cy Merriex, who now holds a Campaign Coin and OP ID #902 GM Ranks Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, and run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours! This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th Glyph for Pathfinder Society (second edition). 5th Glyph (PFS2): Terry T, Robert Wieseheugel Until next time: Explore! Report! Cooperate! And say hi to Purepurin for me! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society September 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update
TThursday, September 7, 2023
OPC Musings
Happy September! Objectively the best month of the year, and I’m not biased because it’s my birth month. With the change to fall comes a much shorter monthly update. Traditionally the winter is a quieter time for us in Organized Play, but there’s still plenty going on!
September and October are big months for local conventions, so check out our conventions calendar to find one near you! I’ve already attended Dragonflight in Bellevue, WA and Gateway in Los Angeles, and I’m looking forward to SkålCon in Minneapolis at the end of the month. After that, we’ll be knuckling down on the Pathfinder Remaster and getting ready for…pitching next year’s Starfinder and Pathfinder Society storylines? Already?!?
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on September 27, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Equal Exchanges – Necessary Introductions•
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-07: Race for the Dustwarren Cup•
•part of a subscription
It’s Called Fashion, Agents
We’re excited to announce some new apparel for all our Pathfinders and Starfinders! The logos for the Year of Unfettered Exploration and Year of Fortune’s Fall have been added to our Amazon store, along with the Paizo Organized Play logo. We’re working on getting these added to our main Amazon landing page, but for now the links below should take you to where you need to go.
Remember that wearing these shirts, hoodies or tote bags qualifies you for the Vestments boon in the Accessory Perks!
Pathfinder Society Year of Unfettered Exploration
Starfinder Society Year of Fortune’s Fall
Sanctioning Updates
All’s pretty quiet on the sanctioning front this month! We’re in an unusual lull between our big Gen Con releases and the Q4 major releases of Starfinder Enhanced and the Pathfinder Remaster.
We do have one update to the Starfinder Society Character Options, however: the blessing of youth spell is now available for all precogs! This spell may only be cast from spell slots, not purchased in spell gems or similar consumables. Precog characters who wish to swap in this spell may do so the next time they level up as normal.
Pathfinder and Starfinder Society on Foundry VTT
At long last, adaptations of our Organized Play adventures are now available on Foundry VTT! The modules are available in two forms: an asset pack, which just contains the map images and tokens, and a deluxe version, which also includes the full adventure text in beautifully-styled journals.
Stay tuned to the Paizo blog for more news on how you can see these in action very soon!
First Seeker Election
The election for the Starfinder Society’s next First Seeker continues apace! Ballots are starting to roll in from all over the world and, I’ve gotta tell you, the race is neck and neck (and neck and neck). Remember that ballots close on October 31, so get out there and play SFS #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers to meet the candidates!
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
This month, two new Campaign Service Coins were awarded to volunteers at local conventions. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Joel Hager, who now holds a Campaign Coin and OP ID #900
and Cy Merriex, who now holds a Campaign Coin and OP ID #902GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, and run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had two GMs earn their 5th Glyph for Pathfinder Society (second edition).
5th Glyph (PFS2): Terry T, Robert Wieseheugel
Until next time: Explore! Report! Cooperate! And say hi to Purepurin for me!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6siea?Paizo-And-TabletopTown-Partnership Paizo And TabletopTown Partnership 2023-09-06T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-06T14:00:00.000-04:00 Paizo And TabletopTown Partnership Wednesday, September 6th, 2023 TabletopTown and Paizo are teaming up to put Pathfinder (and Starfinder) in your pocket. Coming in the fall of this year, TabletopTown is a mobile platform designed for the asynchronous play of tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) of all sorts, and this partnership will allow players and game masters access to the Paizo library through the marketplace, an in-app location for users to find and sell games, characters, and stories. TabletopTown stands behind Paizo’s commitment to open gaming through the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License. The TabletopTown marketplace supports user-generated content and indie creators alike, allowing them to buy, sell, and share content freely, openly, and ethically. TabletopTown is fully system agnostic, and with its creator tools at their disposal, designers can build and share their games, modules, and characters, no coding experience necessary. Find new games and worlds to explore or visit familiar favorites like Golarion and Absalom Station! Paizo’s worlds are rich with deep lore, intricate mechanics, and elaborate world building that goes beyond a scribble on a notes app during a tabletop session. Celebrate the details that make your game unique with searchable indexes, easy to reference descriptions, and intuitive content organization. All of Paizo’s adventures will be available to buy and explore in the app, opening up new worlds and stories for game masters to investigate and make their own. With access to Pathfinder and Starfinder, game masters can quickly pull entries from their respective bestiaries and bring strange and mystical creatures like a Pleroma to life with all its stats, descriptions, and avatars added in a single tap. It’s easy to use and, for the game master, easy to depict! With the entire ruleset at their fingertips, players can enjoy as much rules lawyering as they want to, or they can avoid cluttering the chat with things that would usually require looking up in a table of contents. At launch, beginning players will have a variety of prebuilt character sheets at their disposal; this way, grandma’s desire to play a juggernaut champion doesn’t require pages of research! More experienced players can build out their own intricate lore and stat blocks with existing game mechanics for the skeleton of the character. Those players can then add modifications whenever they like, making use of home-brewed rules to get the details just right! Tags: Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Paizo And TabletopTown Partnership
Wednesday, September 6th, 2023
TabletopTown and Paizo are teaming up to put Pathfinder (and Starfinder) in your pocket. Coming in the fall of this year, TabletopTown is a mobile platform designed for the asynchronous play of tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) of all sorts, and this partnership will allow players and game masters access to the Paizo library through the marketplace, an in-app location for users to find and sell games, characters, and stories.
TabletopTown stands behind Paizo’s commitment to open gaming through the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License. The TabletopTown marketplace supports user-generated content and indie creators alike, allowing them to buy, sell, and share content freely, openly, and ethically. TabletopTown is fully system agnostic, and with its creator tools at their disposal, designers can build and share their games, modules, and characters, no coding experience necessary. Find new games and worlds to explore or visit familiar favorites like Golarion and Absalom Station!
Paizo’s worlds are rich with deep lore, intricate mechanics, and elaborate world building that goes beyond a scribble on a notes app during a tabletop session. Celebrate the details that make your game unique with searchable indexes, easy to reference descriptions, and intuitive content organization.
All of Paizo’s adventures will be available to buy and explore in the app, opening up new worlds and stories for game masters to investigate and make their own. With access to Pathfinder and Starfinder, game masters can quickly pull entries from their respective bestiaries and bring strange and mystical creatures like a Pleroma to life with all its stats, descriptions, and avatars added in a single tap. It’s easy to use and, for the game master, easy to depict!
With the entire ruleset at their fingertips, players can enjoy as much rules lawyering as they want to, or they can avoid cluttering the chat with things that would usually require looking up in a table of contents.
At launch, beginning players will have a variety of prebuilt character sheets at their disposal; this way, grandma’s desire to play a juggernaut champion doesn’t require pages of research! More experienced players can build out their own intricate lore and stat blocks with existing game mechanics for the skeleton of the character. Those players can then add modifications whenever they like, making use of home-brewed rules to get the details just right!
Tags: Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie9?Reports-from-the-Field-Part-2 Reports from the Field Part 2 2023-09-05T16:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-05T16:00:00.000-04:00 Reports from the Field Part 2 Tuesday, September 5th, 2023 Here’s a look behind the scenes at Paizo’s internal playtests. Welcome to the second blog following up on the recent announcement of Starfinder Second Edition. You can read the first blog here! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Thurston Hillman, the Managing Creative Director for Starfinder. Basically, that means that I guide the creative vision for the Starfinder brand, while also managing the great folks who work on the Starfinder Roleplaying Game. Today, as we continue our open playtest experience, I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at some of the internal playtesting we’ve been doing here at Paizo! As a heads up, the playtests I’m talking about here took place before our Gen Con announcement, so I’m sure the online discourse about the new edition has already been buzzing. Sorry I can’t capitalize on any memes yet. So up until this point, the team had been doing some immediate stress tests of new classes under the GMing stewardship of our Director of Game Design, Jason Bulmahn. These involved some themed adventures about a starship that went too cloze to the Horizon of an Event, or a deadly jungle encounter where we learned the creature hunting us could bleed and so we could kill it. The playtests we’re reviewing here take place after those, bypassing some of our rockier initial class design, and instead focused on exploring some other aspects of Starfinder in a new game engine. Playtest #2: Blackpowder Guns in My Space Adventure?! Map:Starfinder Flip-Mat: Drift Crisis Character Level: 5th This second playtest, once again GM’d by myself and attended by the same group of PCs, happened a week after the previous test and involved a SPECIAL MYSTERY GUEST. The goal of the second playtest was to test out some issues we’d discovered in our prior playtests. We also decided to add a guest player: Gunslinger: Michael Sayre (Pathfinder Rules & Lore Manager) Yes, today’s test was to see how a Pathfinder gunslinger (from Guns & Gears) would operate in a Starfinder party and get a sense of the relative playstyles and power levels. Michael was gracious enough to give us a few hours of his time and bring in his esteemed character, Griestly Peppercorn, a Way of the Sniper gunslinger to work alongside Jessica’s operative sniper. Also, Griestly had heard that we were “fightin’ space fascists” and suddenly travelled through time to help. Just normal Starfinder things. This fight had the PCs travelling through relatively narrow 10-foot hallways and engaging in some medium to long-range firefights with more of the Aeon Guard. The first encounter involved battling yet more Aeon Guard troops with laser rifles, though this time they were supported by a hovering drone. The players deployed really strong tactics, with the soldier once again providing some mobile cover and firing area weapons to suppress foes. The mystic used their Song connection ability to provide an Inspire Courage-esque buff to the group, and the witchwarper tossed in damage spells while using their aura to provide a speed buff to allies starting inside their aura. The operative had some middling rolls this playtest game, but still managed to provide long-range support in the form of consistent damage and occasional debuffs (like a very useful clumsy condition that stacked well with a lot of other effects going on). Then there was the gunslinger. I don’t know about y’all, but I think this Pathfinder game has some really powerful classes. They might need to look at how they balance things over on that side of the digital cubicle. 😉 OK, maybe it’s just me being a bit salty, because Michael’s gunslinger opened with a critical of 31 damage against the Aeon Guard drone. This explosive opening was then followed by the gunslinger using the Soldier as mobile cover to perform a covering reload and then unleashing more shots into the drone, which quickly ended it. Then on his next turn, a follow-up charge with a bayonet into close melee (something the operative avoided doing as they stayed back to take long-range shots) put the gunslinger in the thick of things and provided an opportunity to deal out a 47 damage critical on a backshot against one of the troops. With the drone down, the remaining Aeon Guards didn’t really stand much of a chance against the party’s onslaught. That’s when I pulled out the big guns and went right into the next encounter, with only a few rounds of rest in-between. The next fight opened with an immense Aeon Guard robot, which trundled down the halls and fired a line weapon that dealt 25 damage to both casters and 50 to the soldier. For reference, our witchwarper had 36 Hit Points total, and the soldier only had 83. Area of effect weapons will be common in Starfinder, and positioning is going to be key. Then Michael decided his anachronistic gunslinger needed to crit again. Half of the robot’s health disappeared. I’m not bitter. No, not me. Never. At this point, the team had started reconsidering our earlier assessment that the operative might be overtuned, based on the gunslinger’s sheer damage output and ability to take multiple shots in a round—Starfinder sniper weapons currently have an unwieldy trait that prevents repeated firing each round, giving them the feel of really meaty single shot weapons that you want to plan your turn around. But then, Michael got greedy. He fired again. He misfired. Goodbye, arquebus. Suddenly, the whole combat dynamic shifted as the fight became a struggle for life and death as the spellcasters tried to work out how to best handle the robot. For reference, the Aeon Guard robot was essentially a retooled golem statblock that replaced magic immunity with a 40-foot line ice gun it could fire with two actions. This necessitated some tactics of hiding in hall alcoves and positioning farther away to avoid being hit, in the operative’s case. After taking out the supporting Aeon Guards, the group turned their attention to the robot, who had now cut the gunslinger off from the others and had him in a corner. As a massive fangblade bore down on the poor time-displaced gunslinger, my dice betrayed me, and I landed two critical misses and a miss. This stay of execution gave the team all the time they needed to bring their arsenal of abilities online and take the robot down with a stream of constant (albeit resistance-reduced) damage and debuffs. One standout moment of the session played out a few rounds before this, as the gunslinger took a blow from the robot and was in desperate need of healing, but the mystic’s vitality network was tapped out. Luckily, the mystic had a spell just for that: motivating ringtone. This in-testing spell currently works akin to the soothe spell, but it plays off the mystic ringing your comm unit and causing an uplifting tune to play that restores Hit Points and provides a save bonus as long as the song continues. Sadly, there was one problem with this strategy for our time-travelling friend, as Dustin soon realized and shouted, “OH NO! The gunslinger doesn’t have a cellphone!” Again, normal Starfinder things. Our test with the gunslinger was revealing. It provided the team more details on some of our new spells that we’d want to tweak or get tighter verbiage on. It gave us a better look at how cover interacts with tactics in our game, especially in those iconic hallway fights where PCs are going to use corners and allies for impromptu cover. Finally, it let us see how the operative and gunslinger would work together in a party. Overall, the experience went better than we hoped, as the gunslinger felt more like a class that could spike good rolls and flirt with danger by taking extra shots and risking misfires, while the operative was firing single shots each round but generally putting out consistent damage without the risk of losing their weapon—Jessica’s terrible rolls this session notwithstanding. The team left this second playtest with lots of notes and ideas, but overall, with a sense that these two games really can work together and provide some fun and dynamic ways to play. On the design front, we realized new ways to combine the strengths of tried-and-true Pathfinder mechanics and the brand new mechanics we’re designing for this new edition of Starfinder. Thanks again to Michael Sayre for taking a moment to jump into the future and help us perform this outlandish playtest with a time-displaced gunslinger! Stay tuned to this space for more behind-the-scenes looks at our playtests, news about our ongoing releases, and discussions about Starfinder Second Edition! Thurston Hillman Managing Creative Director (Starfinder) Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition Reports from the Field Part 2
Tuesday, September 5th, 2023
Here’s a look behind the scenes at Paizo’s internal playtests.
Welcome to the second blog following up on the recent announcement of Starfinder Second Edition. You can read the first blog here!
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Thurston Hillman, the Managing Creative Director for Starfinder. Basically, that means that I guide the creative vision for the Starfinder brand, while also managing the great folks who work on the Starfinder Roleplaying Game. Today, as we continue our open playtest experience, I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at some of the internal playtesting we’ve been doing here at Paizo!
As a heads up, the playtests I’m talking about here took place before our Gen Con announcement, so I’m sure the online discourse about the new edition has already been buzzing. Sorry I can’t capitalize on any memes yet.
So up until this point, the team had been doing some immediate stress tests of new classes under the GMing stewardship of our Director of Game Design, Jason Bulmahn. These involved some themed adventures about a starship that went too cloze to the Horizon of an Event, or a deadly jungle encounter where we learned the creature hunting us could bleed and so we could kill it. The playtests we’re reviewing here take place after those, bypassing some of our rockier initial class design, and instead focused on exploring some other aspects of Starfinder in a new game engine.
Playtest #2: Blackpowder Guns in My Space Adventure?!
Map:Starfinder Flip-Mat: Drift Crisis
Character Level: 5thThis second playtest, once again GM’d by myself and attended by the same group of PCs, happened a week after the previous test and involved a SPECIAL MYSTERY GUEST. The goal of the second playtest was to test out some issues we’d discovered in our prior playtests. We also decided to add a guest player:
- Gunslinger: Michael Sayre (Pathfinder Rules & Lore Manager)
Yes, today’s test was to see how a Pathfinder gunslinger (from Guns & Gears) would operate in a Starfinder party and get a sense of the relative playstyles and power levels. Michael was gracious enough to give us a few hours of his time and bring in his esteemed character, Griestly Peppercorn, a Way of the Sniper gunslinger to work alongside Jessica’s operative sniper. Also, Griestly had heard that we were “fightin’ space fascists” and suddenly travelled through time to help. Just normal Starfinder things.
This fight had the PCs travelling through relatively narrow 10-foot hallways and engaging in some medium to long-range firefights with more of the Aeon Guard. The first encounter involved battling yet more Aeon Guard troops with laser rifles, though this time they were supported by a hovering drone.
The players deployed really strong tactics, with the soldier once again providing some mobile cover and firing area weapons to suppress foes. The mystic used their Song connection ability to provide an Inspire Courage-esque buff to the group, and the witchwarper tossed in damage spells while using their aura to provide a speed buff to allies starting inside their aura. The operative had some middling rolls this playtest game, but still managed to provide long-range support in the form of consistent damage and occasional debuffs (like a very useful clumsy condition that stacked well with a lot of other effects going on).
Then there was the gunslinger. I don’t know about y’all, but I think this Pathfinder game has some really powerful classes. They might need to look at how they balance things over on that side of the digital cubicle. 😉
OK, maybe it’s just me being a bit salty, because Michael’s gunslinger opened with a critical of 31 damage against the Aeon Guard drone. This explosive opening was then followed by the gunslinger using the Soldier as mobile cover to perform a covering reload and then unleashing more shots into the drone, which quickly ended it. Then on his next turn, a follow-up charge with a bayonet into close melee (something the operative avoided doing as they stayed back to take long-range shots) put the gunslinger in the thick of things and provided an opportunity to deal out a 47 damage critical on a backshot against one of the troops. With the drone down, the remaining Aeon Guards didn’t really stand much of a chance against the party’s onslaught.
That’s when I pulled out the big guns and went right into the next encounter, with only a few rounds of rest in-between. The next fight opened with an immense Aeon Guard robot, which trundled down the halls and fired a line weapon that dealt 25 damage to both casters and 50 to the soldier. For reference, our witchwarper had 36 Hit Points total, and the soldier only had 83. Area of effect weapons will be common in Starfinder, and positioning is going to be key.
Then Michael decided his anachronistic gunslinger needed to crit again. Half of the robot’s health disappeared. I’m not bitter. No, not me. Never.
At this point, the team had started reconsidering our earlier assessment that the operative might be overtuned, based on the gunslinger’s sheer damage output and ability to take multiple shots in a round—Starfinder sniper weapons currently have an unwieldy trait that prevents repeated firing each round, giving them the feel of really meaty single shot weapons that you want to plan your turn around.
But then, Michael got greedy. He fired again. He misfired. Goodbye, arquebus.
Suddenly, the whole combat dynamic shifted as the fight became a struggle for life and death as the spellcasters tried to work out how to best handle the robot. For reference, the Aeon Guard robot was essentially a retooled golem statblock that replaced magic immunity with a 40-foot line ice gun it could fire with two actions. This necessitated some tactics of hiding in hall alcoves and positioning farther away to avoid being hit, in the operative’s case.
After taking out the supporting Aeon Guards, the group turned their attention to the robot, who had now cut the gunslinger off from the others and had him in a corner. As a massive fangblade bore down on the poor time-displaced gunslinger, my dice betrayed me, and I landed two critical misses and a miss. This stay of execution gave the team all the time they needed to bring their arsenal of abilities online and take the robot down with a stream of constant (albeit resistance-reduced) damage and debuffs.
One standout moment of the session played out a few rounds before this, as the gunslinger took a blow from the robot and was in desperate need of healing, but the mystic’s vitality network was tapped out. Luckily, the mystic had a spell just for that: motivating ringtone. This in-testing spell currently works akin to the soothe spell, but it plays off the mystic ringing your comm unit and causing an uplifting tune to play that restores Hit Points and provides a save bonus as long as the song continues. Sadly, there was one problem with this strategy for our time-travelling friend, as Dustin soon realized and shouted, “OH NO! The gunslinger doesn’t have a cellphone!” Again, normal Starfinder things.
Our test with the gunslinger was revealing. It provided the team more details on some of our new spells that we’d want to tweak or get tighter verbiage on. It gave us a better look at how cover interacts with tactics in our game, especially in those iconic hallway fights where PCs are going to use corners and allies for impromptu cover. Finally, it let us see how the operative and gunslinger would work together in a party. Overall, the experience went better than we hoped, as the gunslinger felt more like a class that could spike good rolls and flirt with danger by taking extra shots and risking misfires, while the operative was firing single shots each round but generally putting out consistent damage without the risk of losing their weapon—Jessica’s terrible rolls this session notwithstanding.
The team left this second playtest with lots of notes and ideas, but overall, with a sense that these two games really can work together and provide some fun and dynamic ways to play. On the design front, we realized new ways to combine the strengths of tried-and-true Pathfinder mechanics and the brand new mechanics we’re designing for this new edition of Starfinder. Thanks again to Michael Sayre for taking a moment to jump into the future and help us perform this outlandish playtest with a time-displaced gunslinger!
Stay tuned to this space for more behind-the-scenes looks at our playtests, news about our ongoing releases, and discussions about Starfinder Second Edition!
Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie7?Welcome-to-the-War-of-Immortals-Playtest Welcome to the War of Immortals Playtest! 2023-09-01T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-09-01T13:00:00.000-04:00 Welcome to the War of Immortals Playtest! Friday, September 1, 2023 A war is brewing and all of existence will be drawn into the conflict! As gods die, new gods arise, and Golarion itself bucks and twists under the pressure of immortal powers vying for dominance, we introduce two new classes with their own roles to play in these colossal battles. The animist is a Wisdom-based divine spellcasting class that bonds with apparitions, ephemeral spirits who share their power and knowledge with the animist in exchange for the animist acting as their agent with the physical world. Bond with a Steward of Stone and Fire to add primal power to your spellcasting, make a pact with an Impostor in Hidden Places to gain access to sneaky and deceptive magics, or allow a Witness to Ancient Battles possess you and lend its martial talents to your repertoire! If you’re interested in playing a wise spellcaster who can change their abilities each day— or even moment to moment—based on the spiritual entities they align themselves with, be sure to playtest the animist! The exemplar is our first rare class, a Charisma-based divine warrior possessing their own spark of divinity. The exemplar can move their divine spark between receptacles called ikons to unlock potent effects and abilities. As your power grows, you create your own epithet that defines your immortal legacy; whether you become a Cunning exemplar who’s Restless as the Tides and known to be a Thief of Moonlight, or a Brave exemplar, who’s Peerless Under Heaven and destined to be The Last Ruler of an ancient kingdom, is up to you! If you’re interested in playing a demigod destined for greatness and inspired by mythological figures like Maui, Cú Chulainn, and Hercules, be sure to playtest the exemplar! Illustrations by Wayne Reynolds This playtest will run for one month, beginning September 1 (today!), and continuing through October 2, 2023. In addition to playtesting these classes in your home games, you’ll be able to try them out in our organized play program by making your own Pathfinder Society characters using the rules located in the Guide to Organized Play. The exemplar class and all related options are available to all players during this playtest. Our friends at Demiplane are also hosting a free character builder for the animist and exemplar classes, available at www.pathfindernexus.com/playtest, for those of you interested in taking advantage of their digital toolset to generate your characters. Once you’ve had a chance to get a feel for the new classes, please be sure to leave your feedback at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WarofImmortalsClassSurvey and https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WarofImmortalsOpenResponse to let us know what you think of them and where you think they could be improved! We’ll also have dedicated playtest forums here on paizo.com to discuss these classes and options with your peers. We’re looking forward to hearing what you have to say! Check Out The Playtest! Michael Sayre Design Manager James Case Senior Designer Welcome to the War of Immortals Playtest!
Friday, September 1, 2023
]]>A war is brewing and all of existence will be drawn into the conflict! As gods die, new gods arise, and Golarion itself bucks and twists under the pressure of immortal powers vying for dominance, we introduce two new classes with their own roles to play in these colossal battles.
The animist is a Wisdom-based divine spellcasting class that bonds with apparitions, ephemeral spirits who share their power and knowledge with the animist in exchange for the animist acting as their agent with the physical world. Bond with a Steward of Stone and Fire to add primal power to your spellcasting, make a pact with an Impostor in Hidden Places to gain access to sneaky and deceptive magics, or allow a Witness to Ancient Battles possess you and lend its martial talents to your repertoire! If you’re interested in playing a wise spellcaster who can change their abilities each day— or even moment to moment—based on the spiritual entities they align themselves with, be sure to playtest the animist!
The exemplar is our first rare class, a Charisma-based divine warrior possessing their own spark of divinity. The exemplar can move their divine spark between receptacles called ikons to unlock potent effects and abilities. As your power grows, you create your own epithet that defines your immortal legacy; whether you become a Cunning exemplar who’s Restless as the Tides and known to be a Thief of Moonlight, or a Brave exemplar, who’s Peerless Under Heaven and destined to be The Last Ruler of an ancient kingdom, is up to you! If you’re interested in playing a demigod destined for greatness and inspired by mythological figures like Maui, Cú Chulainn, and Hercules, be sure to playtest the exemplar!
This playtest will run for one month, beginning September 1 (today!), and continuing through October 2, 2023. In addition to playtesting these classes in your home games, you’ll be able to try them out in our organized play program by making your own Pathfinder Society characters using the rules located in the Guide to Organized Play. The exemplar class and all related options are available to all players during this playtest.
Our friends at Demiplane are also hosting a free character builder for the animist and exemplar classes, available at www.pathfindernexus.com/playtest, for those of you interested in taking advantage of their digital toolset to generate your characters.
Once you’ve had a chance to get a feel for the new classes, please be sure to leave your feedback at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WarofImmortalsClassSurvey and https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WarofImmortalsOpenResponse to let us know what you think of them and where you think they could be improved! We’ll also have dedicated playtest forums here on paizo.com to discuss these classes and options with your peers. We’re looking forward to hearing what you have to say!
Check Out The Playtest!
Michael Sayre
Design ManagerJames Case
Senior Designerhttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie5?Step-In-for-A-Harrowing Step In for A Harrowing 2023-08-31T17:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-31T17:00:00.000-04:00 Step In for A Harrowing Thursday, August 31, 2023 You think they’re just cards? Just pictures and words good for gambling or faking townsfolk out of a few coppers? Go on and think that—I don’t mind. My cards know where you’ve been and where you’re going. And it’s not pretty. Not at all. So, walk away. Or stop and learn to turn the few remaining pages of the story of your life into a novel worth the telling. Or don’t. After all, they’re only cards. —Riana, Varisian harrower THE HARROW DECK Harrow is a tarot-like deck usable in everyday life or in any roleplaying game. Regardless of where you use it, use it with care. A harrow deck is loaded with power, so you must learn to read the cards correctly or else suffer an ignominious fate. The most important thing is to treat your harrow deck with respect. Disrespect the deck, and the deck will disrespect you. That way surely leads to ruin. You don’t want ruin, do you? You want to know how to read these cards. Before you conduct a reading, set the stage for a dramatic encounter. Clear the table and place the deck in front of you. The reading is conducted in two parts: first you’ll perform the choosing, and then you’ll perform the spread. The Choosing Ask your subjects—those who come to you for a reading—what they seek from it. Phrase the request in the form of a single question, then decide which of the six following abilities best suits that question. For example, a question of health might indicate the suit of Shields (Constitution), while a question regarding love might indicate the suit of Crowns (Charisma). Ultimately, it is up to you to choose which suit most fits—a question regarding love could just as well draw upon the suit of Stars (Wisdom), for example. ABILITIES AND SOME CORRESPONDING TOPICS Hammers (Strength): Battle, honor, cruelty Keys (Dexterity): Children, risks, trouble Shields (Constitution): Health, home, pain Books (Intelligence): Money, secrets, stories Stars (Wisdom): Faith, morality, trust Crowns (Charisma): Family, love, politics Remove the nine cards of the suit you have chosen from the harrow deck and shuffle those nine. Spread the cards you chose face down in front of you. Instruct your subject(s) to each pick one card. The chosen card has a message for that person about their current place in the world and in relation to the question at hand. The Spread The spread is laid out in a three-by-three grid of nine cards. When interpreting the cards, each one’s placement in the spread determines whether it relates to the past, present, or future. The placement also tells the harrower if the card should be interpreted in a positive, unclear, or negative light. The following table shows the placements and their alignments and meanings. Lawful Neautral Chaotic Good positive past positive present positive future Neutral unclear past unclear present unclear future Evil negative past negative present negative future A SAMPLE HARROWING Merisiel has come to Riana for a reading. Riana calms herself as Merisiel asks her whether her plans to marry Kyra are good ones. Riana thinks on what type of question this is, and decides that it best fits Charisma. She takes the nine Charisma cards out of the deck and carefully shuffles them for the choosing. She then spreads them out, facedown, in front of her. Merisiel takes one and turns it over—it is the Empty Throne. Riana tells Merisiel that this role card represents her place in relation to the question. Merisiel has felt love before, but it has often vanished, leaving behind a vacancy that aches as much as a nation without a leader—yet just as a nation still needs leadership, so too does the heart need one to love. With that done, Riana puts the Charisma cards back into the deck and shuffles. She then deals out nine cards, face down, in the three-by-three pattern of the spread. Riana starts by turning over the three cards in the left column—those that represent the past. The cards revealed are, from top to bottom, the Owl, the Marriage, and the Cricket. Riana checks to see if there are any true matches in this column. There is one: appropriately enough, the Marriage. It is a lawful neutral card in the lawful neutral placement in the spread. Riana contemplates the meaning of this card to the question. Since Merisiel’s question is about a wedding, the card is especially meaningful. Riana tells Merisiel that since this card appears in the past, it represents the strength of her existing relationship with Kyra, suggesting in a way that they have been wedded in soul all along. Since there are no other true matches, Riana moves on. She turns over the three cards in the middle, representing the present. Top to bottom, she sees the Unicorn, the Dance, and the Tangled Briar. None of them are true or opposite matches. Thus, Riana looks for partial matches. She finds two. The Unicorn matches the good aspect of the top middle space, while the Tangled Briar matches the evil in the lower middle space. Riana looks at the Unicorn and tells Merisiel that the marriage has the potential of bringing great happiness. The Tangled Briar warns that something in her past may bring conflict to the wedding—but as the card appears in the middle column (and is associated with the present), the potential conflict it warns of can be dealt with if things are taken care of soon—before the wedding takes place With that, Riana turns over the final three cards in the spread, those representing the future. Here she finds, top to bottom, the Tyrant, the Silent Hag, and the Keep. She finds no true matches, but there is one exact opposite: The Tyrant, a lawful evil card in the chaotic good placement. The Tyrant in this placement is misaligned, and indicates a tyrant overthrown. In this case, Riana believes it means that the danger represented by The Tangled Briar will be overcome, and that the wedding will be strong and last for many years—provided the danger itself is not allowed to fester beyond the present day. Merisiel vows to confront this lingering danger and to confide in Kyra by confessing her past association with criminal elements in the city of Magnimar—where the wedding is scheduled to take place. With these shameful secrets revealed to her love, Merisiel hopes to rely upon Kyra’s support, should the danger the cards warn of come to pass. Riana smiles. SINGLE CARD HARROWINGS As a fun community exercise, and to show off the versatility of the Harrow Deck across RPGs, I asked people to tell me a little bit about their player characters and ask a question. I’ve selected a handful of these responses to do single card harrow pulls and interpretations. Thank you to everyone who shared their characters with me! I have also decided to show off a few different ways to do single card readings – some of which are covered in the Harrow Deck manual, and some of which are taken from traditional cartomancy. Harrow Rulebook Method (Choosing) For the following two readings, I used the Choosing method described in the Harrow Deck Rulebook. For these readings, we determine which ability the question falls under, take the cards of the correct suit out, and draw from among those nine cards. When shuffling, I turned the cards around several times, so that some could be upright and some could be reversed. Sebastian (they/them) asked about their drow chronomancer and artificer, Ptemfuzhi (he/she), who is entering her anger stage of trauma. They ask: What should he do about the people who hurt him? Because the question pertains to past cruelty and trauma, I chose Hammers (Strength) and shuffle the cards, and spread them out. Pulling out a card and flipping it over, I got The Cyclone in reverse (or misaligned, as the book calls it). The Cyclone misaligned indicates renewal after a difficult trial. Though your life may seem strewn among the wreckage, you can rebuild and emerge stronger than before. The best revenge against those who hurt you is to live your best life in spite of them. Austin (he/him) asked about Qhirc, his kobold curse witch and potion maker. He asks: Our party has just lost a member. How should we go about finding a new face while honoring the fallen? Because the question relates to party dynamics, which are a kind of found family, I chose to do a Crowns (Charisma) harrowing. Laying the cards out, I pulled The Empty Throne upright. Upright, The Empty Throne denotes a powerful sense of loss – but reminds us that those who are gone never truly leave us. The loss of your party member can weigh heavy on you, and you should allow yourself the time and space to grieve, but don’t linger overlong. Take what you learned from them and use it to build an even stronger relationship with whoever comes next. Single Card Deck Style The following two harrowings are done in the deck style – all of the cards are shuffled together, and the top card of the deck is drawn for each reading. As with the Choosing method, I made sure to turn the cards around between shuffling, to ensure that some are reversed. Nala (they/them) asked about Viridian (she/they), their Ventrue vampire who is cut off from their sire due to a betrayal from one of her siblings. They asked: Is there a chance for Viridian and Rin to reconcile, move forward, and have a relationship again, or is that a lost cause? In this reading, I pulled The Tangled Briar in reverse. When drawn in reverse, The Tangled Briar indicates a past full of pain – but laced with hope for the future. Despite the way the thorns have cut you as you pulled yourself out, there is a full garden awaiting you once you fight your way through. There is hope, but it will be an uphill battle. Sara (they/she) asked about her bartending alchemist witch Lana (she/her). They asked: Should Lana continue searching the Gauntlight in hopes of convincing Belcorra to join her coven, or should she switch to a more attainable goal, like becoming a hag? After reshuffling, I pulled The Forge upright in answer to this question. The Forge encourages strength through diversity of material – but warns of getting into a quest too stubbornly and burning yourself to ashes. If the path forward isn’t changing, it might be time to turn away before it’s too late. Single Card Spread For these last two readings, I did a spread reading. For spread readings, you splay the entire deck out across the alter cloth and wander your fingers across the cards. The first card that is loose and comes easily is the answer to your question. Lin (they/them) asked about their union space captain, Captain Vasko (she/her). After ten years in lock up, she and her rag-tag crew are fixing up the Dead Moon and traveling the stars. Lin asks: Will she ever find a home? For this reading, The Joke slipped into my hands. Upright, The Joke signifies overcoming adversity through humor and other non-physical means. Taking a moment to relax, laugh, and take it easy will move your goals closer than you think. In order to build a home, you have to let yourself relax and let those walls down. Basil (they/he/xe) asked about xir Triangle Agency character, Patience Hollyhock (they/them), who enjoys trench coats, coffee, and spending time with their partner. Basil asks: What should they do about the past they’re running from? For this spread, the Paladin jumped out for me. The Paladin upright signifies strength in the face of adversity and encourages us to stand up for ourselves. Given the question, this card can be interpreted to mean: stop running. Turn your heel and face the horrors behind you. You are strong enough. As a card reader of over a decade, the Harrow Deck is a wonderful addition to my tool belt, and I had a wonderful time reading fortunes for characters. No matter if you’re playing Pathfinder, Starfinder, or any other RPG—or if you just enjoy reading cards—the Harrow Deck is a beautiful addition to any collection. Rue Dickey Marketing and Media Specialist Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Step In for A Harrowing
Thursday, August 31, 2023
You think they’re just cards? Just pictures and words good for gambling or faking townsfolk out of a few coppers? Go on and think that—I don’t mind. My cards know where you’ve been and where you’re going. And it’s not pretty. Not at all. So, walk away. Or stop and learn to turn the few remaining pages of the story of your life into a novel worth the telling. Or don’t. After all, they’re only cards.
—Riana, Varisian harrower
THE HARROW DECK
Harrow is a tarot-like deck usable in everyday life or in any roleplaying game. Regardless of where you use it, use it with care. A harrow deck is loaded with power, so you must learn to read the cards correctly or else suffer an ignominious fate. The most important thing is to treat your harrow deck with respect. Disrespect the deck, and the deck will disrespect you. That way surely leads to ruin. You don’t want ruin, do you? You want to know how to read these cards.
Before you conduct a reading, set the stage for a dramatic encounter. Clear the table and place the deck in front of you.
The reading is conducted in two parts: first you’ll perform the choosing, and then you’ll perform the spread.
The Choosing
Ask your subjects—those who come to you for a reading—what they seek from it. Phrase the request in the form of a single question, then decide which of the six following abilities best suits that question. For example, a question of health might indicate the suit of Shields (Constitution), while a question regarding love might indicate the suit of Crowns (Charisma). Ultimately, it is up to you to choose which suit most fits—a question regarding love could just as well draw upon the suit of Stars (Wisdom), for example.
ABILITIES AND SOME CORRESPONDING TOPICS
Hammers (Strength): Battle, honor, cruelty
Keys (Dexterity): Children, risks, trouble
Shields (Constitution): Health, home, pain
Books (Intelligence): Money, secrets, stories
Stars (Wisdom): Faith, morality, trust
Crowns (Charisma): Family, love, politics
Remove the nine cards of the suit you have chosen from the harrow deck and shuffle those nine. Spread the cards you chose face down in front of you. Instruct your subject(s) to each pick one card. The chosen card has a message for that person about their current place in the world and in relation to the question at hand.
The Spread
The spread is laid out in a three-by-three grid of nine cards.
When interpreting the cards, each one’s placement in the spread determines whether it relates to the past, present, or future. The placement also tells the harrower if the card should be interpreted in a positive, unclear, or negative light. The following table shows the placements and their alignments and meanings.
Lawful Neautral Chaotic Goodpositive past positive present positive future Neutralunclear past unclear present unclear future Evilnegative past negative present negative future
A SAMPLE HARROWING
Merisiel has come to Riana for a reading. Riana calms herself as Merisiel asks her whether her plans to marry Kyra are good ones. Riana thinks on what type of question this is, and decides that it best fits Charisma.
She takes the nine Charisma cards out of the deck and carefully shuffles them for the choosing. She then spreads them out, facedown, in front of her. Merisiel takes one and turns it over—it is the Empty Throne. Riana tells Merisiel that this role card represents her place in relation to the question. Merisiel has felt love before, but it has often vanished, leaving behind a vacancy that aches as much as a nation without a leader—yet just as a nation still needs leadership, so too does the heart need one to love.
With that done, Riana puts the Charisma cards back into the deck and shuffles. She then deals out nine cards, face down, in the three-by-three pattern of the spread. Riana starts by turning over the three cards in the left column—those that represent the past. The cards revealed are, from top to bottom, the Owl, the Marriage, and the Cricket.
Riana checks to see if there are any true matches in this column. There is one: appropriately enough, the Marriage. It is a lawful neutral card in the lawful neutral placement in the spread. Riana contemplates the meaning of this card to the question. Since Merisiel’s question is about a wedding, the card is especially meaningful. Riana tells Merisiel that since this card appears in the past, it represents the strength of her existing relationship with Kyra, suggesting in a way that they have been wedded in soul all along. Since there are no other true matches, Riana moves on.
She turns over the three cards in the middle, representing the present. Top to bottom, she sees the Unicorn, the Dance, and the Tangled Briar. None of them are true or opposite matches. Thus, Riana looks for partial matches. She finds two. The Unicorn matches the good aspect of the top middle space, while the Tangled Briar matches the evil in the lower middle space. Riana looks at the Unicorn and tells Merisiel that the marriage has the potential of bringing great happiness. The Tangled Briar warns that something in her past may bring conflict to the wedding—but as the card appears in the middle column (and is associated with the present), the potential conflict it warns of can be dealt with if things are taken care of soon—before the wedding takes place
With that, Riana turns over the final three cards in the spread, those representing the future. Here she finds, top to bottom, the Tyrant, the Silent Hag, and the Keep. She finds no true matches, but there is one exact opposite: The Tyrant, a lawful evil card in the chaotic good placement. The Tyrant in this placement is misaligned, and indicates a tyrant overthrown. In this case, Riana believes it means that the danger represented by The Tangled Briar will be overcome, and that the wedding will be strong and last for many years—provided the danger itself is not allowed to fester beyond the present day.
Merisiel vows to confront this lingering danger and to confide in Kyra by confessing her past association with criminal elements in the city of Magnimar—where the wedding is scheduled to take place. With these shameful secrets revealed to her love, Merisiel hopes to rely upon Kyra’s support, should the danger the cards warn of come to pass. Riana smiles.
SINGLE CARD HARROWINGS
As a fun community exercise, and to show off the versatility of the Harrow Deck across RPGs, I asked people to tell me a little bit about their player characters and ask a question. I’ve selected a handful of these responses to do single card harrow pulls and interpretations. Thank you to everyone who shared their characters with me!
I have also decided to show off a few different ways to do single card readings – some of which are covered in the Harrow Deck manual, and some of which are taken from traditional cartomancy.
Harrow Rulebook Method (Choosing)
For the following two readings, I used the Choosing method described in the Harrow Deck Rulebook. For these readings, we determine which ability the question falls under, take the cards of the correct suit out, and draw from among those nine cards. When shuffling, I turned the cards around several times, so that some could be upright and some could be reversed.
Sebastian (they/them) asked about their drow chronomancer and artificer, Ptemfuzhi (he/she), who is entering her anger stage of trauma. They ask: What should he do about the people who hurt him?
Because the question pertains to past cruelty and trauma, I chose Hammers (Strength) and shuffle the cards, and spread them out. Pulling out a card and flipping it over, I got The Cyclone in reverse (or misaligned, as the book calls it).
The Cyclone misaligned indicates renewal after a difficult trial. Though your life may seem strewn among the wreckage, you can rebuild and emerge stronger than before. The best revenge against those who hurt you is to live your best life in spite of them.
Austin (he/him) asked about Qhirc, his kobold curse witch and potion maker. He asks: Our party has just lost a member. How should we go about finding a new face while honoring the fallen?
Because the question relates to party dynamics, which are a kind of found family, I chose to do a Crowns (Charisma) harrowing. Laying the cards out, I pulled The Empty Throne upright.
Upright, The Empty Throne denotes a powerful sense of loss – but reminds us that those who are gone never truly leave us. The loss of your party member can weigh heavy on you, and you should allow yourself the time and space to grieve, but don’t linger overlong. Take what you learned from them and use it to build an even stronger relationship with whoever comes next.
Single Card Deck Style
The following two harrowings are done in the deck style – all of the cards are shuffled together, and the top card of the deck is drawn for each reading. As with the Choosing method, I made sure to turn the cards around between shuffling, to ensure that some are reversed.
Nala (they/them) asked about Viridian (she/they), their Ventrue vampire who is cut off from their sire due to a betrayal from one of her siblings. They asked: Is there a chance for Viridian and Rin to reconcile, move forward, and have a relationship again, or is that a lost cause?
In this reading, I pulled The Tangled Briar in reverse. When drawn in reverse, The Tangled Briar indicates a past full of pain – but laced with hope for the future. Despite the way the thorns have cut you as you pulled yourself out, there is a full garden awaiting you once you fight your way through. There is hope, but it will be an uphill battle.
Sara (they/she) asked about her bartending alchemist witch Lana (she/her). They asked: Should Lana continue searching the Gauntlight in hopes of convincing Belcorra to join her coven, or should she switch to a more attainable goal, like becoming a hag?
After reshuffling, I pulled The Forge upright in answer to this question. The Forge encourages strength through diversity of material – but warns of getting into a quest too stubbornly and burning yourself to ashes. If the path forward isn’t changing, it might be time to turn away before it’s too late.
Single Card Spread
For these last two readings, I did a spread reading. For spread readings, you splay the entire deck out across the alter cloth and wander your fingers across the cards. The first card that is loose and comes easily is the answer to your question.
Lin (they/them) asked about their union space captain, Captain Vasko (she/her). After ten years in lock up, she and her rag-tag crew are fixing up the Dead Moon and traveling the stars. Lin asks: Will she ever find a home?
For this reading, The Joke slipped into my hands. Upright, The Joke signifies overcoming adversity through humor and other non-physical means. Taking a moment to relax, laugh, and take it easy will move your goals closer than you think. In order to build a home, you have to let yourself relax and let those walls down.
Basil (they/he/xe) asked about xir Triangle Agency character, Patience Hollyhock (they/them), who enjoys trench coats, coffee, and spending time with their partner. Basil asks: What should they do about the past they’re running from?
For this spread, the Paladin jumped out for me. The Paladin upright signifies strength in the face of adversity and encourages us to stand up for ourselves. Given the question, this card can be interpreted to mean: stop running. Turn your heel and face the horrors behind you. You are strong enough.
As a card reader of over a decade, the Harrow Deck is a wonderful addition to my tool belt, and I had a wonderful time reading fortunes for characters. No matter if you’re playing Pathfinder, Starfinder, or any other RPG—or if you just enjoy reading cards—the Harrow Deck is a beautiful addition to any collection.
Rue Dickey
Marketing and Media SpecialistTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie6?Paizo-Partners-with-Pegasus-Publishing-to Paizo Partners with Pegasus Publishing to Bring You T-Shirt Designs for Dragon Con! 2023-08-31T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-31T13:00:00.000-04:00 Paizo Partners with Pegasus Publishing to Bring You T-Shirt Designs for Dragon Con! Thursday, August 31, 2023 Paizo is thrilled to announce a new partnership with Pegasus Publishing! Pegasus Publishing is a specialty t-shirt and bag supplier for the Science Fiction and Fantasy markets, and Paizo is excited to announce our first collaboration! Two new t-shirt designs will debut at Dragon Con 2023 at booths 1301, 1303, 1305 in sizes S through XXXXXL! Not going to be at Dragon Con? No worries! Both shirts are also available on their website (note: shipping for online orders won’t begin until 9/6): Mirage Dragon – Captain Concierge. Expect apparel designs from our very own art team, tote bags, and more in the future! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Paizo Partners with Pegasus Publishing to Bring You T-Shirt Designs for Dragon Con!
Thursday, August 31, 2023
Paizo is thrilled to announce a new partnership with Pegasus Publishing! Pegasus Publishing is a specialty t-shirt and bag supplier for the Science Fiction and Fantasy markets, and Paizo is excited to announce our first collaboration!
Two new t-shirt designs will debut at Dragon Con 2023 at booths 1301, 1303, 1305 in sizes S through XXXXXL!
Not going to be at Dragon Con? No worries! Both shirts are also available on their website (note: shipping for online orders won’t begin until 9/6): Mirage Dragon – Captain Concierge.
Expect apparel designs from our very own art team, tote bags, and more in the future!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie4?Find-Your-Path-Aug-2023 Find Your Path, Aug 2023 2023-08-30T17:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-30T17:30:00.000-04:00 Find Your Path, Aug 2023 Wednesday, August 30, 2023 Hello Pathfinders & Starfinders! This month’s new releases invite you to explore your destiny, meet the leaders of tomorrow, and dig ever deeper into the Darklands We've got a busy week here at Paizo. Come to twitch.tv/officialpaizo on Thursday, Aug 31st at 4 p.m. Pacific for a special livestream to kickstart our Pathfinder Playtest. Join Michael Sayre and James Case as they talk about the design concepts behind our two new classes! Then, on Friday, Sept. 1st, join us from 4-6 p.m. Pacific on twitch.tv/officialpaizo for September’s Paizo LIVE! Our topics for this month include the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, Starfinder Enhanced, and a look at the Pathfinder Remaster Project! Without further ado, let’s see what this month’s new releases have in store! Pathfinder Harrow Deck FIND YOUR FUTURE! Divine your destiny with the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, the legendary fortune-telling deck of Pathfinder’s Age of Lost Omens setting! With this 54-card, full-color set of fortune-telling cards, you’ll learn how to include the harrow in any tabletop RPG game and enhance play with immersive fortune-telling methods and other insights. With vivid art, patterned backing, and a size common to many real-world tarot decks, the Harrow Deck straddles the line between game supplement and storytelling set piece. Master the harrow and make the future anything you desire! The Harrow Deck is available as a Super Deluxe Physical Edition or as a Print and Play PDF Edition. Pathfinder Lost Omens: Knights of Lastwall Special Edition Fulfill your oath! When the armies of the Whispering Tyrant marched on Lastwall, the keeps and cities may have fallen, but its people and their spirit did not falter! Pathfinder Lost Omens: Knights of Lastwall takes a detailed look at the knights that took up arms to continue the fight against the undead hordes and evils that roam the world. This deluxe special edition is bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark. Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters. The Starfinders have vowed to stop the Organization, a mysterious and violent criminal syndicate whose true name remains unknown and whose machinations threaten the lives of millions. Digging into the Organization’s past has revealed an interest in ancient Ulumbia, a long-destroyed civilization from Deepwater Prime with few archaeological remains of value or importance. So why the interest? Travel to Deepwater Prime to unearth the secrets of ancient Ulumbia—a mission destined to drive the Starfinders into direct conflict with important agents of the Organization! Pathfinder Adventure Path #194: Cult of the Cave Worm (Sky King’s Tomb 2 of 3) Finding a legendary tomb requires tracking an equally legendary cave worm said to dwell there. As the adventurers set out from Highhelm, they must brave the Darklands’ dangers, navigate a treacherous fey city, and recover the relic that retraces the cave worm’s path. Yet in doing so, they learn of nefarious rivals who also seek the tomb—rivals the adventurers might stop by infiltrating an unforgiving underground metropolis. Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions A Starfinder Bounty designed for 4th-level characters. Domaaz Manhala is the youngest student ever accepted to the prestigious Solar University on the Burning Archipelago. Determined to prove their worth and make a good impression on their fellow students, Domaaz plans to perform a complicated magical experiment on the university’s public grounds, in full sight of students and staff! With little free time to spare, Domaaz hires a team of freelancers to acquire the remaining components they'll need to perform their grand experiment. Yet unbeknownst to them, something bigger is at play here, and there’s far more at stake than some extra credit! Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Underground City Multi-Pack Be they complex fortified settlements that were built ages ago by long-gone ancients or more recent creations still populated by vibrant societies, underground cities present an unusual and complex adventuring environment. This four-sided Flip-Mat collection provides four huge panels of underground city environments and supply the GM with a diverse set of subterranean urban battlefields suitable for any fantasy RPG campaign. Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters. Ehu Hadif has announced his upcoming retirement, and the search for a new First Seeker has begun! From the Society’s ranks, four promising candidates have risen to the forefront. Meet the candidates for First Seeker, perform a mission on their behalf, and cast your vote! The future of the Starfinder Society is in your hands! Don’t forget to vote for your favorite candidate! Pathfinder Society Special #3-98: Expedition Into Pallid Peril A Pathfinder Society Special designed for 1st- through 6th-level characters (subtiers 1-4 & 3-6). Having made several recent forays into a set of unearthed ruins in the volcanic region of Droskar’s Crag, the Pathfinder Society has uncovered what could be an access point to the lost dwarven city of Raseri Kanton. Pathfinder agents from across Golarion have come to support the Society’s latest large-scale endeavor. However, the Aspis Consortium have also begun exploring the ruins, so it’s a race to see who can reach Raseri Kanton first! Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters. Exam time has always been stressful for the students of the Dacilane Academy, so J Dacilane has come up with a plan: have a group of Pathfinders help them pull off the first ever Dacilane Academy Great Prank War! Surely nothing can go wrong! However, once a caravan of fey traveling nearby catches a whiff of the chaos, they're more than willing to come and join the prank war—with or without an invitation. It's up to the Pathfinders to calm down the friendly fey, defeat the evil fey who infiltrated the caravan, and ensure that the students have the best prank war ever! Should be easy as pie. (Quick, duck that pie!) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters. In the conclusion of the Year of Boundless Wonder, the Pathfinder Society and one of the members of the Decemvirate have pieced together a careful plan. Using one of the mysterious items from the vault, the draught of dreams, the Society will lay a trap for Aslynn, catching her via her own greed and desire to control dreams. The plan requires bait, though, and Zarta Dralneen has stepped up to prove her loyalty to the Society yet again and finally finish off Aslynn. Despite their secrecy, however, she's caught wind of the plan and is ready to overturn it and finally be done with the Pathfinder Society once and for all! Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters. It's time to explore! With the Pathfinder Society coming down from their recent victory after finally defeating an old enemy, they choose to refocus on the goals that lie at the heart of their mission: Explore! Report! Cooperate! To celebrate such a successful year, Society members organize a party to host all sorts of friends, both new and old. However, when one of Fola Barun's dear friends needs to be entertained in order to prepare a surprise, it's up to the Pathfinders to show him around the famous Maze of the Open Road. When he starts to encourage exploration, new doors appear before the Pathfinders, and new adventures await! Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters. The Pathfinder dig site near the Tskikha iruxi enclave in the Blackwood Swamp was, for some time now, considered one of the safer Azlanti ruins to investigate, to the point that it was used as field training for groups of initiates. Having been cleared out years ago by agents, the site was an archeological treasure trove for learning of the elemental magics of ancient Azlant. Something has gone wrong, though. The elemental planes have changed in ways that scholars are, even now, struggling to understand, and the latent power within those ruins has manifested. It's been weeks since anyone has heard from the initiates currently on site or from the iruxi allies nearby. The Pathfinders must now race against time and delve into the bizarre magics wrought by the elements to rescue the Blackwood lost. Get a world of fiction for a fraction of the cost! Pathfinder and Humble Bundle have partnered to offer you dozens of Pathfinder fiction pieces, from novels to short stories to journal entries and more. A portion of the proceeds from this Humble Bundle benefits Comic Books for Kids, which provides kid-friendly comic and coloring books to children and teens in hospitals and care centers across the US. Pathfinder Society Season 5 and Starfinder Society Season 6 – Now on Foundry VTT! Starting Thursday, August 31st, we'll be giving Pathfinder and Starfinder Society the same treatment on Foundry VTT that we’ve been giving our Pathfinder Adventure Paths, allowing you to experience all of the latest Organized Play scenarios with the full suite of features, including maps, tiles, tokens, sounds, and more! Each of these modules is a one-time purchase that will be automatically updated throughout the season with new content as we release it. We’re offering two options on these modules: a streamlined “Asset Pack” consisting of maps, tokens, and other goodies for those who already have the adventures in PDF format; and a “Deluxe Edition” that also includes all of the adventure content from every scenario laid out in beautiful themed journals! Both asset packs and deluxe modules are available in half- and full-season packs for maximum convenience. Browse all our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #194: Cult of the Cave Worm (Sky King’s Tomb 2 of 3). Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API, or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store. Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price. Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide! Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Ogre Boss Battle! Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder! Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Find Your Path, Aug 2023
Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Hello Pathfinders & Starfinders! This month’s new releases invite you to explore your destiny, meet the leaders of tomorrow, and dig ever deeper into the Darklands
We've got a busy week here at Paizo. Come to twitch.tv/officialpaizo on Thursday, Aug 31st at 4 p.m. Pacific for a special livestream to kickstart our Pathfinder Playtest. Join Michael Sayre and James Case as they talk about the design concepts behind our two new classes!
Then, on Friday, Sept. 1st, join us from 4-6 p.m. Pacific on twitch.tv/officialpaizo for September’s Paizo LIVE! Our topics for this month include the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, Starfinder Enhanced, and a look at the Pathfinder Remaster Project!
Without further ado, let’s see what this month’s new releases have in store!
Pathfinder Harrow Deck
FIND YOUR FUTURE!
Divine your destiny with the Pathfinder Harrow Deck, the legendary fortune-telling deck of Pathfinder’s Age of Lost Omens setting! With this 54-card, full-color set of fortune-telling cards, you’ll learn how to include the harrow in any tabletop RPG game and enhance play with immersive fortune-telling methods and other insights. With vivid art, patterned backing, and a size common to many real-world tarot decks, the Harrow Deck straddles the line between game supplement and storytelling set piece. Master the harrow and make the future anything you desire!
The Harrow Deck is available as a Super Deluxe Physical Edition or as a Print and Play PDF Edition.
Pathfinder Lost Omens: Knights of Lastwall Special Edition
Fulfill your oath!
When the armies of the Whispering Tyrant marched on Lastwall, the keeps and cities may have fallen, but its people and their spirit did not falter! Pathfinder Lost Omens: Knights of Lastwall takes a detailed look at the knights that took up arms to continue the fight against the undead hordes and evils that roam the world.
This deluxe special edition is bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
The Starfinders have vowed to stop the Organization, a mysterious and violent criminal syndicate whose true name remains unknown and whose machinations threaten the lives of millions. Digging into the Organization’s past has revealed an interest in ancient Ulumbia, a long-destroyed civilization from Deepwater Prime with few archaeological remains of value or importance. So why the interest? Travel to Deepwater Prime to unearth the secrets of ancient Ulumbia—a mission destined to drive the Starfinders into direct conflict with important agents of the Organization!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #194: Cult of the Cave Worm (Sky King’s Tomb 2 of 3)
Finding a legendary tomb requires tracking an equally legendary cave worm said to dwell there. As the adventurers set out from Highhelm, they must brave the Darklands’ dangers, navigate a treacherous fey city, and recover the relic that retraces the cave worm’s path. Yet in doing so, they learn of nefarious rivals who also seek the tomb—rivals the adventurers might stop by infiltrating an unforgiving underground metropolis.
Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions
A Starfinder Bounty designed for 4th-level characters.
Domaaz Manhala is the youngest student ever accepted to the prestigious Solar University on the Burning Archipelago. Determined to prove their worth and make a good impression on their fellow students, Domaaz plans to perform a complicated magical experiment on the university’s public grounds, in full sight of students and staff! With little free time to spare, Domaaz hires a team of freelancers to acquire the remaining components they'll need to perform their grand experiment. Yet unbeknownst to them, something bigger is at play here, and there’s far more at stake than some extra credit!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Underground City Multi-Pack
Be they complex fortified settlements that were built ages ago by long-gone ancients or more recent creations still populated by vibrant societies, underground cities present an unusual and complex adventuring environment. This four-sided Flip-Mat collection provides four huge panels of underground city environments and supply the GM with a diverse set of subterranean urban battlefields suitable for any fantasy RPG campaign.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
Ehu Hadif has announced his upcoming retirement, and the search for a new First Seeker has begun! From the Society’s ranks, four promising candidates have risen to the forefront. Meet the candidates for First Seeker, perform a mission on their behalf, and cast your vote! The future of the Starfinder Society is in your hands!
Don’t forget to vote for your favorite candidate!
Pathfinder Society Special #3-98: Expedition Into Pallid Peril
A Pathfinder Society Special designed for 1st- through 6th-level characters (subtiers 1-4 & 3-6).
Having made several recent forays into a set of unearthed ruins in the volcanic region of Droskar’s Crag, the Pathfinder Society has uncovered what could be an access point to the lost dwarven city of Raseri Kanton. Pathfinder agents from across Golarion have come to support the Society’s latest large-scale endeavor. However, the Aspis Consortium have also begun exploring the ruins, so it’s a race to see who can reach Raseri Kanton first!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
Exam time has always been stressful for the students of the Dacilane Academy, so J Dacilane has come up with a plan: have a group of Pathfinders help them pull off the first ever Dacilane Academy Great Prank War! Surely nothing can go wrong! However, once a caravan of fey traveling nearby catches a whiff of the chaos, they're more than willing to come and join the prank war—with or without an invitation. It's up to the Pathfinders to calm down the friendly fey, defeat the evil fey who infiltrated the caravan, and ensure that the students have the best prank war ever! Should be easy as pie. (Quick, duck that pie!)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- through 10th-level characters.
In the conclusion of the Year of Boundless Wonder, the Pathfinder Society and one of the members of the Decemvirate have pieced together a careful plan. Using one of the mysterious items from the vault, the draught of dreams, the Society will lay a trap for Aslynn, catching her via her own greed and desire to control dreams. The plan requires bait, though, and Zarta Dralneen has stepped up to prove her loyalty to the Society yet again and finally finish off Aslynn. Despite their secrecy, however, she's caught wind of the plan and is ready to overturn it and finally be done with the Pathfinder Society once and for all!
Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
It's time to explore! With the Pathfinder Society coming down from their recent victory after finally defeating an old enemy, they choose to refocus on the goals that lie at the heart of their mission: Explore! Report! Cooperate! To celebrate such a successful year, Society members organize a party to host all sorts of friends, both new and old. However, when one of Fola Barun's dear friends needs to be entertained in order to prepare a surprise, it's up to the Pathfinders to show him around the famous Maze of the Open Road. When he starts to encourage exploration, new doors appear before the Pathfinders, and new adventures await!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
The Pathfinder dig site near the Tskikha iruxi enclave in the Blackwood Swamp was, for some time now, considered one of the safer Azlanti ruins to investigate, to the point that it was used as field training for groups of initiates. Having been cleared out years ago by agents, the site was an archeological treasure trove for learning of the elemental magics of ancient Azlant. Something has gone wrong, though. The elemental planes have changed in ways that scholars are, even now, struggling to understand, and the latent power within those ruins has manifested. It's been weeks since anyone has heard from the initiates currently on site or from the iruxi allies nearby. The Pathfinders must now race against time and delve into the bizarre magics wrought by the elements to rescue the Blackwood lost.
Get a world of fiction for a fraction of the cost!
Pathfinder and Humble Bundle have partnered to offer you dozens of Pathfinder fiction pieces, from novels to short stories to journal entries and more. A portion of the proceeds from this Humble Bundle benefits Comic Books for Kids, which provides kid-friendly comic and coloring books to children and teens in hospitals and care centers across the US.
Pathfinder Society Season 5 and Starfinder Society Season 6 – Now on Foundry VTT!
Starting Thursday, August 31st, we'll be giving Pathfinder and Starfinder Society the same treatment on Foundry VTT that we’ve been giving our Pathfinder Adventure Paths, allowing you to experience all of the latest Organized Play scenarios with the full suite of features, including maps, tiles, tokens, sounds, and more! Each of these modules is a one-time purchase that will be automatically updated throughout the season with new content as we release it. We’re offering two options on these modules: a streamlined “Asset Pack” consisting of maps, tokens, and other goodies for those who already have the adventures in PDF format; and a “Deluxe Edition” that also includes all of the adventure content from every scenario laid out in beautiful themed journals! Both asset packs and deluxe modules are available in half- and full-season packs for maximum convenience.
Browse all our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #194: Cult of the Cave Worm (Sky King’s Tomb 2 of 3).
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are dropping new content this month as well! Buy your PDF on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API, or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Bring Pathfinder to where you are, in person or online, and if you don’t have a favorite local game store, get books delivered to your door via a Paizo Subscription! From rulebooks to adventures, accessories, and more, we’ve got subscriptions for every table! Subscribing to a line of books gets you the physical book and the PDF for one price. Subscribe to four lines or more to unlock Paizo Advantage savings on products site-wide!
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more. New this month—Ogre Boss Battle!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2899 ?? DragonCon 2023 Gaming Reminder! ?? 2023-08-29T17:15:43.000-04:00 2023-08-29T17:15:43.000-04:00 ?? **DragonCon 2023 Gaming Reminder!** ?? Greetings, fellow adventurers! The countdown to DragonCon 2023 has begun, and we're thrilled to remind you about the thrilling gaming experiences that await you at AmericasMart Building 3 on the second floor. Get ready to dive into a world of tabletop excitement from August 31st to September 4th in Atlanta, GA! **Gaming Schedule:** - **Thursday, August 31:** 7:00 PM - 12:00 AM - **Friday, September 1 - Sunday, September 3:** 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM, 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM, 8:00 PM - 1:00 AM - **Monday, September 4:** 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM **Specials Exclusive to Friday - Sunday:** - Starfinder Society Interactive: "The Last Bite" (SFS 3-00) - Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "The King in Thorns" (PFS2 2-00) - Starfinder Society Interactive: "A Time of Crisis" (SFS 4-99) - Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Blessings of the Forest" (PFS2 4-99) - Starfinder Society Interactive: "Perils of the Past" (SFS 3-99) - Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Expedition into Pallid Peril" (PFS2 3-98) - Starfinder Society Interactive: "Fate of the Scoured God" (SFS 2-00) - Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Fate in the Future" (PFS2 3-99) - Starfinder Society Interactive: "Battle for the Bulwark" (SFS 5-99) But wait, there's even more adventure! Beyond these specials, we'll have tables for Pathfinder Society 1st and 2nd Editions as well as Starfinder Society, available for play throughout the convention. Don't miss the opportunity to meet a representative from Demiplane, who will be joining us to demonstrate their Pathfinder Nexus tool. They'll be there to assist you in crafting unforgettable characters for your future campaigns. **Event Details:** - **Date:** August 31 - September 4, 2023 - **Location:** AmericasMart Building 3, 2nd Floor, Atlanta, GA - **Website:** [https://atlantapfs.org](https://atlantapfs.org) - **Convention Badges:** Available at [DragonCon Website](https://dragoncon.org) - **Gaming Tickets:** Tickets can still be purchased at DragonCon during the convention. The gaming community is gathering, and the excitement is building. Gear up for an unforgettable journey through worlds of imagination and strategy. We can't wait to share this incredible experience with you at DragonCon 2023! ???
Greetings, fellow adventurers! The countdown to DragonCon 2023 has begun, and we're thrilled to remind you about the thrilling gaming experiences that await you at AmericasMart Building 3 on the second floor. Get ready to dive into a world of tabletop excitement from August 31st to September 4th in Atlanta, GA!
**Gaming Schedule:**
- **Thursday, August 31:** 7:00 PM - 12:00 AM
- **Friday, September 1 - Sunday, September 3:** 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM, 2:00 PM - 7:00 PM, 8:00 PM - 1:00 AM
- **Monday, September 4:** 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
**Specials Exclusive to Friday - Sunday:**
- Starfinder Society Interactive: "The Last Bite" (SFS 3-00)
- Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "The King in Thorns" (PFS2 2-00)
- Starfinder Society Interactive: "A Time of Crisis" (SFS 4-99)
- Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Blessings of the Forest" (PFS2 4-99)
- Starfinder Society Interactive: "Perils of the Past" (SFS 3-99)
- Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Expedition into Pallid Peril" (PFS2 3-98)
- Starfinder Society Interactive: "Fate of the Scoured God" (SFS 2-00)
- Pathfinder Society (2nd Edition) Interactive: "Fate in the Future" (PFS2 3-99)
- Starfinder Society Interactive: "Battle for the Bulwark" (SFS 5-99)
But wait, there's even more adventure! Beyond these specials, we'll have tables for Pathfinder Society 1st and 2nd Editions as well as Starfinder Society, available for play throughout the convention.
Don't miss the opportunity to meet a representative from Demiplane, who will be joining us to demonstrate their Pathfinder Nexus tool. They'll be there to assist you in crafting unforgettable characters for your future campaigns.
**Event Details:**
- **Date:** August 31 - September 4, 2023
- **Location:** AmericasMart Building 3, 2nd Floor, Atlanta, GA
- **Website:** [https://atlantapfs.org](https://atlantapfs.org)
- **Convention Badges:** Available at [DragonCon Website](https://dragoncon.org)
- **Gaming Tickets:** Tickets can still be purchased at DragonCon during the convention.
The gaming community is gathering, and the excitement is building. Gear up for an unforgettable journey through worlds of imagination and strategy. We can't wait to share this incredible experience with you at DragonCon 2023! ???]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sie0?A-Long-Buried-History A Long Buried History… 2023-08-29T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-29T14:00:00.000-04:00 A Long Buried History… Tuesday, August 29, 2023 Millennia ago, dwarves completed their Quest for Sky, a legendary migration from their subterranean homeland to the surface. Their exodus nearly failed, but during the journey a hero arose to lead them—a young dwarf named Taargick. Time and again Taargick proved his bravery, resourcefulness, and political skill, inspiring his people to endure when all seemed lost. In honor of his great leadership, his followers named him ruler of the new kingdom they would found in his name: Tar Taargadth. Illustration by Darko Stojanovic Yet after the dwarves reached the surface and raised citadels and toasts to his legacy, Taargick felt as much remorse in his heart as he felt pride. His people had reached the surface as Torag commanded, but at what cost? Their road had been paved with the corpses of orcs, xulgaths, and more, slain by dwarven steel. Their unjustly shed blood had festered into a thousand vendettas, justifiably earning dwarves the hatred of many. Was Torag’s will worth so much death? Taargick didn’t think so. Toward the end of his life, he politely declined the magnificent tomb his people had built for him. He departed alone to carve his own tomb, hidden in the depths, where the steady strikes of his tools drew the attention of one of the Darklands’ mightiest predators: a crimson worm. The two clashed for days before Taargick narrowly prevailed. To his surprise, the beast spoke, praising the king’s strength and skill. Taargick, realizing he had subdued an intelligent creature and not a mindless worm, remembered the countless orcs, xulgaths, and other creatures devastated by the Quest for Sky, and cast aside his weapons and shattered armor, refusing to end another Darklands life. Taargick and the cave worm spoke at length as he finished his tomb, developing a deep respect for each other. Illustration by Luis Salas Lastra At last, with the tomb ready, Taargick knew death was near. The crimson worm Zogototaru—better known in the region as the Avernal Worm—granted Taargick’s last wish: that she delivers his clan dagger to Highhelm, so it might rest among his people. Illustration by Mylene Bertrand But after the bold, if ill-suited, adventurer Krohan Veldollow stole the dagger and lost it, the city of Highhelm now lacks one of its greatest treasures: an artifact that points the way to an even greater secret that lies deep beneath the earth. Sky King’s Tomb is a three part adventure path for levels 1-11. For GM’s looking to expand their knowledge of Highhelm and dwarven culture for this adventure, Lost Omens Highhelm takes you deep into the city and its customs. Will your adventurers be the ones to find the secrets and save the city? Or will the dagger fall into sinister hands? A Long Buried History…
Tuesday, August 29, 2023
Millennia ago, dwarves completed their Quest for Sky, a legendary migration from their subterranean homeland to the surface. Their exodus nearly failed, but during the journey a hero arose to lead them—a young dwarf named Taargick. Time and again Taargick proved his bravery, resourcefulness, and political skill, inspiring his people to endure when all seemed lost. In honor of his great leadership, his followers named him ruler of the new kingdom they would found in his name: Tar Taargadth.
Yet after the dwarves reached the surface and raised citadels and toasts to his legacy, Taargick felt as much remorse in his heart as he felt pride. His people had reached the surface as Torag commanded, but at what cost? Their road had been paved with the corpses of orcs, xulgaths, and more, slain by dwarven steel. Their unjustly shed blood had festered into a thousand vendettas, justifiably earning dwarves the hatred of many. Was Torag’s will worth so much death?
Taargick didn’t think so. Toward the end of his life, he politely declined the magnificent tomb his people had built for him. He departed alone to carve his own tomb, hidden in the depths, where the steady strikes of his tools drew the attention of one of the Darklands’ mightiest predators: a crimson worm. The two clashed for days before Taargick narrowly prevailed. To his surprise, the beast spoke, praising the king’s strength and skill. Taargick, realizing he had subdued an intelligent creature and not a mindless worm, remembered the countless orcs, xulgaths, and other creatures devastated by the Quest for Sky, and cast aside his weapons and shattered armor, refusing to end another Darklands life. Taargick and the cave worm spoke at length as he finished his tomb, developing a deep respect for each other.
At last, with the tomb ready, Taargick knew death was near. The crimson worm Zogototaru—better known in the region as the Avernal Worm—granted Taargick’s last wish: that she delivers his clan dagger to Highhelm, so it might rest among his people.
But after the bold, if ill-suited, adventurer Krohan Veldollow stole the dagger and lost it, the city of Highhelm now lacks one of its greatest treasures: an artifact that points the way to an even greater secret that lies deep beneath the earth.
Sky King’s Tomb is a three part adventure path for levels 1-11. For GM’s looking to expand their knowledge of Highhelm and dwarven culture for this adventure, Lost Omens Highhelm takes you deep into the city and its customs.
Will your adventurers be the ones to find the secrets and save the city? Or will the dagger fall into sinister hands?
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Second Edition, Sky King's Tomb
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidz?Save-the-Date-Pathfinder-Playtest-Stream Save the Date – Pathfinder Playtest Stream Aug 31! 2023-08-25T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-25T13:30:00.000-04:00 Save the Date – Pathfinder Playtest Stream Aug 31! Friday, August 25, 2023 Hello Pathfinders! As we announced during our Gen Con Keynote Presentation, we have a playtest of two new classes starting September 1! These classes are entirely new – not concepts brought forward from First Edition into Second Edition—and we can’t wait to share them with you! To kickstart the playtest, we’re having a Paizo Special Livestream on Thursday, August 31 at 4 p.m. pacific daylight time (PDT). Join Design Manager Michael Sayre and Senior Designer James Case as they give an overview of the new classes and introduce the Iconics that represent them. Tune in on the twitch.tv/officialpaizo to see the new iconics! The Pathfinder Playtest launches on September 1. Check back here then for a blog with more details about the classes and how to participate! See you on twitch.tv/officialpaizo! Tags: Paizo Twitch, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Playtest, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Second Edition Save the Date – Pathfinder Playtest Stream Aug 31!
Friday, August 25, 2023
Hello Pathfinders! As we announced during our Gen Con Keynote Presentation, we have a playtest of two new classes starting September 1! These classes are entirely new – not concepts brought forward from First Edition into Second Edition—and we can’t wait to share them with you!
To kickstart the playtest, we’re having a Paizo Special Livestream on Thursday, August 31 at 4 p.m. pacific daylight time (PDT). Join Design Manager Michael Sayre and Senior Designer James Case as they give an overview of the new classes and introduce the Iconics that represent them.
The Pathfinder Playtest launches on September 1. Check back here then for a blog with more details about the classes and how to participate!
See you on twitch.tv/officialpaizo!
Tags: Paizo Twitch, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Playtest, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidy?July-2023-Organized-Play-Adventure-Previews July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews 2023-08-24T14:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-24T14:00:00.000-04:00 July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews Thursday, August 24, 2023 Hello, Starfinders! Breaking news! First Seeker Ehu Hadif soon to retire! Four engaging candidates rise from the Society’s rank and file, gaining the respect and support of their fellow Starfinders! Which of these four First Seeker hopefuls has what it takes to lead the Starfinder Society into the uncertain future? The choice is yours! The time to vote is now! Meet the candidates for the 2023 First Seeker Election in Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seeker, a repeatable adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by our very own Alex Speidel! This is your chance to personally meet and engage with our four candidates for First Seeker, perform a mission for each, and get a taste of where they plan to lead the Starfinder Society in the future. After you’ve played the adventure, visit paizo.com/firstseeker to learn more about our candidates and the election, and to cast your vote! The future is in your hands! Meanwhile, at the heart of the Pact Worlds system, a call goes out for freelance problem solvers! Domaaz Manhala, youngest student ever to attend Solar University, is determined to earn the respect of their peers by performing a grand experiment in the quad. Unfortunately, they’ve been unable to find the time to collect a few key components! It’s up to you to travel the Burning Archipelago to collect the missing components and assist Domaaz with their explosive experiment! Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions is a short adventure for 4th-level characters written by Joel Southall. Take care, Starfinders! Jessica Catalan Starfinder Society Developer Illustration by Felipe Carneiro Welcome, Pathfinders! This month we see the release of our new season, the Year of Unfettered Exploration! Because no year could ever begin without a bang, we start in the Grand Lodge in Absalom, celebrating a monumental victory and the new allies that were gathered during our recent adventures! The Pathfinders are tasked with entertaining one of the new venture-captains, Taiwalei, and escorting him through a small tour of the Maze of the Open Road. However, missions are never as simple as they seem, and it appears some of the Elemental Planes ripped through into the Maze, bringing new faces, new challenges, and a whale shark of a time! Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Sen H.H.S. Left to right illustrations by Riley Spalding and Bruno Cesar Also this month, we’re heading back to the Blackwood Swamp to check in on the Azlanti dig site and the nearby Tskikha iruxi enclave from our two PFS intro scenarios, Pathfinder Society Scenario Intro #1: The Second Confirmation and Pathfinder Society Scenario Intro #2: United in Purpose. It’s become a bit of a training ground for initiate Pathfinders, as most of the dangers were cleared out years ago along with the most important finds. The main issue is that it’s been weeks since anyone has heard from either the Tskikha or the initiates, and Lolly Adafish, the newly-promoted venture-captain, is beside herself with worry. It's up to you and your fellow Pathfinders to rectify this situation. As you learn what has become of the missing Pathfinders and iruxi, you’ll be faced with elemental magic gone out of control, and the choices you make will determine if everyone can make it back from wherever they are alive, including a certain young kobold who has been occasionally finding a place in this very blog over the past several months. Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost is an adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Alison Cybe. That’s all for now, Pathfinders! Remember: Explore, Report, Cooperate! Josh Foster Pathfinder Society Developer Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews
Thursday, August 24, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
Breaking news!First Seeker Ehu Hadif soon to retire! Four engaging candidates rise from the Society’s rank and file, gaining the respect and support of their fellow Starfinders! Which of these four First Seeker hopefuls has what it takes to lead the Starfinder Society into the uncertain future? The choice is yours! The time to vote is now!
Meet the candidates for the 2023 First Seeker Election in Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seeker, a repeatable adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by our very own Alex Speidel! This is your chance to personally meet and engage with our four candidates for First Seeker, perform a mission for each, and get a taste of where they plan to lead the Starfinder Society in the future. After you’ve played the adventure, visit paizo.com/firstseeker to learn more about our candidates and the election, and to cast your vote!
The future is in your hands!
Meanwhile, at the heart of the Pact Worlds system, a call goes out for freelance problem solvers! Domaaz Manhala, youngest student ever to attend Solar University, is determined to earn the respect of their peers by performing a grand experiment in the quad. Unfortunately, they’ve been unable to find the time to collect a few key components! It’s up to you to travel the Burning Archipelago to collect the missing components and assist Domaaz with their explosive experiment!
Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions is a short adventure for 4th-level characters written by Joel Southall.
Take care, Starfinders!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Welcome, Pathfinders!
This month we see the release of our new season, the Year of Unfettered Exploration!Because no year could ever begin without a bang, we start in the Grand Lodge in Absalom, celebrating a monumental victory and the new allies that were gathered during our recent adventures! The Pathfinders are tasked with entertaining one of the new venture-captains, Taiwalei, and escorting him through a small tour of the Maze of the Open Road. However, missions are never as simple as they seem, and it appears some of the Elemental Planes ripped through into the Maze, bringing new faces, new challenges, and a whale shark of a time!
Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Sen H.H.S.
Also this month, we’re heading back to the Blackwood Swamp to check in on the Azlanti dig site and the nearby Tskikha iruxi enclave from our two PFS intro scenarios, Pathfinder Society Scenario Intro #1: The Second Confirmation and Pathfinder Society Scenario Intro #2: United in Purpose. It’s become a bit of a training ground for initiate Pathfinders, as most of the dangers were cleared out years ago along with the most important finds. The main issue is that it’s been weeks since anyone has heard from either the Tskikha or the initiates, and Lolly Adafish, the newly-promoted venture-captain, is beside herself with worry.
It's up to you and your fellow Pathfinders to rectify this situation. As you learn what has become of the missing Pathfinders and iruxi, you’ll be faced with elemental magic gone out of control, and the choices you make will determine if everyone can make it back from wherever they are alive, including a certain young kobold who has been occasionally finding a place in this very blog over the past several months.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost is an adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Alison Cybe.
That’s all for now, Pathfinders! Remember: Explore, Report, Cooperate!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidx?Pathfinder-Infinite-July-in-Review Pathfinder Infinite: July in Review 2023-08-23T15:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-23T15:00:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Infinite: July in Review Wednesday, August 23, 2023 Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers! July’s Top Performers Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all! Abomination Vaults GMs Guide• The Abomination Vaults Adventure Path is an extensive campaign in a sprawling megadungeon. Your players need the right tools to navigate its dangers, and you need the tools in this GM’s Guide to keep the action moving! Inside, you’ll find new mini adventures that connect to the dungeon, new wandering factions, a checklist of all the side quests the campaign offers, and full stat blocks for every single monster you can find on each of the dungeon’s ten levels! Age of Ashes Vol. 1 – The Council’s Chosen Torra is the dwarven daughter of a Breachill town official, yearning for the sort of adventure she has only found in books. Against her father’s wishes, she has chosen to participate in the monthly “Call for Heroes,” a gathering for adventurers who will tackle Breachill’s most unusual and dangerous problems. No sooner has The Call begun than Torra is thrust into peril with three unlikely companions: Sedio, a surly strongman; Antara, a half-elven swashbuckler from a distant land; and Bellis, an enigmatic halfling sorcerer. Will the four of them survive their first adventure together, much less unravel the dark mystery that awaits them within the ruined keep outside of town? This 107-page document is a novelization of a party’s adventure through Pathfinder Adventure Path #145: Hellknight Hill (Age of Ashes 1 of 6). Cooking Unleashed• Across Golarion, various delicious cuisines and meals are made every day by chefs from different cultures and backgrounds. Some alchemists dedicate themselves to mixing the art of alchemy with the culinary arts to create delicious and potent treats! Divinity Unbound: Paths of Faith From virtuous knights of Iomedae to mysterious mages of Nethys and sinister agents of Asmodeous whispering from the shadows, Paths of Faith is the first book in the Divinity Unbound line: a series of releases allowing you to fully embrace the worship of divine beings in your own games. Everything Shields• Do you want to play a swashbuckling, targe-wielding duelist whose shield can exude darkness on command when you get in a pinch? How about a witch who has etched a hex onto the face of their shield to make enemies falter when they attack? All these things and many more are possible with the additional shield content brought to you by Everything Shields. Kitsune of Golarion• Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. This supplement expands the work presented in the Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide and is penned by some of the same authors who pen the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Queerfinder Issue 1: Bars of Absalom• Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! This issue features NPCs, locations, adventures, and more that center queer stories. Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions• Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more! Smoke and Sail: a Pathfinder 2e Naval Warfare Sourcebook Few environments conjure feelings of excitement and trepidation more acutely than the ocean, with its endless rhythm of churning waves and all its possibilities for adventure. Tenacious crews sailing ships of all sizes make perilous journeys across the majestic vastness that stretches from horizon to horizon, certain that their vessel will carry them to shore under any sky and over any sea. This sourcebook provides a comprehensive ruleset for running such a vessel and engaging in thrilling, ship-based combat encounters. Temptations: Trade Your Soul for Power Temptations is a subsystem that provides powerful abilities to characters who are willing to risk their reputations, bodies, and even their souls in exchange for power. When a mage forges a contract with a devil, a rogue bonds with a dark artifact, or a noble takes advice from a sinister advisor, they encounter temptation: the balance between what power a person might gain and what they give up in the process. This subsystem, based on the subsystems presented in the Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide, models this slow but insidious battle of wills for heroes who dabble in the dark and otherworldly. New from Infinite Masters! With the release of Pathfinder: Rage of Elements, our Infinite Masters have cooked up some phenomenal companion supplements! Take a look at these new or upcoming products from our Infinite Masters! All Things Balanced: Mastering the Elements by Kevin Glusing. A collection of new feats, archetypes, impulses, and more to expand your control of the elements. Wisdom of Elements by Andrew D. Geels. Elemental class options for bard, druid, oracle, ranger, witch, and wizard, as well as new class feats and focus spells. Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Pathfinder Infinite: July in Review
Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Welcome back to another exciting collection of Pathfinder Infinite & Starfinder Infinite Top Performers!
July’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a best-seller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
The Abomination Vaults Adventure Path is an extensive campaign in a sprawling megadungeon. Your players need the right tools to navigate its dangers, and you need the tools in this GM’s Guide to keep the action moving!
Inside, you’ll find new mini adventures that connect to the dungeon, new wandering factions, a checklist of all the side quests the campaign offers, and full stat blocks for every single monster you can find on each of the dungeon’s ten levels!
Age of Ashes Vol. 1 – The Council’s Chosen
Torra is the dwarven daughter of a Breachill town official, yearning for the sort of adventure she has only found in books. Against her father’s wishes, she has chosen to participate in the monthly “Call for Heroes,” a gathering for adventurers who will tackle Breachill’s most unusual and dangerous problems. No sooner has The Call begun than Torra is thrust into peril with three unlikely companions: Sedio, a surly strongman; Antara, a half-elven swashbuckler from a distant land; and Bellis, an enigmatic halfling sorcerer. Will the four of them survive their first adventure together, much less unravel the dark mystery that awaits them within the ruined keep outside of town?
This 107-page document is a novelization of a party’s adventure through Pathfinder Adventure Path #145: Hellknight Hill (Age of Ashes 1 of 6).
Across Golarion, various delicious cuisines and meals are made every day by chefs from different cultures and backgrounds. Some alchemists dedicate themselves to mixing the art of alchemy with the culinary arts to create delicious and potent treats!
Divinity Unbound: Paths of Faith
From virtuous knights of Iomedae to mysterious mages of Nethys and sinister agents of Asmodeous whispering from the shadows, Paths of Faith is the first book in the Divinity Unbound line: a series of releases allowing you to fully embrace the worship of divine beings in your own games.
Do you want to play a swashbuckling, targe-wielding duelist whose shield can exude darkness on command when you get in a pinch? How about a witch who has etched a hex onto the face of their shield to make enemies falter when they attack? All these things and many more are possible with the additional shield content brought to you by Everything Shields.
Living clandestinely among Golarion's ancestries, kitsune make formidable foes and canny heroes. Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of this ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe. This supplement expands the work presented in the Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide and is penned by some of the same authors who pen the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
Queerfinder Issue 1: Bars of Absalom•
Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! This issue features NPCs, locations, adventures, and more that center queer stories.
Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions•
Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies that’s focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more!
Smoke and Sail: a Pathfinder 2e Naval Warfare Sourcebook
Few environments conjure feelings of excitement and trepidation more acutely than the ocean, with its endless rhythm of churning waves and all its possibilities for adventure. Tenacious crews sailing ships of all sizes make perilous journeys across the majestic vastness that stretches from horizon to horizon, certain that their vessel will carry them to shore under any sky and over any sea.
This sourcebook provides a comprehensive ruleset for running such a vessel and engaging in thrilling, ship-based combat encounters.
Temptations: Trade Your Soul for Power
Temptations is a subsystem that provides powerful abilities to characters who are willing to risk their reputations, bodies, and even their souls in exchange for power. When a mage forges a contract with a devil, a rogue bonds with a dark artifact, or a noble takes advice from a sinister advisor, they encounter temptation: the balance between what power a person might gain and what they give up in the process. This subsystem, based on the subsystems presented in the Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide, models this slow but insidious battle of wills for heroes who dabble in the dark and otherworldly.
New from Infinite Masters!
With the release of Pathfinder: Rage of Elements, our Infinite Masters have cooked up some phenomenal companion supplements! Take a look at these new or upcoming products from our Infinite Masters!
- All Things Balanced: Mastering the Elements by Kevin Glusing. A collection of new feats, archetypes, impulses, and more to expand your control of the elements.
- Wisdom of Elements by Andrew D. Geels. Elemental class options for bard, druid, oracle, ranger, witch, and wizard, as well as new class feats and focus spells.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidw?Reports-from-the-Field-Starfinder-Second Reports from the Field: Starfinder Second Edition Playtests 2023-08-22T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-22T13:30:00.000-04:00 Reports from the Field: Starfinder Second Edition Playtests Tuesday, Aug 22nd, 2023 Here’s a look behind the scenes at Paizo’s internal playtests. Welcome to one of our first blogs following up on the recent announcement of Starfinder Second Edition! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Thurston Hillman, the Managing Creative Director for Starfinder. Basically, that means that I guide the creative vision for the Starfinder brand, while also managing the great folks who work on the Starfinder Roleplaying Game. Today, as we continue our open playtest experience, I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at some of the internal playtesting we’ve been doing here at Paizo! Up until this point, the team has been doing some immediate stress tests of new classes under the GMing stewardship of our Director of Game Design, Jason Bulmahn. These involved some themed adventures about a starship that went too cloze to the Horizon of an Event, or a deadly jungle encounter where we learned the creature hunting us could bleed and so we could kill it. The playtests we’re reviewing here take place after those, bypassing some of our rockier initial class design, and instead focused on exploring some other aspects of Starfinder in a new game engine. Playtest #1: Streetsweep Map: Starfinder Flip-Mat: Enormous Battlefield Character Level: 5th Our initial playtests generally took place in confined environments, or locations that forced some tight-quarters gameplay. This was great, because we all know that there’s going to be a ton of adventures happening in cramped starship corridors or on alien worlds with lots of dense foliage. However, those situations are only a small part of the Starfinder experience. One element that I’ve been passionate about—speaking as the developer who proverbially trademarked “1 square = 30 feet” in an adventure I developed for Organized Play—was that we needed to try out some open-area and long-range combats to make sure all these futuristic guns and grenades we’ve been working on were going to be fun and balanced in play. Starring in this playtest: GM: Thurston Hillman (Managing Creative Director for Starfinder) Operative: Jessica Catalan (Starfinder Society Developer) Mystic: Dustin Knight (Starfinder Developer) Soldier: GM NPC played by Thurston Witchwarper: Jenny Jarzabski (Starfinder Senior Developer) For a quick recap of the classes at play here… The operative focuses on using guns and taking an aim action to get extra precision damage. Jessica’s operative for this playtest was built to be a sniper (as opposed to our iconic, who is more focused on using pistols at close range). The mystic class creates a bond with their party members and has a vitality network that allows them to store Hit Points and deliver them to bonded allies with a single action (for those clutch heals). Dustin attempted a test build using the song connection to provide some buffs in addition to healing. The witchwarper class activates a quantum aura, which creates bizarre effects and manipulates nearby space. Jenny’s witchwarper used the precog anomaly to help control the flow of time in and around them (as well as stacking grenades in their cheek pouches). Finally, my soldier was built using a bombard-focused style, packing a stellar cannon and a machine gun to take advantage of being a kasatha and having four arms. For more info on the soldier and how it plays, check out Field Test #1. We got right into the action, with the party confronting a group of Azlanti Star Empire Aeon Guards advancing through the streets of an embattled city. These well-trained troops used an ability called “aeon advance” that allowed them to spend a single action to move and fire their rifles if they ended adjacent to another Azlanti ally. This led to a vicious opening salvo, as the Aeon Guards had some exceptional initiative rolls, and advanced to slam a withering fusillade of fire into the soldier. This also led to the enemies clustering up, which turned out to be pretty useful in testing out how the soldier worked. Once the PCs got to go, the situation quickly changed. Jessica’s operative took their first shot and opened (naturally) with a critical hit. This single shot dealt a whopping 2d12+2d6+1 damage, then doubled, then another 1d12 for the extra fatal damage dice. This dealt in the 40s for damage and immediately popped one of the Aeon Guards down, as they only had 30 Hit Points. This set the tone for the combat as the soldier began unleashing hell with their stellar cannon, dealing regular damage to the clustered Aeon Guards. The mystic provided spot healing through their vitality network, while the witchwarper opted to try out grenades. Right now, the Starfinder team is experimenting with grenades as placed area effects with a limited range and no attack roll that use a character’s Class DC to determine targets’ saves. Our tactics were a success, and it didn’t take long for the players to overcome this Moderate threat encounter. The second encounter of this playtest had the PCs advance further into the city, where they came under fire from additional Aeon Guard ground troops, as well as a pair of Aeon Guard snipers. These snipers held back and used a ported-over version of the “Sentry’s Aim” action found on the Archer Sentry in the Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide, which let them sit back and fire with their long-range weapons and ignore cover on targets—a VERY powerful ability. Currently, the operative’s aim action isn’t quite this good, but NPCs get to cheat every once in a while! What stood out most about this fight was the use of a simple piece of terrain on the map, a downed tree, for cover. Much of the combat saw both sides on opposite ends of a toppled tree stump, each firing at one another and then taking cover for increased AC against return fire. This led to a really fun and cinematic combat, which also forced a “sniper duel” as Jessica’s operative had to battle the two enemy snipers, one of which was almost 200 feet away, so far away they aren’t even visible on the screenshots. This fight had some other interesting mechanics at play. The soldier fired a warning shot prior to the start of combat to suppress one of the Aeon Guards, applying a combat penalty that actually stopped the guards from hitting in the first round, and slowing their advance into cover thanks to the suppressed condition (see Field Test #1 for detailed info on how all this works). Our witchwarper was able to flush the Aeon Guards out of cover, and then the mortal coil, by zipping forward with the help of magic and tossing grenades into them as they clustered for cover behind the tree stump. Meanwhile, the mystic continued to provide healing to everyone through their vitality network, while also tossing out reliable offensive spells like noise blast to help overcome immediate threats. The combat was over in round 5, thanks in part to the precog’s aura giving a speed boost to allies that let them close the gap with the snipers in short order. This was the end of the playtest session. In the team’s debrief we discussed how area weapons were overall way more effective on groups of enemies (big surprise, I know). This had been a sticking point in our prior playtesting where enemies were spread out or we battled single foes where the area damage didn’t make much difference. This really made us think that the soldier might need more abilities to focus on single targets, something we’re already started pondering. It also got us talking about adventure design and including options for encouraging creatures to group up for benefits. The sniper operative was consistent, with strong capabilities of popping lower-level threats through crits and dealing reliable damage with their aimed shots, which made us concerned about the overall damage the class could put out (more on that in our next playtest!). The mystic felt like it was in a good place with how they could provide secondary healing while also actively participating in battle. The witchwarper continues to be one that we fine tune, as its quantum aura ability requires them to stay mobile and play close to enemies to take advantage of some of their unique warp spells and effects. Stay tuned for more behind-the-scenes looks at our playtests, news about our ongoing releases, and discussions about Starfinder Second Edition! Thurston Hillman Managing Creative Director (Starfinder) Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition Reports from the Field: Starfinder Second Edition Playtests
Tuesday, Aug 22nd, 2023
Here’s a look behind the scenes at Paizo’s internal playtests.
Welcome to one of our first blogs following up on the recent announcement of Starfinder Second Edition! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Thurston Hillman, the Managing Creative Director for Starfinder. Basically, that means that I guide the creative vision for the Starfinder brand, while also managing the great folks who work on the Starfinder Roleplaying Game. Today, as we continue our open playtest experience, I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes look at some of the internal playtesting we’ve been doing here at Paizo!
Up until this point, the team has been doing some immediate stress tests of new classes under the GMing stewardship of our Director of Game Design, Jason Bulmahn. These involved some themed adventures about a starship that went too cloze to the Horizon of an Event, or a deadly jungle encounter where we learned the creature hunting us could bleed and so we could kill it. The playtests we’re reviewing here take place after those, bypassing some of our rockier initial class design, and instead focused on exploring some other aspects of Starfinder in a new game engine.
Playtest #1: Streetsweep
Map: Starfinder Flip-Mat: Enormous Battlefield Character Level: 5th
Our initial playtests generally took place in confined environments, or locations that forced some tight-quarters gameplay. This was great, because we all know that there’s going to be a ton of adventures happening in cramped starship corridors or on alien worlds with lots of dense foliage. However, those situations are only a small part of the Starfinder experience. One element that I’ve been passionate about—speaking as the developer who proverbially trademarked “1 square = 30 feet” in an adventure I developed for Organized Play—was that we needed to try out some open-area and long-range combats to make sure all these futuristic guns and grenades we’ve been working on were going to be fun and balanced in play.
Starring in this playtest:
- GM: Thurston Hillman (Managing Creative Director for Starfinder)
- Operative: Jessica Catalan (Starfinder Society Developer)
- Mystic: Dustin Knight (Starfinder Developer)
- Soldier: GM NPC played by Thurston
- Witchwarper: Jenny Jarzabski (Starfinder Senior Developer)
For a quick recap of the classes at play here…
The operative focuses on using guns and taking an aim action to get extra precision damage. Jessica’s operative for this playtest was built to be a sniper (as opposed to our iconic, who is more focused on using pistols at close range).
The mystic class creates a bond with their party members and has a vitality network that allows them to store Hit Points and deliver them to bonded allies with a single action (for those clutch heals). Dustin attempted a test build using the song connection to provide some buffs in addition to healing.
The witchwarper class activates a quantum aura, which creates bizarre effects and manipulates nearby space. Jenny’s witchwarper used the precog anomaly to help control the flow of time in and around them (as well as stacking grenades in their cheek pouches).
Finally, my soldier was built using a bombard-focused style, packing a stellar cannon and a machine gun to take advantage of being a kasatha and having four arms. For more info on the soldier and how it plays, check out Field Test #1.
We got right into the action, with the party confronting a group of Azlanti Star Empire Aeon Guards advancing through the streets of an embattled city. These well-trained troops used an ability called “aeon advance” that allowed them to spend a single action to move and fire their rifles if they ended adjacent to another Azlanti ally. This led to a vicious opening salvo, as the Aeon Guards had some exceptional initiative rolls, and advanced to slam a withering fusillade of fire into the soldier. This also led to the enemies clustering up, which turned out to be pretty useful in testing out how the soldier worked.
Once the PCs got to go, the situation quickly changed. Jessica’s operative took their first shot and opened (naturally) with a critical hit. This single shot dealt a whopping 2d12+2d6+1 damage, then doubled, then another 1d12 for the extra fatal damage dice. This dealt in the 40s for damage and immediately popped one of the Aeon Guards down, as they only had 30 Hit Points.
This set the tone for the combat as the soldier began unleashing hell with their stellar cannon, dealing regular damage to the clustered Aeon Guards. The mystic provided spot healing through their vitality network, while the witchwarper opted to try out grenades. Right now, the Starfinder team is experimenting with grenades as placed area effects with a limited range and no attack roll that use a character’s Class DC to determine targets’ saves. Our tactics were a success, and it didn’t take long for the players to overcome this Moderate threat encounter.
The second encounter of this playtest had the PCs advance further into the city, where they came under fire from additional Aeon Guard ground troops, as well as a pair of Aeon Guard snipers. These snipers held back and used a ported-over version of the “Sentry’s Aim” action found on the Archer Sentry in the Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide, which let them sit back and fire with their long-range weapons and ignore cover on targets—a VERY powerful ability. Currently, the operative’s aim action isn’t quite this good, but NPCs get to cheat every once in a while!
What stood out most about this fight was the use of a simple piece of terrain on the map, a downed tree, for cover. Much of the combat saw both sides on opposite ends of a toppled tree stump, each firing at one another and then taking cover for increased AC against return fire. This led to a really fun and cinematic combat, which also forced a “sniper duel” as Jessica’s operative had to battle the two enemy snipers, one of which was almost 200 feet away, so far away they aren’t even visible on the screenshots.
This fight had some other interesting mechanics at play. The soldier fired a warning shot prior to the start of combat to suppress one of the Aeon Guards, applying a combat penalty that actually stopped the guards from hitting in the first round, and slowing their advance into cover thanks to the suppressed condition (see Field Test #1 for detailed info on how all this works). Our witchwarper was able to flush the Aeon Guards out of cover, and then the mortal coil, by zipping forward with the help of magic and tossing grenades into them as they clustered for cover behind the tree stump. Meanwhile, the mystic continued to provide healing to everyone through their vitality network, while also tossing out reliable offensive spells like noise blast to help overcome immediate threats. The combat was over in round 5, thanks in part to the precog’s aura giving a speed boost to allies that let them close the gap with the snipers in short order.
This was the end of the playtest session. In the team’s debrief we discussed how area weapons were overall way more effective on groups of enemies (big surprise, I know). This had been a sticking point in our prior playtesting where enemies were spread out or we battled single foes where the area damage didn’t make much difference. This really made us think that the soldier might need more abilities to focus on single targets, something we’re already started pondering.
It also got us talking about adventure design and including options for encouraging creatures to group up for benefits. The sniper operative was consistent, with strong capabilities of popping lower-level threats through crits and dealing reliable damage with their aimed shots, which made us concerned about the overall damage the class could put out (more on that in our next playtest!). The mystic felt like it was in a good place with how they could provide secondary healing while also actively participating in battle. The witchwarper continues to be one that we fine tune, as its quantum aura ability requires them to stay mobile and play close to enemies to take advantage of some of their unique warp spells and effects.
Stay tuned for more behind-the-scenes looks at our playtests, news about our ongoing releases, and discussions about Starfinder Second Edition!
Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidv?Meet-the-Authors-Pathfinder-Society-s-Year-of Meet the Authors: Pathfinder Society’s Year of Boundless Wonder 2023-08-17T16:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-17T16:00:00.000-04:00 Meet the Authors: Pathfinder Society’s Year of Boundless Wonder Thursday, August 17, 2023 Hello, players! Like the blog from earlier today, we want to shine the spotlight on the authors who contributed to Year 4 of Pathfinder Society. The Year of Boundless Wonder may be over, but that doesn’t mean these adventures are going anywhere! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric Laboratory Hello everyone! My name is Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) and I wrote Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric Laboratory for the Year of Boundless Wonder. This adventure was truly a joy to write since it was set in one of my favorite regions, Ustalav! Without a doubt, the best part was creating the NPCs, in particular Revecka, and trying to tie some of their stories together. Besides, it is always great when you have a chance to put a few oozes and other mad experiments into an adventure! My somewhat abandoned twitter is @Letterio_DM, where I should definitely be more active. I have worked on Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit History and I have worked on Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, which was an amazing opportunity and a real blast! As usual, I am grateful for the incredible patience and support of the editors, and it was inspiring to see amazing people working together for Pathfinder Howl of the Wild! Alex Speidel (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s Fate Greetings, Pathfinders. The stars are at rest, so I shall spare a moment for you. My scenario was one of the last that Mike Kimmel assigned, and I’d been talking with him for a while about writing the first Crystal Key scenario because I liked the pitch of “we have to stop that weird alien from doing the things to peoples’ brains.” However, I was a little skittish about writing a high-level scenario, so I settled on Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s Fate, where I got to write about a sad automaton who wanted to look at the stars. As my favorite character is a cosmos oracle, I fell in love with Star immediately, and I’m so happy they’re living their best life in Golarion, right Shay? Right? One thing I meant to talk about when the scenario was released was that I used the Deck of Endless NPCs to generate the friends you meet! Brinna, Croll, and Induren were all generated using the cards from the deck before I fleshed them out, which was a fun brainstorming exercise. Rasool was an NPC I loved in Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-21: In Pursuit of Water, one of my sleeper favorite scenarios, so I decided to bring him back, and Darius is a nod to my friends on the Foundry server who insist I promised them a carpenter class at some point. And for those who asked: the “tinker, tailor, soldier, spy” connection? Complete coincidence, honestly. The mind works in strange ways! I do want to give a shoutout to our developers and editors. They’re the best in the business, and they stopped me from doing things like, and this is a direct quote, "creating an influence encounter larger than Bid for Alabastrine’s.” They saved you all, and I’m so grateful. Catch me on Bluesky (@alexspeidel.bsky.social) or Mastodon (alexspeidel@dice.camp) or, y’know, here on the Paizo blog most weeks. Go now, the heavens speak to me once more. Isis Wozniakowska (she/her) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord’s Abode Hey everyone, I’m Isis Wozniakowska (she/her) and for Pathfinder this season, I wrote #4-10 Arclord’s Abode, the ending of the two-part story arc that I luckily got to share with fellow author Michael Bramnik. We put in a lot of work to make sure the two scenarios really felt like they tied into each other without alienating players who were only doing one of the two, and I think we both managed to achieve that in the best way. I love the character of our dear Arclord and how they develop across the two scenarios, and I had so much fun designing a Wizard’s manor gone haywire. Magic shenanigans are one of my favorite fantasy topics, and I put my heart into making this magic as wacky as I could. On a more personal note, this scenario is one that I’m especially proud of looking back on because, while I was unaware at the time of writing it, my health condition was quickly starting to degrade from a condition I have that no one (including myself) realized was flaring back up until a couple months later. So, the fact that I finished it at all is an accomplishment I’m so proud of, and even more so seeing that it came out so well in the end. Organized Play has been a big part of my life since I came back to it as my main social outlet after I had my first hospitalization for this condition four years ago. So having this scenario be part of that ongoing comeback means a lot to me. So, I hope you all enjoy Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10 Arclord’s Abode! Art by Beto Lima Jacob W. Michaels (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle Hi everyone, I’m Jacob W. Michaels (he/him), the author of Year 4’s Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle. For inspiration, I initially turned to various escape heists in popular culture, but the adventure really came together when I realized I was writing Star Wars (Episode 4: A New Hope). You’re Obi-Wan disabling a “tractor beam,” and Luke, Han, and Chewie are rescuing Leia, and it fit perfectly (though Bremix is no Princess Leia, even if he would probably insult certain PCs’ height). There are a few things I love about this adventure: I got to play with a couple of possible endings, where the climactic final fight depends on how you deal with challenges throughout the scenario. There are also a bunch of callbacks to first edition run-ins with Aslynn for longtime PFS players to find. (I’ve loved reactions when PFS veterans hear Thurl’s name!) My absolute favorite, though, is the moment players realize they’re 100% going to steal the Gale’s Claw. Those are the great moments you tell fellow gamers about and keep as a story for your PC. This is my fourth adventure for Paizo, and I’m looking forward to No. 5. Thanks to everyone who lets me write them; the other amazing people who make them all come together—editing, fantastic art, layout, and everything else; and thank you for playing and having fun with them! Matt Duval (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-14: Shattering Golden Chains Hello! I was privileged to have Shay invite me to follow up on the fantastic fun of Letterio Mammoliti and Solomon St. John from Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-08: Foundation’s Price and Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-12: Fury’s Toll,respectively, and continue the adventures of the new Sedeq Lodge. With the conflict with Fasiel ibn Sazadin coming to a head, I wanted to build on the groundwork laid in those prior adventures with Safa’s backstory and bring out Fasiel’s charming personality so players would be chomping for a chance to get a piece of him. It was also an opportunity to touch on the importance of properly wording wishes, which has been an ongoing problem for Fasiel since he was first introduced in Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-16: Freedom for Wishes. All the fun of diabolic contracts with a hefty topping of mischief. There’s a little twist in the final encounter that I won’t spoil, but the player reaction to it is always delightful when I’ve run the scenario. The PCs have a lot of latitude on how to approach all the encounters, and it’s been great seeing what creative ideas players come up with. I can’t wait to see where Safa’s adventures take the Pathfinders next! I can be found on Twitter @sleepyfelix. John Curtin (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War Hi, my name is John Curtin (he/him) and I had the profound honor of being asked to write Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War. Having a decade of experience working in schools and a long-seated love of mythology and folk tales, I loved being able to weave these parts of my life into my first Pathfinder Second Edition adventure, and the fact that I got to bring so much of my absurd sense of humor to bear was the cherry on top! My favorite part of this adventure was how silly I got to be. There are so many opportunities for chaotic fun when you’re writing fey shenanigans, and I really pushed myself to imagine what magical pranks could be and how they can get even wilder when fairy magic gets involved. I was also thrilled to return to Dacilane Academy and revisit the students and school—I hid plenty of references to the past adventures for the studious GM and Organized Players to uncover. I hope this adventure brings lots of laughs, and I can’t wait to hear the table stories that it spawns. Here at Paizo, I’ve got more Starfinder credits upcoming; you can read my words in the upcoming Starfinder Enhanced, and in true freelancer fashion, the projects I’m most excited to tell everyone about are still under NDA. To hear about my latest and greatest, you can follow me on Twitter @Curtin_Writes and explore the currently inactive @StarfinderFacts, at least until someone gets me a BlueSky invite. Illustration by Nicolas Espinoz Lysle Kapp (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw This past year saw the publication of my first two Starfinder Society adventures and also an adventure that took on a very personal meaning for me, Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw. For this assignment, as I had done for each of the Starfinder adventures, I began by delving deep into the setting’s rich and detailed lore. The Pathfinders were to face a challenging and recurring threat from their past. The PCs were to drive a collective story about bringing a decisive end to one chapter of Society’s history and laying the groundwork for the next. During this writing process, I unexpectedly lost my mother to a stroke. Suddenly, the collective story I was writing for the PCs became my own. Fortunately, like the PCs, I didn’t face the changing chapters alone. My developer, Shay Snow, was incredibly supportive and accommodating. Both old gaming friends and new stepped up to do some playtesting, providing much needed fun and laughter along with suggestions for improving the adventure. With this support and my own memories and losses from which to draw, I set about creating an inspiring adventure filled with numerous callbacks to previous adventures (spanning across two editions!). My hope is that the final adventure honors the work of those who came before me, lays a strong foundation for games to come, and foremost, provides players with hours of fun and excitement! Dennis Muldoon (he/him) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-99: Blessings of the Forest Greetings Pathfinders! My name is Dennis Muldoon (he/him). This year, I was delighted to co-author this year's interactive special, #4-99 Blessings of the Forest with Ivis K. Flanagan. I've long admired Ivis as an author, a GM, and a dedicated Organized Play volunteer (as well as a friend), and it was a privilege to get to work with her on this adventure. I'm really proud of what we came up with, and I hope you all have as much fun playing it as we did writing it. My favorite part was crafting a final confrontation to be compelling and challenging at all levels, including connections between the tiers to tie them together. I look forward to hearing the tales of the brave Pathfinders who take on this assignment! You can find me on Twitter (until Groetus finally comes for it) at @dkmuldoon. Ivis K. Flanagan (she/they) Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-99: Blessings of the Forest One of my favorite things to GM are multi-table specials. The energy that fills a room as everyone interacts with the same story, working towards common goals, is the epitome of what society play means to me. So, when Shay offered me the chance to co-write this year's special alongside veteran author Dennis Muldoon, I jumped at the chance! I was excited to dive into the history of the society and help bring that forward to both new players and longtime veterans. What does it really mean to be a Pathfinder? Why have we stayed out of Kyonin for so long? And why do we want to be here now? These were all questions I explored while weaving my part of the story. In addition to unannounced projects coming up, you can find some of my upcoming Paizo work in Starfinder Enhanced. Outside of here, I am working with some other cool people on an Adventure Path that will take you to the heart of Kong: Skull Island. Check it out on BackerKit if you want more details! When not diving into the depths of esoteric Pathfinder lore, or digging my way through the word mines, I’m disguised as a Gifted Intervention teacher, or running quests for Auryn, my feline who has me wrapped around his paw. Virtually, you can find my list of credits on my Paizo profile, and you can connect with me on Twitter @NorseButterfly, Mastodon @NorthernDreamer@dice.camp, or Bluesky @NorthernDreamer.bsky.social, where I mostly muse about teaching, gaming, and politics. Feel free to reach out, as I am always on the lookout for cool projects and fun conversations! Tags: Authors, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios Meet the Authors: Pathfinder Society’s Year of Boundless Wonder
Thursday, August 17, 2023
Hello, players! Like the blog from earlier today, we want to shine the spotlight on the authors who contributed to Year 4 of Pathfinder Society. The Year of Boundless Wonder may be over, but that doesn’t mean these adventures are going anywhere!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Letterio Mammoliti (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric LaboratoryHello everyone!
My name is Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) and I wrote Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric Laboratory for the Year of Boundless Wonder. This adventure was truly a joy to write since it was set in one of my favorite regions, Ustalav! Without a doubt, the best part was creating the NPCs, in particular Revecka, and trying to tie some of their stories together. Besides, it is always great when you have a chance to put a few oozes and other mad experiments into an adventure!My somewhat abandoned twitter is @Letterio_DM, where I should definitely be more active. I have worked on Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit History and I have worked on Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, which was an amazing opportunity and a real blast!
As usual, I am grateful for the incredible patience and support of the editors, and it was inspiring to see amazing people working together for Pathfinder Howl of the Wild!
Alex Speidel (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s FateGreetings, Pathfinders. The stars are at rest, so I shall spare a moment for you.
My scenario was one of the last that Mike Kimmel assigned, and I’d been talking with him for a while about writing the first Crystal Key scenario because I liked the pitch of “we have to stop that weird alien from doing the things to peoples’ brains.” However, I was a little skittish about writing a high-level scenario, so I settled on Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s Fate, where I got to write about a sad automaton who wanted to look at the stars. As my favorite character is a cosmos oracle, I fell in love with Star immediately, and I’m so happy they’re living their best life in Golarion, right Shay? Right?
One thing I meant to talk about when the scenario was released was that I used the Deck of Endless NPCs to generate the friends you meet! Brinna, Croll, and Induren were all generated using the cards from the deck before I fleshed them out, which was a fun brainstorming exercise. Rasool was an NPC I loved in Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-21: In Pursuit of Water, one of my sleeper favorite scenarios, so I decided to bring him back, and Darius is a nod to my friends on the Foundry server who insist I promised them a carpenter class at some point. And for those who asked: the “tinker, tailor, soldier, spy” connection? Complete coincidence, honestly. The mind works in strange ways!
I do want to give a shoutout to our developers and editors. They’re the best in the business, and they stopped me from doing things like, and this is a direct quote, "creating an influence encounter larger than Bid for Alabastrine’s.” They saved you all, and I’m so grateful.
Catch me on Bluesky (@alexspeidel.bsky.social) or Mastodon (alexspeidel@dice.camp) or, y’know, here on the Paizo blog most weeks. Go now, the heavens speak to me once more.
Isis Wozniakowska (she/her)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord’s AbodeHey everyone, I’m Isis Wozniakowska (she/her) and for Pathfinder this season, I wrote #4-10 Arclord’s Abode, the ending of the two-part story arc that I luckily got to share with fellow author Michael Bramnik. We put in a lot of work to make sure the two scenarios really felt like they tied into each other without alienating players who were only doing one of the two, and I think we both managed to achieve that in the best way. I love the character of our dear Arclord and how they develop across the two scenarios, and I had so much fun designing a Wizard’s manor gone haywire. Magic shenanigans are one of my favorite fantasy topics, and I put my heart into making this magic as wacky as I could.
On a more personal note, this scenario is one that I’m especially proud of looking back on because, while I was unaware at the time of writing it, my health condition was quickly starting to degrade from a condition I have that no one (including myself) realized was flaring back up until a couple months later. So, the fact that I finished it at all is an accomplishment I’m so proud of, and even more so seeing that it came out so well in the end. Organized Play has been a big part of my life since I came back to it as my main social outlet after I had my first hospitalization for this condition four years ago. So having this scenario be part of that ongoing comeback means a lot to me. So, I hope you all enjoy Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10 Arclord’s Abode!
Jacob W. Michaels (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric CastleHi everyone, I’m Jacob W. Michaels (he/him), the author of Year 4’s Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle. For inspiration, I initially turned to various escape heists in popular culture, but the adventure really came together when I realized I was writing Star Wars (Episode 4: A New Hope). You’re Obi-Wan disabling a “tractor beam,” and Luke, Han, and Chewie are rescuing Leia, and it fit perfectly (though Bremix is no Princess Leia, even if he would probably insult certain PCs’ height).
There are a few things I love about this adventure: I got to play with a couple of possible endings, where the climactic final fight depends on how you deal with challenges throughout the scenario. There are also a bunch of callbacks to first edition run-ins with Aslynn for longtime PFS players to find. (I’ve loved reactions when PFS veterans hear Thurl’s name!) My absolute favorite, though, is the moment players realize they’re 100% going to steal the Gale’s Claw. Those are the great moments you tell fellow gamers about and keep as a story for your PC.
This is my fourth adventure for Paizo, and I’m looking forward to No. 5. Thanks to everyone who lets me write them; the other amazing people who make them all come together—editing, fantastic art, layout, and everything else; and thank you for playing and having fun with them!
Matt Duval (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-14: Shattering Golden ChainsHello! I was privileged to have Shay invite me to follow up on the fantastic fun of Letterio Mammoliti and Solomon St. John from Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-08: Foundation’s Price and Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-12: Fury’s Toll,respectively, and continue the adventures of the new Sedeq Lodge.
With the conflict with Fasiel ibn Sazadin coming to a head, I wanted to build on the groundwork laid in those prior adventures with Safa’s backstory and bring out Fasiel’s charming personality so players would be chomping for a chance to get a piece of him. It was also an opportunity to touch on the importance of properly wording wishes, which has been an ongoing problem for Fasiel since he was first introduced in Pathfinder Society Scenario #2-16: Freedom for Wishes. All the fun of diabolic contracts with a hefty topping of mischief.
There’s a little twist in the final encounter that I won’t spoil, but the player reaction to it is always delightful when I’ve run the scenario. The PCs have a lot of latitude on how to approach all the encounters, and it’s been great seeing what creative ideas players come up with.
I can’t wait to see where Safa’s adventures take the Pathfinders next!
I can be found on Twitter @sleepyfelix.
John Curtin (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank WarHi, my name is John Curtin (he/him) and I had the profound honor of being asked to write Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War. Having a decade of experience working in schools and a long-seated love of mythology and folk tales, I loved being able to weave these parts of my life into my first Pathfinder Second Edition adventure, and the fact that I got to bring so much of my absurd sense of humor to bear was the cherry on top! My favorite part of this adventure was how silly I got to be. There are so many opportunities for chaotic fun when you’re writing fey shenanigans, and I really pushed myself to imagine what magical pranks could be and how they can get even wilder when fairy magic gets involved. I was also thrilled to return to Dacilane Academy and revisit the students and school—I hid plenty of references to the past adventures for the studious GM and Organized Players to uncover. I hope this adventure brings lots of laughs, and I can’t wait to hear the table stories that it spawns. Here at Paizo, I’ve got more Starfinder credits upcoming; you can read my words in the upcoming Starfinder Enhanced, and in true freelancer fashion, the projects I’m most excited to tell everyone about are still under NDA. To hear about my latest and greatest, you can follow me on Twitter @Curtin_Writes and explore the currently inactive @StarfinderFacts, at least until someone gets me a BlueSky invite.
Illustration by Nicolas Espinoz Lysle Kapp (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s ClawThis past year saw the publication of my first two Starfinder Society adventures and also an adventure that took on a very personal meaning for me, Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw. For this assignment, as I had done for each of the Starfinder adventures, I began by delving deep into the setting’s rich and detailed lore. The Pathfinders were to face a challenging and recurring threat from their past. The PCs were to drive a collective story about bringing a decisive end to one chapter of Society’s history and laying the groundwork for the next. During this writing process, I unexpectedly lost my mother to a stroke. Suddenly, the collective story I was writing for the PCs became my own.
Fortunately, like the PCs, I didn’t face the changing chapters alone. My developer, Shay Snow, was incredibly supportive and accommodating. Both old gaming friends and new stepped up to do some playtesting, providing much needed fun and laughter along with suggestions for improving the adventure. With this support and my own memories and losses from which to draw, I set about creating an inspiring adventure filled with numerous callbacks to previous adventures (spanning across two editions!). My hope is that the final adventure honors the work of those who came before me, lays a strong foundation for games to come, and foremost, provides players with hours of fun and excitement!
Dennis Muldoon (he/him)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-99: Blessings of the ForestGreetings Pathfinders! My name is Dennis Muldoon (he/him). This year, I was delighted to co-author this year's interactive special, #4-99 Blessings of the Forest with Ivis K. Flanagan. I've long admired Ivis as an author, a GM, and a dedicated Organized Play volunteer (as well as a friend), and it was a privilege to get to work with her on this adventure. I'm really proud of what we came up with, and I hope you all have as much fun playing it as we did writing it. My favorite part was crafting a final confrontation to be compelling and challenging at all levels, including connections between the tiers to tie them together. I look forward to hearing the tales of the brave Pathfinders who take on this assignment! You can find me on Twitter (until Groetus finally comes for it) at @dkmuldoon.
Ivis K. Flanagan (she/they)
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-99: Blessings of the ForestOne of my favorite things to GM are multi-table specials. The energy that fills a room as everyone interacts with the same story, working towards common goals, is the epitome of what society play means to me. So, when Shay offered me the chance to co-write this year's special alongside veteran author Dennis Muldoon, I jumped at the chance!
I was excited to dive into the history of the society and help bring that forward to both new players and longtime veterans. What does it really mean to be a Pathfinder? Why have we stayed out of Kyonin for so long? And why do we want to be here now? These were all questions I explored while weaving my part of the story.
In addition to unannounced projects coming up, you can find some of my upcoming Paizo work in Starfinder Enhanced. Outside of here, I am working with some other cool people on an Adventure Path that will take you to the heart of Kong: Skull Island. Check it out on BackerKit if you want more details!
When not diving into the depths of esoteric Pathfinder lore, or digging my way through the word mines, I’m disguised as a Gifted Intervention teacher, or running quests for Auryn, my feline who has me wrapped around his paw. Virtually, you can find my list of credits on my Paizo profile, and you can connect with me on Twitter @NorseButterfly, Mastodon @NorthernDreamer@dice.camp, or Bluesky @NorthernDreamer.bsky.social, where I mostly muse about teaching, gaming, and politics. Feel free to reach out, as I am always on the lookout for cool projects and fun conversations!
Tags: Authors, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidu?Meet-the-Authors-Starfinder-Society-s-Year-of Meet the Authors: Starfinder Society’s Year of Redemption’s Rise 2023-08-17T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-17T13:00:00.000-04:00 Meet the Authors: Starfinder Society’s Year of Redemption’s Rise Thursday, August 17, 2023 Greetings, players! In today’s blog we’d like to take a moment to recognize our talented freelance authors who contributed to the most recent slate of Starfinder Society adventures. Some of these authors have been writing for us for years, while others saw their names in print for the very first time! Tune in next week for the Pathfinder Society edition of this blog, and drop your praise for our authors in the comments below! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator Alex Speidel (he/him) Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Redemption’s Rise Hi again, long time no see! I had the distinct honor of writing the Intro to the Year of Redemption’s Rise. As a first Starfinder scenario (indeed, a first, full-length adventure), this was a daunting task, but I’ve never been one to shy away from a challenge. My goal was not only to introduce the three new factions in fun and unique ways, but to give a “day in the life” of a Starfinder at the Lorespire Complex. I’m very pleased with how it turned out! I took inspiration from my time as a camp counselor and tour guide to write Charla’s tour, which was great fun (and apparently accidentally established an author trademark? Stay tuned for Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers to learn what that means). My favorite thing to do when I run this scenario is to pepper in some of my favorite NPCs; players will often encounter Olive and Violet leading Fitch’s children on a heist through the kitchen or see Barsala working away in the research labs. I also got to give Ehu what I referred to as his “Kennedy moment” in the conclusion (we must repair the Society in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy but because they are hard…). You can follow me on Bluesky (@alexspeidel.bsky.social) or Mastodon (alexspeidel@dice.camp), and as mentioned above, my next scenario is another tentpole: Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers, wherein you’ll meet the new First Seeker candidates. I hope you all enjoy it! Illustration by Sebastian Rodriguez Alison Cybe (they/them or she/her) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Combatant’s Concerto: Fugue of the Traitor Hi there friends, I’m Alison Cybe. Pronouns are they/them or she/her. I’m the author of the Starfinder Scenario Fugue of the Traitor. In it, I wanted to mix a classic Agatha Christie style murder-mystery with an exploration into grassroots liberation movements; why groups of people rise to fight for themselves against oppressive cultures. Not a common mix of themes, but I’m a firm believer that the games we play can be about subjects and that entertainment media should always have something to say. I penned the adventure over a year ago now, and I’ve had time to look back on what sections I enjoy the most and what I would change. I think the mystery section is the element that comes across the best, allows the players to get stuck in; but I would have loved it more if I’d have had more time to frame the NPCs and let the characters know them. I sometimes worry that I went overboard on the descriptions of imperialist atrocities, as that is what content warnings are for. This year is my foray into creating adventures for Pathfinder Society, and you can find my adventure, Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost, on sale this month. Inspirations for it include the covers of many prog rock albums. How is that an inspiration? Play it and see! I was also allowed to work in a subplot that’s very important to me... You can find me on twitter @alisoncybe, on facebook as Alison Cybe, and on Discord! Isis Wozniakowska (she/her) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Fragment of the 4th Hey everyone, my name is Isis Wozniakowska (she/her), and I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Fragment of the 4th, one of season 5’s the Drift Crisis themed scenarios for levels 9-12. It was my first major foray into writing something that high of level, though I’ve played through several Starfinder Adventure Paths and tons of scenarios of those levels and love seeing what the game can do up there and what kinds of crazy abilities players can have. My main priority was making sure the scenario really felt like a continuation of so many things the Starfinders have done across the past seasons and make sure that even in times like the Drift Crisis, they have made a good impact on the universe and can keep doing so if they stick to it. I won’t spoil anything that happens, but I’m super proud of the NPCs in it and how they remind us that Starfinder Society Organized Play is a living campaign with continuity. Aside from that I’m also just happy because it’s high level content and truly we all get that great endorphin rush when the numbers go up. Big number go BrrrRRRrrrr! Hilary Moon Murphy (she/her) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Tarnished Legacy: Historia’s Holdout Hello! I'm Hilary Moon Murphy (aka Hmm) a Minneapolis librarian and writer. I am here today to talk about my favorite Starfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Tarnished Legacy: Historia's Holdout. I loved writing this scenario because it is part mystery, part wacky dungeon delve, and all heart. If you haven't played it yet, I hope that it surprises you in the best possible way. One of the challenges that I faced with this scenario is that Historia Prime was a past villain who had so much awful history. Was there anything new that I could reveal about his nefarious deeds, and still keep a light-hearted tone to this adventure? It was an interesting balancing act. (Historia's Holdout is followed by the delightful Starfinder Society Scenario #5-08 Tarnished Legacy: Star Sugar Superstar!!! written by the very talented Emily Parks, but each part of this two-part mini-arc is a complete story in itself.) If you are looking for more of my work, I am very excited for the upcoming Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist, a mystery that will offer the famous Sheila and Canayven Heidmarch their first appearances in a PF2 Scenario. Illustration by Allan Santos da Silva Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit History Howdy! My name is Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) and I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit History for the Year of Redemption’s Rise. I had incredible fun working on this adventure even though it meant showcasing some Starfinders in a less than positive light. I got to include an arrogant espraksa, create a gang of thugs, and two dedicated archaeologists, which is always great! It is hard to say which part was my favorite. I loved making the day of Dig Boss Hartek a truly miserable one (even before the Starfinders showed up) and I enjoyed describing the Vartaikam Bazaar and the Firewings’ operation. My twitter is @Letterio_DM, although I am rarely active there. I have also worked on Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric Laboratory. I am glad I was given the chance to work on a Starfinder adventure, especially considering the incredible work that everyone has been doing on this amazing game. Matt Duval (he/him) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-10: Shadow of the Vault Lord You Starfinders wish to know the secrets of the Vault Lord? You are braver or more foolish than most! We shall indulge your curiosity before you are scattered to dust. The tales of Salvation’s End are not dissimilar from the speculative works of your primitive entertainments, with the cursed Guiding Intelligence treating test subjects like characters from your Outer Limits or Twilight Zone. But we have transcended such simple games and prefer the more exciting adventures like your Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, watching the futile efforts of these heroes as they clash against ultimate powers like ourselves. We have always stopped watching once they find themselves in a certainly lethal trap, assured of their ultimate demise. Our most recent target vault for conquest is an advanced center of work, entertainment and learning, an Experiential Proper Center Of Testing. With the inhabitants there under our power, the domination of this station will soon be at hand! Then we shall delight in your fellow Starfinders’ pleas for mercy before delivering the final crushing blow. Our messenger can be found on Twitter @sleepyfelix. We thank Jessica Catalan for her good service in continuing these transmissions. Now, farewell, Starfinders. We leave you to your certain demise with only this inoperable starship and spare parts to keep you company before oblivion. ...They escaped?! Impossible! Next time, Starfinders! Next time! Dennis Muldoon (he/him) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten Hello Starfinders! My name is Dennis Muldoon (he/him). I was delighted to co-write Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten with my wife, Kate Baker. I really enjoyed working on this scenario, particularly working with Kate to make sure that all the clues were consistent with the true nature of the situation the PCs find themselves in, while avoiding being so obvious they give away the secret. I'm really proud of where this one ended up, and I hope you enjoy! You can find me on Twitter @dkmuldoon (at least until Triune finally decides it's a bad idea and shuts it down). For more of my recent Starfinder work, check out my article on Gaskari in StarfinderPorts of Call, and my volume in the upcoming Mechaggedon! adventure path, due some time in 2024! Illustration by Tom Ventre Rigby Bendele (they/them) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Beta Test My first credit freelancing with Paizo was Starfinder Society #2-03: The Withering World. Getting to write for Starfinder Society is always a treat. Since the games are single sessions, it forces me to have a focus on each part working just right. However, they're also part of a larger world, so I can dig into aspects of the setting that I want to explore. For Starfinder Society #5-15: Beta Test, I got to do both of these. While it's designed as a Starfinder Society adventure, it's great for anyone looking for a single session in the level 11-14 range. I'm also excited to have my authorship on a volume of Mechageddon! announced. If you like my design style at all, you should play or run Mechageddon! when it comes out (or before, if you're a precog). It's got everything a person could want, like mechs, kaiju, and - oh no, I'm being pushed off stage so I don't spoil the ending! Well, I guess you'll have to play it to find out. Chris Wasko (he/him) Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch a King Hi! I'm Chris Wasko (he/him), and I've written a few Paizo adventures, most recently Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch a King. The outline for this scenario was one of the most detailed I've received, with multiple set pieces, plot developments, and requests for fully-fleshed NPCs with distinct personalities and motivations. I leaned on some ideas from my very first scenario—Pathfinder Society Scenario #7-18: Faithless and Forgotten, Part 3: The Infernal Inheritance—to realize the scenario's central setting, creating a dynamic playground for PCs to explore. I particularly enjoyed writing the more antagonistic "Starfinders," figuring out their tics and how PCs could understand and manipulate them without open conflict. I'm excited for some more of my work to emerge in the upcoming Mechageddon! adventure, as well as to see some of my favorite scenarios being revamped in the Scoured Stars adventure path! Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Meet the Authors: Starfinder Society’s Year of Redemption’s Rise
Thursday, August 17, 2023
Greetings, players! In today’s blog we’d like to take a moment to recognize our talented freelance authors who contributed to the most recent slate of Starfinder Society adventures. Some of these authors have been writing for us for years, while others saw their names in print for the very first time!
Tune in next week for the Pathfinder Society edition of this blog, and drop your praise for our authors in the comments below!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Alex Speidel (he/him)
Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Redemption’s RiseHi again, long time no see! I had the distinct honor of writing the Intro to the Year of Redemption’s Rise. As a first Starfinder scenario (indeed, a first, full-length adventure), this was a daunting task, but I’ve never been one to shy away from a challenge.
My goal was not only to introduce the three new factions in fun and unique ways, but to give a “day in the life” of a Starfinder at the Lorespire Complex. I’m very pleased with how it turned out! I took inspiration from my time as a camp counselor and tour guide to write Charla’s tour, which was great fun (and apparently accidentally established an author trademark? Stay tuned for Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers to learn what that means). My favorite thing to do when I run this scenario is to pepper in some of my favorite NPCs; players will often encounter Olive and Violet leading Fitch’s children on a heist through the kitchen or see Barsala working away in the research labs. I also got to give Ehu what I referred to as his “Kennedy moment” in the conclusion (we must repair the Society in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy but because they are hard…).
You can follow me on Bluesky (@alexspeidel.bsky.social) or Mastodon (alexspeidel@dice.camp), and as mentioned above, my next scenario is another tentpole: Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers, wherein you’ll meet the new First Seeker candidates. I hope you all enjoy it!
Illustration by Sebastian Rodriguez Alison Cybe (they/them or she/her)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Combatant’s Concerto: Fugue of the TraitorHi there friends, I’m Alison Cybe. Pronouns are they/them or she/her. I’m the author of the Starfinder Scenario Fugue of the Traitor.
In it, I wanted to mix a classic Agatha Christie style murder-mystery with an exploration into grassroots liberation movements; why groups of people rise to fight for themselves against oppressive cultures. Not a common mix of themes, but I’m a firm believer that the games we play can be about subjects and that entertainment media should always have something to say.
I penned the adventure over a year ago now, and I’ve had time to look back on what sections I enjoy the most and what I would change. I think the mystery section is the element that comes across the best, allows the players to get stuck in; but I would have loved it more if I’d have had more time to frame the NPCs and let the characters know them. I sometimes worry that I went overboard on the descriptions of imperialist atrocities, as that is what content warnings are for.
This year is my foray into creating adventures for Pathfinder Society, and you can find my adventure, Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost, on sale this month. Inspirations for it include the covers of many prog rock albums. How is that an inspiration? Play it and see! I was also allowed to work in a subplot that’s very important to me...
You can find me on twitter @alisoncybe, on facebook as Alison Cybe, and on Discord!
Isis Wozniakowska (she/her)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Fragment of the 4thHey everyone, my name is Isis Wozniakowska (she/her), and I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #5-04: Fragment of the 4th, one of season 5’s the Drift Crisis themed scenarios for levels 9-12. It was my first major foray into writing something that high of level, though I’ve played through several Starfinder Adventure Paths and tons of scenarios of those levels and love seeing what the game can do up there and what kinds of crazy abilities players can have. My main priority was making sure the scenario really felt like a continuation of so many things the Starfinders have done across the past seasons and make sure that even in times like the Drift Crisis, they have made a good impact on the universe and can keep doing so if they stick to it. I won’t spoil anything that happens, but I’m super proud of the NPCs in it and how they remind us that Starfinder Society Organized Play is a living campaign with continuity. Aside from that I’m also just happy because it’s high level content and truly we all get that great endorphin rush when the numbers go up. Big number go BrrrRRRrrrr!
Hilary Moon Murphy (she/her)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Tarnished Legacy: Historia’s HoldoutHello! I'm Hilary Moon Murphy (aka Hmm) a Minneapolis librarian and writer. I am here today to talk about my favorite Starfinder Society Scenario #5-06: Tarnished Legacy: Historia's Holdout. I loved writing this scenario because it is part mystery, part wacky dungeon delve, and all heart. If you haven't played it yet, I hope that it surprises you in the best possible way.
One of the challenges that I faced with this scenario is that Historia Prime was a past villain who had so much awful history. Was there anything new that I could reveal about his nefarious deeds, and still keep a light-hearted tone to this adventure? It was an interesting balancing act.
(Historia's Holdout is followed by the delightful Starfinder Society Scenario #5-08 Tarnished Legacy: Star Sugar Superstar!!! written by the very talented Emily Parks, but each part of this two-part mini-arc is a complete story in itself.)
If you are looking for more of my work, I am very excited for the upcoming Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-03: Heidmarch Heist, a mystery that will offer the famous Sheila and Canayven Heidmarch their first appearances in a PF2 Scenario.
Illustration by Allan Santos da Silva Letterio Mammoliti (he/him)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit HistoryHowdy!
My name is Letterio Mammoliti (he/him) and I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #5-09: Counterfeit History for the Year of Redemption’s Rise. I had incredible fun working on this adventure even though it meant showcasing some Starfinders in a less than positive light. I got to include an arrogant espraksa, create a gang of thugs, and two dedicated archaeologists, which is always great!It is hard to say which part was my favorite. I loved making the day of Dig Boss Hartek a truly miserable one (even before the Starfinders showed up) and I enjoyed describing the Vartaikam Bazaar and the Firewings’ operation.
My twitter is @Letterio_DM, although I am rarely active there. I have also worked on Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-06: Signal from the Electric Laboratory.
I am glad I was given the chance to work on a Starfinder adventure, especially considering the incredible work that everyone has been doing on this amazing game.
Matt Duval (he/him)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-10: Shadow of the Vault LordYou Starfinders wish to know the secrets of the Vault Lord? You are braver or more foolish than most! We shall indulge your curiosity before you are scattered to dust.
The tales of Salvation’s End are not dissimilar from the speculative works of your primitive entertainments, with the cursed Guiding Intelligence treating test subjects like characters from your Outer Limits or Twilight Zone. But we have transcended such simple games and prefer the more exciting adventures like your Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, watching the futile efforts of these heroes as they clash against ultimate powers like ourselves. We have always stopped watching once they find themselves in a certainly lethal trap, assured of their ultimate demise.
Our most recent target vault for conquest is an advanced center of work, entertainment and learning, an Experiential Proper Center Of Testing. With the inhabitants there under our power, the domination of this station will soon be at hand! Then we shall delight in your fellow Starfinders’ pleas for mercy before delivering the final crushing blow.
Our messenger can be found on Twitter @sleepyfelix. We thank Jessica Catalan for her good service in continuing these transmissions.
Now, farewell, Starfinders. We leave you to your certain demise with only this inoperable starship and spare parts to keep you company before oblivion.
...They escaped?! Impossible! Next time, Starfinders! Next time!
Dennis Muldoon (he/him)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the ForgottenHello Starfinders! My name is Dennis Muldoon (he/him). I was delighted to co-write Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten with my wife, Kate Baker. I really enjoyed working on this scenario, particularly working with Kate to make sure that all the clues were consistent with the true nature of the situation the PCs find themselves in, while avoiding being so obvious they give away the secret. I'm really proud of where this one ended up, and I hope you enjoy! You can find me on Twitter @dkmuldoon (at least until Triune finally decides it's a bad idea and shuts it down). For more of my recent Starfinder work, check out my article on Gaskari in StarfinderPorts of Call, and my volume in the upcoming Mechaggedon! adventure path, due some time in 2024!
Illustration by Tom Ventre Rigby Bendele (they/them)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Beta TestMy first credit freelancing with Paizo was Starfinder Society #2-03: The Withering World. Getting to write for Starfinder Society is always a treat. Since the games are single sessions, it forces me to have a focus on each part working just right. However, they're also part of a larger world, so I can dig into aspects of the setting that I want to explore. For Starfinder Society #5-15: Beta Test, I got to do both of these. While it's designed as a Starfinder Society adventure, it's great for anyone looking for a single session in the level 11-14 range.
I'm also excited to have my authorship on a volume of Mechageddon! announced. If you like my design style at all, you should play or run Mechageddon! when it comes out (or before, if you're a precog). It's got everything a person could want, like mechs, kaiju, and - oh no, I'm being pushed off stage so I don't spoil the ending! Well, I guess you'll have to play it to find out.
Chris Wasko (he/him)
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch a KingHi! I'm Chris Wasko (he/him), and I've written a few Paizo adventures, most recently Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch a King. The outline for this scenario was one of the most detailed I've received, with multiple set pieces, plot developments, and requests for fully-fleshed NPCs with distinct personalities and motivations. I leaned on some ideas from my very first scenario—Pathfinder Society Scenario #7-18: Faithless and Forgotten, Part 3: The Infernal Inheritance—to realize the scenario's central setting, creating a dynamic playground for PCs to explore. I particularly enjoyed writing the more antagonistic "Starfinders," figuring out their tics and how PCs could understand and manipulate them without open conflict. I'm excited for some more of my work to emerge in the upcoming Mechageddon! adventure, as well as to see some of my favorite scenarios being revamped in the Scoured Stars adventure path!
Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidt?Become-a-Pathfinder-Lore-Master Become a Pathfinder Lore Master! 2023-08-16T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-16T13:00:00.000-04:00 Become a Pathfinder Lore Master! Wednesday, August 16, 2023 Get ready for an amazing adventure as Pathfinder Lore Masters, the ultimate knowledge and trivia-focused mobile game that explores the rules and lore of the Pathfinder universe, heads your way! With passion and dedication, the Lore Masters team has crafted this game from their love of tabletop RPGs, boasting years of combined experience in game development, roleplaying, and game mastering. "Our excitement knows no bounds as we eagerly await the moment when every Pathfinder fan can challenge each other's knowledge,” says the Lore Masters team. “The game's progress has been fantastic, and we're proud to share that a demo build is already in Paizo's hands. We're actively working on their feedback and integrating features like user profiles and progression for our release." Immerse yourself in Pathfinder's rich world, challenge fellow fans, and discover new depths of knowledge. The game will feature over 6,500 questions from the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide, and Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Engage in thrilling multiplayer challenges, compete on leaderboards, and choose questions from five difficulty levels across various categories. Mark Moreland, Paizo's Director of Brand Strategy, shared his enthusiasm, saying, "We're very excited to bring the world of Golarion to Lore Masters. This engaging trivia game is a great way to immerse players new and old in the lore and rules of Pathfinder.” Pathfinder Lore Masters will be available on both iOS and Android in October 2023, and players can pre-register to download as of today. For more updates and information, visit the Lore Masters website at www.loremasters.com Tags: Community, Pathfinder Become a Pathfinder Lore Master!
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
]]>Get ready for an amazing adventure as Pathfinder Lore Masters, the ultimate knowledge and trivia-focused mobile game that explores the rules and lore of the Pathfinder universe, heads your way!
With passion and dedication, the Lore Masters team has crafted this game from their love of tabletop RPGs, boasting years of combined experience in game development, roleplaying, and game mastering. "Our excitement knows no bounds as we eagerly await the moment when every Pathfinder fan can challenge each other's knowledge,” says the Lore Masters team. “The game's progress has been fantastic, and we're proud to share that a demo build is already in Paizo's hands. We're actively working on their feedback and integrating features like user profiles and progression for our release."
Immerse yourself in Pathfinder's rich world, challenge fellow fans, and discover new depths of knowledge. The game will feature over 6,500 questions from the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide, and Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Engage in thrilling multiplayer challenges, compete on leaderboards, and choose questions from five difficulty levels across various categories.
Mark Moreland, Paizo's Director of Brand Strategy, shared his enthusiasm, saying, "We're very excited to bring the world of Golarion to Lore Masters. This engaging trivia game is a great way to immerse players new and old in the lore and rules of Pathfinder.”
Pathfinder Lore Masters will be available on both iOS and Android in October 2023, and players can pre-register to download as of today.
For more updates and information, visit the Lore Masters website at www.loremasters.com
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sids?Digging-Up-Some-Highhelm-Authors Digging Up Some Highhelm Authors! 2023-08-15T16:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-15T16:00:00.000-04:00 Digging Up Some Highhelm Authors! Tuesday, August 15, 2023 Though Lost Omens Highhelm has been out for some time now, we wanted to take one last look at the book and the authors who made it possible. Dwarves are known for their fine crafts and the work these authors put into Highhelm would make any dwarf proud to display this book next to their finest blades and armor. As these authors share a bit about them and their work, consider letting them know if you like their work in the comments or following them on social media! Luis LozaCreative Director Art by Mirco Paganessi Caryn DiMarco Hello, my name is Caryn DiMarco and I was thrilled to contribute The Depths section of Lost Omens: Highhelm. I had a lot of fun thinking about the different countercultural elements that might bubble up in a less-structured part of the city and how they would interact with the dominant customs that shape the rest of Highhelm. If your PCs ever venture out of the main city, I hope they take the chance to learn the local legends (and perhaps rescue some local daredevils) at Diomira's Drop, splurge for a snail mucin facial at The Smelted Bank, or perhaps get in on the action at The Fight Pits! Michelle Jones What's up gamers! It's ya girl, Michelle Jones, here once again, back to provide you with the finest player options in all of King's Crown (and the only player options in King's Crown... cause I wrote them all). If you want weapons that literally deal death, then there's no topping Ornmarr's Fell Arms. If you want stealthy, political intrigue, there's plenty for that too. And for the GMs who love to confound and terrify their players, I have created a special gift in the bestiary, known as the Bloodstorm. If you want to keep up with me, you can follow me on twitter @AleshaKills or check out my indie projects at Aleshakills.itch.io Art by Sandra Posada Matt Morris I’m Matt Morris, and I’ve been lucky enough to do freelance writing for Pathfinder and Starfinder for several years now, working with Paizo and a few third-party companies, including Everybody Games and Rogue Genius Games. I was excited to expand on the cultures, subcultures, and countercultures of the great city of Highhelm, as well as to bring the fiery god Angradd into Second Edition. My favorite contribution to the book was the gazetteer of the Five Kings Mountains; it has everything you need for an adventure right outside Highhelm's doors. If you need directions from Fort Dagh to Mount Gustus, I'm your guy! I keep an up-to-date list of my work on my Paizo profile, and I’m always looking for interesting projects, so feel free to contact me if you are looking for a reliable writer! When not writing, I’m teaching high school English near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dave Nelson Dave Nelson is a queer and neurodivergent freelancer who learned way too many facts about goats and mules writing for this book. He also wrote the Stalwart Defender, details on the dwarven pantheon, and the new animal companions. Art by Sandra Posada Mikhail Rekun Приветствую, уважаемые читатели! My name is Mikhail Sergeyevich Rekun, and I’m a Ukrainian-American author and historian. You may know me from prior works such as Dark Archive, Impossible Lands, and The Mwangi Expanse, alongside a couple dozen other Pathfinder works. Here in Highhelm, the section I wrote up was limited to King's Crown. So, if you get yourself eaten by a very charming shadow ooze or caught in a nuclear explosion created by a dwarven apocalypse cult, blame me (I am not sorry). When not working on bringing nukes into Golarion, I'm the Creative Director of the Luminant Age campaign setting, a post-apocalyptic weird fantasy swashbuckler. It also has nukes (we call it the omphalic flame), alongside mecha-cultists, psychic angel-trees, and whatever-it-is a Masqued Strix is. You can find us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/LuminantA (assuming Twitter still exists when this goes up) or check out our published products at https://luminant-age.itch.io! And for a real treat, check out our forthcoming Kickstarter, Paragons of the Luminant Age, a book full of archetypes and NPCs—including the Esseweaver, written by the one and only Mark Seifter! Erin Roberts Hey y’all, I’m Erin Roberts and I had the absolute pleasure of writing the Stonebreach section of Highhelm (including the Stonebreach options). I’ve lived in cities my entire life and getting a chance to give some love and new depth to a fictional city was a real joy. I was especially excited to work on Stonebreach, the most working-class area of Highhelm, and try to capture the hardworking, hard-playing, sometimes hard-up but rarely hardhearted vibe that I envisioned being a part of daily life there. In addition to being a city dweller, I’m a writer of stories and games. I usually have at least two projects going at any one time and was thrilled to be recognized this year as one of the winners of the Diana Jones Awards Emerging Designer program. I have lots of cool stuff coming up, including an article in the final issue of MCDM’s Arcadia (out in late July). To keep up with what I’m up to, visit me at linktr.ee/erinroberts. Art by Sandra Posada Shan Wolf Hi, my name is Shan, and I helped write some of the Dwarven Gods, including one of my favorites: Trudd! I've been writing for Paizo for a bit now, and every project I get on is better and better. I truly hope ya'll enjoy Highhelm because it's an amazing book put together by amazing creators! If you want to learn more about me or my work? I'm at @Fenrirs_Chosen on twitter! And of course, we also want to thank our other authors for their great work on Highhelm! Piper Amatrudi: King’s Heart (page 60), King’s Heart Options (page 72), Defenders of Highhelm (page 106), Highhelm Gear (page 112), Pagulin (page 131) Dan Cascone: History (page 12) Dana Ebert: Notable Figures (page 38), From Dwarven Legends (page 114) Sen H.H.S.: Folgrit (page 119) Stephanie Lundeen: A King’s Wish (page 6), Highhelm Overview (page 8), Gazetteer Introduction (page 44) Liane Merciel: Trade and Industry (page 20), The Clans (page 30) Owen K.C. Stephens: Government, Law, and Crime (page 16) Andrew White: Draangvit (page 118), Magrim (page 122), Graul (page 130) Art by Sammy Khalid Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Digging Up Some Highhelm Authors!
Tuesday, August 15, 2023
Though Lost Omens Highhelm has been out for some time now, we wanted to take one last look at the book and the authors who made it possible. Dwarves are known for their fine crafts and the work these authors put into Highhelm would make any dwarf proud to display this book next to their finest blades and armor. As these authors share a bit about them and their work, consider letting them know if you like their work in the comments or following them on social media!
Luis Loza
Creative DirectorCaryn DiMarco
Hello, my name is Caryn DiMarco and I was thrilled to contribute The Depths section of Lost Omens: Highhelm. I had a lot of fun thinking about the different countercultural elements that might bubble up in a less-structured part of the city and how they would interact with the dominant customs that shape the rest of Highhelm.
If your PCs ever venture out of the main city, I hope they take the chance to learn the local legends (and perhaps rescue some local daredevils) at Diomira's Drop, splurge for a snail mucin facial at The Smelted Bank, or perhaps get in on the action at The Fight Pits!
Michelle Jones
What's up gamers! It's ya girl, Michelle Jones, here once again, back to provide you with the finest player options in all of King's Crown (and the only player options in King's Crown... cause I wrote them all). If you want weapons that literally deal death, then there's no topping Ornmarr's Fell Arms. If you want stealthy, political intrigue, there's plenty for that too. And for the GMs who love to confound and terrify their players, I have created a special gift in the bestiary, known as the Bloodstorm.
If you want to keep up with me, you can follow me on twitter @AleshaKills or check out my indie projects at Aleshakills.itch.io
Art by Sandra Posada Matt Morris
I’m Matt Morris, and I’ve been lucky enough to do freelance writing for Pathfinder and Starfinder for several years now, working with Paizo and a few third-party companies, including Everybody Games and Rogue Genius Games.
I was excited to expand on the cultures, subcultures, and countercultures of the great city of Highhelm, as well as to bring the fiery god Angradd into Second Edition. My favorite contribution to the book was the gazetteer of the Five Kings Mountains; it has everything you need for an adventure right outside Highhelm's doors. If you need directions from Fort Dagh to Mount Gustus, I'm your guy!
I keep an up-to-date list of my work on my Paizo profile, and I’m always looking for interesting projects, so feel free to contact me if you are looking for a reliable writer!
When not writing, I’m teaching high school English near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Dave Nelson
Dave Nelson is a queer and neurodivergent freelancer who learned way too many facts about goats and mules writing for this book. He also wrote the Stalwart Defender, details on the dwarven pantheon, and the new animal companions.
Art by Sandra Posada Mikhail Rekun
Приветствую, уважаемые читатели! My name is Mikhail Sergeyevich Rekun, and I’m a Ukrainian-American author and historian. You may know me from prior works such as Dark Archive, Impossible Lands, and The Mwangi Expanse, alongside a couple dozen other Pathfinder works.
Here in Highhelm, the section I wrote up was limited to King's Crown. So, if you get yourself eaten by a very charming shadow ooze or caught in a nuclear explosion created by a dwarven apocalypse cult, blame me (I am not sorry).
When not working on bringing nukes into Golarion, I'm the Creative Director of the Luminant Age campaign setting, a post-apocalyptic weird fantasy swashbuckler. It also has nukes (we call it the omphalic flame), alongside mecha-cultists, psychic angel-trees, and whatever-it-is a Masqued Strix is. You can find us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/LuminantA (assuming Twitter still exists when this goes up) or check out our published products at https://luminant-age.itch.io! And for a real treat, check out our forthcoming Kickstarter, Paragons of the Luminant Age, a book full of archetypes and NPCs—including the Esseweaver, written by the one and only Mark Seifter!
Erin Roberts
Hey y’all, I’m Erin Roberts and I had the absolute pleasure of writing the Stonebreach section of Highhelm (including the Stonebreach options). I’ve lived in cities my entire life and getting a chance to give some love and new depth to a fictional city was a real joy. I was especially excited to work on Stonebreach, the most working-class area of Highhelm, and try to capture the hardworking, hard-playing, sometimes hard-up but rarely hardhearted vibe that I envisioned being a part of daily life there.
In addition to being a city dweller, I’m a writer of stories and games. I usually have at least two projects going at any one time and was thrilled to be recognized this year as one of the winners of the Diana Jones Awards Emerging Designer program. I have lots of cool stuff coming up, including an article in the final issue of MCDM’s Arcadia (out in late July). To keep up with what I’m up to, visit me at linktr.ee/erinroberts.
Art by Sandra Posada Shan Wolf
Hi, my name is Shan, and I helped write some of the Dwarven Gods, including one of my favorites: Trudd! I've been writing for Paizo for a bit now, and every project I get on is better and better. I truly hope ya'll enjoy Highhelm because it's an amazing book put together by amazing creators!
If you want to learn more about me or my work? I'm at @Fenrirs_Chosen on twitter!
And of course, we also want to thank our other authors for their great work on Highhelm!
- Piper Amatrudi: King’s Heart (page 60), King’s Heart Options (page 72), Defenders of Highhelm (page 106), Highhelm Gear (page 112), Pagulin (page 131)
- Dan Cascone: History (page 12)
- Dana Ebert: Notable Figures (page 38), From Dwarven Legends (page 114)
- Sen H.H.S.: Folgrit (page 119)
- Stephanie Lundeen: A King’s Wish (page 6), Highhelm Overview (page 8), Gazetteer Introduction (page 44)
- Liane Merciel: Trade and Industry (page 20), The Clans (page 30)
- Owen K.C. Stephens: Government, Law, and Crime (page 16)
- Andrew White: Draangvit (page 118), Magrim (page 122), Graul (page 130)
Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidr?Face-the-Whispering-Tyrant-Beneath-the-Tower Face the Whispering Tyrant Beneath the Tower of Darkness in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors 2023-08-14T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-14T13:30:00.000-04:00 Face the Whispering Tyrant Beneath the Tower of Darkness in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors Monday, August 14, 2023 BKOM Studios and Paizo are thrilled to share that Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors will be launching into Steam Early Access on September 14th. Experience Pathfinder through a whole new lens and oppose the legendary villain Tar-Baphon in this roguelite bullet hell survivor game! The disgraced lich Tar-Baphon was sealed away beneath his ancient seat of power, Gallowspire, but he has cunningly devised the means for his escape. As the wards that contain him begin to fail, three brave heroes step into Gallowspire’s depths, tasked with battling through his army of undead to put an end to his plans. Players storm Gallowspire as one of three mighty heroes: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue. While each has their own strengths and talents that will aid their efforts against Tar-Baphon, the task at hand is too much for a lone hero. Choose an ally to fight alongside you as you slay hordes of enemies, collect and upgrade your arsenal of spells and weapons, and eradicate Gallowspire’s terrifying bosses. There will be many failures throughout your journey, but aided by a mysterious amulet, you can escape death and grow stronger with each attempt. Only those who find the strength to break through Gallowspire may face the eternal emperor. But one victory will not be enough to seal away the Whispering Tyrant forever. Heroes must confront him again and again to buy the world of Golarion the time it needs to prepare for Tar-Baphon’s seemingly inevitable return. Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors launches into Early Access on September 14th. Those eager to face Tar-Baphon and his undead legion can wishlist Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors on Steam. Gamescom attendees can be the first to face the Whispering Tyrant with a hands-on demo. Keep up to date with all the information by joining the official Discord server, liking the game on Facebook, and following BKOM Studios on Twitter. Features: Choose your class: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue—each featuring unique talents, powers, and playstyles. Select a second hero to fight alongside you as a companion character. Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run. Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run. Earn experience to level up your heroes, and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers. Collect and spend treasure to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes. Complete quests, defeat bosses, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself. Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless! Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games Face the Whispering Tyrant Beneath the Tower of Darkness in Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors
Monday, August 14, 2023
BKOM Studios and Paizo are thrilled to share that Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors will be launching into Steam Early Access on September 14th. Experience Pathfinder through a whole new lens and oppose the legendary villain Tar-Baphon in this roguelite bullet hell survivor game!
The disgraced lich Tar-Baphon was sealed away beneath his ancient seat of power, Gallowspire, but he has cunningly devised the means for his escape. As the wards that contain him begin to fail, three brave heroes step into Gallowspire’s depths, tasked with battling through his army of undead to put an end to his plans.
Players storm Gallowspire as one of three mighty heroes: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue. While each has their own strengths and talents that will aid their efforts against Tar-Baphon, the task at hand is too much for a lone hero. Choose an ally to fight alongside you as you slay hordes of enemies, collect and upgrade your arsenal of spells and weapons, and eradicate Gallowspire’s terrifying bosses.
There will be many failures throughout your journey, but aided by a mysterious amulet, you can escape death and grow stronger with each attempt. Only those who find the strength to break through Gallowspire may face the eternal emperor. But one victory will not be enough to seal away the Whispering Tyrant forever. Heroes must confront him again and again to buy the world of Golarion the time it needs to prepare for Tar-Baphon’s seemingly inevitable return.
Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors launches into Early Access on September 14th. Those eager to face Tar-Baphon and his undead legion can wishlist Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors on Steam. Gamescom attendees can be the first to face the Whispering Tyrant with a hands-on demo. Keep up to date with all the information by joining the official Discord server, liking the game on Facebook, and following BKOM Studios on Twitter.
Features:
- Choose your class: Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue—each featuring unique talents, powers, and playstyles.
- Select a second hero to fight alongside you as a companion character.
- Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run.
- Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run.
- Earn experience to level up your heroes, and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers.
- Collect and spend treasure to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes.
- Complete quests, defeat bosses, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself.
- Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidp?Gen-Con-2023-Recap Gen Con 2023 Recap! 2023-08-11T13:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-11T13:30:00.000-04:00 Gen Con 2023 Recap! Friday, August 11, 2023 Hail and huzzah, Starfinders and Pathfinders! We had a spectacular time at Gen Con in Indianapolis with record-breaking attendance, full Organized Play tables, full demo tables, a gorgeous booth, brisk sales, exciting Pathfinder and Starfinder Society specials, and community awards galore! At the Show From customers to content creators to the media, we loved saying hello to everyone who came to see us at panels, Exhibitor Hall at Booth #203, Demo Hall C, and the Sagamore ballroom! The Paizo-related Crit Awards winners included: Best Player | Paizo: SuperDillin Best GM | Paizo: DeadAussieGamer Best Upcoming Youtube (2 Years or Less): WafflesMapleSyrup Best Villain: Azin by No Quest for the Wicked, a Starfinder podcast Best TTRPG-Related Charity/Community, Wellness Org, or Event: Rue's TTRPGs for Trans Rights The ENNIE Awards also announced their Gold and Silver winners. Congratulations to all the nominees, finalists, and winners—the tabletop roleplaying game community is better for your contributions. We partnered with the Gen Con Blood Drive this year to give out digital Beginner Boxes for their raffle giveaway. They exceeded their Gen Con record in Day 1 and had over 1000 individual donors throughout the weekend! And Beyond! Thank you to everyone who joined us online this weekend, whether that was on our Events Discord for Organized Play games, or on Twitch or YouTube for our prerecorded panels! Paizo Keynote Address Pathfinder Rage of Elements–Designer’s Commentary Pathfinder Remaster Preview Lost Omens Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb—Developers’ Commentary In case you missed it, we announced: The Starfinder Second Edition is coming and you can download the free Field Test You can also save the date for the Pathfinder Playtest of two new, fresh classes starting on September 1. We’ll be livestreaming at 4:00 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, August 31 at twitch.tv/officialpaizo. During the stream, we’ll reveal the two new classes, some of their abilities, and the iconics representing them, so players can dive right into the playtest the following morning. You can buy Pathfinder Rage of Elements and Pathfinder Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path at your local bookstore, game store, or the Paizo Store. The Starfinder Society is electing a new First Seeker, and your voice matters! Hopefully you also took the opportunity expand your gaming options with the 23 for 23% off Gen Con 2023 Sale! In case you missed it (we did) the Infinite Masters got together and created a Pathfinder Infinite Megabundle filled with content for our setting, lore, and rules. It is still going on so check it out! Thanks for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder at Gen Con and beyond this year! Tags: Community, Conventions, Gen Con, Paizo Gen Con 2023 Recap!
Friday, August 11, 2023
]]>Hail and huzzah, Starfinders and Pathfinders!
We had a spectacular time at Gen Con in Indianapolis with record-breaking attendance, full Organized Play tables, full demo tables, a gorgeous booth, brisk sales, exciting Pathfinder and Starfinder Society specials, and community awards galore!
At the Show
From customers to content creators to the media, we loved saying hello to everyone who came to see us at panels, Exhibitor Hall at Booth #203, Demo Hall C, and the Sagamore ballroom!
The Paizo-related Crit Awards winners included:
- Best Player | Paizo: SuperDillin
- Best GM | Paizo: DeadAussieGamer
- Best Upcoming Youtube (2 Years or Less): WafflesMapleSyrup
- Best Villain: Azin by No Quest for the Wicked, a Starfinder podcast
- Best TTRPG-Related Charity/Community, Wellness Org, or Event: Rue's TTRPGs for Trans Rights
The ENNIE Awards also announced their Gold and Silver winners.
Congratulations to all the nominees, finalists, and winners—the tabletop roleplaying game community is better for your contributions.
We partnered with the Gen Con Blood Drive this year to give out digital Beginner Boxes for their raffle giveaway. They exceeded their Gen Con record in Day 1 and had over 1000 individual donors throughout the weekend!
And Beyond!
Thank you to everyone who joined us online this weekend, whether that was on our Events Discord for Organized Play games, or on Twitch or YouTube for our prerecorded panels!
- Paizo Keynote Address
- Pathfinder Rage of Elements–Designer’s Commentary
- Pathfinder Remaster Preview
- Lost Omens Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb—Developers’ Commentary
In case you missed it, we announced:
- The Starfinder Second Edition is coming and you can download the free Field Test
- You can also save the date for the Pathfinder Playtest of two new, fresh classes starting on September 1. We’ll be livestreaming at 4:00 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, August 31 at twitch.tv/officialpaizo. During the stream, we’ll reveal the two new classes, some of their abilities, and the iconics representing them, so players can dive right into the playtest the following morning.
- You can buy Pathfinder Rage of Elements and Pathfinder Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path at your local bookstore, game store, or the Paizo Store.
- The Starfinder Society is electing a new First Seeker, and your voice matters!
Hopefully you also took the opportunity expand your gaming options with the 23 for 23% off Gen Con 2023 Sale!
In case you missed it (we did) the Infinite Masters got together and created a Pathfinder Infinite Megabundle filled with content for our setting, lore, and rules. It is still going on so check it out!
Thanks for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder at Gen Con and beyond this year!
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidn?August-2023-Organized-Play-Monthly-Update August 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update 2023-08-10T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-08-10T16:30:00.000-04:00 August 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update Thursday, August 10, 2023 OPC Musings Congratulations on surviving Gen Con, players! I’m assuming, anyway. Like the June update, I’m writing this before Gen Con even begins. What did you think of those new announcements? That Starfinder Second Edition sounds pretty cool! [note to future self: remove this if we don’t announce it so I don’t blow the surprise] Seriously though, I’m SO excited to finally be able to share all the new information with you all! The new edition of Starfinder, a playtest coming up for Pathfinder, the Remaster on the horizon, and so much more. It’s an exciting time at Paizo HQ! And this blog is chock-full of information, so let’s dive right in. Digital Adventure Releases These adventures will be available on August 30, 2023. Pathfinder Society Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration• Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost• Starfinder Society Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow's Seekers•† Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions •part of a subscription † released early to Venture Officers to run during the month of August Convention News This section usually lives at the bottom of the blog, but there’s some news I wanted to make sure had a prominent place! The OP team’s travel schedule for the rest of 2023 has been locked in. Here’s where you can come out and meet us! August 18-20: I will be at Dragonflight in Bellevue, WA somewhat unofficially. September 1-4 (Labor Day weekend): I will be attending Gateway in Los Angeles, CA. Additionally, Josh Foster will be attending DragonCon in Atlanta, GA! September 29-October 1: Jessica Catalan and I (as well as possibly others) will be attending SkålCon in Minneapolis, MN. A number of Paizo staffers and freelancers will also be at BigBadCon in San Francisco, though we don't have an official presence. Finally, and perhaps most newsworthy... December 1-3: Paizo returns to PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia, PA! Volunteer applications are now open. This convention will be the first chance for you to demo Starfinder Second Edition with a member of the Starfinder team! We'll also be running acquisition-focused tables of Pathfinder, Starfinder, and for the first time, board game demos of Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones! I'm very excited to be returning to the show. Again, applications are now open, and we’d love to have you join us! On top of all of these, the fall months are some of our most active for local conventions. These smaller conventions are a great way to meet your local Pathfinder and Starfinder community, so we recommend you check out our convention calendar to find one near you! Sanctioning Updates Has anything interesting been released for Pathfinder lately? Probably not, right? Ah, well, except Pathfinder Rage of Elements. That’s pretty exciting, and it’s now sanctioned for play! Rules are available on the Character Options page, and there are new boons in the Boon Store for some of the Uncommon options. For Starfinder Society, the Drift Hackers Adventure Path sanctioning documents have finally been uploaded, allowing you to earn credit for playing through the adventures! Coming up next will be sanctioning for Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge and the Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path, as well as Starfinder Enhanced. Now that we’re on the other side of Gen Con, we’re also going to be spending time working on the rules regarding the new Remastered books, which we hope to have ready well in advance of their release. Pathfinder Class Playtest The Pathfinder Rules & Lore team has announced the next class playtest scheduled for September 1! Pathfinder Society will support this playtest as we’ve supported all class playtests using the rules in the Guide to Organized Play. In short: you can build and play characters using the new rules and apply credit to your existing characters as if they were pregenerated characters. Remember that GM participation in playtests is opt-in. If a GM chooses not to allow characters from a ruleset they’re not familiar with, that’s entirely acceptable! We hope you all enjoy the newest creations from the Rules & Lore team. Starfinder Second Edition Field Tests Starfinder Second Edition is coming! In anticipation of the full playtest in 2024, the Starfinder team has begun releasing Starfinder Field Tests. These bite-size PDFs are packed with information on upcoming classes and rules, as well as the design team’s goals and thoughts. You can download the first one at starfinderplaytest.com. We just want to clarify that for Starfinder Society play, these options are not legal. Once we get closer to the full playtest, we’ll share the specifics of how Starfinder Society will support it. For now, please enjoy the previews and get ready to playtest at our conventions next year! Pathfinder and Starfinder Society on Foundry VTT Some exciting news for our Foundry GMs and players! Starting August 30th, we’ll be giving Pathfinder and Starfinder Society the same premium treatment on Foundry VTT that we’ve been giving our Pathfinder Adventure Paths. Each of these modules will be a one-time purchase that will be updated throughout the season with new content as we release it, and will be available in both a streamlined version that only provides maps and tokens for those who own the PDFs as well as a deluxe version that also includes fully-styled journals containing all of the adventure content. Keep an eye on the Paizo blog for updates! First Seeker Election The polls have opened for the Starfinder Society’s First Seeker election! Agents are flocking from around the galaxy to cast their votes. The early polls are in, and the race is neck and neck (and neck and neck)! While Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers releases at the end of the month, Venture Officers have been granted early access to maximize your opportunities to play the adventure before casting your vote. We encourage you all to get out and meet the candidates! As it’s repeatable, you can even play it multiple times for credit to get the clearest view of your options. Once you’ve done so, head to paizo.com/firstseeker to cast your vote. Pathfinder Society Year 5 Updates With the launch of PFS Year 5 last week, the following updates have gone into effect! The changeling versatile heritage is now freely available to all players, due to the Society’s adventures involving the night hag Aslynn. More adventurers of uncommon ancestries have joined the Pathfinder Society in the past few years, so the tengu and ratfolk ancestries are also freely available! Additionally, in preparation for their inclusion in the upcoming Pathfinder Player Core book, the tiefling and aasimar versatile heritages are freely available to all players. Boons for all of the above freely available options have been removed from the Boon Store. Players who previously purchased those boons will have them updated to grant a free use of the resurrection ritual to those characters, as we have done for past ancestries. Finally, due to the influx of planar energy throughout Golarion, the geniekin versatile heritage has been reduced to 40 Achievement Points! This boon has also been updated to include the talos and ardandeheritages from Pathfinder Rage of Elements. Boon Updates Boon Request Threads The OP team gets requests all the time for boons for character options. Now that the Boon Store is up and running, I thought it would be best to centralize those requests in one location, so I did that! There are now Boon Request threads for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society pinned in their respective forums. Feel free to head over to favorite the suggestions you like and add new ones if they haven’t already been posted. Seeker of Knowledge Just a note that, now that replays are functional, the Seeker of Knowledge boons in the boon store also now work correctly! Purchasing one of these boons grants your account 4 SFS Replays, one per reputation tier. Players who previously purchased these boons should now see four additional Replays in their account as well. Retail Incentive Program Updates Our Retail Incentive Program is designed to help players support the game stores and venues that host our games, often for free, while earning in-game benefits. Over the past year, we’ve heard some recommendations to improve it, and I’m delighted to share the new version of the program now! You can download PDFs of the rules for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society now on the Retail Incentive Program page. The major changes are: Adding a new “heroic” tier, unlocked when a table spends of $100 or more Altering or replacing boons that reduced the gold cost of healing now that those benefits primarily use Achievement Points Making the benefits more versatile and/or slightly more useful Overall, the intention of programs like the RIP and the Accessory Perks is to provide incentives to players and GMs to support our products and venues. The goal is not for these to be hard rules, but to encourage GMs and organizers to adopt a “spirit of the law” reading of any of these programs to ensure all players are enjoying themselves. Thanks to all the volunteers who provided feedback on these revisions! GM Recognition Campaign Service Coins This month, two new Campaign Service Coins were awarded to volunteers by their RVC. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons Congratulations to: Bill Tobin, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #896 Brad Grinstead (bigrin42), who nows holds a campaign coin and OP ID #897 Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! And unlock the elemental power within you! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society August 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update
Thursday, August 10, 2023
OPC Musings
Congratulations on surviving Gen Con, players! I’m assuming, anyway. Like the June update, I’m writing this before Gen Con even begins. What did you think of those new announcements? That Starfinder Second Edition sounds pretty cool! [note to future self: remove this if we don’t announce it so I don’t blow the surprise]
Seriously though, I’m SO excited to finally be able to share all the new information with you all! The new edition of Starfinder, a playtest coming up for Pathfinder, the Remaster on the horizon, and so much more. It’s an exciting time at Paizo HQ! And this blog is chock-full of information, so let’s dive right in.
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on August 30, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-02: The Blackwood Lost•Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow's Seekers•†
Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions•part of a subscription
† released early to Venture Officers to run during the month of August
Convention News
This section usually lives at the bottom of the blog, but there’s some news I wanted to make sure had a prominent place! The OP team’s travel schedule for the rest of 2023 has been locked in. Here’s where you can come out and meet us!
August 18-20: I will be at Dragonflight in Bellevue, WA somewhat unofficially.
September 1-4 (Labor Day weekend): I will be attending Gateway in Los Angeles, CA.
Additionally, Josh Foster will be attending DragonCon in Atlanta, GA!
September 29-October 1: Jessica Catalan and I (as well as possibly others) will be attending SkålCon in Minneapolis, MN. A number of Paizo staffers and freelancers will also be at BigBadCon in San Francisco, though we don't have an official presence.
Finally, and perhaps most newsworthy...
December 1-3: Paizo returns to PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia, PA! Volunteer applications are now open. This convention will be the first chance for you to demo Starfinder Second Edition with a member of the Starfinder team!
We'll also be running acquisition-focused tables of Pathfinder, Starfinder, and for the first time, board game demos of Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones! I'm very excited to be returning to the show. Again, applications are now open, and we’d love to have you join us!
On top of all of these, the fall months are some of our most active for local conventions. These smaller conventions are a great way to meet your local Pathfinder and Starfinder community, so we recommend you check out our convention calendar to find one near you!
Sanctioning Updates
Has anything interesting been released for Pathfinder lately? Probably not, right?
Ah, well, except Pathfinder Rage of Elements. That’s pretty exciting, and it’s now sanctioned for play! Rules are available on the Character Options page, and there are new boons in the Boon Store for some of the Uncommon options.
For Starfinder Society, the Drift Hackers Adventure Path sanctioning documents have finally been uploaded, allowing you to earn credit for playing through the adventures!
Coming up next will be sanctioning for Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge and the Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path, as well as Starfinder Enhanced. Now that we’re on the other side of Gen Con, we’re also going to be spending time working on the rules regarding the new Remastered books, which we hope to have ready well in advance of their release.
Pathfinder Class Playtest
The Pathfinder Rules & Lore team has announced the next class playtest scheduled for September 1! Pathfinder Society will support this playtest as we’ve supported all class playtests using the rules in the Guide to Organized Play. In short: you can build and play characters using the new rules and apply credit to your existing characters as if they were pregenerated characters.
Remember that GM participation in playtests is opt-in. If a GM chooses not to allow characters from a ruleset they’re not familiar with, that’s entirely acceptable! We hope you all enjoy the newest creations from the Rules & Lore team.
Starfinder Second Edition Field Tests
Starfinder Second Edition is coming! In anticipation of the full playtest in 2024, the Starfinder team has begun releasing Starfinder Field Tests. These bite-size PDFs are packed with information on upcoming classes and rules, as well as the design team’s goals and thoughts. You can download the first one at starfinderplaytest.com.
We just want to clarify that for Starfinder Society play, these options are not legal. Once we get closer to the full playtest, we’ll share the specifics of how Starfinder Society will support it. For now, please enjoy the previews and get ready to playtest at our conventions next year!
Pathfinder and Starfinder Society on Foundry VTT
Some exciting news for our Foundry GMs and players!
Starting August 30th, we’ll be giving Pathfinder and Starfinder Society the same premium treatment on Foundry VTT that we’ve been giving our Pathfinder Adventure Paths. Each of these modules will be a one-time purchase that will be updated throughout the season with new content as we release it, and will be available in both a streamlined version that only provides maps and tokens for those who own the PDFs as well as a deluxe version that also includes fully-styled journals containing all of the adventure content. Keep an eye on the Paizo blog for updates!
First Seeker Election
The polls have opened for the Starfinder Society’s First Seeker election! Agents are flocking from around the galaxy to cast their votes. The early polls are in, and the race is neck and neck (and neck and neck)!
While Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers releases at the end of the month, Venture Officers have been granted early access to maximize your opportunities to play the adventure before casting your vote. We encourage you all to get out and meet the candidates! As it’s repeatable, you can even play it multiple times for credit to get the clearest view of your options. Once you’ve done so, head to paizo.com/firstseeker to cast your vote.
Pathfinder Society Year 5 Updates
With the launch of PFS Year 5 last week, the following updates have gone into effect!
- The changeling versatile heritage is now freely available to all players, due to the Society’s adventures involving the night hag Aslynn.
- More adventurers of uncommon ancestries have joined the Pathfinder Society in the past few years, so the tengu and ratfolk ancestries are also freely available!
- Additionally, in preparation for their inclusion in the upcoming Pathfinder Player Core book, the tiefling and aasimar versatile heritages are freely available to all players.
- Boons for all of the above freely available options have been removed from the Boon Store. Players who previously purchased those boons will have them updated to grant a free use of the resurrection ritual to those characters, as we have done for past ancestries.
- Finally, due to the influx of planar energy throughout Golarion, the geniekin versatile heritage has been reduced to 40 Achievement Points! This boon has also been updated to include the talos and ardandeheritages from Pathfinder Rage of Elements.
Boon Updates
Boon Request Threads
The OP team gets requests all the time for boons for character options. Now that the Boon Store is up and running, I thought it would be best to centralize those requests in one location, so I did that! There are now Boon Request threads for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society pinned in their respective forums. Feel free to head over to favorite the suggestions you like and add new ones if they haven’t already been posted.
Seeker of Knowledge
Just a note that, now that replays are functional, the Seeker of Knowledge boons in the boon store also now work correctly! Purchasing one of these boons grants your account 4 SFS Replays, one per reputation tier. Players who previously purchased these boons should now see four additional Replays in their account as well.
Retail Incentive Program Updates
Our Retail Incentive Program is designed to help players support the game stores and venues that host our games, often for free, while earning in-game benefits. Over the past year, we’ve heard some recommendations to improve it, and I’m delighted to share the new version of the program now!
You can download PDFs of the rules for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society now on the Retail Incentive Program page. The major changes are:
- Adding a new “heroic” tier, unlocked when a table spends of $100 or more
- Altering or replacing boons that reduced the gold cost of healing now that those benefits primarily use Achievement Points
- Making the benefits more versatile and/or slightly more useful
Overall, the intention of programs like the RIP and the Accessory Perks is to provide incentives to players and GMs to support our products and venues. The goal is not for these to be hard rules, but to encourage GMs and organizers to adopt a “spirit of the law” reading of any of these programs to ensure all players are enjoying themselves. Thanks to all the volunteers who provided feedback on these revisions!
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
This month, two new Campaign Service Coins were awarded to volunteers by their RVC. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons
Congratulations to:
Bill Tobin, who now holds a campaign coin and OP ID #896
Brad Grinstead (bigrin42), who nows holds a campaign coin and OP ID #897Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! And unlock the elemental power within you!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorTags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sido?Pathfinder-Tales-Bundle Pathfinder Tales Bundle 2023-08-10T14:02:00.000-04:00 2023-08-10T14:02:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Tales Bundle Thursday, August 10, 2023 Last month, in our update from Paizo President Jim Butler, we announced that we’ve greenlit a standalone Pathfinder novel for release in 2024. To celebrate the return of Pathfinder fiction, we’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to create a special digital offer to help you and your friends read the cornucopia of past Pathfinder stories and support a great cause! What is a Humble Bundle? Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, whether that be to the publisher, to Humble itself, or even to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get in exchange! Inside our bundle, you’ll find fiction written by an esteemed list of award-winning fantasy authors, including Richard Lee Byers, Elaine Cunningham, Ed Greenwood, Dave Gross, Chris A. Jackson, Howard Andrew Jones, Robin D. Laws, Liane Merciel, Erik Mona, Tim Pratt, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Bill Ward! The products in this bundle are all digital ePubs that you can redeem with codes at the Paizo Store; you’ll receive one code per tier. There are three tiers to this bundle starting at $5 and going up to a $25 tier. Read our ePub FAQ for answers to any questions you might have. A portion of your purchase goes to ComicBooks For Kids!, which is the largest charity in the world for comic books and pop culture materials! We’ve been supporting them for a few years now and we know your support has made a difference. Learn more about ComicBooks For Kids! in our past blog, Support ComicBooks For Kids! Our first Bundle tier starts at $5 and includes a code for eight ePub files worth $30, including: “Certainty” Hell's Pawns “The Lost Pathfinder” “Misery's Mirror” Nightglass Prince of Wolves “A Tomb of Winter's Plunder” Winter Witch For $15, you'll also get the ePub files in the first tier, plus a code for 14 more ePub files worth over $60, including: “Bastard, Sword” City of the Fallen Sky The Compass Stone: The Collected Journals of Eando Kline “Guns of Alkenstar” Husks “A Lesson in Taxonomy” Liar's Blade Master of Devils Nightblade “A Passage to Absalom” Pirate's Honor Plague of Shadows “Two Pieces of Tarnished Silver” “The Walkers from the Crypt” In the third tier, for $25, you'll get codes for the previous tiers, plus a code for additional 19 ePub files, worth another $90! Blood of the City “The Box” Called to Darkness Dark Tapestry Death's Heretic “In the Event of My Untimely Demise” “Faithful Servants” Guilty Blood “The Ironroot Deception” Light of a Distant Star Pirate's Promise Plague of Light Queen of Thorns “In Red Rune Canyon” Reign of Stars The Shroud of Four Silences Stalking the Beast The Treasure of Far Thallai The Worldwound Gambit The digital files are associated with your account when redeemed. They are watermarked with the redeemer’s email address when they are downloaded. As such, if you want to give these to someone else as gifts, you’ll want to give them the codes themselves! Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout. Thank you for reading Pathfinder Tales! The Paizo Team Support the Pathfinder Tales Bundle! Tags: Humble Bundle, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Tales Pathfinder Tales Bundle
Thursday, August 10, 2023
]]>Last month, in our update from Paizo President Jim Butler, we announced that we’ve greenlit a standalone Pathfinder novel for release in 2024. To celebrate the return of Pathfinder fiction, we’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to create a special digital offer to help you and your friends read the cornucopia of past Pathfinder stories and support a great cause!
What is a Humble Bundle? Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, whether that be to the publisher, to Humble itself, or even to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get in exchange!
Inside our bundle, you’ll find fiction written by an esteemed list of award-winning fantasy authors, including Richard Lee Byers, Elaine Cunningham, Ed Greenwood, Dave Gross, Chris A. Jackson, Howard Andrew Jones, Robin D. Laws, Liane Merciel, Erik Mona, Tim Pratt, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Bill Ward!
The products in this bundle are all digital ePubs that you can redeem with codes at the Paizo Store; you’ll receive one code per tier. There are three tiers to this bundle starting at $5 and going up to a $25 tier. Read our ePub FAQ for answers to any questions you might have.
A portion of your purchase goes to ComicBooks For Kids!, which is the largest charity in the world for comic books and pop culture materials! We’ve been supporting them for a few years now and we know your support has made a difference. Learn more about ComicBooks For Kids! in our past blog, Support ComicBooks For Kids!
Our first Bundle tier starts at $5 and includes a code for eight ePub files worth $30, including:
- “Certainty”
- Hell's Pawns
- “The Lost Pathfinder”
- “Misery's Mirror”
- Nightglass
- Prince of Wolves
- “A Tomb of Winter's Plunder”
- Winter Witch
For $15, you'll also get the ePub files in the first tier, plus a code for 14 more ePub files worth over $60, including:
- “Bastard, Sword”
- City of the Fallen Sky
- The Compass Stone: The Collected Journals of Eando Kline
- “Guns of Alkenstar”
- Husks
- “A Lesson in Taxonomy”
- Liar's Blade
- Master of Devils
- Nightblade
- “A Passage to Absalom”
- Pirate's Honor
- Plague of Shadows
- “Two Pieces of Tarnished Silver”
- “The Walkers from the Crypt”
In the third tier, for $25, you'll get codes for the previous tiers, plus a code for additional 19 ePub files, worth another $90!
- Blood of the City
- “The Box”
- Called to Darkness
- Dark Tapestry
- Death's Heretic
- “In the Event of My Untimely Demise”
- “Faithful Servants”
- Guilty Blood
- “The Ironroot Deception”
- Light of a Distant Star
- Pirate's Promise
- Plague of Light
- Queen of Thorns
- “In Red Rune Canyon”
- Reign of Stars
- The Shroud of Four Silences
- Stalking the Beast
- The Treasure of Far Thallai
- The Worldwound Gambit
The digital files are associated with your account when redeemed. They are watermarked with the redeemer’s email address when they are downloaded. As such, if you want to give these to someone else as gifts, you’ll want to give them the codes themselves!
Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout.
Thank you for reading Pathfinder Tales!
The Paizo Team
Support the Pathfinder Tales Bundle!
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidm?Call-to-Volunteer-PAX-Unplugged-2023 Call to Volunteer: PAX Unplugged 2023 2023-08-09T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-09T13:00:00.000-04:00 Call to Volunteer: PAX Unplugged 2023 Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Greetings, players! We’re pleased to announce that we’ll be attending PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia, PA this December! We’ll be running scenarios, bounties, and demos for Pathfinder and Starfinder Society. We’ll also be running demos of our board games for the first time! This show will also be your first chance to demo the brand new Starfinder Second Edition! Our volunteers, led by a member of the Starfinder design team, will be showing off this exciting update to our game. We’re now soliciting volunteers for the show! We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles: Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios Bounty GM: Run bounty tables for Pathfinder (Second Edition) SF2 Demo GM: Run demo tables for Starfinder (Second Edition). Applicants should have strong Starfinder knowledge (both lore and system) and preferably have related demo experience. Board Game Demo GM: Run demo tables for Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones. Applicants should have strong board game knowledge (both our games and general board games) and preferably have related demo experience. Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion Please read this important information before applying: Volunteer applications will be reviewed and accepted or rejected by the PAX Unplugged Organizing Committee. Filling this form out does not guarantee acceptance; you will receive an email with further information from the PAXU committee. PAX Unplugged schedules will be assigned by the committee. You will be asked for your preference of system and level, but you will not necessarily be able to choose the specific scenario(s) you run. The committee’s intention is to assign people to run the same scenario multiple times during the weekend. There is a free-form field at the end of the form to enter specific requests, though there’s no guarantee they will be honored. Reward information is listed in the table below. GMs who do not qualify for a badge will still need to purchase one. Applications will be processed on a rolling basis, beginning no later than August 28. The earlier you get your application in, the more likely it is you’ll get the scenarios you want. Please be patient as we put the final details on the convention internally before we send out GM emails! Please note that we will not be providing hotel rooms for GMs. All GMs will need to provide their own accommodation. Parking reimbursement is available for 7+ slot GMs if requested. Any questions about the GM signup process should be sent to the committee at paxunplugged[at]gmail[dot]com. Rewards Table Blocks Parking Pass Hardcover Product Exhibitor Badge In-Game Reward Voucher 7+ blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ 6 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ 5 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 4 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 3 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 2 blocks ✓ ✓ 1 block ✓ ✓ •Definitions for rewards: Exhibitor Badge: a badge for the duration of the event. In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current organized play GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (Second Edition)/Starfinder Society is Achievement Point rewards at the Premier Plus (2.0x) level. Benefits for board game & SF2 Demo GMs are TBD. Hardcover Product: GMs at this tier will be able to choose between Pathfinder Player Core, Pathfinder GM Core, or Starfinder Enhanced. Parking Pass: Reimbursement for parking at up to $30/day. Voucher: earn one voucher for $10 spendable on paizo.com for every block run. PAX Unplugged 2023 Volunteer Application Major Conventions Planning Server Anybody interested in volunteering at PAX Unplugged should join the OPF Major Conventions planning server by clicking the image below. Follow the instructions in #welcome to get access to the relevant channels. All important information will be conveyed on this server as well as via email, so please join the server! Alex Speidel Organized Play Coordinator Brad Fiske and Nicholas Ruchlewicz PAX Unplugged Organizing Committee Tags: Community, Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society Call to Volunteer: PAX Unplugged 2023
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
Greetings, players! We’re pleased to announce that we’ll be attending PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia, PA this December! We’ll be running scenarios, bounties, and demos for Pathfinder and Starfinder Society. We’ll also be running demos of our board games for the first time!
This show will also be your first chance to demo the brand new Starfinder Second Edition! Our volunteers, led by a member of the Starfinder design team, will be showing off this exciting update to our game.
We’re now soliciting volunteers for the show! We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios
- Bounty GM: Run bounty tables for Pathfinder (Second Edition)
- SF2 Demo GM: Run demo tables for Starfinder (Second Edition). Applicants should have strong Starfinder knowledge (both lore and system) and preferably have related demo experience.
- Board Game Demo GM: Run demo tables for Goblin Firework Fight and Elemental Stones. Applicants should have strong board game knowledge (both our games and general board games) and preferably have related demo experience.
- Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion
Please read this important information before applying:
- Volunteer applications will be reviewed and accepted or rejected by the PAX Unplugged Organizing Committee. Filling this form out does not guarantee acceptance; you will receive an email with further information from the PAXU committee.
- PAX Unplugged schedules will be assigned by the committee. You will be asked for your preference of system and level, but you will not necessarily be able to choose the specific scenario(s) you run. The committee’s intention is to assign people to run the same scenario multiple times during the weekend. There is a free-form field at the end of the form to enter specific requests, though there’s no guarantee they will be honored.
- Reward information is listed in the table below. GMs who do not qualify for a badge will still need to purchase one.
- Applications will be processed on a rolling basis, beginning no later than August 28. The earlier you get your application in, the more likely it is you’ll get the scenarios you want. Please be patient as we put the final details on the convention internally before we send out GM emails!
- Please note that we will not be providing hotel rooms for GMs. All GMs will need to provide their own accommodation. Parking reimbursement is available for 7+ slot GMs if requested.
- Any questions about the GM signup process should be sent to the committee at paxunplugged[at]gmail[dot]com.
Rewards Table
Blocks Parking Pass Hardcover Product Exhibitor Badge In-Game Reward Voucher 7+ blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ 6 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ 5 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 4 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 3 blocks ✓ ✓ ✓ 2 blocks ✓ ✓ 1 block ✓ ✓
•Definitions for rewards:
- Exhibitor Badge: a badge for the duration of the event.
- In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current organized play GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (Second Edition)/Starfinder Society is Achievement Point rewards at the Premier Plus (2.0x) level. Benefits for board game & SF2 Demo GMs are TBD.
- Hardcover Product: GMs at this tier will be able to choose between Pathfinder Player Core, Pathfinder GM Core, or Starfinder Enhanced.
- Parking Pass: Reimbursement for parking at up to $30/day.
- Voucher: earn one voucher for $10 spendable on paizo.com for every block run.
PAX Unplugged 2023 Volunteer Application
Major Conventions Planning Server
Anybody interested in volunteering at PAX Unplugged should join the OPF Major Conventions planning server by clicking the image below. Follow the instructions in #welcome to get access to the relevant channels. All important information will be conveyed on this server as well as via email, so please join the server!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorBrad Fiske and Nicholas Ruchlewicz
PAX Unplugged Organizing CommitteeTags: Community, Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidk?Starfinder-Second-Edition-is-Coming Starfinder Second Edition is Coming! 2023-08-03T11:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-03T11:00:00.000-04:00 Starfinder Second Edition is Coming! Thursday, Aug 3rd, 2023 Today we’re ecstatic to officially announce that Starfinder Second Edition is happening. Back in 2017 we released Starfinder, a new game system and setting to stand alongside Paizo’s tried and true Pathfinder brand. Today we’re revealing the next evolution in Starfinder as we announce its second edition and lay out our plans for the future. This new edition of Starfinder is being designed to be fully compatible with the upcoming release of the Pathfinder Remastered rulebooks and all future Pathfinder Second Edition products. This means that all your Pathfinder content going forward will be compatible with the new edition of Starfinder, and that all Starfinder Second Edition content will work in Pathfinder—with your GM’s permission, of course! We’ll be releasing a full playtest in Summer 2024, but we wanted to announce the new edition early because it’s our intent to make Starfinder’s playtest the most open playtest Paizo has released to date. That all starts today with the release of our first Starfinder Field Test. These documents are a little different than the playtest files we’ve released in the past. Each Field Test is a snippet of ongoing design work drafted by the Starfinder team and is intended to show what we’re working on and some of the directions we’re exploring. Our first document focuses on the first five levels of one of our new base classes: the soldier. Along with this, we’ve included some rules for futuristic weaponry and a couple of creatures for you to toss into your games. Unlike other playtests, the Field Test documents will not be accompanied by a feedback survey, as they are intended to be behind-the-scenes looks at what is coming. Look forward to August 2024, when the full playtest launches for your feedback! Along with the first Field Test, we also wanted to announce the first four classes to be included in the upcoming Starfinder Playtest Rulebook. The mystic is a spellcasting class that focuses on the divine and primal traditions and has the unique ability to form a bond with their closest allies. Using their bond to impart a variety of bonuses on their allies, the mystic can also heal them through their shared bond. Once represented by Keskodai, our iconic shirren, a new iconic has taken on the role of the mystic. Chk Chk grew up in his father’s larval container, witnessing all manner of traumatizing adventures in his childhood. Now an adult, Chk Chk has become a devout worshipper of the amalgamate deity, Zon-Shelyn, and believes in channeling suffering into artistic expression. The soldier gets its first preview in today’s Field Test and specializes in taking hits and unloading with area of effect weapons. With different fighting styles at their disposal, soldiers can focus on different areas of importance, like defense, ranged offense, or even a bit of melee effectiveness. The iconic vesk soldier, Obozaya, returns in all her glory. While she hasn’t turned over her doshko blades yet, age and battle scars have forced Obo to turn her attention to heavy weapons and contributing to the fight in a new way—but don’t worry, she still beats things up in melee! Along with these two classes, we are also announcing the envoy and the solarian. These classes are still undergoing some internal testing, so we’re going to hold off on saying too much about them for now. What we will say is that the iconic envoy, Navasi, is returning with many years of adventuring behind her. Along with Navasi, we also have a new solarian iconic whose art we’re revealing; we’ll be keeping the remaining details under wraps for the time being. Canny viewers should notice that the art for this iconic is an ancestry that wasn’t in the Starfinder Core Rulebook. That’s because the feline pahtra species are now a core ancestry in Starfinder Second Edition! Concept sketches for the four iconics. Chk Chk, a shirren mystic. Navasi, a human envoy. Obozaya, a vesk soldier. An unnamed pahtra solarian. Concept Sketches by Kent Hamilton To complement this announcement, we’ve also put together a Frequently Asked Questions page related to Starfinder Second Edition, where we’ve included a few more details about the project. Check that out and keep an eye on the Starfinder Playtest page for the latest content and news related to the newest evolution of the Starfinder roleplaying game. We’re so excited to undertake this journey and hope you’ll be at our side as we take a step into a bold new future together! — The Starfinder Team -Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder) -Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer -Dustin Knight, Developer -Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society Developer Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition Starfinder Second Edition is Coming!
Thursday, Aug 3rd, 2023
Today we’re ecstatic to officially announce that Starfinder Second Edition is happening. Back in 2017 we released Starfinder, a new game system and setting to stand alongside Paizo’s tried and true Pathfinder brand. Today we’re revealing the next evolution in Starfinder as we announce its second edition and lay out our plans for the future.
This new edition of Starfinder is being designed to be fully compatible with the upcoming release of the Pathfinder Remastered rulebooks and all future Pathfinder Second Edition products. This means that all your Pathfinder content going forward will be compatible with the new edition of Starfinder, and that all Starfinder Second Edition content will work in Pathfinder—with your GM’s permission, of course!
We’ll be releasing a full playtest in Summer 2024, but we wanted to announce the new edition early because it’s our intent to make Starfinder’s playtest the most open playtest Paizo has released to date.
That all starts today with the release of our first Starfinder Field Test. These documents are a little different than the playtest files we’ve released in the past. Each Field Test is a snippet of ongoing design work drafted by the Starfinder team and is intended to show what we’re working on and some of the directions we’re exploring. Our first document focuses on the first five levels of one of our new base classes: the soldier. Along with this, we’ve included some rules for futuristic weaponry and a couple of creatures for you to toss into your games.
Unlike other playtests, the Field Test documents will not be accompanied by a feedback survey, as they are intended to be behind-the-scenes looks at what is coming. Look forward to August 2024, when the full playtest launches for your feedback!
Along with the first Field Test, we also wanted to announce the first four classes to be included in the upcoming Starfinder Playtest Rulebook.
The mystic is a spellcasting class that focuses on the divine and primal traditions and has the unique ability to form a bond with their closest allies. Using their bond to impart a variety of bonuses on their allies, the mystic can also heal them through their shared bond. Once represented by Keskodai, our iconic shirren, a new iconic has taken on the role of the mystic. Chk Chk grew up in his father’s larval container, witnessing all manner of traumatizing adventures in his childhood. Now an adult, Chk Chk has become a devout worshipper of the amalgamate deity, Zon-Shelyn, and believes in channeling suffering into artistic expression.
The soldier gets its first preview in today’s Field Test and specializes in taking hits and unloading with area of effect weapons. With different fighting styles at their disposal, soldiers can focus on different areas of importance, like defense, ranged offense, or even a bit of melee effectiveness. The iconic vesk soldier, Obozaya, returns in all her glory. While she hasn’t turned over her doshko blades yet, age and battle scars have forced Obo to turn her attention to heavy weapons and contributing to the fight in a new way—but don’t worry, she still beats things up in melee!
Along with these two classes, we are also announcing the envoy and the solarian. These classes are still undergoing some internal testing, so we’re going to hold off on saying too much about them for now. What we will say is that the iconic envoy, Navasi, is returning with many years of adventuring behind her. Along with Navasi, we also have a new solarian iconic whose art we’re revealing; we’ll be keeping the remaining details under wraps for the time being. Canny viewers should notice that the art for this iconic is an ancestry that wasn’t in the Starfinder Core Rulebook. That’s because the feline pahtra species are now a core ancestry in Starfinder Second Edition!
Concept sketches for the four iconics. Chk Chk, a shirren mystic. Navasi, a human envoy. Obozaya, a vesk soldier. An unnamed pahtra solarian.
Concept Sketches by Kent Hamilton
To complement this announcement, we’ve also put together a Frequently Asked Questions page related to Starfinder Second Edition, where we’ve included a few more details about the project. Check that out and keep an eye on the Starfinder Playtest page for the latest content and news related to the newest evolution of the Starfinder roleplaying game.
We’re so excited to undertake this journey and hope you’ll be at our side as we take a step into a bold new future together!
— The Starfinder Team
-Thurston Hillman, Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)
-Jenny Jarzabski, Senior Developer
-Dustin Knight, Developer
-Jessica Catalan, Starfinder Society DeveloperTags: Starfinder, Starfinder Playtest, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidl?Welcome-to-Gen-Con-2023 Welcome to Gen Con 2023! 2023-08-02T12:00:00.000-04:00 2023-08-02T12:00:00.000-04:00 Welcome to Gen Con 2023! Wednesday, Aug 22d, 2023 Hello Pathfinders and Starfinders! We’re excited to welcome you back to another year of “The Best Four Days in Gaming” at Gen Con Indianapolis. At the Show Paizo’s presence will be located in the Exhibitor Hall at Booth #203. This is where you’ll find all of the special products we announced last week, as well as Rage of Elements and all of our other Pathfinder & Starfinder products! We’ll be giving out special buttons at the booth for each day of Gen Con—a unique design every day! And if buttons are your jam, you’re in luck, because we’ll also be giving out Starfinder Society and Pathfinder Society buttons in our Organized Play area! The button designs for this year’s Gen Con releases, featuring the cover of Rage of Elements, the cover of Ports of Call, Sprax, Moscaru, and the cover images for this year’s Pathfinder & Starfinder society seasons! Speaking of Organized Play, we’re excited to call the Sagamore Ballroom home again for Pathfinder Society & Starfinder Society! Games begin at 8 a.m., 2 p.m., and 8 p.m., generic tickets accepted as seats allow. We will also be running walk-up Pathfinder Society Bounties all day! Plus, join us Friday or Saturday evening for the Starfinder Society & Pathfinder Society Specials—collaborative event games with more than 60 tables participating in the same scenario! Want to get a taste of what Pathfinder, Starfinder, or our board games have to offer? Take a jaunt over to Hall C, where Paizo has demo tables running 20-minute sessions all day long! While Paizo isn’t hosting any panels as a company at Gen Con, several of our employees are participating in panels at the event! ORC License—Q&A ft. Erik Mona Learn about ORC License! We'll explain how game systems are licensed and evolve under the ORC, answer questions about implementation and limitations, and speculate on the future. WTF Happened With Dungeons & Dragons’ OGL ft. Jim Butler Journalist Lin Codega and a panel of experts (including Jim Butler and Ryan Dancey) break down what happened with the OGL 1.1 and the fan backlash around Wizards of the Coast. Everything You Wanted to Know About Tabletop Media But Were Too Afraid To Ask ft. Aaron Shanks A panel of media creators from both board games and tabletop RPG discussing how we got into our areas, how we work with publishers, and some of the challenges we deal with in the industry. Plus a Q&A. And Beyond! Even if you’re not at Gen Con Indy, there’s still fun to be had at home this weekend! Tune in to our Gen Con prerecorded streams on Twitch and YouTube all weekend to get a glance at what’s coming from Paizo. This year’s panels include: Gen Con 2023 Keynote (8/3/23 at 10 a.m. EST) Rage of Elements—Designer’s Commentary (8/4/23 at 10 a.m. EST) Remaster Preview (8/5/23 at 10 a.m. EST) Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb—Developer’s Commentary (8/6/23 at 10 a.m. EST) VODs will be available on Twitch directly after the streams. Organized Play has a plethora of online games happening as a part of Gen Con Online. Browse the available games and sign up for a seat! Note: Gen Con Online uses the Gen Con registration system, not Warhorn. We’re putting 23 products on special for this year’s Gen Con, and giving you a 23% discount on those products August 1st through August 6th. The sale applies to the following products, in all forms print and digital: Pathfinder Core Rulebook Pathfinder Advanced Player’s Guide Pathfinder Secrets of Magic Pathfinder Guns & Gears Pathfinder Book of the Dead Pathfinder Dark Archive Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path All Pathfinder and Starfinder Basic Flip-Mats Starfinder Core Rulebook Starfinder Alien Archive Starfinder Armory Starfinder Alien Archive 2 Starfinder Character Operations Manual Starfinder Near Space Starfinder Drift Crisis Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide Pathfinder Lost Omens Absalom, City of Lost Omens (Special Edition Not Included) Pathfinder Lost Omens Legends Pathfinder Lost Omens Pathfinder Society Guide Pathfinder Lost Omens Monsters of Myth Pathfinder Lost Omens Knights of Lastwall (Special Edition Not Included) Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands 23 for 23% off Gen Con 2023 Sale We’re looking forward to seeing you at Gen Con and beyond this year! Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Welcome to Gen Con 2023!
Wednesday, Aug 22d, 2023
Hello Pathfinders and Starfinders!
We’re excited to welcome you back to another year of “The Best Four Days in Gaming” at Gen Con Indianapolis.
At the Show
Paizo’s presence will be located in the Exhibitor Hall at Booth #203. This is where you’ll find all of the special products we announced last week, as well as Rage of Elements and all of our other Pathfinder & Starfinder products!
We’ll be giving out special buttons at the booth for each day of Gen Con—a unique design every day! And if buttons are your jam, you’re in luck, because we’ll also be giving out Starfinder Society and Pathfinder Society buttons in our Organized Play area!
The button designs for this year’s Gen Con releases, featuring the cover of Rage of Elements, the cover of Ports of Call, Sprax, Moscaru, and the cover images for this year’s Pathfinder & Starfinder society seasons!
Speaking of Organized Play, we’re excited to call the Sagamore Ballroom home again for Pathfinder Society & Starfinder Society! Games begin at 8 a.m., 2 p.m., and 8 p.m., generic tickets accepted as seats allow. We will also be running walk-up Pathfinder Society Bounties all day! Plus, join us Friday or Saturday evening for the Starfinder Society & Pathfinder Society Specials—collaborative event games with more than 60 tables participating in the same scenario!
Want to get a taste of what Pathfinder, Starfinder, or our board games have to offer? Take a jaunt over to Hall C, where Paizo has demo tables running 20-minute sessions all day long!
While Paizo isn’t hosting any panels as a company at Gen Con, several of our employees are participating in panels at the event!
ORC License—Q&A ft. Erik Mona
Learn about ORC License! We'll explain how game systems are licensed and evolve under the ORC, answer questions about implementation and limitations, and speculate on the future.WTF Happened With Dungeons & Dragons’ OGL ft. Jim Butler
Journalist Lin Codega and a panel of experts (including Jim Butler and Ryan Dancey) break down what happened with the OGL 1.1 and the fan backlash around Wizards of the Coast.Everything You Wanted to Know About Tabletop Media But Were Too Afraid To Ask ft. Aaron Shanks
A panel of media creators from both board games and tabletop RPG discussing how we got into our areas, how we work with publishers, and some of the challenges we deal with in the industry. Plus a Q&A.
And Beyond!
Even if you’re not at Gen Con Indy, there’s still fun to be had at home this weekend!
Tune in to our Gen Con prerecorded streams on Twitch and YouTube all weekend to get a glance at what’s coming from Paizo. This year’s panels include:
- Gen Con 2023 Keynote (8/3/23 at 10 a.m. EST)
- Rage of Elements—Designer’s Commentary (8/4/23 at 10 a.m. EST)
- Remaster Preview (8/5/23 at 10 a.m. EST)
- Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb—Developer’s Commentary (8/6/23 at 10 a.m. EST)
VODs will be available on Twitch directly after the streams.
Organized Play has a plethora of online games happening as a part of Gen Con Online. Browse the available games and sign up for a seat! Note: Gen Con Online uses the Gen Con registration system, not Warhorn.
We’re putting 23 products on special for this year’s Gen Con, and giving you a 23% discount on those products August 1st through August 6th. The sale applies to the following products, in all forms print and digital:
- Pathfinder Core Rulebook
- Pathfinder Advanced Player’s Guide
- Pathfinder Secrets of Magic
- Pathfinder Guns & Gears
- Pathfinder Book of the Dead
- Pathfinder Dark Archive
- Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path
- All Pathfinder and Starfinder Basic Flip-Mats
- Starfinder Core Rulebook
- Starfinder Alien Archive
- Starfinder Armory
- Starfinder Alien Archive 2
- Starfinder Character Operations Manual
- Starfinder Near Space
- Starfinder Drift Crisis
- Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Absalom, City of Lost Omens (Special Edition Not Included)
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Legends
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Pathfinder Society Guide
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Monsters of Myth
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Knights of Lastwall (Special Edition Not Included)
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands
23 for 23% off Gen Con 2023 Sale
We’re looking forward to seeing you at Gen Con and beyond this year!
Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidi?Gen-Con-Stream-Schedule Gen Con Stream Schedule 2023-07-28T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-07-28T13:00:00.000-04:00 Gen Con Stream Schedule Friday, July 28, 2023 With less than a week until Gen Con, it’s time to reveal our Gen Con Stream Schedule! These streams will be going live on twitch.tv/officialpaizo, with VODs available directly afterward on Twitch, and uploaded to YouTube after Gen Con. Thursday, August 3rd 10am Eastern / 7am Pacific Gen Con 2023 Keynote Exciting news and upcoming products from Paizo! This Keynote features segments from a variety of teams, hosted by Paizo Publisher Erik Mona. Friday, August 4th 10am Eastern / 7am Pacific Rage of Elements — Designer’s Commentary with Logan Bonner Join Pathfinder Lead Designer Logan Bonner for a tour of the planes! In this panel, Logan flips through Pathfinder Rage of Elements, providing commentary on the design and development of the book. Saturday, August 5th 10am Eastern / 7am Pacific Pathfinder Remaster Preview Jason Bulmahn, James Case, and Michael Sayre dive into the Pathfinder Remaster Project with an exclusive look into the Player Core and GM Core books — plus a sneak peek at what’s coming in Monster Core and Player Core 2! Sunday, August 6th 10am Eastern / 7am Pacific Lost Omens Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb — Developers’ Commentary Luis Loza and John Compton sit down in the Paizo Games Library for a chat about Lost Omens Highhelm, the Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path, and all things dwarves! See you soon! Whether it’s in person at Gen Con Indy or online, we can’t wait to see you and share some exciting news! Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Paizo Twitch Gen Con Stream Schedule
Friday, July 28, 2023
With less than a week until Gen Con, it’s time to reveal our Gen Con Stream Schedule! These streams will be going live on twitch.tv/officialpaizo, with VODs available directly afterward on Twitch, and uploaded to YouTube after Gen Con.
Thursday, August 3rd
10am Eastern / 7am Pacific
Gen Con 2023 Keynote
Exciting news and upcoming products from Paizo! This Keynote features segments from a variety of teams, hosted by Paizo Publisher Erik Mona.
Friday, August 4th
10am Eastern / 7am Pacific
Rage of Elements — Designer’s Commentary with Logan Bonner
Join Pathfinder Lead Designer Logan Bonner for a tour of the planes! In this panel, Logan flips through Pathfinder Rage of Elements, providing commentary on the design and development of the book.
Saturday, August 5th
10am Eastern / 7am Pacific
Pathfinder Remaster Preview
Jason Bulmahn, James Case, and Michael Sayre dive into the Pathfinder Remaster Project with an exclusive look into the Player Core and GM Core books — plus a sneak peek at what’s coming in Monster Core and Player Core 2!
Sunday, August 6th
10am Eastern / 7am Pacific
Lost Omens Highhelm & Sky King’s Tomb — Developers’ Commentary
Luis Loza and John Compton sit down in the Paizo Games Library for a chat about Lost Omens Highhelm, the Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path, and all things dwarves!
See you soon!
Whether it’s in person at Gen Con Indy or online, we can’t wait to see you and share some exciting news!
Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Paizo Twitch
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidh?First-Seeker-Election-Candidate-Interviews First Seeker Election: Candidate Interviews 2023-07-27T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-27T16:30:00.000-04:00 First Seeker Election: Candidate Interviews Thursday, July 27, 2023 Hey there, Starfinders! The team here at Wayfinder Weekly, your one-stop shop for all the latest Starfinder happenings, are thrilled to bring you the latest in our continuing coverage of the First Seeker Election! The race to replace Ehu Hadif is neck-and-neck according to the latest polls, and your vote matters! Our freelance political reporter, Lyta Lantrell, caught up with each of the candidates at a recent mixer in the Lorespire Complex cantina. In the interest of editorial fairness, we asked all four of them the same questions. We hope this information helps you make your choice! What makes the Starfinders the best organization in the Pact Worlds? Aurora Everbright: We’re the best in the business at what we do, but most importantly, we ain’t scared of nothing! Starfinders are always ready to leap into the fray or explore a new world. Whenever anybody in the galaxy needs help, we Starfinders are right there to give folks what they need. Sarmak: My people have found that the Starfinders are valuable allies to their friends, especially the downtrodden and disadvantaged. The organization is willing to assist, but always tries to listen to the wishes of those they’re aiding for how best to contribute. Dr. Heldin Sevaile: Why, the boundless capacity to do good! This is the finest scientific organization I’ve ever been part of, and its resources are nearly limitless! Nykiti Lampadephoros: A light, shining in the darkness on untouched shores. A vault of treasures, kept safe from harm and those who would do harm. Also, excellent tea in countless varieties! [Nykiti’s offer to read our reporter’s tea leaves was declined for ethical reasons.] How would you change the organization as First Seeker? Sarmak: Goodness, you know, I hadn’t really considered that! The effect my presence would have…hmm. Perhaps… [He thinks for a moment.] perhaps we could do more to ensure Starfinders can learn a trade during their time with us? Dr. Sevaile: Under my leadership, the Society would take its place among the academies and laboratories of the galaxy as a revered institute for learning and experimentation. Additionally, the discoveries we make would be used to create low-cost medicinals, further elevating our prominence. Nykiti: The Society would become a home for those magic users who feel adrift, supplanted, misunderstood. There are many things the Society has discovered—so many loose ends! We should not let them dangle. We’ve many promising adventures to return to! Aurora: We could be the biggest name in the Pact Worlds! We’ll turn our best agents into brand ambassadors and recruit influencers from across the infosphere to join us! Oh, and of course, we’ll use the Starfinder Chronicles to tell our story right—no more misinformation about us under my watch! What’s in your adventuring kit? Dr Sevaile: Well, let’s see here…yes, about two weeks of insect protein-based rations—care to try? [Our reporter declined this offer for gastronomical reasons.] Suit yourself! Also a sample collection kit, never know when you’ll find something interesting to take back. Ah! And an emergency beacon. Won’t make that mistake twice! Nykiti: My “kit,” such as it is. Largely, I use my divination tools on missions. [She empties her pockets, scattering what appear to be chicken bones as well as a digital harrow deck on the counter.] I do try to bring several aeon stones and spell ampoules to use on myself or provide to allies as needed. I’m always prepared for the future. Aurora: You know, I was just talking with a sponsor about selling Everbright Adventuring Kits! I’ve always got a hygiene kit with me—gotta look good for the vidstream! And of course, backup batteries for my vidstreaming rig. If I’m racing, I take my lucky hood ornament with me as well. It’s gotten me out of more than one scrap! Sarmak: Much of my kit is built from what I needed on my homeworld. Radiation protections have always served me well. Along with my old engineering kit, I tend to keep scrap metal, wires, screws, that sort of thing. You never know when it’ll come in handy! What’s your favorite vacation spot? Nykiti: I had a marvelous time at this lovely resort and spa orbiting a black hole last year. The rejuvenating facial scrub! Never in my wildest foretellings could I have imagined the effects. Aurora: I’ve been lucky enough to get courtside seats at a few professional brutaris games, and WOW! Seeing that much action up close was incredible! I’m gonna try to go to the next tournament if I can. Sarmak: Ah, well, I suppose it’s a bit of a busman’s holiday, but I did recently travel to Arshalin to examine the Worldshards up close. The weather was dreadful, unfortunately, but I’m eager to return someday! Dr. Sevaile: You know, I’m really more of a “staycation” fellow myself. I’ve been on plenty of missions around the galaxy, and if I go to the jungles of Castrovel or some such I’ll just end up collecting new specimens! No, if I need some time off, it’s the couch, some healthy snacks, and a Freedom and Fire marathon for me. The four candidates for First Seeker: Nykiti Lampadephoros, Aurora Everbright, Dr. Heldin Sevaile and Sarmak. Illustrations by Nicholas Phillips Fascinating answers from our candidates! We hope this information has informed your votes. Don’t forget to take advantage of First Seeker Ehu Hadif’s meet-and-greet sessions with the candidates, and get your ballots in before the deadline! Alex Speidel Organized Play Coordinator Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios First Seeker Election: Candidate Interviews
Thursday, July 27, 2023
Hey there, Starfinders! The team here at Wayfinder Weekly, your one-stop shop for all the latest Starfinder happenings, are thrilled to bring you the latest in our continuing coverage of the First Seeker Election! The race to replace Ehu Hadif is neck-and-neck according to the latest polls, and your vote matters!
Our freelance political reporter, Lyta Lantrell, caught up with each of the candidates at a recent mixer in the Lorespire Complex cantina. In the interest of editorial fairness, we asked all four of them the same questions. We hope this information helps you make your choice!
What makes the Starfinders the best organization in the Pact Worlds?
Aurora Everbright: We’re the best in the business at what we do, but most importantly, we ain’t scared of nothing! Starfinders are always ready to leap into the fray or explore a new world. Whenever anybody in the galaxy needs help, we Starfinders are right there to give folks what they need.
Sarmak: My people have found that the Starfinders are valuable allies to their friends, especially the downtrodden and disadvantaged. The organization is willing to assist, but always tries to listen to the wishes of those they’re aiding for how best to contribute.
Dr. Heldin Sevaile: Why, the boundless capacity to do good! This is the finest scientific organization I’ve ever been part of, and its resources are nearly limitless!
Nykiti Lampadephoros: A light, shining in the darkness on untouched shores. A vault of treasures, kept safe from harm and those who would do harm. Also, excellent tea in countless varieties! [Nykiti’s offer to read our reporter’s tea leaves was declined for ethical reasons.]
How would you change the organization as First Seeker?
Sarmak: Goodness, you know, I hadn’t really considered that! The effect my presence would have…hmm. Perhaps… [He thinks for a moment.] perhaps we could do more to ensure Starfinders can learn a trade during their time with us?
Dr. Sevaile: Under my leadership, the Society would take its place among the academies and laboratories of the galaxy as a revered institute for learning and experimentation. Additionally, the discoveries we make would be used to create low-cost medicinals, further elevating our prominence.
Nykiti: The Society would become a home for those magic users who feel adrift, supplanted, misunderstood. There are many things the Society has discovered—so many loose ends! We should not let them dangle. We’ve many promising adventures to return to!
Aurora: We could be the biggest name in the Pact Worlds! We’ll turn our best agents into brand ambassadors and recruit influencers from across the infosphere to join us! Oh, and of course, we’ll use the Starfinder Chronicles to tell our story right—no more misinformation about us under my watch!
What’s in your adventuring kit?
Dr Sevaile: Well, let’s see here…yes, about two weeks of insect protein-based rations—care to try? [Our reporter declined this offer for gastronomical reasons.] Suit yourself! Also a sample collection kit, never know when you’ll find something interesting to take back. Ah! And an emergency beacon. Won’t make that mistake twice!
Nykiti: My “kit,” such as it is. Largely, I use my divination tools on missions. [She empties her pockets, scattering what appear to be chicken bones as well as a digital harrow deck on the counter.] I do try to bring several aeon stones and spell ampoules to use on myself or provide to allies as needed. I’m always prepared for the future.
Aurora: You know, I was just talking with a sponsor about selling Everbright Adventuring Kits! I’ve always got a hygiene kit with me—gotta look good for the vidstream! And of course, backup batteries for my vidstreaming rig. If I’m racing, I take my lucky hood ornament with me as well. It’s gotten me out of more than one scrap!
Sarmak: Much of my kit is built from what I needed on my homeworld. Radiation protections have always served me well. Along with my old engineering kit, I tend to keep scrap metal, wires, screws, that sort of thing. You never know when it’ll come in handy!
What’s your favorite vacation spot?
Nykiti: I had a marvelous time at this lovely resort and spa orbiting a black hole last year. The rejuvenating facial scrub! Never in my wildest foretellings could I have imagined the effects.
Aurora: I’ve been lucky enough to get courtside seats at a few professional brutaris games, and WOW! Seeing that much action up close was incredible! I’m gonna try to go to the next tournament if I can.
Sarmak: Ah, well, I suppose it’s a bit of a busman’s holiday, but I did recently travel to Arshalin to examine the Worldshards up close. The weather was dreadful, unfortunately, but I’m eager to return someday!
Dr. Sevaile: You know, I’m really more of a “staycation” fellow myself. I’ve been on plenty of missions around the galaxy, and if I go to the jungles of Castrovel or some such I’ll just end up collecting new specimens! No, if I need some time off, it’s the couch, some healthy snacks, and a Freedom and Fire marathon for me.
The four candidates for First Seeker: Nykiti Lampadephoros, Aurora Everbright, Dr. Heldin Sevaile and Sarmak. Illustrations by Nicholas Phillips
Fascinating answers from our candidates! We hope this information has informed your votes. Don’t forget to take advantage of First Seeker Ehu Hadif’s meet-and-greet sessions with the candidates, and get your ballots in before the deadline!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidf?Tales-from-the-Dig-Site Tales from the Dig Site 2023-07-27T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-07-27T13:00:00.000-04:00 Tales from the Dig Site Thursday, July 27, 2023 Nixret lowered her pack and placed it gently on the ground in front of her cot in the small barracks near the Azlanti dig site. “Finally! Field work!” She thought to herself. Of course, the field work was to be heavily supervised, and concerned a site that had been stripped of all known dangers by actual agents—not initiates like she and her companions. Still, training or not, it was a field assignment, her first time spending significant time outside of the Grand Lodge in Absalom since she first left the Sewer Dragon warrens to join the Society. Even if it wasn’t the real type of field work she read about countless times in the Chronicles, it was still one step closer to her Confirmation—and from there, her story could really begin. Illustration by Bruno Cesar Sure, the swamp wasn’t exactly pleasant, given the extreme humidity, endless buzzing insects, and the slight sulfurous odor making everything smell a bit like old eggs. The barracks tent would be incredibly crowded, and her instructors had been sure to instill in them that this wasn’t a vacation—if anything, they’d work harder than they ever did in Absalom. Still, she couldn’t help but envision herself finding some unnoticed Azlanti artifact during a training exercise and earning her place in a chronicle then and there. And even if the Blackwood Swamp wasn’t the most comfortable place to be doing field work, it could be far worse. The iruxi of the nearby Tskikha enclave were incredibly welcoming, and one of their chief hunters, Kazuuk, had even come out to meet them in Cassomir, ensuring the initiate’s safe arrival at the dig site. The new Venture Captain out of Oppara, a kobold like her as she was excited to discover, Lolly Adafish had set up a temporary office in Cassomir and saw to it that the initiates wouldn’t want for provisions. But the fact of the matter was, here there was no more busywork. No more lectures dealing only with theory. No more cleaning up after a menagerie of birds as a punishment for sneaking out. This was real field work. And even if other Pathfinders had cleared the site years ago, it was still an Azlanti ruin, and she’d still be exploring it. Even if that exploration was going to be heavily supervised, she couldn’t help but look forward to what this training would show her, and what she could show her instructors. Nixtret fell backwards into her cot, grinning wildly, the sudden movement causing her companions to jump slightly in surprise. “This is going to be our moment!” she exclaimed, more to herself than to any of the other initiates. The others just shook their heads, glanced at one another, and smiled. They all knew that, regardless of anything, no one could best Nixret in a contest of daydreams. Illustration by Diego Machuca Josh Foster Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios Tales from the Dig Site
Thursday, July 27, 2023
Nixret lowered her pack and placed it gently on the ground in front of her cot in the small barracks near the Azlanti dig site. “Finally! Field work!” She thought to herself. Of course, the field work was to be heavily supervised, and concerned a site that had been stripped of all known dangers by actual agents—not initiates like she and her companions. Still, training or not, it was a field assignment, her first time spending significant time outside of the Grand Lodge in Absalom since she first left the Sewer Dragon warrens to join the Society. Even if it wasn’t the real type of field work she read about countless times in the Chronicles, it was still one step closer to her Confirmation—and from there, her story could really begin.
Sure, the swamp wasn’t exactly pleasant, given the extreme humidity, endless buzzing insects, and the slight sulfurous odor making everything smell a bit like old eggs. The barracks tent would be incredibly crowded, and her instructors had been sure to instill in them that this wasn’t a vacation—if anything, they’d work harder than they ever did in Absalom. Still, she couldn’t help but envision herself finding some unnoticed Azlanti artifact during a training exercise and earning her place in a chronicle then and there. And even if the Blackwood Swamp wasn’t the most comfortable place to be doing field work, it could be far worse. The iruxi of the nearby Tskikha enclave were incredibly welcoming, and one of their chief hunters, Kazuuk, had even come out to meet them in Cassomir, ensuring the initiate’s safe arrival at the dig site. The new Venture Captain out of Oppara, a kobold like her as she was excited to discover, Lolly Adafish had set up a temporary office in Cassomir and saw to it that the initiates wouldn’t want for provisions.
But the fact of the matter was, here there was no more busywork. No more lectures dealing only with theory. No more cleaning up after a menagerie of birds as a punishment for sneaking out. This was real field work. And even if other Pathfinders had cleared the site years ago, it was still an Azlanti ruin, and she’d still be exploring it. Even if that exploration was going to be heavily supervised, she couldn’t help but look forward to what this training would show her, and what she could show her instructors. Nixtret fell backwards into her cot, grinning wildly, the sudden movement causing her companions to jump slightly in surprise. “This is going to be our moment!” she exclaimed, more to herself than to any of the other initiates. The others just shook their heads, glanced at one another, and smiled. They all knew that, regardless of anything, no one could best Nixret in a contest of daydreams.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidc?Find-Your-Path-July-2023 Find Your Path, July 2023 2023-07-26T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-26T16:30:00.000-04:00 Find Your Path, July 2023 Wednesday, July 26, 2023 This month’s new releases invite you to brave the elements, set off on the trail of dwarven treasure, and explore the ruins of Deepwater Prime! Note, while the Organized Play scenarios release today, many of these products will be released on Thursday, August 3rd as part of our Gen Con release. Check out these products at your FLGS, bookstore, on paizo.com, or at our Gen Con Booth #203! Not going to Gen Con? Save the dates for our Gen Con panels—Thursday August 3rd thru Sunday August 6that 10 am Eastern. Tune in live or catch the VODs to learn more about the Remaster project, Pathfinder Rage of Elements, and more! Releasing today, July 26th 2023 Pathfinder Society Scenario 4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War Exam time has always been stressful for the students of the Dacilane Academy, so J Dacilane has come up with a plan: have a group of Pathfinders help them pull off the first ever Dacilane Academy Great Prank War! Surely nothing can go wrong! However, once a caravan of fey traveling nearby catches a whiff of the chaos, they're more than willing to come and join the prank war—with or without an invitation! It's up to the Pathfinders to calm down the friendly fey, defeat the evil fey that infiltrated the caravan, and ensure that the students have the best prank war ever! Should be easy as pie! (Quick, duck that pie!) Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia The Starfinders have vowed to stop the Organization, a mysterious and violent criminal syndicate whose true name remains unknown and whose machinations threaten the lives of millions. Digging into the Organization’s past has revealed an interest in ancient Ulumbia, a long-destroyed civilization from Deepwater Prime with few archaeological remains of value or importance. So why the interest? Travel to Deepwater Prime to unearth the secrets of ancient Ulumbia—a mission destined to drive the Starfinders into direct conflict with important agents of the Organization. Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw In the conclusion of the Year of Boundless Wonder, the Pathfinder Society and one of the members of the Decemvirate have pieced together a careful plan. Using one of the mysterious items from the vault, the draught of dreams, the Society will lay a trap for Aslynn, catching her via her own greed and desire to control dreams. The plan requires bait though, and Zarta Dralneen has stepped up to prove her loyalty to the Society yet again and finally finish off Aslynn. However, despite their secrecy, she's caught wind of the plan and is ready to overturn it and finally be done with the Pathfinder Society once and for all! Releasing August 3rd, 2023 at Gen Con, online, and at your FLGS or book store! Pathfinder Rage of Elements BRAVE THE ELEMENTS! Blaze like the sun! Crash like the waves! Rumble like a rockslide! Pathfinder Rage of Elements introduces the kineticist class, gifted with an amazing command over the elements. New spells and items within also provide elemental magic options for all character classes. Explore the majestic Elemental Planes, including two new ones: the wondrous, decaying Plane of Metal and the vast, orderly forests of the Plane of Wood! On top of all this comes a horde of new monsters from all six Elemental Planes, ready to battle adventurers or be summoned by them. Step through a portal to adventure and harness the primordial power of nature with Pathfinder Rage of Elements! Pathfinder Rage of Elements is also available as a deluxe special edition, bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark. Pathfinder Adventure Path #193: Mantle of Gold (Sky King’s Tomb 1 of 3) UNCOVER LOST TREASURES! Invited to a prestigious storytelling festival in Highhelm, the greatest dwarven city in Golarion, a clan’s eclectic guests explore every corner of the metropolis to build their own legends. Yet when these budding celebrities find a relic linked to one of dwarvenkind’s greatest heroes, they’re drawn into a mysterious and ancient urban intrigue that kicks off a deadly treasure hunt. The Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path begins with “Mantle of Gold,” a complete adventure for 1st- to 5th-level characters. Starfinder Adventure: Operation: Seaside Park SAVE THE DAY! When a derelict ship infested with dangerous, hostile aliens comes crashing into an amusement park in the heart of the Pact Worlds, it's up to the heroes to protect their planet from the worst the Swarm has to offer! Play as one of five unique heroes battling against a dire threat to the galaxy in an unlikely place. You'll be up against the Swarm, a species of adaptable, bug-like aliens that devour everything in their path. Happy bug hunting, heroes! This Free RPG Day adventure is available as a FREE PDF, or a print edition for $5. Pathfinder Adventure: A Few Flowers More FLOWER POWER! A hero's work is never done! Especially when strange new plants start appearing in the woods—plants whose presence draws all manner of trespassers eager to take advantage of the sudden, mysterious bounty. But where are these plants coming from, and what sinister development in the heart of the forest does their arrival signify? Could it be the beginning of an invasion from another dimension... or something worse? This Free RPG Day adventure is available as a FREE PDF, or a print edition for $5. Starfinder Flip-Mat: Grav Trains ALL ABOARD! Sometimes it’s too much of a hassle to prep your starship for takeoff just to fly a short distance across the planet’s surface and land at another starport, where you then have to pay the docking fees—especially when that world has reliable high-speed grav-train travel! And sometimes your heroes are hired to guard precious cargo en route from one settlement to the next. This double-sided map presents a pair of grav-train lines, one with two passenger lines running parallel above a bustling city, and the other with goods in transit through a wasteland. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Grav-Trains, you’ll be ready for the next time your player characters ride the grav-rails! Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Urban Tavern BARROOM BLITZ! Pull up a stool in the taproom or take your pick of feast hall seats in this perfect accessory for danger and downtime in any tabletop fantasy campaign! This line of gaming maps provides ready-to-use fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. Depicting two city-based taverns, this double-sided map makes the perfect place to start your next adventure! FLIP-MAT CLASSICS The most popular Pathfinder Flip-Mats in history return! These fan-favorite maps feature versatile adventure settings—city streets, forests, ships, taverns, and more—and now they’re back for a repeat performance. Durable and lavishly detailed, these essential adventure set pieces will bring excitement to your game table for years to come! Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix From our friends at WizKids comes a collection of miniatures featuring monsters and characters from the Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Adventure Path! Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Danger Island Denizens Boxed Set Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Tournament of Trials Boxed Set Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Contenders and Champions Boxed Set Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Syndara the Sculptor, Final Form Boxed Figure Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Martial Arts Masters Boxed Set Purchasing Pathfinder Rage of Elements? Remember to take a look at the Core Preview page for a document outlining all of the changes coming with the Remaster in advance of the Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core releases in November. Note: The Pathfinder Harrow Deck has been delayed and is currently targeted for August. The Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (5e) has also been delayed. Browse all our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #193: Mantle of Gold (Sky King’s Tomb 1 of 3)." Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are prepping content for the Gen Con release as well—remember to buy your PDFs on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store. Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more! New this month—Giant Scorpion Battle Music. Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder! Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Find Your Path, July 2023
Wednesday, July 26, 2023
This month’s new releases invite you to brave the elements, set off on the trail of dwarven treasure, and explore the ruins of Deepwater Prime! Note, while the Organized Play scenarios release today, many of these products will be released on Thursday, August 3rd as part of our Gen Con release. Check out these products at your FLGS, bookstore, on paizo.com, or at our Gen Con Booth #203!
Not going to Gen Con? Save the dates for our Gen Con panels—Thursday August 3rd thru Sunday August 6that 10 am Eastern. Tune in live or catch the VODs to learn more about the Remaster project, Pathfinder Rage of Elements, and more!
Releasing today, July 26th 2023
Pathfinder Society Scenario 4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War
Exam time has always been stressful for the students of the Dacilane Academy, so J Dacilane has come up with a plan: have a group of Pathfinders help them pull off the first ever Dacilane Academy Great Prank War! Surely nothing can go wrong! However, once a caravan of fey traveling nearby catches a whiff of the chaos, they're more than willing to come and join the prank war—with or without an invitation! It's up to the Pathfinders to calm down the friendly fey, defeat the evil fey that infiltrated the caravan, and ensure that the students have the best prank war ever! Should be easy as pie! (Quick, duck that pie!)
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia
The Starfinders have vowed to stop the Organization, a mysterious and violent criminal syndicate whose true name remains unknown and whose machinations threaten the lives of millions. Digging into the Organization’s past has revealed an interest in ancient Ulumbia, a long-destroyed civilization from Deepwater Prime with few archaeological remains of value or importance. So why the interest? Travel to Deepwater Prime to unearth the secrets of ancient Ulumbia—a mission destined to drive the Starfinders into direct conflict with important agents of the Organization.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw
In the conclusion of the Year of Boundless Wonder, the Pathfinder Society and one of the members of the Decemvirate have pieced together a careful plan. Using one of the mysterious items from the vault, the draught of dreams, the Society will lay a trap for Aslynn, catching her via her own greed and desire to control dreams. The plan requires bait though, and Zarta Dralneen has stepped up to prove her loyalty to the Society yet again and finally finish off Aslynn. However, despite their secrecy, she's caught wind of the plan and is ready to overturn it and finally be done with the Pathfinder Society once and for all!
Releasing August 3rd, 2023 at Gen Con, online, and at your FLGS or book store!
Pathfinder Rage of Elements
BRAVE THE ELEMENTS!
Blaze like the sun! Crash like the waves! Rumble like a rockslide! Pathfinder Rage of Elements introduces the kineticist class, gifted with an amazing command over the elements. New spells and items within also provide elemental magic options for all character classes. Explore the majestic Elemental Planes, including two new ones: the wondrous, decaying Plane of Metal and the vast, orderly forests of the Plane of Wood! On top of all this comes a horde of new monsters from all six Elemental Planes, ready to battle adventurers or be summoned by them. Step through a portal to adventure and harness the primordial power of nature with Pathfinder Rage of Elements!
Pathfinder Rage of Elements is also available as a deluxe special edition, bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark.
Pathfinder Adventure Path #193: Mantle of Gold (Sky King’s Tomb 1 of 3)
UNCOVER LOST TREASURES!
Invited to a prestigious storytelling festival in Highhelm, the greatest dwarven city in Golarion, a clan’s eclectic guests explore every corner of the metropolis to build their own legends. Yet when these budding celebrities find a relic linked to one of dwarvenkind’s greatest heroes, they’re drawn into a mysterious and ancient urban intrigue that kicks off a deadly treasure hunt. The Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path begins with “Mantle of Gold,” a complete adventure for 1st- to 5th-level characters.
Starfinder Adventure: Operation: Seaside Park
SAVE THE DAY!
When a derelict ship infested with dangerous, hostile aliens comes crashing into an amusement park in the heart of the Pact Worlds, it's up to the heroes to protect their planet from the worst the Swarm has to offer! Play as one of five unique heroes battling against a dire threat to the galaxy in an unlikely place. You'll be up against the Swarm, a species of adaptable, bug-like aliens that devour everything in their path. Happy bug hunting, heroes!
This Free RPG Day adventure is available as a FREE PDF, or a print edition for $5.
Pathfinder Adventure: A Few Flowers More
FLOWER POWER!
A hero's work is never done! Especially when strange new plants start appearing in the woods—plants whose presence draws all manner of trespassers eager to take advantage of the sudden, mysterious bounty. But where are these plants coming from, and what sinister development in the heart of the forest does their arrival signify? Could it be the beginning of an invasion from another dimension... or something worse?
This Free RPG Day adventure is available as a FREE PDF, or a print edition for $5.
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Grav Trains
ALL ABOARD!
Sometimes it’s too much of a hassle to prep your starship for takeoff just to fly a short distance across the planet’s surface and land at another starport, where you then have to pay the docking fees—especially when that world has reliable high-speed grav-train travel! And sometimes your heroes are hired to guard precious cargo en route from one settlement to the next. This double-sided map presents a pair of grav-train lines, one with two passenger lines running parallel above a bustling city, and the other with goods in transit through a wasteland. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Grav-Trains, you’ll be ready for the next time your player characters ride the grav-rails!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Urban Tavern
BARROOM BLITZ!
Pull up a stool in the taproom or take your pick of feast hall seats in this perfect accessory for danger and downtime in any tabletop fantasy campaign! This line of gaming maps provides ready-to-use fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. Depicting two city-based taverns, this double-sided map makes the perfect place to start your next adventure!
FLIP-MAT CLASSICS
The most popular Pathfinder Flip-Mats in history return! These fan-favorite maps feature versatile adventure settings—city streets, forests, ships, taverns, and more—and now they’re back for a repeat performance. Durable and lavishly detailed, these essential adventure set pieces will bring excitement to your game table for years to come!
Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix
From our friends at WizKids comes a collection of miniatures featuring monsters and characters from the Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Adventure Path!
- Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Danger Island Denizens Boxed Set
- Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Tournament of Trials Boxed Set
- Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Contenders and Champions Boxed Set
- Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Syndara the Sculptor, Final Form Boxed Figure
- Pathfinder Battles: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix - Martial Arts Masters Boxed Set
Purchasing Pathfinder Rage of Elements? Remember to take a look at the Core Preview page for a document outlining all of the changes coming with the Remaster in advance of the Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core releases in November.
Note: The Pathfinder Harrow Deck has been delayed and is currently targeted for August. The Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (5e) has also been delayed.
Browse all our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #193: Mantle of Gold (Sky King’s Tomb 1 of 3)."
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 are prepping content for the Gen Con release as well—remember to buy your PDFs on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or pay full price on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store.
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more! New this month—Giant Scorpion Battle Music.
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sidb?Pathfinder-Infinite-June-in-Review Pathfinder Infinite: June in Review 2023-07-26T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-07-26T13:00:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Infinite: June in Review Wednesday, July 26, 2023 It’s been a minute since we’ve had one of these Infinite showcase blogs—now with your new host, Rue! They’re taking over for Mark and are super excited to be showing off some of our top performing products from June. June’s Top Performers Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a bestseller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all! Adventures in Jalmeray Venture to the island of Jalmeray where an adventuring party has unleashed an ancient curse that threatens to consume a city. The streets of Prada Hanam run with blood as nobles and desperate merchants clash, while in the shadows a rakshasa schemes to reshape society in his image. Cooking Unleashed Across Golarion, various delicious cuisines and meals are made every day by chefs from different cultures and backgrounds. Some alchemists dedicate themselves to mixing the art of alchemy with the culinary arts to create delicious and potent treats! Draconic Character Options Walking the path of the dragon can grant you immense power, but true dragons come in many shapes and dispositions, so choose carefully. Some may ask for a cost you cannot pay or don’t understand. Some may offer you sage advice on how to move forward, while yet others will obliterate you on the spot. Eldritch Expansions: Vaulted Weapon Masters Delve into the myriad weapons of the treasure vault with Eldritch Expansions: Vaulted Weapon Masters, featuring archetypes to break and bewilder all who would oppose you. This book includes 12 archetypes and over 100 weapon-focused feats. Inkfinder 2: Mark of the Harrow Inkfinder 2: Mark of the Harrow is the much anticipated sequel to the gold metal-selling Inkfinder. This harrow-themed sequel includes magical tattoos for each Harrow card, various tattoo-related character options, and more! Non Animal Companions Over 30 all new (non) Animal Companions for your Pathfinder Second Edition game, featuring mimics, imps, and more. Queerfinder Issue 1: Bars of Absalom• Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies focused on queer characters and stories! This issue features NPCs, locations, adventures, and more that center queer stories. Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more! Starfinder – Planar Powers Harness the power of the planes in your Starfinder game! Play a conrasu, tap into the power of the Maelstrom with chaos, become a Totemist, or upgrade your character with elemental augmentations! Vault of Vitruvius: A Treasure Vault Expansion Enter the lair of Vitruvius the Vaultkeeper and see if his hoard has something worth stealing. Vault of Vitruvius is an expansion for Pathfinder Treasure Vault that adds over 60 new items for your Pathfinder Second Edition game! Coming Soon: Elemental Expansions! Pathfinder Rage of Elements is just around the corner, and our Infinite Masters are cooking up some red-hot companion content! Be on the lookout for these products, coming soon after Rage of Elements’ release: Elements Together (early September): “Explore the elemental planes introduced in Rage of Elementswith a series of archetypes that really bring them to a whole with Elements Together!” - Conner Berkheiser, Chris Handforth, Sasha Laranoa Harving, Helen Savore, Victoria L. Sullivan, W. Brian Lane Paper & Ink (late September): “Explore an expanded elemental cosmology with planes, creatures, and character options for the elements of paper and ink, where boundless potential meets limited actualization!” - Sasha Laranoa Harving, Helen Savore, W. Brian Lane Pathfinder Infinite: June in Review
Wednesday, July 26, 2023
It’s been a minute since we’ve had one of these Infinite showcase blogs—now with your new host, Rue! They’re taking over for Mark and are super excited to be showing off some of our top performing products from June.
June’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and are presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that have been on a bestseller list previously. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Adventures in Jalmeray
Venture to the island of Jalmeray where an adventuring party has unleashed an ancient curse that threatens to consume a city. The streets of Prada Hanam run with blood as nobles and desperate merchants clash, while in the shadows a rakshasa schemes to reshape society in his image.Cooking Unleashed
Across Golarion, various delicious cuisines and meals are made every day by chefs from different cultures and backgrounds. Some alchemists dedicate themselves to mixing the art of alchemy with the culinary arts to create delicious and potent treats!Draconic Character Options
Walking the path of the dragon can grant you immense power, but true dragons come in many shapes and dispositions, so choose carefully. Some may ask for a cost you cannot pay or don’t understand. Some may offer you sage advice on how to move forward, while yet others will obliterate you on the spot.Eldritch Expansions: Vaulted Weapon Masters
Delve into the myriad weapons of the treasure vault with Eldritch Expansions: Vaulted Weapon Masters, featuring archetypes to break and bewilder all who would oppose you. This book includes 12 archetypes and over 100 weapon-focused feats.Inkfinder 2: Mark of the Harrow
Inkfinder 2: Mark of the Harrow is the much anticipated sequel to the gold metal-selling Inkfinder. This harrow-themed sequel includes magical tattoos for each Harrow card, various tattoo-related character options, and more!Non Animal Companions
Over 30 all new (non) Animal Companions for your Pathfinder Second Edition game, featuring mimics, imps, and more.Queerfinder Issue 1: Bars of Absalom•
Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies focused on queer characters and stories! This issue features NPCs, locations, adventures, and more that center queer stories.Queerfinder Issue 2: Absalom Winter Traditions
Welcome to the second issue of the Queerfinder Society's travel magazine, a guide to Golarion from queer creators and allies focused on queer characters and stories! Celebrate the winter solstice with festivals, fiction, recipes, and more!Starfinder – Planar Powers
Harness the power of the planes in your Starfinder game! Play a conrasu, tap into the power of the Maelstrom with chaos, become a Totemist, or upgrade your character with elemental augmentations!Vault of Vitruvius: A Treasure Vault Expansion
Enter the lair of Vitruvius the Vaultkeeper and see if his hoard has something worth stealing. Vault of Vitruvius is an expansion for Pathfinder Treasure Vault that adds over 60 new items for your Pathfinder Second Edition game!
Coming Soon: Elemental Expansions!
Pathfinder Rage of Elements is just around the corner, and our Infinite Masters are cooking up some red-hot companion content! Be on the lookout for these products, coming soon after Rage of Elements’ release:
- Elements Together (early September): “Explore the elemental planes introduced in Rage of Elementswith a series of archetypes that really bring them to a whole with Elements Together!” - Conner Berkheiser, Chris Handforth, Sasha Laranoa Harving, Helen Savore, Victoria L. Sullivan, W. Brian Lane
- Paper & Ink (late September): “Explore an expanded elemental cosmology with planes, creatures, and character options for the elements of paper and ink, where boundless potential meets limited actualization!” - Sasha Laranoa Harving, Helen Savore, W. Brian Lane
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sida?Gen-Con-Show-Floor-Specials Gen Con Show Floor Specials 2023-07-25T14:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-25T14:30:00.000-04:00 Gen Con Show Floor Specials Tuesday, July 25, 2023 It’s that time of year again, Pathfinders & Starfinders! With Gen Con right around the corner, we want to pull back the curtain on some special products we’ll be bringing with us to Indianapolis. Rage of Elements Limited Edition Dice Set We’re excited to unveil these limited edition dice sets, produced for us by FanRoll! Each set of dice features a d20 with a goblin head inclusion and a random assortment of metal, stone, wood, liquid core, and resin dice themed to the elements. Each set will be a complete, 7-piece RPG set, but there’s no way of knowing which dice will be made of what material; no two sets are alike. These show-exclusive dice are $70 with a $100 qualifying purchase; limited to only 60 sets per day of the show. Pathfinder Beginner Box on Roll20 We’re partnering with Roll20 to distribute codes for the Pathfinder Beginner Box on Roll20! There will be a limited number of promotional cards available at our booth, granting one month of Roll20 pro and the Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box on Roll20. The first 25 guests per day to find Maryssa (who looks like she’s ready to give you a sidequest) on the booth floor and tell her “I want to learn to play Pathfinder on Roll20” will receive one of these promotional cards. WizKids Miniatures Our partners at WizKids have made some special miniatures for us to give out at the Booth and in the Sagamore this year! For every purchase over $50, you will receive one promotional miniature. The figure changes every day, so visit the booth multiple times to collect them all! The promo minis are as follows: Duergar Hryngar Sharpshooter Gnome Hook Hammer Lurker Gateborn Rogue Swarm Shock Trooper Two special figures will be distributed to players who participate in our Starfinder Society Special and Pathfinder Society Special, on Friday and Saturday evening respectively. The specials, which both begin at 8 p.m., will feature over 50 tables all participating in the same interactive adventure! The special figures for the specials are: Aiudeen Elf Rogue Jinsul Marauder Stop by Booth #203 at Gen Con to say hello and get ahold of these sweet deals! Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Miniatures, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Beginner Box Gen Con Show Floor Specials
Tuesday, July 25, 2023
It’s that time of year again, Pathfinders & Starfinders! With Gen Con right around the corner, we want to pull back the curtain on some special products we’ll be bringing with us to Indianapolis.
Rage of Elements Limited Edition Dice Set
We’re excited to unveil these limited edition dice sets, produced for us by FanRoll! Each set of dice features a d20 with a goblin head inclusion and a random assortment of metal, stone, wood, liquid core, and resin dice themed to the elements. Each set will be a complete, 7-piece RPG set, but there’s no way of knowing which dice will be made of what material; no two sets are alike.
These show-exclusive dice are $70 with a $100 qualifying purchase; limited to only 60 sets per day of the show.
Pathfinder Beginner Box on Roll20
We’re partnering with Roll20 to distribute codes for the Pathfinder Beginner Box on Roll20! There will be a limited number of promotional cards available at our booth, granting one month of Roll20 pro and the Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box on Roll20.
The first 25 guests per day to find Maryssa (who looks like she’s ready to give you a sidequest) on the booth floor and tell her “I want to learn to play Pathfinder on Roll20” will receive one of these promotional cards.
WizKids Miniatures
Our partners at WizKids have made some special miniatures for us to give out at the Booth and in the Sagamore this year!
For every purchase over $50, you will receive one promotional miniature. The figure changes every day, so visit the booth multiple times to collect them all! The promo minis are as follows:
- Duergar Hryngar Sharpshooter
- Gnome Hook Hammer Lurker
- Gateborn Rogue
- Swarm Shock Trooper
Two special figures will be distributed to players who participate in our Starfinder Society Special and Pathfinder Society Special, on Friday and Saturday evening respectively. The specials, which both begin at 8 p.m., will feature over 50 tables all participating in the same interactive adventure! The special figures for the specials are:
- Aiudeen Elf Rogue
- Jinsul Marauder
Stop by Booth #203 at Gen Con to say hello and get ahold of these sweet deals!
Tags: Conventions, Gen Con, Miniatures, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Beginner Box
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid9?Paizo-Mirrorscape-Bring-Starfinder-Pathfinder Paizo, Mirrorscape Bring Starfinder, Pathfinder to Augmented Reality 2023-07-21T14:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-21T14:30:00.000-04:00 Paizo, Mirrorscape Bring Starfinder, Pathfinder to Augmented Reality Friday, July 21, 2023 Hello, Pathfinders! We’ve got some exciting news to share. Paizo is announcing a partnership with Mirrorscape, an all-new XR tabletop gaming platform, to make Pathfinder and Starfinder available in authentic 3D and augmented reality. Mirrorscape, which is set to launch on iOS and Android on July 25th, has generated excitement among tabletop roleplaying gamers as an exciting experience that lets players interact with game pieces, terrains and minis in authentic 3D, whether they are around the table or around the world. Coverage from Wired, Wargamer, GamesRadarand Dicebreaker has been overwhelmingly positive, so buzz is growing! With Mirrorscape, players will be able to connect and play the legendary quests and adventures in the Pathfinder and Starfinder universes they know and love from the tabletop anytime, anywhere on their mobile devices. Mirrorscape has already partnered with names like Dwarven Forge, Fat Dragon Games, Hero Forge, Reaper Minis, and Norse Foundry to create digital twins of the terrain, minis, and dice players love to make your adventure awesome. Your world-building will be easy and intuitive with terrain that stacks and snaps in place, or you can drop down pre-built maps for ready-made adventures. A Free Starter Set includes enough pieces to build caverns and dungeons and up to 10 free minis. Mirrorscape is 100% aligned with Paizo’s vision for open and inclusive gaming and the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License. The Mirrorscape platform is designed to support a wide variety of rulesets and homebrew campaigns. As partners, Mirrorscape and Paizo will empower user-generated content and support, not restrict, player creativity. Using the magic of AR on the iOS or Android device in your pocket, you can enjoy digital play on your actual tabletop with digital dice that bounce just like the real thing. In the near future, Mirrorscape is also planning to release its platform on AR glasses and headsets, meaning it won’t be long until players can experience the magic of a fully immersive AR tabletop where players can move their minis and build vast worlds for exploration with their hands, thanks to hand tracking and gesture control. Get ready to download Mirrorscape on Apple App Store or Google Play on July 25th, and be ready for your next Pathfinder or Starfinder adventure in amazingly authentic 3D! Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Paizo, Mirrorscape Bring Starfinder, Pathfinder to Augmented Reality
Friday, July 21, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders! We’ve got some exciting news to share.
Paizo is announcing a partnership with Mirrorscape, an all-new XR tabletop gaming platform, to make Pathfinder and Starfinder available in authentic 3D and augmented reality.
Mirrorscape, which is set to launch on iOS and Android on July 25th, has generated excitement among tabletop roleplaying gamers as an exciting experience that lets players interact with game pieces, terrains and minis in authentic 3D, whether they are around the table or around the world. Coverage from Wired, Wargamer, GamesRadarand Dicebreaker has been overwhelmingly positive, so buzz is growing! With Mirrorscape, players will be able to connect and play the legendary quests and adventures in the Pathfinder and Starfinder universes they know and love from the tabletop anytime, anywhere on their mobile devices.
Mirrorscape has already partnered with names like Dwarven Forge, Fat Dragon Games, Hero Forge, Reaper Minis, and Norse Foundry to create digital twins of the terrain, minis, and dice players love to make your adventure awesome. Your world-building will be easy and intuitive with terrain that stacks and snaps in place, or you can drop down pre-built maps for ready-made adventures. A Free Starter Set includes enough pieces to build caverns and dungeons and up to 10 free minis.
Mirrorscape is 100% aligned with Paizo’s vision for open and inclusive gaming and the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License. The Mirrorscape platform is designed to support a wide variety of rulesets and homebrew campaigns. As partners, Mirrorscape and Paizo will empower user-generated content and support, not restrict, player creativity.
Using the magic of AR on the iOS or Android device in your pocket, you can enjoy digital play on your actual tabletop with digital dice that bounce just like the real thing. In the near future, Mirrorscape is also planning to release its platform on AR glasses and headsets, meaning it won’t be long until players can experience the magic of a fully immersive AR tabletop where players can move their minis and build vast worlds for exploration with their hands, thanks to hand tracking and gesture control.
Get ready to download Mirrorscape on Apple App Store or Google Play on July 25th, and be ready for your next Pathfinder or Starfinder adventure in amazingly authentic 3D!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid8?July-2023-Organized-Play-Adventure-Previews July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews 2023-07-20T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-20T16:30:00.000-04:00 July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews Thursday, July 20, 2023 Hello, Starfinders! The Starfinder Society is hard at work investigating the Organization and their operations, including Project Dawn, a plot already set in motion that threatens the lives of millions. This month, a team of Starfinders is put in touch with Almina, a Starfinder from the past who personally knew the founders of the Organization. With information about the founders in hand, the Starfinders travel to Deepwater Prime to investigate a long-abandoned archeological site that the founders once excavated. This site is believed to have a connection to Ulumbia, an ancient civilization that had little historical impact on the planet and left even less archeological evidence behind. Your job? Uncover why the Organization is interested in ancient Ulumbia, determine if the Organization is still operating on Deepwater Prime, and follow up on any leads you unearth. Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia is a 5th- through 8th-level adventure written by Lau Bannenberg. This is a Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot scenario. Best of luck, Starfinders! Stay safe! Jessica Catalan Starfinder Society Developerr Illustration by Przemyslaw Golab Hello, Pathfinders! I hope you’re enjoying your summer so far! The sun is out, the temperatures are high, the beach is waving—but do you know who isn’t enjoying their summer vacation yet? The Dacilane Academy. Those poor students are stuck indoors, studying for exams, and attending boring classes, so J Dacilane has come up with a fantastic idea: a prank war! Calling on the Pathfinders for assistance, J sets up a fantastic clash between students, which starts to go haywire when a caravan of chaotic fey come to investigate what’s bringing the children so much joy! It’s up to the Pathfinders to make sure that the prank war stays lighthearted, and that no one gets hurt! Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War is a 3rd- through 6th-level adventure written by John Curtin. Left to Right: Illustrations by Bruno Mello and Nicolas Espinoza The long-awaited finale has come for the Year of Boundless Wonder! The Pathfinder Society, having discovered the root of Aslynn’s wicked plans, has decided they’re tired of her meddling and conspired to lay a trap for the night hag. The Waterfall, a member of the Decemvirate, has concocted a plan of attack alongside the Society’s own Zarta Dralneen; they intended to lure Aslynn into a controlled dreamscape to force her into the Material Plane and finish her off once and for all! With the assistance of the Ardis Scholars and Star the automaton, the trap should work as planned, but Aslynn is nothing if not crafty… Plan go off without a hitch? Please, I’m not a simple witch! These Pathfinders, they plan and scurry Let’s squash them all, in one big flurry! Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw is a 7th- through 10th-level adventure written by Lysle Kapp. This is the last metaplot scenario for the Year of Boundless Wonder. Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios July 2023 Organized Play Adventure Previews
Thursday, July 20, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
The Starfinder Society is hard at work investigating the Organization and their operations, including Project Dawn, a plot already set in motion that threatens the lives of millions. This month, a team of Starfinders is put in touch with Almina, a Starfinder from the past who personally knew the founders of the Organization. With information about the founders in hand, the Starfinders travel to Deepwater Prime to investigate a long-abandoned archeological site that the founders once excavated. This site is believed to have a connection to Ulumbia, an ancient civilization that had little historical impact on the planet and left even less archeological evidence behind. Your job? Uncover why the Organization is interested in ancient Ulumbia, determine if the Organization is still operating on Deepwater Prime, and follow up on any leads you unearth.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia is a 5th- through 8th-level adventure written by Lau Bannenberg. This is a Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot scenario.
Best of luck, Starfinders! Stay safe!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developerr
Hello, Pathfinders!
I hope you’re enjoying your summer so far! The sun is out, the temperatures are high, the beach is waving—but do you know who isn’t enjoying their summer vacation yet? The Dacilane Academy. Those poor students are stuck indoors, studying for exams, and attending boring classes, so J Dacilane has come up with a fantastic idea: a prank war! Calling on the Pathfinders for assistance, J sets up a fantastic clash between students, which starts to go haywire when a caravan of chaotic fey come to investigate what’s bringing the children so much joy! It’s up to the Pathfinders to make sure that the prank war stays lighthearted, and that no one gets hurt!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy’s First Great Prank War is a 3rd- through 6th-level adventure written by John Curtin.
The long-awaited finale has come for the Year of Boundless Wonder! The Pathfinder Society, having discovered the root of Aslynn’s wicked plans, has decided they’re tired of her meddling and conspired to lay a trap for the night hag. The Waterfall, a member of the Decemvirate, has concocted a plan of attack alongside the Society’s own Zarta Dralneen; they intended to lure Aslynn into a controlled dreamscape to force her into the Material Plane and finish her off once and for all! With the assistance of the Ardis Scholars and Star the automaton, the trap should work as planned, but Aslynn is nothing if not crafty…
Plan go off without a hitch?
Please, I’m not a simple witch!
These Pathfinders, they plan and scurry
Let’s squash them all, in one big flurry!Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag’s Claw is a 7th- through 10th-level adventure written by Lysle Kapp. This is the last metaplot scenario for the Year of Boundless Wonder.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid7?Pathfinder-Society-Year-5-Rule-Updates Pathfinder Society: Year 5 Rule Updates 2023-07-20T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-07-20T13:00:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Society: Year 5 Rule Updates Thursday, July 20, 2023 Greetings, Pathfinders! With Gen Con just two short weeks away, we figured it was time to reveal the changes for Year 5 of Pathfinder Society Play. The good news is, there are very few, and they’re all exciting! Illustration by Justin Usher Ancestry Availability Thanks to the efforts of the Pathfinder Society, as well as the ongoing events in Golarion, the following updates will be made effective August 3, 2023. The changeling versatile heritage is now freely available to all players, due to the Society’s adventures involving the night hag Aslynn. More adventurers of uncommon ancestries have joined the Pathfinder Society in the past few years, so the tengu and ratfolk ancestries will also be made freely available! Additionally, in preparation for their inclusion in the upcoming Pathfinder Player Core book, the tiefling and aasimar versatile heritages are freely available to all players. Boons for all of the above freely available options will be removed from the Boon Store as of August 3. Players who previously purchased those boons will have them updated to grant a free use of the resurrection ritual to those characters, as we have done for past ancestries. Finally, due to the influx of planar energy throughout Golarion, the geniekin versatile heritage will be reduced to 40 Achievement Points! This boon will also be updated to include the talos and ardande heritages from Pathfinder Rage of Elements upon its release. Retail Incentive Program Our Retail Incentive Program is designed to help players support those game stores and venues which host our games, often for free, while earning in-game benefits. Over the past year we’ve heard some recommendations to improve it, and I’m delighted to share the new version of the program now! You can download PDFs of the rules for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society now on the Retail Incentive Program page, which we’re also working on redesigning and making more prominent. The major changes are: Adding a new “heroic” tier, unlocked with a table spend of $100 or more Altering or replacing boons that reduced the gold cost of healing now that those benefits primarily use Achievement Points Making the benefits more versatile and/or slightly more useful Overall, the intention of programs like the RIP and the Accessory Perks is to provide incentives to players and GMs to support our products and venues. The goal is not for these to be hard rules, but to encourage GMs and organizers to adopt a “spirit of the law” reading of any of these programs to ensure all players are enjoying themselves. Thanks to all the volunteers who provided feedback on these revisions! Alex Speidel Organized Play Coordinator Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios Pathfinder Society: Year 5 Rule Updates
Thursday, July 20, 2023
Greetings, Pathfinders! With Gen Con just two short weeks away, we figured it was time to reveal the changes for Year 5 of Pathfinder Society Play. The good news is, there are very few, and they’re all exciting!
Ancestry Availability
Thanks to the efforts of the Pathfinder Society, as well as the ongoing events in Golarion, the following updates will be made effective August 3, 2023.
- The changeling versatile heritage is now freely available to all players, due to the Society’s adventures involving the night hag Aslynn.
- More adventurers of uncommon ancestries have joined the Pathfinder Society in the past few years, so the tengu and ratfolk ancestries will also be made freely available!
- Additionally, in preparation for their inclusion in the upcoming Pathfinder Player Core book, the tiefling and aasimar versatile heritages are freely available to all players.
- Boons for all of the above freely available options will be removed from the Boon Store as of August 3. Players who previously purchased those boons will have them updated to grant a free use of the resurrection ritual to those characters, as we have done for past ancestries.
- Finally, due to the influx of planar energy throughout Golarion, the geniekin versatile heritage will be reduced to 40 Achievement Points! This boon will also be updated to include the talos and ardande heritages from Pathfinder Rage of Elements upon its release.
Retail Incentive Program
Our Retail Incentive Program is designed to help players support those game stores and venues which host our games, often for free, while earning in-game benefits. Over the past year we’ve heard some recommendations to improve it, and I’m delighted to share the new version of the program now!
You can download PDFs of the rules for Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society now on the Retail Incentive Program page, which we’re also working on redesigning and making more prominent. The major changes are:
- Adding a new “heroic” tier, unlocked with a table spend of $100 or more
- Altering or replacing boons that reduced the gold cost of healing now that those benefits primarily use Achievement Points
- Making the benefits more versatile and/or slightly more useful
Overall, the intention of programs like the RIP and the Accessory Perks is to provide incentives to players and GMs to support our products and venues. The goal is not for these to be hard rules, but to encourage GMs and organizers to adopt a “spirit of the law” reading of any of these programs to ensure all players are enjoying themselves. Thanks to all the volunteers who provided feedback on these revisions!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorShay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid6?Update-from-Paizo-President-Jim-Butler Update from Paizo President Jim Butler 2023-07-19T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-07-19T13:00:00.000-04:00 Update from Paizo President Jim Butler Wednesday, July 19, 2023 It’s been a little over a year since I took over the helm at Paizo as president, and I wanted to give everyone a look behind the scenes at what’s been happening during that time as well as provide a look ahead. United Paizo Workers Before I became president, I was leading negotiations with the UPW to create the tabletop industry’s first-ever collective bargaining agreement. This wasn’t an easy task, and we didn’t always see eye-to-eye on all the issues, but we worked together for more than a year and found compromises to create an agreement that I believe works for both the company and its employees. That’s not the end of the process, of course, as the leadership team continues to work with the union on many day-to-day matters that running a company requires. We’ve had customers and companies reach out to us in concern about the unionization process. Yes, becoming unionized is serious business and brings significant changes, but it’s also brought an opportunity for the union and the management team to form stronger bonds that will serve us well in the future. To other business leaders in the industry who are concerned about unionization, I offer the immortal words of Douglas Adams: Don’t Panic! Rise of the ORC As some of you noticed earlier this year, there was a thing that happened with the Open Gaming License (OGL). Paizo and other publishers made the decision to leave the OGL and begin publishing under the Open RPG Creative (ORC) license. This wasn’t a decision we took lightly, but Paizo can no longer operate under a license that a corporate giant believed they could change, shake up, or cancel whenever it wanted to. That decision had other impacts, however. Abomination Vaults 5E, Starfinder’s Scoured Stars and Mechageddon! Adventure Paths, the Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide, and Pathfinder’s Howl of the Wild rulebook all had to move to 2024 to make room for the Player Core and GM Core ORC Remastered rulebooks coming out in November. The shift to the ORC license will also necessitate a change to our Compatibility License and Community Use Policy. We’ll have those available for public comment soon, and final versions will be released before the new Remaster books come out in November. We’re also taking the opportunity to introduce a new fan policy I think many artisans are going to love. Reorganizations I’ve been working with other members of Paizo’s leadership team to streamline operations throughout the company. The biggest changes have been merging the customer service team into the sales team, organized play into the marketing team, and the entirety of marketing under the sales and operations teams. These independent silos weren’t working the way they should, and now that they’re all under the same umbrella, they better share and work toward common goals to support our customers, distributors, and local game stores. The creative team also saw some changes, primarily merging teams that specialize along narrative (organized play scenarios, standalone adventure modules, and Adventure Paths), rules & lore (Lost Omens and general Pathfinder rulebooks), and Starfinder lines. We’ve also added the ability for us to create games outside of our traditional RPG fold, and you’ll see the first of those efforts, Elemental Stones, launch this fall. Pre-order it today! Mostly Remote With virtually all of Paizo working remotely since the start of the pandemic, we decided that Paizo would remain a remote workforce even after most lockdown protocols ended. We’re in the process of closing down our Redmond offices and warehouse, and we’ll be moving our warehouse operations a few miles up the road to Woodinville over the coming months. Outside the warehouse team, Paizo employees have additional states eligible for remote work (currently Colorado, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington). As we vacate the Redmond offices, we’ll likely have some downtime for Paizo.com and the forums as we move those servers to a new data center. We’ll let you know about that when we get a bit closer to the move. New Technology We’ve been operating Paizo’s finances on basic software for decades, but the time has come to invest in a new platform that can give us the business intelligence and integrations we need. Too many people at Paizo spend hours every week manually building reports from Excel files, so this change should result in a win for everyone. We’re in the final stages of moving over to a shiny new financial and analytics platform, which we’ll then use to integrate with a… New Store Yup. We’ll be replacing the current Paizo Store with a shiny new one. We’re still working out timelines for that, so stay tuned for future updates. The new finance platform needed to happen first, since the store needs to plug into something that can handle all the data. Some of the goals of the new store are to: Provide a responsive design across mobile, web, and tablet. Allow for an easy checkout process with more payment methods available. Offer a more robust reward program than the current Paizo Advantage. Allow for more robust subscription options, like the ability to skip a shipment or start with a specific book. Allow sidecarts for subscribers. Better organization and a Paizo-branded experience. New Forums The community is important to us, and we are investigating new platforms to provide a better forum experience (along with preserving the content of the current forums). As we finalize our decision, we’ll provide more updates to the community. Licensing Paizo’s goal with licensing is to serve the Pathfinder and Starfinder communities with amazing products from partners that resonate with gamers. We want to make your game experiences better, whether you play around the table at home, across a virtual table, or at your favorite local game store or convention. We’re looking for partners with a passion for the Pathfinder and Starfinder brands that can bring experiences to you in new ways and attract a wider audience. That’s why we partnered with Owlcat on the Kingmaker and Wrath of the Righteous games, and also why we’ve partnered with BKOM on Gallowspire Survivors and the Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults ARPG. Not only are these games fun for a large number of current Pathfinder and Starfinder players, but they’ll also bring in nufriends to experience tabletop for the first time. Bringing those new players into our games means making character creation easy, which we’ve done by partnering with Demiplane and Hero Lab Online. We have more work to do for new players, but we’re leveling up with new tools and an awesome community to guide them to amazing gaming experiences. The Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite programs have allowed community creators across the world a generous license to produce their own Pathfinder and Starfinder material using Paizo’s intellectual property, and make money for their efforts. Both communities continue to grow, and we're seeing more new, innovative material from Infinite creators every month. Pathfinder Fiction The fiction industry has been struggling for years outside a handful of very successful authors, and our previous Pathfinder Tales novels had the same challenges. We’re going to be trying out some new strategies to ensure making novels is profitable, but that means we need to create one! Novels let us tell stories in ways that our game products can’t and can reach a wider audience of fantasy readers, so I’m pleased to announce that we’ve greenlit a standalone Pathfinder novel for release in 2024. What that novel is about, and who its amazing author is, will be revealed in due time—but prepare to be entertained (and for some major, longstanding canon questions to be answered)! I’m really excited about the future, and I look forward to working with the Paizo team and our community to bring Pathfinder and Starfinder to wider audiences. What can you do to help? Take the opportunity to invite someone new to your gaming group, never miss another release by signing up for a subscription, make a leap into the Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society, and support your favorite local game store as you continue to explore the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder. Thanks again for supporting Paizo! Here’s to continuing to create lifelong friendships through gaming. Jim Tags: Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff Update from Paizo President Jim Butler
Wednesday, July 19, 2023
]]>It’s been a little over a year since I took over the helm at Paizo as president, and I wanted to give everyone a look behind the scenes at what’s been happening during that time as well as provide a look ahead.
United Paizo Workers
Before I became president, I was leading negotiations with the UPW to create the tabletop industry’s first-ever collective bargaining agreement. This wasn’t an easy task, and we didn’t always see eye-to-eye on all the issues, but we worked together for more than a year and found compromises to create an agreement that I believe works for both the company and its employees. That’s not the end of the process, of course, as the leadership team continues to work with the union on many day-to-day matters that running a company requires.
We’ve had customers and companies reach out to us in concern about the unionization process. Yes, becoming unionized is serious business and brings significant changes, but it’s also brought an opportunity for the union and the management team to form stronger bonds that will serve us well in the future. To other business leaders in the industry who are concerned about unionization, I offer the immortal words of Douglas Adams: Don’t Panic!
Rise of the ORC
As some of you noticed earlier this year, there was a thing that happened with the Open Gaming License (OGL). Paizo and other publishers made the decision to leave the OGL and begin publishing under the Open RPG Creative (ORC) license. This wasn’t a decision we took lightly, but Paizo can no longer operate under a license that a corporate giant believed they could change, shake up, or cancel whenever it wanted to.
That decision had other impacts, however. Abomination Vaults 5E, Starfinder’s Scoured Stars and Mechageddon! Adventure Paths, the Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide, and Pathfinder’s Howl of the Wild rulebook all had to move to 2024 to make room for the Player Core and GM Core ORC Remastered rulebooks coming out in November.
The shift to the ORC license will also necessitate a change to our Compatibility License and Community Use Policy. We’ll have those available for public comment soon, and final versions will be released before the new Remaster books come out in November. We’re also taking the opportunity to introduce a new fan policy I think many artisans are going to love.
Reorganizations
I’ve been working with other members of Paizo’s leadership team to streamline operations throughout the company. The biggest changes have been merging the customer service team into the sales team, organized play into the marketing team, and the entirety of marketing under the sales and operations teams. These independent silos weren’t working the way they should, and now that they’re all under the same umbrella, they better share and work toward common goals to support our customers, distributors, and local game stores.
The creative team also saw some changes, primarily merging teams that specialize along narrative (organized play scenarios, standalone adventure modules, and Adventure Paths), rules & lore (Lost Omens and general Pathfinder rulebooks), and Starfinder lines. We’ve also added the ability for us to create games outside of our traditional RPG fold, and you’ll see the first of those efforts, Elemental Stones, launch this fall. Pre-order it today!
Mostly Remote
With virtually all of Paizo working remotely since the start of the pandemic, we decided that Paizo would remain a remote workforce even after most lockdown protocols ended. We’re in the process of closing down our Redmond offices and warehouse, and we’ll be moving our warehouse operations a few miles up the road to Woodinville over the coming months. Outside the warehouse team, Paizo employees have additional states eligible for remote work (currently Colorado, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington).
As we vacate the Redmond offices, we’ll likely have some downtime for Paizo.com and the forums as we move those servers to a new data center. We’ll let you know about that when we get a bit closer to the move.
New Technology
We’ve been operating Paizo’s finances on basic software for decades, but the time has come to invest in a new platform that can give us the business intelligence and integrations we need. Too many people at Paizo spend hours every week manually building reports from Excel files, so this change should result in a win for everyone. We’re in the final stages of moving over to a shiny new financial and analytics platform, which we’ll then use to integrate with a…
New Store
Yup. We’ll be replacing the current Paizo Store with a shiny new one. We’re still working out timelines for that, so stay tuned for future updates. The new finance platform needed to happen first, since the store needs to plug into something that can handle all the data. Some of the goals of the new store are to:
- Provide a responsive design across mobile, web, and tablet.
- Allow for an easy checkout process with more payment methods available.
- Offer a more robust reward program than the current Paizo Advantage.
- Allow for more robust subscription options, like the ability to skip a shipment or start with a specific book.
- Allow sidecarts for subscribers.
- Better organization and a Paizo-branded experience.
New Forums
The community is important to us, and we are investigating new platforms to provide a better forum experience (along with preserving the content of the current forums). As we finalize our decision, we’ll provide more updates to the community.
Licensing
Paizo’s goal with licensing is to serve the Pathfinder and Starfinder communities with amazing products from partners that resonate with gamers. We want to make your game experiences better, whether you play around the table at home, across a virtual table, or at your favorite local game store or convention. We’re looking for partners with a passion for the Pathfinder and Starfinder brands that can bring experiences to you in new ways and attract a wider audience.
That’s why we partnered with Owlcat on the Kingmaker and Wrath of the Righteous games, and also why we’ve partnered with BKOM on Gallowspire Survivors and the Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults ARPG. Not only are these games fun for a large number of current Pathfinder and Starfinder players, but they’ll also bring in nufriends to experience tabletop for the first time.
Bringing those new players into our games means making character creation easy, which we’ve done by partnering with Demiplane and Hero Lab Online. We have more work to do for new players, but we’re leveling up with new tools and an awesome community to guide them to amazing gaming experiences.
The Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite programs have allowed community creators across the world a generous license to produce their own Pathfinder and Starfinder material using Paizo’s intellectual property, and make money for their efforts. Both communities continue to grow, and we're seeing more new, innovative material from Infinite creators every month.
Pathfinder Fiction
The fiction industry has been struggling for years outside a handful of very successful authors, and our previous Pathfinder Tales novels had the same challenges. We’re going to be trying out some new strategies to ensure making novels is profitable, but that means we need to create one!
Novels let us tell stories in ways that our game products can’t and can reach a wider audience of fantasy readers, so I’m pleased to announce that we’ve greenlit a standalone Pathfinder novel for release in 2024. What that novel is about, and who its amazing author is, will be revealed in due time—but prepare to be entertained (and for some major, longstanding canon questions to be answered)!
I’m really excited about the future, and I look forward to working with the Paizo team and our community to bring Pathfinder and Starfinder to wider audiences. What can you do to help? Take the opportunity to invite someone new to your gaming group, never miss another release by signing up for a subscription, make a leap into the Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society, and support your favorite local game store as you continue to explore the worlds of Pathfinder and Starfinder.
Thanks again for supporting Paizo! Here’s to continuing to create lifelong friendships through gaming.
Jim
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid5?Explore-the-World-of-Battlezoo-in-Pathfinder Explore the World of Battlezoo in Pathfinder Second Edition and Meet New Ancestries with Our New Kickstarter! 2023-07-18T14:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-18T14:30:00.000-04:00 Explore the World of Battlezoo in Pathfinder Second Edition and Meet New Ancestries with Our New Kickstarter! Tuesday, July 18th, 2023 Paizo has many partners who produce content under a variety of licenses, including media partners like Roll for Combat, who—in addition to streaming quality Pathfinder and Starfinder actual-play podcasts and running the RPG Superstar design talent competition—publish their own line of Pathfinder Second Edition rulebooks and adventures under the Battlezoo brand. Check out their newest Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign from Roll for Combat’s Director of Game Design, Mark Seifter! Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here. I’m excited to announce a new Kickstarter from Roll For Combat, which is live at http://kickstarter.rollforcombat.com! We’re working on a big setting book, World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles. We expect it to clock in at over 280 pages with eight lengthy and expansive new ancestries, two extensive heritages for wildfire leshies and galtzagorri sprites (all of which can be imported into Pathbuilder 2e), new familiars, pirate archetype feats, and more. And, of course, the highlight of the book—extensive information about an island chain called the Indigo Isles. World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles. Presented by Roll For Combat While the Indigo Isles are easy to fit into your favorite setting, including Golarion, with a few adjustments, it’s also a window into the world of Alacar, a setting we’re excited to build and explore along with you… and I do mean that part, literally. We want this to be a world where you can contribute ideas and see them reflected in the setting, and to that end, every tier will allow you to submit an idea for a small island, and we’ll choose the best of these, which I’ll give a full write-up in the book! So, this is your chance to pitch the island idea of your dreams and maybe see it in a published setting. In addition to myself—and potentially you!—this book is packed with amazing ideas from industry veterans and Paizo staffers past and present, including Paizo Development Manager of Narrative Linda Zayas-Palmer, Paizo Starfinder Society Developer Jessica Catalan, Paizo Adventure Path Developer Vanessa Hoskins, former Paizo Development Manager of Adventure Paths Ron Lundeen, former Paizo Senior Developer of Adventure Paths Patrick Renie, Paizo freelancer and Pathfinder Dark Archive cover author Mikhail Rekun, Paizo freelancer and Queerfinder mastermind Grady Wang, Level Up co-creator Paul Hughes, as well as a few other surprise authors. In World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles, you’ll find new ancestries, dragons, and detailed town gazetteers for any setting or world!] And if a book filled with dozens of story hooks and interesting NPCs that can be easily inserted into any campaign, new faith systems, nearly a dozen detailed town gazetteers, and maps of the islands and towns isn’t exciting enough for you… did I mention the dragons? We have over 20 pages dedicated to 15 new dragons, featuring the entire family of wild dragons from Battlezoo Ancestries: Dragons. These include the amber, cerulean, harlequin, indigo, and vermilion dragons as young, adult, and ancient foes that you can now pit against your players, or just use them as helpful NPCs as wild dragons love to party! One of the great things about this Kickstarter is that we have been working hard on this book all year, and it’s nearly complete. Right after the Kickstarter ends, all the PDFs and Foundry VTT modules will be released, and the print book will follow shortly after! Of course, I’ll be working on those new islands and adding them to the book, but we’ve planned on having all new islands complete and ready to go during the time Kickstarter takes to finish up the various paperwork (around two weeks). Moonshadow Isle illustration by Luis Salas Lastra World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles, about to explore the mysterious Moonshadow Isle, written by Bob World Builder! I hope you’ll check out the Kickstarter at http://kickstarter.rollforcombat.com. Feel free to ask me any questions in the comments below, and I’ll either answer them or direct them to the right person! Mark SeifterDirector of Game Design, Roll for Combat Author Bio: I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 8 PM Eastern and Saturdays at 1 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Explore the World of Battlezoo in Pathfinder Second Edition and Meet New Ancestries with Our New Kickstarter!
Tuesday, July 18th, 2023
Paizo has many partners who produce content under a variety of licenses, including media partners like Roll for Combat, who—in addition to streaming quality Pathfinder and Starfinder actual-play podcasts and running the RPG Superstar design talent competition—publish their own line of Pathfinder Second Edition rulebooks and adventures under the Battlezoo brand. Check out their newest Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign from Roll for Combat’s Director of Game Design, Mark Seifter!
Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here. I’m excited to announce a new Kickstarter from Roll For Combat, which is live at http://kickstarter.rollforcombat.com!
We’re working on a big setting book, World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles. We expect it to clock in at over 280 pages with eight lengthy and expansive new ancestries, two extensive heritages for wildfire leshies and galtzagorri sprites (all of which can be imported into Pathbuilder 2e), new familiars, pirate archetype feats, and more. And, of course, the highlight of the book—extensive information about an island chain called the Indigo Isles.
While the Indigo Isles are easy to fit into your favorite setting, including Golarion, with a few adjustments, it’s also a window into the world of Alacar, a setting we’re excited to build and explore along with you… and I do mean that part, literally. We want this to be a world where you can contribute ideas and see them reflected in the setting, and to that end, every tier will allow you to submit an idea for a small island, and we’ll choose the best of these, which I’ll give a full write-up in the book! So, this is your chance to pitch the island idea of your dreams and maybe see it in a published setting.
In addition to myself—and potentially you!—this book is packed with amazing ideas from industry veterans and Paizo staffers past and present, including Paizo Development Manager of Narrative Linda Zayas-Palmer, Paizo Starfinder Society Developer Jessica Catalan, Paizo Adventure Path Developer Vanessa Hoskins, former Paizo Development Manager of Adventure Paths Ron Lundeen, former Paizo Senior Developer of Adventure Paths Patrick Renie, Paizo freelancer and Pathfinder Dark Archive cover author Mikhail Rekun, Paizo freelancer and Queerfinder mastermind Grady Wang, Level Up co-creator Paul Hughes, as well as a few other surprise authors.
In World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles, you’ll find new ancestries, dragons, and detailed town gazetteers for any setting or world!]
And if a book filled with dozens of story hooks and interesting NPCs that can be easily inserted into any campaign, new faith systems, nearly a dozen detailed town gazetteers, and maps of the islands and towns isn’t exciting enough for you… did I mention the dragons? We have over 20 pages dedicated to 15 new dragons, featuring the entire family of wild dragons from Battlezoo Ancestries: Dragons. These include the amber, cerulean, harlequin, indigo, and vermilion dragons as young, adult, and ancient foes that you can now pit against your players, or just use them as helpful NPCs as wild dragons love to party!
One of the great things about this Kickstarter is that we have been working hard on this book all year, and it’s nearly complete. Right after the Kickstarter ends, all the PDFs and Foundry VTT modules will be released, and the print book will follow shortly after! Of course, I’ll be working on those new islands and adding them to the book, but we’ve planned on having all new islands complete and ready to go during the time Kickstarter takes to finish up the various paperwork (around two weeks).
Moonshadow Isle illustration by Luis Salas Lastra
World of Battlezoo: Indigo Isles, about to explore the mysterious Moonshadow Isle, written by Bob World Builder!I hope you’ll check out the Kickstarter at http://kickstarter.rollforcombat.com. Feel free to ask me any questions in the comments below, and I’ll either answer them or direct them to the right person!
Mark Seifter
Director of Game Design, Roll for CombatAuthor Bio:
I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 8 PM Eastern and Saturdays at 1 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord!Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6sid2?Brave-the-Elements Brave the Elements! 2023-07-14T16:30:00.000-04:00 2023-07-14T16:30:00.000-04:00 Brave the Elements! Friday, July 14th, 2023 Close your eyes and imagine a magician drawing upon ancient forces and casting a spell, bringing magic into the world. What spell do they cast? When you think of magic, what do you see? Conjured torrents, exploding fireballs, pillars of stone—these spells, by my estimation, are precisely the sort that never stray far from our minds. The elements are quite inseparable from magic and, indeed, from all life. Our reality could never exist without them; there would be no water in the creeks, no forests of trees, no sun shining in the sky if the elements had not been shaped into being at the dawn of creation. For me, exploring the Elemental Planes shares much in common with exploring different parts of my personality. I am a jann, a genie of the Universe who embodies all the elements simultaneously. They infuse my form, shaping my mind and body, and I can find aspects of myself within all of them. When I visit the Plane of Fire, I rediscover my passion and warmth. When I sail across the Plane of Water, I chart the vastness of my own heart. So too it must be for mortals, I think, who I’ve always imagined possess a unique ability to look into any plane they fancy and find a facet of themselves reflected back, a sort of universal empathy. If you journey across the Elemental Planes, I believe you too will discover much about yourself, as well. Think of each element as a friend, each with their own unique strengths and peculiarities. Examples of each element’s character abound, easily observed across the Elemental Planes and in the power wielded by elementalist spellcasters. A brief primer on the six elements follows, but there is much more that can be learned, and many secrets waiting to be discovered. Air: Adrift among the Elemental Cycle, air possesses a breezy aura of defiance. It’s frenetic and excitable, suited to creating sudden bursts of energy that leave nothing behind, though air magic can also be unpredictable. Like the elemental lord Hshurha, air is also invisible, and often used when an elementalist hopes their efforts can pass unnoticed. Earth: Earth is methodical, reliable, and steadfast, but some criticize its slow pace and focus on contemplation over action. It is life-giving and nurturing, making it an excellent choice for protection magic or spells to support and empower what strengths a target already has. Fire: Passionate but not always rageful, fire burns with intensity but quickly devours its fuel, left smoldering thereafter as it struggles not to go out. In addition to its destructive potential, fire is warm and joyful, and like the elemental lord Atreia, fire can be illuminating, revealing hidden intentions and banishing away frightful shadows. Metal: Metal is a melancholic element. It carries a sense of finality with it, like a play whose sad ending is clear from the opening scene. Metal never destroys with speed or passion; instead, it brings gradual but ensured destruction, like a rusty hinge that eventually becomes stuck. Water: As you’ve no doubt felt while sitting by a quiet pond, water can be soothing and peaceful, and is suited to magics that slowly bring stillness and calm. Of course, water can also channel the great ferocity of the tsunami and reshape terrain with rivers and waterfalls. It’s a fluid element, highly mutable and able to shift and change to take on the form of any vessel. Wood: Purifying and always growing, wood is an element of spring storms and rising tempers. In the Elemental Cycle, wood feeds into fire, providing the fuel that stokes great infernos. Elemental wood is a bountiful source of energy, perpetually replenishing its reserves, and can burrow through any barrier with ease. The book you hold presents my understanding of the elements and Elemental Planes, as much as it can be conveyed in writing. As I am well versed in the elements as a whole, but not each on its own merits, I have acquired texts from experts on the six individual elements, which you will find bound in this collection. I will return to describe the Churn of Elements at the end, the little-explored combinations of elemental magic and zones where the planes intersect. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Aziza Amani al-Fasih was born in the Universe to a family of avid jann travelers. She delights in tours of the Inner Sphere and especially in sharing her favorite spots with the many new friends she meets along her journeys. Her best travel tip is to never be cheap with your luggage! A solid, waterproof trunk with flame-resistant runes is essential for enjoying any tour through the elemental planes. Pathfinder Rage of Elements releases August 3rd at Gen Con, on paizo.com, and at your FLGS! Preorder yours today! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Rage of Elements Brave the Elements!
Friday, July 14th, 2023
Close your eyes and imagine a magician drawing upon ancient forces and casting a spell, bringing magic into the world. What spell do they cast? When you think of magic, what do you see? Conjured torrents, exploding fireballs, pillars of stone—these spells, by my estimation, are precisely the sort that never stray far from our minds. The elements are quite inseparable from magic and, indeed, from all life. Our reality could never exist without them; there would be no water in the creeks, no forests of trees, no sun shining in the sky if the elements had not been shaped into being at the dawn of creation.
For me, exploring the Elemental Planes shares much in common with exploring different parts of my personality. I am a jann, a genie of the Universe who embodies all the elements simultaneously. They infuse my form, shaping my mind and body, and I can find aspects of myself within all of them. When I visit the Plane of Fire, I rediscover my passion and warmth. When I sail across the Plane of Water, I chart the vastness of my own heart. So too it must be for mortals, I think, who I’ve always imagined possess a unique ability to look into any plane they fancy and find a facet of themselves reflected back, a sort of universal empathy.
If you journey across the Elemental Planes, I believe you too will discover much about yourself, as well.
Think of each element as a friend, each with their own unique strengths and peculiarities. Examples of each element’s character abound, easily observed across the Elemental Planes and in the power wielded by elementalist spellcasters. A brief primer on the six elements follows, but there is much more that can be learned, and many secrets waiting to be discovered.
Air: Adrift among the Elemental Cycle, air possesses a breezy aura of defiance. It’s frenetic and excitable, suited to creating sudden bursts of energy that leave nothing behind, though air magic can also be unpredictable. Like the elemental lord Hshurha, air is also invisible, and often used when an elementalist hopes their efforts can pass unnoticed.
Earth: Earth is methodical, reliable, and steadfast, but some criticize its slow pace and focus on contemplation over action. It is life-giving and nurturing, making it an excellent choice for protection magic or spells to support and empower what strengths a target already has.
Fire: Passionate but not always rageful, fire burns with intensity but quickly devours its fuel, left smoldering thereafter as it struggles not to go out. In addition to its destructive potential, fire is warm and joyful, and like the elemental lord Atreia, fire can be illuminating, revealing hidden intentions and banishing away frightful shadows.
Metal: Metal is a melancholic element. It carries a sense of finality with it, like a play whose sad ending is clear from the opening scene. Metal never destroys with speed or passion; instead, it brings gradual but ensured destruction, like a rusty hinge that eventually becomes stuck.
Water: As you’ve no doubt felt while sitting by a quiet pond, water can be soothing and peaceful, and is suited to magics that slowly bring stillness and calm. Of course, water can also channel the great ferocity of the tsunami and reshape terrain with rivers and waterfalls. It’s a fluid element, highly mutable and able to shift and change to take on the form of any vessel.
Wood: Purifying and always growing, wood is an element of spring storms and rising tempers. In the Elemental Cycle, wood feeds into fire, providing the fuel that stokes great infernos. Elemental wood is a bountiful source of energy, perpetually replenishing its reserves, and can burrow through any barrier with ease.
The book you hold presents my understanding of the elements and Elemental Planes, as much as it can be conveyed in writing. As I am well versed in the elements as a whole, but not each on its own merits, I have acquired texts from experts on the six individual elements, which you will find bound in this collection. I will return to describe the Churn of Elements at the end, the little-explored combinations of elemental magic and zones where the planes intersect.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Aziza Amani al-Fasih was born in the Universe to a family of avid jann travelers. She delights in tours of the Inner Sphere and especially in sharing her favorite spots with the many new friends she meets along her journeys. Her best travel tip is to never be cheap with your luggage! A solid, waterproof trunk with flame-resistant runes is essential for enjoying any tour through the elemental planes.
Pathfinder Rage of Elements releases August 3rd at Gen Con, on paizo.com, and at your FLGS! Preorder yours today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Rage of Elements
]]>Thursday, July 13th, 2023
Discover dwarven drama as you descend into the Darklands!
The magnificent metropolis of Highhelm displays millennia of dwarven history, yet one of its greatest heroes vanished over 9,000 years ago: High King Taargick, better known as the Sky King. Without his bravery and leadership, dwarves might never have colonized the surface world during their Quest for Sky migration. Understandably, most dwarves today revere Taargick’s memory more than they understand his mythologized deeds.
Yet one of the Sky King’s relics is about to reappear, kicking off a dangerous expedition into the Darklands. The PCs are archivists, explorers, and truth-seekers recruited by Highhelm’s foremost historians and have been entrusted with investigating this strange relic’s mysteries: discoveries that might at last unearth the apocryphal Sky King’s Tomb!
Inside the Sky King’s Tomb Player’s Guide, you’ll find player-friendly, spoiler-free lore and tips to create an exciting character suited for the Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path. Contents include:
- An overview of the Sky Citadel Highhelm, dwarven culture, and dwarven faiths.
- Character advice, including ways different character classes and ancestries might excel in this Adventure Path.
- New character backgrounds specifically designed for this Adventure Path, including Conservator, Child of Notoriety, and Historical Reenactor.
- An extensive guide to underground exploration and adventuring in the dark.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Sky King's Tomb
]]>Tuesday, July 11th, 2023
Jewel of the Indigo Isles is an epic three-part adventure for Pathfinder Second Edition packed into one enormous volume, and now it’s available on Foundry! In the module, you’ll find a colorful cast of pirates, scoundrels, queens, and heroes, all with gorgeous full-color illustrations. This leads to more assets and content than any other three-part adventure—it’s nearly as big as Pathfinder Kingmaker Adventure Path!
The adventure begins with the heroes on the hunt for the other half of an ancient pirate treasure map that belonged to the city’s legendary founder, and it leads through numerous twists and evolves into an action-packed finale with bigger battles and higher stakes than ever before, with the entire Indigo Isles at stake! Our publisher likes to describe it as Guardians of the Galaxy meets Indiana Jones in a fantasy pirate setting.
There are a lot of amazing adventures available for Pathfinder Second Edition, but we feel that Jewel of the Indigo Isles stands out not only because of the amount of art but also because of the attention to detail and interconnectivity throughout the adventure brought to you by industry veteran adventure authors and current or former Paizo developers Patrick Renie, Ron Lundeen, and Linda Zayas-Palmer, who have collectively developed hundreds of Paizo adventures and written over a dozen Paizo adventure path volumes. Throughout the adventure, Jewel of the Indigo Isles takes into account multiple approaches and outcomes, including the possibility of failing if the heroes are vanquished at different points along the way. Six unique backgrounds allow the heroes to tie themselves directly into the story, with special payoffs that occur along the way for each background so that as the ongoing adventure’s overall story unfolds, so does each hero’s personal story.
None of the opponents is a standard beast found in mainstream bestiaries. Found either in the adventure itself or the Battlezoo Bestiary, every encounter in Jewel of the Indigo Isles is a new surprise that requires the heroes to learn as they go along, with multi-stage battles, large-scale assaults, dynamic chases, environmental effects, and more! The Foundry module has absolutely everything you need for all those monsters, from statistics down to art assets (and quite a few of the creatures have a unique art asset for the adventure rather than reusing the Battlezoo Bestiary art); there’s no need to purchase the Battlezoo Bestiary module in order to run it.
The adventure supports the Battlezoo Bestiary monster parts system, allowing the heroes to effortlessly craft new magic items out of the parts of monsters they overcome while also providing all the information necessary to run a game using only the standard rules. You decide!
The titular setting for Jewel of the Indigo Isles is a small island chain that can be inserted into just about any fantasy setting, including Golarion, with ease, though it has hints of its own new setting as well. Rather than being filled with familiar ancestries like humans, elves, and dwarves, the Indigo Isles are home to brand-new, never-before-seen ancestries. Parrot-like g’mayun, who are the most common in the adventure’s starting city, recovered from the brink of being converted into demons long ago, while porcine orpok, whom the heroes visit later on, work hard, play hard, and have a vibrant food culture. All in all, there are seven new ancestries and heritages that make up the majority of the inhabitants of the isles, and thus of the cast of characters the heroes will encounter... and that’s not taking into account the brand new wild dragons who live side by side with other ancestries!
In order to bring the setting to life, Jewel of the Indigo Isles includes two lengthy gazetteers detailing major settlements in the isles. The first is Rumplank, a raucous, festive, rough-and-tumble city that has come to be the largest and most influential in the Indigo Isles and is where the story begins. The second is Seaview, a city populated mostly by orpok with a thriving food scene, which plays an important role in the second adventure. Both Rumplank and Seaview come to life in the words of their inhabitants, complete with details, plot hooks, maps, and a host of assorted characters to use in-game.
If you’re interested but aren’t sure (or just want some cool free swag), we’ve released the first chapter of the adventure, with multiple encounter areas and sessions worth of content, as well as pregenerated characters, a player-friendly city gazetteer, and more for free at https://battlezoo.com/products/jewel-of-the-indigo-isles-free-first-chapter-pdf.
You can find the new Foundry release at https://battlezoo.com/products/jewel-of-the-indigo-isles-for-foundry-vtt.
Inside the Jewel of the Indigo Isles for Foundry VTT you’ll find:
- An epic adventure spanning levels 1-11 for Pathfinder Second Edition
- Written by current or former veteran Paizo adventure developers, and the module was coded by the same developers that bring Paizo adventures to Foundry
- Easily insert the Indigo Isles island chain into your own setting or the world of Golarian!
- Discover a host of brand-new ancestries
- Six new backgrounds, each with their own distinctive complications and fates in the adventure
- Two lengthy gazetteers with lore on major settlements found in the isles
- Lavishly illustrated with a plethora of full-color art, all with Foundry assets
- No more PC meta-gaming! Every monster found in the adventure is new or from the Battlezoo Bestiary
- Full optional support for crafting items using the Battlezoo Bestiary monster parts system
- Check out the first chapter of the adventure for FREE at com
One of two massive gazetters!
Mark Seifter
Director of Game Design, Roll for CombatAuthor Bio:
I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 8 PM Eastern and Saturdays at 1 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord!
Friday, July 7, 2023
A GUIDED TOUR
With so many places to go, you would be forgiven for not knowing where to start or what to do once you arrived at a new destination. Thankfully, two of the galaxy’s greatest travel writers have pitched in to presentStarfinder Ports of Call, providing insider commentary and local secrets that would never appear in some off-the-shelf guide published by AbadarCorp. Please meet authors Moscaru (host shirren) and Sprax (female skittermander)! Their latest publication is Near Misses in Near Space: 17 New Death-Defying Destinations.Moscaru
Although previously known as the author of the bestselling “Held in All Four Arms” romance novels, Moscaru met their own true love: travel. Now inseparable from their coauthor Sprax, Moscaru brings a cultured, historical, and analytical perspective to understanding every destination. Their tireless work in highlighting local traditions and voices has helped them win three Drifty awards as well as receive an honorary doctorate from the Qabarat University of Xenoanthropology and Xenoarchaeology. When between trips, Moscaru enjoys quiet afternoons spent with a good book and their klikharps, Sonata and Cacophos III.Sprax
A precocious epicurean and fearless social butterfly, Sprax set out to travel the galaxy at a young age. Her charm and sense of reckless wonder have won her friends across a hundred worlds—as well as earning two Drifty awards for excellent travel journalism and placing seven times on the Iron Inevitable, an annual list of explorers who somehow survived self-inflicted disasters. No matter the danger, her observations helpfully capture the insights, entertainment, shortcuts, and possibilities of the galaxy’s most daring destinations. She knows how to scream “I’m sorry, I was trying to help” in over 60 languages.These two well-traveled guides are excited to take you on a tour of the galaxy—and what better place to start than Golarion World, a planetary theme park exploring the lost world of Golarion?
Sprax: Golarion World! The cheeriest place in the universe, full of fun, thrills, and good eats all enjoyed through the lens of history! I’ve never seen lost Golarion with my own eyes, of course, but if living in the Inner Sea region was half as exciting as riding the Eye of Abendego water coaster or watching the lich Tar-Baphon’s hourly assault in the Siege of Absalom stunt spectacular, then I wish I had a time machine! Ask anyone who’s been there: a trip to Golarion World is just as good as a journey into the past!
Moscaru: I enjoy delightful diversions such as Golarion World as much as the next shirren, but I have some doubts about its historical authenticity. The New Horizons Luxury Retreats executive who planned the park is supposedly a history student, but they clearly made some accommodations to entertain guests. This isn’t a disparagement! Far from it. Golarion World’s expansive theme parks are chock full of rides and shops that are sure to bring a smile to your face. In fact, there’s so much to see and do, you’ll need to spend at least a week there. Just don’t expect to come home with accurate knowledge about lost Golarion’s past.
Sprax: Her Infernal Majestrix Abrogail Thrune is hilarious! On my last visit to Cheliax Land, I followed her around for a full hour, asking about her dealings with devils, and she kept finding new and sidesplitting ways to insult me! She didn’t repeat even one!
Moscaru: I’ve noticed that Queen Eutropia Stavian always has a gaggle of adoring children in her wake, saying they want to grow up to be just like her. It’s not easy being a role model like that. I must applaud the cast members’ commitment, acting skills, and boundless patience.
Sprax: And their diabolism!
Moscaru: Excuse me?
Sprax: Abrogail Thrune! She told me that if I made an infernal pact, I could skip the line to ride the Screaming Jungle hovercoaster.
Moscaru: Ha, well, I’m certain she was just staying in character.
Sprax: And then another actor in a realistic devil outfit appeared suddenly—sent Abrogail screaming—and said I could ride the hovercoaster nine times if I just signed his fancy release form, so I—
Moscaru: Ohhhh... I shouldn’t be surprised that I leave you alone in a theme park for half a day and you manage to sell your soul.
And if the thrilling rides, interactive experiences, and “historically inspired” food options aren’t enough to entice you, worry not! Golarion World boasts an exciting selection of souvenirs and collectibles—something for every eye and every credit bank!
Looking for more of Sprax and Moscaru’s tour of the galaxy? Pick up a copy of Starfinder Ports of Call at your friendly local game store or on paizo.com!
Thursday, July 6, 2023
OPC Musings
Happy July, everybody! I hope those of you who attended Pride events last month had a lovely time; I certainly enjoyed Seattle Pride. Now, however, is the month of a different sin. Tragically not Sloth, there’s too much to do!
Gen Con is less than a month away! We’ll have over 500 tables of games running in Indianapolis and several hundred sessions online as well. I can’t wait to see the Sagamore filled to the brim once again; Gen Con’s a lot of work, but the dopamine hit is worth it. After that, no rest for the wicked—we’ve got plenty to do this fall between the Pathfinder Remaster, fall conventions, and several other things I’m so close to being able to talk about.
Luckily, this month’s update is much shorter than last month’s! Look out for a blog later this month about the Pathfinder Society rule changes for Year 5, but for now, let’s dive in.
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on July 26, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-16: Dacilane Academy's First Great Prank War•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-17: Trapping the Hag's Claw•
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-05: Unearthing Ulumbia•
•part of a subscription
First Seeker Election
Last month we announced the four candidates to be the next First Seeker of the Starfinder Society! If you haven’t checked out the blog already, head over to meet Aurora Everbright, Dr. Heldin Sevaile, Nykiti Lampadephoros, and Sarmak.
On Paizo Live last week I also revealed the campaign posters for the candidates! The art team hit it out of the park with these. Head over to paizo.com/firstseeker to download the posters so you can print them out and plaster them all over your game store’s walls.
The ballot will open on August 3 with the launch of SFS #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers at Gen Con. We encourage everybody to play through the scenario as many times as you want before casting your vote! The polls close on October 31, 2023.
Sanctioning Update
We’ve had a busy month in the sanctioning mines! Last month we released sanctioning for The Enmity Cycle, the standalone Pathfinder adventure, as well as Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, the latest infusion of Golarion lore. We also posted sanctioning documents for both A Few Flowers More and Operation Seaside Park, the two Free RPG Day adventures for this year (for Pathfinder and Starfinder, respectively). Remember that after Free RPG Day, these adventures are not permitted to be run for credit until July 25, 2023.
We’ve been hard at work getting Pathfinder Rage of Elements ready for Gen Con, and I think you’ll see it ready for play on the first day of the show! The Stolen Fate and Drift Hackers Adventure Paths are also ready to fly as soon as the sanctioning documents are in my hands, which should be any day now. After that, our focus will turn to the Sky King’s Tomb AP, as well as the twin knockout punches of Starfinder Enhanced and the new Pathfinder Player Coreand GM Core.
GM Recognition
This month, two new Campaign Service Coins were awarded to volunteers by their RVC. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay[at]paizo[dot]com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Joe Blomquist, who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #876
Jeff Stop, who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #877
Conventions
Watch this space next month for what I hope will be some very exciting news on the convention front! I’m not able to discuss it just yet, but we’ve got some big news coming.
Until then, I’ll remind you all that in addition to Gen Con in a little under a month (!!!), there are plenty of local conventions this summer and fall. Check out our Conventions calendar to see where you can find Paizo Organized Play activities!
I told you this month was shorter! Until next time—Explore! Report! Cooperate! And, apparently, gossip?
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, July 5th, 2023
STILL ALIVE!
Yup, that’s exactly what we were shouting at the end of this marathon, since our party of gunslingers was somehow, someway, still alive. Not only that, the Black Powder Cadre is coming off a clean run in this latest marathon, where we rifled out enough critical hits to make clutch situations look easy. In case you need to catch up on Order of the Amber Die’s project, here’s a good place to start:
We plan our marathons around the schedules of the teachers in our group, so we had a little more time off between sessions this time around. This gave us a chance to catch up with Rob Pontious of Know Direction, who put together a closer look at the project so far. Since Rob is also an OAD member, he delved into some of the big questions surrounding our project, including this one: why did we choose to play all gunslingers? Give it a read and find out! In the meantime, here are the stats on the latest marathon:
- Adventures: Ruins of Gauntlight and Hands of the Devil
- Marathon Length: 56hrs, 35min
- Session Hours: 35hrs, 30min
As this was our third marathon, our goal was to finish up Ruins of Gauntlight and head down into the middle levels of the Abomination Vaults. On levels five through seven of the megadungeon, we entered the next volume of the Adventure Path, Hands of the Devil. Most importantly for us, though, was that we squared off against Vanessa Hoskins, an author we hadn’t faced before. After playing more than 150 published adventures by dozens of writers over the years, it’s a fresh treat when we encounter someone whose work we aren’t extensively familiar with. We still have a chunk of the adventure to play through, but here’s one thing that even our most jaded dungeon crawlers agreed on: Vanessa will surprise you, so expect anything.
Highlights from Marathon 3
- Just because this Adventure Path focuses on a massive dungeon doesn’t mean that everything takes place there, and it certainly doesn’t mean that there aren’t great opportunities for roleplaying. In search of a Roseguard icon known as the Cooperative Blade, we pursued the slighted blacksmith, Carman Rajani, to a forest cave outside of town. The smith got the jump on us and was able to do to an overconfident Tess what no man had done thus far—maim her with one of the biggest hits of the campaign! Carman had the party’s attention, and Tess listened with bated breath as he talked about being the new, rightful mayor of Otari. She brashly offered the party’s aid—as the future Mrs. Rajani, of course. Carman found his way to Tess’s heart and helped the Black Powder Cadre find their way to a deeper level of the megadungeon.
- In case you can’t tell, we like to test RPG absolutes. This time, we tackled the adage “never split the party.” Two characters became separated when they were shoved down a chute by an invisible creature on level four. One of them was Maloika, and goblin curiosity being what it is, he led Zoric on a foray of their own. What happened next was a cinematic moment that will stand out long after our project is over—reminiscent of the first time we saw the pirate ship in The Goonies. As the pair waded through a watery passage of unworked stone, into view came the long-sought remains of the rogue Otari himself—one of the original members of the Roseguard!
- Our old buddy, Joe O’Brien from the Glass Cannon Network, joined us on our third day of dungeon-crawling while rocking the Beast Gunner archetype. We welcomed this new gunslinger into the Cadre by aiming straight for his head, after several characters became confused by a gibbering mouther accompanied by grothlut fleshwarps. Big props, though! Joe survived a precarious PvP shootout and then offered up his Hit Point total for the last few rounds: one!
- We’ve got a bunch of soccer fans in the Order who are eager for the Women’s World Cup this summer, and we’re also known to grab seats together for Philly Union matches. Many thanks to Vanessa, who gave us something we’ve always wanted: our first VIP box, complete with a screen showing the best camera angles! The only problem was that the box overlooked a creepy arena instead of a soccer field, and that a couple of poltergeists wouldn’t give up their chairs from the last match. Instead of fighting them for the best spot in the house, we simply showed them what they had been struggling to find for the past 500 years: a way out of the megadungeon.
- While exploring some old holding cells in the Vaults, we came across several disgusting amalgamations of aged flesh and bone known as shanrigols. These unused remnants of fleshwarping experiments seemed like they could be dangerous, but we were just too tempted by a key that gleamed inside one of the heaps. Since they didn’t attack immediately, we seized an opportunity unique to a party of gunslingers. Our front characters knelt, the back ones stood, and we created a perfect two-rank line formation that would have made the Duke of Wellington proud. Weapons aimed, we waited for Vlai’s order. FIRE!
The Arsenal
We’ve tried to describe our GM’s style a few different ways over the years, but for this campaign, just imagine yourself in the bullet ballet of a John Woo film. Think muzzle flashes in the dark, black powder cartridges falling in slow motion to the dungeon floor, the distinctive crack of a ricochet as it mars a statue, and the crunching sound that wood makes when a door gets splintered open with a scattergun. Oh, and there are plenty of “click-clicks” around the table, because reloading is just plain fun and it happens A LOT. Adam loves to make sound effects, and for this campaign we all join in. Toss in some of Zack Hemsey’s “Nice to Meet Me” in the background, and you’ve got a feel for what it’s like at our table.
Character Deaths
Zero. We might be getting cocky.
Best Quote from Marathon 3
(Maloika, being severely mauled by Jaul Mezmin, a werewolf)
Sean: “Dude, please, I can’t die to this guy; it’s part of my character’s story. I have to defeat him and tell Keleeno.”
Adam: (stands, picks up the Amber Die) “Forget your PC’s story. The Amber Die writes the stories here! (throws it across the entire table) NATURAL 20, BABY!”
Current Situation
Breen’s dragon-mouth pistol and Vlai’s scattergun helped us get past Volluk, the swarmy mini-boss on level four. We proceeded to shoot through level five, but when we said author Vanessa Hoskins will surprise you, we meant it. We eventually found ourselves on a balcony overlooking an arena, and down on the floor—lying dormant—was a reddish, gargantuan-sized mound of discarded fleshwarping materials. Better yet, behind this monstrosity was a 15ft. diameter gong, suspended by sturdy chains. What red-blooded adventurer could resist the temptation to shoot a patio-sized gong with the biggest firearm in Pathfinder Guns & Gears? Thus, a harmona gun was loaded, shouldered, and discharged. The gong shuddered loud enough to be heard over in the Emerald Spire. Then, the behemoth shuddered.
We’re about to blow open a whole new meaning for pink mist.
More Content
Our table was brought to life with the help of Blue Table Painting for the miniatures, and Black Bard Studios for custom adventure-specific miniatures/terrain.
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Tags: Community, Order of the Amber Die, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, June 30, 2023
My most honored friends—you who have held true to your word and our mission, you who have been faithful through centuries of toil, you who continue to strive for the prosperity of our nation—to you do I address my final thoughts.
With heavy heart, I abdicated my throne, and now, with a heart made even heavier, I find that I must leave you. I cast no aspersions on the fine work and skillful labor lavished on the tomb prepared for my body once my soul departs. The tomb’s beauty and quality truly befit a king—even this High King—and showcase the artistry of our people, which we have honed through generations of diligent attention and expert skill. I do not spurn this gift lightly. I want nothing more than to remain in this place, the one from which I first beheld the sky—the place where I felt the sweet fulfillment of Torag’s promise. I turn from it only because I fear to bring more bloodshed upon you, were my body laid to rest here within Koldukar.
I can almost hear your objections. You look around at the sheer magnificence of our new home. You see in it the brilliance of our people. Is this not the pinnacle of our ability as engineers? Have we not worked the vaulted arches, the carved pillars, and the deep-set recesses out of purest stone, developing the skill of our ancestors and pushing it to new heights? Have we not established a powerful kingdom that boasts centers of learning and martial training, temples to our honored gods, forges of intense power, and workshops unparalleled on this planet? And have we not designed all this magnificence to withstand the mightiest attack?
Yes, I can hear you voicing these fine questions. Yes, I know that our achievements have amazed and delighted not only our people, but also our allies on the surface. Yes, I know that Koldukar and our other surface homes are now dubbed ‘Sky Citadels.’ They are, without question, the last redoubt both for our people and for our allies. Between the ingenious construction of our defenses and our military strategy, I have no fear of us ever losing them to our foes. And I am justly proud of our work to expand our nation and to construct other, equally defensible and glorious Sky Citadels throughout the land. Dongun Hold, Highhelm, Kravenkus, Janderhoff—all these and more ground us ever more securely in our destined home. We have achieved our Quest for Sky, and we will not be displaced.
I look back at the faith and zeal, the struggle and loss, the heartbreak and determination that fueled us for centuries on our Quest for Sky. I am mindful that Torag was our inspiration and our guide. He alone gave us this sacred mission for reasons beyond our ken. When we have held to that faith, we have prospered; our periods of greatest turmoil and pain occurred when that faith wore thin. I accept that Torag sanctioned the incessant conflict of our march, for he never shies from the hammer of war.
Even so, I now see that we did not need to displace the orcs nor fight them so fanatically. We could have looked for peaceful solutions and need not have slain so very many as we passed through their lands. Had they a king, I would duly apologize for the terror and death that we wrought.
Mindful of the battles that continue, I wish to spare my beloved Koldukar from any further bloodshed on my behalf—herein lies the beginning and end of my motivation. I will don my armor once more and leave. My tomb will be unmarked so that my enemies, fierce and many as they are, will have no additional cause to trouble you.
May Torag’s blessing be ever upon you,
Taargick, ever honored to have served as your kingUSING THIS BOOK
The Sky Citadels marked the height of dwarven architecture and engineering. Built at the end of the centuries-long Quest for Sky, these massive fortresses provided far more than just safety, encompassing entire cities and fostering dwarven ingenuity. They were also symbols of determination and hope for dwarves, a monument to the accomplishment of an entire people who persevered through immense difficulty and doubt—though they also created some of their own problems, as they drove orcs before them and unknowingly released Darklands horrors behind them. Though the fortunes of the dwarves have proven less reliable, these bastions yet stand, and several continue to thrive.
While Highhelm wasn’t the first Sky Citadel, it has proven itself arguably the most important and certainly the most influential. The undisputed center of dwarven culture today, Highhelm has a depth, complexity, and richness in its fabled halls that place it among Golarion’s finest cities. Dwarves of all kinds, be they holtaksen, ergasken, or grondasken, call the Sky Citadel their home, and the city even houses large populations of other ancestries. This mixing of ancestral cultures and traditions, combined with influence from Highhelm’s neighbors, makes the city unique among the active Sky Citadels. It’s simultaneously a city that’s undeniably dwarven in its nature, but also one that draws from non-dwarven traditions to create a culture unlike anywhere else.
This volume presents an in-depth look at this remarkable and unique metropolis. The first chapter offers a general overview of Highhelm with detailed sections on its history, culture, and people, including government, trade, customs, and notable figures. To truly understand dwarves, one must understand their clan system, here explained in exquisite detail. A gazetteer of the city and its surroundings comprises the second chapter, offering specifics on Highhelm’s three major sections. For each section, the gazetteer presents neighborhoods, locations, notable people, current events, and player options. The third chapter provides even more player options, including ancestry feats and legendary gear, as well as new monsters and the stalwart defender, an archetype representing the defensive techniques of the warriors of Highhelm. This book also details the deities of the entire dwarven pantheon for the first time.
Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm is available now at your FLGS and on paizo.com!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, June 29, 2023
This is it! After months of collaborative work, we are pleased to present the final version of the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License! The license is a system-agnostic, perpetual, and irrevocable open gaming license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics so as to encourage collaboration and innovation in the tabletop-gaming space. After much commentary and iteration, the ORC License and accompanying ORC AxE (Answers and Explanations) document are now final and ready to be used by game publishers large and small.
We’ve posted the final drafts below. The public commentary portion of this process is now complete, and there will be no further changes. We’re grateful to everyone who contributed thoughts, criticisms, and suggestions since this process started back in February. We literally could not have done it without you, and we look forward to the amazing products the community will create using this license in the future.
The final text of the ORC License has been submitted to the Library of Congress and formally published on the website of at azoralaw.com/orclicense">Azora Law, the legal firm that conceived of and drafted it. All currently posted versions of the final ORC License text should be considered the Interim Final ORC License and ORC AxE. As soon as copyright registration is finalized, these documents will be updated with the final copyright registration number, which we expect will be ready in about six months. In the meantime, publishers are free to begin using the ORC License right now. No other elements of this document will be changing in the future.
Azora Law Managing Partner Brian Lewis and representatives from Paizo, Chaosium, and other publishers will be offering a panel on the ORC License at the upcoming Gen Con Indy 2023 in early August, where we will answer questions about the license and give suggestions on how best to use it.
From a purely Paizo-based perspective, we will shortly be updating our Community Use and Pathfinder Compatibility Licenses to incorporate the finalized ORC License. Watch this space in the coming weeks for more information regarding these company-specific documents.
Thanks again for helping us to get there. Now let’s make some games!
Download the Orc License
Download the Redlined Orc License
Download the Orc AxE
Download the Redlined Orc AxE
Join the conversation
Thursday, June 29, 2023
Hello, Pathfinders!
What’s this month’s new gossip, you ask? New faces popping up around the Grand Lodge and the Maze of the Open Road!
Spotted chatting with Fola Barun and touring the Grand Lodge was a handsome man with tattoos and gorgeous hair. Rumor is his name is Taiwalei and he hails from around the Okaiyo Ocean. He’s been seen by a number of different agents shadowing venture-captains and talking about leadership strategies, while also discussing the Maze of the Open Road and its recent weird fluctuations. The most fascinating part, however, is that he seems to be juggling the attentions of both Fola and our own Mr. Available, Eando Kline! Who knows what that could bring come springtime?
The other face magically appearing around the Grand Lodge? A djinni! Safa hails from Qadira, though according to my sources, they’ve traveled as far as Jalmeray and, of course, all over the Plane of Air! They showed up accompanied by Venture-Captain Esmayl ibn Qaradi—no confirmation of romance between the two yet! Apparently, Safa recently saw the end of a terrible genie-binding (good riddance, I say!) and is taking the time to explore the Pathfinder Society and see what we’re all about. Rumor is that they’re planning a trip out to Jalmeray soon and plan to act as leadership for some Pathfinders. Looks like our venture-captains are about to get a breath of fresh air!
That’s all I’ve seen so far! Tune in next month when I go undercover to discover who Gorm has been visiting every Fireday, what exactly is written in Kreighton’s secret journals, when we’ll see an update from Sorrina’s new experiments, where the Waterfall has been buying all of her dresses, and why I can’t seem to get into Ambrus’s quarters anymore!
With adoration,
Your Beloved Venture-GossipExplore! Report! Cooperate! Gossip!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
This month’s new Pathfinder and Starfinder releases invite you to walk the halls of Highhelm, take your fate into your own hands, and follow the Organization’s trail of conspiracy ever deeper. Check out these products at your FLGS, bookstore, or on paizo.com!
Looking forward to more Paizo news? Join us this Friday, June 30th at 4 p.m. Pacific for the return of Paizo LIVE—our monthly fireside chat show on Twitch!
Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm
DELVE THE MOUNTAIN DEEP!
When the first dwarves reached the surface of Golarion, they constructed enormous keeps to serve as their new home. The mightiest of these keeps was Highhelm, a Sky Citadel built deep within the Five Kings Mountains. While other Sky Citadels have fallen since those ancient days, Highhelm holds strong, serving as one of the major centers of dwarven culture. Delve into Emperor’s Peak to experience Highhelm in all its glory. Learn about everyday life in the city, dwarven culture, and the various clans who influence the Sky Citadel. Explore the city’s layers and surroundings, each featuring mysterious locations and sites of intrigue suitable for a multitude of adventures. Brave heroes and canny adventurers can even visit Highhelm for animal companions, martial training, new equipment, and more! What secrets will you find in the depths of Highhelm?
Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm is also available in a faux-leather bound, metallic debossed Special Edition.
Starfinder: Angels of the Drift
A bold crew of adventurers must race to an isolated world to stop a catastrophic war for faster-than-light technology!
In the science-fantasy universe of the bestselling Starfinder Roleplaying Game, five down-on-their-luck mercenaries sign on to help a robotic avatar of the hyperspace dimension bring starship technology to a previously uncontacted planet. But with sinister forces bent on exploiting the new world, it'll take all the heroes' guns, wits, and magic to make it off their space station alive… From Starfinder RPG co-creator James L. Sutter (Pathfinder: Runescars) and artist Edu Menna (Army of Darkness) comes the launch of a brand-new, out-of-this-world adventure!
Featuring playable character stats for Navasi, the iconic envoy, and new character options based on the content of the exciting comic - including a new playable species - all officially sanctioned by the Starfinder Society! The Starfinder RPG Rules Appendix has been written by Alexander Augunas!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #192: Worst of All Possible Worlds (Stolen Fate 3 of 3)
FACE YOUR FINAL FATE!
The defenders of destiny have traveled all over Golarion ....spoiler
and to the far reaches of reality itself
...in search of the elusive cards from the Deck of Destiny and now possess most of the once-scattered magical harrow deck. Yet unforeseen complications lie in wait, for the gathering of the final cards will be no simple matter... The Stolen Fate Adventure Path concludes with “Worst of All Possible Worlds,” a complete adventure for 18th- to 20th-level characters!
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Darklands Dangers Multi-Pack
DANGERS IN THE DARK!
The notorious subterranean Darklands hold as many dangers as they do treasures! Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Darklands Dangers Multi-Pack provides ready-to-use caverns and tunnels for the busy Game Master. Whether heroes are exploring an underground monster’s den, caves riddled with strange fungi, flooded passageways, or sprawling lava tubes, these deadly depths have you covered with four different combat maps in all! With the Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Darklands Dangers Multi-Pack, you’ll be ready the next time your players delve into the darkness!This set includes two flip mats, each measuring 24" × 30" unfolded, and 8" × 10" folded. Usable by experienced GMs and novices alike, Pathfinder Flip-Mats fit perfectly into any Game Master’s arsenal!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-03: Project Dawn
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
After foiling a vicious robbery, the Starfinder Society is hot on the trail of the Organization, a mysterious and violent criminal syndicate whose true name remains unknown. A team of clever Starfinders are dispatched to the planet Verces to investigate Dayside Inc., a shell corporation with suspected ties to the Organization. Your orders are simple: sneak in, snoop around, and don’t get caught! But intel uncovered at Dayside Inc. hints that the Organization is planning something that will threaten the lives of millions. Who is the Organization? What is Project Dawn? And most importantly, do the Starfinders have time to stop it?
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-15: In Glorious Battle
A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 9th- through 12th-level characters.
Though Tar-Baphon’s malevolent presence is thought to be the scourge of Ustalav and the Gravelands, it’s also distinctly felt within the Hold of Belkzen. Belkzen has been preparing for the next assault since the Battle of Nine Broken Skulls, when Tar-Baphon attempted to wipe out Belkzen, making them an example to the rest of Avistan.However, Belkzen won that battle, with a pivotal role played by the Burning Suns, led by Mahja Firehair. The Whispering Way, though, is patient, and while the orcs won a brief respite, they are not safe. One of Tar-Baphon's chief lieutenants, Geir, is planning a major assault. Mahja learned of this and has called up the Pathfinders for aid. They need her connection to Ardax White-Hair, the overlord of Urgir, and so the Society has sent a group of their very strongest to aid in what is sure to be one of the most intense battles in the Broken Lands.
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-04: Secrets Long Submerged
A Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 9th- through 12th-level characters.
Thanks to the exemplary work of the Starfinder Society, a team of agents has been invited to Pholskar, planet of the giants, to further investigate the sunken ruins of a fallen sky city. Evidence uncovered by the Starfinder Society on a previous expedition revealed a dark secret that destabilized Pholskar’s political balance. With the backing of progressive bureaucrat Elthel, the Starfinders must navigate this political turmoil to conduct their underwater excavation.This scenario builds off the events of Starfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Through Sea and Storm. While playing this past scenario enriches the experience of this adventure, it is not required.
Coming soon in July and August, brave the elements with Pathfinder Rage of Elements and uncover lost treasures in Mantle of Gold, the beginning of the Pathfinder Sky King’s Tomb Adventure Path. Preorder or subscribe today!
Note: The Pathfinder Harrow Deck has been delayed and is currently targeted for August. Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (5e) has also been delayed.
Time for a status update on some of our core books in the Paizo Store.
- The Pathfinder Core Rulebook, which sold out in January and was restocked in April, is in stock and selling fast. It will not be reprinted but will be remastered into Player Core and GM Core, coming in November 2023! These core books will also be available in Hobby Retailer Exclusive Sketch Covers, which you can ask your FLGS to order for you today!
- The Pocket Edition of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook is out of stock and will not be reprinted.
- The Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide is currently out of stock. The warehouse kobolds are working their strange magic and may find some stored in some of the warehouse’s deepest corners, but if they do, those will likely sell quickly! Have no fear, though! This content will be remastered as part of GM Core.
- The Pathfinder Bestiary (1) is in stock and will not be reprinted. The content in the Bestiary will be remastered in Monster Core, coming March 2024.
- The Pathfinder Advanced Player’s Guide was also restocked and we currently have healthy quantities. Remastered content for much of it will be coming in July 2024 with Player Core 2with the notable exception of the witch class, which will be remastered in Player Core 1.
- We are currently sold out of Pathfinder Beginner Boxes, with news on that to come!
Many of these products can still be found at your FLGS or local bookstore, even if we no longer have them in our warehouse.
Browse all our Foundry VTT products here, including the new volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path #192: Worst of All Possible Worlds (Stolen Fate 3 of 3).
Our partners at Archives of Nethys, Demiplane, Fantasy Grounds, Hero Lab Online, and Roll20 have all added these new products to their sites as well—remember to buy your PDFs on paizo.com to get a discount via the PaizoConnect API. Or buy them on their platforms, sync your account, and get a complimentary PDF on the Paizo Store!
Need some sound to spice up your table? Our partners at Syrinscape have a collection of Pathfinder and Starfinder soundtracks for your home game, streamed games, and more! New this month: Umbral Dragon Battle Music.
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Wednesday, June 28, 2023
We did it! “Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults” is 100% funded on Kickstarter!
From everyone at BKOM Studios, we are extremely thankful for your support. We couldn’t have done this without you! Thanks to you, together we're gonna create something legendary. We can’t wait to have you join us soon... down the Abomination Vaults!
For the occasion our CEO, Frederic Martin, wanted to say a few words:
Hello, Fred Martin here. I’m one of the founders of BKOM Studios and have had the privilege of working alongside a really passionate team of game smiths for the last 26 years and counting. I’m also a lifelong fan of fantasy stories where elves, dwarves, goblins and sorcerers share the stage as the main villains and heroes.
I felt like I had to say thanks. Big thanks in fact. Huge thanks to you, the supporters of this project, who have allowed us to reach this point in the campaign. Huge thanks to my colleagues, who are working very hard on this initiative because they also believe in it. And huge thanks to Paizo for entrusting us with such a precious IP and adventure path.
All the good vibes you are sending are really fueling our conviction that this game is going to become an awesome reality. The energy behind your contribution is also encouraging others to join. And thanks to that, we reached our goal and we are hopeful for the last week of the campaign. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to say thanks, on my behalf, and on behalf of the incredible BKOM team.
Let’s make this game!
Fred Martin
Team member at BKOM StudiosBut it doesn’t end here, there’s still time to unlock some stretch goals! The Potion-Crafting System with Nezrin Fizzletop's Alchemitorium has already been unlocked! It allows adventurers to craft their own customized potion by mixing and matching different ingredients found within the Vaults. Create potions for healing, protection, self-strengthening, speed, or anything in-between!
The Wardrobe system and one alternate outfit have also been unlocked! Amelia Candlebright can fix up her grandmother's tailoring shop in town and offer bespoke tailoring and aesthetic options. Defeat enemies to collect rare dyes and fabrics which can be used to swag out your hero. Because at the end of the day, we all know adventure is really about: fashion!
We also revealed the Runesmithing System & Kargas' Runeforge! The runesmith Kargas Featherstone offers a quest to retrieve ancient runes, which he can use to customize your weapons and armor.
And there’s more to reveal yet. Who knows, maybe even a certain iconic goblin alchemist!
There’s a few hours left in the campaign. Thanks for sharing the page and continuing to make some noise: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bkomstudios/pathfinder-abomination-vaults
—The BKOM Team
Tags: Abomination Vaults, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Friday, June 23, 2023
Once again, Paizo is offering engaging and whimsical adventures for Free RPG Day! Participating hobby game stores around the world will have piles of exclusive new RPG adventures from many publishers and other exciting brand-new RPG related items!
We have two short new adventures with pregenerated characters that are perfect for new players and veterans alike!
Pathfinder Adventure: A Few Flowers More
A Pathfinder Adventure For 4th-Level Characters by Linda Zayas-Palmer
A hero’s work is never done! Especially when strange new plants start appearing in the woods—plants whose presence draws all manner of trespassers eager to take advantage of the sudden, mysterious bounty. But where are these plants coming from, and what sinister development in the heart of the forest does their arrival signify? Could it be the beginning of an invasion from another dimension... or something worse?
In A Few Flowers More, you take on the role of one of four unique leshys—mobile plants who have been granted wills of their own. When word of strange supernatural developments in the depths of the forest comes to light, it falls to you and your friends to take care of things!
A Few Flowers More is a short adventure for 4th-level characters that serves as a sequel to A Fistful of Flowers, yet it can be played on its own. This adventure takes a band of leshy heroes into the very depths of a primeval forest and pits them against a supernatural threat that’s literally out of this world. The four pregenerated characters also provide a quick way to jump into this exciting Free RPG Day offering right away! Grab your friends, grab some dice, and play the role of the forest’s newest heroes!
Starfinder Operation Seaside Park
A Starfinder Adventure for 3rd-level characters by Jenny Jarzabski.
SAVE THE DAY!
When a derelict ship infested with dangerous, hostile aliens comes crashing into an amusement park in the heart of the Pact Worlds, it’s up to the heroes to protect their planet from the worst the Swarm has to offer! Play as one of five unique heroes battling against a dire threat to the galaxy in an unlikely place. You’ll be up against the Swarm, a species of adaptable, bug-like aliens that devour everything in their path. Happy bug hunting, heroes!Copies will also be for sale and for free PDF download at paizo.com approximately 30 days after the event.
Prep for the next Free RPG Day
Tags: Free RPG Day, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, June 22, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
The Year of Fortune’s Fall continues with Starfinder Society Scenario #6-03: Project Dawn! Travel to Verces to investigate Dayside Inc., a corporation with suspected ties to a villainous criminal enterprise that the Starfinders have dubbed “the Organization.” Your orders are simple: sneak in, snoop around, and don’t get caught! But intel uncovered at Dayside Inc. hints that the Organization is planning something that will threaten the lives of millions. Who is the Organization? What is Project Dawn? And most importantly, do the Starfinders have time to stop it?
a href="https://paizo.com/products/btq02eg8?Starfinder-Society-Scenario-603-Project-Dawn">Starfinder Society Scenario #6-03: Project Dawn is a 3rd- through 6th-level adventure written by Joseph Blomquist. This is a Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot scenario.
Left To Right Lubose illustration by Luiz Lanzarin and Pholskar Serpent illustration by Rodrigo Gallo
Meanwhile, we’re dispatching a team of veteran Starfinders to Pholskar, planet of the giants! The last team of Starfinders to visit Pholskar performed an underwater excavation at Talgradur, a sky city that plummeted into the Ithillian Sea shortly after the Gap. These Starfinders uncovered sensitive information and nefarious secrets that destabilized Pholskar’s fragile political balance. Now, on our return trip, you’ll have to navigate treacherous political waters, before diving into literal treacherous waters to further explore the flooded ruins of Talgradur. Who’s ready for a swim?
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-04: Secrets Long Submerged is an adventure for 9th- through 12th-level characters written by John Godek III. This scenario builds off the events of Starfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Through Sea and Storm. While playing this past scenario enriches the experience of this adventure, it’s not required.
Enjoy!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Greetings again, Pathfinders!
While we’ve only got one Pathfinder scenario this month, it’s definitely one you don’t want to miss!
This June, we’re bringing you another Glyph scenario, with some of our most powerful agents dispatched to Belkzen! Mahja Firehair is back and needs the Society’s help, as the forces of the Whispering Tyrant have decided that an example must be made of Belkzen’s defiance. A massive host of undead has gathered at the hold’s doorstep, and it’s only by chance that Burning Sun scouts spotted the force, giving others enough time to mount a defense in Freedom Town and call in any favors they can from their old allies. There isn’t enough time for all the holds of Belkzen to gather, and so the fate of the orcs will lie with the PCs, whose experience will be critical to preparing Freedom Town for the coming onslaught and to bringing the fight to the most powerful forces of the enemy army. The time has come for all Pathfinders to back the orcs!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-15: In Glorious Battle is an adventure for 9th- through 12th-level characters written by Luis Loza.
Here's hoping all your games are excellent!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Tuesday, June 20, 2023
Golarion and the Pact Worlds are filled with people of all sorts – this is just a small collection of our wonderful trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming characters!
Two of our iconic heroes- Mios, the Iconic Thaumaturge (they/them) and Kyyduh, the Iconic Evolutionist (they/them).
The world is frightening for a lot of trans people right now – with our rights under attack at local, state, and federal levels here in the United States and around the world. Trans people and queer performers like drag queens are being forced back into hiding in a cruel movement that threatens to set us back decades.
But we will not be erased – and we will keep making art and worlds that show trans and queer people that we belong. We have always been here, and we always will be – the world is richer with us in it.
In celebration of the gender diversity of both our settings and our community, this blog is a collection of trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming canon characters across Starfinder and Pathfinder – as told by their writers and people who see themselves in those characters.
Amber Stewart (she/her)
Il’setsya Wyrmtouched began as my arcanist PC in Rise of the Runelords, where she gave me an in-character outlet to express my inner self every week through a CN, wildly unfiltered, fun by any means character. She was and remains a whole lot of -GOALS- with a bucket of common PC characteristics of mine taken to a delightful extreme: after magically transitioning via a protean artifact, the Lethe Wall of Galisemni, she’s magically skilled and silly, with high intelligence, low wisdom, a fifteen-foot-long tail, happily married to her half-faerie dragon wife. Seriously, what’s not to love? I first wrote about her and her Wyrmtouched siblings in Planar Adventures and later, when I serendipitously needed a protean-linked NPC in my volume of Agents of Edgewatch, “Ruins of the Radiant Siege,” she was right there, practically begging for the job. Of course, a whimsical hedonist who’s a literal agent of manifest chaos isn’t going to work with every party, but she’s a fun challenge, and in that role, she was my attempt to make as close to a patron saint of Chaotic Neutral transwomen as I could.
Ashton Sperry (they/them)
Howdy! I'm Ashton, your nonbinary friend on the internet and occasional freelancer for the great folks at Paizo. And now I get the opportunity to tell you all about one of my proudest achievements in my freelancing career!
Tesyovensku is a nonbinary fetchling I wrote up for Lost Omens: The Grand Bazaar. You may have even had the chance to encounter them in a certain Pathfinder Society scenario! Getting to create a character whole-cloth who shares my gender identity was a thrilling experience, and I'm so glad they've resonated with so many people out there.
Tesyovensku's story is also one about triumph over adversity, something that I think many of us are struggling to achieve these days. The future for the queer community seems bleak, and honestly, if my little contributions to Paizo's canon can provide a glimmer of hope, then I am deeply honored and touched to have made things a little bit better. Together, we can all pull through—and maybe have a nice cup of tea while we're at it.
Avi Kool (they/them) – Lead Editor
Arhan Benimaya (he/him) is a human trans man from Cheliax who fled religious persecution as a child with his family before settling in Absalom. He used his art skills to help support his family and save for a serum of sex shift, and he grew up to be a successful tattoo artist in Absalom’s Docks District. His boyfriend is an azarketi dockworker named Brine, and the two of them can be found in Arhan’s shop along with Arhan’s service dog, Apple the mastiff. You can read more about Arhan in Pathfinder Lost Omens: Grand Bazaar!
Mios Uriev (they/them) is a nonbinary human from Caliphas, Ustalav, and the iconic thaumaturge. They worked as a night coach driver before being bitten by a werewolf, but using their extraordinary resourcefulness and willingness to try anything, they cured themself—though they’re still not quite sure which cure they attempted did the trick. Upon realizing they were cured, Mios gave up the life of a driver and decided to try their hand at adventuring, knowing that all monsters have weaknesses, if only you can find them. You can read more about Mios at https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si2a?Meet-the-Iconics-Mios.
Brent Bowser (he/they)
I was struggling to find the voice I wanted for Vidrizix (NB Dragonkin) in Starfinder Bounty #8: Lost Dragon's Legacy, so I started using mine as a placeholder. The more I fleshed out the character and their relationships, the more I connected with them. I replaced instances of "he" with "they." It felt so right with Vidrizix that I realized I should do the same for myself.
Dana Ebert (she/her)
I've been a Paizo contributor for three years now, and I'm not ashamed to admit that my all-time favorite NPC is still Iltara Clavela (she/her), who I created for Lost Omens: Grand Bazaar and put a lot of myself into. Her story has all my favorite tropes—fey blessings, ill-fated bargains, and the power of names. While Iltara was far from the first trans woman in Pathfinder, she was the first NPC whose shop offers gender-affirming transmutations to patrons! If you haven't seen this artwork by @hailiiz of Iltara and Ralliadra, a fellow trans shopkeeper from Grand Bazaar, you should check it out!
John Compton (he/him) – Senior Developer
Tregellon Pearlcask (he/him)
The sky citadel of Highhelm has many mouths to feed, and local dwarves of the Pearlcask clan have developed sophisticated aquaculture that supplies the city with a wide variety of shellfish. In Pathfinder Adventure Path #193: Mantle of Gold, something sinister has sneaked into Tregellon Pearlcask’s caves, afflicting his prize crab (whose art we can’t wait to show you). His being a trans man isn’t crucial to the adventure; it’s just who he is, and he openly affirms it with Pearlcask humor. He’s described as “dressed for working on the water, wearing little beyond sturdy trousers, a teal sash around his waist, and several pearl studs in his ears. He’s muscular, with a horizontal scar under each pectoral ("Molting scars,” he acknowledges with a knowing wink, if asked)."
Michael Bramnik (he/him)
Hello there! To quote a friend, I might be, “straight enough to calibrate a Kinsey scale,” but I long for the day when months like these are no longer needed except purely in celebration. I fervently believe that LGBTQ+ visibility and positive representation are vitally important if we are ever going to move on to a better future.
For Pathfinder Society #4-05: The Arclord Who Never Was <spoiler> the character of Alyreha (who is encountered with a different name at first) is trans. I made this decision because of her study into the magic of True Names. Having been honored to escort friends to their procedures in the past and seeing just how much more “them” they were afterwards—it just felt right for the story of someone finding herself. </spoiler> It can be a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment (but is more pronounced in Isis Wozniakowska’s #4-10: Arclord’s Abode) because I think that normalization might be the most important aspect of representation, or, to use a movie quote from my childhood that taught me this lesson quite early, “peoples is peoples”—a lesson I hope future allies will learn. For this and all months to follow, I wish you all the best.
Rue Dickey (they-he-xe) - Marketing & Media Specialist
While I haven’t had the joy of writing any published trans characters (yet), I have seen myself in so many Paizo books- it’s one of the reasons I love the games we make and am so happy to be a part of this company! Above all, Arhan Benimaya(he/him) from Lost Omens: Grand Bazaar spoke to me very strongly as a Jewish trans man. Seeing someone who looks like me and whose story echoes with my heart made me even more certain that Golarion was a place for me.
Shay Snow (they/them) – Pathfinder Society Developer
Kyyduh is the Starfinder iconic evolutionist, which I worked on and helped create with the Starfinder team earlier this year. If you ask Kyyduh about their gender, their answer will be "Gender? don't even know 'er!" The agender pahtra uses they/them pronouns, no matter what form or shape they adapt while being an evolutionist. They identify as bisexual, with no true preference to gender, and they’ve identified as agender since they were a tiny kit shedding their first canines. They have ADHD and struggle to focus on verbal instructions, but when given written instructions they can adapt and pick up almost any skill presented to them.
Creating Kyyduh was a special experience for me, and allowed me to explore agender expression through a character that I knew would be public-facing. I was a little nervous when the blogs went live, unsure of how the Paizo community might feel about a nonbinary iconic, however I was genuinely overjoyed when I saw so many cheerful and welcoming comments, validating Kyyduh’s identity and disability. Kyyduh’s a bright, cheerful pahtra and will be facing so many upcoming adventures in the Starfinder universe!
Tineke Bolleman
Domakayo (he/him), from Starfinder Society Scenario #3-15: Frozen Ambitions - The Preluria Connection. He is a little ode to drag performers.
Domakayo is a performer living on Vault of Vorlath. He performs in bars and has a dedicated fanbase. Domakayo dresses in his well known glitter bodysuit and discoball tail extension, and paints his scales in vibrant colors to mimic and exaggerate the colorations of female Vesk. His dance performances are lively and are punctuated by crushing items, a play on old fashioned Vesk courtship dances.
Domakayo loves expressing himself through his dance performances and the transformation he goes through before getting on stage. He has no stage name, finding comfort in using his own name and being who he was not allowed to be back home.
Rhenei Aldori (they/them) from The Swordlord's Challenge always felt pressured by the demands of Ysoki society. Ysoki have a relatively short lifespan, and in Rhenei’s family there was a big emphasis on settling down while young and having kids. Classic gender roles never seemed to fit. Mom. Dad. Nanny. Caretaker. Babysitter. Even if not pressed into a parental role, their family would still press them into a caregiver role. When Rhenei clearly stated they did not wish any of this, there was a huge fallout. Rhenei left their home, and eventually ended up studying Aldori swordlord. After training, Rhenei swore the swordpact and is now Rhenei Aldori.
Rhenei loves expressing themselves by wearing colorful clothing.
We’re happy to be able to bring so many of these characters to life here at Paizo—and to let our trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming community members know that they are safe, welcomed, and celebrated here.
If you’re looking for ways to help the queer community—especially queer youth—this Pride, consider donating to the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund, volunteering with a local or online queer youth center, and speaking out against transphobia when it pops up around you. The proceeds of Paizo’s Pride Pins – available in Vigilant, Goblin, or Skittermander – benefit Tabletop Gaymers, an organization dedicated to making sure LGBTQIA+ players feel safe and welcome at the table.
Trans pride, trans power, trans rights!
Tags: Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pride, Starfinder
]]>Monday, June 19, 2023
“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.”
—General Order No. 3; Galveston Texas, June 19, 1865
https://www.tsl.texas.gov/ref/abouttx/juneteenth.htmlWhile many American history classes conflate Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation with the end of slavery, it took several years before the order reached states like Texas—and it wasn’t until June 19th, 1865 that slavery was properly abolished. It should also be noted that while slavery was banned as an institutional practice, it still exists in the prison industrial complex and disproportionately affects Black Americans.
Black communities nationwide have celebrated Juneteenth for decades, but it was adopted as a national holiday in 2021 (and celebrated as a state holiday in some states prior to that). This year’s theme is Waves of Freedom—honoring the history of Black Americans and affirming every person’s right to equity and dignity.
Fannie Lou Hamer at a protest, credit to William J. Smith.
“Nobody’s free until everybody’s free.” —Fannie Lou Hamer
In celebration and solidarity, take some time today to support Black-owned businesses, organizations, and individuals in your community. Take a look at the US Chamber of Commerce’s directory of Black-owned businesses or do a search for a directory in your area. Consider donating to a charity that works for the freedom, empowerment, and success of Black Americans, just a few of which are listed here:
- NAACP Legal Defense Fund
- Southern Poverty Law Center
- National Black Child Development Institute
- National Black Justice Coalition
- The Loveland Foundation
Monetary support isn’t the only way to show up for Black communities on Juneteenth. Check with your local NAACP branch for volunteer opportunities or events happening this month. This holiday is a celebration—and a reminder that slavery’s impacts are far from gone.
In solidarity,
Rue Dickey
Marketing & Media Specialist
Thursday, May 18, 2023
I’m Aaron Shanks, Director of Marketing, and it is my privilege to introduce to you a group of professional geeks I call Paizo’s marketing+ team! Alex Spiedel, Organized Play Coordinator; Jon Morgantini, Community & Social Media Specialist; and Rue Dickey, Marketing & Media Specialist all report to me, but this group of adventurers needs more than four. So, I regularly borrow the talents of Raychael Allor, our Licensing & Marketing Coordinator, and Maryssa Lagervall, our Web Content Manager, who join us from the licensing and technology teams, respectively. Together we form Volt—er, a skilled and dedicated group to help you play Starfinder and Pathfinder!
As Director of Marketing, I lead our team of marketers in the creation and execution of a strategic marketing plan to promote Paizo products. I understand that there isn’t a single marketing program that’s 100% effective and am always seeking to try out new things in a rapidly evolving world. (So. Much. Change.)
But enough about me. I get to manage and work with United Paizo Workers. Let’s talk about them!
Alex Spiedel, Organized Play Coordinator (he/him)
Alex is responsible for the day-to-day administration of Paizo’s Organized Play programs, including campaign management, volunteer relationships, communications, and technical operations. He’s also in charge of all Organized Play activities at conventions, from building and implementing con schedules to helping the on-site events run smoothly. His passion for making Org Play the best it can be—and his hunger for dice—knows no bounds.
Rue Dickey, Marketing & Media Specialist (he/they)
Rue (they/he/xe) is a nonbinary, mixed-Indigenous-Roma-Welsh, disabled creator living on unceded Kalapuya territory with xir two spouses, tiny dog, and long noodle baby. Queer rage and joy in equal parts are a focus of his design and they strive to create space at the table for stories that the world has tried to keep quiet. They would like to make the world just a little brighter—by bringing these stories into the spotlight. Rue spends xir limited free time building outlandish costumes and is proud to be a never-recovering circus goth.
Rue is the newest member of the marketing team! They’re our liaison to external press and news media—coordinating interviews, previews, and reviews to ensure that Paizo products get the recognition they deserve and the coverage we need to continue to thrive. Behind the scenes, xe coordinates the day-to-day marketing functions and makes sure everything goes smoothly.
Jon Morgantini, Community & Social Media Specialist (he/him)
Jon is a Paizo brand ambassador. This is the most normal job he’s ever had. He’s a 20-year military veteran of two services, has driven limos for celebrities, and previously worked at a funeral home. As Community & Social Media Specialist, he now works his wizardry on social media, and he knows what makes forums safe and fun to participate in. When not working, Jon can most often be found reading dark fantasy or techno thrillers and getting lost in Hyrule.
Jon produces content across all Paizo social channels, but the whole team of marketers spreads the word about the amazing Pathfinder and Starfinder gaming products that we release each month. Steve, Jon’s WizKids Goblin roommate, takes much of the credit.
Raychael Allor, Licensing & Marketing Coordinator (she/her)
When not fulfilling her role as an ever-tired cat mom, Raychael is involved in all of Paizo’s licensed partner marketing efforts, from concepting new campaigns to implementing those plans at conventions, across social media, and to the Paizo community. Her work with licensed partners involves not only communication and coordination with a wide variety of people from all over the world, but also interdepartmental coordination to make sure everyone is on the same page, no matter the project.
In short, Raychael is a vital member of the marketing and licensing teams and gets the opportunity to work on a wide variety of exciting projects—and tell the world about them!
Maryssa Mari, Web Content Manager (she/her)
Maryssa is officially part of the tech team. As Paizo’s Web Content Manager, she reports to the Director of Technology and partners collaboratively with teams across the company. She helps wrangle Paizo’s non-store online content, web page design, and is Keeper Of The Blog ScheduleTM. Her job is to be aware of the shenanigans Paizo gets up to online and provide assistance when needed.
When she’s not being a
nuisancevaluable member of the company chats, Maryssa enjoys hiking, crafting, 48-hour gaming marathons before forgetting her steam library exists, and keeping upcoming spoilers from the hoard of roommates.
In conclusion…
Our marketing+ team is a fun and imaginative group made up of highly creative and smart people who are passionate about the products we produce. Someone let them all into the same room and now they scheme and create chaos together! They may or may not be half a dozen kobolds and skittermanders in cloaks—we haven't been able to confirm—and some of them escaped containment from other departments and won't leave ours.Please send help.Please play with us!Adventures ahead,
Aaron Shanks
“P.S. Save the Date! Paizo LIVE will return on Friday, June 30. This team is planning regular episodes the last business Friday of every month.
“P.P.S. This team will all be at Gen Con, physically, so look for us there. This also means that we’ll be pre-recording a few streams for your enjoyment. We aren’t planning any live streams at this time.”
Thursday, June 15, 2023
Three years ago, First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo fulfilled her mandate as head of the Starfinder Society and announced her retirement. Four prominent Starfinders stepped forward to vie for the mantle of First Seeker. Each candidate was based on the character of real-world players, and they were featured in Starfinder Society Scenario #2-07: Four for the First. Starfinder Society players from around the world cast their votes and elected Ehu Hadif Ko’ra Amares of Clan Tolar as our First Seeker.
Much like First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo before him, First Seeker Ehu Hadif has announced his upcoming retirement. With the culmination of the Year of Fortune’s Fall, Ehu will be stepping down as First Seeker, and a new first seeker will take his place for the launch of Season 7 of the Starfinder Society campaign.
This past fall, we released a boon that allowed real-world players to submit their Starfinder Society characters for consideration for First Seeker. Over a hundred experienced Starfinders were submitted, and we’ve been hard at work narrowing these Starfinders down to four.
At GenCon this August we’re releasing Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers, an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters that introduces these four candidates. By playing this scenario, you’ll have a chance to meet, question, and go on a mission for each of these four potential First Seekers! When you’re done, swing by paizo.com/firstseeker and vote for your preferred candidate to help shape the future of the Starfinder Society!
Below are a few important notes about this scenario and the First Seeker Election.
- Since so much of this scenario involves the PCs getting to know specific candidates and the types of missions to expect from them, this scenario eases the restrictions on run time. If you want to play this scenario over an extended time slot or over two sessions to make sure none of the interactions feel rushed, please do so.
- Because we want players to get to know the candidates and understand that may take multiple play-throughs, Tomorrow’s Seekers will be a repeatable scenario.
- Though players may experience the scenario multiple times, only one vote per player counts. The First Seeker election uses ranked ballot voting.
- In late June, our First Seeker Election 2023 landing page goes live! Once it’s live, you can visit paizo.com/firstseeker for more information on how and when to vote, the First Seeker candidates, and other assets, including an in-character information flier on our candidates.
- In July, visit the com blog for a First Seeker Election roundtable! This in-character blog will give you more details on all four of our candidates, including their personalities, interests, and plans for the Starfinder Society.
- Voting begins in early August, alongside the release of Tomorrow’s Seekers at GenCon, and closes October 31st, 2023. You can cast your vote at paizo.com/firstseeker. This gives our community over two months to play Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers and cast their vote for First Seeker.
- This scenario remains playable (and repeatable) after the voting window closes, players just won’t get the opportunity to vote for the new First Seeker.
- Sometime in late 2023, we’ll reveal the results of the vote, which will help to shape the direction of season seven of the Starfinder Society, releasing in 2024.
And now, it’s my honor to present a short introduction to our four candidates for First Seeker! For more information, check out Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers later this summer.
Aurora Everbright, artist Nicholas Phillips Aurora Everbright
(she/her) daring halfling pilot
Aurora Everbright is an ambitious and bold Starfinder. She’s a pilot and professional racer, and she’s quite media savvy. Aurora believes that the Starfinder Society’s achievements and heroics have gone uncelebrated—a situation she intends to remedy. Aurora has pledged to double funding for the long-running Starfinder Chronicles and to collaborate with a variety of entertainment and media partners to produce a selection of new vidcasts, documentaries, vidgames, and other media for public consumption, all centered on the heroic exploits and groundbreaking discoveries of the Starfinder Society.
Heldin Sevaile, artist Nicholas Phillips Dr. Heldin Sevaile
(he/him) brilliant half-orc scientist
Dr. Heldin Sevaile is an intelligent and altruistic Starfinder. He’s a scientist with degrees in botany and biochemistry, and a doctorate in genetics. Dr. Sevaile plans to lead a scientific expedition to catalog the flora and fauna of the galaxy, and create a library of genetic sequences. It’s his hope that scientists and scholars the galaxy over will mine this dataset for potential new medicines and treatments. He’s promised to make any new pharmaceuticals discovered by the Starfinder Society available to the public on a non-profit basis.
Nykiti Lampadephoros, artist Nicholas Phillips Nykiti Lampadephoros
(she/her) insightful sarcesian diviner
Nykiti Lampadephoros is an insightful and mysterious Starfinder. She’s a powerful spellcaster and diviner. Her prophecies and visions often seem frivolous or nonsensical but always prove useful in the end. Nykiti aims to investigate magical occurrences and anomalies, including Kazmurg’s Absurdity, and research the magical objects left uncatalogued in the Society’s vaults and storage spaces.
Sarmak, artist Nicholas Phillips Sarmak
(he/him) curious izalguun electrician
Sarmak is a curious and passionate Starfinder. He’s a hunter, engineer, and electrician. He has an intense interest in ancient civilizations that built megastructures or displayed advanced technological capabilities. Sarmak is in the process of organizing an expedition to a city of the First Ones on Aballon. Exploring forgotten sites built by his people, izalguuns, is also a primary interest.
I want to give a hearty and heartfelt thank you to everyone who has and will participate in the First Seeker Election! This is an exciting event that I’m beyond honored to be a part of. I look forward to sharing more information on our candidates soon!
Until then, take care, Starfinders!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, June 14, 2023
Yoon was only eight when she learned of fire; the power to command and control flames awoke within her, as it had within her grandmother, and her grandmother's grandmother before her. Fire was a good friend to have, for Yoon was on a journey across Tian Xia, fleeing her old home of Minkai and heading down the coast to Hwanggot, the land her parents had left decades ago. Her flame kept her warm at night and protected her from monsters and bandits, and she had friends she met along the road to teach her survival and point her toward the next village or inn.
But on a night trekking across Hongal, the cold winds blew down from the Crown of the World, and even Yoon's flame wasn't enough to keep her warm. With precious little wood to be found on the arid steppes, Yoon broke her wooden walking club in half and set it aflame with a wave of her hand. It had been a gift from her parents, one of the last things she had left of them, and though Yoon was loath to lose it, she knew they would rather she be safe.
Sitting by the campfire, Yoon thought of them. They had been immigrants in Minkai, with precious little to sustain themselves. Her mother had been an explorer and a warrior, sacrificing time with her family to bring good coin home from jobs on the road. Her father had stayed home to work the fields and to take care of Yoon and her grandmother, though he had aspirations of becoming a court scribe. But though they had little, her family made sure Yoon's life was as happy as possible, providing a good education, the freedom of childhood, and what little presents they could afford—her favorite being a stuffed animal named Gom-Gom. Though the little toy was clearly stitched together from what mismatched, discarded pieces of other dolls her parents could buy cheaply, they had made it with love, and Yoon loved it in return (even if one of his eyes had gotten stolen by the Risucho in the Forest of Spirits).
When Yoon's mother fell in battle to monsters from the deep, her father fell too into a great depression, increasingly ground down by the ill treatment of a corrupt local government official. When Yoon’s father tried to organize a resistance, he was cut down by soldiers, and Yoon would have been as well, had her grandmother not protected her by summoning the flames, trading her life for Yoon's safe future. Now, Yoon had only Gom-Gom left. But her grandmother had told Yoon of uncles and aunts and cousins back in Hwangott, the land her family had emigrated from. Yoon would find them.
As Yoon traveled south, she grew into an experienced explorer, just like her mother had been. She fought off oni in Chu Ye, evaded the fanatical Tidecallers in Wanshou, and protected merchants from lingering spirits in the lands of Linvarre newly reclaimed from the ghosts of Shenmen. Along the way, the etiquette and poise that her grandmother had labored to teach Yoon fell away, replaced by a rugged survivalism, a brashness (and sharp tongue) learned from traveling with all sorts of miscreants, and the unassailable confidence of adolescence.
Yoon, the iconic kineticist. Art by Wayne Reynolds. In the city of Mallaru, Yoon reached the sea, and she was presented with a choice. She could continue her journey on foot, passing through yet more armies, monsters, and dangers along the road. Or she could board a passenger ship from the harbor, making her way to Hwanggot safely. The old Yoon would have balked at a journey across the water—it had almost drowned her in childhood and its monsters had taken her mother. She hesitated, for long enough that the ship cast off and began to disappear out of the harbor.
Yoon was tired. Her fear had cost her a decade. A decade spent wandering Tian Xia, and while the journey had forged her into the warrior she always wanted to become, it would keep her from her homeland no longer. Why should it? There was water in her blood just as sure as there was air in her lungs. There was metal and wood lodged forever in her skin from countless scraps along her journey. There was earth under her nails from ten years on the road. But above all else, there was fire in Yoon's heart—the fire of her family, her strongest weapon and most steadfast ally, driving her to cross half a continent to make her way home.
The heart is a gate, her grandmother had said, and as the emotion gripped Yoon, she saw for the first time what lay on the other side: a world of endless and purest flame, the Plane of Fire sharing the tiniest of its embers. Yoon felt her connection to the realm surge with the realization, and with it, her power. Fire overflowed, burning its way through Yoon's body. An explosion bloomed, blackening the cobblestones.
Yoon soared through the air in a trail of sparks, whooping with the joy of a teenager flying for the first time. The harbor grew smaller underneath her, then held in place as she reached her apex and gravity gripped her. Yoon refused to fall—she had always loved heights. She summoned her flames anew, blasting herself higher still, then again, shooting herself over the water toward the ship. She wasn't the least bit tired. The Plane of Fire was inexhaustible, so why shouldn't her flames be as well? Allowing herself to hang in the air one last time, Yoon aimed herself at the ship and struck the deck like a shooting star, the morning mist glittering in her waning sparks.
The ship would soon reach Yoon's homeland, and Yoon would then have a new adventure to set off on. She would fear nothing again.
James Case
Senior Designer
Tags: Iconics, Meet the Iconics, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Rage of Elements, Yoon
]]>Tuesday, June 13, 2023
The roguelite bullet hell survivor from BKOM Studios and Paizo arrives on PC in 2023.
BKOM Studios and Paizo are excited to announce “Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors,” a roguelite bullet hell survivor game arriving on PC later this year.
Players battle through Gallowspire, a legendary Pathfinder locale, as one of three heroes—and alongside an ally of their choosing—until they face the immortal villain who awaits within. To get there, they must slay hordes of enemies, collect and upgrade an arsenal of powerful spells and weapons, and overcome deadly bosses—while growing stronger with each attempt.
Setting:
Gallowspire is a legendary tower of darkness in Pathfinder's world of Golarion. Here, the lich Tar-Baphon, one of Pathfinder’s most ancient and powerful villains, remains sealed away while plotting his dark return. But as the wards that contain him begin to fail, three fearless heroes will rise to the occasion, tasked with venturing into Gallowspire's depths to defeat Tar-Baphon and repair the wards that seal him away.
Reaching Tar-Baphon is no simple task: an endless horde of undead and fiends stand between the hero and their goal—with a diverse array of powers which will challenge the player’s tactics at every turn.
But one victory will not be enough to seal away Tar-Baphon forever: the heroes must face him many times to forestall his return for as long as possible. And when the heroes fall, they rise again, ever stronger… to face Gallowspire's hordes once more, for as long as it takes.
"Pathfinder: Gallowspire Survivors" is now available to Wishlist on Steam. Keep up-to-date with all the information by liking Gallowspire Survivors on Facebook, following BKOM Studios on Twitter, joining the official Discord server, and visiting BKOM’s official website.
Features:
- Choose your class: the Fighter, Wizard, or Rogue—each featuring unique talents, powers, and playstyles.
- Select a second hero to fight alongside you as a companion character.
- Run the gauntlet of Gallowspire! Overcome all four sections and their bosses to mark a successful run.
- Defeat enemies and collect their essence to obtain and upgrade your powers during the run.
- Earn experience to level up your heroes and spend talent points to permanently enhance and customize their powers.
- Collect and spend treasure to unlock permanent upgrades for all your heroes.
- Complete quests, defeat bosses, and battle the Whispering Tyrant himself.
- Customize your challenge level across 5 tiers of difficulty. The quest to contain Tar-Baphon is endless!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Monday, June 12, 2023
What an amazing response we have received from Pathfinder fans on the Abomination Vaults game Kickstarter campaign! Already above 75% and going strong.
You are showing us that there’s a genuine appetite for this game, and this gives us even more energy and enthusiasm that will in turn be channeled back into this project. There is still some ground to cover, but everyone at BKOM wants to thank all who have been supporting us thus far. This game wouldn’t feel as tangible without the community’s support.
Available on GOG
First, some good news: many of you have been asking for it... and today we're super happy to give it to you!Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults will be available on GOG! At the end of our campaign, pledgers will be able to choose through a form we'll send you whether you'd like to receive your digital copy of the game for Steam or GOG.
Two Stretch Goals Revealed
As we are getting closer to our main funding goal, the time has come to share with you the first two Stretch Goals of our campaign. We are pretty excited about them! We've received a lot of feedback and questions from the community regarding customization, so we know many of you will be thrilled to learn these Stretch Goals are all about giving players more customization options that will enhance the way you play and look in the game.
Introducing Nezrin Fizzletop’s Alchemitorium, a potion-crafting system, and Talia’s Tailoring Emporium, a wardrobe system that will come with the Brimstone Set, an awesome alternative outfit. We’ll give you more details on these in the next few days!
Add-ons
Last week, we introduced some new add-ons to the campaign. We added the possibility to add an Extra Digital download (Steam) for all our pledgers. For those who pledged to one of our Collector’s boxes or Special Tiers, we also added the option to complete your miniature collection in order to get the full party of four, and the possibility to add the Custom Dice Set & Bag designed by FanRoll.
For the moment, as per Kickstarter rules, physical shippable add-ons will only be available for backers already pledging for a shippable reward. But please note that pledgers will be able to add digital rewards as add-ons at the end of the campaign via the Pledge Manager.
Miniatures Reveal
We were also thrilled to reveal a sneak peek of Ezren and Amiri’s exclusive miniatures. We’ll make you wait a bit more to discover Harsk and Kyra, but know that our design team is putting the finishing touch on them, making sure they look amazing.
New Reward Tiers
Since many of you in the community asked for it, we decided to add a new digital bundle to the campaign: the Double-Up Digital Bundle. With this bundle, you’ll get two digital downloads of the game (Steam) for you and a friend to partner up and play Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults.
And we’re not done yet! We love receiving feedback from the community about our current rewards and getting ideas on what you would like. We’re still early in the campaign and many surprises are still yet to come.
Please continue to spread the word and watch this space as more exciting stuff is about to be revealed! Be sure to join the conversation on Discord to help us shape the rest of the campaign. Let’s turn this epic quest into a reality! We are working hard at it.
Support The Kickstarter!
—the BKOM Studios team
Tags: Abomination Vaults, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Friday, June 9, 2023
Hi gay happy Pride!
Pride month is a time to celebrate queer joy, a time to be out and proud about our existence. Pride is a protest and always has been. For every victory, like the Respect for Marriage Act or the removal of the ban against gay men donating blood, there are just as many setbacks to equality. States like Florida and Texas pass law after law banning discussion of queer issues in schools and gender-affirming medical care, which whips the outrage machine into a frenzy and leads to Target employees being attacked over the yearly Pride collection. The LGBTQ+ community wonders every day what new attacks on our freedom, our right to simply exist, await us in the news.
The theme of this year’s Pride is “Rage and Resilience.” In recognition and celebration of our wonderful community of LGBTQ+ staffers and freelance contributors, we asked them to submit something about what gives them strength. We hope you enjoy hearing from them and encourage our community members to share their own responses in the comments!
Happy Pride, everyone! May you all get a new set of rainbow dice that rolls as well as mine does.
Alex Speidel (he/him)
Organized Play Coordinator, known bisexual
Solatra (credited as Sasha Laranoa Harving; nov/nov)
Age 15. I came out as pansexual. My community was fairly progressive, but I still encountered people who thought I should just pick an easier label.
Age 16. I came out as aromantic. Anyone who had met me knew I was a hopeless romantic, in love with love, and told me it was a phase.
Age 17. I came out as a trans lesbian. I was met with anger, derision, mourning someone who did not die.
As time went on I debated if any of those things were accurate at all. I felt anger at myself for not figuring it out earlier, at my community for not letting me express myself.
Fast forward. Age 27. I'm out and proud as a xenogender aromantic pansexual lesbian. It is the multiplicity of my existence, the fact that I can be all of these things at once and love with all my heart that makes me strong.
Find what makes you strong and let it lift you up, and when people tell you your identity is wrong, know that they are simply too weak to accept your truth. In adversity there is community. In love there is life. Be strong. Together.
James Jacobs (he/him)
Pathfinder Narrative Creative DirectorI find strength from friends and family, but thinking it over, I’ve got a potentially unexpected answer to the question “What gives me strength?” Horror gives me strength. I understand that the genre isn’t for everyone, but it defines who I am. From a kid watching horror movies with my dad, or while reading horror comic books and novels given to me by my grandparents, or while writing horror stories for school, the genre of fear has always given me strength. Whenever I finished a story (be it a movie, novel, game session, campfire tale, or whatever), I felt stronger, especially while growing up amid horrors both small (those endless school bullies) and enormous (the threat of nuclear apocalypse). There’s a reason horror sees its greatest growth during times of despair—and when times are good, the genre falters. It’d be nice to live in a world where I didn’t need horror to feel strong, but in the meantime, horror helps me continue my journey toward that world. Especially when I get to share my love of horror with friends or family, so… huh. I guess friends and family ARE at the core of it all!
Carlos Cabrera (he/they)
It gives me strength/I am jealous that my World of Darkness character is doing multi-gender polyamory better than me right now.
Mios, the iconic thaumaturge. Mios is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns. Marlowe Miller (they/he)
As a genderfluid Caddo person who has had my gender questioned by strangers since I started middle school, I know that I'm able to make a change just by existing as a visibly queer person. My mere presence challenges the public's preconceived notions of trans people. It's scary sometimes, I won't lie—but it's unavoidable and a responsibility I must bear. I couldn't do it without the help of my chosen family, both here at home in Alabama and in other states.
People question why I stay here when the law is becoming more hostile by the day. I stay in Alabama because I love the queer communities that flourish here, and because I know that if there weren't so many trans and gender-nonconforming people down here in the South, our lawmakers wouldn't be trying to legislate us out of existence. I stay in Alabama because there are people down here who can't leave and we need to stand together to survive. I stay in Alabama because it's my home, and I'm determined to keep it and my communities safe from people who would see it all destroyed. What gives me strength and keeps me going? Community.
Rue Dickey (they/he/xe)
Marketing & Media SpecialistHey, I’m Rue (they/he/xe), and I’m a mixed race, nonbinary, disabled creator, as well as Paizo’s Marketing & Media Specialist! I’ve been doing freelance writing with Paizo for about a year—my first writing credit is in our newly announced Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, and I’m new here on the marketing team! Above all else, my friends and family give me strength. I have the joy of living with my two wonderful spouses, Rina and Jalen, and I know that they’ll always be there for me just like I’m here for them. My parents are proud of me even if they don’t necessarily understand what I do. It’s wonderful to know that I’m surrounded by people who I love and who love me back. Another thing I find strength in is the goodness of people—and how our community is quick to come together to support those in need. Running two very successful fundraisers for trans rights didn’t just help monetarily; it also showed folx in Florida and Texas that we care about them worldwide. And we won’t let them be erased. We’re here, we’re queer, and we won’t be erased.
Eren Ahn (they/them primarily)
If I'd been asked this prompt last year, I would have written a lot of flowery prose about the importance of family and friendships. I still draw strength from my community; I love and appreciate all of the people I've been fortunate enough to build relationships with, both being born to them and forging them through time and long conversations at 1:47am.
That being said, this year I've reached a level of self-confidence and inner strength I never had before. For the first time, I feel focused and at ease enough to fight for myself in both my professional and personal life. I draw strength in being able to live my life in appreciation of myself, and I hope that's a sentiment many others can agree with. I find a lot of peace in knowing that I always have myself in my corner. I don't know if I would be as happy as I am now without them.
You'll see my work in both Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia books, and as of this being published, I'll have announced the first creature-focused module a friend and I are collaborating on! You can learn more about that on my Twitter @chromathesia.
Amber Stewart (she/her)
I’m Amber Stewart (she/her) and what gives me strength is seeing how my work and that of my peers serves as an idealized mirror for players to see themselves represented in-game, or as a playground to explore their identity in fantasy. Coming to recognize and accept where you fit on the spectrum of orientation and gender identity is a unique thing for each of us, and TTRPGs can be part of that process—it absolutely was for me. You might not immediately recognize that something in-game reflects part of who you are, and play can help unlock some of that identity and provide an avenue for you to explore it: I know that playing female PCs (at an ever-increasing frequency over time) was for me part of my journey to accepting myself as being trans, and then as an outlet to explore that identity well before anyone in my family but my partner was aware.
Now, I might play to my own experiences more than not in my content, but with a broad freelance community, we get a LOT of voices represented. It’s cool, inspiring, and wholesome to see and I’m ever prouder of this community with each passing year.
Kendra Leigh Speedling (she/her)
Hello! I'm Kendra Leigh Speedling, bisexual (and demisexual) disaster and frequent freelancer for Paizo. You may have spotted my name on several books recently, including Pathfinder Treasure Vault and To Defy the Dragon, a Starfinder standalone mech adventure that might help tide you over until Mechageddon!.
It’s a tough time to be queer, especially for our trans and nonbinary friends and family. I’m not as recognizably queer as many others, which has advantages and disadvantages. I could stop talking about certain aspects of myself and pass as straight, but I don’t want to. My pithy answer to what gives me strength is spite. My more heartfelt answer is community, both among LGBTQ+ folks and allies in the Paizosphere and among my other queer friends. The bigots are vocal, but acceptance is increasing overall, particularly in younger generations. I think the recent backlash against us is driven by their fear that they're losing.
Sometimes I come across historical photos online, grainy black-and-white images of queer couples, of people proudly wearing clothes associated with a different gender, and I feel a sense of community across time. We have always been here. We will always be here. And we are worth celebrating.
Brent Bowser (he/they)
Growing up in a small farm town, I used to think there was something wrong with me because I was the only one. Gaming helped me find myself and others like me. I've volunteered with the Organized Play campaign for over ten years, and the caring, generous, accepting friends I've made saved my life. And if bigots and jerks don't feel welcome in Organized Play, then I've done my job.
Jessie "Aki” Lo (she/her)
My name is Jessie Lo, better known as Aki/Akino, and I’m a Bisexual Asian-Canadian freelance artist, writer, and community content creator.
Tons of things bar me from opportunities to create within this space, but what I find that gives me strength is spite. Spite is my biggest motivator, it empowers me to persevere when I feel like I can’t. As a queer woman of colour, I already live in a world where I have to work harder to get by. As an Asian woman, I am constantly fighting the stereotype of being obedient and quiet. However, I genuinely could care less of what others think, so as long as I succeed and continue to uplift marginalized voices with my work, like co-producing my multi-award winning Pathfinder Second Edition podcast Goblets and Gays. It's incredibly surprising what a healthy amount of spite can do for your motivation. Truthfully, I’m just a loud little hater who can find ways to empower and support myself and my community.
If you’d like to see more queer, spite-fueled projects, please continue to support me. https://twitter.com/akinomii_art
Caryn DiMarco (she/they)
I'm Caryn DiMarco (she/they), and my freelance work from Paizo ranges from Pathfinder Society adventures to contributions to the Lost Omens and rulebook lines. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to work with a team of freelancers, developers, editors, and more that represents the richness and complexity of the LGBTQ+ community.
Those spaces we make for ourselves and each other are a key part of what keeps me resilient. I find it easy to get overwhelmed by bad news (especially when it's so widespread). When I do, I'm able to remind myself that the small actions we take to make people feel welcome and safe make a difference. Whether that's making sure our settings represent the diversity of our world, taking steps to keep the games we play inclusive, or simply sharing the bits of LGBTQ+ culture that sustain us, all of our individual efforts become something bigger and more powerful when combined.
Grady Wang (he/him)
Growing up, the pervasive message about strength was that it comes from within—the action hero who goes it alone, the player character who levels up after each struggle, the message that boys need to suck it up. As I grow older, I’ve learned that personal strength only carries you so far. True strength comes from opening yourself up to others, even if it also makes you vulnerable. For me, strength comes from community.
I am so lucky to have found an amazing community in tabletop. From the inclusivity at cons to the thoughtful and empathetic team at Paizo to the generosity of my fellow freelancers, I have learned and grown so much. My goal is to give back and encourage the same behaviors that inspire me to stand up for my beliefs and live my truths. One such way is through the Queerfinder zine series on Pathfinder Infinite, which aims to introduce queer-identifying aspiring designers and artists to veterans in the industry. Another is working with the Storytelling Collective to provide resources for designers of all backgrounds. If your dream is to work in tabletop, please feel free to reach out. We are all stronger together.
Jenny Jarzabski (she/her/xe)
Starfinder Senior DeveloperHi, I’m Jenny Jarzabski. Working with the Starfinder team is one of the things that fills me with pride and fuels my hope every day that a better world is possible.
When encountering a Starfinder NPC (nonplayer character), you can assume that character is queer unless explicitly stated otherwise. This is only partly a joke considering the myriad weird and wonderful celebrations of queer identities in the setting.
Examining society’s gender constructs and ultimately turning them upside down is a long and proud tradition for sci-fi creators. As we create infinite fictional worlds, we imagine humanity’s own infinite possibilities. Here on Earth many people recognize multiple genders in humans, though the truth is more complex and subtle even than “male,” “female,” and “nonbinary.” In the fictional worlds of Starfinder, understanding has progressed even further. Add aliens to the mix and it gets super interesting!
For example: maraquoi, a fur-covered simian species, have seven genders that each play a different role in reproduction. Shirrens—an insectoid, choice-obsessed people who broke away from the destructive Swarm—present three genders: female, host, and male. Astrazoans are shapeshifting echinoderms with no inherent concept of gender, and synthetic lifeforms like anacites and androids can choose to adopt humanoid gender roles and pronouns or create their own.
I’m proud of my personal contributions to our queer cosmos, not to mention the fantastic additions to the Starfinder setting made by dozens of queer creators. To those creators: I’m honored to help amplify your voices and develop your work. Because of you, the Starfinder multiverse is a more beautiful, diverse reality.
Starfinder is set far in Pathfinder’s future, in an era when many alien cultures have already achieved peace and prosperity, and social progression has advanced beyond the norm here on Earth. This vibrant reality is imperiled by threats from both beyond the stars and in their own backyards, but even in the face of these dangers, a Starfinder character can proudly be who they are. And that’s why Starfinder’s worlds are worth fighting for, just like ours.
Dustin Knight (he/him)
Starfinder DeveloperAfter years of contemplating the definition of love, I find an endless source of strength in the seemingly endless journey to completely learn what it means to love oneself. It might seem a little intense to bring this up in a blog post for a tabletop RPG company, but I couldn’t have made it this far on my continuing journey toward self-acceptance and self-respect without these games, this community, and these annual blog posts. The commitment to love expressed and confirmed time and time again by this community has helped me learn who I am and accept that with pride instead of guilt or shame. There is an unparalleled cathartic magic to roleplaying and storytelling, and I draw endless strength from the idea that my contributions to our hobby may help others down their path of self-acceptance and self-love.
Katrina Hennessy (she/they)
I hesitated to write this, not only because life is at its chaotic best, but because I feel I don’t belong. I’m not really a part of the LGBTQ+ community, yet I’m not not part of it. For most of my life I knew I didn’t fit, but I played my part anyway. I am a happily married woman with adult offspring, but I still don’t fit in The Box where most of society automatically places me.
The Paizo community provided strength and support to learn by allowing me to witness others on their own path, providing hints and a direction to look. I think I now know which labels apply, but it doesn’t really matter. All of this has helped me better accept myself and feel less different. I won’t say normal, as I’m not sure that is a word that should ever be applied to any human being. Everything about humans (and probably most living creatures) exists on a spectrum.
So, if you aren’t sure where you belong on the spectrum, that’s OK. If you want to poke around and try to work it out, this is a great community to be in while you do so. No obligations to make announcements, fly flags, or anything else. Nothing wrong with doing so and please accept and respect those who do. Being quietly personal about your status also deserves respect.
Andrew Mullen (he/him)
I’m Andrew, and a few months ago I realized I’m bi! That was sort of a weird thing to have happen, seeing as I’m a dude in his late 30s with a wife and a toddler. I guess when society assumes you’re heterosexual, and your attractions mostly match up with that, then you assume you’re straight, too.
I draw a lot of strength from my family. When I told my wife, Melissa, about the realization, she was just glad I’d discovered something about myself. As we talked more, she projected a very uncomplicated and sincere sense of affirmation. What better than that, when you’re open and vulnerable in unfamiliar territory? My parents and close friends were similarly supportive!
You know how the right acts like it owns the “traditional” family? Well, queer folks of all stripes are out here having families that look like a 1950s all-American ad. It’s very satisfying to disprove and reject bigotry by being myself.
Alexi J. Greer (they/them)
I remember living in Orlando in 2021, with my polycule and gathering of queer and trans friends. I didn’t know what would happen in the next two years, but there was something in the air that made me pause that summer. “I think we should seriously consider moving up near your family in New England,” I told my fiancé. I worked through illness and sleepless nights to make the move work, but it did. Then it wasn't even three months before I was messaging my friends down in FL. "Stay strong and keep going. We're going to make a plan to bring you up here."
What gives me strength are the people I care about and my determination to see them happy. And my confidence that we can fight for happiness; not just our own, but others' too. Happiness should be chased, not negotiated for as if it were a commodity to be rationed out. Evil pretends to represent the majority, but it's a boldfaced lie. There's a wider world that wants you here, with us, and shining as your full self. And if you're in need, I know I'm not alone when I vow to support you too.
Tags: Authors, Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pride, Starfinder
]]>Thursday, June 8, 2023
Dynamite Entertainment’s Pathfinder and Starfinder Comics Kickstarter is in its final week, and they’ve already unlocked two phenomenal stretch goals and are on the way to a third!
This Kickstarter brings Dynamite’s Pathfinder and Starfinder comics to you as hardcover anthology volumes—giving you the opportunity to not only own the newest volumes for both series, but a chance to order the previous hardcovers in the Pathfinder comics line! This Kickstarter also brings the Pathfinder: Worldscape crossover issues together in hardback for the first time, letting you hold all your beloved iconic Pathfinder heroes and Dynamite’s own iconic characters in the same volume.
On top of the base content of Pathfinder: Wake the Dead, Starfinder: Angels of the Drift, and Pathfinder: Worldscape, Dynamite’s Kickstarter stretch goals have added over 60 pages to the graphic novels. The first stretch goal added Starfinder: Helping Hands, a 20-page story by Paizo’s own Erik Mona. Smashing the second goal means that all backers of the Pathfinder: Wake the Dead volume will get the Pathfinder: Fumbus story added to their books. And now, Dynamite is racing toward the third stretch goal—a Navasi “Rookie Card” for all backers!
But that’s not all! Backers don’t just get these wonderful stories that take place in the world of Golarion and beyond—each issue comes with exclusive rules content for the Pathfinder and Starfinder roleplaying games, written by designers Mikhail Rekun and Alexander Augunas, respectively. From character sheets to encounters, this bonus content is an exciting addition for any table!
Did someone say free add-ons? Backers will receive free PDF copies of Paizo rulebooks, corresponding to their comics:
- Pathfinder: Wake the Dead backers will receive a PDF of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook
- Starfinder: Angels of the Drift backers will receive a PDF of the Starfinder Core Rulebook
- Pathfinder: Worldscape backers will receive a PDF of the Pathfinder Bestiary (Second Edition)
- Contributors who back all three volumes get an additional PDF, the Starfinder Alien Archive, plus an exclusive goblin d20!
Don’t fail your awesome value saving throw—stop over and see what all the excitement is about!
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
Forged Gaming, the company behind the Ultimate Game Master Screen Kickstarter, announced today that the project will support the Pathfinder and Starfinder RPGs with official rulesets and content. These products will be included in the ongoing Kickstarter as add-ons to the Ultimate Game Master Screen campaign. The addition of these iconic RPGs to the Ultimate Game Master Screen offers Pathfinder and Starfinder Game Masters even more opportunities to take advantage of the new product’s customizability.
“Forged Gaming and the Ultimate Game Master Screen team couldn’t be more excited to partner with an iconic publisher like Paizo,” said Jon Barry, director of Forged Gaming. “As a GM and player myself, I can’t wait to create official content for amazing RPGs like Pathfinder and Starfinder!”
Exact details of this content are still in development. The partnership with Paizo will offer backers of the project access to officially licensed content like magnetic rule tables and game-specific trackers, as well as thematic artwork.
The Ultimate Game Master Screen Kickstarter is helmed by the team at Forged Gaming and developed in partnership with RealmSmith. Using feedback collected from over 1,500 Game Masters across various TTRPG systems, the team developed a unique Game Master screen system that is customizable, affordable, and system agnostic.
“When we started roughing-in what we wanted to build, customizability was at the core of our thought process,” said Jason Azevedo of RealmSmith and project designer. “GMing and storytelling is such a personal experience; no two games or GMs are alike. We knew we wanted to create a premium GM screen that was flexible enough to be useful to Game Masters of almost any game, and affordable. I think we succeeded on all counts. Check it out and tell us what you think.”
The Ultimate Game Master Screen Kickstarter campaign is live through June 24, 2023. Earlybird pricing, which is still available at the time of this article, is US$89 for the core product and ranges up to US$279 for the Ultimate Backer Bundle. For more information on the project and the campaign, take a look at the Kickstarter!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Friday, June 2, 2023
From the Pathfinder Remaster Project to Starfinder Enhanced, the team at Paizo has a plethora of new content coming down the pipeline. This year’s PaizoCon Online featured speakers across Paizo’s creative team who teased at new products and projects.
Pathfinder Remaster
Lead Designer Logan Bonner revealed the final, painted covers for the Player Core and GM Core books during the presentation. These fully painted covers by Wayne Reynolds feature Pathfinder iconic heroes doing battle against and standing alongside new diabolic and mirage dragons, both of which will debut in Monster Core. These full-color covers will be available online and at retailers, while the Hobby Retailer Exclusive Sketch Covers, previously revealed on the Paizo Blog, will only be available through your FLGS.
Hardcover Rulebooks
Pathfinder has a variety of new rulebooks—some freshly released and some on their way. James Case, Senior Designer on Pathfinder, showcased some of the upcoming content.
Rage of Elements, Pathfinder’s latest rulebook, will be available in early August at Gen Con 2023, as well as online and at local retailers. This book adds wood and metal elemental planes to Golarion, taking players on a tour of the planes and introducing their elemental lords. Also included in Rage of Elements is a much-anticipated new class: the kineticist, an elemental adept martial class. Rage of Elements is the first Remaster compatible rulebook, giving a preview of the rule changes to come.
Coming in 2024 is the recently announced Howl of the Wild, a creature-filled book featuring an iruxi naturalist and his eccentric crew as they navigate the wilds on their airship, the Zoetrope. This book introduces six new wild-side ancestries, new creatures, regional variants of existing creatures, spells, archetypes, and more.
Lost Omens
Luis Loza, Creative Director of Pathfinder, gave a preview of Lost Omens Highhelm, an upcoming book that’s part gazetteer and part exploration of dwarven culture. This new Lost Omens entry releases in June and includes new skills, feats, ancestries, backgrounds, and mechanics to immerse yourself in dwarven culture and the city of Highhelm. Players can also expect to learn more about the dwarven pantheon, particularly eight gods not yet expanded on in Golarion.
Pathfinder Adventures
Syncing wonderfully with the release of Lost Omens Highhelm, Pathfinder’s next Adventure Path, Sky King’s Tomb, takes player characters on a quest for a major piece of dwarven history. The Adventure Path starts in August, and the three volumes will take players from levels 1–10.
Following that, our Adventure Paths take us to Tian Xia for Season of Ghosts. This ghostly, horror-flavored four-part Adventure Path for levels 1–12 takes place over a full calendar year in game—with each installment covering the length of one season in a cursed town in haunted Shenmen.
Standalone adventures return with Pathfinder Adventure: Rusthenge, a hardcover book that places low-level characters in the world of runelords and their conflicts. Rusthenge will release late this year, bringing the western reaches to your table.
Partner Projects
Many of Paizo’s licensed partners are currently running crowdfunding drives or releasing new projects, such as the Dynamite Comics Kickstarter, BKOM Studios Abomination Vaults ARPG Kickstarter, Demiplane’s Pathfinder NEXUS, and more.
Breaking news! Steve Jackson Games announced that Pathfinder: Revolution, the Pathfinder expansion for hit board game Revolution, will release late this year. Pathfinder: Revolution puts players in the rebellion of Korvosa, facing off against tyrannical Queen Ileosa to save the city from her bloody path to immortality.
Starfinder
Looming big and bright on Starfinder’s horizon is Starfinder Enhanced, a book full of player options, items, spells, and rules for scaling up equipment. This book rolls out enhanced versions of four classes—the envoy, solarian, technomancer, and witchwarper—and presents new rules and changes that reflect feedback from the experiences of developers and community members alike.
Starfinder and mech fans alike can look forward to Mechageddon!, a high-level hardcover Adventure Path coming in 2024! Newly announced at PaizoCon 2023, this adventure starts on Daimalko—the planet of kaiju—and takes players through levels 3–18, letting their mechs level up with them through tier 17.
Organized Play
Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society have plenty in store for this summer’s convention season! Debuted at PaizoCon Online 2023, Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-13: Within the Prairies and Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-14: Shattering Golden Chains continued this season’s path towards conflict with the night hag, Aslynn. Starfinder Society introduced its new season with Starfinder Society Scenario #6-01: Year of Fortune’sFall and Starfinder Society Scenario #6-02: Drift Scars. Starfinder Society players also participated in the group interactive special #5-99, Battle for Bulwark!
Look forward to election day in Starfinder Society! The First Seeker has stepped down, and four new candidates have been chosen from player-submitted characters to run for their place. In Starfinder Society Scenario #6-06, going live at GenCon 2023, Society players will get to meet the candidates and vote on who will step up as the next First Seeker.
Pathfinder Adventure Path #200
Pathfinder Adventure Path #200 is coming next year, and it’s a special double-sized standalone adventure available in hardcover and softcover. Seven Dooms for Sandpoint brings Pathfinder Adventure Path #1 author James Jacobs back to that adventure’s setting, the town of Sandpoint, for a level 4–12 adventure that adapts Pathfinder’s designer playtest campaign for the first time.
Watch the PaizoCon Online 2023 Twitch Panel Playlist on YouTube!
Tags: Conventions, Paizo, PaizoCon, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, May 18, 2023
I hope everyone had a great time at PaizoCon Online! It was great to talk to everyone in a little more depth about Pathfinder Howl of the Wild, and all the animals and beasts that this book about wilderness expedition contains as the Zoetrope airship journeys across Golarion in search of mythical beasts.
In addition to monsters, wilderness-inspired items and feats, and a whole lot more, Howl of the Wild comes with six new playable ancestries, each of which is represented by a different member of the airship’s crew. You’ll see these characters appear throughout the book (alongside our iconic characters), letting you get to know them over the course of their journey. The crew's snuck out a little earlier than we anticipated—that just goes to show, the wilds can't be tamed—so we thought we'd take the chance to introduce you to them. Having a unique cast for the book wouldn't have been possible without the superb work of art director Kent Hamilton, who designed each crewmate based on the personality and story lovingly written by that character's author.
Let's meet the crew!
You've already met Baranthet, the expedition leader who brings this crew together to travel across Golarion in his search for the four Wardens of the Wild—mythical creatures said to steward the great biomes of the planet. Baranthet's an iruxi, also known as lizardfolk, who will be getting a remaster in Player Core 2. He’s older than your typical adventurer and has spent most of his life reading rather than exploring, but he's excited to be setting off on a grand adventure, even if it took him a little longer than most to leave the library.
Charikleia is a minotaur from the Earthsong people on the Isle of Kortos. She's a studious research assistant to Baranthet, taking notes and field illustrations on each animal the ship comes across. As you might have seen at PaizoCon, minotaurs have a number of abilities to emphasize their strength, like an ability where they can fling allies across the field with their horns, not to mention great skill with stone and labyrinths.
The swift centaur Telero trailblazes ahead of the airship to make sure the way is clear for the scientists to follow. He's very capable, if a little hotheaded, and eager to prove himself. In addition to their speed, centaurs also have feats related to herbalism or archery—a skill Telero puts to good use with a number of signal arrows.
One of the reasons the Zoetrope can always find its way is thanks to the skill of its navigator, Lythea, a merfolk blown far from her home, though she's sure to treat everyone with joy and laughter. Merfolk are an aquatic ancestry with many magical talents: shaping wind and water, crying pearls, or beguiling others with their siren song. Lythea gets around deck with the help of her "Little Sea," an example of a new item for aquatic characters debuting in Howl of the Wild.
Grefu is the ship's cook, much to everyone's great fortune. A man of few words, Grefu is gruff and stoic, but loyal, often wordlessly giving an extra scoop of stew or slice of flatbread to a crewmate who's had a hard day. Grefu is an athamaru, an amphibious people primarily located in the undersea nation of Xidao in Tian Xia. Athamarus are highly communal and with a more physical bent, whether that's keeping coral symbiotes that can cleanse poisons from the blood, communicating via pheromones, or training pet eels to aid them.
While the crew are scientists, not fighters, people are bound to get a few scrapes on a long voyage—thankfully Dr. Pom's caring bedside manner and highly competent medical knowledge ensure everyone can always pull through (though she's a little lost in thought at the best of times). Dr. Pom is an awakened animal (in her case, a sand badger), a highly versatile new ancestry that allows you to play an animal that has gained sapience.
Lastly, we have the Zoetrope's accident-prone mechanic, Whose Antenna Is Askew, or Ten for short. They're a surki, a brand-new ancestry designed from the ground up for Howl of the Wild; rather appropriately so, as surkis are a subterranean people who burrow to Golarion's surface only in periodic generation digs, the most recent of which was triggered by the closing of the Worldwound. Surkis ambiently absorb magic, metamorphosing later in life with unique adaptations based on what they've absorbed. Ten is excited to experience every new thing they can on the surface, though this sometimes leads them into trouble.
There's a lot we have to say about the crew, as well as the wild archetypes, items, and other player options coming in Howl of the Wild, so be sure to subscribe to the Pathfinder Rulebook line and stay tuned for Gen Con, where we'll be diving into a few of these new ancestries in more detail!
But that, explorers, is a story for another day,
James Case
Senior Designer
Tags: Howl of the Wild, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Thursday, June 1, 2023
For the last several months, numerous publishers, including Paizo, have been working hard on the ORC License, a system-agnostic, perpetual, and irrevocable open gaming license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics and encourages collaboration and innovation in the tabletop gaming space. In collaboration with hundreds of publishers and other interested parties on the ORC License Discord, we’ve been group-editing the license and related Answers and Explanations (AxE) document, kicking the language into shape and making sure that the license is as solid as possible, and works for as many publishers as possible.
We’re nearly at the end of the process. Thanks to all the hard work of everyone listed above, we’re now ready to release the third draft of the ORC License and AxE. We believe this draft is solid enough to be the final draft of the ORC License but know from past experience that new text can bring the opportunity for new errors or requests for clarification. The community has been phenomenally helpful in refining the language of this license. Now it’s time to take one last look and provide any final comments you may have before we lock the license terms in the very near future.
We have provided a redline version of both the ORC License and the AxE below to help you better compare the differences between the Third and Second Drafts. If you wish to start fresh with a “clean” copy of the Third Drafts, those have been provided as well.
We’ll keep commentary open on the official ORC License Discord for the next few days, with an eye toward locking the final version of the license by the end of next week. During this time, we’ll fold any necessary improvements into each document and release a Final Interim ORC License at www.azoralaw.com/orclicense, paizo.com, and elsewhere. Publishers will be able to use this version of the license to publish material under the ORC License by including the proper ORC Notice.
At the same time that the Final Interim ORC License is published, these documents will be filed with the United States Library of Congress, who will issue copyright registration in about six months. Once the registration is issued, Azora will publicly release the ORC License (including the final AxE). The only change between the Final Interim ORC License and the ORC License will be the addition of the TX number in Section III.a.
So, we’re very nearly there! Please help us over the finish line by taking a look at the Third Draft and providing your feedback on the official ORC License Discord. Thank you again for your assistance!
Download the Orc License
Download the Orc AxE
Join the conversation
Thursday, June 1, 2023
OPC Musings
Welcome back to the OP Monthly Update! I know we missed last month, that’s entirely my fault. I was on my honeymoon, and then we announced a little thing called the Pathfinder Core Remaster, and by the time I came up for air, it was already mid-May!
Luckily it’s smooth sailing now, which is a lie, because convention season is in full swing! As I write this blog we’re doing our final preparations for PaizoCon Online. I can’t wait for this show, and I’m so excited for our upcoming shows like UK Games Expo and Gen Con. Not to mention, this fall I’ll be heading to a few local conventions! More on that soon, hopefully. For now, I’ve got a supersized OP update to deliver, so let’s get started.
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on June 28, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-15: In Glorious Battle
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-03: Project Dawn
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-04: Secrets Long Submerged•part of a subscription
Pathfinder Core Remaster
Last month, we announced the Pathfinder Core Remaster: an overhaul and update of our Pathfinder Second Edition ruleset, a necessary but difficult maneuver given the events of recent months. I am sure that for many of you, the first question was “how will this affect Pathfinder Society?” The short answer is: we don’t know yet! The longer answer is that these books literally don’t exist fully yet; they won’t go to the printer for another month or so. Until they do, we can’t begin to answer these questions.
Rest assured that as soon as we can, the OP team will be diving into the new rule changes to figure out how to make the updates as seamless as possible for the community. For now, I ask for your patience on this topic. There will be many questions to answer in the weeks ahead, but we’ve got a steady hand on the metaphorical tiller.
FAQ and Boon Updates
In the quiet time before convention prep, the Pathfinder Society developers and I had some time to sit down and hammer out some updates to boons available in the boon store, as well as to handle some FAQs for the program. The full updates are available on the FAQ page, but here’s a summary of the changes:
- The Second Chance boon has been updated to indicate that purchasing and using this boon also covers the cost of recovering your body and any lost possessions if necessary. If a character is undead (such as a skeleton), they can use this boon to benefit from a similar ritual to restore themselves to their previously undead state.
- Similarly, an FAQ clarifies that in the event that your character ends a scenario alive but otherwise inaccessible (such as being imprisoned or transported to another plane), the Second Chance boon can be purchased and used to return your character to safety.
- Another FAQ clarifies which version of an item or character option to use in the event the option is reprinted in another book. In short, a hardcover printing of an option is considered the standard option unless otherwise stated. This applies to both Pathfinder and Starfinder Society.
- The Secondary Initiation boon has also been clarified to cover how it handles entry requirements for organizations (it handwaves them as occurring offscreen) and which ranks PCs can choose to be within organizations (anything reasonable is fair game, but no, your PCs are not fourth-mark Firebrands).
- Finally, we have issued one minor clarification to the Magic Arrow feat from the Pathfinder Advanced Player’s Guide, which you can find on the Character Options page as normal.
Starfinder Society Year 6 Updates
Program Changes
SFS Year 6 launched at PaizoCon Online! Hopefully, anyway; I’m writing this before the show, so if a dinosaur attacks, someone let future me know. The following Starfinder species are now considered “always available”: gnoll, hanakan, kiirinta, quorlu, raxilite, shimreen. Players are free to build characters of these species as often as they like; as always, characters with an Admittance Boon for these species gain an additional +2 to one ability score immediately.
The Achievement Point cost for a boon to play a character of the following species has been reduced to 80 Achievement Points: astriapi, cephalume, contemplative, trox, uplifted bear, urog. Meanwhile, the following species are now playable with the purchase of a boon from the online Boon Store: entu colony, huitz’plina, grippli, kitsune, kobold, psacynoid, samsaran, scyphozoan, trinir, and tryziarka.
Finally, a few more boons have been added to the Boon Store! Starfinders who enjoy having a permanent emblem of their position can now purchase the Marked Starfinder boon for 2 AcP after playing at least one session to gain a Society Subdermal Graft. Additionally, characters can now undergo a Training Montage (or Extended Training Montage) to retrain their character’s abilities! These provide more robust retraining options than the previously available mnemonic editor. Full text of these boons, as always, can be found on the Starfinder Society FAQ page.
The Guide to Organized Play: Starfinder Society has been updated with all these changes, as well as a brand-new overhaul and visual upgrade! Incredible thanks to Jared Thaler and Peter Nalepa, both of whom have worked very hard to make the guide more user-friendly and accessible. They’ve created a feedback thread on the forums for comments or questions.
First Seeker Election
Last month we formally announced Starfinder Society #6-06: Tomorrow’s Seekers! This scenario will allow you to meet the four PCs who were selected to vie for the title of First Seeker. You may note my name on the cover as the author; I’m so excited for this adventure and for you all to meet these wonderful colorful characters!
Look for some upcoming blogs where we’ll be revealing the candidates, their platforms, and a bit more about them. Campaign season begins when the ballot opens at Gen Con (August 1–4), and the voting period will close in mid-October. If you want to cast your vote, don’t miss your chance to play the scenario in that two-month period!
Sanctioning
One of the reasons we could get away with missing April’s blog was that it was a pretty quiet month on the release front! Luckily, we’ve got some new toys for you this month!
For Pathfinder Society, this month’s new release is the brand-new standalone adventure, The Enmity Cycle. The sanctioning documents for this adventure are just waiting to be exported; once they are, we’ll be sure to add them to the product page.
On the Starfinder side, the new hardcover rulebook Starfinder Ports of Call has been released and sanctioned for play! Visit the Character Options page for all the details. While you’re there, why not check out the new options from the Drift Hackers Adventure Path, which are also now sanctioned! Chronicle sheets for players and GMs will also be available on the product page for the AP as soon as they’re exported.
Coming up next, we’ll be getting sanctioning documents out for the Free RPG Day adventures (foreshadowing for the next section)! After that, for Pathfinder Society we’ve got the Stolen Fate Adventure Path and Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm on the docket, and Starfinder Society will be pretty quiet until the fall!
Free RPG Day
June 24 is Free RPG Day here in the United States! This initiative provides retailers with exclusive access to free RPG products from a number of companies, including Paizo. We have two adventures in this year’s kit: A Few Flowers Morefor Pathfinder and <em>Operation: Seaside Park for Starfinder
If your store is participating in this event, sanctioning documents and chronicle sheets will be available prior to the event! You’ll be able to get credit for your Organized Play characters after participating in these adventures. Free RPG Day is a great way to kickstart a new RPG group at a store, so we encourage you all to head to a participating retailerfor the event!
GM Recognition
At PaizoCon Online last weekend, I awarded three individuals with brand new Campaign Coins and Organized Play IDs. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay[at]paizo[dot]com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Jofiane “Fi,” who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #887
Milan Badzic, who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #888
and Harmeshver “Resh” Singh, who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #889GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for Venture-Captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Nova for Starfinder Society and one earn their 5th Glyph for Pathfinder Society (second edition).
5th Nova (SFS): Terry T
5th Glyph (PFS2): Tim Munsie (TMun)Congratulations to our outstanding GMs and volunteers!
Conventions
It’s convention season! As this blog is posted, I’ll be getting ready for my first games at UK Games Expo in Birmingham. It’s my first official trip abroad and I can’t wait to meet our European community! If you’re in the area, come say hi!
We've also announced PaizoCon South Pacific, running from June 30–July 2 in Sydney, Australia! While I won’t be attending (this year...), the Paizo community will be turning out for a great time.
And of course, there are tons of local conventions in your area! Check out our conventions calendar to see what events are happening near you and go roll some dice.
That’s quite enough from me—thanks for sticking with the supersized update. There’s a reason we try to do these monthly! Until next time, Explore! Report! Cooperate! And have a spot of tea!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Tuesday, May 30, 2023
This is the moment you have been waiting for! We’re super happy to announce that BKOM Studios, in partnership with Paizo, has launched the Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults’ Kickstarter campaign. This game is the first-ever co-op Hack and Slash ARPG based on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and is set to release on PC (Steam)!
Up to four players lead iconic Pathfinder heroes into the farthest depths of Gauntlight Keep, battle deadly monsters and abominations to reach the evil sorceress Belcorra Haruvex and put an end to her vile schemes once and for all.
In addition to getting a copy of the game when it launches, our backers have access to rewards such as the game’s artbook, private early access, a custom dice set and bag, miniatures, different ways to be a part of the game’s production experience and more! Be sure to check it out!
Back the project on Kickstarter now and join us down the Abomination Vaults!
For more information please contact:
Sophie Grenier
Director, Communications & Marketing, BKOM Studios
sgrenier@bkom.com
Tags: Abomination Vaults, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, May 26, 2023
PaizoCon Online 2023, the celebration of all things Paizo, begins today! Join us for free, fun panels at twitch.tv/officialpaizo. Meet friends and network on our Discord, with prizes, partner presentations, staff AMAs, and more!
From now through May 29, take 20% off a single order• of Pathfinder and Starfinder products at the Paizo Store using the code PaizoCon2023 at checkout.
Stock up on Pathfinder Accessories, Deep Cuts miniatures, and the entire Pathfinder Battles line of prepainted miniatures from WizKids (excluding preorders or full sized figures).
Join us for the PaizoCon Keynote on Twitch from 10 a.m. to noon Pacific and on the Paizo Events Discord for partner giveaways every hour on the hour between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Friday, Saturday, and Sunday!
Get it before it is gone!
Inside our Starfinder Solidarity Bundle you will find everything you need for years of exciting science-fantasy play, like digital copies of the Starfinder Core Rulebook, Alien Archive, Alien Archive 2, Alien Archive 3, the Starfinder Beginner Box, as well as the entire Fly Free or Die Adventure Path. Plus, it features physical copies of Starfinder Alien Archive 2 and the Starfinder Critical Hit Deck! That is over $400 in Starfinder Roleplaying Game digital and print materials for only $45! Best of all, you choose how much of your purchase supports The Trevor Project.
But wait, there’s more! Many of our partners have amazing offers to help you unleash your hero:
- BKOM Pre-Kickstarter Campaign
- Demiplane Character Tools Launch Party Sale - Use code PF2CHARACTERS at checkout to save 20% on all Pathfinder Second Edition rulebooks and Lost Omens source books (pre-orders not included) on Pathfinder NEXUS!
- Demiplane's Official Pathfinder 2nd Edition Character Tools Open Beta Is Live
- DriveThruComics Sale
- DriveThruRPG Sale
- Dynamite Kickstarter - Hardcovers of Pathfinder & Starfinder comics are crowdfunding now!
- Foundry Anniversary Sale
- Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite Sale
- Pathfinder Infinite Bundle
- TALES OF ASUNDA #1-3, NIOBE & DURA #2, MORKA MOA #3 + MORE! Kickstarter with Pathfinder First Edition content tiers
Roll20 is celebrating with newly re-packaged Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics, Pathfinder Flip-Mats, and Starfinder Flip-Mats. They also have Pathfinder and Starfinder Core Rulebook discounts, dynamic Pathfinder and Starfinder Mega-Bundles, the new digital Pathfinder Harrow Deck!
Shop the PaizoCon Sale Today!
• Discounts listed here do not stack with other discounts, including the Paizo Advantage. Not valid on subscriptions, preorders, or non-Paizo products not specifically listed as on sale. Sale ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific on May 29.
Tags: Conventions, Paizo, PaizoCon, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, May 25, 2023
On behalf of Paizo and Pathfinder Infinite / Starfinder Infinite, Roll20 is thrilled to discuss our Community Content Program in celebration of PaizoCon! Paizo is one of our favorite publishing partners, and we are happy to support them now and in the future.
Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite first launched in 2021, allowing fans of Pathfinder and Starfinder to publish their own adventures and game supplements. Since then, gifted creators have made some very impressive titles and shared their passion for their favorite games with other equally passionate fans. The site has grown consistently since its inception, and we are working together to expand it even more in the coming year.
Infinite Masters, an invitation-only group of Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite designers spotlighted by Paizo, have paved the way for the highest-quality content on both Pathfinder and Starfinder sites.
The Infinite Masters have collaborated and grown not only in numbers but also in talent and creativity. Just see for yourself! The latest products to join the Infinite Masters list include:
- Cooking Unleashed from Connor Berkheiser
- Danger Dossier by Andrew White
- Galactic Magic: The Feats Chapter by Owen K.C. Stephens, Dustin Knight and Sasha Laranoa Harving
- Impossible Lands+ from Derry Luttrell, Tony Saunders, Jamie Trollope, Helen Savore and Ruvaid Virk
- Impossible Paths: Clockwork Clinic from Helen Savore
- Queerfinder Issue 2 from The Gallant Goblin, Alysse Dalessandro, Anne Richmond, Azra Hawthorne, Ben Joah, Grady Wang, Irene D.B., Isabelle Thorne, MicahDraws, Michelle Jones, Shawn Banerjee, Simone D. Sallé, Theo Thourson, and Vanessa Hoskins
Throughout PaizoCon, we will be offering select titles at 25% off across each of our Pathfinder Infinite, Starfinder Infinite, and DriveThruRPG sites, so be sure to grab your favorites — or find a new favorite! — during the sale.
Infinite Masters Helen Savore (she/her), Derry Luttrell (he/him/they/them), Jamie Trollope (he/him), and John Holmes (he/him) will join Roll20's own content developer, Eve Crockett (they/them), on a panel to discuss the program, sharing wisdom and advice based on their experiences so far. Look for them and other outstanding experts in the PaizoCon Discord and ask your burning questions!
In addition, as we announced last year, community creators will soon be able to convert or create content for play on the Roll20 virtual tabletop. Our talented Content Conversion team is actively working to get the first titles up to show you how amazing these Pathfinder and Starfinder titles look on the Roll20 platform.
Finally, we’re excited to announce that Infinite Masters, as of March 2023, can now submit their titles for print-on-demand. We have high hopes for this program, and if it proves as successful as we expect it will, we plan to offer similar services to all Infinite Creators in the future. We print via Lightning Source in black-and-white, standard color, and premium color, in numerous formats and sizes. We can’t wait to see these gorgeous PDFs for print for your tables.
Want to get involved and share your ingenuity? Check out these tutorials and informative articles on how you can get your products onto the Pathfinder Infinite / Starfinder Infinite marketplace.
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
This month’s Pathfinder and Starfinder releases offer new places to call home, monstrous myths, missing persons, and a duel with destiny! Check out these exciting new products available today at the Paizo Store and local bookstores and game stores around the world, including Starfinder Ports of Call, Pathfinder Adventure: The Enmity Cycle and Pathfinder Flip-Mat: The Enmity Cycle, and the Pathfinder Lost Omens Monsters of Myth Special Edition!
But first, it’s not too late to plan to join us online this Friday through Sunday, May 26th–29th, for adventures at PaizoCon Online! Tons of games, Twitch streams, Discord panels, and partner prizes await!
Starfinder Ports of Call
AT HOME IN THE STARS
Every galactic adventurer needs a place to call home—even if only until their starship is fueled for the next journey. Explore 10 major port cities full of adventure and intrigue, from Drifter’s End on Absalom Station to the chasm city of Precipice on distant Apostae or the theme park planet of Golarion World. Learn about smaller ports as well, like the starship port of Skydock on Verces, or the collection of warships known as Bastion that fend off the Swarm.Along with all this, Ports of Call also features:
- A map of Desna’s Path, the Starfinder Galaxy.
- Loads of player options, including four new species!
- Expanded downtime rules, new starship options, a cargo subsystem, new NPCs, side job adventures, and much more!
Pathfinder Lost Omens Monsters of Myth Special Edition
RELEASE THE BEASTS!
For every great hero found on Golarion, there lurks an even greater monster. Some of these creatures have earned their notoriety from local folktales and ancient epics. Others built their reputations on the backs of victims, performing acts so horrifying they defy embellishment.Monsters of Myth presents 20 monsters from all over Golarion. Each entry includes lore on the creature’s place in the world, statistics to use it as an adversary, guidance for including the monster at any level of play, and rewards for heroes who face such a legendary foe!
This deluxe special edition is bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark.
Pathfinder Adventure: The Enmity Cycle
YOU EITHER BUILD OR DESTROY
On the cusp of completing a grand project that would wow audiences and build solidarity between the five squabbling cities of the desert nation of Thuvia, a trio of renowned artists suddenly go missing, putting their plans on an indefinite hold. Who could be behind such treachery—and why would such a villain desire an end to art? Explore the Thuvian city of Lamasara as your characters investigate the disappearances and prevent a poisoned performance from shaking the desert nation. Pathfinder Adventure: The Enmity Cycle is a standalone adventure for 4th-level characters that also includes a gazetteer of Thuvia’s five cities, and a selection of new magic and monsters for any Pathfinder campaign.
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: The Enmity Cycle
BREAK THE CYCLE!
Bring your adventures in The Enmity Cycle to life on your tabletop with this double-sided full-color Flip-Mat featuring a spacious desert home and a riverside amphitheater ready for a performance! With this gorgeous map, you’ll be ready to take on the dangers of Thuvia in style!Pathfinder Flip-Mat: The Enmity Cycle measures 24" by 30" unfolded and 8" by 10" folded. A Flip-Mat’s coated surface can handle any dry-erase, wet-erase, or even permanent marker. Usable by experienced GMs and novices alike, Pathfinder Flip-Mats fit perfectly into any Game Master’s arsenal!
Pathfinder Adventure Path #191: The Destiny War (Stolen Fate 2 of 3)
FIGHT FOR YOUR DESTINY!
Spoiler
Now that fate’s defenders have begun to recover the scattered cards of a powerful harrow deck, formidable villains seeking to control destiny itself have taken note. When these foes invade the heroes’ magical domain, it becomes apparent that an all-out war for destiny itself is building.
Can you prevail against the nefarious forces who bring a fury of fiends against you and seek to control the future? The Stolen Fate Adventure Path continues with “The Destiny War,” a complete adventure for 14th- to 17th-level characters.
Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Fortune's Fall is a Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
The Starfinder Society travels to Castrovel to attend a museum gala celebrating the grand opening of its latest archaeological exhibit: a showcase of ancient civilizations of the Vast. With artifacts and belongings from the Scoured Stars in tow, the Starfinders prepare an exhibit display, network with esteemed archaeologists and organizations, and enjoy the event. But when a gang of violent thieves interrupts the gala, it’s up to the Starfinders to save lives, preserve priceless artifacts, and bring the thieves to justice!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-13: Within the Prairies is a Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
With permission secured and access granted, a team of Pathfinder agents must escort an ancient star gun to one of the last remaining star gunsmiths, a mysterious figure that hasn’t been seen in several years. The Pathfinders must convince the gunsmith to emerge from hiding and repair the weapon, allowing them to return it to its original home and make connections with a town in Arcadia.
Angered at having been tricked by the Society, a villain watches from afar and plots to attack the group, endangering innocent lives in the process. It’s up to the Pathfinders to defeat her and her forces, ensuring peace within the prairies of Arcadia!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-02: Drift Scars is a Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
The Drift Crisis has ended, but not all has returned to its former equilibrium. Mysterious paths through the Drift, termed "Drift lanes," have emerged, including one near Triaxus. It is this Triaxian navigational anomaly that Fitch, leader of the Wayfinders, tasks the Starfinders with exploring. But a gang of pirates has already claimed the Drift lane as their own and fiercely defend their prize! The Starfinders must deal with this threat, as well as attempting peaceful negotiations with whoever happens to be on the other side of this strange new tunnel through the Drift.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-14: Shattering Golden Chains is a Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 3rd- through 6th-level characters.
A mysterious genie appears before the Pathfinders as they finish settling into the Sedeq Lodge and asks for assistance in seeing that their former oppressor sees justice. The Pathfinders must infiltrate the home of the genie binder and free the elemental beings that he's bound to his service, then confront him about meddling in the freedom of other beings and trying to overthrow the Pathfinder Society in Qadira. Unfortunately, his powerful benefactor tipped him off, so he's just as ready for the Pathfinders as they are for him!
Starfinder Society Special #4-99: A Time of Crisis is a Starfinder Society Special designed for 1st- through 6th-level characters (subtiers 1–2, 3–4, & 5–6).
While traveling to a distant star system as part of an archaeological mission, a Starfinder Society fleet is forcibly ejected from the Drift. Seemingly stranded on an unknown world, the surviving Starfinders must band together to survive the various threats mounting around them. Can they thrive in this new home, or will they become just another casualty at the start of the Drift Crisis? This adventure can be played for credit twice, each time with a different PC, regardless of level range. Likewise, a GM can apply credit for running this adventure up to two times to a different PC in a level range of their choice.
Starfinder Flip-Mat: Enormous Battlefield
WAR ROOM
Make room on your gaming table, because Starfinder Flip-Mats just got an upgrade! Measuring a titanic 30" by 46" when unfolded, this new double-sided map presents not one but two sprawling battlefields. One side features a massive, bombed-out urban battleground, while the other depicts the weathered ruins of an icy combat trench. Both sides are perfect for standard ground warfare or exciting mech vs. mech combat! Starfinder Flip-Mats provide ready-to-use science-fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Enormous Battlefield, your player characters’ opportunities to be heroes just got bigger!
Coming soon in June, delve the mountain deep with Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm and face your final fate in Pathfinder Adventure Path #192: Worst of All Possible Worlds, the climax of the Pathfinder Stolen Fate Adventure Path. Preorder or subscribe today!
Note: The Pathfinder Harrow Deck has been delayed and is currently targeted for July. The Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (5e) has also been delayed.
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, May 24, 2023
Your journey to adventure with the Pathfinder Remaster starts with the Player Core, a mighty tome containing all the rules you need as a player to create a character and take them on epic quests! Just as before, making a character is as simple as ABC: picking your Ancestry, Background, and Class!
This week, we wanted to focus on ancestries a bit to give you a sense of what you can expect from them in the Remaster. Little has changed in for basic ancestry features—you still get starting Hit Points, note your size and Speed, record your attribute boosts and flaws, list out your languages, and so on. The core identity of each ancestry hasn’t changed with the Remaster, so a lot of the descriptive text remains unaltered. But with alignment no longer a part of Pathfinder, we wanted to make sure that you still had a sense of what the ancestry was all about. So, we’ve created popular edicts and anathemas for each ancestry to give you a richer sense of what matters to them, beyond simple good or evil. You can use these as a basis for your character’s code and outlook, taking them as-is for a more traditional approach or tweaking them to spark your own unique ideas for your character. Take a look at the revised Beliefs section of the dwarf ancestry.
Beliefs
Dwarves tend to value honor and closely follow the traditions of their clans and kingdoms. They have a strong sense of friendship and justice, though they are often very particular about who they consider a friend. They work hard and play harder—especially when strong ale is involved. Torag, god of dwarvenkind, is dwarves’ primary deity, though worship of Torag’s family members is also common.
Popular Edicts create art with beauty and utility, hunt the enemies of your people, keep your clan dagger close
Popular Anathema leave an activity or promise uncompleted, forsake your family
As you can see, this gives you a more well-rounded and diverse picture of what members of the dwarven ancestry value as a people. We’re super excited about this change and have already started incorporating this format in our upcoming releases, such as the ardande and talos versatile heritages in Rage of Elements coming out in just a few months!
In addition to this, we’ve taken a hard look at the feats in each ancestry, making sure they’re living up to their design potential. You can expect to see upgrades to several feats to ensure they meet our current design philosophy (I'm looking at you, Stonecunning). Also, we’ve added feats from the Advanced Player’s Guide to the entries in the Player Core. For the dwarf alone, we’ve added Dwarven Doughtiness, Defy the Darkness, and more. Of course, we took this opportunity to create some new feats as well. Take a look at this all-new high-level dwarf feat!
Stonewall [reaction] — Feat 17
Dwarf, Earth, Polymorph
Frequency once per day
Trigger An enemy or hazard’s effect hits you or you fail a Fortitude save against one.The strength of stone overcomes you so strongly that it replaces your stout body. You become petrified until the end of the current turn. You don’t take any damage from the triggering effect or any other ill effects that couldn’t affect stone.
This brings us to the end of our first round of previews, but you can expect to hear a lot more about the Remaster books in the coming months. If you want to learn more, don’t forget to watch our Pathfinder Remaster panel this weekend at PaizoCon Online! We’ll be going live on Friday from noon to 2 pm PST, right after the keynote address, over on the Paizo Twitch. We hope to see you there!
Jason Bulmahn
Director of Game Design
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Tuesday, May 23, 2023
Shelyn smiles upon us! After a rigorous closed alpha test, open beta is now live for Demiplane’s Pathfinder NEXUS Character Tools. The Character Builder and Character Sheet are purpose-built tools tailored to help you weave thrilling adventures as a GM, experiment with unusual character builds, and share the fun of tabletop RPGs with friends new to the game.
Pathfinder NEXUS Character Tools are designed to facilitate and accelerate the process of character creation. Even for veteran players who've created countless characters, this tool adds speed and convenience. It’s perfect for those moments when inspiration strikes, allowing you to rapidly bring your ideas to life or even when you’re simply eager to explore new character builds. Mobile optimization means you can do all this while waiting in line for a hot brown morning potion (any The Dragon Prince fans here?)
The Online Character Sheet, meanwhile, automates calculations and modifiers for your character's attributes and abilities. It lets you focus more on the narrative and your character's actions, as you no longer need to spend game time on mundane calculations or hunting down misplaced modifiers. One-click access to rules related to everything on your sheet streamlines gameplay, eliminating time-consuming rulebook searches.
These tools offer significant advantages to seasoned players, especially those taking on the role of Game Master. When introducing Pathfinder 2nd Edition to new players or guiding fresh adventurers through Pathfinder Society events, these digital assets can prove invaluable. The Online Character Builder demystifies the initial steps of character creation for beginners, making the game more approachable and allowing them to start their first adventure with confidence. As a GM, this reduces the instructional burden on you, enabling you to focus more on the rich narrative and engaging encounters that make Pathfinder so much fun.
Things you’ll discover in the initial open beta version of the tools:
- An interface optimized for mobile, desktop, and tablet.
- Online access available wherever you have data–no download or install required.
- Guided Character Builder that simplifies information when you want to go fast and lets you deep-dive into the details when you want to explore. You're in control.
- Inclusion of every ancestry, heritage, background, class, feat, spell, and item in official published Pathfinder 2nd Edition rulebooks, sourcebooks, standalone adventures, and adventure paths.
- 7 free character slots.
- A Click-To-Know system that makes nearly every element on the character sheet interactive. Think “crit success on Recall Knowledge” any time you need to remember a rule while you’re playing. Full rules (plus tooltips, cross-references, and more) for every skill, action, feat, and attribute are just one click away.
- Shareable character sheets. This empowers you to help build a first-time character for a new player and also to have access to all the obscure feats, spells, and items your players bring to your table.
- Calculations and automations. The more we can help put math in the background, the more you can focus on your character and the group story. If it’s a permanent value (how your Dexterity mod, armor proficiency, equipment, and level affect AC, for example), expect the Character Sheet to do the math for you. For situational, variable, or temporary values (Barbarian rage, conditions, etc.) you'll see tools to help you track them, with automated calculations arriving as open beta progresses.
- Dice roller. Whether you’re playing online or forgot your clacky math rocks, it’s a straightforward way to roll.
- Did drinking from that enchanted pool give you +5 speed until sunrise? You can make that modification and jot down a note on where it came from.
- A place for your Pathfinder Society Organized Play ID #, naturally.
What’s free and what costs some gold? If it's available in the Pathfinder Primer (found here) it will be available free in Character Tools. For other character options, when you have access to the book on Pathfinder NEXUS that a given ancestry, background, class, feat, spell, etc. is from, it will be available to you in Character Tools. "Access" includes when you own a Pathfinder NEXUS book yourself or someone has shared it with you using the content-sharing benefit that's part of their Demiplane Membership. This approach makes sure our devs and designers get fair compensation for their work, and because we're an official licensee, a portion goes back to support the Paizo team as well.
While we're excited to share Pathfinder NEXUS Character Tools with you, this is an open beta, so we continue to push hard in two important areas. First, we’re rapidly adding new features and functions from our backlog. Second, we're now gathering feedback from an even larger group of passionate players. We want to ensure that these tools continuously improve and deliver on their mission: to make every game of Pathfinder you play even more fun and satisfying.
Monday, May 22nd, 2023
PaizoCon South Pacific is happening again at the historic Quarantine Station in Sydney, Australia this June/July!
This year, we’re doing things a little differently and have embraced a spooky theme to celebrate the shortest days of the year here in the Southern Hemisphere. A boatload of Pathfinder and Starfinder Society content will be on offer over the weekend, alongside ghost tours and other activities that will let you catch up with other players from around the region. Activities will include:
- Low level sessions of Pathfinder Society 2E and Starfinder; beginners welcome!
- A whole pile of OP scenarios, a module, and even short adventures to play, so as to provide something for everyone.
- Dinner at The Hold on Sunday, July 2nd (https://thehold.com.au/)
A weekend-pass is $70, or you can purchase individual sessions at $15 per person. Tickets are purchased through Warhorn via PayPal. All the details can be found here or at Warhorn, and you can keep up with the conversation on Discord.
Please contact the organisers (Sandra Wilkinson or Nik Beattie) by email (nsworgplay@tutanota.com) or via the PCSP section in the NSW Discord (https://discord.gg/dkkPNpxGn9) if you have any questions or queries about the convention, they will be more than happy to help you out!
PaizoCon South Pacific Organisers
Tags: Community, Conventions, Organized Play, Paizo, PaizoCon, Pathfinder, Starfinder
]]>Monday, May 22, 2023
Hardcovers of Pathfinder & Starfinder comics are crowdfunding now!
Dynamite has launched an exciting new Kickstarter that allows fans to immerse themselves in thrilling Pathfinder and Starfinder graphic novels. The campaign is live now with hardcover editions of the forthcoming series Pathfinder: Wake the Dead, Starfinder: Angels of the Drift, and a collection of hard-to-find Pathfinder: Worldscape crossover specials. As a bonus, backers will receive playable RPG content included in each volume, extra incentive digital downloads, and more! From high fantasy to science fiction, there’s an adventure for every kind of gamer and reader.
Pathfinder comics make their return with Wake the Dead, the eighth volume in the line. Longtime gamer and comics veteran Fred Van Lente (Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Zombies) tackles this latest epic, alongside artist Eman Casallos (Vampirella).
In Wake the Dead, a party sets out on a quest to rendezvous with a defector of Geb, who has priceless secrets from that undead nation. When the team find themselves cornered by the city’s remorseless Deathsealers, can they band together for survival and escape a city full of hostile wizards alive?
As always, Wake the Dead features new Pathfinder RPG rules, including Pathfinder Society-sanctioned character options. If you can’t wait to use them at the table, be sure to pick up the individual issues coming out every other month starting May 31 at your local comic book retailer!
Starfinder: Angels of the Drift is the first-ever comic series set in the science-fantasy game’s Pact Worlds setting. Built on a foundation of the Pathfinder setting flung far into the future, Starfinder blends magic and technology, elves and aliens. Starfinder’s first, now former, Creative Director James L. Sutter writes the series, alongside artist Edu Menna (Army of Darkness).
Starfinder: Angels of the Drift stars a colorful cast of heroes who will be pulled together as a disaster in the hyperspace dimension known as the Drift has completely thrown off the galaxy's ability to travel between worlds safely.
Angels of the Drift continues the longstanding tradition of providing new game rules inspired by the contents of the comic story, and players will be able to find new Starfinder RPG species, equipment, and alien companions (among other options) in the volume’s rules appendix. Individual issues come out bi-monthly beginning June 21, so don’t wait to start using these Starfinder Society-sanctioned rules at your table!
Pathfinder: Worldscape Volume 3 binds never-before collected multiverse crossovers including Worldscape: Vampirella, Worldscape: Dejah Thoris, Worldscape: Reanimator, and Worldscape: Swords of Sorrow. The collection features adventures written by Paizo’s Chief Creative Officer and Publisher Erik Mona and former Paizo editor Christopher Paul Carey. Previously released exclusively via a Humble Bundle deal, longtime collectors will be happy to see them back in print and collected in a single volume.
Kickstarter supporters can also add previous volumes of Pathfinder comics to their pledge, including the recent Pathfinder: Fumbus special and other fun add-on options.
Go to our Kickstarter page to participate
Friday, May 19th, 2023
Share your unique vision with the pros! Get thoughtful and detailed feedback on your illustrations from Paizo’s art directors. Learn what we look for and how to get there. We are here to help! Sign up to have our team review your portfolio, and we’ll give you a 10-minute constructive critique on your work. Reviews will be held Friday, May 26th starting at 10 am and going to 3 pm. We’re offering early sign up for ticket holders, and then we will open it up to anyone interested.
How To Sign Up:
- Click on one of the links below that corresponds with a Paizo Art Director.
- Click on the highlighted date on the Calendar.
- Choose one of the available times and hit “next.”
- Follow the prompts and fill in your name, email, and link to your portfolio.
- We’ll see you at your scheduled time in the Paizo Events Discord in one of the Portfolio Reviews channels.
Guidelines:
- Reviews will be done over Discord; please remember what time you signed up and join the Discord chat at your time as to not intrude on someone else’s review.
- Please only choose one art director to sign up for a time slot with, we have a limited number of times and want to give as many people a chance as possible.
- Please link to your portfolio so we have a chance to review your work beforehand.
- Please no AI generated work.
We can’t wait to see your work!
Friday, May 19th, 2023
Hey folks! My name is James L. Sutter—you might remember me as Starfinder's first Creative Director. Though I've been away for a bit, exploring new worlds, I was absolutely thrilled to return as the writer for the first-ever Starfinder comic series from Paizo and Dynamite!
Back when we were first dreaming up Starfinder, we knew we needed some sort of faster-than-light travel, but we wanted something that felt unique—not just another Star Trek-style warp or Star Wars-style hyperspace. I'd personally always been a fan of Event Horizon's "ship drive tears open a hole to Hell" idea, which seemed like it would present a lot of opportunity for adventure. At the same time, games like Pathfinder and D&D had already long established that plane-hopping through the realms of the afterlife is a great way to shortcut across vast distances on the Material Plane. So we thought: what if instead of traveling by planeshifting to somewhere like Heaven or Hell, you instead entered a whole new dimension, one dedicated to (or created by) faster-than-light travel? And what if every time you did, it tore off a little piece of one of the other planes to add to itself—making the dimension both hugely useful and a parasitic cancer on reality?
Thus was the Drift born, and with it one of the most recognizable and mysterious elements of our game's setting. We'd known from early on that we wanted Starfinder's "modern day" to be shortly after the discovery of faster-than-light travel: the beginning of a galactic land rush, complete with all the excitement, conflict, and moral quandary of an age of exploration. And the question of how Drift technology was created let us build up canon around an important new deity: Triune the All-Code, god of machines. We decided that the discovery would come from Triune sending out "the Signal," a magical message in a million different forms telling the cultures receiving it how to construct ships capable of accessing the Drift.
The Drift is crucial to every element of galactic society, from trade to basic communication—which makes any threat to it unbelievably dangerous. Starfinder: Angels of the Drift takes place during just such a threat: an event called the Drift Crisis, in which the Drift suddenly begins behaving unpredictably, shunting starships out in random locations or swallowing them whole. When our story begins, Navasi and her crew have been having a hard time finding passengers willing to brave an unstable dimension—until a spectra, a magical robot-like being native to the Drift, hires them to help it take the Signal to an advanced culture that somehow missed the message. But a new world comes with new opportunities for exploitation, and our heroes aren't the only ones eager to make contact...
Of course, a story is more than just its setting. While I've written for the Pathfinder comics before—series like Runescars, Hollow Mountain, Origins, and Goblins—with Starfinder, I knew I wanted to take a different approach. You see, in June I'm coming out with my first young adult novel, Darkhearts, a queer romance all about falling for the boy who stole your chance at rock stardom. And while the Starfinder comics aren't a romance (yet), I learned some lessons writing that book that I'll be bringing to Starfinder's epic science-fantasy action.
The most important of those is that stories are about characters—and that goes double for comics. After all, we don't return to the X-Men month after month for the plots; we do it because we want to see Wolverine be our Grumpy Mutant Dad, or watch a charismatic Magneto make some uncomfortably good points. And a character is more than just a costume or a role in a party—they're their problems, their relationships, their point of view.
So when I sat down to outline Starfinder: Angels of the Drift, I made sure that every character had some emotional or philosophical issue they were wrestling with—a challenge to their worldview that could let them grow (or not). Without spoiling where everyone ends up, below is a brief introduction to the party members and how they'll be pushed emotionally over the course of the story.
Obozaya: Our brash vesk brawler is obsessed with two things: honor and dance music. While Obo's never been one to walk away from a fight, this series will force her to ask whether there's anything more important than being the best—and if violence is always the answer.
Navasi: As self-proclaimed shot-caller for her merry band of mercenaries, Navasi's used to using quick wits and fast talk to keep her party in food and fuel. Times are tough, and she knows their vagabond life depends on her ability to cut a deal—but how much can a reformed pirate squeeze the needy before she's no longer reformed?
Ciravel: As a precog, Ciravel sees glimpses of the future, and uses them to help lead her friends—and the galaxy—down the best possible timeline. But how can she allow others to make their own choices when she can already see the outcomes? Is freedom really a virtue?
Quig: Nobody can match Quig's ability as a mechanic—or at least, that's what he thinks until he's forced to work with a spectra who can simply ask machines to fix themselves. With his role in the party in question, can our hotheaded, hard-partying rat cope with becoming obsolete?
Keskodai: For a shirren like Keskodai, individual choice is everything—the divine gift that distinguishes them from the mindless, ravenous Swarm. It's why he carries his son, Chk Chk, in a cradle-jar on his belt, so the larva can see the galaxy and decide his own place in it. But when the bullets start flying, everyone's favorite death priest will have to ask himself whether putting his child at risk is really a responsible choice.
Thanks so much for reading, and I hope you'll check out Starfinder: Angels of the Drift!
James L. Sutter
Writer, Starfinder: Angels of the Drift
Thursday, May 18, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
PaizoCon Online 2023 is just around the corner, and that means it’s time to usher in a new season of the Starfinder Society! Welcome to the Year of Fortune’s Fall!
We’re starting this year off in style with a trip to the Grand Museum of Qabarat on the planet Castrovel! The Starfinder Society has been invited to participate in the grand opening of a new exhibit showcasing civilizations of the Vast. Create a museum display using belongings from the Scoured Stars, network with esteemed archaeologists and organizations, and enjoy the gala celebration. When some unexpected guests crash the party and attempt to rob the museum, it’s up to the Starfinders to step up and save that day!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-01: Intro: Year of Fortune’s Fall is the first adventure in the Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot! This repeatable scenario is written by Mahpiya and is for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
The Drift Crisis has come to an end! …Or has it?
In the wake of the Drift Crisis, navigational anomalies have emerged. Termed “Drift lanes,” these mysterious high-speed tunnels through the Drift are static, connecting distant locations in a predictable path at faster speeds that the Drift alone could enable. It’s time to hop into your starship, explore a Drift lane, and make nice with whatever people and worlds might be on the other side! No pressure!
What’s that? You want a clue to your destination? Well, just one... The people on the other end of this Drift lane call it “Jatembe’s Jaunt.”
Oh! And keep an eye out for pirates!
Starfinder Society Scenario #6-02: Drift Scars is an adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Erin Roberts.
For those of you who’ll be participating in PaizoCon Online 2023, we’ve got one more adventure hitting gaming tables this month: Starfinder Society Special #5-99: Battle for the Bulwark! Join a fleet of Starfinders under the command of Ixthia the Unbreakable as they travel into the Vast to reclaim the Exo-Guardian fortress of Sangoro’s Bulwark! Conquered by mysterious forces in the wake of the Scoured Stars Incident, Sangoro’s Bulwark has languished for years beneath a shroud of magical darkness. The Battle for the Bulwark has begun!
Written by Lysle Kapp and Cole Kronewitter, this interactive special is designed for 1st- through 8th-level characters. For further previews, check out our previous blog post on this year’s Organized Play Interactive Events.
Happy gaming!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hi Pathfinders! As Jessica pointed out, we’re almost to PaizoCon, and while you’ll have to wait a bit longer than that to play our new season, we’ve still got some exciting scenarios to share!
With the coming of PaizoCon, permission has been granted by the Segadan Council to venture into the interior of Arcadia! Aware of the witch coven’s plans to steal the star gun, Pathfinder agents have been entrusted with its safety and with the knowledge of where to locate the mysterious star gunsmith and receive their help. The PCs will need to journey through the mountains with the help of their guide, and then protect the gunsmith against any possible attacks before eventually making their way to Niishan on Lake Starfall. This will be the second part of the two-part Star Gun metaplot arc in the Year of Boundless Wonder.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-13: Within the Prairies is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Marlowe Miller.
The triumphant return of everyone’s favorite genie: Safa! Having finally broken free of their binder’s chains, Safa appears to the Pathfinders in the Sedeq Lodge for a personal quest: help them capture Fasiel ibn Sazadin and see that he receives mortal justice for his crimes! The PCs must infiltrate the museum that Fasiel’s holed up in and help to free the other genies and mortals that he’s captured for his nefarious purposes. Unfortunately, Fasiel’s aware the PCs are coming and has prepared for them, with some help from his most mysterious benefactor. They’ll need to be clever, quick, and most importantly, thoughtful about each move they make in the museum…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-14: Shattering Golden Chains is an adventure for 3rd- through 6th-level characters written by Matt Duval.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, May 18, 2023
Over the past few weeks, we’ve given you a look at two new dragons from the Monster Core, due out early next year. And while I'm sure folks are eager to throw a diabolic dragon and a mirage dragon at their players, this week, we wanted to turn our attention to some of the new material you’ll find in the GM Core, a book packed cover to cover with everything a GM needs to run Pathfinder Second Edition!
While much of this tome will be familiar to those of you who have read the Core Rulebook and Gamemastery Guide, there are still plenty of new things tucked away here to delight and surprise your players! To give you just a taste, today I thought we’d look at two brand-new apex magic items set to appear in the GM Core! These items are the pinnacle of power for most characters, highly sought after for their ability to increase your attribute modifiers. We hope you enjoy this sneak peek at some of our exciting new items!
Bracers of Strength — Item 17
Apex, Invested, Magical
Price 15,000 gp
Usage worn bracers; Bulk LEtchings of powerful bears decorate these brass bracers. You gain a +3 item bonus to Athletics checks and a +2 circumstance bonus to Athletics checks to lift a heavy object, Escape, and Force Open. When you invest the bracers, you either increase your Strength modifier by 1 or increase it to +4, whichever would give you a higher score.
Activate—Bear Hug [one-action] (manipulate) Effect Attempt to Grapple a creature. If you succeed, you crush the creature in your grasp, dealing bludgeoning damage to it equal to your Strength modifier. If you critically succeeded, the damage is equal to double your Strength modifier, and the creature suffocates as long as it remains grabbed or restrained by you.
Cloak of Swiftness — Item 17
Apex, Invested, Magical
Price 15,000 gp
Usage worn cloak; Bulk LThis thin cloak is surprisingly light, as if clouds or the very wind were woven together to make the garment. The cloak grants you a +3 item bonus to Acrobatics checks. When you invest the cloak, you either increase your Dexterity modifier by 1 or increase it to +4, whichever would give you a higher score.
Activate—Ride the Wind [one-action] (manipulate) Frequency once per day; Effect You tug on the cloak, wrapping yourself in the power of wind. You gain a fly Speed of 30 feet for 1 hour. While wrapped in the cloak, you become translucent, causing you to become concealed for the duration.
These items and more are set to premiere in the GM Core, coming out this November! Tune in next week as we take a look at some of the new elements you’ll find in the Player Core!
Jason Bulmahn
Director of Game Design
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, May 17, 2023
PaizoCon Online 2023 is just around the corner, so it’s time to introduce our Digital Content guests! These are some friends of Paizo who we’ve invited to hang out with us in a digital “exhibition hall” on the Discord Event Server over the weekend! They’ll be joining us to show off their amazing products, answer questions, and hang out with the community. Some have even planned panels of their own via Discord Stages!
We’ve given them a chance to introduce themselves ahead of the con, so scroll on!
AbyssalBrews
AbyssalBrews began as a passion project between two best friends to create a collection of magic items, creatures, systems, player options, and more. Now, two years in, they're finding a new path in Pathfinder 2E as they seek to expand their offerings and share their passion with a new audience. All of their creations are fully illustrated by Fernando Dominguez and written by Matthew Ross with the simple goal of making the magic they want to see in the TTRPG space. While they’re still fresh faces in the Pathfinder scene, they hope to find a new community to share their work and passion with.
Discord Events
Saturday, May 27th - 8PM EST
Making Magic with AbyssalBrews
AbyssalBrews has been creating fully illustrated third-party content for years and has recently expanded into Pathfinder 2E. Join illustrator Fernando Dominguez and writer Matthew Ross as they talk about their process and make a magic item along with them. They'll be taking audience questions while they forge a new Pathfinder 2E magic item from your suggestions.Sunday, May 28th - 1PM EST
Rising from the Depths
AbyssalBrews started as a team of two passionate creators attempting to make the content that they wanted to see in TTRPGs. Several years later, they're still a team of two, albeit with more ambitious goals and more creations under their belt. Join illustrator Fernando Dominguez and writer Matthew Ross as they discuss their path to creating in the TTRPG space. Learn from their wins, laugh at their follies, and find your own path to turning a hobby into a passion project.
Alchemy RPG
Alchemy is a new kind of virtual tabletop that's focused on creating an immersive, cinematic experience everywhere you interact with roleplaying games: playing a game, creating a world, discovering new content, and streaming live games.
Playing Games. The Alchemy experience creates a window into any story world. It seamlessly weaves together story assets and automates common patterns that distract from the game experience today. Players connect through integrated voice chat while dynamic music, ambient sound, and particle effects enable Game Masters to craft immersive environments for their players to tangibly explore.
Worldbuilding. Licensed game content can be purchased from the Marketplace, but Game Masters can also create their own universes, then share or sell them with ease on the Alchemy platform. Thousands of TTRPG creators monetize their content through third-party seller tools today, but the experience is costly, has poor distribution, and makes it hard for players to get started quickly.
Content Discovery. The Alchemy Marketplace provides content publishers and creators with a modern digital game store that elevates their titles and connects them to new customers. Some of the industry’s best content creators have officially licensed titles available, including Paizo, Free League, Modiphius, Chaosium, Kobold Press, Hunter’s Entertainment, Steamforged Games, Hit Point Press, Magpie Games, and more.
Streaming. With streamer mode, players can make their games observable directly on Alchemy. Spectators can join the game experience and chat, emote, participate in polls, and leave tips for the Game Master. The Alchemy home screen hosts current live games to keep players engaged between game nights and helps teach newcomers the game.
Archives of Nethys
The Archives of Nethys began as a Pathfinder 1E fan project by Blake Davis back in early 2010, compiling rules information as it related to his Pathfinder campaigns and Pathfinder Society games. Since then, the project has grown and evolved to become the official SRD representing Paizo's RPGs, taking on a larger team of volunteers and creating new sites to represent Starfinder and Pathfinder 2E. Aside from Blake, who still manages the team and the websites as their lead developer, those volunteers now include:
- Andreas Lundkvist (Galdiuz) [Joined 2022]: Search Developer
- Devin Burke [Joined 2015]: Data Entry Specialist (Pathfinder)
- Federico Castro (Star) [Joined 2021]: Front-End / UI Developer
- Jonny Dover [Joined 2021]: Editor
- Kao [Joined 2019]: Editor
- Mark von Drake [Joined 2019]: Data Entry Specialist (Starfinder)
- Milan Badzic [Joined 2018]: Developer & PFS Venture Captain
- Tim Cummings [Joined 2023]: Data Entry Specialist
BKOM Studios
Founded in 1996, BKOM Studios is the award-winning developer behind “Sunday Gold,” “Overloot,” “Tales from Candlekeep: Tomb of Annihilation,” “Little Lords of Twilight,” and more. They also create their own original games and universes. Their team is made up of more than 120 talented people developing games, video trailers, social media, marketing campaigns, points of sale, apps, connected toys, and AR/VR experiences. For more information, visit https://www.bkomstudios.com/.
DriveThruRPG
Join Infinite Masters Helen Savore (she/her), Derry Luttrell (he/him or they/them), Jamie Trollope (he/him), and John Holmes (he/him) as they team up with Roll20's own Content Producer, Eve Crockett (they/them), as moderator on a panel to discuss the Pathfinder Infinite and Starfinder Infinite Program, where they’ll share wisdom and advice based on their experiences so far. The panel will be available to watch and interact with in the Discord server May 27th 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific during PaizoCon! Bring your questions or just hang out with these awesome creators!
Forgotten Adventures
Forgotten Adventures and Forgotten Adventures: Battlemaps create top-down, orthographic assets, tokens, and battlemaps for fantasy TTRPGs, with a focus on use in virtual tabletops. Their products have a detailed, semi-realistic, 2D art style, and they focus on quality, versatility, and inclusivity in their art. Forgotten Adventures (FA) assets allow you to design and build your own maps from scratch, and to offer you a large collection of items to drop into a premade or unfurnished map. Their ever-growing collection of tokens is a mix of monsters, NPCs, and heroes created to give you many reusable options for all your games’ characters and creatures. Forgotten Adventures: Battlemaps uses FA assets to make interesting but "generic" maps for use in your games, including variants and tiles to increase their reusability and versatility.
Hephaistos
Hephaistos is an online digital toolset for the Starfinder RPG developed by Vishesh Bhartiya. Since its original release in June 2020, the website has grown from a simple character creator to supporting starships, NPCs, integrating with popular VTTs, and, most recently, adding a comprehensive homebrew editor. The website is constantly being updated with fixes, improvements, and the latest content, and with a slew of upcoming features on the roadmap, there's a lot to look forward to.
PF2Easy.com
Ivan Blanco Catalán. Born in Barcelona, Spain. I work as a chemistry teacher at a high school. I also have a wife and a 7-year-old son. My hobbies are playing in the theater, reading a lot of fantasy books, and computer science. Ah, yes… I have been playing TTRPGs since I was 13, too.
I regularly bought Dungeon magazine and I remember GMing the Shackled City Adventure Path. Iolanda, who played a druid character, had several problems choosing which animal to transform into. As computer science is one of my big first hobbies, I tried to help my player, and I made my first webtool for the old Pathfinder system. She loved it and used it every game day, so eventually I shared it with the community for free. I also remember playing around with more computer science and sharing the featsweb, a handy tool when you wanted to build and follow a feat path.
Then the Pathfinder 2E playtest started. I decided I wanted to test my computer science abilities and try my best to develop a handy webtool for the Pathfinder 2E community, so I made the playtest PF2Easy.com, a search webtool for the PF2E playtest. It was a hit, as there were so few webtools like that for the playtest on the internet. Pathfinder’s Reddit community was boiling at that time, and I remember receiving a lot of support there that led me to keep working and make numerous small webtools for the Pathfinder 2E playtest.
Pathfinder 2E began and with all the experience I’d earned, I wanted to be part of this new era. I knew that AoN as an official partner was going to have the sourcebooks before I would and that they had plenty of good people working for the website, but I kept working on what I knew. No ads, updating the database, and answering community requests were my line of work.
Nowadays, after I wake up, I spend a while working on uploading data and planning new tools before I have breakfast. I have spent some nights on it too, and if my family allows me, I spend some time on the weekend answering community requests. (Wait, I think that Paizo has just released some new adventures… I have to stop writing and start uploading them!)
In all, PF2Easy.com is a collection of webtools for both masters and players!
I have met a lot of good people in the Pathfinder 2e community: players, GMs, and various other creators who help make this game so wonderful. I feel comfortable in this community thanks to the recognition and support of all these people.
Pf2eTools
Pf2eTools is a website dedicated to Pathfinder 2E official content, presenting it in a quick, responsive, and server-less manner. The entire site is available offline through Preloading in your browser, or by downloading the project files and making your own server in less than 5 steps! It is an open-source project that allows the entire community to work on it by providing errata, fixes, and new features, as well tools for homebrew data to be optionally loaded in. Lastly, it’s completely ad-free. It does not require any sort of payment to access the content, but if you want to support the developers, they are available over at Patreon.
Roll20
Roll20 and its family of premiere online marketplaces, including Pathfinder Infinite, DriveThruRPG, Dungeon Masters Guild, DriveThruComics, and more, have been selling digital and print-on-demand roleplaying games, war games, comic books, and fiction since 2001. Tens of thousands of publishers—from big names you’ve seen in print, such as Paizo, Valiant Comics, Modiphius, and Chaosium, to our industry’s many talented small press innovators—have come together to list hundreds of thousands of titles, so you can be sure to find what you want whenever you want it. The Roll20 Market is the all-in-one solution for organizing and playing tabletop games online, allowing you to play your games anywhere in the world and share them with anyone virtually. With the ability to choose from several popular titles built ready for your virtual tabletop, your adventures are limitless, and you can get started playing with little to no prep. Dive into advanced features like Dynamic Lighting or explore macros and APIs to add extra depth to your game. Roll20 lets you play your tabletop games your way.
We’ll also be joined by the amazing teams at Demiplane (PF Nexus), dScryb, Foundry VTT, Lone Wolf (Hero Lab), SmiteWorks (Fantasy Grounds), and WizKids.
If you're interested in gaming, don't forget to purchase a ticket and sign up on Warhorn to get access to our Organized Play games and non–Organized Play activities!
We can't wait to see you all at PaizoCon Online 2023!
Tuesday, May 16, 2023
Hey everyone! James here, your favorite hapa senior designer on the Pathfinder rules and lore team. The month of May (at least in the US) is when we take the time to acknowledge and celebrate people of Asian or Pacific Islander heritage, and so we wanted to take this chance to spotlight our API authors as well as show off some never-before-seen art from our latest project to touch on these themes, Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia. Enjoy! If you like someone’s work, consider leaving a compliment to let them know or giving them a follow to keep up with their projects!
Mahalo,
James Case
Senior Designer
Eren Ahn (they/them, primarily)
Hello there! I’m a Korean American writer based in Chicago. Most of my personal work is tied to themes of identity, both as a person of color and as a person who identifies as LGBTQ+, and I draw on all aspects of my identity to drive my work. I’ll be collaborating with a good friend to produce system-agnostic supplements featuring original creatures and monsters for others to incorporate into their campaigns in the near future! If you’re interested in keeping up with that particular project along with anything else that I write, you can find me on Twitter under the handle @chromathesia. You’ll also see some of my writing in both of Paizo’s upcoming Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia books.
Jeremy Blum (he/him)
Hi, I’m Jeremy! I’m Taiwanese on my mom’s side and American on my dad’s. While I grew up in the United States, I spent the majority of my twenties living in Taiwan and Hong Kong, which is where I first got into tabletop roleplaying games. I was fortunate enough to channel some of my life experiences into the upcoming Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Character Guide, and I’m psyched to see what people think of my first major TTRPG project. Aside from reworking the Dragon Empires, I’ve contributed to the just-announced Howl of the Wild creature book, worked on Pathfinder conversions for the Korean mythology–inspired Undying Corruption project, helped the rad folks over at the Asians Represent podcast with their forthcoming Wandering Blades TTRPG, and dabbled in the world of wargaming with Margrave: The Marcher Lords. You can see my full portfolio here. When I’m not writing, you can find me on Twitter @PixelGrotto, where I’m usually rambling about comics and obscure video games released two or three decades ago.
Hwan dancer; art by Vira Linevych (left) and Xa Hoi coming-of-age ritual; art by Gunship Revolution (right)
Alyx Bui (they/them)
Hi, I’m Alyx, and I’m a queer, disabled, non-binary, Chinese-Vietnamese Canadian and a TTRPG game designer, writer, artist, and GM, in addition to being an activist and filmmaker. I’m devoted to bringing more authentic queer Asian representation to the media and to play. I focus on stories that expand narratives divergent from the mainstream. I’m absolutely excited to have contributed to, and written for, Paizo’s upcoming Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide and Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide!
My first published work was a D&D 5th Edition module in 2020, The Great Zodiac Race, an adventure that allows players to reenact the Great Race origins myth that determined the Chinese zodiac and lunar calendar. From there, I became a curated play program GM with Magpie Games, have contributed to thousands of dollars being raised in various TTRPG actual play charity streams, and am a board member for the Tabletop Mentorship program.
Future projects I’m also excited to be working on: I’m currently developing Chinese Ghost Stories We Tell Ourselves, a communal horror tabletop roleplaying game based on Chinese ghost stories and cultural interpretations that lets players find out what ghost stories they’ll weave with their family.
Why representation matters in TTRPGs is quite similar to why it matters in the media—when we don’t see ourselves reflected on screen or in the TTRPG world, it’s a signal that we don’t matter and our stories don’t exist. Our voices, our stories, our faces, and our beings will always matter.
Dana Ebert (she/her)
Hi, everyone! I’m Dana Ebert, a Filipino American trans woman working as a writer and game designer. I’m also the creative director at TPK Brewing Co., a TTRPG brewpub opening soon in Portland, OR, which, I’m proud to add, is majority-owned by queer women of color and emphasizes partnerships with local vendors and artists. You can learn more at tpkbrewing.com and danaebertpdx.com. If you have a few minutes, please also check out Firebrands+ on Pathfinder Infinite, as well as other titles by Team+. They do really outstanding work, and they’re just the nicest folks, for real. Cheers!
John Godek III (he/him)
Hi! I’m John, a mixed-race Filipino American gamer, Game Master, freelance author, and podcaster in the Seattle area. I earned my 5th Nova for Starfinder Society two years ago and started tabletop RPG freelance writing three years ago. I’ve written freelance assignments for Evil Robot Games, Legendary Games, and Paizo. My most recent work includes next month’s Starfinder Society Scenario #6-04: Secrets Long Submerged, this October’s Starfinder Enhanced hardcover, and next year’s Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Character Guide.
When I’m not playing, GMing, or writing, I produce four podcasts on the Know Direction Network: Digital Divination, a Starfinder show with Paizo Senior Developer Jason Keeley; Intrepid Heroes, a Starfinder actual play whose cast has included Eleanor Ferron, Rob Helm, Scott Keim, Ron and Stephanie Lundeen, Jason Tondro, and Mark Woolcott; Presenting - Gamers Making Games, an interview show where I chat with game designers, developers, artists, and editors; and most recently Know Direction Beyond, a Starfinder news, reviews, and interviews show with Alex Augunas and James Ballod.
In my non-gamer life, I’ve been a university professor for 20 years, teaching entrepreneurship and social venture creation. Prior to that, I was a vagabond who sailed the seven seas—circumnavigating North America en route the Arctic Circle, Greenland, and the Panama Canal while also transiting the Patagonian Passage on the way to Antarctica, Tasmania, and Tonga.
You can reach me on Twitter @JohnGodekIII and find my podcasts at KnowDirectionPodcast.com or on YouTube at GamingDivination.com.
Jessie “Aki” Lo (she/her)
Jessie Lo, better known as Aki/Akino, is a queer, 1st-generation Asian Canadian game designer, writer, tabletop performer, and all-round TTRPG content creator. While she does too many things, you can find some of her best work on her award-winning Pathfinder 2e podcast Goblets and Gays as well as her new all BIPOC Pathfinder 2e Star Wars Podcast An Unwavering Force. Her Paizo debut will be in Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia!
Adam Ma (he/him)
A writer and professional Game Master with a fondness for exploring personal growth, Adam is on an endless quest to create immersive experiences that push players to challenge the way they look at the world. Sometimes, this means finding opportunities to spotlight a culture, background, or way of life that isn’t often explored. Sometimes, it’s revealing a new terrible horror to bring to life at the table.
As a Chinese/Puerto Rican living in Canada, Adam is a big fan of telling stories with diverse voices. Adam has contributed adventures, items, environments, and other worldbuilding essentials to Lion Forge, Splinterverse, and, of course, Paizo! Fans of Tian Xia will hopefully recognize his contribution, as dark humor and a deep love of horror tends to bleed into much of his work.
When he isn’t crafting wordscapes in Tian Xia, Adam spends his time building worlds in any medium that will have him. He’s the author behind the post-apocalyptic superhuman webcomic, Folklore, and a contributor to a number of creative anthologies focused on everything from pirates to cyberpunk martial arts. His current major project is Teldramir; this open-play TTRPG world setting provides community adventures in a persistent world both for veterans and for players who are brand new to tabletop gaming.
If you’re interested in learning more about any of his projects, be sure to give Adam a follow:
Twitter: 34thGingerbread
Instagram: 34thgingerbread
Personal Site Adam.34th
Christopher Rondeau (he/they)
Hello! I am a professor that primarily teaches writing and rhetoric. As an instructor, I aim to provide perspective on different voices through my student’s specific backgrounds and diverse reading options. However, my research is on interactive storytelling and how storytelling gives windows of opportunity for new voices. I had the privilege of being a full-time Game Master before moving on to an instructor role. Being a full-time GM opened many doors to the community, allowing me to become a writer on a few projects. You may have seen my name on the announcement for Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide. Additionally, you can read my comic book and tabletop commentary on the Major Spoilers entertainment website.
On top of teaching and writing, my company, Skald’s Tale Entertainment, is thrilled to be producing new actual play games in the upcoming months. My stories have a unique blend of my heritage. Being multiracial Chinese and Caucasian, I like exploring the multiethnic intersection within my stories. Check out the several projects set to release between May and August for your tabletop actual play entertainment by following @skaldstale on Instagram and Twitter.
Etsul Genpo, Secretary of the Conclave; art by Nicholas Phillips (left) and Wanshou sake brewer; art by Christopher Kimball (right).
Ruvaid Virk (he/him)
Heyo folks! I’m Ruvaid, a first generation Pakistani American. I’ve had the pleasure of being a freelancer for Paizo since Bestiary 3. Since then, I’m proud to have worked on products, including the Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Adventure Path, Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands, Dark Archive, as well as the upcoming Rage of Elements and Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia books!
I’ve done a lot of work inspired by my South Asian heritage, but I still have some complicated feelings about contributing to something like this. Being a first-generation physically removed from my cultural roots is a difficult thing to deal with—darn that imposter syndrome! But I still love sharing stories and elements of South Asia, as I’ve done with my contributions of vishkanyas and parts of Jalmeray in Impossible Lands, and hope to do more in the future. I even run a homebrew Pathfinder 2e game set in Jalmeray!
If you want to see more updates on my TTRPG work, or my other sporadic thoughts on stuff, you can follow me on Twitter here.
Grady Wang (he/him)
Grady is a gold Ennie–winning writer and Infinite Master whose work is in the upcoming Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Pathfinder Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide as well as the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path. He’s also a contributing author to the newly released Battlezoo Bestiary: Strange & Unusual from Roll for Combat. Grady runs The Gallant Goblin along with his partner, Theo Thourson, which reviews TTRPG products on YouTube and publishes 3rd-party supplements, including the Queerfinder in-world–themed travel magazine series on Pathfinder Infinite. His other Pathfinder Infinite releases include Cryptids Expanded, a bestiary of more monsters for Dark Archive, and Adventures in Jalmeray, an anthology of three 4th-level adventures designed by an all-Desi writing team. The Gallant Goblin also makes adorable kobold plushies and, later this summer, will premiere Love & Hate in the Mana Wastes, an actual play based on the Outlaws of Alkenstar Adventure Path featuring a cast of professional improv comedians and actors. You can find all Grady’s projects, shop for plushies, get notified of upcoming Kickstarters, and more at gallantgoblin.com.
Tuesday, May 16, 2023
A very fond hello to everyone. I’m Nath (Anathema), the project coordinator for Foundry Virtual Tabletop (Foundry VTT). I’m joined by Viviane (Cora), who leads content development on our Pathfinder products. Some of you might remember our discussion of that development process in the Bestiary Token Pack blog post. We were also honored to attend last year’s PaizoCon and are excited to return this year.
It’s incredible to think that it has only been a year since we announced our partnership with Paizo and released the Beginner Box as the first of several pieces of Pathfinder content for Foundry VTT. With each release, we set ourselves a very high bar on quality and it’s thanks to our partnership with Paizo and the hard work of everyone involved that we have been so successful. Words cannot express how grateful we are for the outpouring of appreciation and support from the community with each release, and we hope to continue meeting or exceeding your expectations with Kingmaker’s forthcoming release.
What sometimes goes unnoticed is the other group contributing to this partnership, one equally deserving of praise and thanks. While the Pathfinder content for Foundry VTT is developed in-house by us, or by Sigil Services on behalf of Paizo, the world-class implementation of the underlying game system which we all rely on is entirely produced and maintained—free of charge—by a passionate group of fans. The Pathfinder Second Edition Volunteer Development Team have been hard at work supporting Pathfinder for Foundry VTT’s entire existence, and we want to take
this opportunity to spotlight their great work.
As a quick note: last year, the team led the community in raising more than $10,000 for the Extra Life charity. If you’d like to contribute to their ongoing charity efforts, please check out their team page and donate!
So, who are the volunteer developers? According to the game system’s open-source repository, 184 people have directly contributed to the project since its inception. We’ve invited some of the core members of the team to introduce themselves, talk about their work on the system, and give the community a peek behind the curtain at all that goes into creating and maintaining a tool that powers so many peoples’ games every single week.
Tim (TMun)
Hi everyone, I’m Tim. I’m presently the volunteer project coordinator for the Pathfinder Second Edition system on Foundry VTT. As the public face of the volunteers, my role is to be the point of contact for Foundry, Paizo, and other commercial interests with the volunteer base. I also set the overall guidance for the system. My most important job is being the arbiter of how rules are to be implemented if there is disagreement within the development team. I will also likely become a five-glyph Pathfinder Society GM during FoundryCon. All 150 of my table credits will have been earned using Foundry VTT!
I originally started working on the system when Foundry VTT went into open beta at the start of the pandemic. I had randomly picked up a Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rule Book at a local charity thrift shop for $5 and it seemed like it was meant to be. I pretty much immediately fell in love with the game. My first contribution to the Pathfinder Second Edition VTT system was data entry—starting with the Iconics, as I wanted to introduce some friends to the system. Over time, I took on bigger and bigger tasks, most notably a marathon session over two and a half days to get all the Advanced Player’s Guide in, and a three-month project to input all the missing Pathfinder Society scenario NPCs. When the team grew to the point where some organization was required, I was ‘elected’ by the other developers to take over coordinating the project. As for why I do it? Giving back to a community is very important to me—especially because, in a lot of cases, the work I shared was work I was going to do anyway. Why not let everyone benefit from the effort?
The thing I’m most proud of is the community that we’ve built. It took a lot of effort to coordinate with Paizo, but I think everyone is glad that we have. The commercial products that have come out so far show the power that Foundry brings to the virtual tabletop realm and the exceptional nature of the Pathfinder Second Edition system. I think the best illustration of our community’s strength has been the charity fundraising. Very early in the project, people began asking us to set up a Patreon or to accept donations. We deliberated and made a conscious decision that that was a bad idea—money makes things hard, especially with an open-source project. Instead, we decided to ask people to donate that money to charity on behalf of the project. Initially, it was toward food banks—at the start of the pandemic that was the greatest need. Then we moved on to animal shelters toward the end of the pandemic as people could no longer handle their “pandemic pets.” Most recently, we supported Extra Life, as Paizo had a super team that we could join as part of the larger community. I am privileged to be able to say that, last year, the community raised over $10,000 for Extra Life and the Children’s Miracle Network of hospitals!
Viviane (Cora)
Hello again! That’s right, I’m here too! Even before I worked for Foundry, I was busy supporting the system's development efforts as their community manager.
I first got involved in the project several years ago, when I decided to look into what it would take to submit some minor corrections to the creatures in the Age of Ashes adventure path. I didn't know the first thing about software development at the time, but with some help from the other volunteers, I was able to send in my first merge request. Since then, I've continued to sporadically submit minor updates to the system data, and I also maintain a module called PF2E Exploration Effects. Along the way, I learned a great deal about programming, and about modding Foundry VTT specifically. Unlike the other awesome people here, however, my direct contributions to the system have always been minor.
As the team's grown over the years, keeping it organized has become more and more of a monumental task. Some community members like Tikael and Shandyan have worked hard to maintain wikis, style-guides, and other documentation to help users and developers keep track of it all. Others spend a lot of time in community spaces, offering support and troubleshooting assistance to anyone who needs it. That's where I got my start! At the time, aside from a single channel on the [Foundry VTT Community Discord](https://discord.gg/foundryvtt) server, there was no "officially" designated location specifically for Pathfinder Second Edition community engagement and discussion. I decided to help remedy that by spinning up a Discord server to serve double purpose as a community hangout and a place for staging development efforts. By managing channels and roles, moderating discussions, writing blog posts, and otherwise engaging with the community, I hope to allow the programmers to get their work done as smoothly as possible.
Richard (stwlam)
Hi all, I am Richard and am known in the Foundry VTT community as the Shark That Walks Like a Man (“stwlam” for short). I help coordinate development of the code infrastructure of the system. My path to this role began during the height of COVID-19 through helping a friend who was GMing a different game for the platform, by implementing some features he desired for his campaign. When that was done, my attention turned to what I really wanted to play: Pathfinder!
My contributions to the project were initially small and targeted: adding and improving fundamental game mechanics I personally wanted to make use of as a player. This grew significantly over time; in the last two years I’ve had my hands in just about everything, but my primary focus has been on implementing rules for “things that happen on a map,” such as vision in areas of darkness and flanking during combat. My role as a volunteer development coordinator also has me reviewing and merging in new features, improvements, and bug fixes from our community contributors, who number close to 200 individuals since mid-2020.
Carlos (Supe)
Hello internet, my name is Carlos Fernandez—sometimes referred to as Supe—and I'm one of the developers and maintainers of the Pathfinder Second Edition implementation for Foundry VTT.
Around 2 years ago, I started playing Pathfinder and my group settled on Foundry VTT more or less from the start. Even at that time, it was one of the best implementations of Pathfinder on a VTT, but it did lack quite a number of features we take for granted today and I saw a chance to work on some of that thanks to the open nature of the platform.
I started with a module, a type of optional add-on in the Foundry VTT ecosystem, to add support for persistent damage. After that, I started adding features and fixing bugs in the main system itself. One thing led to another and now I'm one of the core contributors of the system.
As for my role, I add new features, fix bugs, and help prioritize what to add. Currently, I’m working on improving support for afflictions (such as poison and diseases). I’ve also been contracted by Foundry to work on some new features for the Kingmaker Adventure Path. Look forward to it!
Kevin (fryguy)
I’m Kevin and I’m most well-known as the creator of “PDF to Foundry,” a module which takes in a published Paizo adventure PDF, converts the assets (such as text and images), and loads those assets into a Foundry VTT world, populating it with journals, scenes and actors. With the creation of the amazing quality adventures that are now sold on the Paizo store, I have taken a break from adding recent adventures because they cannot compete with the quality of the ones that are being sold.
I was one of the earliest contributors to the Pathfinder Second Edition implementation for Foundry VTT, with one of the first pull requests merged back in October of 2019, only a few months after the creation of the repository. Over the years, I have implemented several big features, such as the held/worn/stowed tracking for items, and the ability score builder, but most of my time is spent on “PDF to Foundry.”
Ian (Tikael)
Hi everyone, I’m Ian. Most people in the community know me as Tikael. I’m one of the data entry coordinators for the Pathfinder Second Edition system on Foundry VTT, and I normally handle adding and reviewing new automation on our ever-growing compendiums.
When we took our tabletop game online in early 2020 I had plenty of downtime and nothing to fill it with. I decided to spend some of that time learning how the Foundry VTT system worked and helping to fill in gaps in the data entry, most notably the Paizo blog content, including the April fools monsters. As I became more proficient with the system and its data entry, I began to make small scripts to make my life easier, which have morphed into our current set of tools to speed up our data entry for the system. I’ve also made or collaborated on more than a dozen modules for Foundry, including automation helpers like the PF2E Companion Compendia and implementations of third-party content like Hopefinder or the Pnoll ancestry. I’ve also enjoyed helping third-party creators get their own content into Foundry and have tried to make the process of learning how to do it as painless as possible.
Playing Pathfinder is my hobby, and the Pathfinder community has been one I’ve been a part of since 2009. Helping coordinate data entry for the system has given me a way to give back to that community but it’s also had some great fringe benefits. I’ve been able to work on premium content for Foundry like the premium adventure path modules and the Battlezoo modules by Roll for Combat. It’s also given me a chance to work alongside this great team and learn from them. I can confidently say that I am a better programmer now than I was 3 years ago, and that the growth in my skills as a dev comes almost entirely from my experience working on this team.
Ian (Spartan)
Hi everyone, I’m (also) Ian! I go by SpartanCPA in the Pathfinder Second Edition Foundry community, and I’m also one of the data entry coordinators. These days though, I might be more known for the Bestiary Token Pack, available on the Paizo website. I also create the tokens for the Sigil APs, so if you plan to or have been enjoying the quality premium content released for Pathfinder Second Edition on Foundry VTT, you’ve likely seen my token work.
I started working on the system implementation in February of 2021 and I immediately got started on making the NPC actors nicer to use. Like Tikael said above, that eventually opened up into work for Battlezoo, Foundry, and Sigil on premium products. I hope everyone continues to enjoy the system. I can personally attest that a lot of people work very hard to make it as good as it is.
Common Questions
Are there any big plans the PF2e dev team are working on?
Development is always ongoing, and anyone is free to work on any functionality they’d like to see. There are no deadlines or due dates, but some of the bigger goals being chipped away at are expanded support for afflictions, and general improvements to the UI
How will the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster affect the Foundry VTT system?
We look forward to the changes that are coming and are very interested to see what they actually are. From a development perspective, we do not expect the remaster to be a substantial challenge to support.
In cases where rules have been updated, we will treat the remaster the same way we treat any official errata. This means that changes will be made to keep the system in line with the most up-to-date version of Pathfinder Second Edition. Anyone who would like to is welcome to stay on an older version of the system, but we do not otherwise plan to include both old and new versions of the same content side by side—it would add an unnecessary maintenance burden. We recognize that this may not make everyone happy, but in some cases, it would double the work of the developers during each and every future update.
In places where content simply is not reprinted, the decision is a little different. We don't want to remove officially published creatures or spells if they are still compatible with the system's rules. For example, we do not plan to remove creatures from the Bestiary just because they were not included in the Monster Core book. However, it's possible that mechanical changes in the remaster- such as the removal of alignment- will still affect those creatures.
At this time, it is really hard to try and commit to anything, as we don't have the exact contents of the remastered books available. However, our contacts at Foundry and Paizo have promised to get us early copies of the rules as soon as they're available, and we are very excited to see what the remaster means for Pathfinder.
How can I contribute to the system?
As a volunteer project, we're reliant on people like you to get new releases out! We’re in especially dire need of Typescript programmers. If you’re even remotely interested, please do consider paying us a visit. All of our organization and planning happens on our community Discord server, which is also the best place to come and chat with us.
We recognize that participating in development can be daunting, and so we do what we can to make it easier. Our Discord server has dedicated channels for answering development questions, and there are also some useful resources on our Wiki.
What’s next for Foundry VTT in terms of premium content?
The Stolen Fate adventure path is releasing every month, which we definitely recommend. I hear there’s a cool official Harrow Deck module you can use it with, too?
On Foundry’s side, work continues on Kingmaker, as well as one or two other unannounced projects. We’re hoping to have more to discuss at PaizoCon, so please be sure to join us there on Friday, May 26th at 4:00 PM PDT.
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Monday, May 15, 2023
Back in January, Paizo and an alliance of more than 1,500 game publishers announced our intention to support the development of the Open RPG Creative (ORC) License, a system-agnostic, perpetual, and irrevocable open gaming license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics and encourages collaboration and innovation in the tabletop gaming space. Since then, we’ve been hard at work conceiving and developing the ORC License, and today we’re pleased to announce that the second draft of the license is now ready for public comment!
This second draft incorporates changes and suggestions from hundreds of participating publishers on the ORC License Discord community, adds significant clarity to key terms and definitions, substantially increases the size and scope of the project’s official FAQ, and introduces several basic quality-of-life improvements across the board.
You can download a copy of the ORC license and its associated FAQ/AxE (Answers and Explanations) document below. Our intention is to solicit “final” feedback on the ORC License Discord until the end of the day NEXT Monday, May 22nd. We intend for this wave of commentary to be the last round before presenting the truly final version of the license, which we plan to release by the end of May.
Our deepest thanks to all project participants. Your feedback has been invaluable in making the ORC License an ideal open gaming license that will serve the community long into the future.
A new era of open gaming is nearly here!
Download the Orc License
Download the Orc AxE
Join the conversation
Monday, May 15th, 2023
Just a few more weeks remain to submit your monsters for this year’s RPG Superstar contest! The contest ends on May 28th, the Sunday of PaizoCon, so there’s still enough time to write up to three monsters and enter at https://rpgsuperstar.com/, but only if you get started soon! And if you need help and feedback on your monster before submission, check out the Roll For Combat Discord for helpful advice and feedback at http://discord.rollforcombat.com/.
For those unfamiliar with the contest, you can submit up to three monsters written for Pathfinder Second Edition while following this year’s theme by connecting your monster to twenty “elements” ranging from the traditional to weirder elements like music and space.
After you’ve submitted your monsters, you can actively see how your creations perform during the contest as next comes the voting and judging. There are two rounds of judging. First, anyone in the community can judge any monster on various categories to filter out the best of the bunch. Initial voting lasts approximately six weeks, during which anyone can vote on each submitted monster, and public campaigning is allowed, so get the word out!
After the first round of public voting, the private judging begins, where a skilled group of professional judges with broad skills in the industry will rank the top entries. Finally, the winners are announced, prizes awarded, and the winning monsters will be published in the next Battlezoo Bestiary!
Battlezoo Bestiary: Strange and Unusual, by Stephen Glicker, Mark Seifter, and the RPG Superstar! Winners
Cover art by Ameur MakhloufiIf you're looking for inspiration, or are curious about the last contest’s winners, look no further than the newly released Battlezoo Bestiary Strange & Unusual at https://battlezoo.com/products/preorder-battlezoo-bestiary-strange-unusual-pdf. This new bestiary includes over 150 new monsters from the last RPG Superstar contest, along with multiple ways to expand your Pathfinder game, including:
- 150+ RPG Superstar monstersseparated by copper, silver, gold, platinum, and the grand prize winners.
- Aberrant Soul archetype/subclassfor characters who are slowly transforming into an aberration!
- New options for the Monster Parts crafting system.
- New rules on how to refine monster parts into custom weapons, armor, shields, skill items, magic items, and more.
- New imbuing categories, including properties for all eldamon elements that don’t currently have them (air, earth, water, and many stretch goal elements) and weird ones like the tentacular “extension” imbued property.
- New character backgrounds.
- 150+ illustrations.
- And more!
We also have a special bundle package this week where you can both the first Battlezoo Bestiary, as well as Strange and Unusual, at a discounted price at https://battlezoo.com/products/battlezoo-bestiary-strange-unsual. So if you want to be featured in our next Battlezoo Bestiary, enter RPG Superstar 2023 today!
Mark Seifter
Director of Game Design, Roll for CombatAuthor Bio:
I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 8 PM Eastern and Saturdays at 1 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord at https://tiny.cc.arcanemark!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, May 12th, 2023
"For one epoch and one day, the Wardens of the Wild reigned. Where animals and beasts disputed or doubted, the wardens quelled their infighting and fortified their hearts. Where the wild grew threatened by disaster or development, the wardens repelled intruders and restored the world with their vast power. Yet nothing of the wild lasts forever—such is not the way of nature.
"When their time drew close, the four wardens felt the call. And as they were the stewards of the natural world, so too did every animal in their care: those upon the land, those within the earth, those under the sea, and those above the sky. The wardens converged from their disparate realms upon a single location, tucked away in the furthest expanses of the wilds, along with every beast that could make the trip. The flocks and schools and herds all came together in a grand convergence known as the Migration—every animal, even those so rare they’re thought extinct.
"Can you imagine it, Charikleia?" The naturalist, now much older than a boy, put the stone tiles back in their velvet-lined box, the one his grandmother had left him. "Every animal on the planet, all in one place?" He gazed out over the deck of the Zoetrope. Below, the water was so clear you could see the eels and fish and rays darting through the coral as the ship neared the coast.
"Professor, you're getting off track again," Charikleia said with as much tact as she could muster, even as her eye caught a majestic lightning turtle through the waves. Instantly, her brush was in her hand, capturing the turtle’s likeness in her sketchbook for the expedition’s records.
"Ah, apologies, got away from myself for a moment." Baranthet smiled at his research assistant. Though he’d explained their mission as soon as funding was secured—long before he’d finished constructing the ship or assembling the crew—he wasn’t sure he’d ever properly told her the story that inspired it all, as he’d originally heard it each year in his youth: Grandmother's story, which he now told in her stead.
"When the Migration was complete and the animals were gathered, the Wardens of the Wild would select their successors. Some might rely on their judgment, while others might hold contests of strength or wit or heart, but in some manner, they would choose four new wardens to inherit the mantle.
"And so it was that the little elephant, the rattling snake, the angry fish, and the kind butterfly became the four new Wardens of the Wild, growing to great size as they were filled with the primal magic of their respective realms, over which they reigned for one epoch and one day. And when the Migration came yet again, as it must, they in turn selected their four successors before passing from the wilds.
"So it was again in the next epoch, and again, and again, the great wheel of life turning. And though many consider it a myth, some say that out there, somewhere in the last expanses of the world, the four Wardens of the Wild yet reign."
Baranthet’s wistful sigh was drowned out by the thrumming wings of the Zoetrope as the ship crossed the water’s edge and began soaring over sand dunes. "We’re going to find them, Charikleia."
"We have a similar myth back home, though it’s very obscure," Charikleia said, adding some notes to her sketch as she scratched the base of one of her horns. "Though it’s more common in Earthsong minotaur art to carve our stories in stone, rather than tell them in words. All the same, I remember seeing a petroglyph depicting four great beasts in the corners of Kortos, though the specific creatures differed."
"That makes sense, the wardens would have changed many times over the ages. Who knows what forms they—AAAAACK!!!!" Baranthet dropped his tea over the side of the railing as a small airskiff buzzed past overhead, much too close to the deck, a young centaur man at the helm.
"Professor! You should’ve seen the look on your face!"
"Telero, that’s my favorite teacup!"
Telero rolled his eyes and gave a half-hearted salute before he kicked a pedal with a hoof, sending the airskiff down toward the dunes (far more quickly than necessary) to retrieve said teacup. "Way’s clear up ahead—we should be able to get to the mountains by nightfall! It’s a little close to roc territory, though, so if you see a red dye marker, that’s too far!" His voice faded as the airskiff plummeted.
Baranthet shook his head. "That boy will be the death of me."
"He’s an excellent scout, though."
"Indeed." Baranthet turned to pick up his book. "Why don’t you get the rest of the crew together in the galley—we can make a plan for surveying the area when Telero’s back."
Charikleia closed her sketchbook and stowed her brush with her usual quietness, ducking inside carefully to avoid scratching the Zoetrope’s doorframe with her horns. Baranthet stayed on the deck a little longer, though. The naturalist took in the sights as he reached out a hand, feeling the warm wind rush through his claws. Below him, the land stretched out, far from Droon, far from Absalom, far from anywhere he knew, rolling outward until it blended into the horizon.
While he and the crew had already seen amazing beasts and breathtaking views on their journey, the Wardens of the Wild were yet to be found. But Baranthet had a good feeling. For though he wasn’t quite as adept at hearing the stars as his grandmother, he had a bit of her ear, and for the shortest of seconds, he thought that he heard it resound across the land, somehow clear over the Zoetrope’s wings—
The howl of the wild.
To read Grandmother’s story from the start, click here.
Howl of the Wild, Coming Spring 2024!
Paizo is proud to announce our newest project, Pathfinder Howl of the Wild! This latest creature-focused rulebook dives into the beasts and animals of the wilderness. Catalogue them all alongside an old naturalist and his eclectic crew as they sail their fantastic airship to Golarion’s furthest reaches, studying its lushest biomes in search of the elusive Wardens of the Wild.
This book provides deep dives and regional variants of classic beasts of legend, as well as a whole menagerie of never-before-seen wildlife to study, tame, cooperate with, or confront. In addition, you’ll find unique gear for dealing with beasts (as well as magical items drawing upon their power), archetypes, feats, and more that allow you to evoke the power of nature. Howl of the Wild also brings six new playable ancestries for you to create a character who’s a bit more on the wild side, including the two revealed in the story above: the swift centaur and the powerful minotaur! Each ancestry is represented in the ship’s crew. Meet the ship’s scout, Telero, and the expedition’s scribe, Charikleia:
Telero, the ship’s centaur scout, and Charikleia, the expedition’s minotaur scribe. Art by Gunship Revolution.
Lastly, though we don’t have an airship of our own (...yet), we do have an excellent crew, without whom this book wouldn’t be possible! The ferocity and wonder of the wild is brought to you by Kate Baker, Rigby Bendele, Chris Bissette, Jeremy Blum, Logan Bonner, Dan Cascone, James Case, Jessica Catalan, Brite Cheney, Rue Dickey, Caryn DiMarco, Matthew Fu, Leo Glass, Steven Hammond, Patrick Hurley, Michelle Y. Kim, Dustin Knight, Kendra Leigh Speedling, Christiana Lewis, Jessie "Aki" Lo, Luis Loza, Letterio Mammoliti, Jonathan "Ryomasa" Mendoza, Quinn Murphy, Dave Nelson, Mikhail Rekun, Kai Revius, Ember Rose, Simone D. Sallé, Shay Snow, Levi Steadman, Kyle Tam, Ruvaid Virk, and Andrew White.
If you’re eager to learn a bit more about these ancestries and a few of the monsters in the book, check out this exclusive sneak peek from Wargamer for more information! Otherwise, be sure to tune in to PaizoCon Online 2023, where we’ll talk about Howl of the Wild in our Primal Previews panel!
But that, explorers, is a story for another day,
James Case
Senior Designer
Tags: Howl of the Wild, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition, Web Fiction
]]>Thursday, May 11th, 2023
Humble Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, including to charity—the more you give, the more you get!
Inside our new Starfinder Solidarity Bundle you will find everything you need for years of exciting science-fantasy play, like digital copies of the Starfinder Core Rulebook, Alien Archive, Alien Archive 2, Alien Archive 3, the Starfinder Beginner Box, as well as the entire Fly Free or Die Adventure Path. Plus, it features physical copies of Starfinder Alien Archive 2 and the Starfinder Critical Hit Deck! That is over $400 in Starfinder Roleplaying Game digital and print materials for only $45! Best of all, you choose how much of your purchase supports The Trevor Project.
At the $5 tier, you’ll get
- Starfinder Core Rulebook
- Starfinder Alien Archive
- Starfinder Beginner Box (PDF)
- Starfinder Player Character Folio (PDF)
- Starfinder GM Screen (PDF)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: We're No Heroes (Fly Free or Die 1 of 6)
At the $15 tier, you’ll get
- Starfinder Alien Archive 2 (PDF)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: Merchants of the Void (Fly Free or Die 2 of 6)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: Professional Courtesy (Fly Free or Die 3 of 6)
- Starfinder Adventure: Redshift Rally
- Starfinder Alien Archive Pawn Box (PDF)
- Starfinder Core Rulebook Pawn Collection (PDF)
- Starfinder Society Scenario: Pact World Warriors
- Starfinder Flip-Mat: Asteroid (PDF/JPG)
- Starfinder Flip-Mat: Ghost Ship (PDF/JPG)
- Starfinder Flip-Mat: Jungle World (PDF/JPG)
At the $25 tier, you’ll get
- Starfinder Alien Archive 3 (PDF)
- Starfinder Starship Operations Manual
- Starfinder Near Space (PDF)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: The White Glove Affair (Fly Free or Die 4 of 6)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: Crash & Burn (Fly Free or Die 5 of 6)
- Starfinder Adventure Path: The Gilded Cage (Fly Free or Die 6 of 6)
- Starfinder Pawn Collection: Fly Free or Die (PDF)
- Starfinder One-Shot: System Takedown (PDF)
- Starfinder Society Scenario: Corporate Interest (PDF)
- Starfinder Flip-Mat: Basic Starfield (PDF/JPG)
- Starfinder Flip-Mat: Spaceport (PDF/JPG)
Ownership of these digital products syncs with many of our digital partners, granting you discounts on their products, like virtual tabletops and online tools!
Finally, we are offering a $45 physical reward tier that includes all the PDF products from the lower tiers, plus physical copies of the Starfinder Alien Archive 2 and Starfinder Critical Hit Deck delivered right to your door! Fulfillment is handled by Paizo, and you’re responsible for shipping fees. We anticipate that domestic shipping will run in the $5.05-$6.20• range and that international shipping will be in the $20-$40• range.
Each tier is delivered as a separate code for you to easily download all the items in the tier. You can even give the codes away to others or designate the shipping address wherever you like—perhaps a friend, school club, or charity.
Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers can decide how much of their donation goes to each participant in the bundle by expanding the “Adjust Donation” section during the checkout process.
The Trevor Project’s mission is to end suicide among LGBTQ young people. Your donation will save lives. Every day, LGBTQ young people reach out for mental health support. When you donate to Trevor, you ensure their volunteers can continue to be there for them.
Thank you for playing Starfinder and supporting The Trevor Project!
The Paizo Team
• Recipient is responsible for any additional location-based import costs, customs fees, or taxes. Some locations may have VAT or sales tax calculated and applied along with shipping & handling through paizo.com, while others may have to work with their local post office to remit payment. Shipping and handling ranges provided are estimates based on the average costs to a variety of regions. Shipping and handling costs for some locations may be outside the estimated range.
Tags: Humble Bundle, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, May 11th, 2023
The boy was in bed as soon as supper was gone and his face was clean. It was Baranthet’s last night at Grandmother’s house. He always loved harvest week, the time of year when he came to stay with Grandmother while his parents went to check on things up north. Lin jumped into bed too, and the two of them listened as Grandmother’s footsteps approached, waiting for their story.
Grandmother closed the door most unceremoniously and went to wash the dishes.
“But Grandmaaaaaaaaaaaa...”
She opened it again, laughing. “Very well, Baranthet. Where were we? Ah, yes.
“Once, epochs and days ago, there was a worm who tended a garden high on a mountain. The worm was very kind, always watering the trees, tilling the soil, and making sure that creeping ivies stayed pruned so that the thousand birds who played overhead would have a branch to sleep on if they needed a place to rest.”
“He didn’t get eaten?”
“No, for while worms are tasty, this worm’s garden grew flowers with the most delicious nectar, and all the birds would rather have a lifetime of tasty treats than just one tasty worm. The kind worm took care of the garden, and all the birds in it, even though the flowers were so high up in the clouds that he would never be able to reach them to enjoy them for himself.
“One day, the kind worm noticed that his trees were withering. Distraught, he looked up to see that the rain had gotten stuck in the sky (things get stuck there sometimes). He tried calling for one of the birds to poke a hole in it, but they were so busy singing that they didn’t hear him. He tried climbing one of the trees to reach it, but the tree was so tall that he couldn’t make it even halfway up. He tried throwing a stick to see if he could knock the rain down, but unfortunately, worms don’t have arms, so they’re not the best at throwing.”
“Did he go to the warden?”
“No, he didn’t, for he was a bit too polite, and he didn’t want to bother the warden with such a trivial matter. And besides, he was in the realm of the Warden of Peaks and Skies, and no matter how you look at it, that’s not where a worm belongs. He thought about going to one of the other wardens, but they were off in the other chapters of the story, so he wasn’t sure what to do. He cried himself to sleep.”
Baranthet’s eyes were watering too, though it was because he had forgotten to blink.
“The Warden of Peaks and Skies saw the little worm struggling on the ground to restore the garden, for it is the duty of a warden to care for not just the creatures of their realm, but all creatures, and the land itself. She considered knocking the rain down herself, but she had a better idea.
“When the kind worm awoke, he found next to him a pair of wings, spun from a rainbow, sitting there as if to say, ‘If you need these, they’re yours to wear.’ The kind worm was delighted at the wings, which were exactly his size, and he put them on, fluttering up to the rain and knocking it down. The trees drank up the rain and sprouted a whole feast of flowers, and this time, it was not just the birds who enjoyed them, but the kind butterfly too.
“And ever since that day, after every Migration, the Warden of Peaks and Skies has always been one who takes care of their home, who looks out for others, and who isn’t afraid of change. Remember, Baranthet, that the animals of nature are part of their realms, and they take care of their environment as much as it takes care of them. If the realm changes, they can too… though it may take some time.”
The boy thought of how he was so slow and clumsy that he never got picked first to play thlipit. “Must be nice to wake up and be better at stuff.”
Grandmother saw a chance for some wisdom. “Do you know why I keep dragonflies in the garden outside?”“...because they don’t sting?”
“True! Though they are fierce hunters, and they keep the mosquitos away. But no, I like them because many think of change as something that happens in a grand single moment of transformation. The worm goes to sleep and wakes up the next morning as a butterfly. But dragonflies are different. They’re—”
“Hemimebatolous!” The boy remembered reading this in his ecology book.
“Indeed!” Baranthet was mostly right, so Grandmother let it slide. “They change little by little, until one day they can fly over the water they once swam through. Not everyone has one moment of transformation, Baranthet—some people more gradually become what they’re supposed to be.”
The boy seemed to think it over, his eyes growing heavy. Lin yawned beside him.
Grandmother stood. “There’s only one more part left in this story! My, but it feels like the week has gone in a blink! I wish I got a bit more time with you each year, but your parents will be back tomorrow, right after supper.”
“You’ll tell me how the story ends though, right? Maybe after breakfast?”
“Of course I will.” Grandmother drew the covers up. “But that, my little explorer, is a story for another day.”
As Grandmother closed the door, she could hear the boy mumbling to Lin as he drifted to sleep. “I don’t know why she always calls me that, Lin. I’ve barely left Droon, and I’m no good at swimming or hiking or fighting or anything like that.”
Grandmother smiled, for the stars, you see, are incorrigible gossips, though they are very far away and we usually can’t hear what they’re saying about us, which honestly is probably best for all involved. But some iruxis, on nights when the sky is clear and the wind is just right, can just barely catch their whispers, and Grandmother’s ears were keener than most.
She said to herself, too low for the boy to hear, “You may not have explored much other than books, Baranthet, not yet. But I hear one day, you’ll fly far from here, on just the grandest adventure.”
About The Author
Grandmother
For the first chapter in Grandmother’s story, click here.
For yesterday's chapter, click here.
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
Hey everyone, Luis Loza here! I'm back to talk about another addition to the draconic ranks in Pathfinder Monster Core. If you haven’t seen our preview for the new diabolic dragon, be sure to check that out as well! Anyway, on to the latest preview!
The next dragon we’re showcasing is the mirage dragon, an arcane dragon with a mastery of illusion magic. Arcane dragons typically have a stronger connection to magic, represented by stronger spellcasting capabilities, direct influence over magical energies, and other supernatural abilities. Many arcane dragons sport lithe frames as they make use of their magic more directly and thus don’t require the powerful bodies that other dragons use for combat. That doesn’t make arcane dragons any less dangerous, however!
Take the mirage dragon, for example. Its scales are iridescent and capable of changing color for better camouflage, making mirage dragons surprisingly stealthy. The fins on the dragon’s head open up into a radiant display that can captivate foes, giving the dragon plenty of time to close in on prey. A mirage dragon’s hallucinatory breath can confound or overwhelm multiple enemies at once, which is helpful when dealing with parties of would-be dragon slayers. Add on a suite of illusion spells, and you have a dragon that’s just as dangerous, if not more so, than its larger cousins. Mirage dragons love to gaze upon their own reflections and hoard gold pieces polished to a mirror shine, as well as reflective metals, large mirrors, and other treasures to line their lairs.
I hope you enjoyed this peek at the mirage dragon. If you want a second look, make sure to check out our preview for the cover of Pathfinder GM Core. Stay tuned for more Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster previews—draconic and otherwise—in the coming weeks!
Luis Loza
Creative Director—Rules & Lore
Tags: Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, May 10th, 2023
“Once, epochs and days ago, there was a fish who fell into the sea. She was, I must admit, not a very nice fish, but a quite angry one.”
The boy stared out at the surface of the pond. After last night’s storm had scared all the clouds from the sky, there was nothing to stop the sun from beating down, and it seemed half the city had come to the pond—far from the bone and glass buildings that trapped the heat so—to cool off. Children were splashing in the shallows, and three small frogs, one red, one blue, one yellow, were croaking on a log (for now, as the blue one shall be eaten later) far across the pond. Baranthet and Grandmother sat on one of the flat stone rocks by the side of the pond, a picnic basket between them. Grandmother dipped her tail in the water, and as the ripples continued, so did the story.
“The angry fish really had no good reason to be angry, having experienced a completely normal life. She had hatched in a river, far inland, with hundreds, thousands of her friends. And some of her friends had been eaten soon thereafter, by frogs and birds and other fish, as is normal, as is nature. And as she swam to the sea, more of her friends had been eaten, as is normal, as is nature. Most creatures in the sea were not angry at this—you may as well bemoan the sun setting or the sighing of the tides—and so the angry fish kept her feelings to herself, but inside, she seethed.
“When she reached the sea, her school’s numbers had grown lesser, but she found other schools of fish, each coming down their own river, and they all swam together, exploring the reefs and shelves and trenches. And as they did, every so often, some would be eaten by a shark or a squid or a ponguzoan, as is normal, as is nature, and the angry fish had to seethe in silence.
“One day, though, a shadow fell over the water, from a great wood-and-metal ship from above. Nets fell, catching hundreds of fish, far more than the great ship could have possibly needed to eat, and metal harpoons pierced the sea, skewering hundreds more, just like you’re doing to those poor grapes on your claw right now even when you know I’ve asked you nicely several times not to play with your food.”
The boy turned, sheepish, from placing alternating layers of fruit and cheese onto his pinky claw. But in truth, Baranthet had lost his appetite, a bit. He wasn’t sure he liked this part of the story as much as the last two. He used another claw to scrape his food back onto the napkin, then rinsed his hands in the water. “What happened then? Did the fish go to the warden?”
“She did, for the Warden of Oceans and Rivers, like all wardens, had great power to suit their great size. They could shape the sea and waves however they liked, just as the other wardens could do in their domains, and with this, the angry fish knew that the warden would—”
“They’d maybe make a big wave to push the hunters away? Or make it so the fishes could swim away faster with the tide? Or maybe even make an iceberg to hide behind?” Baranthet’s head raced with the ways that a kind warden might be able to help, but Grandmother let out a sigh, a sad one.
“No, Baranthet, for it is the duty of a warden to protect the creatures under their charge and defend them against the depredations of those who abuse them, and the Warden of Oceans and Rivers was nothing if not thorough.”
In the distance, across the pond, a heron dove at the frogs on the log, and though two leapt into the water quickly, the blue frog was not so lucky, and it disappeared down the heron’s maw, never to sing again.
“They slaughtered the hunters to the last, in a battle much too graphic for your young ears. But when it was done, the seas were safe, and the angry fish resolved to follow the warden forevermore.
“And ever since that day, after every Migration, the Warden of Oceans and Rivers has always been one who tolerates no slight against their wards, no incursion into their domain, and no hunter who takes with undue cruelty. Remember, Baranthet, that for all their splendor, the animals of nature are wild and fierce, and so their boundaries and territories must be respected, for they will defend their realms with tooth and claw, spark and venom and even magic.”
The boy gulped.
“Don’t worry, Baranthet, that’s probably the worst the story gets. Why, the last warden is one I’m sure will cheer you up as much as this warm sunlight!” And with that, Grandmother jumped into the pond to cool off with a splash that sent a wave of cold water over the boy’s head. Her head emerged soon after and she shook more drops from her head spines Baranthet’s way.
“But that, my little explorer, is a story for another day.”
About The Author
Grandmother
For the first chapter in Grandmother’s story, click here.
For yesterday's chapter, click here.</p
Tuesday, May 9th, 2023
“Baranthet, don’t forget to bring Lin inside! Skywatcher says it’ll storm tonight.”
The boy looked up from his book and out the door, to where Lin was busy munching on some leaves, a reward for a hard day’s work pulling Grandmother’s wagon to and from the market. Lin was gentle enough, but Baranthet never liked being too close to the old protoceratops—he was worried she’d nip him with that sharp beak of hers—and so he usually tried to get out of feeding her or giving her baths. Plus, she never listened to him.
“Lin! Time to come inside!”
Crunch crunch crunch. Lin seemed altogether more interested in her leaves than in listening to a young bookworm, and honestly, who could blame her.
“Lin!”
The second attempt went predictably.
“...Lin?”
He was just embarrassing himself, now. But he had an idea. He dashed back inside to his cupboard, rummaging about until he found a small wooden whistle with “#11” scratched into the side. There were still some splinters where he needed to sand it down, but it should work. He went to the door and blew the whistle, and though no sound came out, Lin looked up from her trough. Baranthet made a note—#12 would have to be a little bit bigger—before trying again. Success! The old protoceratops ambled to the door, Baranthet nervously giving her a wide berth as she entered.No sooner were Baranthet and Lin inside than fat raindrops began to plink against the roof and splash in the pond nearby. Grandmother was already ambling around the tiny house and closing the windows. “On a day like this, I think a story would be best,” she said with a knowing smile. Baranthet sat on the cushions and drew a blanket over his knees.
“Once, epochs and days ago, there was a snake who lived in a cave. There are many kinds of snakes—biting snakes and hissing snakes and squeezing snakes—but he was a singing snake, or so he would’ve been, if only he could sing. While every other snake in the cave sung every morning, their voices bouncing off the cavern walls in the most beautiful harmonies and shaking the cave’s crystals until they glowed to light up the cavern for the day, this snake stayed silent, embarrassed about his terrible voice.”
Baranthet squirmed under the blanket, thinking of how he usually mouthed the words when it was time for music lessons at school and hoped nobody noticed, not even the one teacher who always seemed to be able to tell when you snuck a handful of candied peanuts in between classes.
“The silent snake never joined his brothers and sisters in the morning, but it’s not as if he minded all that much. There were so many other things to do in the cave that he enjoyed, like heating himself on the rocks that were always warm from the earth’s heartbeat. But he did feel, sometimes, like he was missing something.
“The days went by like this, the silent snake always not-quite-all-the-way happy, until one day, the Warden of Caverns and Burrows came. It was a very big day for all the animals in the cave, not the least of all because the warden was very big, and it was decided that the singing snakes would welcome her with a song (she was a wonderful singer). All the snakes were very happy at this great honor, except for the silent snake.”
Baranthet squirmed even more under the blanket.
“All the snakes lined up, even the silent snake, and as they all began to sing, it became very clear that the silent snake was the only one not joining in. He felt terribly out of place, but the warden saw him and had an idea. She began to dance along to the song! And although it was known far and wide that the Warden of Caverns and Burrows was a wonderful singer—” here Grandmother winked at Baranthet, “—she was a terrible dancer. Terrible.
“The animals in the cavern weren’t sure what to do, for nobody wanted to tell THE warden how bad she was. But still, the warden danced on, for it is the duty of a warden to inspire the creatures under their charge and help them be the best they can be. The silent snake laughed, and the laugh shook his body from his head down to his tail. And as it did, he realized something: his tail made a sound when he shook it! His heart soared, and he shook his tail and shook it, adding beats and rhythms to the snakes’ song for the first time ever, pushing it to new heights! The rattling snake—for that was now what he was—had a place in the cavern’s song all his own now, and never left himself out again.
“And ever since that day, after every Migration, the Warden of Caverns and Burrows has always been one who lives wild and free, following their heart and inspiring their wards to do the same. Remember, Baranthet, that the animals of nature are free to do as their instincts please, and that freedom must always be honored.”
Baranthet looked to his side, where Lin was snoring, and gave her a tentative scratch. He noticed she had a bit of mud behind her frill, and he thought he should give her a bath in the morning. “It seems like it’s going to rain all night, Grandmother, so maybe you could tell me about the next…”
But Grandmother was somehow already in the kitchen, stirring the stew for dinner.
“That, my little explorer, is a story for another day.”
About The Author
Grandmother
Monday, May 8th, 2023
The CRAAAACK of the shattering vase echoed off the walls of the tiny house. Near the shards on the stone floor, a boy stood frozen.
“Baranthet, what’s that?” Grandmother’s voice came around the corner a bit before she did, wobbling slightly to avoid too much pressure on her hip.
“I’m sorry,” the boy mumbled, “I was trying to get the maps down and…”
Grandmother stopped in front of the vase’s remains. “Oh, this old thing? Don’t worry. Auntie Nashan got it for me before I moved here to the city all those years ago, but honestly, it’s a bit flashy, and I’ve never known quite where to put it. Still, she said it was something to—” Grandmother stopped as her eyes fell on four pieces of clay, or perhaps they were stone, or perhaps they were bone, lying among what was once a rather gaudy vase, “—something to remember home by.”
Grandmother picked up one of the stones, rolling it around in her hand as she rolled some memories around in her head. “Baranthet, if you clean this up and wash up, I’ll tell you a story, one my grandmother once told me. The Wardens of the Wild.”
The boy’s eyes widened. He knew every one of Grandmother’s stories—The Tale of the Liar King, The Queen of Bees, The Whispering Parrot—but he didn’t know this one. In a blink, the vase was tidied, his face was clean, and he was under the covers.
The curtains blew in the warm autumn air.
“Once, epochs and days ago, there was a young elephant. She was quite small for an elephant (though this meant she was still quite large for any other animal), and so she usually played with the other animals of the plains and grasslands and forests, those that scamper through the brush and chase through the trees, like the elk or the hooplamander or the wolf. She enjoyed nothing more than sweet tree fruits, like papayas—”
“But they have so many seeds!”
“—like mangos,” Grandmother pivoted, smooth as a maple seed in freefall. “And she shared them with her smaller friends. But one day, there were no mangos to be found. The little elephant and her friends grew hungrier, and they searched far and wide, until eventually they found where all the food had gone. A greedy sloth had taken them all.”
“Mean sloth!”
“No matter how much the little elephant asked, the greedy sloth wouldn’t give the food back, and he was a very big sloth, like you hear about from the merchants sometimes up in the Kaava Lands, the ones as big as a house, and the little elephant was very little. She decided to ask an even bigger animal for help, the biggest one, the Warden of Forests and Meadows, for it is the duty of a warden to advise the creatures under their charge and settle their disputes.
“But the Warden of Forests and Meadows saw something in the little elephant. Rather than settle the problem himself, which he could have done easily, he asked the little elephant why she had come to him. ‘Why, because you’re the biggest creature around,’ she said. And so the warden responded, ‘Then surely all you need to do is become even bigger than I am.
“The little elephant didn’t know how to do that, but she thought and thought, and she had an idea. She waited until evening, when the sun was very tired and near the horizon, and she went to the greedy sloth’s den. She flared up her ears, and stuck out her trunk, and bellowed with all her might. And even though the elephant was very little, her sunset shadow was bigger than any other creature, even the warden. The greedy sloth took one look at it, and seeing such a big creature, he ran away so fast that he left all the delicious food behind, and the little elephant and her friends never went hungry again.
“And ever since that day, after every Migration, the Warden of Forests and Meadows has always been a clever sort, one who always thinks around a problem rather than barreling through it. Remember, Baranthet, that the animals of nature are far from dumb beasts, but are just as clever as us, and often more so.”
The boy, transfixed, nodded so hard his eyelids started to droop. “Wait, what’s the Migration? And there were four tiles, does that mean there’s four wardens?” His voice was sleepy as he tried to get a peep at the remaining tiles (to no avail; they had disappeared to wherever it is that grandmothers keep such things from prying eyes). But Grandmother had already placed a dollop of honey in the blown-glass jar near the bed, and the firebugs in it had already begun to softly glow, as they would until Baranthet was safely asleep. She moved to the door.
“That, my little explorer, is a story for another day.”
Friday, May 5, 2023
Starfinder Ports of Call is our upcoming 194-page hardcover book release for the Starfinder RPG that brings new locales and rules to your games. This jam-packed book provides an overview of the state of the Starfinder galaxy in the aftermath of the Drift Crisis event, as well as detailing 10 major ports that can host a variety of adventures or just act as a nice resting spot for your characters. Along with all this, there’s rules for cargo running, unique contacts to meet, interesting side jobs to take part in, new species to play as, extra rules for expanded downtime, and new starship options.
One of the most exciting elements of this book is the detail it provides on the galaxy (known as Desna’s Path), along with all manner of unique interstellar phenomena. Learn about the massive black hole at the galaxy’s heart known as Old Rovagug or scratch the surface of the magical event dubbed Pharasma’s Coil. With the Drift Crisis settling down, there’s also the new Drift lanes now crisscrossing different regions of space, connecting worlds previously separated by weeks-long Drift voyages with direct trips cut down to a single week. These lanes provide all manner of new adventuring opportunities, but also have some drastic changes to our setting—what could possibly go wrong with the warlike Veskarium having four Drift lanes crossing through their system? Nothing. Nothing could go wrong.•
Diving into the actual ports portion of the book, we’ve talked about the planetary theme park of Golarion World in past announcements and so we’ll leave that for folks to discover once the book is released. Today, let’s take a peek at two of the other ports you’ll get to explore in this book.
Though the Scoured Stars Adventure Path has had its release date pushed back a bit••, fear not! Ports of Call provides some fun tie-ins for those who’ve followed the Starfinder Society Organized Play Campaign, with some amazing follow-up in the form of the Izadamar port. Izadamar is a settlement within the Scoured Stars that began the process of repopulating and rebuilding following the events of that story. If you’ve already experienced the Scoured Stars, this is an excellent opportunity to see what’s happened since the Starfinder Society triumphed, and what new threats have emerged. Along with all this content, the book also presents playable species rules for the gaseous thyrs of the Kreiholm Freehold, who appeared in the Scoured Stars storyline and have a strong presence in Izadamar.
Going from the far reaches of the Vast back to something closer to “home” (or at least what we consider our setting’s home), the port of Drifter’s End is something people may have heard of before. Not quite a settlement of its own, Drifter’s End is actually one of the many neighborhoods on the immense Absalom Station that acts as the heart of the Starfinder setting—praise to the Starstone and its guaranteed 1d6 days in the Drift to get travel to it!
Drifter’s End is a melting pot of different alien ambassadors and visitors to the immense station. It’s a doorway where many visitors get their first taste of the diversity of the Pact Worlds by traveling through food stalls or carousing to gather information. Experienced Starfinders know that Drifter’s End is home to the campus of the Lorespire Complex that acts as the Starfinder Society’s headquarters in the cosmos. For non-Starfinders, the Society can still help you out by offering reasonably priced lodgings to counteract the constantly booked hotels within the wider neighborhood. These “Starfinder Stay” BNB-like accommodations are the homes of Starfinders who find themselves adventuring more than they stay on the station. Who wouldn’t want to sleep in a home filled with mysterious Starfinder-obtained relics. Nothing could go wrong. Nothing!•
That’s a wrap on today’s preview! Look forward to all this content and a whole lot more as we get closer to the release of Starfinder Ports of Call.
Before I go, I’d like to take a moment to thank the incredibly talented group of writers who worked on this book, including: Kate Baker, Brian Bauman, Jessica Catalan, John Compton, John Curtin, John Feil, Sen H.H.S., Joan Hong, Jenny Jarzabski, Jason Keeley, Dennis Muldoon, Hilary Moon Murphy, Chesley Oxendine, Emily Parks, Joe Pasini, Jessica Redekop, Paul Scofield, Shay Snow, Kendra Leigh Speedling, Alex Speidel, Jason Tondro, Andrew White, Shan Wolf, and Isis Wozniakowska.
On the Paizo-side, this book wouldn’t be possible without the hard development work of lead developer John Compton and supporting development by Joe Pasini. Finally, a big shout out to our editors and editing lead, Ianara Natividad.
We hope you find a whole new galaxy of adventures in this book and can’t wait to hear all the tales you tell at these ports!
Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)•It’s quite possible something COULD go wrong, but we’ll be the first to tell you.
••We’ve hired new professional glitch gremlin exterminators to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Our old ones just weren’t prepared for the damage on jolting surge.
Thursday, May 4, 2023
After a year of wonder, of treachery, of new plots and puzzles, the Pathfinder Society emerges victorious over one of their oldest, cleverest enemies. The Society is free to look to the future and see what new adventures Golarion and beyond has in store for them! With open hands and arms, the Pathfinder Society calls upon all its agents to remember their roots. Explore! Report! Cooperate!
Behind the waterfall sits an old friend, ready and waiting for the right time to make their move.
Welcome to the Year of Unfettered Exploration!
There are ten Pathfinder Society Scenarios that influence the Year of Unfettered Exploration’s metaplots, and each will be marked with a special metaplot icon on the cover. More information about both metaplots, as well as upcoming locations and characters, will be revealed during the News from Organized Play panel at PaizoCon 2023!
The Year of Unfettered Exploration’s first metaplot kicks off with Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Unfettered Exploration, an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Sen H.H.S. This interplanar scenario takes place during a relaxing celebration at the Grand Lodge in Absalom. This scenario debuts at Gen Con 2023 with one other Pathfinder Society Scenario.
This upcoming year is all about finding new adventures, making new friends, and discovering parts of Golarion and beyond that have yet to be seen by the Pathfinder Society!
Remember Pathfinders: Explore! Report! Cooperate!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, May 3, 2023
Check out this year's Streaming Schedule and join us on twitch.tv/officialpaizo for PaizoCon Online 2023!
Friday May 26th
10 am – 12 pm PDT
PaizoCon 2023 Keynote
Exciting news and upcoming products at our annual Keynote, hosted by Erik Mona.12 – 2 pm PDT
Pathfinder Remastered
Join the Pathfinder designers as they talk about the upcoming Pathfinder Remaster releases! Topics include an explanation of what the Remaster project is and what kinds of updates and improvements fans can expect.2 – 3 pm PDT
News from Organized Play
The Organized Play team shares exciting news about our programs and upcoming adventures.3 – 4 pm PDT
Secrets of the Pact Worlds
Join the Starfinder team as they reveal new projects and behind-the-scenes talks about the Starfinder setting's direction moving forward. Learn about upcoming adventures and get a chance to ask the developers some of your pressing questions!4 – 5 pm PDT
Introduction to Foundry
Learn more about using the Foundry virtual tabletop platform. [Full panel description coming soon]4 – 5 pm PDT
Introduction to Foundry
Learn more about using the Foundry virtual tabletop platform. [Full panel description coming soon]5 – 6 pm PDT
Pathfinder 2E on Fantasy Grounds Unity
Bryce will walk you through the resources available for online virtual tabletop (VTT) play using Fantasy Grounds Unity. He'll introduce the built-in Pathfinder 2E ruleset, available modules, how to build a character, level up, run an adventure, encounters, combat, and as much as he can fit in one hour!6 – 7 pm PDT
Mini Painting with WizKids
[Description coming soon]
Saturday May 27th
9 – 10 am PDT
Pathfinder NEXUS Dev Update/Q&A
Join Demiplane CDO Adam Bradford for the latest updates from Demiplane for Pathfinder NEXUS, including previews of the upcoming character tools!10 – 11 am PDT
Primal Previews
Join the Pathfinder Rules & Lore team as they reveal the secrets of elemental power and primal realms! This panel will include previews and discussion on Pathfinder Rage of Elements and other upcoming Pathfinder releases that explore Golarion, from the Inner Sea to its wildest and most remote regions!11 am – 12 pm PDT
Ask the Paizo GMs
Get answers about the games you love from the people who make them! Paizo staff will be on hand to field your questions from the Twitch chat. (Another Ask the Paizo GMs panel is on Sunday May 28th at 3 pm PDT if you can't make this one!)12 – 1 pm PDT
Secrets of Golarion
Learn about what's between the covers of the Lost Omens books and what's behind the scenes. Join some of the crew steering the world of Golarion to hear about what's going on in the world and what's coming. We'll be answering as many questions as we can—but not all secrets will be revealed.1 – 2 pm PDT
Pathfinder Adventures
Come join the Pathfinder Narrative team for a discussion about Pathfinder Adventures, be they stand-alone modules, Organized Play scenarios, or full Adventure Path campaigns! We'll be chatting about several upcoming adventures, answering questions, and previewing some upcoming surprises—including an announcement for what we've got planned for the 200th Pathfinder Adventure Path volume!1 – 2 pm PDT
Pathfinder Adventures
Come join the Pathfinder Narrative team for a discussion about Pathfinder Adventures, be they stand-alone modules, Organized Play scenarios, or full Adventure Path campaigns! We'll be chatting about several upcoming adventures, answering questions, and previewing some upcoming surprises—including an announcement for what we've got planned for the 200th Pathfinder Adventure Path volume!2 – 3 pm PDT
Infinite Possibilities: How to Write for Pathfinder Infinite
Join Infinite Masters Dustin Knight, James Beck, Tony Saunders, and Vanessa Hoskins as they relay their experiences, offer advice, and answer questions about how to publish on Pathfinder Infinite, including where to find creator resources and collaborative creator spaces!3 – 4 pm PDT
Check Yourself: Self-Editing for Games Writers
Paizo's editors share their insight on common writing pitfalls to avoid, following a style guide, using inclusive language, and other ways to strengthen your writing, whether freelancing for companies like Paizo or publishing your work on other platforms.4 – 5 pm PDT
BKOM Studios' Pathfinder Game
Discover BKOM Studios' latest Pathfinder video game!5 – 5:30 pm PDT
GMing Pathfinder on Roll20
Join us for a conversation about GMing Pathfinder using the Roll20 virtual tabletop platform.
Sunday May 28th
9 – 10 am PDT
Digital Map Tools in Fantasy Grounds Unity
Joshua will introduce Fantasy Grounds Unity and how it can work with Paizo's Flip-Tiles, Flip-Mats, and map packs to enable online or local virtual tabletop play for Pathfinder and Starfinder. He'll cover using dynamic line of sight, snapping tiles into place, manipulating tiles, adding or modifying lights, adding FX, and using image brushes for advanced effects. Using this in-game allows for preplacement of encounters, linking story entries, hiding and revealing enemies automatically, opening and closing doors and windows, and approval of player movement.10 – 11 am PDT
WizKids Interview
An interview with Mark Moreland about the process of making WizKids minis.11 am – 12 pm PDT
Build an Adventure Workshop
Learn tips and tricks to building a one-session adventure from some of Paizo's adventure developers.12 – 1 pm PDT
Into the Darklands
Dig deep beneath the surface of Golarion to find the wonders, dangers, and mysteries of life below. Join us for a discussion of the Darklands and how they tie into the upcoming Lost Omens Highhelm book, the Sky King's Tomb Adventure Path, and more!1 – 2 pm PDT
Starfinder Nuts and Bolts
Get an in-depth look at the upcoming Starfinder Enhanced book from the people who made it! Learn about the new enhanced core classes and get previews on new class content, new species, new feats, and a whole lot of new content that we just can't wait to reveal!2 – 3 pm PDT
Mysteries in RPGs
Who doesn't love a good mystery? They can be great to include in roleplaying games, but sometimes, the search for clues can derail the best-laid plans of even the most talented GM. In this panel, we'll discuss techniques on how best to present mysteries in your games, chat about our own mysterious inspirations, and maybe even shed light on some mysteries that we've presented but haven't yet answered—as long as that mystery isn't "How did Aroden die?" of course!2 – 3 pm PDT
Mysteries in RPGs
Who doesn't love a good mystery? They can be great to include in roleplaying games, but sometimes, the search for clues can derail the best-laid plans of even the most talented GM. In this panel, we'll discuss techniques on how best to present mysteries in your games, chat about our own mysterious inspirations, and maybe even shed light on some mysteries that we've presented but haven't yet answered—as long as that mystery isn't "How did Aroden die?" of course!3 – 4 pm PDT
Ask the Paizo GMs
Get answers about the games you love from the people who make them! Paizo staff will be on hand to field your questions from the Twitch chat. (Another Ask the Paizo GMs panel is on Saturday May 27th at 11 am PDT if you can't make this one!)
See you soon!
Don't forget to join us on the PaizoCon Discord for even more programming! We'll be announcing our Digital Content guests soon. They'll be hanging out in our online "exhibition hall" with their own channels to answer questions, show off their amazing products, and host panels of their own via Discord stages!
If you're interested in gaming, don't forget to purchase a ticket and sign up on Warhorn to get access to our Organized Play games and non–Organized Play activities!
We can't wait to see you all at PaizoCon Online 2023!
Wednesday, May 03, 2023
Hey, everybody! Luis Loza here with the first in a series of previews of the upcoming Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster. If you aren’t fully up to date on what the Remaster is, make sure to check out our recent blog post announcing the project along with our video where Jason Bulmahn (Director of Game Design) and Logan Bonner (Pathfinder Lead Designer) discuss a few of the things to expect.
Among the most exciting new additions to Pathfinder are the new dragons that will appear in Pathfinder Monster Core. We’re updating the draconic connection to spellcasting traditions to give dragons a better fit within the Lost Omens setting. Every dragon will be arcane, divine, occult, or primal in nature and have their stories and abilities connected to their respective tradition. Creating this new dynamic—and the new dragons that come with it—has been incredibly fun. Not only do we get to imagine awesome and fearsome new dragons, thanks to the incredible talent of art director Kent Hamilton, we get to see them come to life.
The first of the dragons we want to preview is the diabolic dragon, a divine dragon with ties to Hell. Divine dragons draw their power from various planes and sometimes even directly from a deity. Diabolic dragons are bound to the will of Hell, serving as guardians and leaders of Hell’s armies, with some even directly reporting to the archdevils. A diabolic dragon can unleash the fires of Hell itself, and no one is safe from their hellfire. This infernal and unholy fire is even capable of burning creatures made of flame, such as fire elementals. Should you somehow get lucky enough to triumph over a diabolic dragon, you may find their lair to be covered in piles of gems filled with trapped souls as well as countless contracts damning unfortunate mortals to an afterlife in Hell.
If you want another look at a diabolic dragon, take a peek at our preview for the cover of Pathfinder Player Core. While you’re there, you can also check out the mirage dragon on the cover of Pathfinder GM Core. Stay tuned for a future preview where we’ll give you a look at that new arcane dragon!
Luis Loza
Creative Director—Rules & Lore
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Remaster, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Monday, May 1, 2023
BKOM Studios and Paizo are proud to reveal Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults, the first ever co-op Hack and Slash RPG based on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game!
Up to four players lead iconic Pathfinder heroes into the farthest depths of Gauntlight Keep, battle deadly monsters and abominations to reach the evil sorceress Belcorra Haruvex and put an end to her vile schemes once and for all.
The wicked sorceress Belcorra Haruvex has returned to haunt her forsaken home of Gauntlight Keep. There, she covertly assembles an army of monsters, beasts, and abominations with which to take her revenge against those who wronged her in life. Brave heroes are needed—to venture forth into these long-forgotten depths, defeat Belcorra’s abomination army, and put her wicked soul to rest… for good.
The game has players delve ever deeper into Gauntlight Keep—a sprawling megadungeon teeming with foul monsters and grotesque abominations—to slay the evil sorceress who has reawakened at its farthest depths. In order to tell a rich story from both the perspective of the adventure and its participants, the game will feature four iconics from the Pathfinder universe, including Amiri and Ezren.
The project is set to be launched on Kickstarter later this month. Players who would like to stay informed or get notified when the campaign starts can now visit the pre-launch phase page here.
“Launching a Kickstarter campaign for ‘Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults’ gives us the opportunity to share our own excitement and anticipation around the project with the IP's fans, from the get-go,” says Frederic Martin, CEO at BKOM Studios. “With Kickstarter, we can directly reach players and supporters, and offer them a chance to bring the game to life with us.” He adds, “And by creating this communication channel with the fans, the campaign is a vehicle that allows us to build an even stronger, deeper, and more meaningful game, which we believe every Pathfinder enthusiast deserves.”
In the weeks leading to its launch, more details about the campaign and the title on “Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults” will be revealed on our Twitter, Discord, Twitch, and Facebook accounts. Be sure to follow us.
To be notified when the Kickstarter campaign launches, be sure to hit the notify me button here
Tags: Abomination Vaults, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Monday, May 1, 2023
BKOM Studios and Paizo are proud to reveal Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults, the first ever co-op ARPG based on the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game!
Up to four players lead iconic Pathfinder heroes into the farthest depths of Gauntlight Keep, battle deadly monsters and abominations to reach the evil sorceress Belcorra Haruvex and put an end to her vile schemes once and for all.
The wicked sorceress Belcorra Haruvex has returned to haunt her forsaken home of Gauntlight Keep. There, she covertly assembles an army of monsters, beasts, and abominations with which to take her revenge against those who wronged her in life. Brave heroes are needed—to venture forth into these long-forgotten depths, defeat Belcorra’s abomination army, and put her wicked soul to rest… for good.
The game has players delve ever deeper into Gauntlight Keep—a sprawling megadungeon teeming with foul monsters and grotesque abominations—to slay the evil sorceress who has reawakened at its farthest depths. In order to tell a rich story from both the perspective of the adventure and its participants, the game will feature four iconics from the Pathfinder universe, including Amiri and Ezren.
The project is set to be launched on Kickstarter later this month. Players who would like to stay informed or get notified when the campaign starts can now visit the pre-launch phase page here.
“Launching a Kickstarter campaign for ‘Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults’ gives us the opportunity to share our own excitement and anticipation around the project with the IP's fans, from the get-go,” says Frederic Martin, CEO at BKOM Studios. “With Kickstarter, we can directly reach players and supporters, and offer them a chance to bring the game to life with us.” He adds, “And by creating this communication channel with the fans, the campaign is a vehicle that allows us to build an even stronger, deeper, and more meaningful game, which we believe every Pathfinder enthusiast deserves.”
In the weeks leading to its launch, more details about the campaign and the title on “Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults” will be revealed on our Twitter, Discord, Twitch, and Facebook accounts. Be sure to follow us.
To be notified when the Kickstarter campaign launches, be sure to hit the notify me button here
Tags: Abomination Vaults, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Second Edition, Video Games
]]>Thursday, April 27, 2023
Greetings, Paizoverse! As the warm weather rolls in and the sunlight lasts longer, we want to highlight some of our shorter adventure formats you may not be aware of! Whether you want a quick game around a campfire, your game store is looking to close its doors earlier, or you just want to try out Pathfinder and Starfinder without a four-hour commitment, these adventures are perfect for a quick trip into our worlds.
You can also find these adventures at conventions worldwide, including our major conventions like PaizoCon Onlineand Gen Con. Our developers will tell you more!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorLet’s start our overview with Pathfinder Society Quests.
We’ve got a new style of Quest coming out that we’re calling “Series 2.” Unlike the older format, these are much more clearly tied to Pathfinder Society Organized Play. All of these will be written for levels 1–4, and all will be replayable. Currently, Series 2 only has Pathfinder Quest #14: The Swordlord’s Challenge, where the PCs must prove their skill against the students of a swordlord challenging Marcos Farabellus, but we’ve got more on the way.
In fact, let me announce Pathfinder Quest #15: In the Footsteps of Horror, where the PCs get drawn into an unplanned dungeon delve while on an otherwise routine mission. The goal of these products is to provide short-form content that still has enough space to tell a more involved story with room for more roleplay. Quests are also a great way to introduce newer players to Organized Play without devoting the full 4+ hours a scenario might need, and provide a way to play when that length of time simply isn’t available, like a school club or a game store that closes early. We’re putting all the polish you expect from full-length scenarios here, so I hope you all give them a shot!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer
With that, it’s time to leave the past behind and travel to the future, with Starfinder Bounties!
Starfinder Bounties are exciting, standalone adventures designed to be played in approximately 60 to 90 minutes. Our first eight Starfinder Bounties are written for 1st-level characters and are already available for purchase! So whether you want to track down a con artist on Absalom Station in Starfinder Bounty #1: The Cantina Job, rescue genetically reengineered extinct animals from poachers in Starfinder Bounty #4: Poacher’s Prize, explore a haunted hospital in Starfinder Bounty #5: Echoes of Woe, or escort a famous athlete on her river cruise vacation in Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Between, Starfinder Bounties are for you! Want to start off with our latest release? Traverse the frigid glaciers of Triaxus, planet of dragons, to track down a missing explorer and find the lost lair of the white dragon Arothalos in Starfinder Bounty #8: Lost Dragon’s Legacy by Brent Bowser.
Looking for something a little higher level? No problem! Our upcoming Starfinder Bounties are all designed for 4th-level characters! Be on the lookout for the first of these adventures, Starfinder Bounty #9: Burning Ambitions by Joel Southall, releasing this summer! Sounds like the perfect time of year for a trip to the sun!
Have fun out there!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, April 27, 2023
This morning, at the annual GAMA EXPO game industry trade show, Paizo publisher Erik Mona unveiled the sketches of the just-announced Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core hardcovers to hobby game retailers and distributors. We will update the product pages for the new books when the final full-color pieces arrive in the coming weeks, but Pathfinder cover artist Wayne Reynolds’s illustrations have us so excited we couldn’t wait to show them off to you in all their glory.
Receiving a new cover sketch from Wayne is one of the true highlights of life behind the scenes at Paizo. Whenever they arrive, the creative staff gathers around to marvel at their beauty and pick out all the fun little details Wayne always adds above and beyond the simple descriptions we provide him. Wayne Reynolds has been one of the most important contributors to Pathfinder since the very beginning, and it’s a pity that his pencil sketches are not often seen outside the building.
So, we decided to change that this time around—not just by showing off his sketches here on the blog, but also on your own game tables.
For the first time, we’re bringing Wayne’s sketches to your game table with the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project. This November, in addition to the standard fully painted covers for the Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core, we’ll also be offering unique Sketch Cover editions of the rulebooks, only with a catch.
For the first three months of their release, Pathfinder Sketch Cover versions of the new core rulebooks will be available EXCLUSIVELY at hobby retailers worldwide. We will not be offering these editions to online or bookstore retailers, ever! We also do not intend to reprint these editions beyond our modest initial print run. We’ll retain a small number to sell on paizo.com after the 120-day exclusivity period for folks who do not have access to a local game store, but these special editions are intended to support our local game store partners who have been such a big part of Pathfinder’s success since the very beginning. We urge you to communicate your interest in these special books to your local store, so that they can be sure to stock appropriately.
Lastly, take another look at those cover sketches. Each debuts a brand new type of official Pathfinder dragon that will appear in March 2024’s Pathfinder Monster Core. Wayne developed the dragons from concept art by Paizo’s very own in-house concept artist, Kent Hamilton.
Very soon, we’ll return here to show off some of Kent’s preliminary dragon concept designs and learn a bit more about Pathfinder’s new core dragons!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Wednesday, April 26, 2023
Today, we are pleased to reveal the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project, four new hardcover rulebooks that offer a fresh entry point to the Pathfinder Second Edition roleplaying game! The first two books, Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core, release this November, with Pathfinder Monster Core (March 2024) and Pathfinder Player Core 2 (July 2024) completing the remastered presentation of Pathfinder’s core rules. The new rulebooks are compatible with existing Pathfinder Second Edition products, incorporating comprehensive errata and rules updates as well as some of the best additions from later books into new, easy-to-access volumes with streamlined presentations inspired by years of player feedback.
This year saw a huge explosion of new Pathfinder players. Remastered books like Pathfinder Player Core and Pathfinder GM Core improve upon the presentation of our popular Pathfinder Second Edition rules, remixing four years of updates and refinements to make the game easier to learn and more fun to play.
In time, the Pathfinder Player Core, Pathfinder GM Core, Pathfinder Monster Core, and Pathfinder Player Core 2 will replace the Pathfinder Core Rulebook, Gamemastery Guide, Bestiary, and Advanced Player’s Guide, which Paizo will not reprint once their current print runs expire. Existing Pathfinder players should be assured that the core rules system remains the same, and the overwhelming majority of the rules themselves will not change. Your existing books are still valid. The newly formatted books consolidate key information in a unified place—for example, Pathfinder Player Core will collect all the important rules for each of its featured classes in one volume rather than spreading out key information between the Core Rulebook and the Advanced Player’s Guide.
The new core rulebooks will also serve as a new foundation for our publishing partners, transitioning the game away from the Open Game License that caused so much controversy earlier this year to the more stable and reliable Open RPG Creative (ORC) license, which is currently being finalized with the help of hundreds of independent RPG publishers. This transition will result in a few minor modifications to the Pathfinder Second Edition system, notably the removal of alignment and a small number of nostalgic creatures, spells, and magic items exclusive to the OGL. These elements remain a part of the corpus of Pathfinder Second Edition rules for those who still want them, and are fully compatible with the new remastered rules, but will not appear in future Pathfinder releases.
In the meantime, Pathfinder’s remaining projects and product schedule remain as-is and compatible with the newly remastered rules. This July’s Rage of Elements hardcover, along with the Lost Omens campaign setting books and our regular monthly Adventure Path volumes, continue as planned, as does the Pathfinder Society Organized Play campaign, which will incorporate the new rules as they become available.
Learn more with our FAQ below
Is this a new edition of Pathfinder?
No. The Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster Project does not change the fundamental core system design of Pathfinder. Small improvements and cosmetic changes appear throughout, but outside of a few minor changes in terminology, the changes are not anywhere substantive enough to be considered a new edition. We like Pathfinder Second Edition. You like Pathfinder Second Edition. This is a remastered version of the original, not a new version altogether.
Are my existing Pathfinder Second Edition books now obsolete?
No. With the exception of a few minor variations in terminology and a slightly different mix of monsters, spells, and magic items, the rules remain largely unchanged. A pre-Remaster stat block, spell, monster, or adventure should work with the remastered rules without any problems.
What does this mean for my digital content?
Paizo is working with its digital partners to integrate new system updates in the most seamless way possible. The new rules will be uploaded to Archives of Nethys as usual, and legacy content that does not appear in the remastered books will not disappear from online rules.
We will not be updating PDFs of legacy products with the updated rules.
Will the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster books be part of my ongoing Pathfinder Rulebooks subscription?
Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster books will be included in ongoing Pathfinder Rulebooks subscriptions. We are currently working on a method whereby existing subscribers will have the opportunity to “opt out” of these volumes if they wish and will provide additional details as we get closer to the release of the first two volumes.
What impact will the Second Edition Remaster have on Pathfinder Society Organized Play?
We are working closely with our Organized Play team to seamlessly integrate new rules options in the upcoming books as those books are released, as normal. In the rare case of a conflict between a new book and legacy source, campaign management will provide clear advice with as little disruption as possible to player characters or the campaign itself.
Will there be more Remastered Core books to come? What about Monster Core 2 or Player Core 3?
It’s very likely that we will continue to update and remaster the Bestiaries in the future, but for now we’re focusing on the four announced books as well as Paizo’s regular schedule of Pathfinder releases. Publishing 100% new material remains Paizo’s primary focus, and we look forward to upcoming releases like Pathfinder Rage of Elements, the Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide and Character Guide, our monthly Adventure Path installments, and other exciting projects we have yet to announce.
Will the new Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster books have Special Editions?
Yes. We are looking into various exciting print options for these books and will post more information soon.
Will the new Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster books have Pocket Editions?
Yes. Pocket editions of the new books will appear roughly three months following the hardcover releases.
Will these changes impact the Starfinder Roleplaying Game?
Not yet.
How can I learn more about the Pathfinder Second Edition Remaster books?
To learn more about the Remaster books, check out our live stream chat about the announcement happening later today on Twitch. Beyond that, we’ll be making a handful of additional announcements in the coming days and weeks to showcase more about this exciting project, culminating in your first full look at the project during PaizoCon (May 26th–29th)!
Tags: Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Tuesday, April 25, 2023
From world-class shopping to world-class harrowing—our new Starfinder and Pathfinder wares offer you an abundance of adventure!
Check out these exciting new products available tomorrow at the Paizo Store and local game and books stores around the world, including Pathfinder Adventure Path #190: The Choosing (Stolen Fate 1 of 3), Starfinder Adventure Path #51: Into the Dataverse (Drift Hackers 3 of 3), and Pathfinder Lost Omens: Grand Bazaar Special Edition!
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!
Around the corner of a city street reveals a marketplace where almost anything can be found! Peruse the stalls of the Grand Bazaar as your characters examine both the mundane and the marvelous, seeking the perfect gear for their next thrilling adventure. Give an unfamiliar weapon a swing, try on a fashionista’s gown or a suit of armor, make friends with a chatty familiar or animal companion, pick up an assistive item that makes exploration accessible for every adventurer, settle down for a gourmet meal, or simply befriend the cast of vibrant characters that maintain the collection of shops presented in Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar Special Edition!This deluxe special edition is bound in faux leather with metallic deboss cover elements and a bound-in ribbon bookmark.
FIX THE DRIFT
The Drift Crisis reaches its conclusion at last! The heroes enter Triune’s Dataverse to try to set right the ...What happens here will change the Drift and the Starfinder setting forever!spoiler
code injected by the nefarious architects of the Drift Crisis. Taking on digital avatars and battling through corrupt code and other digitized foes, the heroes eventually confront the great flaw at the core of Triune and have the chance to save the data-corrupted deity.
This Starfinder Adventure Path volume concludes the Drift Hackers Adventure Path and includes:
- “Into the Dataverse,” a Starfinder adventure for 11th-level characters by Alexander Augunas.
- Ways to go beyond the Drift Hackers campaign and end of the Drift Crisis by Alison Cybe.
- A toolbox featuring expanded skill uses for hackers, a hacktivist archetype, new spells from the hidden infosphere sites, a selection of new hacker-themed equipment, a host of powerful new threats, and a space station full of vidgame stars, by Alexander Augunas, Joseph Blomquist, Michael Bramnik, Ivis K. Flanagan, and Andrew D. Geels.
- Statistics and deck plans for a ship made of the deity Triune’s own code by Alexander Augunas.
CHOOSE YOUR FATE!
When strange cards from a magical harrow deck manifest without explanation among the belongings of a group of powerful adventurers, the fate of reality falls on their shoulders. You are those adventurers! Are you up to the task of defending fate itself from those who seek to bend the forces of destiny to their whims? The Stolen Fate Adventure Pathbegins with “The Choosing,” a complete adventure for 11th- to 13th-level characters.
Starfinder Bounty #8: Lost Dragon’s Legacy is a Starfinder Bounty designed for 1st-level characters.
Moments before the Gap ended, the white dragon Arothalos died. Faced with her fresh corpse and no memory of her demise, her dragonkin minions fled, spreading across the planet Triaxus and cutting ties with one another. Now, centuries later, an aged descendant of these desperate dragonkin survivors has gone missing on his quest to find Arothalos’s lair and claim its riches. Embark on a journey to rescue this lost explorer, find the glacial tomb of the white dragon Arothalos, and claim the lost dragon’s legacy!
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch A King is a Starfinder Society Scenario designed for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
For weeks, Absalom Station’s news circuit has been dominated by a series of high-profile antiquities and art thefts perpetrated by a gang of violent Starfinders. An investigation by Radaszam, leader of the Acquisitives faction of the Starfinder Society, quickly determined these Starfinders were imposters. Determined to catch the audacious crooks and restore the good name of the Starfinder Society in one swoop, Radaszam has teamed up with AbadarCorp and Station Security to enact a sting operation, designed to publicly catch the true culprits red-handed. On Radaszam’s orders, a team of Starfinders are dispatched to find and infiltrate the gang of Starfinder imposters, uncover the mastermind behind their audacious plot, and bring them down—all while making a good impression on any media who arrive on the scene! The reputation of the Starfinder Society is in your hands!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-12: Negotiations for the Star Gun is a Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 1st- through 4th-level characters.
Within their vaults the Pathfinder Society has located a rare and mysterious star gun from the distant shores of Arcadia that, while broken, still holds a deep power within it. In order to ensure that past wrongs are made right, the Society travel within the borders of Arcadia to repair and return the star gun to its rightful home, but to do so, they must first convince the council of Segada to allow a team of Pathfinders entry.
A junior team of agents is dispatched to plead their case to the councilmembers, hopefully securing friends and allies of the Society for future exploration and contact. However, a villain lies in wait, aware of the power the agents are concealing and plotting for the exact moment to strike and catch them off guard!
Down on the boardwalk, there’s more than just opportunities for bargains and entertainment, for it’s here that your next urban adventure might begin! This line of gaming maps provides ready-to-use and captivatingly detailed fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. The next time your players head down to the local waterfront, these maps have you covered.
A special coating on each Flip-Mat allows you to use wet-erase, dry-erase, AND permanent markers with ease! Removing permanent ink is easy—simply trace over any permanent mark with a dry-erase marker, wait 10 seconds, then wipe off both marks with a dry cloth or paper towel. Each Flip-Mat measures 24" x 30" unfolded, and 8" x 10" folded.
April showers of abundant adventures will bring us May flowers like Pathfinder Harrow Deck, Starfinder Ports of Call, and Pathfinder Flip-Mat: The Enmity Cycle, so subscribe today!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Accessories
]]>Thursday, April 20, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
The Station’s abuzz with bad news today! Stories claiming that a gang of Starfinders have been stealing valuable relics and hijacking art shipments all throughout Absalom Station have been hitting the infosphere and are spreading like wildfire! Radaszam looked into it—turns out they’re a bunch of imposters! Sure, we could send a team to infiltrate this gang of fakes and shut them down, but that wouldn’t do a thing to change the media narrative. We need something big! Something flashy! Something sure to sway public opinion!
Join Radaszam in his quest for (public) redemption! Infiltrate and go undercover in a gang of Starfinder imposters, find out who’s behind their shady schemes, and reveal them to the media during a joint sting operation, planned by the real Starfinder Society and Absalom Station security. Don’t forget to smile for the cameras!
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch a King is the final adventure in the Year of Redemption’s Rise! This exciting scenario is written by Christopher Wasko for 5th- through 8th-level characters.
In brighter news, we’ve got another Starfinder Bounty coming your way!
When aged and eccentric dragonkin explorer Vidrizix goes missing on his quest to find the lair of a long-deceased dragon, his friends hire a team of brave problem solvers to brave the frigid Triaxian winter, find Vidrizix, and bring him home safe. Embark on a journey to rescue this lost explorer, find the glacial tomb of the white dragon Arothalos, and claim the lost dragon’s legacy!
Starfinder Bounty #8: Lost Dragon’s Legacy is a short adventure for 1st-level characters written by Brent Bowser.
Best of luck, Starfinders! You’re gonna need it!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Welcome, Pathfinders!
Spring is springing and new lands and adventures open themselves before us! Within the vault, a broken star gun was discovered which matches the stories from the village of Niishan in Arcadia. In order to have the gun repaired and returned, the Pathfinder Society will need to obtain permission from the council of Segada to travel the interiors of the continent. The councilors are willing to meet the Society’s representatives, though a spy may be hiding among them, hungry for information about the star gun and how it might bring power to Aslynn.
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-12: Negotiations for the Star Gun is an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Mahpiya.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Greetings, Pathfinders!
Spring is in the air, and while we’re cleaning up our homes, we’ve also cleaned up the old quest format, with the introduction of Pathfinder Series 2 Quests!
This time we’re heading to Restov! An old friend of the Society—and an Aldori Swordlord to boot—has issued a challenge to Marcos Farabellus that her best students can outdo anyone he’s trained. Marcos chooses the PCs to defend his pride in three contests of wit, skill and, of course, battle prowess. With its two-hour format, excellent opportunities for additional roleplay, and a variety of optional challenges to increase replayability, I hope we’ve crafted an experience that’s incredibly fun for someone completely new to Organized Play, as well as the most seasoned veteran.
Pathfinder Series 2 Quest #14: The Swordlord's Challenge is an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Tineke Bolleman.
Have fun and we’ll see you next quest!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Hi, my name is Fred Van Lente, writer of comics and prose (my latest novel, Never Sleep, debuted a few weeks ago: check it out if you like historical thrillers about America's first female private detectives). The fine folks at Paizo asked me to drop by to tell you a little bit about my new Pathfinder comics series, Wake the Dead, premiering from Dynamite in May. This is volume eight of the long-running Pathfinder series, and we're doing something a little different this time out.
While I've enjoyed chronicling the adventures of everyone's favorite Iconic PCs, i.e. Seoni and friends, both in the Fumbus comics one-shot and in the Guns & Gears flash fiction on this very blog, Wake the Dead takes up with a new party of Iconics of different classes. All these characters have appeared in the comics before in supporting roles, but this is the first time they’ve met each other, and certainly the first time they've gone adventuring together as a group.
Harsk is the one returning “main” character in the group. The dwarf ranger was delayed in rejoining his usual adventuring party, Seoni’s team, in Absalom in the Fumbus book. Those of you who read the Guns & Gears fiction know the Pathfinder Society sent them off on an adventure to the Arcadian coast; while he awaits their return, Harsk has agreed to do a separate mission for the Society to the arcane state of Nex, where he's to meet with a defector from the undead nation of Geb with valuable intel.
But Harsk isn't the only person braving the Awful district of Ecanus and the Mana Wastes to meet with the defector. The Firebrands have sent two of their newer members. Lem is the bard in the group, an eternal optimist, and a bit of a diva, and probably my favorite to write of the bunch.
Sajan is his mismatched partner, a stoic and humorless monk still on a quest to find his missing sister. The Firebrands have agreed to help him pick up that cold trail if he brings back the information this defector allegedly has.
However, in addition to the Pathfinders and Firebrands wanting to get their hands on the turncoat, she has information that could prove vital to the Knights of Lastwall too. They’ve sent the paladin Seelah into Ecanus to investigate. As a child, her family fled Geb and its horrors, so she has no love for that nation or the undead in general. Will her personal stake in this mission be a help, a hindrance, or a bit of both?
For Quinn the investigator, grabbing the defector is just another job in one sense, but in another, it's a tantalizing mystery: he does not know the identity of the client who hired him and is paying his daily fee (plus expenses). He'll only find out when he delivers the turncoat to Alkenstar.
Then, when the Gebbite necromancer Nyctessa shows up with her own inscrutable agenda and her rather, well, morbid sense of humor, Quinn's curiosity deepens further: okay, maybe it's not just a job to him after all.
So all of these Iconics with competing missions converge on the same spot in Ecanus's viscera-splattered Awful district to rendezvous with this defector—but only one can take the contact away with them. What happens next? Will they be at each other's throats, or will they work together to survive the night?
Needless to say, I can't wait for you to read the first issue of Pathfinder: Wake the Dead and find out.
Pathfinder: Wake the Dead comes out June 2023! Don't forget to ask about it at your Friendly Local Comic Shop Today!
Tags: Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Tuesday, April 18, 2023
SAVE UP TO 80% ON KOBOLD MOVING SALE!
The Paizo goblins and the kobolds at Kobold Press have been sharing the same warren for many years as small-folk allies. But the kobolds have outgrown their space in our warehouse, so they've found a new one that's just right. They must unload some of their loot to avoid hauling it to their new lair. They claim to be Strength-challenged and can't carry it all! (We know kobolds are strong as we are, but who wants to carry it when it’s better to sell it?!)
For the next few months, you can get great deals on a wide array of new and classic Kobold Press titles: 60% off select 5e titles and 80% off select Kobold Quarterly, 13th Age, or 4E titles! But don’t move slowly, the best titles will go quickly!
Each book you order will unburden a poor kobold who otherwise will have to schlep these tomes through the dangerous, monster-infested terrain of the Midwest.
Won’t you help an innocent, defenseless kobold today?
(We know this might sound like a kobold feigning weakness to ambush, but we goblins will vouch for them. This time.)
Kobold Warrens Moving Sale
•Discount does not stack with other discounts. Sale ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific on June 30, 2023.
Friday, April 14, 2023
Teach those who would steal fate from the world that there’s a price to pay!
Adventurers are no strangers to strangeness, but when magical harrow cards suddenly appear in their belongings and mysterious visions compel a journey to Absalom, who could resist? Certainly not your group of heroes! Especially when there are dozens more powerful magical cards scattered across the world, just waiting to be tracked down and claimed!
In the Stolen Fate Adventure Path, each player character finds themselves the new owner of a mysterious card that grants strange powers and defenses. Why have these cards come to you? And what is the nature of the vision that beckons you to a small game store in Absalom’s Grand Bazaar? It won’t be long before you realize that you aren’t the only ones chasing down these magical harrow cards, and before long, you’ll find yourselves in a race against a group of villains eager to claim these cards for their own nefarious plans. Can you stop them in time?
Inside the Stolen Fate Player’s Guide, you’ll find player-friendly, spoiler-free information and tips to help you make an exciting new character perfect for the Stolen Fate Adventure Path—including rules for the first four magical harrow cards you’ll start the campaign with!
This player’s guide contains:
- Information about the strange vision your PCs share, and full rules details for four magic harrow cards: The Brass Dwarf, The Empty Throne, The Paladin, and The Rabbit Prince.
- Character suggestions, including recommendations for alignments, ancestries, classes, languages, skills, and feats well suited for this Adventure Path.
- Six new backgrounds to explore your character’s supernatural link to the mystical traditions of the Harrow.
- Harrow-themed player options, including the harrowing ritual, the harrower archetype, and a new bloodline for sorcerers associated with the harrow.
Download The Stolen Fate Player's Guide
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Stolen Fate
]]>Thursday, April 13, 2023
Welcome, welcome! Gather ‘round!
Today we’re giving you a sneak peek into our two upcoming multi-table interactive events for the 2023 Paizo Organized Play season! Every year, Pathfinder Organized Play and Starfinder Organized Play each release one multi-table event that can be played with as few as three tables and well over 150+ tables at the world’s largest gaming events. These are intended to be epic adventures where players work alongside each other to accomplish monumental feats and battle great evils. In the past, these events were tied to key story points for Organized Play. In recent years, our special events have been standalone adventures that tell exciting but isolated stories, making them usable at conventions and special events for many years to come. This year, we’re continuing this trend, with two exciting interactive events that are standalone, so they can be enjoyed by anyone at any time.
Starfinder Society Special #5–99: Battle for the Bulwark debuts at PaizoCon 2023 and brings us back to a location many fans have been clamoring to learn more about: Sangoro’s Bulwark.
Sangoro’s Bulwark was once among the most fortified Starfinder Society strongholds outside the Pact Worlds. Serving as the headquarters of the Exo-Guardians faction, the massive stone and metal fortress was located on a hidden planet in the Vast surrounded by interplanar anomalies. It was impossible to locate, much less attack—or so the Exo-Guardians assumed.
Shortly after the Scoured Stars Incident, in which the majority of the Starfinder Society was trapped in a distant trinary star system, Sangoro’s Bulwark was lost to unknown forces. No distress signals or survivors ever reached Absalom Station. Fearing that the dangerous weapons, technology, and experiments stored at Sangoro’s Bulwark would fall into dangerous hands, a covert mission to the nearby site of Arsenal was sanctioned, which revealed that the Arsenal had been looted and that that Sangoro’s Bulwark was obscured by a cloak of magical darkness and would require a sizable contingent to reclaim.
Now, Ixthia the Unbreakable, leader of the Exo-Guardians factions, has organized a massive operation to reclaim Sangoro’s Bulwark, rescue any survivors, and destroy whatever foul forces dared take the lives of the Starfinders stationed there. Stand alongside Ixthia, Radaszam, and Venture-Captain Naiaj in the Battle for the Bulwark! This adventure is written by Lysle Kapp and Cole Kronewitter, and is intended for 1st- through 8th-level characters.
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Pathfinder Society Special #4-99: Blessings of the Forest debuts at Gen Con 2023 and delves into the forests of Kyonin at the behest of Queen Telandia.
Along the banks of the River Lunel, one of the many rivers that flow through Fireani Forest, sits the town of Folien. Folien is a small village, but very important as it sits on a ley line node. Specifically, the point of convergence for all of these ley lines lies within the basement of the temple to Yuelral in the center of the town. This village has existed peacefully and comfortably for decades, fostering a community of creativity and support. However, among the depths of the forest sits the Tanglebriar, and Treerazer’s appointed generals are as quickly chosen and promoted as they are demoted and thrown aside. One such shamed demon seeks her revenge on her former leader and has stolen something of great importance to him, which she plans to use to corrupt the ley lines and summon someone stronger. She’s found a willing partner in a shamed Kyonin noble, who seeks to see Kyonin as we know it destroyed and driven to its knees before him.
Queen Telandia has received word of this threat and reached out to the Pathfinder Society for assistance through the last remaining member of the Leaves of Talhindir, Venture-Captain Viore Ciobanu. Join him as he, Fola Barun, and Eando Kline make the journey to Folien and stand against the demonic forces that threaten the safety of Fireani Forest! This adventure is written by Ivis K. Flanagan and Dennis Muldoon, and is intended for 1st- through 8th-level characters.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, April 12, 2022
Our second marathon is a wrap, so let’s get to it! In case you haven’t caught up on the first report, our party of gunslingers succeeded in delving the top level of the Abomination Vaults, but at a cost. We fared much better on this marathon: we started to click more as a party and improved on some of the combat strategies needed to pump lead into every monster in a megadungeon. It’s hard to say at this point, but if we play as well through the remaining marathons as we did here, we might just gun down the entire Abomination Vaults.
Order of the Amber Die (OAD) members are spread out across the country, with about twelve-to-fifteen active members at any given time. As we’ve shown in other blog reports, they’ve flown in from places like Washington, Rhode Island, and North Dakota to our headquarters in New Jersey for days of gaming. It’s also the norm for members to drive up to eight hours to be here. For this marathon we really tapped into our membership with numerous cameos (all gunslingers of course), turning the marathon into a mini reunion. The encounters got a bit harder with more characters, but more guns meant more fun!
- Adventure: Ruins of Gauntlight
- Marathon Length: 59 hours
- Session Hours: 34 hours, 30 minutes
Our party, the Black Powder Cadre, picked up where we left off by exploring levels two and three of the megadungeon. We also continued developing our organization by employing the Pathfinder Second Edition organization rules, along with adding new gunslingers to our core four-character roster. We’re a sizeable band, though the Black Powder Cadre doesn’t exactly take the usual approach. We gave a false party name to town authorities, took the books we recovered from the Vaults for ourselves, pickpocketed patrons in a tavern to foster competition from another establishment, and lied to the mayor about a nefarious incident involving Otari’s foremost librarian. What can we say, we like working together!
Highlights from Ruins of Gauntlight
- The symbol of the Black Powder Cadre is the harmona bird, and each of us wears a different shade of blue to represent it. You can imagine our reaction when we ran into a cult of blue-robed ghouls on level three of the Vaults. Someone had to establish dominance over this precious primary color, and it wasn’t gonna be them. A fierce clash in the library ensued and, despite improving our skillset with the dying condition, we prevailed.
- Megadungeon crawling is dirty business; so far two characters have acquired Cocytan Filth and two more picked up Ghoul Fever. We’d like to thank our sponsor and friend Vandy Banderdash, head priestess of the Dawnflower Library! Frankly, Vandy is one of the main reasons we haven’t TPKed yet.
- When we decided to bring this many firearms into a megadungeon, we knew there would be some heroic displays of marksmanship along the way. The first nod goes to a cameo from Auralee, a veteran of The Slithering Salve, who joined the Black Powder Cadre during this marathon as “Lady Sniper.” She once put down four critical hits in two rounds, with a staggering 36 damage scored from a single bullet as a 2nd-level character. Vlai’s dwarven scattergun holds our next favorite record though, with six allies hit in just one blast from the boomstick.
- We finally came across something that could outduel us: a wood golem. It beat us to the draw and fanned out 103 damage across four targets with a single splinter volley—respectable by any desperados standards. We pulled steel and returned fire, but in the end decided to run. We'll be back for another showdown in the next marathon.
- We probably shouldn’t have picked a fight with a bearded devil, but someone had an itchy trigger finger. Before we knew it, two PCs were on the ground in horrible fashion. Mazatl, practicing the Way of the Spellshot, scoped in hard and held his breath. The devil’s chest exploded with a sound that was only slightly less gratifying than the natural 20 as it landed on Erick’s copy of Pathfinder Guns & Gears.
The Arsenal
We're a party consisting entirely of gunslingers, so what makes each character stand out—what gives them identity—isn't the same as other parties of the past. In this campaign, it's your weapon and the way you use it that separates you from the rest. The sound of a harmona gun is unmistakable, and you won't be hearing anything for a while after Maloika fires it. The quick grouping of holes that tears open the enemy in front of you comes from Breen, our pistolero. When a ghoul's dome bursts into pieces from the far end of the hallway, that's Mazatl, our sniper. And that sting in your back? That's Vlai with the scattergun. Out of game, it's just as important to distinguish your gunslinger from the rest, and that's where our props come in. Each player's weapon has been crafted and custom-painted to look like the one they have in-game—it helps to have an artist at the table!
Character Deaths
None. Props to Matt, our player captain, for the pre-marathon strategy posts in the Google Classroom.
Best Quote from Marathon 2
Town notary: "And your party's name?"
Zoric: "Umm... the Blue Coat Adventurers."
Town notary: "Very well..."
Party (to each other, bristling with firearms): "Seriously, 'Blue Coat Adventurers'?"Current Situation
The Pathfinder community was right when they said that we would run into some issues with a party consisting entirely of gunslingers. That being said, this is OAD, and over the years you've seen how competitive we can get. We've adapted to our main weakness, which is any enemy with a high Armor Class. We've taken advantage of our strong point, especially on level three, which is mass combat. In fact, the more enemies the better—we make our own ammo and have plenty of it! We've managed to clear most of level two and three at this point, discovered Otari's ghost once again, and followed it down to level four. We've done pretty well with discovering lore, so we have a decent idea of what once happened on the upper levels of the Vaults. As for what lies beneath, that's a different matter…
More Content
Our table was brought to life with the help of Blue Table Painting for the miniatures, and Black Bard Studios for custom adventure-specific miniatures and terrain.
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Tags: Community, Order of the Amber Die, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Registration for PaizoCon Online games opens next Monday! If you haven’t already, be sure to purchase your ticket now. If you’ve never used Warhorn to sign up for games before, here’s a brief explanation on how to register for the event and sign up for your games.
What’s Warhorn?
Warhorn is an online game scheduling platform. In addition to signing up for games, you can use the Discussion tab to ask questions of your GM or fellow players. Your GM can add links to the sign-in sheet and their VTT ahead of time.
Registering on Warhorn
- If you haven’t already, create a Warhorn account. Remember the email you used, as the PaizoCon ticket purchase process will ask for this email!
- Visit the PaizoCon Online 2023 Warhorn.
- In the upper right corner or on the right side of the screen, click “Register.”
That’s it! You’re now registered for the event. Clearing attendees to sign up for games is a manual process. At least once every 24 hours, we’ll go through and grant the correct permissions to every user who has bought a ticket since our last check, so please be patient!
Once you’re cleared to sign up for games, you’ll receive an email from Warhorn letting you know. In the meantime, you can view the event schedule and plan out what games you’d like to join!
Signing Up for Games
- Navigate to the listing for the game you want to join.
- Click “Sign Up to Play” at the top of the player list.
- For scenarios, you’re now signed up to play! For lottery games, you’ve joined the queue to potentially be selected to play in that game.
Lottery Games
Some of our events run by Paizo staffers or community members are likely to be in very high demand, and we don’t want to limit them to the fastest clickers. As such, we’re designating some games as Lottery Games in their description. Players who are interested in a Lottery Game can sign up as normal before 9am Pacific time on May 15, 2023. On this date, the signups will be closed and the players will be randomly chosen to play. Should any of these players drop, the seat will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you have any questions about the signup process, be sure to drop them in the comments, or head over to the Paizo Events Discord server. We can’t wait to see you at PaizoCon Online!
PaizoCon Online 2023 Team
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Paizo, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Monday, April 10, 2023
If you have ever wanted to try out Pathfinder Second Edition, the mod team at r/Pathfinder2e has a perfect opportunity for you! During the last week of April, dozens of GMs and hundreds of players will be gaming with the Pathfinder Beginner Box during Beginner Box Days!
From April 22-30th, new players curious to try Pathfinder can join experienced Game Masters as they play through the Pathfinder Beginner Box adventure: “Menace Under Otari”! This two-session adventure is designed to guide players through combat, exploration, skills, and even puzzles! The upper level teaches the basics of Pathfinder gameplay, while the lower dungeon puts them in advanced practice.
Player sign-ups opened on April 1st! You can find info to sign up on the Beginner Box Days website at BeginPF2.com. Then join the r/Pathfinder2e Discord channel to connect with your Game Master and other players! The organizers will primarily use Discord as to communicate updates (or deals) as well as host virtual playrooms.
Do you want to be involved? Why not introduce the next generation of players to Pathfinder?! The Beginner Box is also a great adventure to try out being a new Game Master as well!
Game Masters will be able to register their sessions until April 17 by going to RPGChronicles.net and creating an event. Just select either the Beginner Box Upper or Lower level (or both!) using event code 2711409 and include your Discord username. GMs can choose any number of virtual platforms to run on, including Fantasy Grounds, Roll20, or the deluxe Foundry VTT module! GMs can also receive a FREE PDF of the Beginner Box when they sign up on the website by April 17 on the GM Info page!
So what are you waiting for? Begin playing the world's preeminent, award-winning roleplay game during Beginner Box Days!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, April 7, 2023
In January, Paizo and an alliance of more than 1,500 tabletop RPG publishers announced our intention to support the development of the Open RPG Creative (ORC) license, a system-agnostic, perpetual, irrevocable open gaming license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics and encourages collaboration and innovation in the tabletop gaming space. The ORC is not explicitly a Paizo license, but is intended for the common use of the entire games industry, across a wide variety of games and platforms. Over the last several weeks, we have been working closely with Azora Law, an intellectual property law firm that works with Paizo and several other game publishers, to develop and refine a working draft of the ORC license for public discussion and refinement.
The first public draft of the ORC license is now complete, and we welcome the feedback of individual publishers on the official ORC License Project Discord, found here.
You can download a copy of the ORC license and its associated FAQ/AxE (Answers and Explanations) document below. We will continue to refine the license and add to the FAQ based on public feedback provided on the official Discord. Azora will be soliciting commentary and feedback through that platform between now and Friday, April 21, at which point they will incorporate that feedback and release another public draft. If additional rounds of public commentary are required, the process will continue until the license is complete and meets the needs of the majority of participating publishers. It is our intention to wrap up the entire process by the end of April if possible.
Thank you for your interest and participation in public conversations regarding the ORC license during the weeks it has taken us to put together this preliminary draft.
That work is now complete, and the next phase begins.
Download the Orc License
Download the Orc AxE
Join the conversation
Thursday, April 6, 2023
OPC Musings
Happy spring, everybody! The sun is shining, the birds are singing, or at least I assume they are. I live in Seattle. That’s not how it works here.
We’ve got a busy few months coming up for Organized Play! I’m going on my honeymoon at the end of April, PaizoCon is in less than 60 days, and after that–well, you’ll see. We’re hard at working churning out the next few months of scenarios. I think you’re really going to like what we’ve got planned for you!
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on April 26, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-12: Negotiations for the Star Gun•
Pathfinder Quest (Series 2) #14: The Swordlord’s ChallengeStarfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-16: To Catch A King•
•part of a subscription
Getting Started Pages
One of the consistent problems we’ve had in Organized Play is that there’s no one-stop overview of how our programs work to give to new players. Well…not anymore! Thanks to some help from Josh Foster, our Organized Play Developer, as well as Maryssa Lagervall and Andrew White on the tech team, I present our brand new Getting Started pages for Pathfinder and Starfinder Society! These pages are intended to give new players everything they need to get started and find their gaming group. We hope you find them useful and informative! If you see any errors or have suggestions for improvement, don’t hesitate to let us know.
Sanctioning Update
This was a big month for Organized Play sanctioning!
Pathfinder Society
For Pathfinder Society, the Gatewalkers Adventure Path recently released its final volume. Chronicle Sheets and sanctioning documents are now available on the store pages.
The big news, of course, is the sanctioning of Lost Omens: Firebrands. As I announced on the forums last week, we’re trying something new by listing the reasons why certain options aren’t permitted in the campaign. This is an experiment to see if the community can handle this feedback without using it as an invitation for debate, or as ammunition against our designers, editors and writers.
Starfinder Society
This month saw the release of the Drift Crisis Case Files! We broke from tradition slightly on this book as well by sanctioning each case file as a double-length scenario. Our hope is that doing so provides organizers with some additional content to be run at events with longer slots or over multiple weeks at a retail location. Let us know how it works for you!
Upcoming
Looking ahead, the next books on our radar are the Drift Hackers Adventure Path and Ports of Call for Starfinder. It’s likely that, due to internal issues, the Drift Hackers AP will see a slight delay from street date, but we should have it (and Ports of Call) ready by PaizoCon Online. On the Pathfinder side, the next adventure release is The Enmity Cyclein May, and we won’t have another hardcover until June with Lost Omens: Highhelm, but right now we’re on track for both of those. We’ll also be working to ensure the documents for the Free RPG Day adventures for both systems are available in time for the June 24 event!
Updates
We’ve also just pushed a couple of minor changes to the Treasure Vault items on the Pathfinder Character Options page. We added a missing access condition to the polytool to bring it in line with Lost Omens: Gods and Magic, permitted the black tendril shot thanks to errata, and removed the cassisian helmet from legality. Any character who purchased the helmet can sell it back for full price.
GM Recognition
Campaign Service Coins
While at GenghisCon at the end of February, I was able to award a Campagin Coin. We award these coins to members of the community who have gone above and beyond to provide an exceptional program to the community at large. Campaign Coins are awarded based on nominations; if you believe someone in your community is deserving of this award (whether or not they are a Venture Officer), send an email to organizedplay@paizo.com with their name and reasons.
Congratulations to:
Zach Armstrong, who now holds a Campaign Coin and Organized Play ID #883GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Star for Pathfinder Society (first edition) and two earn their 5th Glyph for Pathfinder Society (second edition).
5th Star (PFS1): Jerry Wayne
5th Glyph (PFS2): Doug Hahn, Michelle MonizCongratulations to our outstanding GMs and volunteers!
Convention News
Convention season is in full swing! Our Convention Calendar is chock-full of events from around the world, and we encourage everyone to go out and support their local shows.
PaizoCon
On the PaizoCon front, tickets for the show went on sale yesterday, and we're excited to see you all! Game signups will begin on April 10 for our GMs and April 17 for all attendees. Make sure to register on our Warhorn beforehand so we can get you set up to sign up!
We’re also excited to be partnering with KublaCon in California for PaizoCon @ KublaCon! If you’re interested in playing in physical space with the community, they’re our exclusive partner for a physical event this year. You’ll be able to play all the new PaizoCon releases, including the Starfinder Special on Saturday morning, and watch the panels from their viewing space. Tickets and hotel rooms are available now on their website, and signups for games are already open on their Warhorn.
Gen Con
This week we began signups for GMs at Gen Con Online 2023! All the information is available in our blog, but GMs will be able to run the new scenarios and be rewarded as if they were attending the event in Indianapolis, all from the comfort of their home! We look forward to seeing you all virtually, we expect a great turnout for our events this year.
For Gen Con Indy, while GM applications are still open, at this stage we may not be able to offer new volunteers badges or hotel rooms. We welcome all GM volunteers, we can always use more people interested in running tables or filling in for last-minute drops!
UK Games Expo
Finally, I’m pleased to announce that I’ll be attending UK Games Expo this year! I’ll be running a few games in our Organized Play space and otherwise just visiting the show to make connections. If you’ll be at the show as well, feel free to reach out, I’d love to say hi to our UK community!
Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! and show your flair with a Pathfinder pin!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinator
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>Thursday, April 6, 2023
BKOM Studios and Paizo are joining forces to bring two new Pathfinder video games to the market! One will be launching on Steam later this year, and the second is in early stages of development.
"We are so excited about this collab," says Frederic Martin, CEO of BKOM Studios. "We absolutely love role playing games (lots of us at BKOM are already part of that community) and already were fans of the Pathfinder brand. In Paizo, we found the ideal partner with whom to collaborate to materialize a common vision. After 26 years in this industry, there are people whom you know you want to work with again. And John Feil (Director of Licensing at Paizo) is definitely one of them. We can't wait to reveal more about the projects we've been working on with John and his colleagues," he adds. "The upcoming titles are perfectly aligned with BKOM’s vision to bring unique and meaningful gaming experiences on PC and consoles."
"We at Paizo are incredibly excited to be working with BKOM," says Mark Moreland, the company's Director of Brand Strategy. "Their track record is impeccable, and we can't wait to expand the Pathfinder brand into new digital spaces with them."
Details about both projects will be revealed soon!
Wednesday, April 5, 2023
Are you ready for the return of PaizoCon Online 2023? Join us Memorial Day weekend, May 26th–29th, as we once again bring events to your screen with an amazing long weekend of panels, giveaways, and, of course, gaming!
If you’re new to Pathfinder or Starfinder, PaizoCon is an annual weekend-long event where we celebrate our team, our community, gaming, and all things Paizo!
The entirety of this year’s convention is online. This year things will be slightly different: parts of the show you know and love will remain free, but we’ll also be having a ticketed event with community-run games and activities at the same time!
How it works: When purchasing your ticket we’ll ask for your Warhorn email and your Discord handle (name#numbers) so we can add the “Ticket Purchaser” role in our Paizo Events Server and Warhorn, which will give you access to sign up for games on Warhorn.
Game sign-ups: Both Organized Play and Open Play games will be available on April 17 through Warhorn. Stay tuned!
PaizoCon livestreams: We’ll be providing the full schedule of online Twitch and Discord panels soon, including Erik Mona’s annual opening keynote.
Friday art portfolio reviews: The opening Friday of PaizoCon, the Paizo art team is offering portfolio reviews on a first-come, first-served basis. Stay tuned for more information and registration!
Friends of Paizo: Join not just us, but multiple friends of Paizo in the Discord this year. Chat with, ask questions of, and learn more about the amazing work of teams like Foundry VTT, Roll20, Abyssal Brews, PF2eTools, and more!
We look forward to seeing you all online this year! Stay tuned for more updates and announcements about PaizoCon 2023!
Get your tickets today!
Tuesday, April 4, 2022
Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands is here! Just like with any rebellion, there were a lot of people that put in work to make this book possible. Among them are the wonderful authors for Firebrands. We wanted to give them a chance to share their excitement for the book, as well as some information about themselves and their projects. If you’ve enjoyed these authors’ work, let them know in the comments below or by following them on social media!
James Beck
Hello, my name is James Beck, a Jewish LGBTQ+ freelance writer, and I wrote Passenger and the Fire’s Finest faction! You might know me either as one of the members of Eldritch Osiris Games, which is a workers’ co-op publishing house; Osiris on deadly d8; or @geekjames513 on Twitter, where you can find me geeking out heavily with the PF2e community! I was so honored to be working on a book that let me explore themes of freedom and exploration and I hope you enjoy the book as much as I have. Everyone on the project was super supportive and awesome to work with and it was a true honor to be a part of the process!
Art by Roberto Pitturru Rigby Bendele (they/them)
In Firebrands, I was excited to revisit the gods Picoperi and Thisamet for Pathfinder Second Edition, who are azata empyreal lords. During this process, I thought a lot about what type of people would focus their worship on these deities. After all, deities devoted to pranks and celebrations aren’t as all-encompassing as gods of community or commerce! Thinking about the dangerous lives of Firebrands was a perfect framing for these deities since celebrations and merriment are necessary to keep up the hard work of revolution. I also took a dive into the pirate’s life with Besmara and the Firebrands operations in the Shackles. Again, my focus was on thinking about how the life of a revolutionary Firebrand would intersect with life on the seas and shores. This section was a joy to write, and I hope the salt-crusted Shackles operations provide campaign hooks for your own adventures—be they against the Red Mantis, Chelaxian incursions, or the environment.
Jessica Catalan
Hi everyone! My name’s Jessica Catalan and I’m the Starfinder Society Developer and a freelance author who primarily writes for the Pathfinder and Starfinder RPGs. For Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands, I wrote the Life of a Firebrand and Vaunter’s Carnival sections, notable figures Iqani Truthspinner and the Mockingbird, the gods Chaldira, Grandmother Spider, Marishi, Milani, and Nivi Rhombodazzle, avatar statistics, and the spells. I’m particularly fond of Iqani Truthspinner, as well as Tanglehop, a character inspired by my daughter who you’ll find in Vaunter’s Carnival. I’m incredibly proud to have been a part of Firebrands, and I hope that the love and enthusiasm that everyone poured into this book resonates with you and your fellow gamers. Take care of each other out there. The world could use a few more Firebrands!
Art by José Luis Islas López Dana Ebert (she/her)
Working on Firebrands was an amazing adventure, during which I fell in love with so many of the colorful characters I got to create for it. While Ayaanala, Hollow Hart, and Sahru Sital stand out as some of my favorites, Ishii Bunji will always be close to my heart, because I created him as a love letter to the transmasc community. I started out knowing I wanted to show that this wholesome chubby trans guy could also be immensely powerful and desirable, and with each successive draft he gradually transformed from an insatiable warrior into someone whose strength comes from kindness and inner joy. A kind of strength that, I’d like to think, can defy tyrants. Thomas Coughlin is also an important character to me, for far more personal reasons. He was named after a very dear friend of mine, who passed away shortly before this project started. Thomas loved roleplaying games, and being able to name a character after him in a book like this felt like the best way to honor his memory. All my love and thanks to this amazing community, this writing team, and the staff at Paizo, who continue to make Pathfinder one of the best TTRPGs in the world. Cheers!
Sen H.H.S
Hi everyone, it’s Sen H.H.S.! Yeah, I’ve been popping up a lot lately because there are just so many fun things to write about and create for Golarion. For Firebrands, other than writing about their relationships with other organizations or nations, I also wrote Jin Li, a new God of Dares who’s a carp that leaped so high that he turned into a dragon! In fact, according to my chat records, he leaped so hard that my computer crashed while writing about him. I am most likely making and retweeting a lot of memes about him after the release, which you shall be able to find on Twitter @Senhhs. See you all there and three cheers to the Firebrands book release!</p
Art by Firat Solhan Matt Morris
I'm Matt Morris, and I’ve been lucky enough to do freelance writing for Pathfinder and Starfinder for several years now, working with Paizo and a few 3rd-party companies, including Everybody Games and Rogue Genius Games. I managed to smuggle some information about Firebrand activities in Galt and their other campaigns around the Inner Sea into this book. (I used the hidden pockets in this fashionable jacket! Thanks, Yelayne, and you other gods watching over chaotic shenanigans.) I keep an up-to-date list of my work on my Paizo profile, and I’m always looking for interesting projects, so feel free to contact me if you are looking for a reliable writer! When not writing, I’m teaching high school English near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Jessica Redekop (she/they/he)
Hello! I’m Jess. You might recognize me from the Treasure Vault author’s blog last month. In Firebrands, I wrote Arshea, Silverspice Zzapo, and the new feats in the Other Archetypes section. I think they speak for themselves, but if you somehow aren’t sold on Firebrands yet let me answer the question on everybody’s mind: yes, there are new feats for the dandy archetype. Look forward to more of my work in Rage of Elements when it releases later this year. Outside of writing, you can find me on the Know Direction network as a cohost on the Legend Lore podcast and cast member on the upcoming Tavern Rats actual play podcast. I’ll also be a judge for this year’s RPG Superstar competition. To keep up with everything I’m doing, you can read my tweets on the tweeter, where I'm @tectonomancer.
Art by Roberto Pitturru Shahreena Shahrani
Marhaba, apa khabar semua? Hello, how’re y’all doing? Shahreena here, and I helped write the Faith section of Lost Omens Firebrands. I am fascinated by communities of people and their cultural practices, and had a lot of fun thinking and writing about how they relate with others in this fantastical setting. Speaking of faith, to fellow Pathfinders fasting and celebrating this month, Ramadan Kareem! When not gaming, I teach regional and cultural studies of the Middle East and North Africa, and deliver lectures/presentations on hot topics to government agencies and personnel. I also enjoy working on retelling world folklore on my YouTube channel: Storytime with Auntie Nina. If you’d like to contact me about working together, guest/public speaking opportunities, and/or learn more about my projects, you can reach me at: shahreena_s@yahoo.com.
We also want to thank our other authors for their great work on Firebrands!
- Joan Hong: Ranik Helt (page 46), Firebrand Backgrounds (page 75), Magic Items (page 84), Services (page 92)
- Aaron Lascano: Beacons across the Inner Sea (page 6), Campaigns (page 98), Katapesh (page 118)
- Luis Loza: History (page 8), Factions (page 24), Nightwave (page 28), Devrin Arlos (page 40), Karthival (page 43), Options Introduction (page 74), Firebrand Training (page 76), Equipment (page 82)
- Ron Lundeen: Other Groups (page 34), Mwangi Expanse (page 104), Old Cheliax (page 108)
- Stephanie Lundeen: Silver Ravens (page 32), Shensen (page 48), Lubaiko (page 62)
- Erin Roberts: Salt Breakers (page 30), Shimali Manux (page 49), Vulmia Manux (page 51)
- Michael Sayre: Firebrand Training (page 76)
- Ruvaid Virk: Other Archetypes (page 78)
Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Saturday, April 1, 2023
Creating a dangerous dungeon to challenge adventurers is a lot of work. While the various architecture aeons, drafter devils, engineering elementals, and other dungeon designing minions here at Paizo are generally great at their job, there are some times when the rooms they create don’t quite hit the mark. While we typically just set those aside for incineration at a later date, we were running out of space at the delving warehouse. To clear up a bit of space, we figured that we could just set a few of those unused rooms out on the curb for anyone to pick up. So, today on April Fools’ Day, we invite you to come on by and grab any of these rooms and throw them into your next dungeon!
Rooms Designed by Cosmo Eisele (Director of Sales), Vanessa Hoskins (Developer), and Luis Loza (Creative Director)
Chamber of Bouncing
This large chamber looks inconspicuous at first glance. There are open doorways at either end of the chamber. The floor and walls of the room are magically enchanted to forcibly bounce creatures that come in contact with them. A creature that moves through the room finds itself springing and bouncing around. Every time the creature moves 5 feet, they are bounced 10 feet in the same direction. This bouncing doesn’t count against the creature’s movement. Creatures that collide against a wall are bounced back 10 feet in the opposite direction. Alternate versions of these chambers include trapped doorways that magically move along the length of the walls, making it difficult to reach an exit while bouncing around, or glass walls within the room that are effectively invisible to the naked eye and serve to block the bouncing in the chamber.
Crawler’s Room
This room contains a miniaturized version of the very building in which it’s located. The miniature building takes up the entirety of the room, blocking access to the door on the opposite of the chamber. The miniature’s doorways are large enough for a person to crawl inside. Creatures that enter the room are subject to a magically-enhanced gravity, causing the creatures to collapse to the ground. Reaching the other side of the room requires crawling through the building replica and traversing the miniaturized dungeon. The miniature version of this room doesn’t contain its own miniature and is instead filled with small piles of treasures.
Grand Sycamore Ballroom
This vast chamber is large enough to contain a legion. Hanging high on the walls, out of the reach of most, are massive tapestries displaying legendary heroes, each standing thrice as tall as they would appear in life. The room is filled with a carefully positioned pattern of round tables, each surrounded by eight chairs, and sporting different colored adornments, arranged in broad sections. In the center of the room, against the far wall, stands a magnificent stage. A long table at the front edge of the stage has four chairs for the Grand Coordinator and their closest officers. Several double doors exit the room on all four sides.
Helpful Warning Room
This 10-foot-by-20-foot room has a packed dirt floor and unlocked wooden doors at both ends. In the center of the room there is a long gash cut through the dirt, and a notched and rusty shield stuck into the floor in the exact center of the gouge and room. Scrawled upon the shield, in an obviously unskilled hand, is the word “TRAP!” written in red paint with an arrow pointing straight up. Following the arrow up shows an enormous greataxe attached to the ceiling and rigged to swing through the room when a barely concealed tripwire is tripped. This obviously is the source of the gouge, and the swinging axe is easily avoided when the trap is tripped. Upon closer inspection, there is another scrawled word on the head of the axe itself in the same red paint: “BOOM!” This word is painted on top of a fireball rune (Core Rulebook 524), which goes off when the axe head swings within 20 feet of the party.
Visualizer Chamber
The walls of this room are decorated with colorful artwork. All objects and creatures within the room have their appearance drastically altered, resembling stylized artwork that’s made up of small groupings of black, cyan, magenta, and yellow dots. Anytime a creature would speak or make some other sound within this chamber, the sound doesn’t occur normally. Instead, a large image of the words or sound effect appears in the air near the creature. This alteration to appearance and sound doesn’t prevent creatures from acting normally, casting spells, and so on.
Tags: Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>Friday, March 31, 2023
Hey Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite fans! We’re squeaking it in at the last minute, but here’s a look at last month’s Infinite top performers!
February's Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that are appearing on this list for the first time. Because they’ve consistently topped the list, and due to the number of their titles that typically take up spots, “Team+” and “Team Index” have asked to be removed from the calculations for ongoing top performers lists. This will allow newer publishers or book series to get more attention. Thanks, all!
Character Classes: Tarotmaster (P2)•
Strange magic awaits within the tarot, waiting to be discovered. Including three focus arcana subclasses, card-casting capabilities, and many ways to manipulate your Major Arcana deck of spells, will you control fate, or will fate control you? Includes over 50 class feats and a multiclass dedication for those who wish to dabble only slightly in the tarot. Includes 23 pages of content for the class, five of which include art for each of the Major Arcana cards and information on spells associated with them.
Deep Space Adventures: Eldritch Emissaries (SF)•
Wielding ancient knowledge and mystical power, eldritch emissaries are individuals who have made deals and agreements with otherworldly forces that often stay hidden in the fabric of the multiverse to fulfill their own ends—but they are in turn manipulated by those same forces. This has all the rules needed to play an eldritch emissary, including new weapon special properties, critical hit effects, fusions, aeon stones, and other magical items. It also has rules for making NPC eldritch emissaries and applying optional rules to them.
Everything Shields (P2)
Take your shields to the next level! With the Everything Shields Pathfinder Second Edition supplement, you can create hundreds of customized shields and shield-focused characters. Do you want to play a swashbuckling, targe-wielding duelist whose shield can exude darkness on command when you get in a pinch? Or a mobile warrior who throws a mithral hoplon that returns after each attack? How about a witch who has etched a hex onto the face of their shield to make enemies falter when they attack? All of these options and many more are possible with Everything Shields!
Frontiers of Magic (P2)•
Magic is an ever-expanding field of study. Wizards construct new spells, druids befriend newly observed species, occultists uncover secrets thought lost, and clerics receive novel blessings. This book explores these lesser-known facets with new player options for Pathfinder Second Edition. This 144-page supplement of player options includes two new classes (mesmerist and shifter), 35 archetypes, new class options and feats for most spellcasting classes, spell skill actions, and over 60 new spells (including consolation cantrips).
Golarion Unseen: Relics of Power (P2)•
Golarion Unseen: Relics of Power offers a wide and detailed expansion to the world of relics established in the Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide.
Impossible Paths: Clockwork Clinic (P2)•
People from all over the Impossible Lands gravitate to the Clockwork Clinic, queer boarding house by day, mob doctor by... well, whenever people get shot up. The reasons people were drawn here are different: to heal, to learn, to love, to escape, but the destination is always the same. What Impossible Paths brought these folks together? This book details the Clockwork Clinic and 11 new NPCs hailing from across the Impossible Lands, with art and adventure hooks. Each is meant to be a launching point into future supplements with even more material in other regions.
Minotaurs Unleashed: A Pathfinder Second Edition Ancestry (P2)
The minotaurs of Golarion are a powerful and brave people who have been overlooked for years, considered by some to be violent monsters and worshippers of the demon lord Baphomet. What many don’t know is that there are a number of diverse minotaur cultures across Golarion that seek a different path and have long since forged their own destiny. If you wish to play a powerful and cunning ancestry with a complex and untold history, Minotaurs Unleashed is for you! In this book, you’ll find the minotaur ancestry, with six heritages and 24 ancestry feats; lore from the three major centers of minotaur civilization—the Isles of Kortos, Vudra, and Iblydos; the new longhorn greataxe advanced weapon for the minotaur ancestry; a conversion of the Iblydan hero god Iapholi from Pathfinder First Edition; and hand-drawn illustrations displaying a variety of minotaurs from all across Golarion. Includes Pathbuilder 2e and Foundry VTT Support!
Niki’s Monster Logs: Gobbiestiary•
This goblin-focused rules supplement includes 10 mechanically unique new goblin monsters ranging in level from 1 to 4—from the longwinded goblin historian to the goblin follower who baits their opponents into being isolated before striking; a new weapon, the tallsplitter, that can be used by any goblin; 15 pages of pure goblin-ness; and a FoundryVTT module to make using these rules in your games even easier.
Revised Options: Curses and Wizardry (P2)•
Revised Options: Curses and Wizardry is a collection of fully rebalanced class paths for oracles and wizards! If you ever desired to play ancestors or lore oracles, or metamagical experimentation wizards, without feeling that some other curses or theses might have been more mechanically potent, look no further! Revised Options: Curses and Wizardry includes errata for the oracle class aimed at removing some feat taxes, such as Divine Access, as well as substantial empowerment of the less popular curses, enhancements for the less popular arcane schools and theses focused on improving the school spells, and a completely new arcane thesis—war magic!
Tasks and Deeds: 2 – Gogunta’s Lost Song (P2)
Gogunta's Lost Song is a simple encounter scenario designed for a single session, suitable for a 4th-level party of four player characters. While set among the swamps and fens in the central part of the Sodden Lands, the encounter can be easily adapted to take place anywhere there are swamps and marshlands. Simple application of the weak and elite creature rulesets allows the GM to quickly scale the encounter. The encounter has been designed to use the Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Wicked Dungeon map, available on paizo.com or at your friendly local game store.
Infinite, Artificial Intelligence, and You
Last month, we discussed how potential changes to the Open Game License and the forthcoming release of the Open Roleplaying Content license would affect publishers on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite. Well, this month, I wanted to address some questions from the community about Paizo's recent statement on content created by artificial intelligence. Put simply, Paizo’s “no AI” policy applies to works sold on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite, too.
For those looking to get into publishing material on Infinite who had planned to use AI-generated artwork, I recommend checking out some of the community-run resources that exist to help people take those first steps into community content publishing, like r/pathfinderinfinite, the Infinite Possibilities Discord, or DriveThru's own Discord where publishers can all help one another out, both for Infinite or more general publishing. There are also Infinite publishers who make and sell stock art for both Pathfinder and Starfinder that cost only a few dollars and give the purchaser the right to reuse that art in their own Infinite publications. There are also hundreds of pieces of official Paizo artwork that Infinite publishers can use under the terms of the license.
There are lots of ways to get art made for your publications that both support real live artists, help build up the community, and don't rely on tools with currently questionable ethics or copyright ownership. If the tools and resources above don’t meet your needs, you may consider releasing your work under the Pathfinder Compatibility License instead of on Pathfinder Infinite in order to use AI-generated art free of these restrictions, and please use the comments of this blog to let me and the rest of the team know what other resources we can potentially direct you to or provide to make those first steps into self-publishing that much easier.
Thanks for everything you do to make Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite the thriving communities they are.
Mark Moreland
Director of Brand Strategy
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>Thursday, March 30, 2023
Greetings, players! The time has finally come to open volunteer applications for Gen Con Online 2023. Please read all the information in this blog before filling out the application form, and let the team know if you have any questions!
Gen Con Online 2023
Gen Con Indianapolis will take place online from August 3–6, 2023. This application is only for the online show; those interested in being part of our offerings in the Sagamore Ballroom in Indianapolis should visit our previous blog on the subject.
New content at this show includes the launch of Pathfinder Society Year 5, the new Pathfinder Society Special and the second American run of the Starfinder Society interactive special, and new Starfinder Society scenarios (including your first chance to meet the new First Seeker Candidates).
We're currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Game Master: Run tables of Organized Play Scenarios, Bounties and Quests
- Headquarters (HQ): Answer player and GM questions, seat players, handle conflicts and disputes, and report games after completion
Please read this important information before applying:
- Volunteer applications will be reviewed and accepted or rejected by the Gen Con Organizing Committee. Filling out this form doesn’t guarantee acceptance; you’ll receive an email with further information from the Gen Con committee.
- Gen Con Online schedules will be assigned by the committee. You’ll be asked for your preference of system and level, but you won’t necessarily be able to choose the specific scenario(s) you run. The committee’s intention is to assign people to run the same scenario multiple times during the weekend. There’s a free-form field at the end of the form to enter specific requests, though there’s no guarantee they’ll be honored.
- Reward information is listed in the table below.
- Volunteers will be accepted on a rolling basis, and schedules should be assigned within two weeks of your application. Once your schedule is assigned and you confirm, you’re considered to be committed to attending the event.
- Adventure authors interested in running tables of scenarios they’ve written should fill out the volunteer form and then follow up by emailing genconleads@gmail.com. We’ll do our best to get you slotted into your scenario if it’s on the schedule.
- Gen Con Online doesn’t accept tables run in languages other than English.
- Any questions about the GM sign-up process should be sent to the committee at genconleads@gmail.com.
Rewards Table
Blocks
Product
In-Game Reward
Voucher
6+ blocks
✓
✓
✓
5 blocks
✓
✓
4 blocks
✓
✓
3 blocks
✓
✓
2 blocks
✓
✓
1 block
✓
✓
•Definitions for rewards:
- In-game reward: A reward for characters based on the current organized play program GM reward programs. Pathfinder Society (first edition)/Pathfinder Adventure Card Society is paper boons, Pathfinder Society (second edition)/Starfinder Society is Achievement Point rewards at the Premier Plus (2.0x) level.
- Product: a PDF copy of any Paizo product valued at $29.99 or less.
- Voucher: earn one voucher for $10 spendable on paizo.com for every block run.
Note that Gen Con Online badges are free, so GMs are asked to obtain their own badges for the show.
Gen Con Indy 2023 Volunteer Application
Major Conventions Planning Server
Anybody interested in volunteering at Gen Con Online should join the OPF Major Conventions planning server by clicking the image below. Follow the instructions in #welcome to get access to the relevant channels. All important information will be conveyed on this server as well as via email, so please join the server!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorHeather Vigil, Joe Blomquist, Kevin Baumann, Rebecca Fehn and Joe Mathos
Gen Con Organizing Committee
Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Society
]]>Wednesday, March 29, 2023
Rebels, nobles, prisoners, detectives, artists, carnies and an entire deck of NPCs await you in Paizo’s newest releases for your gaming table!
First, in case you missed it, enjoy our new trailer for the Pathfinder Treasure Vaults rulebook, featuring the kobold Purepurin!
Rebels with a cause! The Firebrands are some of the more infamous adventurers across the Inner Sea, filled with braggarts and rebels alike! Pathfinder Lost Omens: Firebrands and Pathfinder Lost Omens: Firebrands Special Edition take an in-depth look at the various members of the organization that strives to fight injustice and look good while doing it. It features information on how to join the Firebrands, details on important members of the group, new options for Firebrand characters, and advice for playing campaigns focusing on rebellion or achieving fame!
A Dream is Never Just a Dream! In Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires (Gatewalkers 3 of 3) , the gatewalkers’ quest for answers reaches its exciting conclusion when the player characters reunite with [redacted], but the occasion turns sour when they discover sinister [redacted]. The final leg of the party’s quest to unravel their memory gaps and fulfill [redacted] takes them to [redacted], where [redcted] evils await. The Gatewalkers Adventure Path concludes in “Dreamers of the Nameless Spires,” a complete adventure for 8th- to 10th-level characters.
In Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle , after following the signal from a magical key to a remote estate in Ustalav, the Pathfinder Society made contact with a truly unusual being as well as the mysterious Ardis Scholars. Yet the scholars are now in dire straits—thanks to the machinations of a long-time foe of the Society, most of their members have been imprisoned in a flying castle tucked away in the Shadow Plane! It's up to a group of veteran Pathfinder agents to mount a daring rescue. But those agents must tread carefully, or the bizarre castle, infused with nightmares and otherworldly technology, will become their eternal prison.
A FINE ESTATE!
Elegant treasures and political secrets lie within noble estates, making them excellent targets to rob or defend. Regardless of the inclination, no Game Master wants to spend time drawing every courtyard or banquet hall. Depicting the ground floor and roof of a noble estate, this beautifully detailed double-sided map, Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Noble Estate , sets the perfect scene for escapades among the elite!
THE EYES ARE ON THE CASE!
Absalom Station: home of the Starstone and bustling heart of the Pact Worlds. Since the Drift Crash, it’s also become a haven for refugees, as well as a lost and found for everything from valuables to loved ones. People would do just about anything to get their lost treasures back. That’s where the Eyeswide Agency comes in. Drift Crisis Case Files tells three stories of intrigue, having the player characters take on the roles of detectives working with the Eyeswide Agency. In this book, you’ll find:
- Three adventures (designed for characters of 3rd–4th, 7th–8th, and 10th–11th levels) intended to be run as a series, plus advice for using these adventures as part of a longer campaign.
- A codex of nonplayer character contacts to add intrigue to your campaign, many of whom the investigators can call on for favors to help close a case.
- New rules and options for characters who want to play psychics, including two new archetypes: psychic detective (sometimes called “headscanners”) and psychic charlatan.
STEP RIGHT UP! HURRY, HURRY, HURRY, HURRY!
Come test your skills at one of the many carnival games or experience the thrills of a looping hovercoaster moving at full speed! Visit one of the many concession stands to enjoy snack foods from across the galaxy! It’s all here and eagerly awaiting a group of adventurers enjoying a well-earned vacation or investigating a mystery lurking beneath the park’s cheerful facade. This double-sided map features a small carnival midway on one side, and a small section of a much larger (and cleaner) theme park on the other. Starfinder Flip-Mats present ready-to-use science fantasy set pieces for the busy Game Master. With Starfinder Flip-Mat: Amusement Park, you’ll be ready for the next time your players want to unwind!
Creating a new NPC every time the player characters enter a shop or chat with a local on the street can be a real challenge, but the Starfinder Deck of Endless NPCs makes it as simple as drawing four cards from the deck. These cards combine to form a unique NPC, each with their own role, motivation, personality trait, and secret agenda! With over 100 million different combinations, you are sure to get an interesting new character every time!
April’s new game gear will include Pathfinder Lost Omens: Grand Bazaar Special Edition, Pathfinder Adventure Path #190: The Choosing (Stolen Fate 1 of 3), and Starfinder Adventure Path #51: Into the Dataverse (Drift Hackers 3 of 3), so subscribe today!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Thursday, March 23, 2023
Hello, Starfinders!
Lucky you! You’ve been invited to a trendy arcade run by a famous demoscene artist and vidgame programmer, who needs volunteers to beta test his latest full-immersion virtual reality vidgame! So head on down to Hidden Escape Arcade, select the color of your squox avatar, and take a super cute (and definitely not dangerous at all•) farming simulator for a spin!
•Hidden Escape Arcade is not liable for any injuries sustained while using their full-immersion virtual reality vidgames. Please game responsibly!
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Beta Test is an adventure for 11th- through 14th-level characters written by Rigby Bendele.
Enjoy!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hello, Pathfinders!
This month we’re revisiting Lumna and Venture-Captain Evni Zongnoss in order to enact the plan to save the Ardis Scholars! Using the mysterious crystal key combined with Lumna’s interdimensional powers, the Pathfinders are traveling to the mysterious and dangerous Shadow Plane and into the heart of Asylnn’s electric castle! Narcela’s there waiting to offer assistance, and the Scholars desperately need the Pathfinder’s help, with all of Aslynn’s minions and lackeys creeping around her castle. The building is filled with magical items, but you must remain focused, because Aslynn has one more trick up her sleeve…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle is an adventure for 7th- through 10th-level characters written by Jacob W. Michaels.
Have a great trip, Pathfinders!
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>Wednesday, March 22nd, 2022
Following the announcement and upcoming release of our next hotly anticipated Pathfinder series (the first in several years!), we at Dynamite Entertainment are pleased to announce another huge collaboration with Paizo. Starfinder, the tabletop innovator's other smash hit game and mythos, is coming to comic books for the first time in Angels of the Drift!
For the first ever Starfinder comic series coming to stores, we hand-picked the best creative voice to take the helm. James L. Sutter served on staff at Paizo for over a decade, including as Creative Director for Starfinder, playing a critical role in developing the world and systems, translating the beloved Pathfinder formula to a science-fantasy landscape. Sutter writes Angels of the Drift alongside artist Edu Menna (Army of Darkness).
"Starfinder is all about exploring the galaxy and having epic adventures, but at the end of the day it's also about your real-world experience as a player, sitting around a table having fun with your friends," said writer James L. Sutter. "I think the comic zeroes in on that feeling—that no matter how high the stakes get, both the game and the comic are meant to be fun."
Paizo has been charting the paths of Starfinder's "iconics" for over half a decade now in game art and supplemental material, but you have been clamoring for a greater story focus on them, which is now here! Angels of the Drift is elevated by its fun, colorful cast of characters, like any great genre adventure. Navasi is a human envoy and reformed pirate, serving as the group's fast-talking, plan-crafting de facto captain. Tall, proud vesk soldier Obozaya is the main muscle. Ciravel, a precog elf who uses a hoverchair, brings the strategic know-how, while hot-headed ratfolk mechanic Quig comes with mechanical knowedlge, a pet robot, and a deadly flamethrower. Last but certainly not least is the shirren mystic Keskodai, team medic... and priest of a death goddess. This squad all pulled together as a disaster in the hyperspace dimension known as the Drift completely threw off the galaxy's ability to travel between worlds safely. It all goes south from there!
The series features a stunning trio of fantastic covers. Series interior artist Edu Menna is included in the pack, alongside Richard Pace (Second Coming) and Biagio d'Alessandro (Pathfinder). Pace's covers across the series will connect to form a larger image. All covers are all printed on premium cardstock paper.
Each issue also comes with extra content for players of the tabletop game: the full series will include playable character stats for all the heroes, new character options inspired by the comic, a brand-new playable species, and more—all officially sanctioned by the Starfinder Society!
Our Starfinder: Angels of the Drift series will alternate publication months with Pathfinder: Wake the Dead through the remainder of 2023, giving Paizo fans a great chance to follow both series and their connected mythos.
STARFINDER: ANGELS OF THE DRIFT #1 is slated for release in June 2023. Comic book fans are encouraged to preorder copies of the issue with their local comic book retailers. It will also be available for individual customer purchase through digital platforms courtesy of Comixology, Kindle, iBooks, Google Play, Dynamite Digital, ComicsPlus, and more!
Dynamite Entertainment
The Drift Crisis is an epic, yearlong meta-event spanning all Starfinder product lines, from our rulebooks to Adventure Paths to standalone adventures, to Society Scenarios, and even an actual-play! While we will soon release our final installment, Starfinder Adventure: Drift Crisis Case Files, Dynamite’s Angels of the Drift comic will extend the story as the perfect capstone adventure in the stars!
Paizo Inc.
Tuesday, March 21st, 2022
As the days grow longer and the darkness lifts, the light reveals Pathfinder and Starfinder treasures sitting in our warehouse that would look great on your gaming table. Spring forward into our half-off Paizo Magic Sale!
Enjoy a legendary 50% off select print and digital products. Mix and match from Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder First Edition, and Starfinder books, PDFs, accessories, maps, pawns, minis and more! This opportunity is like the one we give to subscribers—buy the print version and get a complimentary PDF—or a buy one, get one!
]]>
Thanks for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Magic Sale Today!
•From now through April 4 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, take 50% off on select Pathfinder and Starfinder products at the Paizo Store. Discount does not stack with other discounts, including the Paizo Advantage. Not valid on subscriptions, preorders, backorders, or non-Paizo products not specifically listed as on sale.
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si9c?Pathfinder-Play-Weekend Pathfinder Play Weekend 2023-03-16T15:00:00.000-04:00 2023-03-16T15:00:00.000-04:00 Pathfinder Play Weekend Thursday, March 16th, 2022 StartPlaying is excited to announce our newest partnership with Paizo: Pathfinder Play Weekends! Paizo, publisher of award-winning games Pathfinder and Starfinder, is partnering with StartPlaying to make it easy for new and longtime players to find Pathfinder groups with seasoned Game Masters hosting everything from campaigns to one-shots. Whether you want to learn to play or delve into the Abomination Vaults, you’re sure to find something exciting during Pathfinder Play Weekend. “Paizo is excited about this new partnership. We’ve designed Pathfinder to be easy to learn, streamlined to play, and offer deep character customization starting at level one, with meaningful choices at every level. The StartPlaying professional Game Masters are ready to get you started and keep you playing every month at Pathfinder Play Weekends,” says Aaron Shanks, director of marketing at Paizo. Pathfinder Play Weekend will be a recurring event taking place on the last weekend of every month, Thursday to Sunday. The first event will run March 23rd through the 26th. You can find open games here. Pathfinder Second Edition has been leading a TTRPG boom since January of this year. Paizo sold through what was planned to be an eight-month supply of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook in two weeks. Meanwhile, interest in StartPlaying listings for Pathfinder has increased exponentially. Pathfinder Play Weekends will help meet this demand by matching eager new players and veteran fans with games for all skill levels. Pathfinder 2E offers a variety of gameplay styles and tones, from silly flower garden one-shots to deadly dungeon crawls to free-form kingdom building sims. "We're always excited to make it easy for people to find and play games," said Devon, StartPlaying co-founder. "We know the best way to make the hobby grow is to remove barriers to entry, and professional Game Masters are incredibly invested in providing an amazing experience to players and making them feel welcomed." StartPlaying games is the premier online platform for finding open TTRPG games with professional Game Masters. GM profiles show their skillsets and ratings from players, allowing users to easily find someone whose style matches their preferred experience. Users can also refer friends to the service to claim a $10 credit toward a future game–perfect for inviting buddies to a new Pathfinder campaign! Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Pathfinder Play Weekend
Thursday, March 16th, 2022
StartPlaying is excited to announce our newest partnership with Paizo: Pathfinder Play Weekends!
Paizo, publisher of award-winning games Pathfinder and Starfinder, is partnering with StartPlaying to make it easy for new and longtime players to find Pathfinder groups with seasoned Game Masters hosting everything from campaigns to one-shots. Whether you want to learn to play or delve into the Abomination Vaults, you’re sure to find something exciting during Pathfinder Play Weekend.
“Paizo is excited about this new partnership. We’ve designed Pathfinder to be easy to learn, streamlined to play, and offer deep character customization starting at level one, with meaningful choices at every level. The StartPlaying professional Game Masters are ready to get you started and keep you playing every month at Pathfinder Play Weekends,” says Aaron Shanks, director of marketing at Paizo.
Pathfinder Play Weekend will be a recurring event taking place on the last weekend of every month, Thursday to Sunday. The first event will run March 23rd through the 26th. You can find open games here.
Pathfinder Second Edition has been leading a TTRPG boom since January of this year. Paizo sold through what was planned to be an eight-month supply of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook in two weeks. Meanwhile, interest in StartPlaying listings for Pathfinder has increased exponentially. Pathfinder Play Weekends will help meet this demand by matching eager new players and veteran fans with games for all skill levels. Pathfinder 2E offers a variety of gameplay styles and tones, from silly flower garden one-shots to deadly dungeon crawls to free-form kingdom building sims.
"We're always excited to make it easy for people to find and play games," said Devon, StartPlaying co-founder. "We know the best way to make the hobby grow is to remove barriers to entry, and professional Game Masters are incredibly invested in providing an amazing experience to players and making them feel welcomed."
StartPlaying games is the premier online platform for finding open TTRPG games with professional Game Masters. GM profiles show their skillsets and ratings from players, allowing users to easily find someone whose style matches their preferred experience. Users can also refer friends to the service to claim a $10 credit toward a future game–perfect for inviting buddies to a new Pathfinder campaign!
Tags: Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si9b?Welcome-to-RPG-Superstar-2023-Elemental-Storm Welcome to RPG Superstar 2023: Elemental Storm! 2023-03-15T14:30:00.000-04:00 2023-03-15T14:30:00.000-04:00 Welcome to RPG Superstar 2023: Elemental Storm! Wednesday, March 15th, 2022 Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here. I’m excited to announce the hotly anticipated 2023 edition of RPG Superstar, as the premiere Tabletop RPG design contest returns for another great year! For those of you who aren’t familiar, RPG Superstar is a contest for aspiring designers, originally created by Paizo and licensed by Roll for Combat for the last few contests. Like in the last contest (RPG Superstar Strange & Unusual, whose final bestiary is coming out very soon), I’ll be your head judge again this year, and we’re gathering a bigger and broader group of judges than ever before, including some new surprise faces on the panel. RPG Superstar! 2023: Elemental Storm As for this year’s RPG Superstar contest, you can submit up to three monsters written for Pathfinder 2nd Edition while following this year’s theme – Elemental Storm! After you’ve submitted your monsters, there will be two rounds of judging, first by the community to whittle down the submissions to the best of the best and then by a group of professional judges with a broad set of skills in the TTRPG industry. The top entries, as determined by the judges, will receive prizes, ranked from lowest to highest: copper, silver, gold, platinum, and grand. If you win a prize, your monster will be published in our next Battlezoo Bestiary, and if you win a platinum or grand prize, you’ll get to expand your monster into a whole family! This year’s theme, as we announced at PaizoCon 2022, is called Elemental Storm! However, these are not exactly the same elements found in the usual elemental planes. To win, you’ll need to submit a monster associated with one to three of the twenty elements detailed below. For more information, including a list of all the contest’s rules, check out https://rpgsuperstar.com/! RPG Superstar! 2023 and the Elemental Storm elements! Fire is the element of flames, heat, and burning. Creatures associated with fire usually have the fire trait or special abilities with the fire trait. Water is the element of water, rain, and bodies of water. Creatures associated with water usually have the water trait (and often the amphibious or aquatic trait too), and they might have special abilities with the water trait. Earth is the element of earth, rock, soil, and the like. Creatures associated with earth usually have the earth trait or special abilities with the earth trait. Air is the element of air, wind, and the sky. Creatures associated with air usually have the air trait or special abilities with the air trait, and can often fly. Wood is the element of wood, plant life, and flora of all kinds. Creatures associated with wood usually are plants, have special abilities associated with plants, or both. Ice is the element of cold, ice, snow, and other frozen substances, but not liquid water. Creatures associated with ice usually have the cold trait or special abilities with the cold trait. Lightning is the element of electricity and lightning. Creatures associated with lightning usually have the electricity trait or special abilities with the electricity trait. Force is the element of mystical telekinetic force. Creatures associated with force usually have some kind of telekinetic abilities or other special abilities with the force trait. Life is the element of raw life force, birth, and vital essence. Creatures associated with life usually have the positive trait or special abilities with the positive trait. Death is the element of death, quietus, and the natural order of the reaping of life. Creatures associated with death usually have abilities with the death trait. They are very rarely undead (as undead have found a way to escape the fate of the death element), but they might be psychopomps or other natural bringers of death. Light is the element of light, illumination, and vision. Creatures associated with light usually have special abilities with the light trait. Darkness is the element of darkness, the absence of light, and sometimes the shadows that play upon the liminal spaces where light and darkness meet. Creatures associated with darkness usually have special abilities with the darkness trait or shadow trait. Mind is the element of thoughts, emotions, and mental effects. Creatures associated with mind usually have special abilities with the mental trait. They might potentially have the astral or dream trait. Spirit is the element of disembodied spirits built out of spiritual building blocks. Creatures associated with spirit are usually incorporeal spirits themselves, though perhaps they might not be if they have notable special abilities involving spirits. Body is the element focusing on raw body, muscle, and the physical building blocks that make up a creature’s form. Creatures associated with body usually have strong martial attacks with the brute roadmap, or perhaps the soldier roadmap. Music is the element of music, harmony, and sound. Creatures associated with music usually have auditory or sonic abilities, which often (but not always) include a musical motif. Metal is the element of ore, smithing, and metal. Creatures associated with metal usually have abilities associated with metal, which might include the ability to create or boost metal items, or the ability to make attacks that mimic certain types of precious metals. Time is the element of the past, present, and future. Creatures associated with time usually have some abilities to manipulate time. Be cautioned if you write a creature for this element that time abilities are especially difficult and tempting to write something too complicated or powerful; a true Superstar can write a time ability that is elegant and easy to use without breaking the action economy. Space is the element of distance, the concept of three dimensional space, as well as the emptiness of space that contains nothing else. Creatures associated with space usually have abilities with the teleportation trait, abilities based on entering or living in outer space, or perhaps both. Poison is the element of poisons, toxins, venoms, and other such substances inimical to living things. Creatures associated with poison usually have special abilities with the poison trait. Good luck to everyone! We can’t wait to see what you come up with! Mark SeifterDirector of Game Design, Roll for Combat Author Bio: I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, and one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on Twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord at https://tiny.cc.arcanemark! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Welcome to RPG Superstar 2023: Elemental Storm!
Wednesday, March 15th, 2022
Hi everyone, Mark Seifter here. I’m excited to announce the hotly anticipated 2023 edition of RPG Superstar, as the premiere Tabletop RPG design contest returns for another great year! For those of you who aren’t familiar, RPG Superstar is a contest for aspiring designers, originally created by Paizo and licensed by Roll for Combat for the last few contests. Like in the last contest (RPG Superstar Strange & Unusual, whose final bestiary is coming out very soon), I’ll be your head judge again this year, and we’re gathering a bigger and broader group of judges than ever before, including some new surprise faces on the panel.
As for this year’s RPG Superstar contest, you can submit up to three monsters written for Pathfinder 2nd Edition while following this year’s theme – Elemental Storm! After you’ve submitted your monsters, there will be two rounds of judging, first by the community to whittle down the submissions to the best of the best and then by a group of professional judges with a broad set of skills in the TTRPG industry. The top entries, as determined by the judges, will receive prizes, ranked from lowest to highest: copper, silver, gold, platinum, and grand. If you win a prize, your monster will be published in our next Battlezoo Bestiary, and if you win a platinum or grand prize, you’ll get to expand your monster into a whole family!
This year’s theme, as we announced at PaizoCon 2022, is called Elemental Storm! However, these are not exactly the same elements found in the usual elemental planes. To win, you’ll need to submit a monster associated with one to three of the twenty elements detailed below. For more information, including a list of all the contest’s rules, check out https://rpgsuperstar.com/!
- Fire is the element of flames, heat, and burning. Creatures associated with fire usually have the fire trait or special abilities with the fire trait.
- Water is the element of water, rain, and bodies of water. Creatures associated with water usually have the water trait (and often the amphibious or aquatic trait too), and they might have special abilities with the water trait.
- Earth is the element of earth, rock, soil, and the like. Creatures associated with earth usually have the earth trait or special abilities with the earth trait.
- Air is the element of air, wind, and the sky. Creatures associated with air usually have the air trait or special abilities with the air trait, and can often fly.
- Wood is the element of wood, plant life, and flora of all kinds. Creatures associated with wood usually are plants, have special abilities associated with plants, or both.
- Ice is the element of cold, ice, snow, and other frozen substances, but not liquid water. Creatures associated with ice usually have the cold trait or special abilities with the cold trait.
- Lightning is the element of electricity and lightning. Creatures associated with lightning usually have the electricity trait or special abilities with the electricity trait.
- Force is the element of mystical telekinetic force. Creatures associated with force usually have some kind of telekinetic abilities or other special abilities with the force trait.
- Life is the element of raw life force, birth, and vital essence. Creatures associated with life usually have the positive trait or special abilities with the positive trait.
- Death is the element of death, quietus, and the natural order of the reaping of life. Creatures associated with death usually have abilities with the death trait. They are very rarely undead (as undead have found a way to escape the fate of the death element), but they might be psychopomps or other natural bringers of death.
- Light is the element of light, illumination, and vision. Creatures associated with light usually have special abilities with the light trait.
- Darkness is the element of darkness, the absence of light, and sometimes the shadows that play upon the liminal spaces where light and darkness meet. Creatures associated with darkness usually have special abilities with the darkness trait or shadow trait.
- Mind is the element of thoughts, emotions, and mental effects. Creatures associated with mind usually have special abilities with the mental trait. They might potentially have the astral or dream trait.
- Spirit is the element of disembodied spirits built out of spiritual building blocks. Creatures associated with spirit are usually incorporeal spirits themselves, though perhaps they might not be if they have notable special abilities involving spirits.
- Body is the element focusing on raw body, muscle, and the physical building blocks that make up a creature’s form. Creatures associated with body usually have strong martial attacks with the brute roadmap, or perhaps the soldier roadmap.
- Music is the element of music, harmony, and sound. Creatures associated with music usually have auditory or sonic abilities, which often (but not always) include a musical motif.
- Metal is the element of ore, smithing, and metal. Creatures associated with metal usually have abilities associated with metal, which might include the ability to create or boost metal items, or the ability to make attacks that mimic certain types of precious metals.
- Time is the element of the past, present, and future. Creatures associated with time usually have some abilities to manipulate time. Be cautioned if you write a creature for this element that time abilities are especially difficult and tempting to write something too complicated or powerful; a true Superstar can write a time ability that is elegant and easy to use without breaking the action economy.
- Space is the element of distance, the concept of three dimensional space, as well as the emptiness of space that contains nothing else. Creatures associated with space usually have abilities with the teleportation trait, abilities based on entering or living in outer space, or perhaps both.
- Poison is the element of poisons, toxins, venoms, and other such substances inimical to living things. Creatures associated with poison usually have special abilities with the poison trait.
Good luck to everyone! We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Mark Seifter
Director of Game Design, Roll for CombatAuthor Bio:
I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, and one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on Twitter. Check out my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Arcane Mark, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord at https://tiny.cc.arcanemark!Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si9a?Meet-the-Rules-Lore-Team Meet the Rules & Lore Team! 2023-03-14T13:00:00.000-04:00 2023-03-14T13:00:00.000-04:00 Meet the Rules & Lore Team! Tuesday, March 14, 2022 Toward the end of last year, Paizo went through several departmental reorganizations to more accurately reflect the types of products we create and allow various subject matter experts to work more closely with the peers whose efforts mirror or complement their own. We’ve also had some new additions to the team (and more to come, so stick around through the end of this blog) whose names we’d like you to know. I’ll let everyone, including me, introduce themselves in their own words! Jason Bulmahn Hello everyone, I am Jason Bulmahn and I am the Director of Game Design at Paizo, in charge of the entire Rules and Lore team. I first got my start with Paizo back in 2004 as the Managing Editor of Dragon magazine but then served as the Lead Designer for the first edition of the Pathfinder RPG. Today, I work on setting the goals and design objectives of our games, envision major projects that won’t even be announced for several years, coordinate game ideas with our partners, and work to ensure that the team has everything they need to succeed. At night, I leave behind my guise as a mild-mannered game designer and turn into… yet another game designer, working on my own Pathfinder 2E setting called Eventide. I also tinker with other games under the name Minotaur Games, creating a zombie apocalypse hack of Pathfinder 2E called Hopefinder. You can find me streaming Wrath of the Righteous most Tuesday nights on Twitch and playing other games on Saturday afternoons (twitch.tv/JasonBulmahn). I can be found on almost every social media platform (just search for Jason Bulmahn), but I am most active on twitter @JasonBulmahn. Michael Sayre We meet again! I’m Michael Sayre, the Design Manager for the Rules & Lore team. My direct reports include Creative Director Luis Loza, Senior Designer James Case, Senior Developer Eleanor Ferron, and Developer Landon Winkler. I coordinate between them, our Lead Designer Logan Bonner, and the other teams in and beyond the creative department to plan and facilitate the creation of hardcover rulebooks, Lost Omens books, and a variety of other product types. I also do design and development work, leading and writing for those same books. You can follow me on Twitter as @MichaelJSayre1. Logan Bonner (he/him) Hello, out there! I’m Logan Bonner, the Pathfinder Lead Designer. That means I’m on overwatch for the game rules as a whole, looking for opportunities to introduce new systems and options and to make sure they come out at a pace that’s neither too slow to be exciting nor so fast it overwhelms folks and makes it too hard to keep up. Also, to make sure all the pieces fit together well. Rules sustainability and consistency, basically. One of our big goals with Second Edition was to give the books in our Rulebook line a better grounding in the lore of the world, and people have been really enjoying all we’ve added to make their characters and games feel more immersive. I’m looking forward to this new team structure, which will let us blend the story, world, and rules in more fun ways. You can find me on Twitter, where I’m @loganbonner, or occasionally on Mastodon as @loganbonner@dice.camp. Luis Loza Hi, everyone! I'm Luis Loza, Creative Director for the Rules & Lore team. You might now my work from helping create the Lost Omens line of settings book, and I'm going to continue helping shepherd the setting as Creative Director. I look forward to some of the exciting events we have planned in the future of the Lost Omens setting and I hope you'll enjoy the ride! I live on a variety of places online, but the easiest spots to find me are on my twitter account (@donatoclassic) and my personal website. James Case I’m James Case, Senior Designer here at Paizo. My responsibilities include proposing, leading, and developing new rulebooks; designing new classes, subsystems, and supporting products; and training freelancers and new members of the team. You can follow me on Twitter at @toriariaria. Eleanor Ferron (she/her) Hi, I'm Eleanor Ferron, a Senior Developer on the Rules & Lore team. I work on the Lost Omens line with Luis Loza to bring the world and setting of Golarion to life! Landon Winkler (they/them) Hi, I’m Landon Winkler, a Developer on the Rules & Lore team. I’m new to the team, so still very much learning the ropes. Mostly, I just want to create fun creatures and other bits of stories for everyone to use. I love playing support, so getting these things polished up for your table is a great way to do that behind the scenes. On the off chance you need to get in touch with me, I can be reached at @landonwinkler as long as Twitter lasts. Cheers! If you’re interested in joining this team, we’ve actually opened up two new positions! We’re looking to hire one new designer and one new developer for the team, whose responsibilities will be in helping us plan and create the new content produced by the Rules & Lore team. While industry experience is strongly preferred for people interested in these positions, these are not intended to be senior positions, and we do have room for talented and interested parties who are earlier in their TTRPG careers and might have great ideas but need a little more training and experience. You can see the specific requirements of these positions here on our Careers page. Meet the Rules & Lore Team!
Tuesday, March 14, 2022
]]>Toward the end of last year, Paizo went through several departmental reorganizations to more accurately reflect the types of products we create and allow various subject matter experts to work more closely with the peers whose efforts mirror or complement their own. We’ve also had some new additions to the team (and more to come, so stick around through the end of this blog) whose names we’d like you to know. I’ll let everyone, including me, introduce themselves in their own words!
Jason Bulmahn
Hello everyone, I am Jason Bulmahn and I am the Director of Game Design at Paizo, in charge of the entire Rules and Lore team. I first got my start with Paizo back in 2004 as the Managing Editor of Dragon magazine but then served as the Lead Designer for the first edition of the Pathfinder RPG. Today, I work on setting the goals and design objectives of our games, envision major projects that won’t even be announced for several years, coordinate game ideas with our partners, and work to ensure that the team has everything they need to succeed.
At night, I leave behind my guise as a mild-mannered game designer and turn into… yet another game designer, working on my own Pathfinder 2E setting called Eventide. I also tinker with other games under the name Minotaur Games, creating a zombie apocalypse hack of Pathfinder 2E called Hopefinder. You can find me streaming Wrath of the Righteous most Tuesday nights on Twitch and playing other games on Saturday afternoons (twitch.tv/JasonBulmahn). I can be found on almost every social media platform (just search for Jason Bulmahn), but I am most active on twitter @JasonBulmahn.
Michael Sayre
We meet again! I’m Michael Sayre, the Design Manager for the Rules & Lore team. My direct reports include Creative Director Luis Loza, Senior Designer James Case, Senior Developer Eleanor Ferron, and Developer Landon Winkler. I coordinate between them, our Lead Designer Logan Bonner, and the other teams in and beyond the creative department to plan and facilitate the creation of hardcover rulebooks, Lost Omens books, and a variety of other product types. I also do design and development work, leading and writing for those same books. You can follow me on Twitter as @MichaelJSayre1.
Logan Bonner (he/him)
Hello, out there! I’m Logan Bonner, the Pathfinder Lead Designer. That means I’m on overwatch for the game rules as a whole, looking for opportunities to introduce new systems and options and to make sure they come out at a pace that’s neither too slow to be exciting nor so fast it overwhelms folks and makes it too hard to keep up. Also, to make sure all the pieces fit together well. Rules sustainability and consistency, basically. One of our big goals with Second Edition was to give the books in our Rulebook line a better grounding in the lore of the world, and people have been really enjoying all we’ve added to make their characters and games feel more immersive. I’m looking forward to this new team structure, which will let us blend the story, world, and rules in more fun ways.
You can find me on Twitter, where I’m @loganbonner, or occasionally on Mastodon as @loganbonner@dice.camp.
Luis Loza
Hi, everyone! I'm Luis Loza, Creative Director for the Rules & Lore team. You might now my work from helping create the Lost Omens line of settings book, and I'm going to continue helping shepherd the setting as Creative Director. I look forward to some of the exciting events we have planned in the future of the Lost Omens setting and I hope you'll enjoy the ride! I live on a variety of places online, but the easiest spots to find me are on my twitter account (@donatoclassic) and my personal website.
James Case
I’m James Case, Senior Designer here at Paizo. My responsibilities include proposing, leading, and developing new rulebooks; designing new classes, subsystems, and supporting products; and training freelancers and new members of the team. You can follow me on Twitter at @toriariaria.
Eleanor Ferron (she/her)
Hi, I'm Eleanor Ferron, a Senior Developer on the Rules & Lore team. I work on the Lost Omens line with Luis Loza to bring the world and setting of Golarion to life!
Landon Winkler (they/them)
Hi, I’m Landon Winkler, a Developer on the Rules & Lore team. I’m new to the team, so still very much learning the ropes. Mostly, I just want to create fun creatures and other bits of stories for everyone to use. I love playing support, so getting these things polished up for your table is a great way to do that behind the scenes. On the off chance you need to get in touch with me, I can be reached at @landonwinkler as long as Twitter lasts. Cheers!
If you’re interested in joining this team, we’ve actually opened up two new positions! We’re looking to hire one new designer and one new developer for the team, whose responsibilities will be in helping us plan and create the new content produced by the Rules & Lore team. While industry experience is strongly preferred for people interested in these positions, these are not intended to be senior positions, and we do have room for talented and interested parties who are earlier in their TTRPG careers and might have great ideas but need a little more training and experience. You can see the specific requirements of these positions here on our Careers page.
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si97?Starfinder-enhance-Enhance-ENHANCE Starfinder, enhance… Enhance… ENHANCE! 2023-03-08T13:30:00.000-05:00 2023-03-08T13:30:00.000-05:00 Starfinder, enhance… Enhance… ENHANCE! Wednesday, March 8th, 2022 Hey folks! You may have seen a recent product page that announced our latest upcoming book in the Starfinder RPG line: Starfinder Enhanced. Set to release in October of this year, Starfinder Enhanced is a 192-page hardback that the Starfinder team (specifically, Joe Pasini, John Compton, Dustin Knight, and all our talented freelancers) has been hard at work on in our secret orbiting starship, and we’re happy to announce it here and give a bit of context of what this book is all about. Just a little though—the book is still many months away. At its core, Starfinder Enhanced is… well, it’s a whole lot more of everything. A group of four different species battle against the Swarm by Daniele Sorrentino More themes, more species, more class options, more archetypes, more feats (so many feats), more spells, more rituals, more creature companions, more items, and more subsystems to help tell the stories you want to tell and build the characters you want to build. There’s no mincing words when I say “more” because this book is the single largest influx of rules into the game since the Starfinder Character Operations Manual. This book re-introduces some species that have appeared in older Adventure Paths and even the Starfinder Alien Character Deck. In addition to Pathfinder fan favorites like the grippli and kitsune, you’ll also encounter other notable species like moyishuus, along with a few brand-new species. A host of over a dozen starships battle one another by Daniele Sorrentino While we can’t get into absolutely everything in this book, one piece that I think a lot of people will enjoy is the “enhanced” versions of four existing base classes. The Envoy, Solarian, Technomancer and Witchwarper all receive a fresh coat of paint with some revised mechanics. This generally means a few key tweaks to core abilities or filling in some levels that didn’t provide interesting class options. In some cases, it’s also about opening up the classes to feel like they’re contributing more during combat and not always falling into the tactics all the time. We’re very excited to see how these turn out when they release late this year. Not much else to say, as this book is a decent way’s out… but… This is Destructicus. He’s a Novian, which is a Tiny-sized species who emerge from dying suns. Yes, you can play this species. A tiny sun species by Paulo Magalhães Thurston HillmanManaging Creative Director (Starfinder) Tags: Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Starfinder, enhance… Enhance… ENHANCE!
Wednesday, March 8th, 2022
]]>Hey folks! You may have seen a recent product page that announced our latest upcoming book in the Starfinder RPG line: Starfinder Enhanced. Set to release in October of this year, Starfinder Enhanced is a 192-page hardback that the Starfinder team (specifically, Joe Pasini, John Compton, Dustin Knight, and all our talented freelancers) has been hard at work on in our secret orbiting starship, and we’re happy to announce it here and give a bit of context of what this book is all about. Just a little though—the book is still many months away.
At its core, Starfinder Enhanced is… well, it’s a whole lot more of everything.
More themes, more species, more class options, more archetypes, more feats (so many feats), more spells, more rituals, more creature companions, more items, and more subsystems to help tell the stories you want to tell and build the characters you want to build. There’s no mincing words when I say “more” because this book is the single largest influx of rules into the game since the Starfinder Character Operations Manual.
This book re-introduces some species that have appeared in older Adventure Paths and even the Starfinder Alien Character Deck. In addition to Pathfinder fan favorites like the grippli and kitsune, you’ll also encounter other notable species like moyishuus, along with a few brand-new species.
While we can’t get into absolutely everything in this book, one piece that I think a lot of people will enjoy is the “enhanced” versions of four existing base classes. The Envoy, Solarian, Technomancer and Witchwarper all receive a fresh coat of paint with some revised mechanics. This generally means a few key tweaks to core abilities or filling in some levels that didn’t provide interesting class options. In some cases, it’s also about opening up the classes to feel like they’re contributing more during combat and not always falling into the tactics all the time. We’re very excited to see how these turn out when they release late this year.
Not much else to say, as this book is a decent way’s out… but…
This is Destructicus. He’s a Novian, which is a Tiny-sized species who emerge from dying suns. Yes, you can play this species.
Thurston Hillman
Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2779 Crittercon 6, benefitting Doctors Without Borders 2023-03-06T13:46:32.000-05:00 2023-03-06T13:46:32.000-05:00 Calling all GMs! During Marietta the Gathering, we were approached by Alyndra from the Cosmic Crittermanders Discord Server about participation in Crittercon 6. This convention is a charity convention, and this year, it will benefit Doctors Without Borders. The convention takes place entirely online, and will be taking place Friday, April 21 - Sunday, April 23. They are looking for both GMs and players. If you're interested in volunteering to GM, follow the instructions on the Reddit thread in the Starfinder RPG subreddit.
During Marietta the Gathering, we were approached by Alyndra from the Cosmic Crittermanders Discord Server about participation in Crittercon 6. This convention is a charity convention, and this year, it will benefit Doctors Without Borders. The convention takes place entirely online, and will be taking place Friday, April 21 - Sunday, April 23. They are looking for both GMs and players. If you're interested in volunteering to GM, follow the instructions on the Reddit thread in the Starfinder RPG subreddit.]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si95?Call-for-GMs-Open-Gaming-at-PaizoCon-Online-2023 Call for GMs: Open Gaming at PaizoCon Online 2023 2023-03-03T17:00:00.000-05:00 2023-03-03T17:00:00.000-05:00 Call for GMs: Open Gaming at PaizoCon Online 2023 Friday, March 3, 2022 Hello again, PaizoCon lovers! As registration for the convention draws near, we're excited to announce that this year we're bringing community games and other events back to PaizoCon! Prior to 2020, a huge part of our programming consisted of a wide variety of games and other events led by Paizo staff or your fellow con attendees. The reinstatement of our community events schedule is a return to form for Paizo, and we hope you'll join us for all the excitement and fun! PaizoCon's community events make it possible for Paizo staff, freelance authors, third-party publishers, and talented GMs of any background to host an assortment of unique experiences for appreciative players from all over the world. PaizoCon Attendee Information Here are just a few delightful things players might experience: Many different RPG systems, including (but by no means limited to) Paizo's own Pathfinder and Starfinder. A vast assortment of published adventures and homebrewed content. All manner of genres, degrees of seriousness, and maturity levels. Shorter or longer games or games that start at times that are more convenient to you. Playtests or premieres of upcoming third-party adventures by the next big author or company, or by some of your familiar favorites! Trying to survive Cosmo's terrifying gauntlet of Killer Clowns!¹ We're thrilled to offer such experiences once again! Event Host Information But of course, these wonderful events require people to envision, plan, and run them. That's where you come in. Now is your chance to run the game you've been planning for years, and to give your players an experience they'll be talking about until next PaizoCon! This year's event application process is designed to make it easy for you to describe what you want to host, so that we can help attendees find exactly what they're looking for. PaizoCon attendees who wish to run one or more events for PaizoCon 2023 should review the following information, then fill out the application linked below. Rules PaizoCon attendees may apply to run one or more events. Applications will be accepted for about 3 weeks and will be processed on an ongoing basis. Events need not be tabletop RPGs—if you want to run your own panels, workshops, mini-painting corners, board games, party games, or something completely different, let us know and we’ll see what we can do for you! Filling out the application does not guarantee that your event will be accepted. Paizo staff will review all applications and approve them based on variety, application quality, and scheduling needs. Accepted events will be scheduled a timeslot and will be listed on net alongside other scheduled PaizoCon events. A voice and text channel on the PaizoCon Discord server will be made available during the scheduled timeslot. Any other necessary arrangements—virtual tabletops, alternate voice chat applications, etc.—must be made by the applicant and included in the application. By default, the content for all events is expected to adhere to the Pathfinder Baseline. Deviations from the Baseline are to be disclosed in the application, and such deviations will be published in the schedule so attendees are aware of what to expect. All events must adhere to the PaizoCon Code of Conduct—no exceptions. Applicants who are approved to run events for 12 hours or more will receive a free attendance badge for PaizoCon 2023, and our gratitude. Applicants who do not qualify for a free badge will still need to purchase one. Any questions about the sign-up process should be sent to paizocon@paizo.com. Important Dates Please note that some of these dates are tentative and subject to change. March 3 (Fri): Event applications open March 27 (Mon): Event applications close April 17 (Mon): VIP & non-OP games open for signup May 26–29 (Fri–Mon): PaizoCon 2023 Fill out the application here! ¹Clown presence not guaranteed. Tags: Community, Conventions, Paizo, PaizoCon Call for GMs: Open Gaming at PaizoCon Online 2023
Friday, March 3, 2022
]]>Hello again, PaizoCon lovers! As registration for the convention draws near, we're excited to announce that this year we're bringing community games and other events back to PaizoCon! Prior to 2020, a huge part of our programming consisted of a wide variety of games and other events led by Paizo staff or your fellow con attendees. The reinstatement of our community events schedule is a return to form for Paizo, and we hope you'll join us for all the excitement and fun!
PaizoCon's community events make it possible for Paizo staff, freelance authors, third-party publishers, and talented GMs of any background to host an assortment of unique experiences for appreciative players from all over the world.
PaizoCon Attendee Information
Here are just a few delightful things players might experience:
- Many different RPG systems, including (but by no means limited to) Paizo's own Pathfinder and Starfinder.
- A vast assortment of published adventures and homebrewed content.
- All manner of genres, degrees of seriousness, and maturity levels.
- Shorter or longer games or games that start at times that are more convenient to you.
- Playtests or premieres of upcoming third-party adventures by the next big author or company, or by some of your familiar favorites!
- Trying to survive Cosmo's terrifying gauntlet of Killer Clowns!¹
We're thrilled to offer such experiences once again!
Event Host Information
But of course, these wonderful events require people to envision, plan, and run them. That's where you come in. Now is your chance to run the game you've been planning for years, and to give your players an experience they'll be talking about until next PaizoCon!
This year's event application process is designed to make it easy for you to describe what you want to host, so that we can help attendees find exactly what they're looking for. PaizoCon attendees who wish to run one or more events for PaizoCon 2023 should review the following information, then fill out the application linked below.
Rules
- PaizoCon attendees may apply to run one or more events.
- Applications will be accepted for about 3 weeks and will be processed on an ongoing basis.
- Events need not be tabletop RPGs—if you want to run your own panels, workshops, mini-painting corners, board games, party games, or something completely different, let us know and we’ll see what we can do for you!
- Filling out the application does not guarantee that your event will be accepted. Paizo staff will review all applications and approve them based on variety, application quality, and scheduling needs.
- Accepted events will be scheduled a timeslot and will be listed on net alongside other scheduled PaizoCon events. A voice and text channel on the PaizoCon Discord server will be made available during the scheduled timeslot. Any other necessary arrangements—virtual tabletops, alternate voice chat applications, etc.—must be made by the applicant and included in the application.
- By default, the content for all events is expected to adhere to the Pathfinder Baseline. Deviations from the Baseline are to be disclosed in the application, and such deviations will be published in the schedule so attendees are aware of what to expect. All events must adhere to the PaizoCon Code of Conduct—no exceptions.
- Applicants who are approved to run events for 12 hours or more will receive a free attendance badge for PaizoCon 2023, and our gratitude. Applicants who do not qualify for a free badge will still need to purchase one.
- Any questions about the sign-up process should be sent to paizocon@paizo.com.
Important Dates
Please note that some of these dates are tentative and subject to change.
- March 3 (Fri): Event applications open
- March 27 (Mon): Event applications close
- April 17 (Mon): VIP & non-OP games open for signup
- May 26–29 (Fri–Mon): PaizoCon 2023
Fill out the application here!
¹Clown presence not guaranteed.
https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si93?Tales-of-Lost-Omens-Tall-Odds-and-Broken-Bones Tales of Lost Omens: Tall Odds and Broken Bones 2023-03-03T13:00:00.000-05:00 2023-03-03T13:00:00.000-05:00 Tales of Lost Omens: Tall Odds and Broken Bones Friday, March 3, 2022 “This stretch of coastline is straight as Abadar’s hair part. We’ll just have to go in full sail and fuse-ready, and hope the conjured fog gets us close enough.” Shimali Manux drummed her fingers on her cabin’s fold-out desk, glowering at a map of Chelaxian waters like it had spat in her tankard. Esidries, her first mate, ran a hand through her long, shaggy hair, then adjusted her eyepatch. She seemed to have her own grievances with cartography. Well… Shimali’s face spread its wings into a smile. She was admiral of the Vidric navy, a hero of the Cart Fire Uprising that had sparked the revolution. One of only a handful of Firebrands with their fourth mark. This is the exact kind of trouble you go looking for, isn’t it? It was the night before their planned attack on the Chelaxian port of Laekastel. A little raven had brought word that the Bellflower Network was ferrying a number of recently liberated families into the port from Westcrown, then on to freedom in Andoran. The dottari were apparently less than thrilled. The Salt Breakers, among them Shimali and Esidries’s host ship, the Sunburst Shackle, had been called in to head off any Thrunic naval efforts. But the diabolists had moved faster than expected—Laekastel was now under blockade. Hence the last-minute tactical discussions between Shimali, Esidries, and an irksomely frank and accurate map. There was more than enough to consider. By the time they settled on details, the sun was filling the sea with fire and molten gold. They’d crafted a sound plan. The rest was up to the crews, captains, and Desna herself. “And if it doesn’t work…” Shimali said through a lopsided grin. Esidries was smiling now, too. She recognized Shimali’s expression—the one that meant her sharp-fanged intellect could smell prey. “...the best tales tackle tall odds,” Esidries finished, lifting an imaginary tankard. Shimali laughed, tapping her own mock vessel against her first mate’s, and the two knocked back their airy beverages. “What’ve you brought this time, Admiral?” Esidries cocked her chin at a small box holding down one corner of the map. Shimali’s mementos. There was a much larger collection back in Anthusis, but she always brought a few with her on these three-day ‘I’m just a crewmate like anyone else’ tours. She rolled her eyes. “Mention rank again and I’m pushing you through that window. I get enough Admiral above deck.” She undid the little wooden chest’s simple latch and lifted the lid. Her expression softened. “You remember these?” She pulled a crumpled metal spike from the box, followed by a quilted square in a flower pattern. “One of our first Bellflower undertakings. Much more helpful coastline than this blighted stretch” Esidries chuckled. “I remember that armiger’s face when you sidestepped his flail and he caved in the lictor’s pauldron, yes.” She hid a smile in her drink. “How is the Order of the Chain these days? I’m sure they keep in touch—you made quite the first impression.” She was waiting for a quick-witted retort, but none came. The admiral had lifted a necklace from the chest, a blue and red cord threaded with rounds of broken bone. Her eyes had gone far away and long ago. Esidries nodded. She knew the expression. Had worn it herself, on plenty of occasions. Sadness, solemnity. And hope, a brilliant flag waving in a clear sky. Eleder was chaos. Embers, smoke, and screams choked the air above the Sargavan colonial capital, while the clamor of fighting and the smell of brimstone filled its alleys. The revolutionaries had almost pushed through to the baron’s palace. They’d charged into New Haliad with a fury stoked by centuries of oppression. But the dottari kept coming, and now they were getting surrounded. Shimali, Esidries, and some two dozen of their Salt Breakers were high above the plaza surrounding the plaza, crouched behind a red-shingled roofline. This was the tipping point. The fulcrum of her people’s future. She could feel it in the air, read it on her comrades’ faces. This would be the perfect time for a rousing speech, she thought. But she was too tired, too sore. She simply looked back at her Salt Breakers and nodded. They vaulted the roofline. Coats and hair flapping behind them, they careened down the shingles and into the plaza. Righteous anger thundered from them as a wordless roar. Shimali felt the crunch of a soldier’s neck beneath her boot. Before she could register the symbolism, they were in the thick of it. The Salt Breakers pushed into the rear of the Thrunite formation, the beleaguered revolutionaries’ cheers driving them on. Esidries laid into the Chelaxians with a miner’s pick she’d acquired somewhere along the way. Each blow punched through steel and flesh and sent tremors up her arm. Shimali’s cutlass penned its own red-inked story. “Shimali!” She barely heard Esidries’s cry in time. She whirled around, her blade only just turning aside the longsword meant for her guts. The dottari staggered into her. His breath was hot on her face, heavy with the smell of the whisperleaf caked to his gums. His eyes held surprise and hatred in equal measure. She drove her forehead into his nose, shoved him aside. Her sword shrieked across the breastplate of another charging soldier. The sound almost masked the crash of armored boots approaching from behind. Without looking, she drew her pistol and fired. Her desperation was rewarded with the sound of two hundred pounds of bootlicker clattering to the ground. She shared a wide-eyed I can’t believe that worked grin with Esidries, offering a silent prayer to Desna and Lubaiko both. Illustration by Alberto Dal Lago from Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands Then fresh Hell arrived. The air above the plaza split and screamed. A fiery gash shrieked open, becoming a burning eye with a bone-white pupil. Shimali’s blood ran cold. She could taste the wrongness of the extraplanar intrusion, something caustic at the back of her throat. “Bone devil! Gods-damned bone devil!” Her fear was galvanizing. “Rally! Rally for loved ones, for home. For throwing off the yoke of Hell!” The fiend pulled itself free of the rift, landing hard enough to crack paving stones. It stood its full height, almost level with the rooftops. It threw its head back and let loose an ear-splitting challenge that shattered nearby windows and sent shivers down Shimali’s spine. She surveyed the beleaguered revolutionaries picking their way over colonialist corpses. They were already taking up position, surrounding the infernal monstrosity. Esidries was beside her—just like always—weaving sigils in the air, a Magaambyan winter-song chiming its way off her tongue. She charged. “You know, I tell people that story and they don’t believe me. ‘You can’t take down a bone devil with pitchforks and adrenaline,’ they tell me. ‘Tall as a house and made of hate, there’s no way!’” Esidries snorted in mock exasperation. “But if Shimali Manux, hero of the revolution, tells it, well. You’d think my record would—” The Sunburst Shackle lurched to one side so hard that it took them a few moments to realize they were sprawled on the floor. Shimali swatted the map off her face, cursing the pen, the ink, and the person responsible for the miserable thing. She hauled herself to her feet then helped Esidries to hers. The cabin was a wreck, but at least her sword and gun were still hanging on the wall. They exchanged a knowing look, grabbed their weapons, and rushed abovedecks. We’re still leagues from Laekastel—how did they find us? Worse, how did they get the drop on us? The answer came as soon as she surfaced beneath the night sky. Panic crackled across the deck. A sailor, clothes completely dry, coughed a staggering amount of murky seawater at her feet. Sarglagons. And there they were. The sea between the ships churned with piscine horrors. Iridescent magenta fins, writhing hands, and the razored maws of Hell’s darkest depths—drowning devils. A handful were attempting to capsize the Sunburst Shackle. Shimali could hear the chattering of others attacking the rest of the fleet. It had been years since Vidrian’s birth in fire, and Shimali had grown into her role as commander. She straightened, spread her arms wide, and strode resolutely toward the deck. “Salt Breakers! House Thrune wants to strangle the cry for freedom, bind the world in iron and fear! Drown us in blood!” The power in her voice cut through the din of battle. She clapped the retching sailor on the shoulder, stopped long enough to acknowledge the determination in their eyes. “But there’s Gozreh’s gift in our veins! Iron in our spines! Phoenix flames in our hearts!” She could feel the energy shifting as the crew rallied. She just needed to get to the wind-singer, start fighting fire with magical fire. If Shattering Howl starts the song, we— The air above the deck split and screamed. Bone-white claws gouged a hole between worlds, and she could see flashes of black wings and a scorpion’s fleshless tail. Then a second rift opened. Followed by another, and another. Shimali’s skin crawled as the heat and stench of Hell poured over the deck. “The best tales…” Esidries stepped up beside her, hands already crafting a spell. “...tackle tall odds,” Shimali finished. She grinned at her first mate. “And what self-respecting Firebrand settles for less than the best?” About The Author Andrew Mullen has been freelancing for Paizo and other publishers since 2017. He brings a keen interest in language and the interplay of geography and culture to his work, as seen in the Magaambya section of Lost Omens Character Guide, the xulgaths in the Extinction Curse Adventure Path, and numerous other monsters over the years. As a full-time parent, his daughter is his most important monster. About Tales of Lost Omens The Tales of Lost Omens series of web-based flash fiction provides an exciting glimpse into Pathfinder’s Age of Lost Omens setting. Written by some of the most celebrated authors in tie-in gaming fiction, including Paizo’s Pathfinder Tales line of novels and short fiction, the Tales of Lost Omens series promises to explore the characters, deities, history, locations, and organizations of the Pathfinder setting with engaging stories to inspire Game Masters and players alike. Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Tales of Lost Omens, Web Fiction Tales of Lost Omens: Tall Odds and Broken Bones
Friday, March 3, 2022
“This stretch of coastline is straight as Abadar’s hair part. We’ll just have to go in full sail and fuse-ready, and hope the conjured fog gets us close enough.” Shimali Manux drummed her fingers on her cabin’s fold-out desk, glowering at a map of Chelaxian waters like it had spat in her tankard. Esidries, her first mate, ran a hand through her long, shaggy hair, then adjusted her eyepatch. She seemed to have her own grievances with cartography.
Well… Shimali’s face spread its wings into a smile. She was admiral of the Vidric navy, a hero of the Cart Fire Uprising that had sparked the revolution. One of only a handful of Firebrands with their fourth mark. This is the exact kind of trouble you go looking for, isn’t it?
It was the night before their planned attack on the Chelaxian port of Laekastel. A little raven had brought word that the Bellflower Network was ferrying a number of recently liberated families into the port from Westcrown, then on to freedom in Andoran.
The dottari were apparently less than thrilled. The Salt Breakers, among them Shimali and Esidries’s host ship, the Sunburst Shackle, had been called in to head off any Thrunic naval efforts. But the diabolists had moved faster than expected—Laekastel was now under blockade.
Hence the last-minute tactical discussions between Shimali, Esidries, and an irksomely frank and accurate map. There was more than enough to consider. By the time they settled on details, the sun was filling the sea with fire and molten gold. They’d crafted a sound plan. The rest was up to the crews, captains, and Desna herself.
“And if it doesn’t work…” Shimali said through a lopsided grin.
Esidries was smiling now, too. She recognized Shimali’s expression—the one that meant her sharp-fanged intellect could smell prey.
“...the best tales tackle tall odds,” Esidries finished, lifting an imaginary tankard. Shimali laughed, tapping her own mock vessel against her first mate’s, and the two knocked back their airy beverages.
“What’ve you brought this time, Admiral?” Esidries cocked her chin at a small box holding down one corner of the map. Shimali’s mementos. There was a much larger collection back in Anthusis, but she always brought a few with her on these three-day ‘I’m just a crewmate like anyone else’ tours.
She rolled her eyes. “Mention rank again and I’m pushing you through that window. I get enough Admiral above deck.” She undid the little wooden chest’s simple latch and lifted the lid.
Her expression softened. “You remember these?” She pulled a crumpled metal spike from the box, followed by a quilted square in a flower pattern. “One of our first Bellflower undertakings. Much more helpful coastline than this blighted stretch”
Esidries chuckled. “I remember that armiger’s face when you sidestepped his flail and he caved in the lictor’s pauldron, yes.” She hid a smile in her drink. “How is the Order of the Chain these days? I’m sure they keep in touch—you made quite the first impression.”
She was waiting for a quick-witted retort, but none came. The admiral had lifted a necklace from the chest, a blue and red cord threaded with rounds of broken bone. Her eyes had gone far away and long ago.
Esidries nodded. She knew the expression. Had worn it herself, on plenty of occasions. Sadness, solemnity. And hope, a brilliant flag waving in a clear sky.
Eleder was chaos. Embers, smoke, and screams choked the air above the Sargavan colonial capital, while the clamor of fighting and the smell of brimstone filled its alleys. The revolutionaries had almost pushed through to the baron’s palace. They’d charged into New Haliad with a fury stoked by centuries of oppression. But the dottari kept coming, and now they were getting surrounded.
Shimali, Esidries, and some two dozen of their Salt Breakers were high above the plaza surrounding the plaza, crouched behind a red-shingled roofline. This was the tipping point. The fulcrum of her people’s future. She could feel it in the air, read it on her comrades’ faces.
This would be the perfect time for a rousing speech, she thought. But she was too tired, too sore. She simply looked back at her Salt Breakers and nodded. They vaulted the roofline.
Coats and hair flapping behind them, they careened down the shingles and into the plaza. Righteous anger thundered from them as a wordless roar. Shimali felt the crunch of a soldier’s neck beneath her boot. Before she could register the symbolism, they were in the thick of it.
The Salt Breakers pushed into the rear of the Thrunite formation, the beleaguered revolutionaries’ cheers driving them on. Esidries laid into the Chelaxians with a miner’s pick she’d acquired somewhere along the way. Each blow punched through steel and flesh and sent tremors up her arm. Shimali’s cutlass penned its own red-inked story.
“Shimali!”
She barely heard Esidries’s cry in time. She whirled around, her blade only just turning aside the longsword meant for her guts. The dottari staggered into her. His breath was hot on her face, heavy with the smell of the whisperleaf caked to his gums. His eyes held surprise and hatred in equal measure.
She drove her forehead into his nose, shoved him aside. Her sword shrieked across the breastplate of another charging soldier. The sound almost masked the crash of armored boots approaching from behind. Without looking, she drew her pistol and fired. Her desperation was rewarded with the sound of two hundred pounds of bootlicker clattering to the ground. She shared a wide-eyed I can’t believe that worked grin with Esidries, offering a silent prayer to Desna and Lubaiko both.
Illustration by Alberto Dal Lago from Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands
Then fresh Hell arrived. The air above the plaza split and screamed. A fiery gash shrieked open, becoming a burning eye with a bone-white pupil.
Shimali’s blood ran cold. She could taste the wrongness of the extraplanar intrusion, something caustic at the back of her throat.
“Bone devil! Gods-damned bone devil!” Her fear was galvanizing. “Rally! Rally for loved ones, for home. For throwing off the yoke of Hell!”
The fiend pulled itself free of the rift, landing hard enough to crack paving stones. It stood its full height, almost level with the rooftops. It threw its head back and let loose an ear-splitting challenge that shattered nearby windows and sent shivers down Shimali’s spine.
She surveyed the beleaguered revolutionaries picking their way over colonialist corpses. They were already taking up position, surrounding the infernal monstrosity. Esidries was beside her—just like always—weaving sigils in the air, a Magaambyan winter-song chiming its way off her tongue.
She charged.
“You know, I tell people that story and they don’t believe me. ‘You can’t take down a bone devil with pitchforks and adrenaline,’ they tell me. ‘Tall as a house and made of hate, there’s no way!’” Esidries snorted in mock exasperation. “But if Shimali Manux, hero of the revolution, tells it, well. You’d think my record would—”
The Sunburst Shackle lurched to one side so hard that it took them a few moments to realize they were sprawled on the floor. Shimali swatted the map off her face, cursing the pen, the ink, and the person responsible for the miserable thing. She hauled herself to her feet then helped Esidries to hers. The cabin was a wreck, but at least her sword and gun were still hanging on the wall. They exchanged a knowing look, grabbed their weapons, and rushed abovedecks.
We’re still leagues from Laekastel—how did they find us? Worse, how did they get the drop on us?
The answer came as soon as she surfaced beneath the night sky. Panic crackled across the deck. A sailor, clothes completely dry, coughed a staggering amount of murky seawater at her feet.
Sarglagons.
And there they were. The sea between the ships churned with piscine horrors. Iridescent magenta fins, writhing hands, and the razored maws of Hell’s darkest depths—drowning devils. A handful were attempting to capsize the Sunburst Shackle. Shimali could hear the chattering of others attacking the rest of the fleet.
It had been years since Vidrian’s birth in fire, and Shimali had grown into her role as commander. She straightened, spread her arms wide, and strode resolutely toward the deck.
“Salt Breakers! House Thrune wants to strangle the cry for freedom, bind the world in iron and fear! Drown us in blood!” The power in her voice cut through the din of battle. She clapped the retching sailor on the shoulder, stopped long enough to acknowledge the determination in their eyes. “But there’s Gozreh’s gift in our veins! Iron in our spines! Phoenix flames in our hearts!”
She could feel the energy shifting as the crew rallied. She just needed to get to the wind-singer, start fighting fire with magical fire. If Shattering Howl starts the song, we—
The air above the deck split and screamed. Bone-white claws gouged a hole between worlds, and she could see flashes of black wings and a scorpion’s fleshless tail.
Then a second rift opened. Followed by another, and another. Shimali’s skin crawled as the heat and stench of Hell poured over the deck.
“The best tales…” Esidries stepped up beside her, hands already crafting a spell.
“...tackle tall odds,” Shimali finished. She grinned at her first mate. “And what self-respecting Firebrand settles for less than the best?”
About The Author
Andrew Mullen has been freelancing for Paizo and other publishers since 2017. He brings a keen interest in language and the interplay of geography and culture to his work, as seen in the Magaambya section of Lost Omens Character Guide, the xulgaths in the Extinction Curse Adventure Path, and numerous other monsters over the years. As a full-time parent, his daughter is his most important monster.
About Tales of Lost Omens
The Tales of Lost Omens series of web-based flash fiction provides an exciting glimpse into Pathfinder’s Age of Lost Omens setting. Written by some of the most celebrated authors in tie-in gaming fiction, including Paizo’s Pathfinder Tales line of novels and short fiction, the Tales of Lost Omens series promises to explore the characters, deities, history, locations, and organizations of the Pathfinder setting with engaging stories to inspire Game Masters and players alike.
Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Tales of Lost Omens, Web Fiction
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si92?Tian-Xia-Coming-2023-2024 Tian Xia: Coming 2023–2024! 2023-03-02T16:30:00.000-05:00 2023-03-02T16:30:00.000-05:00 Tian Xia: Coming 2023–2024! Thursday, March 2nd, 2022 Hi everyone, James here with some news! Starting this fall, Pathfinder will be turning the globe a bit as we head to a region we know a lot of you have been waiting for. Eleanor, James Jacobs, and I—not to mention the rest of the team and a stellar list of authors—are proud to announce the setting of the next few Pathfinder projects coming down the road: Tian Xia! Starting at the end of this year and continuing into 2024, we’ll be diving into this region like never before to bring you adventures, stories, and character options inspired by this land, so let’s take a look at what’s coming up! See Tian Xia in this stunning map by Damien Mammoliti Season of Ghosts Adventure Path First, the narrative team will kick things off with the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path in October of 2023! This horror-themed campaign is set in the haunted land of Shenmen and begins just after the small town of Willowshore celebrates the Season of Ghosts—a local festival to appease Shenmen’s many evil ghosts and spirits and ensure safety for the coming year. Yet this year, something’s gone wrong, and the PCs wake to find their hometown of Willowshore has fallen under a sinister curse and been invaded by monsters. In the months to come, the heroes must help the people of Willowshore prepare for winter while working to discover the cause of the curse that’s cut them all off from the rest of the world. Is it the work of a fiend? The machinations of vengeful spirits? Or is it something much, much worse? A previous glimpse into Shenmen from Book of the Dead by Damien Mammoliti Season of Ghosts will take your PCs from 1st to 12th level over the following volumes! The Summer that Never Was, by Sen H.H.S. Let the Leaves Fall, by Joan Hong, with additional articles by Tan Shao Han and Grady Wang With No Breath to Cry, by Dan Cascone & Eleanor Ferron, with additional articles by Jeremy Blum, Dana Ebert, Joshua Kim, and Michelle Y. Kim To Bloom below the Web, by Liane Merciel, with additional articles by Jeremy Blum, Joshua Kim, and Michelle Y. Kim You might notice that this is our first four-part adventure path, for a very good reason! Each of this Adventure Path’s volumes take place over the course of a different season, starting with the rainy summer and ending in the spring. With each season’s passing, the stakes the heroes face escalate, and the revelations in store will shock the townsfolk of Willowshore to the core! Will your group of adventures be able to save their hometown from a mysterious supernatural horror, or will your hometown simply become the next of Shenmen’s haunted ruins? Lost Omens Tian Xia Then, in 2024, prepare for not one but two Lost Omens books from the rules and lore team! Dragons and dragon boats race down the rivers of Xa Hoi! Art by Ekaterina Gordeeva. The Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide covers the many diverse nations and cultures that inhabit Tian Xia. Snippets of Tian Xia’s lore and history have come to Avistan via merchants and immigrants, but this book will present a look at the whole picture, from the elemental hegemony and yaoguai wars that shaped the landscape in ancient times to the return of Hao Jin in the modern era. Learn the secrets behind the undying emperor of Yixing, whose return is still awaited in Po Li. Offer a small prayer to the local kami, anito, or kaiju. See if you find satisfaction in the service of the Empress of Heaven, Shizuru, or in the explosive rivalry between the dancing gods Mugura and Nrithu. In an age ruled by heroes unfettered by prophecy, change is sweeping across the continent. Some of you might have helped Ameiko Kaijitsu depose the Jade Regent and ascend to the throne of Minkai—now witness the new Ondori era under her rule. Step into the nation of Bachuan, now that a Po Li oracle has convinced it to ease its restrictions and open its borders; Hao Jin’s tapestry people now live here too, descendants of a past once thought lost for good. Amanandar, a nation now as Tian in heritage as it is Taldan, has declared its independence with the blessings of Queen Eutropia and renamed itself as Linvarre—visitors from Avistan may delight in its Grogrisant lion dances or pick up a few words of its national language of Taltien. Journey the perilous Valashmai Jungle and find your way upon the Valash Raj, flourishing among the ruins shattered by giant beasts and monsters. The World Guide will lead you through these nations and more before giving GMs a bestiary containing the continent’s monsters, from the ferocious, four-horned aoyin to the aristocrat-eating yeongno. Art by Ekaterina Gordeeva : A hundred spirits walk the forests of Minkai as night draws near. After finding a nation or city that sparks your interest in the World Guide, it’s only natural to want to make a character from there! The The Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide will introduce new rules options to bring your characters to life! The book will contain six brand-new ancestries and numerous backgrounds to provide the seeds for new PCs. You’ll also find expanded heritages and feats for existing ancestries that might be more common in Tian Xia than in other areas, like the peachchild leshy heritage, which might have come from a fruit that floated down a river, or the bakuwa lizardfolk heritage, possibly responsible for eclipses over Minata when they eat the moon! The book also contains numerous character options to flesh out Tian adventurers, whether that’s skill feats to prepare elemental Tian medicine or a new magus hybrid study that lets you leap weightlessly through the air with your cultivated magic, before your sword strikes home. We thought we’d give a tiny sneak peek into three of the new ancestries coming in the Character Guide, shall we: Samsaran art by Paulo Magalhães Samsarans have reincarnated many times, and they will do so many times more. This ancestry dwells in enclaves, though often a samsaran will journey to learn more about the world in pursuit of their goal of enlightenment. Samsarans can call upon the memories of their past selves to aid them in skill checks—perhaps recalling a life as a painter as they observe a piece of art—and they can even share some of their powerful life essence with an ally to heal them! Samsarans are great for characters with deep knowledge and experience but who always seek to learn new things. Wayang art by Alexander Nanitchkov Next we have wayangs, a diasporic people who have sailed from the Shadow Plane to the oceans and forests of Tian Xia. Wayangs value freedom and knowledge, often organizing their societies in overlapping circles around wise teachers or artisans. Unsurprisingly, wayangs have abilities that let them harness their shadows, often through specific dances, and more magically inclined wayangs might gain a unique dreaming heirloom with occult powers. Wayangs are great for artistic or expressive characters, or ones who want to use their magical powers to liberate others. Tanuki art by Sammy Khalid The last ancestry we’ll be previewing today is a new one! Scurrying underfoot, tanuki are a fun-loving people who are determined to get the most out of life before their luck runs out! Tanuki can shapeshift into a variety of forms, whether that’s turning into a teapot to hide in a room or turning into a priest to get a bit of extra respect. Tanuki also use illusions to play tricks on others or get a laugh, and they enjoy drumming on their bellies under the full moon. Tanuki are a great ancestry for players who want to play underdogs or just have fun! Lastly, we couldn’t have put these books together without an amazing team of writers! The Lost Omens Tian Xia books are brought to you by Eren Ahn, Jeremy Blum, Alyx Bui, James Case, Banana Chan, Connie Chang, Rick Chia, Hiromi Cota, Hans Chun, Theta Chun, Dana Ebert, Basheer Ghouse, John Godek III, Joan Hong, Sen H.H.S., Michelle Jones, Joshua Kim, Daniel Kwan, Dash Kwiatkowski, Jacky Leung, Jesse J. Leung, Monte Lin, Jessie “Aki” Lo, Adam Ma, Liane Merciel, Ashley Moni, Kevin Thien Vu Long Nguyen, Collette Quach, Andrew Quon, Kyra Arsenault Rivera, Christopher Rondeau, Joaquin Kyle "Makapatag" Saavedra, Shahreena Shahrani, Kienna Shaw, Philip Shen, Tan Shao Han, Mari Tokuda, Ruvaid Virk, Viditya Voleti, Grady Wang, Emma Yasui, and Jay Zhang. We hope that you’re as excited to check out these lands and tales as we are! We’ll have updates and information coming in the upcoming weeks and months, so stay tuned and subscribe to the Lost Omens and Adventure Path lines to ensure you catch updates as we make our way to Tian Xia! James CaseSenior Designer Eleanor FerronSenior Designer James JacobsNarrative Creative Director Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Tian Xia Tian Xia: Coming 2023–2024!
Thursday, March 2nd, 2022
Hi everyone, James here with some news! Starting this fall, Pathfinder will be turning the globe a bit as we head to a region we know a lot of you have been waiting for. Eleanor, James Jacobs, and I—not to mention the rest of the team and a stellar list of authors—are proud to announce the setting of the next few Pathfinder projects coming down the road: Tian Xia! Starting at the end of this year and continuing into 2024, we’ll be diving into this region like never before to bring you adventures, stories, and character options inspired by this land, so let’s take a look at what’s coming up!
Season of Ghosts Adventure Path
First, the narrative team will kick things off with the Season of Ghosts Adventure Path in October of 2023! This horror-themed campaign is set in the haunted land of Shenmen and begins just after the small town of Willowshore celebrates the Season of Ghosts—a local festival to appease Shenmen’s many evil ghosts and spirits and ensure safety for the coming year. Yet this year, something’s gone wrong, and the PCs wake to find their hometown of Willowshore has fallen under a sinister curse and been invaded by monsters. In the months to come, the heroes must help the people of Willowshore prepare for winter while working to discover the cause of the curse that’s cut them all off from the rest of the world. Is it the work of a fiend? The machinations of vengeful spirits? Or is it something much, much worse?
Season of Ghosts will take your PCs from 1st to 12th level over the following volumes!
- The Summer that Never Was, by Sen H.H.S.
- Let the Leaves Fall, by Joan Hong, with additional articles by Tan Shao Han and Grady Wang
- With No Breath to Cry, by Dan Cascone & Eleanor Ferron, with additional articles by Jeremy Blum, Dana Ebert, Joshua Kim, and Michelle Y. Kim
- To Bloom below the Web, by Liane Merciel, with additional articles by Jeremy Blum, Joshua Kim, and Michelle Y. Kim
You might notice that this is our first four-part adventure path, for a very good reason! Each of this Adventure Path’s volumes take place over the course of a different season, starting with the rainy summer and ending in the spring. With each season’s passing, the stakes the heroes face escalate, and the revelations in store will shock the townsfolk of Willowshore to the core! Will your group of adventures be able to save their hometown from a mysterious supernatural horror, or will your hometown simply become the next of Shenmen’s haunted ruins?
Lost Omens Tian Xia
Then, in 2024, prepare for not one but two Lost Omens books from the rules and lore team!
The Lost Omens Tian Xia World Guide covers the many diverse nations and cultures that inhabit Tian Xia. Snippets of Tian Xia’s lore and history have come to Avistan via merchants and immigrants, but this book will present a look at the whole picture, from the elemental hegemony and yaoguai wars that shaped the landscape in ancient times to the return of Hao Jin in the modern era. Learn the secrets behind the undying emperor of Yixing, whose return is still awaited in Po Li. Offer a small prayer to the local kami, anito, or kaiju. See if you find satisfaction in the service of the Empress of Heaven, Shizuru, or in the explosive rivalry between the dancing gods Mugura and Nrithu.
In an age ruled by heroes unfettered by prophecy, change is sweeping across the continent. Some of you might have helped Ameiko Kaijitsu depose the Jade Regent and ascend to the throne of Minkai—now witness the new Ondori era under her rule. Step into the nation of Bachuan, now that a Po Li oracle has convinced it to ease its restrictions and open its borders; Hao Jin’s tapestry people now live here too, descendants of a past once thought lost for good. Amanandar, a nation now as Tian in heritage as it is Taldan, has declared its independence with the blessings of Queen Eutropia and renamed itself as Linvarre—visitors from Avistan may delight in its Grogrisant lion dances or pick up a few words of its national language of Taltien. Journey the perilous Valashmai Jungle and find your way upon the Valash Raj, flourishing among the ruins shattered by giant beasts and monsters. The World Guide will lead you through these nations and more before giving GMs a bestiary containing the continent’s monsters, from the ferocious, four-horned aoyin to the aristocrat-eating yeongno.
After finding a nation or city that sparks your interest in the World Guide, it’s only natural to want to make a character from there! The The Lost Omens Tian Xia Character Guide will introduce new rules options to bring your characters to life! The book will contain six brand-new ancestries and numerous backgrounds to provide the seeds for new PCs. You’ll also find expanded heritages and feats for existing ancestries that might be more common in Tian Xia than in other areas, like the peachchild leshy heritage, which might have come from a fruit that floated down a river, or the bakuwa lizardfolk heritage, possibly responsible for eclipses over Minata when they eat the moon! The book also contains numerous character options to flesh out Tian adventurers, whether that’s skill feats to prepare elemental Tian medicine or a new magus hybrid study that lets you leap weightlessly through the air with your cultivated magic, before your sword strikes home.
We thought we’d give a tiny sneak peek into three of the new ancestries coming in the Character Guide, shall we:
Samsarans have reincarnated many times, and they will do so many times more. This ancestry dwells in enclaves, though often a samsaran will journey to learn more about the world in pursuit of their goal of enlightenment. Samsarans can call upon the memories of their past selves to aid them in skill checks—perhaps recalling a life as a painter as they observe a piece of art—and they can even share some of their powerful life essence with an ally to heal them! Samsarans are great for characters with deep knowledge and experience but who always seek to learn new things.
Next we have wayangs, a diasporic people who have sailed from the Shadow Plane to the oceans and forests of Tian Xia. Wayangs value freedom and knowledge, often organizing their societies in overlapping circles around wise teachers or artisans. Unsurprisingly, wayangs have abilities that let them harness their shadows, often through specific dances, and more magically inclined wayangs might gain a unique dreaming heirloom with occult powers. Wayangs are great for artistic or expressive characters, or ones who want to use their magical powers to liberate others.
The last ancestry we’ll be previewing today is a new one! Scurrying underfoot, tanuki are a fun-loving people who are determined to get the most out of life before their luck runs out! Tanuki can shapeshift into a variety of forms, whether that’s turning into a teapot to hide in a room or turning into a priest to get a bit of extra respect. Tanuki also use illusions to play tricks on others or get a laugh, and they enjoy drumming on their bellies under the full moon. Tanuki are a great ancestry for players who want to play underdogs or just have fun!
Lastly, we couldn’t have put these books together without an amazing team of writers! The Lost Omens Tian Xia books are brought to you by Eren Ahn, Jeremy Blum, Alyx Bui, James Case, Banana Chan, Connie Chang, Rick Chia, Hiromi Cota, Hans Chun, Theta Chun, Dana Ebert, Basheer Ghouse, John Godek III, Joan Hong, Sen H.H.S., Michelle Jones, Joshua Kim, Daniel Kwan, Dash Kwiatkowski, Jacky Leung, Jesse J. Leung, Monte Lin, Jessie “Aki” Lo, Adam Ma, Liane Merciel, Ashley Moni, Kevin Thien Vu Long Nguyen, Collette Quach, Andrew Quon, Kyra Arsenault Rivera, Christopher Rondeau, Joaquin Kyle "Makapatag" Saavedra, Shahreena Shahrani, Kienna Shaw, Philip Shen, Tan Shao Han, Mari Tokuda, Ruvaid Virk, Viditya Voleti, Grady Wang, Emma Yasui, and Jay Zhang.
We hope that you’re as excited to check out these lands and tales as we are! We’ll have updates and information coming in the upcoming weeks and months, so stay tuned and subscribe to the Lost Omens and Adventure Path lines to ensure you catch updates as we make our way to Tian Xia!
James Case
Senior DesignerEleanor Ferron
Senior DesignerJames Jacobs
Narrative Creative DirectorTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Tian Xia
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si94?March-2023-Organized-Play-Monthly-Update March 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update 2023-03-02T13:00:00.000-05:00 2023-03-02T13:00:00.000-05:00 March 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update Thursday, March 3, 2023 Digital Adventure Releases These adventures will be available on March 29, 2023. Pathfinder Society Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle• Starfinder Society Starfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Beta Test• •part of a subscription Starfinder Society Year 6 The Year of Fortune’s Fall is upon us, Starfinders! This month, Jessica announced the theme for Starfinder Society Year 6, launching at PaizoCon Online at the end of May. When a mysterious and powerful criminal syndicate, dubbed the Organization, enacts a bloody attack within the Pact Worlds, First Seeker Ehu Hadif vows to bring an end to their predations. Yet, this attack is only the opening salvo in a plot destined to doom millions. It’s up to you to unravel the plans of the Organization and bring the group’s leaders to justice! This Organization has been waiting in the wings for years, but now they must be stopped before it’s too late! Replays One of the most-requested features in my time here has been the ability to replay scenarios. Whether it’s because you have another character who would fit perfectly into an adventure or just because you want to help make a table fire, this has been something players and GMs have asked for constantly. I’m delighted to tell you that, thanks to the tireless work of our tech team, this is now possible! If you check your Organized Play account, you will see that you now have Replays available for Pathfinder Society (both first and second edition) as well as Starfinder Society. Here are the rules governing these Replays, which will be added to the Guide to Organized Play during the next update: All players (current and future) start with 2 replays. Current players may have obtained additional replays as a thanks for your patience while we got the system up and running. [1] GMs will earn one replay for each GM rank they achieve. Additionally, on January 1st of each year we will run a report to grant GMs one replay per GM rank for each active system. [2] Additional replays for PFS2 and SFS can be purchased at a rate of 40 Achievement Points per replay. This cost does not increase over time. Players must purchase a replay prior to completion and reporting of the scenario they are replaying. Players must indicate to their GM when they are using a replay. When reporting a replayed scenario, the GM should check the “Consume Replay” box next to the character’s information so they earn full credit for the scenario. Players who replay a scenario earn full rewards as a result of their playthrough. They get access to any boons and items on their Chronicle Sheet, as well as gold, XP and Reputation, all subject to the outcome of the scenario. Replays are not used when GMing a scenario; GMs will continue to earn table credit and AcP for GMing a non-repeatable scenario. Replays can be used on sanctioned content that is scenario-length or shorter, such as One-Shots, non-repeatable Quests and Free RPG Day adventures. Replays cannot be used on long-form content such as standalone modules or Adventure Path volumes. [1] The formula for additional replays is 2 replays for every 50 games played or GMed in the program prior to February 18, 2023. [2] This functionality does not exist yet, tech is currently assessing the feasibility of doing so, but I'm confident in our/their abilities. If it is infeasible to do so automatically in a short timeframe I will investigate manual solutions. As a reminder, per the rules in the Guide to Organized Play, players must inform their GMs when they are replaying a scenario, whether it’s because they are using a Replay or because it is a Repeatable scenario they have played before. Players replaying a scenario should not use metagame knowledge to ruin the experience for first-time players. GMs are explicitly permitted to limit signups to their tables based on non-discriminatory criteria, such as limiting a run of a scenario to first-time players if they prefer. We’re also aware of some minor issues with reduced Achievement Points or table credit that occurred as a result of this code update. We’re digging into the exact causes but hope to have fixes rolled out very soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions about incorrect counts of any points, including Replays, don’t hesitate to email orgplayreportingerrors@paizo.com. Thank you for your patience as we made these technical updates, and enjoy the new Replays! Starfinder Errata Updates Last month, the Starfinder team announced a host of new errata and updates to the core Starfinder rules. Any rule changes like this are always considered to apply immediately to Starfinder Society play, so these changes are now in effect at our tables. Additionally, some of these changes address the initial reasons we did not allow certain character options for play in Starfinder Society. We’re pleased to announce that the following options are now legal in Starfinder Society play: Starfinder Armory: all garottes and vibrogarottes Starfinder Pact Worlds: mature xenolash Starfinder Drift Crisis: thasphalt blaster Starfinder Interstellar Species: Devastating Throw, Draconic Shot, Hurl Ally, ink gland augmentation, linnormling creature companion Horizons of the Vast Adventure Path: Zeitgeist mystic connection The Starfinder Society Character Options page has been updated to reflect these changes, as well as to remove some additional clarifications that are now part of the core rules. Sanctioning Last week, with the release of Treasure Vault, we sanctioned the options for Pathfinder Society play! Delve into the vaults and discover your new favorite items! Sanctioning is posted on the Pathfinder Society Character Options pageas usual, and boons are available in the Boon Store. This month, we’ll be taking a look at Lost Omens: Firebrands and the Drift Crisis Case Files for Starfinder, with the goal to get sanctioning for both ready for street date. After that, while we prepare for Starfinder Ports of Call in May, we’ll be working on the Drift Hackers and Gatewalkers Adventure Paths. GM Recognition GM Ranks Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours! This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Star for Pathfinder Society (first edition). 5th Star (PFS1): Gregg Homerding Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! and enjoy revisiting some favorite scenarios! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator Tags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society March 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update
Thursday, March 3, 2023
Digital Adventure Releases
These adventures will be available on March 29, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-11: Prisoners of the Electric Castle•
Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Beta Test•
•part of a subscription
Starfinder Society Year 6
The Year of Fortune’s Fall is upon us, Starfinders! This month, Jessica announced the theme for Starfinder Society Year 6, launching at PaizoCon Online at the end of May. When a mysterious and powerful criminal syndicate, dubbed the Organization, enacts a bloody attack within the Pact Worlds, First Seeker Ehu Hadif vows to bring an end to their predations. Yet, this attack is only the opening salvo in a plot destined to doom millions.
It’s up to you to unravel the plans of the Organization and bring the group’s leaders to justice! This Organization has been waiting in the wings for years, but now they must be stopped before it’s too late!
Replays
One of the most-requested features in my time here has been the ability to replay scenarios. Whether it’s because you have another character who would fit perfectly into an adventure or just because you want to help make a table fire, this has been something players and GMs have asked for constantly. I’m delighted to tell you that, thanks to the tireless work of our tech team, this is now possible!
If you check your Organized Play account, you will see that you now have Replays available for Pathfinder Society (both first and second edition) as well as Starfinder Society. Here are the rules governing these Replays, which will be added to the Guide to Organized Play during the next update:
- All players (current and future) start with 2 replays. Current players may have obtained additional replays as a thanks for your patience while we got the system up and running. [1]
- GMs will earn one replay for each GM rank they achieve. Additionally, on January 1st of each year we will run a report to grant GMs one replay per GM rank for each active system. [2]
- Additional replays for PFS2 and SFS can be purchased at a rate of 40 Achievement Points per replay. This cost does not increase over time. Players must purchase a replay prior to completion and reporting of the scenario they are replaying.
- Players must indicate to their GM when they are using a replay. When reporting a replayed scenario, the GM should check the “Consume Replay” box next to the character’s information so they earn full credit for the scenario.
- Players who replay a scenario earn full rewards as a result of their playthrough. They get access to any boons and items on their Chronicle Sheet, as well as gold, XP and Reputation, all subject to the outcome of the scenario.
- Replays are not used when GMing a scenario; GMs will continue to earn table credit and AcP for GMing a non-repeatable scenario.
- Replays can be used on sanctioned content that is scenario-length or shorter, such as One-Shots, non-repeatable Quests and Free RPG Day adventures. Replays cannot be used on long-form content such as standalone modules or Adventure Path volumes.
[1] The formula for additional replays is 2 replays for every 50 games played or GMed in the program prior to February 18, 2023.
[2] This functionality does not exist yet, tech is currently assessing the feasibility of doing so, but I'm confident in our/their abilities. If it is infeasible to do so automatically in a short timeframe I will investigate manual solutions.As a reminder, per the rules in the Guide to Organized Play, players must inform their GMs when they are replaying a scenario, whether it’s because they are using a Replay or because it is a Repeatable scenario they have played before. Players replaying a scenario should not use metagame knowledge to ruin the experience for first-time players.
GMs are explicitly permitted to limit signups to their tables based on non-discriminatory criteria, such as limiting a run of a scenario to first-time players if they prefer.
We’re also aware of some minor issues with reduced Achievement Points or table credit that occurred as a result of this code update. We’re digging into the exact causes but hope to have fixes rolled out very soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions about incorrect counts of any points, including Replays, don’t hesitate to email orgplayreportingerrors@paizo.com. Thank you for your patience as we made these technical updates, and enjoy the new Replays!
Starfinder Errata Updates
Last month, the Starfinder team announced a host of new errata and updates to the core Starfinder rules. Any rule changes like this are always considered to apply immediately to Starfinder Society play, so these changes are now in effect at our tables.
Additionally, some of these changes address the initial reasons we did not allow certain character options for play in Starfinder Society. We’re pleased to announce that the following options are now legal in Starfinder Society play:
- Starfinder Armory: all garottes and vibrogarottes
- Starfinder Pact Worlds: mature xenolash
- Starfinder Drift Crisis: thasphalt blaster
- Starfinder Interstellar Species: Devastating Throw, Draconic Shot, Hurl Ally, ink gland augmentation, linnormling creature companion
- Horizons of the Vast Adventure Path: Zeitgeist mystic connection
The Starfinder Society Character Options page has been updated to reflect these changes, as well as to remove some additional clarifications that are now part of the core rules.
Sanctioning
Last week, with the release of Treasure Vault, we sanctioned the options for Pathfinder Society play! Delve into the vaults and discover your new favorite items! Sanctioning is posted on the Pathfinder Society Character Options pageas usual, and boons are available in the Boon Store.
This month, we’ll be taking a look at Lost Omens: Firebrands and the Drift Crisis Case Files for Starfinder, with the goal to get sanctioning for both ready for street date. After that, while we prepare for Starfinder Ports of Call in May, we’ll be working on the Drift Hackers and Gatewalkers Adventure Paths.
GM Recognition
GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Star for Pathfinder Society (first edition).
5th Star (PFS1): Gregg Homerding
Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! and enjoy revisiting some favorite scenarios!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorTags: Conventions, Organized Play, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si91?Paizo-and-Artificial-Intelligence Paizo and Artificial Intelligence 2023-03-01T13:00:00.000-05:00 2023-03-01T13:00:00.000-05:00 Paizo and Artificial Intelligence Wedneday, March 01, 2023 Illustration by Wayne Reynolds Over the last few months, the world has seen a huge upsurge in interest, use, and quality of algorithm-generated imagery and text. Since we launched the company in 2002, Paizo has made its reputation with the assistance of countless traditional artists and writers, who are just as integral to the success of our games as our in-house editors, art directors, designers, and developers. The ethical and legal issues surrounding “AI art” and writing prompt programs—and the serious threat they pose to the livelihoods of partners who have helped us get to where we are today as a company—demand that we take a firm position against the use of this technology in Paizo products. In the coming days, Paizo will add new language to its creative contracts that stipulate that all work submitted to us for publication be created by a human. We will further add guidance to our Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite program FAQs clarifying that AI-generated content is not permitted on either community content marketplace. Our customers expect a human touch to our releases, and so long as the ethical and legal circumstances surrounding these programs remains murky and undefined, we are unwilling to associate our brands with the technology in any way. Stated plainly—when you buy a Paizo product, you can be sure that it is the work of human professionals who have spent years honing their craft to produce the best work we can. Paizo will not use AI-generated “creative” work of any kind for the foreseeable future. We thank the human artists and writers who have been so integral to our success in the past, and we look forward to working with them for many years to come. Tags: Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Paizo and Artificial Intelligence
Wedneday, March 01, 2023
Over the last few months, the world has seen a huge upsurge in interest, use, and quality of algorithm-generated imagery and text. Since we launched the company in 2002, Paizo has made its reputation with the assistance of countless traditional artists and writers, who are just as integral to the success of our games as our in-house editors, art directors, designers, and developers. The ethical and legal issues surrounding “AI art” and writing prompt programs—and the serious threat they pose to the livelihoods of partners who have helped us get to where we are today as a company—demand that we take a firm position against the use of this technology in Paizo products.
In the coming days, Paizo will add new language to its creative contracts that stipulate that all work submitted to us for publication be created by a human. We will further add guidance to our Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite program FAQs clarifying that AI-generated content is not permitted on either community content marketplace.
Our customers expect a human touch to our releases, and so long as the ethical and legal circumstances surrounding these programs remains murky and undefined, we are unwilling to associate our brands with the technology in any way.
Stated plainly—when you buy a Paizo product, you can be sure that it is the work of human professionals who have spent years honing their craft to produce the best work we can. Paizo will not use AI-generated “creative” work of any kind for the foreseeable future.
We thank the human artists and writers who have been so integral to our success in the past, and we look forward to working with them for many years to come.
Tags: Community, Paizo, Paizo Staff, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si90?Architects-of-the-Vault Architects of the Vault! 2023-02-28T14:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-28T14:00:00.000-05:00 Architects of the Vault! Tuesday, February 28, 2022 Hello! I’m Michael Sayre, the design manager here at Paizo and one of the cover authors for Pathfinder Treasure Vault alongside Mark Seifter and Kendra Leigh Speedling. I was the voice for both the plucky kobold Purepurin and the mighty dragon Valashinaz, as well as the writer for the new base weapons, story-based crafting, and a wide variety of other items scattered throughout the book, like the new thrower’s bandolier previewed in the “Varmints in the Vaults” blog. As proud as I am of the work I did on Treasure Vault, I’m even more proud of the freelancers whose contributions made this book possible, so we’re taking this opportunity to let some of them tell you a little about themselves and the work that they did on this book. Without further ado… Mark Seifter I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design, and Paizo's former design manager as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. In Treasure Vault, I wrote a variety of topics, but the parts I'm most excited about are the crafting variant rules and nature crafting sections, including the magic gardens! Check out Arcane Mark, my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific, and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat live YouTube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Discord: https://tiny.cc.arcanemark Twitter: @markseifter Kendra Leigh Speedling Hello, all! I'm Kendra Leigh Speedling, and I'm one of the cover authors on Treasure Vault! My sections were: alchemical foods, artifacts, cursed/intelligent items, grimoires, missives (with Jessica Catalan), relics, spellhearts, staves, and wondrous consumables. I love cool loot, so this book was awesome to work on! I can't pick a favorite item, but the cooperative waffles have apparently been making a splash, so I'll tell you I gave them that form to celebrate the return of the mithral waffle iron in PF2. I played a PF1 sorcerer who not only bought one, but liked it so much that he put one of his scant two skill ranks every level into Craft (waffle). And he always made the party breakfast. Twitter: @KendraLS Jessica Catalan Hi everyone! My name's Jessica Catalan and I’m the Starfinder Society Developer and a freelance author who primarily writes for Pathfinder and Starfinder. For Treasure Vault, I contributed to the wands and missives sections. Treasure Vault was a delightful, collaborative book to work on, and I look forward to seeing all the new tricks, treats, and treasures it contains unleashed on gaming tables! Enjoy! Andrew Geels Hi there! I wrote for Treasure Vault’s specific magic shields, alchemical bombs, and elixirs sections. This is the fourth Paizo book I’ve written for, and probably the one I’m most excited to see get used! Magic shields were a blast to write, especially with new shield types. The starfall shield in particular is one of my favorites (turning into a meteor is cool), but I also love entries like the warding escutcheon, and the door-themed stone tower shield that becomes a door or a stone tower. Making new bombs and elixirs with weird niches was a fun challenge. I can’t wait to hear stories of trueshape bombs turning the tide against werewolves, or numbing and soothing tonics pulling parties through deadly fights. Twitter: @PinBarbarian Website: pinstripedbarbarian.com Yvonne Hsiao Happy Treasure Vault Day everyone! This is Sen.H.H.S., you friendly Taiwanese TTRPG writer, back again with— you guessed it— more fulus! You can find the first set of fulus I wrote back in Secrets of Magic. After you've showered Treasure Vault with love, don't forget to check on recent and upcoming publications to which I have also contributed, such as Lost Omens: Firebrands, Starfinder Ports of Call, and last but not least, Rage of Elements! To see what else I'm hyping up these days, you can follow me on— Instagram: senhhs_writes Twitter: @SenHHS Website:https://senhhs.carrd.co/ Dustin Knight Greetings, Pathfinders! Since writing weapon runes for Treasure Vault, I've become the Developer for Starfinder. And while my focus has shifted to the other side of the Gap, I'm so happy to keep busy as a freelancer and Pathfinder Infinite contributor during what free time I can scrape together. Feel free to hit me up on twitter, where I can't wait to hear about all the shenanigans caused by the nifty items in this book (especially the authorized rune). Twitter: @WarlockKitsune Jacob W. Michaels (he/him): Fire burn and caldron bubble. Fillet of a fenny snake, In the caldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog. Hi everyone, I'm Jacob W. Michaels, and I'm hoping the potions I created for Treasure Vault won't lead you to your doom, like the witches did Macbeth. It was a lot of fun adding some potions to the mix, and playing with options outside the traditional spells-in-a-jar formula. If you like these items, check out my work on Pathfinder Society or other rule books, Adventure Paths and Lost Omen titles, and raise a glass—of Cayden's Brew or some nonalcoholic potion of your choice—to Valashinaz and the wonders of her hoard. Matt Morris I’m Matt Morris, and I’ve been lucky enough to do freelance writing for Pathfinder and Starfinder for several years now, working with Paizo and a few 3rd-party companies, including Everybody Games and Rogue Genius Games. I was excited to trade some magic weapons to the mighty Valashinaz! (I'm still waiting for the kobolds she promised would clean out my garage, though.) I keep an up-to-date list of my work on my Paizo profile, and I’m always looking for interesting projects, so feel free to contact me if you are looking for a reliable writer! When not writing, I’m teaching high school English near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Website: https://mattmorris.carrd.co/# Jessica Redekop (she/they/he): Hi! I'm Jess, and I wrote some fun new catalysts for Treasure Vault. I hope you have fun with them! My favorite is the Euphoric Loop, which lets you get a little more out of charm during combat encounters where you know the spell can't last. If you'd like to see more of my work, I also wrote the items in the Material Changes shop of Lost Omens Grand Bazaar, and perhaps later this year you will even see my name in, on, or generally just around Rage of Elements...? Twitter: @tectonomancer Mari Tokuda Hi! My name is Mari Tokuda, and I worked on the mystical, magical oils of the Treasure Vault. Uhhh, so who am I, anyway? I love dogs and have an irrational fear of anthropomorphic food. What? It's creepy! Professionally, I'm an ENNIE Award-winning writer (I was one small part of the team that won 2022's Best Writing category). Mostly, I'm a big, old nerd who specializes in creating games and fiction. Do you like tabletop games? You must if you're here. Well, I've worked on a bunch of them! Do I love them? So. Much. Let's be friends! You can find me on- Facebook: mari.tokuda.writes Twitter: @MariTokuda Website: https://www.maritokuda.com/ Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Architects of the Vault!
Tuesday, February 28, 2022
Hello!
I’m Michael Sayre, the design manager here at Paizo and one of the cover authors for Pathfinder Treasure Vault alongside Mark Seifter and Kendra Leigh Speedling. I was the voice for both the plucky kobold Purepurin and the mighty dragon Valashinaz, as well as the writer for the new base weapons, story-based crafting, and a wide variety of other items scattered throughout the book, like the new thrower’s bandolier previewed in the “Varmints in the Vaults” blog.As proud as I am of the work I did on Treasure Vault, I’m even more proud of the freelancers whose contributions made this book possible, so we’re taking this opportunity to let some of them tell you a little about themselves and the work that they did on this book. Without further ado…
Mark Seifter
I'm Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design, and Paizo's former design manager as well as one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. In Treasure Vault, I wrote a variety of topics, but the parts I'm most excited about are the crafting variant rules and nature crafting sections, including the magic gardens! Check out Arcane Mark, my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific, and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat live YouTube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/.
Discord: https://tiny.cc.arcanemark
Twitter: @markseifter
Kendra Leigh Speedling
Hello, all! I'm Kendra Leigh Speedling, and I'm one of the cover authors on Treasure Vault! My sections were: alchemical foods, artifacts, cursed/intelligent items, grimoires, missives (with Jessica Catalan), relics, spellhearts, staves, and wondrous consumables. I love cool loot, so this book was awesome to work on! I can't pick a favorite item, but the cooperative waffles have apparently been making a splash, so I'll tell you I gave them that form to celebrate the return of the mithral waffle iron in PF2. I played a PF1 sorcerer who not only bought one, but liked it so much that he put one of his scant two skill ranks every level into Craft (waffle). And he always made the party breakfast.
Twitter: @KendraLS
Jessica Catalan
Hi everyone! My name's Jessica Catalan and I’m the Starfinder Society Developer and a freelance author who primarily writes for Pathfinder and Starfinder. For Treasure Vault, I contributed to the wands and missives sections. Treasure Vault was a delightful, collaborative book to work on, and I look forward to seeing all the new tricks, treats, and treasures it contains unleashed on gaming tables! Enjoy!
Andrew Geels
Hi there! I wrote for Treasure Vault’s specific magic shields, alchemical bombs, and elixirs sections. This is the fourth Paizo book I’ve written for, and probably the one I’m most excited to see get used! Magic shields were a blast to write, especially with new shield types. The starfall shield in particular is one of my favorites (turning into a meteor is cool), but I also love entries like the warding escutcheon, and the door-themed stone tower shield that becomes a door or a stone tower. Making new bombs and elixirs with weird niches was a fun challenge. I can’t wait to hear stories of trueshape bombs turning the tide against werewolves, or numbing and soothing tonics pulling parties through deadly fights.
Twitter: @PinBarbarian Website: pinstripedbarbarian.com
Yvonne Hsiao
Happy Treasure Vault Day everyone! This is Sen.H.H.S., you friendly Taiwanese TTRPG writer, back again with— you guessed it— more fulus! You can find the first set of fulus I wrote back in Secrets of Magic. After you've showered Treasure Vault with love, don't forget to check on recent and upcoming publications to which I have also contributed, such as Lost Omens: Firebrands, Starfinder Ports of Call, and last but not least, Rage of Elements! To see what else I'm hyping up these days, you can follow me on—
Instagram: senhhs_writes
Twitter: @SenHHS
Website:https://senhhs.carrd.co/
Dustin Knight
Greetings, Pathfinders! Since writing weapon runes for Treasure Vault, I've become the Developer for Starfinder. And while my focus has shifted to the other side of the Gap, I'm so happy to keep busy as a freelancer and Pathfinder Infinite contributor during what free time I can scrape together. Feel free to hit me up on twitter, where I can't wait to hear about all the shenanigans caused by the nifty items in this book (especially the authorized rune).
Twitter: @WarlockKitsune
Jacob W. Michaels (he/him):
Fire burn and caldron bubble. Fillet of a fenny snake, In the caldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog.
Hi everyone, I'm Jacob W. Michaels, and I'm hoping the potions I created for Treasure Vault won't lead you to your doom, like the witches did Macbeth. It was a lot of fun adding some potions to the mix, and playing with options outside the traditional spells-in-a-jar formula. If you like these items, check out my work on Pathfinder Society or other rule books, Adventure Paths and Lost Omen titles, and raise a glass—of Cayden's Brew or some nonalcoholic potion of your choice—to Valashinaz and the wonders of her hoard.
Matt Morris
I’m Matt Morris, and I’ve been lucky enough to do freelance writing for Pathfinder and Starfinder for several years now, working with Paizo and a few 3rd-party companies, including Everybody Games and Rogue Genius Games. I was excited to trade some magic weapons to the mighty Valashinaz! (I'm still waiting for the kobolds she promised would clean out my garage, though.) I keep an up-to-date list of my work on my Paizo profile, and I’m always looking for interesting projects, so feel free to contact me if you are looking for a reliable writer! When not writing, I’m teaching high school English near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Website: https://mattmorris.carrd.co/#">https://mattmorris.carrd.co/#
Jessica Redekop (she/they/he):
Hi! I'm Jess, and I wrote some fun new catalysts for Treasure Vault. I hope you have fun with them! My favorite is the Euphoric Loop, which lets you get a little more out of charm during combat encounters where you know the spell can't last. If you'd like to see more of my work, I also wrote the items in the Material Changes shop of Lost Omens Grand Bazaar, and perhaps later this year you will even see my name in, on, or generally just around Rage of Elements...?
Twitter: @tectonomancer
Mari Tokuda
Hi! My name is Mari Tokuda, and I worked on the mystical, magical oils of the Treasure Vault. Uhhh, so who am I, anyway? I love dogs and have an irrational fear of anthropomorphic food. What? It's creepy!
Professionally, I'm an ENNIE Award-winning writer (I was one small part of the team that won 2022's Best Writing category). Mostly, I'm a big, old nerd who specializes in creating games and fiction. Do you like tabletop games? You must if you're here. Well, I've worked on a bunch of them! Do I love them? So. Much. Let's be friends! You can find me on-
Facebook: mari.tokuda.writes
Twitter: @MariTokuda
Website: https://www.maritokuda.com/Tags: Authors, Community, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8y?A-Message-from-Aslynn-Queen-of-all-Hags A Message from Aslynn, Queen of all Hags 2023-02-23T14:30:00.000-05:00 2023-02-23T14:30:00.000-05:00 A Message from Aslynn, Queen of all Hags Thursday, February 23, 2023 I am Aslynn, queen of all witch covens Those that see me know I, hag above hags Witch above witch, the best of them slovens My cauldron’s full of such terrible gags (I crush their sweet little dreams in my fist) The Pathfinders don’t know what they’re in for They have slayed a thousand foes and monsters But I have slayed a million and one more No witch as strong as me, though they posture (No caster could ever be in my midst) They think they can stop my terrible plans ’Cause they have my leftover goods within Oh yes, I see you, you’re there with your plans I have such a plan, oh where to begin? (Oh, what a plan, how to make them assist?) I will corrupt the Dimension of Dreams Give them something awful to really fear As my potion brews, prepare for my schemes I will dream of sweet horrors as I sneer (How they’ll spread forth, onward my dears, persist!) And once we have taken that plane of dreams Nightmares to brew across all their nations I’ll rule with a cold heart and wicked teams My daughters will conquer, such creations! (Even my betrayer, she tried to twist) I am Aslynn, queen of all the witches Crone of the highest order, worst of hags My cackle leaves all mountains in ditches Baba Yaga dreads my name, crone in rags (Her little brat Anna’s next on the list) Illustration by Josef Kucera Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Society A Message from Aslynn, Queen of all Hags
Thursday, February 23, 2023
I am Aslynn, queen of all witch covens
Those that see me know I, hag above hags
Witch above witch, the best of them slovens
My cauldron’s full of such terrible gags
(I crush their sweet little dreams in my fist)The Pathfinders don’t know what they’re in for
They have slayed a thousand foes and monsters
But I have slayed a million and one more
No witch as strong as me, though they posture
(No caster could ever be in my midst)They think they can stop my terrible plans
’Cause they have my leftover goods within
Oh yes, I see you, you’re there with your plans
I have such a plan, oh where to begin?
(Oh, what a plan, how to make them assist?)I will corrupt the Dimension of Dreams
Give them something awful to really fear
As my potion brews, prepare for my schemes
I will dream of sweet horrors as I sneer
(How they’ll spread forth, onward my dears, persist!)And once we have taken that plane of dreams
Nightmares to brew across all their nations
I’ll rule with a cold heart and wicked teams
My daughters will conquer, such creations!
(Even my betrayer, she tried to twist)I am Aslynn, queen of all the witches
Crone of the highest order, worst of hags
My cackle leaves all mountains in ditches
Baba Yaga dreads my name, crone in rags
(Her little brat Anna’s next on the list)
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Society
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8x?Find-Your-Path-February-2023 Find Your Path, February 2023 2023-02-22T16:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-22T16:00:00.000-05:00 Find Your Path, February 2023 Wednesday, February 22, 2023 Huzzah, it’s New Starfinder and Pathfinder Day! The Pathfinder Treasure Vault rulebook is at the top of our marquee in hardcover, Special Edition and Pocket Editions. Venture Into The Vault! Pathfinder Treasure Vault reveals the glittering hoard of a terrifying dragon, as presented by the creature's plucky kobold assistant. This 224-page hardcover rulebook presents a catalog of new gear from nearly every category of equipment and magic item available in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game while introducing entirely new categories of items. Give your character the perfect tool for the job with signature weapons, customizable relics, and wondrous items to fit your every need while preparing for any eventuality with potions, elixirs, wands, and more! —Pathfinder Treasure Vault back cover text Pathfinder Treasure Vault is part of the Pathfinder Rulebook subscription, and Pathfinder Treasure Vault Special Edition is part of the Pathfinder Special Edition Rulebook subscription. The Pathfinder Treasure Vault Pocket Edition is a non-subscription offer. The Gatewalkers Adventure Path continues with Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the Stars (Gatewalkers 2 of 3), part of the Pathfinder Adventure Path subscription. Get started with the free Player’s Guide PDF! Also available for Foundry VTTs! After they walked through that glowing gateway, nothing was ever the same. A band of characters become paranormal investigators in order to figure out the cause of a global amnesic episode. Their quest takes them to lands near, far, and outside reality altogether. Along the way, the characters meet fellow "gatewalkers," defeat alien monsters, and explore strange realms also touched by the so-called Missing Moment. And when it comes time to learn the grim truth of what happened to them on that fated summer night, what then? The Starfinder Drift Hackers Adventure Path is the exciting conclusion of the Drift Crisis in which faster-than-light travel breaks down, and the galaxy is thrown into chaos. Go from 7th to 13th level as you travel into the dataverse to save the Pact Worlds! None of you are strangers to adversity. You’re all veterans of adventure to some degree—not yet legendary heroes of myth whose names are whispered throughout the galaxy, but far from novices taking their first few steps into a wider world. However, like the rest of the galaxy, none of you has dealt with such a wide-reaching catastrophe as the Drift Crisis. Several months have passed since the Drift Crash began the upheaval, and speculation has run rampant on infospheres throughout the Pact Worlds and Veskarium about its causes and remedies. Will answers ever emerge? Can the Drift be restored to what it once was? Or are these throttled Drift travel times and constant interruptions in communications and shipping the new normal for every sapient being that relies on this form of faster-than-light travel? —From the free Starfinder Drift Hackers Player’s Guide PDF Starfinder Adventure Path #50: Clockwork Demons (Drift Hackers 2 of 3) part of the Starfinder Adventure Pathsubscription. The Pathfinder Lost Omens: The Mwangi Expanse Special Edition is part of the Pathfinder Lost Omens Special Edition subscription. It’s a gorgeous addition to your bookshelf and another way to enhance your Strength of Thousands Adventure Path experience. The Pathfinder Society subscription’s most recent offerings are Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask and Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord's Abode, both in PDF only! Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve is part of the Starfinder Society subscription. This month we have two other non-subscription offers—Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Betweenand Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Winter Forest. Read the February 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews blog for the exciting details of the new adventures, including a Bounty that gives you a one to two hour taste of Starfinder, even if you don’t yet play in the Starfinder Society. They are available to play for free at participating local game stores! Plan the future of your games with our Release Schedule, with products listed month-by-month, along with associated subscriptions. Explore our Paizo Subscriptions and see what we’re releasing up to 9 months away. Like crowdfunding campaigns, by committing in advance, subscriptions help us estimate print runs, so we offer you a complimentary PDF. Ownership of a digital product lets you use our Paizo Connect system to sync with our digital partners—who can then also offer a discount on their products and services. If you’re interested in multiple subscriptions, you can save more with our Paizo Advantage offering. The next hot batch of new releases will occur on March 29, 2023 and include Pathfinder Lost Omens: Firebrands, Starfinder Adventure: Drift Crisis Case Files, Starfinder Deck of Endless NPCs and the climactic Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires (Gatewalkers 3 of 3)! Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder! Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today! Adventures Ahead! Aaron Shanks, Director of Marketing Paizo Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Find Your Path, February 2023
Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Huzzah, it’s New Starfinder and Pathfinder Day! The Pathfinder Treasure Vault rulebook is at the top of our marquee in hardcover, Special Edition and Pocket Editions.
Venture Into The Vault!
Pathfinder Treasure Vault reveals the glittering hoard of a terrifying dragon, as presented by the creature's plucky kobold assistant. This 224-page hardcover rulebook presents a catalog of new gear from nearly every category of equipment and magic item available in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game while introducing entirely new categories of items. Give your character the perfect tool for the job with signature weapons, customizable relics, and wondrous items to fit your every need while preparing for any eventuality with potions, elixirs, wands, and more!
—Pathfinder Treasure Vault back cover textPathfinder Treasure Vault is part of the Pathfinder Rulebook subscription, and Pathfinder Treasure Vault Special Edition is part of the Pathfinder Special Edition Rulebook subscription. The Pathfinder Treasure Vault Pocket Edition is a non-subscription offer.
The Gatewalkers Adventure Path continues with Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the Stars (Gatewalkers 2 of 3), part of the Pathfinder Adventure Path subscription. Get started with the free Player’s Guide PDF! Also available for Foundry VTTs!
After they walked through that glowing gateway, nothing was ever the same. A band of characters become paranormal investigators in order to figure out the cause of a global amnesic episode. Their quest takes them to lands near, far, and outside reality altogether. Along the way, the characters meet fellow "gatewalkers," defeat alien monsters, and explore strange realms also touched by the so-called Missing Moment. And when it comes time to learn the grim truth of what happened to them on that fated summer night, what then?
The Starfinder Drift Hackers Adventure Path is the exciting conclusion of the Drift Crisis in which faster-than-light travel breaks down, and the galaxy is thrown into chaos. Go from 7th to 13th level as you travel into the dataverse to save the Pact Worlds!
None of you are strangers to adversity. You’re all veterans of adventure to some degree—not yet legendary heroes of myth whose names are whispered throughout the galaxy, but far from novices taking their first few steps into a wider world. However, like the rest of the galaxy, none of you has dealt with such a wide-reaching catastrophe as the Drift Crisis. Several months have passed since the Drift Crash began the upheaval, and speculation has run rampant on infospheres throughout the Pact Worlds and Veskarium about its causes and remedies. Will answers ever emerge? Can the Drift be restored to what it once was? Or are these throttled Drift travel times and constant interruptions in communications and shipping the new normal for every sapient being that relies on this form of faster-than-light travel?
—From the free Starfinder Drift Hackers Player’s Guide PDF
Starfinder Adventure Path #50: Clockwork Demons (Drift Hackers 2 of 3) part of the Starfinder Adventure Pathsubscription.
The Pathfinder Lost Omens: The Mwangi Expanse Special Edition is part of the Pathfinder Lost Omens Special Edition subscription. It’s a gorgeous addition to your bookshelf and another way to enhance your Strength of Thousands Adventure Path experience.
The Pathfinder Society subscription’s most recent offerings are Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask and Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord's Abode, both in PDF only!
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve is part of the Starfinder Society subscription.
This month we have two other non-subscription offers—Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Betweenand Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Winter Forest.
Read the February 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews blog for the exciting details of the new adventures, including a Bounty that gives you a one to two hour taste of Starfinder, even if you don’t yet play in the Starfinder Society. They are available to play for free at participating local game stores!
Plan the future of your games with our Release Schedule, with products listed month-by-month, along with associated subscriptions.
Explore our Paizo Subscriptions and see what we’re releasing up to 9 months away. Like crowdfunding campaigns, by committing in advance, subscriptions help us estimate print runs, so we offer you a complimentary PDF. Ownership of a digital product lets you use our Paizo Connect system to sync with our digital partners—who can then also offer a discount on their products and services. If you’re interested in multiple subscriptions, you can save more with our Paizo Advantage offering.
The next hot batch of new releases will occur on March 29, 2023 and include Pathfinder Lost Omens: Firebrands, Starfinder Adventure: Drift Crisis Case Files, Starfinder Deck of Endless NPCs and the climactic Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires (Gatewalkers 3 of 3)!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Adventures Ahead!
Aaron Shanks,
Director of Marketing
PaizoTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8r?February-2023-Organized-Play-Scenario-Previews February 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews 2023-02-16T16:30:00.000-05:00 2023-02-16T16:30:00.000-05:00 February 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews Thursday, February 16, 2023 Hello Starfinders! Thanks to that pesky Drift Crisis, Absalom Station has become overcrowded, and the Station’s inhabitants are desperate for some breathing room. With nowhere else to go, a group of ambitious and brave refugees have founded a new district in the mysterious Ghost Levels, a move that’s dangerous, illegal, and sorely needed. Under the orders of Zigvigix and Harmony of Many, a team of Starfinders are dispatched to help the burgeoning neighborhood and safely explore the surrounding region of the Ghost Levels. That’s where you come in! But step lightly—the fate of the district (and further exploration rights) hangs in the balance. Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Michael Bramnik. Left to right, Ilustrations by Fabio Di Bernardi and Samuel Jr. But that’s not all! We’re also releasing a Starfinder Bounty this month! When famed brutaris player Visavra embarks on a much-needed vacation with her best friends, her over-protective parents hire a team of bodyguards to keep her safe. Hop aboard a luxury yacht, travel the Diaspora’s River Between in style, and escort this sports star to her hotel on frozen Nisis! What could possibly go wrong? Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Between is a short adventure for 1st-level characters written by Mahpiya. Enjoy! Jessica Catalan Starfinder Society Developer Hello Pathfinders! Welcome to February. What a month we have for you! Out in Razmiran, Pathfinder agents have begun to vanish, leaving Venture-Captain Narsen anxious about his position not only within the country, but also within the Pathfinder Society. These murders have been happening at the hands of a mysterious vampire, leading investigators deep into the Exalted Wood. It’s up to a group of Pathfinders to travel into the woods, find the killer, and solve the murders—all while Razmiri politics play in the background. A strange possible ally awaits you, along with all of the answers you may or may not want! Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask is an adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Michael Sayre. Left to Right: Ilustrations by Marko Horvatin and Nicolas Espinoza For our more junior teams, we’re back in Nex! Arclord Alyreha has recovered her memories and knowledge of magic, so now it’s time to make sure she gets her home back! Some of Alyreha’s old enemies infiltrated her home and set off all the defenses, so now it’s up to the Pathfinder Society to help her clear them out while she refortifies her home and magic. However, it looks like someone very familiar to the Pathfinders may be waiting up in the tower… Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord’s Abodehttps://paizo.com/products/btq02e8w?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-410-Arclords-Abode is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Isis Wozniakowska. Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios February 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews
Thursday, February 16, 2023
Hello Starfinders!
Thanks to that pesky Drift Crisis, Absalom Station has become overcrowded, and the Station’s inhabitants are desperate for some breathing room. With nowhere else to go, a group of ambitious and brave refugees have founded a new district in the mysterious Ghost Levels, a move that’s dangerous, illegal, and sorely needed. Under the orders of Zigvigix and Harmony of Many, a team of Starfinders are dispatched to help the burgeoning neighborhood and safely explore the surrounding region of the Ghost Levels.
That’s where you come in! But step lightly—the fate of the district (and further exploration rights) hangs in the balance.
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Michael Bramnik.
But that’s not all! We’re also releasing a Starfinder Bounty this month! When famed brutaris player Visavra embarks on a much-needed vacation with her best friends, her over-protective parents hire a team of bodyguards to keep her safe. Hop aboard a luxury yacht, travel the Diaspora’s River Between in style, and escort this sports star to her hotel on frozen Nisis! What could possibly go wrong?
Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Between is a short adventure for 1st-level characters written by Mahpiya.
Enjoy!
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society Developer
Hello Pathfinders! Welcome to February. What a month we have for you!
Out in Razmiran, Pathfinder agents have begun to vanish, leaving Venture-Captain Narsen anxious about his position not only within the country, but also within the Pathfinder Society. These murders have been happening at the hands of a mysterious vampire, leading investigators deep into the Exalted Wood. It’s up to a group of Pathfinders to travel into the woods, find the killer, and solve the murders—all while Razmiri politics play in the background. A strange possible ally awaits you, along with all of the answers you may or may not want!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask is an adventure for 5th- through 8th-level characters written by Michael Sayre.
For our more junior teams, we’re back in Nex! Arclord Alyreha has recovered her memories and knowledge of magic, so now it’s time to make sure she gets her home back! Some of Alyreha’s old enemies infiltrated her home and set off all the defenses, so now it’s up to the Pathfinder Society to help her clear them out while she refortifies her home and magic. However, it looks like someone very familiar to the Pathfinders may be waiting up in the tower…
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord’s Abodehttps://paizo.com/products/btq02e8w?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-410-Arclords-Abode is an adventure for 1st- through 4th-level characters written by Isis Wozniakowska.
Shay Snow
Pathfinder Society DeveloperTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8s?Pathfinder-Comics-Return-with-Wake-the-Dead Pathfinder Comics Return with Wake the Dead! 2023-02-16T13:15:00.000-05:00 2023-02-16T13:15:00.000-05:00 Pathfinder Comics Return with Wake the Dead! Thursday, February 16, 2023 Dynamite Entertainment is proud to debut the long-anticipated next Pathfinder comic book series! Tabletop RPG connoisseur and fan-favorite writer Fred Van Lente is revving up an all-new party and campaign for Wake the Dead, kicking off this May! It's a new creative team, a new party of Iconics, new lands of Golarion to explore, and unforgettable moments galore in the brand-new adventure. Paizo and Dynamite are teaming up once more to offer not only a thrilling tale, but also extra features that players can bring right to their next game nights! It's been nearly five years since the last major Pathfinder saga in comics, the critically acclaimed Spiral of Bones from writer Crystal Frasier. Since then, the world of Pathfinder in-game and in real world popularity has exploded even more. With recent record-smashing sales of sourcebooks and more, it's the perfect time for fans of the game to experience this classic alternate avenue of adventure! "I'm thrilled to be back writing Pathfinder comics, and even more exciting to be writing a whole new party of Iconics meeting and adventuring together for the very first time," said writer Fred Van Lente. In Wake the Dead, the tantalizing prospect of a rendezvous with a Gebbite defector in possession of priceless secrets from that undead nation draws together a diverse group of adventurers in the Nexian metropolis of Ecanus. Van Lente has assembled an all-new party, spotlighting Iconics who, before now, have only graced the four-colored pages as guest stars. Readers will get to hang out with Quinn the investigator, Sajan the monk, Lem the bard, and Seelah the champion, while readers of the original hit series by writer Jim Zub and others get reacquainted with Harsk the dwarf ranger! When they all find themselves cornered by the city's remorseless Deathsealers, can the Iconics band together for survival and escape a city full of hostile wizards alive? Fred Van Lente has been playing tabletop RPGs for years, going back to the classic "red box" basic sets, which he received as a kid like many his age. Eventually, he was introduced to the world of Pathfinder and played regularly for years. Recently, he wrote the epic comic spotlighting Fumbus the alchemist, available initially on Kickstarter. He's been contributing prose stories to the mythos on the Paizo site for a while too. Beyond the world of roleplaying, Van Lente is beloved for his work on hallmark comics titles like Amazing Spider-Man, Incredible Hercules, Marvel Zombies, Archer & Armstrong, The Comic Book History of Comics, and more. For this new series, Van Lente is joined by artist Eman Casallos, who will bring his dungeon master-esque storytelling to the page. Artists Steve Ellis and Biago d'Alessandro also contribute covers to issues, in addition to Casallos. d'Allesandro's covers for each issue of the series will also connect to form a larger image when collected together. Each issue of Pathfinder: Wake the Dead features premium cardstock covers, making a top tier product for collectors and something durable that will survive the rigors of the gaming table. Issues also come with bonus material useful for players of the game. These will include playable character stats for the iconic paladin Seelah, new character options for inhabitants of the magical military city of Ecanus, and more. And all of these extra features are officially sanctioned by the Pathfinder Society! Paizo and tabletop fans can stay tuned too, as the first ever Starfinder comic series is right around the corner too! More information about that series will be revealed soon! Guest blog by Vincent Faust of Dynamite Entertainment Tags: Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Pathfinder Comics Return with Wake the Dead!
Thursday, February 16, 2023
Dynamite Entertainment is proud to debut the long-anticipated next Pathfinder comic book series! Tabletop RPG connoisseur and fan-favorite writer Fred Van Lente is revving up an all-new party and campaign for Wake the Dead, kicking off this May!
It's a new creative team, a new party of Iconics, new lands of Golarion to explore, and unforgettable moments galore in the brand-new adventure. Paizo and Dynamite are teaming up once more to offer not only a thrilling tale, but also extra features that players can bring right to their next game nights! It's been nearly five years since the last major Pathfinder saga in comics, the critically acclaimed Spiral of Bones from writer Crystal Frasier. Since then, the world of Pathfinder in-game and in real world popularity has exploded even more. With recent record-smashing sales of sourcebooks and more, it's the perfect time for fans of the game to experience this classic alternate avenue of adventure!
"I'm thrilled to be back writing Pathfinder comics, and even more exciting to be writing a whole new party of Iconics meeting and adventuring together for the very first time," said writer Fred Van Lente.
In Wake the Dead, the tantalizing prospect of a rendezvous with a Gebbite defector in possession of priceless secrets from that undead nation draws together a diverse group of adventurers in the Nexian metropolis of Ecanus. Van Lente has assembled an all-new party, spotlighting Iconics who, before now, have only graced the four-colored pages as guest stars. Readers will get to hang out with Quinn the investigator, Sajan the monk, Lem the bard, and Seelah the champion, while readers of the original hit series by writer Jim Zub and others get reacquainted with Harsk the dwarf ranger! When they all find themselves cornered by the city's remorseless Deathsealers, can the Iconics band together for survival and escape a city full of hostile wizards alive?
Fred Van Lente has been playing tabletop RPGs for years, going back to the classic "red box" basic sets, which he received as a kid like many his age. Eventually, he was introduced to the world of Pathfinder and played regularly for years. Recently, he wrote the epic comic spotlighting Fumbus the alchemist, available initially on Kickstarter. He's been contributing prose stories to the mythos on the Paizo site for a while too. Beyond the world of roleplaying, Van Lente is beloved for his work on hallmark comics titles like Amazing Spider-Man, Incredible Hercules, Marvel Zombies, Archer & Armstrong, The Comic Book History of Comics, and more.
For this new series, Van Lente is joined by artist Eman Casallos, who will bring his dungeon master-esque storytelling to the page. Artists Steve Ellis and Biago d'Alessandro also contribute covers to issues, in addition to Casallos. d'Allesandro's covers for each issue of the series will also connect to form a larger image when collected together.
Each issue of Pathfinder: Wake the Dead features premium cardstock covers, making a top tier product for collectors and something durable that will survive the rigors of the gaming table. Issues also come with bonus material useful for players of the game. These will include playable character stats for the iconic paladin Seelah, new character options for inhabitants of the magical military city of Ecanus, and more. And all of these extra features are officially sanctioned by the Pathfinder Society!
Paizo and tabletop fans can stay tuned too, as the first ever Starfinder comic series is right around the corner too! More information about that series will be revealed soon!
Guest blog by Vincent Faust of Dynamite Entertainment
Tags: Iconics, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8q?Uplifting-voices-for-Black-History-Month-2023 Uplifting voices for Black History Month 2023 2023-02-15T13:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-15T13:00:00.000-05:00 Uplifting voices for Black History Month 2023 Wednesday, February 15, 2023 We’re in the heart of Black History Month! In honor of Black excellence in the tabletop industry and beyond, here are some wonderful creators in our community to introduce themselves and share some of the amazing work they’ve done. Isis Wozniakowska (she/her) Hey all, Isis Wozniakowska here, I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #3-21 and #5-04 as well as the upcoming Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10, and I've done work for Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, Pathfinder Dark Archive, Starfinder Interstellar Species, and more to come. I got into this whole TTRPG writing thing by answering an open call for writers of color, which is not the kind of thing I can advise when a lot of people I know ask me how to get into this. It's something I think about a lot, how I sometimes feel like I've gotten more chances as a writer lately because I can answer these specialized calls for people who come from specific backgrounds. It's taken me months to come to terms with that possibility of having my own privileges recently as the creative world tries to diversify its talents. And it's been especially complicated for me as someone who spent her formative years living with a white European father in a nicer city than people with my skin color often do. But I think these days I've finally learned that these opportunities are important because they're the kinds of opportunities that my mother's family couldn't have had years ago, and that my dad as an immigrant never had the luxury of being offered either. So I'm here, I'm creating fantasies and cultures in a world as diverse as our own. And I'm proud to call myself a Black writer or a Mixed writer or whatever other adjectives need to be thrown in front of there to remind myself that I'm here building a name for myself and my family going forward. And I can be proud of the fact that I get to have opportunities that people like myself would have never had in generations before me. If you want to find more of me, my Twitter is a @wozenstein, and you can always keep an eye out for more Paizo work from me in the future. Shan Wolf (he/they) Hi everyone, I am a freelance game designer and contributing author on both the Pathfinder and Starfinder lines. My credits include Starfinder Bounty #4: Poacher’s Prize, the Adventure Toolbox for book 1 of the Starfinder Drift Hackers Adventure Path, the Starfinder Ports of Call hardcover, the Adventure Toolbox for book 2 of the Strength of Thousands Adventure Path, and the upcoming Lost Omens Highhelm sourcebook. My primary focus as a writer is in Black and Indigenous liberation narratives, monster creation, archetype creation, history and lore, and writing revolutionary and inherently anti-colonialist themes. Besides all that, I am a huge Pathfinder and Starfinder booster. I love these games as they help bring to life amazing fantasies about being heroes and saving the world, or universe, and that is always something I’m interested in doing, or just talking about in general. If you’re interested in my work, or hearing my views, feel free to take a look at my twitter @Fenrirs_Chosen and you will see an outspoken and passionate advocate for Black liberation, and making the tabletop space more open, safe, and inclusive. Erin Roberts (she/her) Happy Black History Month, y'all! I'm Erin and in addition to being a prose writer and a creative writing teacher, I've been a freelancer for Paizo for a couple of years—how time flies! I've written for a few Lost Omens books, bringing things like Impossible Cake (Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar), the Tunwalkers (Pathfinder Lost Omens Knights of Lastwall), reflections on time from the Ladies of Shadow tea and assassination guild (Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide), and a look at the artists and buildings of Golarion (Travel Guide) to their pages. I've also had fun in space, writing a bounty (Starfinder Bounty #3: A Green Place) and adding to vlaka lore (Starfinder Interstellar Species). Outside of the Paizoverse, I’ve written for D&D (Journeys Through The Radiant Citadel), World of Darkness (Hunter: The Reckoning Fifth Edition) and several awesome 3PP and indie projects (including Anansi’s Tapestry of Lives and Moonlight on Roseville Beach). What’s next? I’m a game writer for a future Foundry VTT project and you can catch my freelance work in projects like Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands, Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, and other fun places not yet revealed by the mythical powers that be. I also chat with a bunch of writing folks every week as one of the hosts of the Writing Excuses podcast, new every Sunday. I usually share whatever shenanigans I'm up to next on Twitter at @nirele, so feel free to follow me there! Tags: Authors, Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Uplifting voices for Black History Month 2023
Wednesday, February 15, 2023
We’re in the heart of Black History Month! In honor of Black excellence in the tabletop industry and beyond, here are some wonderful creators in our community to introduce themselves and share some of the amazing work they’ve done.
Isis Wozniakowska (she/her)
Hey all, Isis Wozniakowska here, I wrote Starfinder Society Scenario #3-21 and #5-04 as well as the upcoming Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10, and I've done work for Pathfinder Secrets of Magic, Pathfinder Dark Archive, Starfinder Interstellar Species, and more to come.
I got into this whole TTRPG writing thing by answering an open call for writers of color, which is not the kind of thing I can advise when a lot of people I know ask me how to get into this. It's something I think about a lot, how I sometimes feel like I've gotten more chances as a writer lately because I can answer these specialized calls for people who come from specific backgrounds. It's taken me months to come to terms with that possibility of having my own privileges recently as the creative world tries to diversify its talents. And it's been especially complicated for me as someone who spent her formative years living with a white European father in a nicer city than people with my skin color often do.
But I think these days I've finally learned that these opportunities are important because they're the kinds of opportunities that my mother's family couldn't have had years ago, and that my dad as an immigrant never had the luxury of being offered either. So I'm here, I'm creating fantasies and cultures in a world as diverse as our own. And I'm proud to call myself a Black writer or a Mixed writer or whatever other adjectives need to be thrown in front of there to remind myself that I'm here building a name for myself and my family going forward. And I can be proud of the fact that I get to have opportunities that people like myself would have never had in generations before me.
If you want to find more of me, my Twitter is a @wozenstein, and you can always keep an eye out for more Paizo work from me in the future.
Shan Wolf (he/they)
Hi everyone, I am a freelance game designer and contributing author on both the Pathfinder and Starfinder lines. My credits include Starfinder Bounty #4: Poacher’s Prize, the Adventure Toolbox for book 1 of the Starfinder Drift Hackers Adventure Path, the Starfinder Ports of Call hardcover, the Adventure Toolbox for book 2 of the Strength of Thousands Adventure Path, and the upcoming Lost Omens Highhelm sourcebook. My primary focus as a writer is in Black and Indigenous liberation narratives, monster creation, archetype creation, history and lore, and writing revolutionary and inherently anti-colonialist themes.
Besides all that, I am a huge Pathfinder and Starfinder booster. I love these games as they help bring to life amazing fantasies about being heroes and saving the world, or universe, and that is always something I’m interested in doing, or just talking about in general.
If you’re interested in my work, or hearing my views, feel free to take a look at my twitter @Fenrirs_Chosen and you will see an outspoken and passionate advocate for Black liberation, and making the tabletop space more open, safe, and inclusive.
Erin Roberts (she/her)
Happy Black History Month, y'all! I'm Erin and in addition to being a prose writer and a creative writing teacher, I've been a freelancer for Paizo for a couple of years—how time flies! I've written for a few Lost Omens books, bringing things like Impossible Cake (Pathfinder Lost Omens Grand Bazaar), the Tunwalkers (Pathfinder Lost Omens Knights of Lastwall), reflections on time from the Ladies of Shadow tea and assassination guild (Pathfinder Lost Omens Travel Guide), and a look at the artists and buildings of Golarion (Travel Guide) to their pages. I've also had fun in space, writing a bounty (Starfinder Bounty #3: A Green Place) and adding to vlaka lore (Starfinder Interstellar Species).
Outside of the Paizoverse, I’ve written for D&D (Journeys Through The Radiant Citadel), World of Darkness (Hunter: The Reckoning Fifth Edition) and several awesome 3PP and indie projects (including Anansi’s Tapestry of Lives and Moonlight on Roseville Beach). What’s next? I’m a game writer for a future Foundry VTT project and you can catch my freelance work in projects like Pathfinder Lost Omens Firebrands, Pathfinder Lost Omens Highhelm, and other fun places not yet revealed by the mythical powers that be. I also chat with a bunch of writing folks every week as one of the hosts of the Writing Excuses podcast, new every Sunday. I usually share whatever shenanigans I'm up to next on Twitter at @nirele, so feel free to follow me there!
Tags: Authors, Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8p?Explore-Third-Party-Kon-This-Weekend Explore Third Party Kon This Weekend! 2023-02-14T17:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-14T17:00:00.000-05:00 Explore Third Party Kon This Weekend! Tuesday, February 14, 2023 Third Party Kon is ready to celebrate the PaizoVerse! TPK is a celebration of the PaizoVerse's rapid expansion in all its forms during the President's Day weekend, February 17-20. As Paizo and other publishers announce their support for the Open RPG Creative License (ORC), there has never been a better time to make or try third party content. The mods at r/Pathfinder2e have seen the incredible growth of the community even before the age of the ORC, and TPK wants to recognize that. So how can you get involved? GAME MASTERS: Run a game for players! Our Game Masters page has a great selection of free third party scenarios made by outstanding authors like Mark Seifter of Roll for Combat, Shawn Pommier of Eldritch Osiris Games, and Matthew Ninness of Sinclair's Library! We also have instructions to sign players up to your game through RPGChronicles! Games will be hosted on the r/Pathfinder2e Discord server. We definitely recommend trying one of our scenarios out, or using a Foundry VTT-ready bounty available on Paizo’s website. Remember, you can use third party options in tables that still get credit for Organized Play using Adventure Mode if you’re running an Adventure Path, the Beginner Box, Standalone Adventures, or a One-Shot Product! If you need help designing a homebrew one shot, World Anvil is giving 40% off any yearly subscription using the code TPK2023 at checkout! PLAYERS: Try new options available from Pathfinder Infinite authors and masters! Our Players page lists many 3PP ancestries, items, archetypes, and even classes like the Legendary Medium from Legendary Games to try! As GMs register games with us, you’ll also be able to join them! Find your GM on the r/Pathfinder2e Discord TPK Channel, then make a character to play! EVERYONE: TPK is hosting a 24-hour stream from Friday to Monday of actual plays and creator panels, featuring some of the most well-known voices in the community! Visit our Stream Schedule to see what you might want to watch. You should also support the content creators making the PaizoVerse so diverse! We’ve teamed up with DriveThruRPG to sell a TPK MegaBundle of third party products! The sale will go live during the weekend on our website, so make sure you don’t miss out on your chance to get tons of great stuff at a steep discount. CREATORS: There’s still time to join the TPK MegaBundle sale and submit your own demo options for players! Visit the TPK Creators page to find out how! We’ll be accepting demo material up to February 15th. Start your adventure into the #PaizoVerse at #TPK23! Tags: Community, Conventions, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Explore Third Party Kon This Weekend!
Tuesday, February 14, 2023
Third Party Kon is ready to celebrate the PaizoVerse! TPK is a celebration of the PaizoVerse's rapid expansion in all its forms during the President's Day weekend, February 17-20. As Paizo and other publishers announce their support for the Open RPG Creative License (ORC), there has never been a better time to make or try third party content. The mods at r/Pathfinder2e have seen the incredible growth of the community even before the age of the ORC, and TPK wants to recognize that.
So how can you get involved?
GAME MASTERS: Run a game for players! Our Game Masters page has a great selection of free third party scenarios made by outstanding authors like Mark Seifter of Roll for Combat, Shawn Pommier of Eldritch Osiris Games, and Matthew Ninness of Sinclair's Library!
We also have instructions to sign players up to your game through RPGChronicles! Games will be hosted on the r/Pathfinder2e Discord server. We definitely recommend trying one of our scenarios out, or using a Foundry VTT-ready bounty available on Paizo’s website. Remember, you can use third party options in tables that still get credit for Organized Play using Adventure Mode if you’re running an Adventure Path, the Beginner Box, Standalone Adventures, or a One-Shot Product!
If you need help designing a homebrew one shot, World Anvil is giving 40% off any yearly subscription using the code TPK2023 at checkout!
PLAYERS: Try new options available from Pathfinder Infinite authors and masters! Our Players page lists many 3PP ancestries, items, archetypes, and even classes like the Legendary Medium from Legendary Games to try! As GMs register games with us, you’ll also be able to join them! Find your GM on the r/Pathfinder2e Discord TPK Channel, then make a character to play!
EVERYONE: TPK is hosting a 24-hour stream from Friday to Monday of actual plays and creator panels, featuring some of the most well-known voices in the community! Visit our Stream Schedule to see what you might want to watch.
You should also support the content creators making the PaizoVerse so diverse! We’ve teamed up with DriveThruRPG to sell a TPK MegaBundle of third party products! The sale will go live during the weekend on our website, so make sure you don’t miss out on your chance to get tons of great stuff at a steep discount.
CREATORS: There’s still time to join the TPK MegaBundle sale and submit your own demo options for players! Visit the TPK Creators page to find out how! We’ll be accepting demo material up to February 15th.
Start your adventure into the #PaizoVerse at #TPK23!
Tags: Community, Conventions, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8o?Pathfinder-Infinite-December-January-in-Review Pathfinder Infinite: December & January in Review 2023-02-14T15:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-14T15:00:00.000-05:00 Pathfinder Infinite: December & January in Review Tuesday, February 14, 2022 Hey Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite fans! I hope you’ll forgive us for not putting together a December-in-review blog last month; we had a lot going on in January. But fear not! We can cover both December and January in this month’s Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite roundup. December and January’s Top Performers Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that are appearing on this list for the first time. Congratulations to all the top performers, especially “Team+” and “Team Index” (I made up that second one), whose products absolutely swept the competition this month! Keep up the great work. The Abomination Vaults: Expanded (P2)• This resource for GMs compiles a broad selection of ideas and content to be integrated in your Abomination Vaults game. It includes: expanded Roseguard lore and Roseguard-related content throughout the vaults; expanded lore and side quests for Otari NPCs; additional content suggestions for each level of the vaults; and much, much more! This is a pay-what-you-want title. Abomination Vaults GM’s Guide (P2) The Abomination Vaults Adventure Path is an extensive campaign in a sprawling megadungeon. Your players need the right tools to navigate its dangers, and you need the tools in this GM’s Guide to keep the action moving! Inside, you’ll find new mini adventures that connect to the dungeon, new wandering factions, a checklist of all the side quests the campaign offers, and full stat blocks for every single monster on every single level! Clerics+ (P2)• Guided by the holiest (or most infernal) of powers, Clerics+ is an expansion to the cleric class that adds new ways to play a scholar of the divine in Pathfinder Second Edition! However you praise the gods, be it through steel, service, or secrets, Clerics+ is your ticket to playing the priests of Golarion in unbelievable new ways! Pick up this balanced, vanilla+ expansion to Pathfinder Second Edition today, and PRAISE BE TO THE GODS! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon. Everything Archetypes: Wilderness (P2)• Go deeper into Pathfinder Second Edition's archetypes in this expansion to several existing official archetypes from the team that brought you Everything Shields! This edition expands on 7 wilderness-themed archetypes—Animal Trainer, Bounty Hunter, Folklorist, Game Hunter, Herbalist, Horizon Walker, and Scout—providing more than 100 new feats available to dedicated characters! You’ll also find within the brand-new Treespeaker archetype, with a full page of lore and 26 archetype feats that let you embrace the fantasy of the arboreal warrior mystic, as well as 3 new focus spells and 3 new spells just for the primal tradition! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon. Everything Shields (P2) Take your shields to the next level! With the Everything Shields Pathfinder Second Edition supplement, you can create hundreds of customized shields and shield-focused characters. Do you want to play a swashbuckling, targe-wielding duelist whose shield can exude darkness on command when you get in a pinch? Or a mobile warrior who throws a mithral hoplon that returns after each attack? How about a witch who has etched a hex onto the face of their shield to make enemies falter when they attack? All of these options and many more are possible with Everything Shields! Impossible Lands+ (P2)• Where magic is mundane, where mutants roam, where the fey walk among men… the Impossible Lands are a region ripe with adventure. In this book, you’ll be able to choose dozens of new options to create the perfect character for these amazing settings, expanding on the stories told in Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands! Dare to do the impossible in this vanilla+ rulebook with more mechanics, more adventures, and more tales to be told by the creators of the Classes+ series. Push beyond the limits of reality and do something incredible today! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon. Kitsune of Golarion (P2) Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of the kitsune ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe with new heritages and ancestry feats, magic items, two new archetypes, and more. The Longnight Before Krampus (P2)• While Irrisen is no stranger to winter storms and tumultuous weather, the town of Tahm's Praerie finds their normal Longnight festivities kept indoors on account of an unprecedented storm. The villagers do their best to celebrate the evening with candles and hearts alight, providing refuge for you and your party among warm fire and company. However, despite the festivities, something darker than the night itself seems to loom ominously over the evening, and the festivities are soon interrupted by corrupted beings of unknown origin. You must venture against the coming storm and growing darkness to save the people of Tahm's Praerie from the unspeakable evils of Krampus and his dastardly minions. This is a pay-what-you-want product. Lost Omens Ancestries: Dragonkin (P2) Lost Omens Ancestries: Dragonkin presents a new versatile heritage that allows characters to tap into their draconic potential to breathe fire, grow deadly claws, take flight with powerful wings, and more. Minotaurs Unleashed: A Pathfinder 2nd Edition Ancestry (P2)• The minotaurs of Golarion are a powerful and brave people who have been overlooked for years, considered by some folk to be violent monsters and worshippers of the demon lord Baphomet. What many don’t know is that there are a number of diverse minotaur cultures across Golarion that seek a different path and have long since forged their own destiny. If you wish to play a powerful and cunning ancestry with a complex and untold history, Minotaurs Unleashed is for you! In this book, you’ll find the minotaur ancestry, with 6 heritages and 24 ancestry feats; lore from the three major centers of minotaur civilization—the Isles of Kortos, Vudra, and Iblydos; the new longhorn greataxe advanced weapon for the minotaur ancestry; a conversion of the Iblydan hero god Iapholi from Pathfinder First Edition; and hand-drawn illustrations displaying a variety of minotaurs from all across Golarion. Includes Pathbuilder 2e and Foundry VTT Support! NPC Index: Specialists (P2)• NPC Index Specialists furnishes you with over 100 NPCs that do the gritty work. Versatile alchemists, talented bards, swift monks, and deadly rogues! Here you'll find over 100 ready-made statblocks for specialist NPCs of every level, from a lowly apprentice to the most awe-inspiring grandmaster! Foundry VTT support coming soon! NPC Index: Spellcasters (P2)† Want to save yourself hours of prep time for your Pathfinder Second Edition game? This is where NPC Index: Spellcasters shines. Here you’ll find more than 100 ready-made stat blocks for spellcasting NPCs of every level, from a lowly apprentice to the most awe-inspiring archdruid. Whether you’re planning out future adventures, converting First Edition adventures to Second Edition, or throwing together interesting magical encounters on the fly, this book does the hard work so you can play more! Foundry VTT support also available. NPC Index: Undead Templates (P2) The undead are on the rise! This expansion to the NPC Index line features 20 simplified templates that can be added to any NPC from the Index line or monster from the Pathfinder Bestiary volumes to create a new, undead version. You’ll retain the essence of the base creature but flavor it with undead goodness—which means a zombie fighter is going to be very different from a zombie owlbear, but both are equally and easily possible using these templates. Includes Foundry VTT support. NPC Index: Warriors (P2)† Saving prep time for your Pathfinder Second Edition game is where NPC Index: Warriors shines. Here you’ll find more than 100 ready-made stat blocks for martial NPCs of every level, from a lowly squire to the most terrifying barbarian chieftain. Whether you’re planning out future adventures, converting First Edition adventures to Second Edition, or throwing together interesting martial encounters on the fly, this book does the hard work, so you don’t have to! Foundry VTT support also available. Oracles+ (P2)† From the authors of the bestselling Witches+, Oracles+ provides new mysteries, such as beast, fate, and song; new oracle feats, including trance, relic, and mystery cult feats; and suggested errata to help balance existing mysteries! It also includes the Awakened Oracle class archetype, where your minor curse is always active, but you gain an additional boost when you’re overwhelmed by your curse! Includes Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support. Witches+ (P2)† Witches+ offers new lessons, feats, class updates, and patrons, including streets, time, and spirits! The book even has new final lessons and suggested errata that helps balance existing patrons with adjustments to existing hexes! Includes Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support. Infinite, the OGL, and You Both Paizo and DriveThruRPG have received a lot of questions in the last month, mostly about how potential changes to the Open Game License might affect the Infinite marketplaces. I wanted to take this opportunity to address these both for creators and consumers. There have been no changes to the Open Game License, and creators can continue to publish material on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite under OGL version 1.0a, as has always been the case. At some point in the future, Paizo will transition to publishing under the forthcoming Open RPG Creative license (ORC) being developed by Azora Law. At that time, we may require publishers on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite to do the same but will provide notice and guidance to the community when we have more information. In the meantime, it’s business as usual. As the Pathfinder and Starfinder player bases grow in the light of renewed interests in the brands, community content programs like Infinite are going to be that much more important. We can’t wait to see what amazing content you all come up with. Mark Moreland Director of Brand Strategy Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Pathfinder Infinite: December & January in Review
Tuesday, February 14, 2022
Hey Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite fans! I hope you’ll forgive us for not putting together a December-in-review blog last month; we had a lot going on in January. But fear not! We can cover both December and January in this month’s Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite roundup.
December and January’s Top Performers
Titles are ranked by an average of units sold and revenue earned and presented in alphabetical order. Asterisks indicate titles that are appearing on this list for the first time. Congratulations to all the top performers, especially “Team+” and “Team Index” (I made up that second one), whose products absolutely swept the competition this month! Keep up the great work.
The Abomination Vaults: Expanded (P2)•
This resource for GMs compiles a broad selection of ideas and content to be integrated in your Abomination Vaults game. It includes: expanded Roseguard lore and Roseguard-related content throughout the vaults; expanded lore and side quests for Otari NPCs; additional content suggestions for each level of the vaults; and much, much more! This is a pay-what-you-want title.Abomination Vaults GM’s Guide (P2)
The Abomination Vaults Adventure Path is an extensive campaign in a sprawling megadungeon. Your players need the right tools to navigate its dangers, and you need the tools in this GM’s Guide to keep the action moving! Inside, you’ll find new mini adventures that connect to the dungeon, new wandering factions, a checklist of all the side quests the campaign offers, and full stat blocks for every single monster on every single level!Clerics+ (P2)•
Guided by the holiest (or most infernal) of powers, Clerics+ is an expansion to the cleric class that adds new ways to play a scholar of the divine in Pathfinder Second Edition! However you praise the gods, be it through steel, service, or secrets, Clerics+ is your ticket to playing the priests of Golarion in unbelievable new ways! Pick up this balanced, vanilla+ expansion to Pathfinder Second Edition today, and PRAISE BE TO THE GODS! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon.Everything Archetypes: Wilderness (P2)•
Go deeper into Pathfinder Second Edition's archetypes in this expansion to several existing official archetypes from the team that brought you Everything Shields! This edition expands on 7 wilderness-themed archetypes—Animal Trainer, Bounty Hunter, Folklorist, Game Hunter, Herbalist, Horizon Walker, and Scout—providing more than 100 new feats available to dedicated characters! You’ll also find within the brand-new Treespeaker archetype, with a full page of lore and 26 archetype feats that let you embrace the fantasy of the arboreal warrior mystic, as well as 3 new focus spells and 3 new spells just for the primal tradition! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon.Everything Shields (P2)
Take your shields to the next level! With the Everything Shields Pathfinder Second Edition supplement, you can create hundreds of customized shields and shield-focused characters. Do you want to play a swashbuckling, targe-wielding duelist whose shield can exude darkness on command when you get in a pinch? Or a mobile warrior who throws a mithral hoplon that returns after each attack? How about a witch who has etched a hex onto the face of their shield to make enemies falter when they attack? All of these options and many more are possible with Everything Shields!Impossible Lands+ (P2)•
Where magic is mundane, where mutants roam, where the fey walk among men… the Impossible Lands are a region ripe with adventure. In this book, you’ll be able to choose dozens of new options to create the perfect character for these amazing settings, expanding on the stories told in Pathfinder Lost Omens Impossible Lands! Dare to do the impossible in this vanilla+ rulebook with more mechanics, more adventures, and more tales to be told by the creators of the Classes+ series. Push beyond the limits of reality and do something incredible today! Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support coming soon.Kitsune of Golarion (P2)
Kitsune of Golarion unlocks the full potential of the kitsune ancestry, detailing kitsune from every corner of the globe with new heritages and ancestry feats, magic items, two new archetypes, and more.The Longnight Before Krampus (P2)•
While Irrisen is no stranger to winter storms and tumultuous weather, the town of Tahm's Praerie finds their normal Longnight festivities kept indoors on account of an unprecedented storm. The villagers do their best to celebrate the evening with candles and hearts alight, providing refuge for you and your party among warm fire and company. However, despite the festivities, something darker than the night itself seems to loom ominously over the evening, and the festivities are soon interrupted by corrupted beings of unknown origin. You must venture against the coming storm and growing darkness to save the people of Tahm's Praerie from the unspeakable evils of Krampus and his dastardly minions. This is a pay-what-you-want product.Lost Omens Ancestries: Dragonkin (P2)
Lost Omens Ancestries: Dragonkin presents a new versatile heritage that allows characters to tap into their draconic potential to breathe fire, grow deadly claws, take flight with powerful wings, and more.Minotaurs Unleashed: A Pathfinder 2nd Edition Ancestry (P2)•
The minotaurs of Golarion are a powerful and brave people who have been overlooked for years, considered by some folk to be violent monsters and worshippers of the demon lord Baphomet. What many don’t know is that there are a number of diverse minotaur cultures across Golarion that seek a different path and have long since forged their own destiny. If you wish to play a powerful and cunning ancestry with a complex and untold history, Minotaurs Unleashed is for you! In this book, you’ll find the minotaur ancestry, with 6 heritages and 24 ancestry feats; lore from the three major centers of minotaur civilization—the Isles of Kortos, Vudra, and Iblydos; the new longhorn greataxe advanced weapon for the minotaur ancestry; a conversion of the Iblydan hero god Iapholi from Pathfinder First Edition; and hand-drawn illustrations displaying a variety of minotaurs from all across Golarion. Includes Pathbuilder 2e and Foundry VTT Support!NPC Index: Specialists (P2)•
NPC Index Specialists furnishes you with over 100 NPCs that do the gritty work. Versatile alchemists, talented bards, swift monks, and deadly rogues! Here you'll find over 100 ready-made statblocks for specialist NPCs of every level, from a lowly apprentice to the most awe-inspiring grandmaster! Foundry VTT support coming soon!NPC Index: Spellcasters (P2)†
Want to save yourself hours of prep time for your Pathfinder Second Edition game? This is where NPC Index: Spellcasters shines. Here you’ll find more than 100 ready-made stat blocks for spellcasting NPCs of every level, from a lowly apprentice to the most awe-inspiring archdruid. Whether you’re planning out future adventures, converting First Edition adventures to Second Edition, or throwing together interesting magical encounters on the fly, this book does the hard work so you can play more! Foundry VTT support also available.NPC Index: Undead Templates (P2)
The undead are on the rise! This expansion to the NPC Index line features 20 simplified templates that can be added to any NPC from the Index line or monster from the Pathfinder Bestiary volumes to create a new, undead version. You’ll retain the essence of the base creature but flavor it with undead goodness—which means a zombie fighter is going to be very different from a zombie owlbear, but both are equally and easily possible using these templates. Includes Foundry VTT support.NPC Index: Warriors (P2)†
Saving prep time for your Pathfinder Second Edition game is where NPC Index: Warriors shines. Here you’ll find more than 100 ready-made stat blocks for martial NPCs of every level, from a lowly squire to the most terrifying barbarian chieftain. Whether you’re planning out future adventures, converting First Edition adventures to Second Edition, or throwing together interesting martial encounters on the fly, this book does the hard work, so you don’t have to! Foundry VTT support also available.Oracles+ (P2)†
From the authors of the bestselling Witches+, Oracles+ provides new mysteries, such as beast, fate, and song; new oracle feats, including trance, relic, and mystery cult feats; and suggested errata to help balance existing mysteries! It also includes the Awakened Oracle class archetype, where your minor curse is always active, but you gain an additional boost when you’re overwhelmed by your curse! Includes Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support.Witches+ (P2)†
Witches+ offers new lessons, feats, class updates, and patrons, including streets, time, and spirits! The book even has new final lessons and suggested errata that helps balance existing patrons with adjustments to existing hexes! Includes Foundry VTT and Pathbuilder support.
Infinite, the OGL, and You
Both Paizo and DriveThruRPG have received a lot of questions in the last month, mostly about how potential changes to the Open Game License might affect the Infinite marketplaces. I wanted to take this opportunity to address these both for creators and consumers.
There have been no changes to the Open Game License, and creators can continue to publish material on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite under OGL version 1.0a, as has always been the case.
At some point in the future, Paizo will transition to publishing under the forthcoming Open RPG Creative license (ORC) being developed by Azora Law. At that time, we may require publishers on Pathfinder and Starfinder Infinite to do the same but will provide notice and guidance to the community when we have more information.
In the meantime, it’s business as usual.
As the Pathfinder and Starfinder player bases grow in the light of renewed interests in the brands, community content programs like Infinite are going to be that much more important. We can’t wait to see what amazing content you all come up with.
Mark Moreland
Director of Brand StrategyTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Infinite, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Starfinder, Starfinder Infinite, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8j?Starfinder-FAQ-and-Errata-Update Starfinder FAQ and Errata Update 2023-02-10T15:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-10T15:00:00.000-05:00 Starfinder FAQ and Errata Update Friday, February 10, 2023 We recently updated our Starfinder FAQ and Errata with a slew of new entries! You can see all these errata entries by expanding their dropdown, and they’re also fully searchable using the search bar at the top of the page. These updates include some necessary errata for Starfinder Interstellar Species, including updated rules for Devastating Throw and Draconic Shot. Game Masters will want to read the new rules on the crush special ability from Alien Archive. And a bunch of gear has been changed to bring it in line with our other options, including thasphalt firearms, xenolash whips being a bit less oppressive in play, and a clarification that caustoject weapons can inject biohacks! There’s also a major change to how weapon fusions work, changing the previous 24-hour cycle time on swapping these out to only 10 minutes. The team discussed it, and we realized that these were inhibiting the use of fusion seals in most games and especially in Organized Play, so we’ve adjusted these rules to be far more accommodating. There are other changes and, as always, we welcome more questions, comments, and feedback on our Rules Questions forums. Also, feel free to discuss all these errata entries right here on the blog! Special thanks to our Organized Play Program for highlighting many of these ongoing issues, and stay tuned to our blog for updates concerning the legality of these new options. Dustin Knight Starfinder Developer Tags: Errata, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Starfinder FAQ and Errata Update
Friday, February 10, 2023
]]>
We recently updated our Starfinder FAQ and Errata with a slew of new entries! You can see all these errata entries by expanding their dropdown, and they’re also fully searchable using the search bar at the top of the page.
These updates include some necessary errata for Starfinder Interstellar Species, including updated rules for Devastating Throw and Draconic Shot. Game Masters will want to read the new rules on the crush special ability from Alien Archive. And a bunch of gear has been changed to bring it in line with our other options, including thasphalt firearms, xenolash whips being a bit less oppressive in play, and a clarification that caustoject weapons can inject biohacks!
There’s also a major change to how weapon fusions work, changing the previous 24-hour cycle time on swapping these out to only 10 minutes. The team discussed it, and we realized that these were inhibiting the use of fusion seals in most games and especially in Organized Play, so we’ve adjusted these rules to be far more accommodating.
There are other changes and, as always, we welcome more questions, comments, and feedback on our Rules Questions forums. Also, feel free to discuss all these errata entries right here on the blog!
Special thanks to our Organized Play Program for highlighting many of these ongoing issues, and stay tuned to our blog for updates concerning the legality of these new options.
Dustin Knight
Starfinder Developerhttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8h?Starfinder-Society-Year-6-Announcement Starfinder Society: Year 6 Announcement 2023-02-09T13:30:00.000-05:00 2023-02-09T13:30:00.000-05:00 Starfinder Society: Year 6 Announcement Thursday, February 9, 2023 Illustration by Samuel Jr. The Starfinder Society stands proud and united, yet trouble gathers on the horizon. When a mysterious and powerful criminal syndicate, dubbed the Organization, enacts a bloody attack within the Pact Worlds, First Seeker Ehu Hadif vows to bring an end to their predations. Yet, this attack is only the opening salvo in a plot destined to doom millions. It’s up to you to unravel the plans of the Organization and bring the group’s leaders to justice! Will the Starfinder Society emerge triumphant, or will the Organization be our downfall? Welcome to the Year of Fortune’s Fall! Illustration by Samuel Jr There are seven Starfinder Society Scenarios that directly influence the Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot. Like last year, each will be marked with a special metaplot icon on the cover. The Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot kicks off with Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Fortune’s Fall, an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Mahpiya. This exciting scenario is centered on a gala celebration hosted by the Grand Museum of Qabarat on Castrovel. This scenario debuts at PaizoCon 2023, alongside one other Starfinder Society Scenario. With the launch of Year 6, the following species will become “always available” for Organized Play: gnoll, hanakan, kiirinta, quorlu, raxilite, and shimreen. Four other species will become purchasable with Achievement Points: kobold, psyacnoid, scyphozoan, and uplifted bear. Additionally, many species that were showcased in Starfinder Interstellar Species, such as contemplative and urog, will have their AcP cost reduced. Finally, I'm pleased to announce that candidates for the upcoming First Seeker election have been selected. We’re excited to reveal these candidates and their ambitious goals in the near future. Stay tuned! Take care, Starfinders! May fortune favor you. Jessica Catalan Starfinder Society Developer New players can read about the story so far and start playing Starfinder Society today at StarfinderSociety.club. Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Starfinder Society: Year 6 Announcement
Thursday, February 9, 2023
The Starfinder Society stands proud and united, yet trouble gathers on the horizon. When a mysterious and powerful criminal syndicate, dubbed the Organization, enacts a bloody attack within the Pact Worlds, First Seeker Ehu Hadif vows to bring an end to their predations. Yet, this attack is only the opening salvo in a plot destined to doom millions. It’s up to you to unravel the plans of the Organization and bring the group’s leaders to justice! Will the Starfinder Society emerge triumphant, or will the Organization be our downfall?
Welcome to the Year of Fortune’s Fall!
There are seven Starfinder Society Scenarios that directly influence the Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot. Like last year, each will be marked with a special metaplot icon on the cover.
The Year of Fortune’s Fall metaplot kicks off with Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Fortune’s Fall, an adventure for 1st- to 4th-level characters written by Mahpiya. This exciting scenario is centered on a gala celebration hosted by the Grand Museum of Qabarat on Castrovel. This scenario debuts at PaizoCon 2023, alongside one other Starfinder Society Scenario.
With the launch of Year 6, the following species will become “always available” for Organized Play: gnoll, hanakan, kiirinta, quorlu, raxilite, and shimreen. Four other species will become purchasable with Achievement Points: kobold, psyacnoid, scyphozoan, and uplifted bear. Additionally, many species that were showcased in Starfinder Interstellar Species, such as contemplative and urog, will have their AcP cost reduced.
Finally, I'm pleased to announce that candidates for the upcoming First Seeker election have been selected. We’re excited to reveal these candidates and their ambitious goals in the near future. Stay tuned!
Take care, Starfinders! May fortune favor you.
Jessica Catalan
Starfinder Society DeveloperNew players can read about the story so far and start playing Starfinder Society today at StarfinderSociety.club.
Tags: Organized Play, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8g?Celebrate-Open-Gaming-with-Starfinder Celebrate Open Gaming with Starfinder! 2023-02-03T12:40:00.000-05:00 2023-02-03T12:40:00.000-05:00 Celebrate Open Gaming with Starfinder! Friday, February 3, 2023 Paizo continues celebrating the spirit of Open Gaming with 25% off select Starfinder releases that introduce you to the Pact Worlds! Explore the world now with a free PDF copy of Starfinder Pact Worlds. Simply add the PDF to your cart, and use discount code OPENGAMING at checkout. Offer valid through 11:59 PM PST, February 18, 2023. Want to try Starfinder yourself (or pick up a copy for a friend)? Use code OPENGAMING for 25% off any or all of the following through 11:59 PM PST, February 18, 2023. Starfinder Beginner Box — $39.99 $29.99 Explore the Galaxy! Launch into an exciting universe of science fantasy adventure with the Starfinder Beginner Box! Create and customize your own futuristic hero to play through challenging adventures and action-packed battles against dangerous foes! With streamlined rules, this deluxe boxed set is the ideal introduction to the Starfinder Roleplaying Game, an imaginative tabletop roleplaying game for 2-7 players. Welcome to the best launchpad for a lifetime of pulse-pounding adventure among the stars—the only limit is your imagination! Starfinder Core Rulebook (hardcover) — $59.99 $44.99 Starfinder Core Rulebook Pocket Edition (softcover) — $19.99 $14.99 Blast off into a galaxy of adventure with the Starfinder Roleplaying Game! Step into your powered armor and grab your magic-infused laser rifle as you investigate the mysteries of a weird universe with your bold starship crew. Will you delve for lost artifacts in the ruins of alien temples? Strap on rune-enhanced armor and a laser rifle to battle undead empires in fleets of bone ships, or defend colonists from a swarm of ravenous monsters? Maybe you'll hack into the mainframe of a god-run corporation, or search the stars for clues to the secret history of the universe or brand new planets to explore. Whether you're making first contact with new cultures on uncharted worlds or fighting to survive in the neon-lit back alleys of Absalom Station, you and your team will need all your wits, combat skill, and magic to make it through. But most of all, you'll need each other. This massive 528-page hardcover rulebook is the essential centerpiece of the Starfinder Roleplaying Game, with rules for character creation, magic, gear, and more—everything you need to play Starfinder as either a player or Game Master! The next great adventure in science fantasy roleplaying takes off here, and the Starfinder Core Rulebook is your ticket to a lifetime of adventure amid the stars! Whether you join us in the Desna's Path galaxy or explore the stars with one of the many other publishers producing great stories in their own settings, we thank you for supporting Open Gaming! Tags: Community, Paizo, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Celebrate Open Gaming with Starfinder!
Friday, February 3, 2023
Paizo continues celebrating the spirit of Open Gaming with 25% off select Starfinder releases that introduce you to the Pact Worlds! Explore the world now with a free PDF copy of Starfinder Pact Worlds. Simply add the PDF to your cart, and use discount code OPENGAMING at checkout. Offer valid through 11:59 PM PST, February 18, 2023.
Want to try Starfinder yourself (or pick up a copy for a friend)? Use code OPENGAMING for 25% off any or all of the following through 11:59 PM PST, February 18, 2023.
Starfinder Beginner Box —
Explore the Galaxy! Launch into an exciting universe of science fantasy adventure with the Starfinder Beginner Box! Create and customize your own futuristic hero to play through challenging adventures and action-packed battles against dangerous foes! With streamlined rules, this deluxe boxed set is the ideal introduction to the Starfinder Roleplaying Game, an imaginative tabletop roleplaying game for 2-7 players. Welcome to the best launchpad for a lifetime of pulse-pounding adventure among the stars—the only limit is your imagination!$39.99$29.99
Starfinder Core Rulebook (hardcover) —
$59.99$44.99
Starfinder Core Rulebook Pocket Edition (softcover) —$19.99$14.99Blast off into a galaxy of adventure with the Starfinder Roleplaying Game! Step into your powered armor and grab your magic-infused laser rifle as you investigate the mysteries of a weird universe with your bold starship crew. Will you delve for lost artifacts in the ruins of alien temples? Strap on rune-enhanced armor and a laser rifle to battle undead empires in fleets of bone ships, or defend colonists from a swarm of ravenous monsters? Maybe you'll hack into the mainframe of a god-run corporation, or search the stars for clues to the secret history of the universe or brand new planets to explore. Whether you're making first contact with new cultures on uncharted worlds or fighting to survive in the neon-lit back alleys of Absalom Station, you and your team will need all your wits, combat skill, and magic to make it through. But most of all, you'll need each other.
This massive 528-page hardcover rulebook is the essential centerpiece of the Starfinder Roleplaying Game, with rules for character creation, magic, gear, and more—everything you need to play Starfinder as either a player or Game Master! The next great adventure in science fantasy roleplaying takes off here, and the Starfinder Core Rulebook is your ticket to a lifetime of adventure amid the stars!
Whether you join us in the Desna's Path galaxy or explore the stars with one of the many other publishers producing great stories in their own settings, we thank you for supporting Open Gaming!
Tags: Community, Paizo, Starfinder, Starfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8f?February-2023-Organized-Play-Monthly-Update February 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update 2023-02-02T17:30:00.000-05:00 2023-02-02T17:30:00.000-05:00 February 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update Thursday, February 2, 2023 Digital Adventure Releases The following adventures will be available on February 22, 2023. Pathfinder Society Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask• Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord's Abode• Starfinder Society Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve• Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Between •part of a subscription The Replacement of Ehu Hadif Two weeks ago, the deadline for First Seeker Candidates officially passed! Our submissions for this event are now closed. We had a total of 95 candidates submitted to be the new First Seeker, which is incredible! The most represented species were androids, vesk, humans, halflings and skittermanders. At press time, we’re still selecting the final candidates for the election. Once we’ve made our choices and contacted the winners, we’ll be sure to email everybody who submitted to inform them. I can’t wait to announce the candidates! Rules Updates Orcs in Organized Play As we announced two weeks ago, in honor of the upcoming ORC License, orcs are now a freely available player ancestry in Pathfinder and Starfinder Society! For Pathfinder (second edition), the boon has been retired, and a free resurrection has been added to previously-purchased boons. We did the same thing when we made leshys freely available in 2021, so we’re delighted to provide this benefit now. In Starfinder Society, previously-created orcs may use the boon to take a +2 bonus to any one stat, as described in the Starfinder Society FAQ. Any players who purchased these boons in January of 2023, prior to this change, may request a refund of their Achievement Points by emailing orgplayreportingerrors@paizo.com. Boons purchased before January 1 will not be refunded. Finally, despite the ambiguity in the initial announcement, orcs will not be a playable race in Pathfinder Society (first edition). While we appreciate the community’s enthusiasm, the depiction of orcs in first edition content does not reflect our current values. Our portrayal of this ancestry has evolved over the years, and their initial presentation as aggressive, callous, and domineering isn’t something we want to encourage in our Organized Play programs. I offer my personal apologies for the lack of clarity in the first announcement; I wrote it very quickly during a very busy time without fully considering the implications, and I won’t make that mistake again. Dragonkin in Starfinder Society Recently, we were made aware that while most dragonkin choose to form a partner bond, canonically it’s not required. Additionally, asking players to choose their dragonkin’s partner from character creation presents a burden to newer players, or those who want to tell the story of forming that bond with a fellow adventurer. As a result, we’re updating the SFS rules on dragonkin to read as follows, effective immediately: When you create a dragonkin character, you may select another player’s character to form your partner bond with. Mark down that character’s Organized Play number on your character sheet. If that character is permanently slain, then you can select a new partner bond by marking a new Organized Play number on your character sheet between sessions. A dragonkin adventurer may choose not to form a partner bond, or they may choose to form one later in their adventuring career. Once a partner is selected, they may not be replaced unless they are permanently slain. Starfinder Society 1-99: The Scoured Stars Invasion One last treat for the Starfinder community! Our multi-table interactive specials are some of the most sought-after scenarios, and they often serve as a draw for conventions around the world. Recently we’ve been allowing the special to be replayed a limited number of times, but when our first Starfinder interactive was released, this was not the case. Based on community feedback, we’re happy to correct this. Starfinder Society Special 1-99: The Scoured Stars Invasion may now be played or GMed twice, one in each level range (1-4 and 5-8). This means you can earn a total of four Chronicle Sheets if you play and GM the special twice at different tiers. As always, a character may not have multiple chronicle sheets from the same adventure. This text will be added to the product page immediately; due to production timelines, it is unlikely to be added to the PDF anytime soon, but it is on our list to update. If you’re interested in taking advantage of this immediately, the play-by-post community will be offering the special at their upcoming convention, Outpost VI! Sanctioning Update New Content This month saw the release of the Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Adventure Path compilation, and with it, the sanctioning for the adventure! Much like Abomination Vaults, the chronicle sheets and boons are nearly identical to those published with the first printings. Otherwise, it’s been a quiet month for new content! Work is underway on sanctioning Treasure Vault, which should be ready for street date next month. After that we’re hoping to get starting on Lost Omens: Firebrands, the Drift Crisis Case Files for Starfinder, and are starting to eye up the Drift Hackers and Gatewalkers Adventure Paths. Age of Ashes Three years ago, we posted our sanctioning documents for the first Adventure Path for Pathfinder second edition: Age of Ashes. Completing this document was actually one of my first tasks as a brand-new Paizo employee! As a reward for completing the various volumes of this adventure, players were granted new boons which unlocked various character options. As it’s been three years, we thought it was time to open these up a little further. Players may now spend their Achievement Points on brand-new boons to unlock certain options from the Age of Ashes Adventure Path! These boons unlock the uncommon character options that haven’t already been printed in other rulebooks. The full text of the boons is available on the Pathfinder FAQ page. Enjoy the new content! Pathfinder Beginner Box When the Pathfinder Beginner Box was released, our hope was that it would be used as-is to introduce players to both the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and Pathfinder Society. As such, we sanctioned it with specific rules regarding character creation, and we provided an extra Achievement Point incentive to run it. Now that it’s out of its initial release, it’s clear that while it’s great for introducing players to Pathfinder, the players who come to us for Pathfinder Society are more interested in exploring other options. As such, we’re updating the sanctioning rules. The Beginner Box is now sanctioned fully in campaign mode, meaning that players may bring any characters the GM permits to play the adventure. These can be characters built using the Beginner Box rules, but do not have to be. Additionally, while it will remain repeatable, we’ll be reducing the Achievement Point reward to the normal value: 4 for players and 8 for GMs. We hope this better serves the community’s needs! To anticipate the question, we won’t be making the same change for the Starfinder Beginner Box. Due to the significantly altered ruleset in this product, it wouldn’t be feasible to expect a standard Starfinder character to be any easier to use in the Beginner Box. GM Recognition GM Ranks Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours! This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Nova for SFS. 5th Nova (SFS): Marcel de Groot Conventions This month we began recruiting volunteers for major conventions! Applications are now open for PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indianapolis. If you’re interested in GMing at either of these shows, we’d love to have you! We’ve also got a calendar full of local conventions around the world, which you should check out to see what’s happening in your area! This month I’m excited to attend DunDraCon in Santa Clara, California and GenghisCon in Denver, Colorado. Getting to meet the local communities is one of the best parts of my job, so if you’re near either of those shows, come out and say hi! Okay, that’s quite enough from me. Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! and go play some orcs! Alex SpeidelOrganized Play Coordinator February 2023 Organized Play Monthly Update
Thursday, February 2, 2023
]]>Digital Adventure Releases
The following adventures will be available on February 22, 2023.
Pathfinder Society
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-09: Killer in the Golden Mask•
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-10: Arclord's Abode•Starfinder Society
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-14: Ghost Level Delve•
Starfinder Bounty #7: Voyage on the River Between•part of a subscription
The Replacement of Ehu Hadif
Two weeks ago, the deadline for First Seeker Candidates officially passed! Our submissions for this event are now closed.
We had a total of 95 candidates submitted to be the new First Seeker, which is incredible! The most represented species were androids, vesk, humans, halflings and skittermanders. At press time, we’re still selecting the final candidates for the election. Once we’ve made our choices and contacted the winners, we’ll be sure to email everybody who submitted to inform them. I can’t wait to announce the candidates!
Rules Updates
Orcs in Organized Play
As we announced two weeks ago, in honor of the upcoming ORC License, orcs are now a freely available player ancestry in Pathfinder and Starfinder Society! For Pathfinder (second edition), the boon has been retired, and a free resurrection has been added to previously-purchased boons. We did the same thing when we made leshys freely available in 2021, so we’re delighted to provide this benefit now. In Starfinder Society, previously-created orcs may use the boon to take a +2 bonus to any one stat, as described in the Starfinder Society FAQ.
Any players who purchased these boons in January of 2023, prior to this change, may request a refund of their Achievement Points by emailing orgplayreportingerrors@paizo.com. Boons purchased before January 1 will not be refunded.
Finally, despite the ambiguity in the initial announcement, orcs will not be a playable race in Pathfinder Society (first edition). While we appreciate the community’s enthusiasm, the depiction of orcs in first edition content does not reflect our current values. Our portrayal of this ancestry has evolved over the years, and their initial presentation as aggressive, callous, and domineering isn’t something we want to encourage in our Organized Play programs. I offer my personal apologies for the lack of clarity in the first announcement; I wrote it very quickly during a very busy time without fully considering the implications, and I won’t make that mistake again.
Dragonkin in Starfinder Society
Recently, we were made aware that while most dragonkin choose to form a partner bond, canonically it’s not required. Additionally, asking players to choose their dragonkin’s partner from character creation presents a burden to newer players, or those who want to tell the story of forming that bond with a fellow adventurer.
As a result, we’re updating the SFS rules on dragonkin to read as follows, effective immediately:
When you create a dragonkin character, you may select another player’s character to form your partner bond with. Mark down that character’s Organized Play number on your character sheet. If that character is permanently slain, then you can select a new partner bond by marking a new Organized Play number on your character sheet between sessions.
A dragonkin adventurer may choose not to form a partner bond, or they may choose to form one later in their adventuring career. Once a partner is selected, they may not be replaced unless they are permanently slain.
Starfinder Society 1-99: The Scoured Stars Invasion
One last treat for the Starfinder community! Our multi-table interactive specials are some of the most sought-after scenarios, and they often serve as a draw for conventions around the world. Recently we’ve been allowing the special to be replayed a limited number of times, but when our first Starfinder interactive was released, this was not the case. Based on community feedback, we’re happy to correct this.
Starfinder Society Special 1-99: The Scoured Stars Invasion may now be played or GMed twice, one in each level range (1-4 and 5-8). This means you can earn a total of four Chronicle Sheets if you play and GM the special twice at different tiers. As always, a character may not have multiple chronicle sheets from the same adventure. This text will be added to the product page immediately; due to production timelines, it is unlikely to be added to the PDF anytime soon, but it is on our list to update.
If you’re interested in taking advantage of this immediately, the play-by-post community will be offering the special at their upcoming convention, Outpost VI!
Sanctioning Update
New Content
This month saw the release of the Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Adventure Path compilation, and with it, the sanctioning for the adventure! Much like Abomination Vaults, the chronicle sheets and boons are nearly identical to those published with the first printings. Otherwise, it’s been a quiet month for new content! Work is underway on sanctioning Treasure Vault, which should be ready for street date next month. After that we’re hoping to get starting on Lost Omens: Firebrands, the Drift Crisis Case Files for Starfinder, and are starting to eye up the Drift Hackers and Gatewalkers Adventure Paths.
Age of Ashes
Three years ago, we posted our sanctioning documents for the first Adventure Path for Pathfinder second edition: Age of Ashes. Completing this document was actually one of my first tasks as a brand-new Paizo employee! As a reward for completing the various volumes of this adventure, players were granted new boons which unlocked various character options.
As it’s been three years, we thought it was time to open these up a little further. Players may now spend their Achievement Points on brand-new boons to unlock certain options from the Age of Ashes Adventure Path! These boons unlock the uncommon character options that haven’t already been printed in other rulebooks. The full text of the boons is available on the Pathfinder FAQ page. Enjoy the new content!
Pathfinder Beginner Box
When the Pathfinder Beginner Box was released, our hope was that it would be used as-is to introduce players to both the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and Pathfinder Society. As such, we sanctioned it with specific rules regarding character creation, and we provided an extra Achievement Point incentive to run it.
Now that it’s out of its initial release, it’s clear that while it’s great for introducing players to Pathfinder, the players who come to us for Pathfinder Society are more interested in exploring other options. As such, we’re updating the sanctioning rules. The Beginner Box is now sanctioned fully in campaign mode, meaning that players may bring any characters the GM permits to play the adventure. These can be characters built using the Beginner Box rules, but do not have to be. Additionally, while it will remain repeatable, we’ll be reducing the Achievement Point reward to the normal value: 4 for players and 8 for GMs. We hope this better serves the community’s needs!
To anticipate the question, we won’t be making the same change for the Starfinder Beginner Box. Due to the significantly altered ruleset in this product, it wouldn’t be feasible to expect a standard Starfinder character to be any easier to use in the Beginner Box.
GM Recognition
GM Ranks
Whether stars, novas, or glyphs, achieving a 5 ranking in any program involves a substantial amount of time. To achieve the 5th milestone, a GM must run 150 games, of which at least 50 must be unique scenarios and 10 special scenarios, as well as run between one and three games for venture-captains (program dependent). A conservative estimate of the time needed to reach the 5th milestone is 650 hours!
This month, we had one GM earn their 5th Nova for SFS.
5th Nova (SFS): Marcel de Groot
Conventions
This month we began recruiting volunteers for major conventions! Applications are now open for PaizoCon Online and Gen Con Indianapolis. If you’re interested in GMing at either of these shows, we’d love to have you!
We’ve also got a calendar full of local conventions around the world, which you should check out to see what’s happening in your area! This month I’m excited to attend DunDraCon in Santa Clara, California and GenghisCon in Denver, Colorado. Getting to meet the local communities is one of the best parts of my job, so if you’re near either of those shows, come out and say hi!
Okay, that’s quite enough from me. Until next time - Explore! Report! Cooperate! and go play some orcs!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play Coordinatorhttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8e?So-You-Wanna-Try-Out-Pathfinder-Bundle So You Wanna Try Out Pathfinder Bundle! 2023-02-02T14:05:00.000-05:00 2023-02-02T14:05:00.000-05:00 So You Wanna Try Out Pathfinder Bundle! Thursday, February 2, 2022 You didn’t have to be an Infinite Eye psychic to know this was coming. We’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to create a special digital deal to help you and your friends play Pathfinder and support a great open-source cause! What is a Humble Bundle? Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, including to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get! Inside our bundle, you’ll find a complete set of digital assets to get you started playing Pathfinder—and inspire you to keep playing for many adventures to come. This includes over $400 in rulebooks, world guides, adventures, and accessories—with top-notch high-fantasy lore and art. All save one of the products in this bundle are PDFs that you can redeem with codes at the Paizo Store, one code per tier. There are three tiers to this bundle, starting at $5 and ending with a digital $25 tier. The last tier also includes the Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults for Foundry VTT! To top it off, a portion of your purchase goes to Code for America, which helps municipalities and government institutions implement programs based on open-source software solutions. Watch the full Code for America TED Talk The first tier starts at $5 and includes a code for seven PDFs worth over $100, including: Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box (PDF) Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook (PDF) Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary (PDF) Pathfinder Character Sheet Pack (PDF) Pathfinder Player Character Pawn Collection (PDF) Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide (PDF) Pathfinder One-Shot #1: Sundered Waves (PDF) For $15, you'll also get the PDFs in the above tier, plus a code for 11 more PDFs worth over $150, including: Pathfinder Bestiary 2 (PDF) Pathfinder Lost Omens Character Guide (PDF) Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide (PDF) Pathfinder Adventure: Troubles in Otari (PDF) Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Troubles in Otari (PDF/JPG) Pathfinder Society Intro #1: The Second Confirmation (PDF) Pathfinder Society Intro #2: United in Purpose (PDF) Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Ancient Dungeon (PDF/JPG) Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Swamp (PDF/JPG) Pathfinder Flip-Mat: City Sites Multipack (PDF/JPG) Pathfinder Adventure: Little Trouble in Big Absalom (PDF) In the third tier, for $25, you'll get codes for the above tiers, plus a code for additional 10 PDFs, and codes for the Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults PDF and Abomination Vaults Foundry VTT Bundle, worth another $150! Pathfinder Secrets of Magic (PDF) Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide (PDF) Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults Pawn Collection (PDF) Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide NPC Pawn Collection (PDF) Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Boundless Wonder (PDF) Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Arcane Library (PDF/JPG) Pathfinder Pawns: Traps & Treasures Pawn Collection (PDF) Pathfinder Adventure: A Fistful of Flowers (PDF) Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (Foundry VTT) PDFs are associated with your account when redeemed. They are watermarked with the redeemer’s email address when they are downloaded. So, if you want to give these as gifts, you will likely want to give the codes themselves. Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout. Thank you for playing Pathfinder! —The Paizo Team Support our So You Wanna Try Out Pathfinder Bundle! Tags: Humble Bundle, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition So You Wanna Try Out Pathfinder Bundle!
Thursday, February 2, 2022
You didn’t have to be an Infinite Eye psychic to know this was coming. We’ve partnered with our friends at Humble Bundle to create a special digital deal to help you and your friends play Pathfinder and support a great open-source cause!
What is a Humble Bundle? Bundles are limited-time collections of games, books, software, and more. Simply pay what you want and choose where your money goes, including to charity. Most bundles come in tiers starting at only $1—but the more you give, the more you get!
Inside our bundle, you’ll find a complete set of digital assets to get you started playing Pathfinder—and inspire you to keep playing for many adventures to come. This includes over $400 in rulebooks, world guides, adventures, and accessories—with top-notch high-fantasy lore and art.
All save one of the products in this bundle are PDFs that you can redeem with codes at the Paizo Store, one code per tier. There are three tiers to this bundle, starting at $5 and ending with a digital $25 tier. The last tier also includes the Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults for Foundry VTT!
To top it off, a portion of your purchase goes to Code for America, which helps municipalities and government institutions implement programs based on open-source software solutions.
Watch the full Code for America TED Talk
The first tier starts at $5 and includes a code for seven PDFs worth over $100, including:
- Pathfinder Second Edition Beginner Box (PDF)
- Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook (PDF)
- Pathfinder Second Edition Bestiary (PDF)
- Pathfinder Character Sheet Pack (PDF)
- Pathfinder Player Character Pawn Collection (PDF)
- Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide (PDF)
- Pathfinder One-Shot #1: Sundered Waves (PDF)
For $15, you'll also get the PDFs in the above tier, plus a code for 11 more PDFs worth over $150, including:
- Pathfinder Bestiary 2 (PDF)
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Character Guide (PDF)
- Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide (PDF)
- Pathfinder Adventure: Troubles in Otari (PDF)
- Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Troubles in Otari (PDF/JPG)
- Pathfinder Society Intro #1: The Second Confirmation (PDF)
- Pathfinder Society Intro #2: United in Purpose (PDF)
- Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Ancient Dungeon (PDF/JPG)
- Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Swamp (PDF/JPG)
- Pathfinder Flip-Mat: City Sites Multipack (PDF/JPG)
- Pathfinder Adventure: Little Trouble in Big Absalom (PDF)
In the third tier, for $25, you'll get codes for the above tiers, plus a code for additional 10 PDFs, and codes for the Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults PDF and Abomination Vaults Foundry VTT Bundle, worth another $150!
- Pathfinder Secrets of Magic (PDF)
- Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide (PDF)
- Pathfinder: Abomination Vaults Pawn Collection (PDF)
- Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide NPC Pawn Collection (PDF)
- Pathfinder Society Intro: Year of Boundless Wonder (PDF)
- Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Arcane Library (PDF/JPG)
- Pathfinder Pawns: Traps & Treasures Pawn Collection (PDF)
- Pathfinder Adventure: A Fistful of Flowers (PDF)
- Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults (Foundry VTT)
PDFs are associated with your account when redeemed. They are watermarked with the redeemer’s email address when they are downloaded. So, if you want to give these as gifts, you will likely want to give the codes themselves.
Humble Bundles offer great deals and support great causes. Purchasers get a say in how much of their donation goes to each participant at checkout.
Thank you for playing Pathfinder!
—The Paizo Team
Support our So You Wanna Try Out Pathfinder Bundle!
Tags: Humble Bundle, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8d?Varmints-in-the-Vaults Varmints in the Vaults 2023-02-01T15:00:00.000-05:00 2023-02-01T15:00:00.000-05:00 Varmints in the Vaults Wedensday, February 1, 2023 “Whoa, you’re here already? Are you the Magaambya delegation or the group from the Pathfinder Society? Either way, one moment.” The white-scaled kobold snatches a bandolier off a nearby hook and hurriedly fills its pouches with a variety of rune-covered daggers from a nearby weapons rack. “This is the weapons vault, as I’m sure you’ve noticed. Normally I’d have greeted you before you got this far, but Ziik’s having a little bit of a rat problem and the boss says if the ratcatcher can’t deal with the rats himself, then he should probably just let the rats eat him so she can find a better ratcatcher.” With the bandolier filled with weapons slung over her shoulder, the little kobold quickly tucks a variety of other items into her kilt pockets before thrusting one tiny hand into the air seeking a handshake. “Name’s Purepurin. I’m the steward of the vaults, and it’s my job to keep the items clean, the inventory logs up to date, and the ratcatchers uneaten. Please follow me for the time being and, uh, stay about ten feet back and try really hard not to step in front of me if it looks like I’m pointing at something.” Instructions complete, Purepurin quickly leads the way through a twisting series of tunnels. The farther the little kobold gets from the weapons vault, the louder and angrier a constant, chittering squeal becomes, a rising crescendo of rodent clicks and cries. Purepurin holds up a hand as she reaches a sharp corner, the dancing light of distant torches indicating a much larger room just around it. “Ziik really is a good ratcatcher, you know.” Purepurin calmly runs her fingers across the hilts of the daggers sheathed in her bandolier until her grip settles on a ghastly blade, its hilt wrapped in what appears to be the dead gray skin of some humanoid creature. She draws it carefully. “The problem is that sometimes one of the really smart rats nibbles through the protective fulus and gets ahold of an item in the special vaults that turns it into something that’s just a little bit too much for your average kobold. Case in point…” Purepurin’s gesture to peek around the corner leads to a truly horrific sight: hundreds of black-furred, white-tailed, red-eyed rats swarm around a large stone well with a wooden steeple. Perched atop the steeple is a lone elderly kobold, desperately fending off the occasional encroaching rodent with a gnarled walking stick. Seething through the furry hordes, a slick wet mass displaces rats like a leviathan shedding water as a rodent of unprecedented size emerges. Still-smoking scars and other remnants of recent battles indicate that the monstrous creature has mounted several unsuccessful attempts to devour the stranded ratcatcher, whose panicked expression seems to indicate that he has no more tricks sufficient to stall the beast. With a quick wink, Purepurin hurls her dagger into the middle of the roiling mass of rats, skewering one with a single flick of her wrist. The other rats around the skewered target begin to squeal and scatter as a foul stench emanates from the slain rodent. As the smaller rats choke and disperse, Purepurin calmly walks into the relatively clear space, drawing an item from her pocket. The oversized rat turns toward the new challenger, placing its back to the old kobold and the well upon which he perches. With a wicked grin, Purepurin levels what looks to be an elaborate seashell at the rat. “Bang.” A geyser of twisting water suddenly erupts from the “seashell,” slamming into the rat monster with enough force to send the creature up and over the edge of the well and down into its murky depths. Wasting no time, Purepurin gestures furiously for assistance, chasing rats away from a heavy, steel-shod wooden cover clearly intended for the well. With some assistance from Ziik and the visitors, Purepurin seals the well, the rat monster apparently unable to climb up quickly enough to secure its escape. The old ratcatcher, Ziik, grumbles about needing to march all the way to vault 47 for clean water. As he places protective paper talismans around the edge of the well, Purepurin recovers her thrown dagger and smiles widely. “Too much for the average kobold, but not for yours truly!” Purepurin calmly waves a beckoning claw as she exits the room through a different doorway than the one she used to enter. “If you think that was scary, wait’ll you meet the boss!” Thrower’s Bandolier — Item 3 Conjuration, Invested, Magical Price 60 gp Usage worn; Bulk L This bandolier is covered in straps and pouches capable of holding up to 2 Bulk of one-handed thrown weapons. A thrower's bandolier has a +1 weapon potency rune etched into it, and it can be etched with runes as though it were a one-handed thrown weapon. When you invest the thrower’s bandolier, you can attune it to all the weapons sheathed in it (this ends any previous attunements made with the bandolier). Whenever you draw a weapon from the bandolier, the bandolier's runes are replicated onto that weapon. Any runes already on the weapon are suppressed, and any runes previously replicated to a different weapon in this way are removed, returning it to normal. Activate [two-actions] envision, Interact; Effect All weapons attuned to the bandolier, not including any weapons you're currently wielding, return to the bandolier. Ghast Stiletto — Item 3 Magical, Necromancy Price 60 gp Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk L A ghast stiletto is a +1 dagger wrapped in the still-undead skin of a ghast. While you wield the dagger, you gain a +1 status bonus to all saves against paralysis. Activate [one-action] command, Interact (divine, necromancy, olfactory); Frequency once per hour; Effect The ghast stiletto afflicts the next living target struck by the dagger with a terrible wound that emits the foul stench of the grave. For the next minute, the target creature, as well as any creatures within a 10-foot emanation, must succeed at a DC 16 Fortitude save or become sickened 1 (plus slowed 1 as long as it's sickened on a critical failure). While within the emanation, the creature takes a –2 circumstance penalty to saves against disease and to recover from the sickened condition. A creature that succeeds at its save is temporarily immune for 1 minute. Craft Requirements The initial raw materials must include skin from a ghast. Torrent Spellgun (Lesser) — Item 3 Attack, Consumable, Evocation, Magical, Spellgun, Water Price 12 gp Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk L Activate [two-actions] Interact, Strike Carved of seashell, a torrent spellgun is damp to the touch, and seaweed wraps around its grip. You Activate the spellgun by aiming it at one creature and making your choice of a spell attack roll or a firearm attack roll against the target’s AC. This spellgun has a range increment of 30 feet. The spellgun blasts a powerful jet of water that deals 2d6 bludgeoning damage, then disintegrates into sand. Critical Success The target takes double damage and is knocked back 10 feet. Success The target takes full damage and is knocked back 5 feet. Michael SayreDesign Manager Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition Varmints in the Vaults
Wedensday, February 1, 2023
“Whoa, you’re here already? Are you the Magaambya delegation or the group from the Pathfinder Society? Either way, one moment.”
The white-scaled kobold snatches a bandolier off a nearby hook and hurriedly fills its pouches with a variety of rune-covered daggers from a nearby weapons rack.
“This is the weapons vault, as I’m sure you’ve noticed. Normally I’d have greeted you before you got this far, but Ziik’s having a little bit of a rat problem and the boss says if the ratcatcher can’t deal with the rats himself, then he should probably just let the rats eat him so she can find a better ratcatcher.”
With the bandolier filled with weapons slung over her shoulder, the little kobold quickly tucks a variety of other items into her kilt pockets before thrusting one tiny hand into the air seeking a handshake.
“Name’s Purepurin. I’m the steward of the vaults, and it’s my job to keep the items clean, the inventory logs up to date, and the ratcatchers uneaten. Please follow me for the time being and, uh, stay about ten feet back and try really hard not to step in front of me if it looks like I’m pointing at something.”
Instructions complete, Purepurin quickly leads the way through a twisting series of tunnels. The farther the little kobold gets from the weapons vault, the louder and angrier a constant, chittering squeal becomes, a rising crescendo of rodent clicks and cries. Purepurin holds up a hand as she reaches a sharp corner, the dancing light of distant torches indicating a much larger room just around it.
“Ziik really is a good ratcatcher, you know.” Purepurin calmly runs her fingers across the hilts of the daggers sheathed in her bandolier until her grip settles on a ghastly blade, its hilt wrapped in what appears to be the dead gray skin of some humanoid creature. She draws it carefully. “The problem is that sometimes one of the really smart rats nibbles through the protective fulus and gets ahold of an item in the special vaults that turns it into something that’s just a little bit too much for your average kobold. Case in point…”
Purepurin’s gesture to peek around the corner leads to a truly horrific sight: hundreds of black-furred, white-tailed, red-eyed rats swarm around a large stone well with a wooden steeple. Perched atop the steeple is a lone elderly kobold, desperately fending off the occasional encroaching rodent with a gnarled walking stick. Seething through the furry hordes, a slick wet mass displaces rats like a leviathan shedding water as a rodent of unprecedented size emerges. Still-smoking scars and other remnants of recent battles indicate that the monstrous creature has mounted several unsuccessful attempts to devour the stranded ratcatcher, whose panicked expression seems to indicate that he has no more tricks sufficient to stall the beast.
With a quick wink, Purepurin hurls her dagger into the middle of the roiling mass of rats, skewering one with a single flick of her wrist. The other rats around the skewered target begin to squeal and scatter as a foul stench emanates from the slain rodent. As the smaller rats choke and disperse, Purepurin calmly walks into the relatively clear space, drawing an item from her pocket. The oversized rat turns toward the new challenger, placing its back to the old kobold and the well upon which he perches. With a wicked grin, Purepurin levels what looks to be an elaborate seashell at the rat.
“Bang.”
A geyser of twisting water suddenly erupts from the “seashell,” slamming into the rat monster with enough force to send the creature up and over the edge of the well and down into its murky depths. Wasting no time, Purepurin gestures furiously for assistance, chasing rats away from a heavy, steel-shod wooden cover clearly intended for the well. With some assistance from Ziik and the visitors, Purepurin seals the well, the rat monster apparently unable to climb up quickly enough to secure its escape. The old ratcatcher, Ziik, grumbles about needing to march all the way to vault 47 for clean water. As he places protective paper talismans around the edge of the well, Purepurin recovers her thrown dagger and smiles widely.
“Too much for the average kobold, but not for yours truly!” Purepurin calmly waves a beckoning claw as she exits the room through a different doorway than the one she used to enter. “If you think that was scary, wait’ll you meet the boss!”
Thrower’s Bandolier — Item 3
Conjuration, Invested, Magical
Price 60 gp
Usage worn; Bulk LThis bandolier is covered in straps and pouches capable of holding up to 2 Bulk of one-handed thrown weapons. A thrower's bandolier has a +1 weapon potency rune etched into it, and it can be etched with runes as though it were a one-handed thrown weapon. When you invest the thrower’s bandolier, you can attune it to all the weapons sheathed in it (this ends any previous attunements made with the bandolier). Whenever you draw a weapon from the bandolier, the bandolier's runes are replicated onto that weapon. Any runes already on the weapon are suppressed, and any runes previously replicated to a different weapon in this way are removed, returning it to normal.
Activate [two-actions] envision, Interact; Effect All weapons attuned to the bandolier, not including any weapons you're currently wielding, return to the bandolier.
Ghast Stiletto — Item 3
Magical, Necromancy
Price 60 gp
Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk LA ghast stiletto is a +1 dagger wrapped in the still-undead skin of a ghast. While you wield the dagger, you gain a +1 status bonus to all saves against paralysis.
Activate [one-action] command, Interact (divine, necromancy, olfactory); Frequency once per hour; Effect The ghast stiletto afflicts the next living target struck by the dagger with a terrible wound that emits the foul stench of the grave. For the next minute, the target creature, as well as any creatures within a 10-foot emanation, must succeed at a DC 16 Fortitude save or become sickened 1 (plus slowed 1 as long as it's sickened on a critical failure). While within the emanation, the creature takes a –2 circumstance penalty to saves against disease and to recover from the sickened condition. A creature that succeeds at its save is temporarily immune for 1 minute.
Craft Requirements The initial raw materials must include skin from a ghast.
Torrent Spellgun (Lesser) — Item 3
Attack, Consumable, Evocation, Magical, Spellgun, Water
Price 12 gp
Usage held in 1 hand; Bulk L
Activate [two-actions] Interact, StrikeCarved of seashell, a torrent spellgun is damp to the touch, and seaweed wraps around its grip. You Activate the spellgun by aiming it at one creature and making your choice of a spell attack roll or a firearm attack roll against the target’s AC. This spellgun has a range increment of 30 feet. The spellgun blasts a powerful jet of water that deals 2d6 bludgeoning damage, then disintegrates into sand.
Critical Success The target takes double damage and is knocked back 10 feet.
Success The target takes full damage and is knocked back 5 feet.
Michael Sayre
Design ManagerTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8c?On-the-Other-Side-of-the-Gate On the Other Side of the Gate 2023-01-31T13:00:00.000-05:00 2023-01-31T13:00:00.000-05:00 On the Other Side of the Gate Tuesday, January 31, 2022 Those of you excited for a campaign filled with strange shenanigans have no doubt been paying attention to the Gatewalkers Adventure Path. If you get to play in this one, you’ve probably already picked up your free Gatewalkers Player’s Guide and started coming up with your character. If you’re planning to GM this campaign, you’re probably eagerly awaiting the first volume to hit your local game store’s shelves so you can get to prepping. As you all prepare to dive into the mysteries, dangers, and friendships this Adventure Path offers, let’s take a look behind the curtain and get to know the authors who brought this trio of adventures to life. James Sutter Pathfinder Adventure Path #187: The Seventh Arch When Gatewalkers architect Patrick Renie hit me up to write for this AP, I didn’t think I had time. Then I heard the pitch, and I made time. As the author of the Pathfinder First Edition Campaign Settings The First World and Distant Worlds, as well as a former Starfinder Creative Director, I've always been a sucker for Pathfinder’s fey realm and other planets, and the chance to write an adventure that visits both was simply irresistible. As soon as I finished writing, I immediately turned around and launched my own Gatewalkers campaign, and I hope your group does as much laughing and screaming as ours! If you’re interested in checking out more of my TTRPG work, you can find it at jameslsutter.com —but my big release this year is actually a young adult romance novel! Darkhearts is a queer rom-com all about falling in love with the boy who stole your chance at rock stardom, and you can preorder it now! Jason Keeley Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the Stars Hi, folks! I'm Jason Keeley, game developer person and author of the second volume of the Gatewalkers Adventure Path. I'm a big fan of "weird stuff" in adventures, so I was happy to contribute to an Adventure Path that is thematically linked to the "weird stuff" book, Pathfinder Dark Archive. Moreso than any other adventure I've written for Paizo, “They Watched the Stars” is a bit of a road trip, so I got to include a bunch of strange vignettes the players can encounter on their way from point A to point B. I would love to tell you more, but I don't want to spoil the surprises in store. I will say that one of my favorite bits is the initial encounter with a halfling ghost pirate captain and the new construct I designed that protects their derelict ship. How's that for a tease? If you want to talk about more weird stuff with me, you can find me on Twitter @herzwesten. And maybe check out my free game about cereal mascots, This Compleat Breakfast, available on itch.io here! James Jacobs Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless Spires Hi there! I’m James Jacobs, one of Paizo’s creative directors and the author of the Gatewalkers finale! I came to this project pretty late in the process but was delighted to join forces with “TEAM J.” The plot of Gatewalkers—with its ties to elves, aliens, and conspiracies—was really up my alley, but particularly the last adventure that heads into the frozen north. Horror and cold go together perfectly, and being able to dive into inspirations like Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, John Carpenter’s The Thing, and the quest for the Northwest Passage in Dan Simmons’s The Terror was a blast to say the least, as well as drawing inspiration from real-world explorations like Shackleton’s search for the south pole. And finally, extra thanks to Michael Sayre for help and for getting things started with the heart of this particular story; I hope I did it justice! Tags: Authors, Community, Gatewalkers, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition On the Other Side of the Gate
Tuesday, January 31, 2022
Those of you excited for a campaign filled with strange shenanigans have no doubt been paying attention to the Gatewalkers Adventure Path. If you get to play in this one, you’ve probably already picked up your free Gatewalkers Player’s Guide and started coming up with your character. If you’re planning to GM this campaign, you’re probably eagerly awaiting the first volume to hit your local game store’s shelves so you can get to prepping.
As you all prepare to dive into the mysteries, dangers, and friendships this Adventure Path offers, let’s take a look behind the curtain and get to know the authors who brought this trio of adventures to life.
James Sutter
Pathfinder Adventure Path #187: The Seventh ArchWhen Gatewalkers architect Patrick Renie hit me up to write for this AP, I didn’t think I had time. Then I heard the pitch, and I made time. As the author of the Pathfinder First Edition Campaign Settings The First World and Distant Worlds, as well as a former Starfinder Creative Director, I've always been a sucker for Pathfinder’s fey realm and other planets, and the chance to write an adventure that visits both was simply irresistible. As soon as I finished writing, I immediately turned around and launched my own Gatewalkers campaign, and I hope your group does as much laughing and screaming as ours!
If you’re interested in checking out more of my TTRPG work, you can find it at jameslsutter.com —but my big release this year is actually a young adult romance novel! Darkhearts is a queer rom-com all about falling in love with the boy who stole your chance at rock stardom, and you can preorder it now!
Jason Keeley
Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the StarsHi, folks! I'm Jason Keeley, game developer person and author of the second volume of the Gatewalkers Adventure Path. I'm a big fan of "weird stuff" in adventures, so I was happy to contribute to an Adventure Path that is thematically linked to the "weird stuff" book, Pathfinder Dark Archive. Moreso than any other adventure I've written for Paizo, “They Watched the Stars” is a bit of a road trip, so I got to include a bunch of strange vignettes the players can encounter on their way from point A to point B.
I would love to tell you more, but I don't want to spoil the surprises in store. I will say that one of my favorite bits is the initial encounter with a halfling ghost pirate captain and the new construct I designed that protects their derelict ship. How's that for a tease? If you want to talk about more weird stuff with me, you can find me on Twitter @herzwesten. And maybe check out my free game about cereal mascots, This Compleat Breakfast, available on itch.io here!
James Jacobs
Pathfinder Adventure Path #189: Dreamers of the Nameless SpiresHi there! I’m James Jacobs, one of Paizo’s creative directors and the author of the Gatewalkers finale! I came to this project pretty late in the process but was delighted to join forces with “TEAM J.” The plot of Gatewalkers—with its ties to elves, aliens, and conspiracies—was really up my alley, but particularly the last adventure that heads into the frozen north. Horror and cold go together perfectly, and being able to dive into inspirations like Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, John Carpenter’s The Thing, and the quest for the Northwest Passage in Dan Simmons’s The Terror was a blast to say the least, as well as drawing inspiration from real-world explorations like Shackleton’s search for the south pole. And finally, extra thanks to Michael Sayre for help and for getting things started with the heart of this particular story; I hope I did it justice!
Tags: Authors, Community, Gatewalkers, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si8b?Gardens-of-Plenty Gardens of Plenty 2023-01-26T13:30:00.000-05:00 2023-01-26T13:30:00.000-05:00 Gardens of Plenty Thursday, January 26, 2023 Nixret sighed as she entered the expansive aviary, and immediately cringed at the cacophony of bird calls assaulting her pounding head. She—a kobold with mottled emerald and jade scales, dressed in the plain grays of a Pathfinder initiate—stood before one of the Scrolls’ many gardens of wonder, this one devoted to the production of feather tokens. Her task this morning, much to her dismay, was to tend to it. On her own. “It’s not even a real garden,” she complained to no one in particular. “Why do they even call it that?” She took a seat on a decorative boulder, nursing her hangover from the night before, one she had yet to even sleep off. It made every merry tweet and call from the countless birds grate on her ears like sharp wire. “Oh, we have to sneak out for Longnight, they said. It’s completely different in the Foreign Quarter, they said. Master Shaine will never know, they said. Cowards. Didn’t even show up, and now I’m the one with extra chores.” Illustration by Valeria Lutfullina She gave a brief snort. She’d been so sure that she’d been utterly silent when returning from the revelry of Longnight, but even as she surreptitiously crawled back into the initiate barracks, there Kreighton Shaine had been, sitting right on the other side of the open window. As initiates were not allowed off the grounds of the Grand Lodge except with permission, she had expected a scolding. What she got instead was a series of impromptu haiku, about birds of all things. And just when she thought the eccentric Dean of the Scrolls was going to let her off without even a warning, she was assigned to tend to… this. Alone. Nixret sighed again as she looked at the countless birds before her. Usually, it took half a dozen initiates to tend to a garden of wonder. All alone, the exhausted kobold dragged herself off her rock and began to collect feathers from the ground. The Scrollmaster, strange as he could be at times, was always very clear that the materials gathered from the gardens were to be carefully collected and sorted, as Pathfinder agents being sent out on missions would often receive them as gifts to help keep them safe. As she methodically picked up feather after molted feather, her thoughts turned to two and a half years ago, when Nixret, starry-eyed, had dreamed of being one of those adventurers. She’d left the Sewer Dragons to join the Society, practically shouting to the other kobolds that she’d become a legend by the time they saw her again. She chuckled to herself, picking a golden feather from the floor. “I expected danger and discovery, not lectures and chores. Yet here I am, cleaning up after a flock of enchanted birds.” She shook her head, though immediately regretted the act thanks to her headache. “Hardly the work of a hero-to-be.” Still. She knew that the agents really did depend on these materials, and even though the task was tedious, she did not want to let them down. After all, within the coming year she would have her own initiation, and then, finally, she would be the one on heroic adventures, her name read across the lands in one of the Chronicles. Perhaps, though, until then she’d think twice about sneaking out. Master Shaine might be permissive, but he also has an infuriating tendency to be exactly where you least expect to find him. And tending to squawking birds while hungover was worse than any angry lecture she could have imagined. Josh Foster Pathfinder Society Developer Illustration by Carol Azevedo Heya! So, people have asked me “Will Pathfinder Society players get to use the Gardens of Wonder from Pathfinder Treasure Vault? The answer is “You already have been the entire time!” In PFS, every character gets some free consumables for each adventure, usually from the Pathfinder school they’re associated with (Scrolls, Spells, or Swords). These consumables don’t carry over between adventures and are provided so that adventuring Pathfinders always have a little something extra beyond their standard kit, essentially drawing from Gardens built and funded by the Pathfinder Society. The expiration date and non-transferrable nature of the consumables help encourage PCs to use them rather than selling them into the “weapon upgrade slush fund” or holding onto them so long that they pass the level range in which the items would be most useful. What this all means is that Pathfinder Society players got Gardens of Wonder way before everyone else! “But Mike,” you say, “School consumables in PFS last the whole session and Garden of Wonder consumables last a day, how could these be the same thing?” The answer is that the limitations on how long the consumables last is something that every GM can, and should, feel free to adjust for their players based on the type of game they run. PFS consumables essentially last for “one 4-hour gaming session”, a unit of measurement that’s standardized for organized play, but which doesn’t necessarily work with the playstyles or gaming sensibilities of every home group. If the way PFS handles things fits the adventures you run better than the default presented, use it! They’re the same concept with the same goals, just tailored for different purposes. Don’t be afraid to make the game your own! Michael Sayre Design Manager Paizo Inc. Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios Gardens of Plenty
Thursday, January 26, 2023
Nixret sighed as she entered the expansive aviary, and immediately cringed at the cacophony of bird calls assaulting her pounding head. She—a kobold with mottled emerald and jade scales, dressed in the plain grays of a Pathfinder initiate—stood before one of the Scrolls’ many gardens of wonder, this one devoted to the production of feather tokens. Her task this morning, much to her dismay, was to tend to it. On her own.
“It’s not even a real garden,” she complained to no one in particular. “Why do they even call it that?” She took a seat on a decorative boulder, nursing her hangover from the night before, one she had yet to even sleep off. It made every merry tweet and call from the countless birds grate on her ears like sharp wire. “Oh, we have to sneak out for Longnight, they said. It’s completely different in the Foreign Quarter, they said. Master Shaine will never know, they said. Cowards. Didn’t even show up, and now I’m the one with extra chores.”
Illustration by Valeria Lutfullina She gave a brief snort. She’d been so sure that she’d been utterly silent when returning from the revelry of Longnight, but even as she surreptitiously crawled back into the initiate barracks, there Kreighton Shaine had been, sitting right on the other side of the open window. As initiates were not allowed off the grounds of the Grand Lodge except with permission, she had expected a scolding. What she got instead was a series of impromptu haiku, about birds of all things. And just when she thought the eccentric Dean of the Scrolls was going to let her off without even a warning, she was assigned to tend to… this. Alone.
Nixret sighed again as she looked at the countless birds before her. Usually, it took half a dozen initiates to tend to a garden of wonder. All alone, the exhausted kobold dragged herself off her rock and began to collect feathers from the ground.
The Scrollmaster, strange as he could be at times, was always very clear that the materials gathered from the gardens were to be carefully collected and sorted, as Pathfinder agents being sent out on missions would often receive them as gifts to help keep them safe. As she methodically picked up feather after molted feather, her thoughts turned to two and a half years ago, when Nixret, starry-eyed, had dreamed of being one of those adventurers. She’d left the Sewer Dragons to join the Society, practically shouting to the other kobolds that she’d become a legend by the time they saw her again.
She chuckled to herself, picking a golden feather from the floor. “I expected danger and discovery, not lectures and chores. Yet here I am, cleaning up after a flock of enchanted birds.” She shook her head, though immediately regretted the act thanks to her headache. “Hardly the work of a hero-to-be.”
Still. She knew that the agents really did depend on these materials, and even though the task was tedious, she did not want to let them down. After all, within the coming year she would have her own initiation, and then, finally, she would be the one on heroic adventures, her name read across the lands in one of the Chronicles.
Perhaps, though, until then she’d think twice about sneaking out. Master Shaine might be permissive, but he also has an infuriating tendency to be exactly where you least expect to find him. And tending to squawking birds while hungover was worse than any angry lecture she could have imagined.
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer
Heya!
So, people have asked me “Will Pathfinder Society players get to use the Gardens of Wonder from Pathfinder Treasure Vault? The answer is “You already have been the entire time!” In PFS, every character gets some free consumables for each adventure, usually from the Pathfinder school they’re associated with (Scrolls, Spells, or Swords). These consumables don’t carry over between adventures and are provided so that adventuring Pathfinders always have a little something extra beyond their standard kit, essentially drawing from Gardens built and funded by the Pathfinder Society. The expiration date and non-transferrable nature of the consumables help encourage PCs to use them rather than selling them into the “weapon upgrade slush fund” or holding onto them so long that they pass the level range in which the items would be most useful.
What this all means is that Pathfinder Society players got Gardens of Wonder way before everyone else! “But Mike,” you say, “School consumables in PFS last the whole session and Garden of Wonder consumables last a day, how could these be the same thing?” The answer is that the limitations on how long the consumables last is something that every GM can, and should, feel free to adjust for their players based on the type of game they run. PFS consumables essentially last for “one 4-hour gaming session”, a unit of measurement that’s standardized for organized play, but which doesn’t necessarily work with the playstyles or gaming sensibilities of every home group. If the way PFS handles things fits the adventures you run better than the default presented, use it! They’re the same concept with the same goals, just tailored for different purposes. Don’t be afraid to make the game your own!
Michael Sayre
Design Manager
Paizo Inc.Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si86?Find-Your-Path-January-2023 Find Your Path, January 2023 2023-01-25T12:30:00.000-05:00 2023-01-25T12:30:00.000-05:00 Find Your Path, January 2023 Wednesday, January 15, 2023 Happy New Releases Day! Many of you may have a new or renewed interest in Pathfinder and Starfinder, so I’d like to tell you about all our new open gaming products, including subscriptions and special offers, and point you toward what’s coming next! You will find our Release Schedule here, with products listed month-by-month, along with associated subscriptions. It’s a great way to plan the future of your games. Also, you can explore our 14 Paizo Subscriptions and see what we’re releasing up to 9 months out. Like crowdfunding campaigns, by committing in advance, subscriptions help us estimate print runs, so we incentivize you to subscribe with a complimentary PDF. Ownership of a digital product lets you sync with our digital partners, who can then also offer a discount on their products and services. If you’re interested in multiple subscriptions, you can save more with our Paizo Advantage offering. Subscriptions are important us, but so are game and bookstores, and we know they’re important to you, too. We already have a great list of retailers who’ve opted into our Where to Buy page, but now is a great time to help the list grow! Feel free to ask your favorite local game or bookstore about their programs and see if they’re interested in joining our list. So, what’s new? You can find the list of New Physical Product Releases in January in our Forum Announcements channel. These announcements happen monthly and let you know when your card will be charged and when shipping starts. By the way, we now take American Express and are exploring non-credit card options. We currently have an Open Gaming Sale offering 25% off print copies of the Pathfinder Beginner Box, Pathfinder Core Rulebook 2nd Edition (4th printing with errata), and Pathfinder Core Rulebook Pocket Edition to help you get started with the Pathfinder RPG. Don’t miss the free PDF copy of the Lost Omens World Guide to help you get to know our setting. Simply add the PDF to your cart and use discount code OPENGAMING at checkout. Offer valid through midnight PST, January 25, 2023 This month we have two special non-subscription offers— Pathfinder Adventure Path: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix and Pathfinder Adventure Path: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Special Edition. These are hardcover compilations of the original three-volume campaign that takes your party from level 11 to 20 as you compete in the Ruby Phoenix Tournament! The Pathfinder Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Battle Cards are also available as 4" x 6" sturdy printed cards and a digital version. This product is also part of the Pathfinder Accessories Subscription. In the Pathfinder Rulebooks Subscription, the paranormal-themed Pathfinder Dark Archive, with the popular new psychic and thaumaturge classes, is available if you subscribe now! And next month, you can “venture into the vault” with Pathfinder Treasure Vault! This 224-page hardcover rulebook presents a hoard of new gear from nearly every category of equipment and magic item available in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, while also introducing entirely new categories of items! The Pathfinder Lost Omens Special Edition Subscription is a relatively new offering that catches up on previously released setting hardcovers. These deluxe special editions are bound in faux leather with metallic debossing and a bound-in ribbon bookmark! Pathfinder Lost Omens: Ancestry Guide Special Edition with geniekin, androids, kitsune, sprites, and more, is the new release this month. You can look forward to Pathfinder Lost Omens: The Mwangi Expanse Special Edition next month. Paizo was founded on our Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscription and we’re excited that Pathfinder Adventure Path #187: The Seventh Arch (Gatewalkers 1 of 3) is now available! The Gatewalkers Adventure Path starts at level 1 and is a three-part monthly campaign in which a team of paranormal investigators unravel the mystery behind a mass amnesic episode which left them with lost memories and strange powers. The adventure continues with the Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the Stars (Gatewalkers 2 of 3) next month. This Adventure Path is intended to have Foundry VTT support at the time of writing this blog. Download the free Player’s Guide PDF and get started building characters today! But wait, there’s more! This month, the Pathfinder Society Subscription offers the Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star's Fate and the Starfinder Society Subscription offers Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten. These PDF-only adventures are perfect for a solid one-shot gaming session, regardless of whether you officially join Organized Play. But officially joining is a great deal! Retailers who host Organized Play get all the Quests, Bounties, and Scenarios for free—so bring your friends and get the goods! Pathfinder Maps Subscription has the Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Alien Ruins and the Starfinder Maps Subscription has the Starfinder Flip-Mat: Basic Terrain Multi-Pack. These rugged maps offer inspiring location art, great for any TTRPG! Investing in them will create a lifetime of adventure (though we’re not responsible to TPKs). While they don’t have new releases this month, don’t miss the Pathfinder Lost Omens, Pathfinder Battles, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Accessories, and Starfinder Adventures product lines. Go into Exploration Mode and find your path to friendship and adventure with open gaming products from Paizo! Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder! Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today! Adventures Ahead! Aaron Shanks, Director of Marketing Paizo Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios Find Your Path, January 2023
Wednesday, January 15, 2023
Happy New Releases Day! Many of you may have a new or renewed interest in Pathfinder and Starfinder, so I’d like to tell you about all our new open gaming products, including subscriptions and special offers, and point you toward what’s coming next!
You will find our Release Schedule here, with products listed month-by-month, along with associated subscriptions. It’s a great way to plan the future of your games.
Also, you can explore our 14 Paizo Subscriptions and see what we’re releasing up to 9 months out. Like crowdfunding campaigns, by committing in advance, subscriptions help us estimate print runs, so we incentivize you to subscribe with a complimentary PDF. Ownership of a digital product lets you sync with our digital partners, who can then also offer a discount on their products and services. If you’re interested in multiple subscriptions, you can save more with our Paizo Advantage offering.
Subscriptions are important us, but so are game and bookstores, and we know they’re important to you, too. We already have a great list of retailers who’ve opted into our Where to Buy page, but now is a great time to help the list grow! Feel free to ask your favorite local game or bookstore about their programs and see if they’re interested in joining our list.
So, what’s new? You can find the list of New Physical Product Releases in January in our Forum Announcements channel. These announcements happen monthly and let you know when your card will be charged and when shipping starts. By the way, we now take American Express and are exploring non-credit card options.
We currently have an Open Gaming Sale offering 25% off print copies of the Pathfinder Beginner Box, Pathfinder Core Rulebook 2nd Edition (4th printing with errata), and Pathfinder Core Rulebook Pocket Edition to help you get started with the Pathfinder RPG. Don’t miss the free PDF copy of the Lost Omens World Guide to help you get to know our setting. Simply add the PDF to your cart and use discount code OPENGAMING at checkout. Offer valid through midnight PST, January 25, 2023
This month we have two special non-subscription offers— Pathfinder Adventure Path: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix and Pathfinder Adventure Path: Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Special Edition. These are hardcover compilations of the original three-volume campaign that takes your party from level 11 to 20 as you compete in the Ruby Phoenix Tournament!
The Pathfinder Fists of the Ruby Phoenix Battle Cards are also available as 4" x 6" sturdy printed cards and a digital version. This product is also part of the Pathfinder Accessories Subscription.
In the Pathfinder Rulebooks Subscription, the paranormal-themed Pathfinder Dark Archive, with the popular new psychic and thaumaturge classes, is available if you subscribe now! And next month, you can “venture into the vault” with Pathfinder Treasure Vault! This 224-page hardcover rulebook presents a hoard of new gear from nearly every category of equipment and magic item available in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, while also introducing entirely new categories of items!
The Pathfinder Lost Omens Special Edition Subscription is a relatively new offering that catches up on previously released setting hardcovers. These deluxe special editions are bound in faux leather with metallic debossing and a bound-in ribbon bookmark! Pathfinder Lost Omens: Ancestry Guide Special Edition with geniekin, androids, kitsune, sprites, and more, is the new release this month. You can look forward to Pathfinder Lost Omens: The Mwangi Expanse Special Edition next month.
Paizo was founded on our Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscription and we’re excited that Pathfinder Adventure Path #187: The Seventh Arch (Gatewalkers 1 of 3) is now available! The Gatewalkers Adventure Path starts at level 1 and is a three-part monthly campaign in which a team of paranormal investigators unravel the mystery behind a mass amnesic episode which left them with lost memories and strange powers. The adventure continues with the Pathfinder Adventure Path #188: They Watched the Stars (Gatewalkers 2 of 3) next month. This Adventure Path is intended to have Foundry VTT support at the time of writing this blog. Download the free Player’s Guide PDF and get started building characters today!
But wait, there’s more! This month, the Pathfinder Society Subscription offers the Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star's Fate and the Starfinder Society Subscription offers Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten. These PDF-only adventures are perfect for a solid one-shot gaming session, regardless of whether you officially join Organized Play. But officially joining is a great deal! Retailers who host Organized Play get all the Quests, Bounties, and Scenarios for free—so bring your friends and get the goods!
Pathfinder Maps Subscription has the Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Alien Ruins and the Starfinder Maps Subscription has the Starfinder Flip-Mat: Basic Terrain Multi-Pack. These rugged maps offer inspiring location art, great for any TTRPG! Investing in them will create a lifetime of adventure (though we’re not responsible to TPKs).
While they don’t have new releases this month, don’t miss the Pathfinder Lost Omens, Pathfinder Battles, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Accessories, and Starfinder Adventures product lines. Go into Exploration Mode and find your path to friendship and adventure with open gaming products from Paizo!
Thank you for playing Starfinder and Pathfinder!
Shop the Paizo Store and your favorite local game store today!
Adventures Ahead!
Aaron Shanks,
Director of Marketing
PaizoTags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Accessories, Pathfinder Adventure Path, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Second Edition, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si84?Play-a-slime-mimic-demon-nymph-and-more-with Play a slime, mimic, demon, nymph, and more with Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters! 2023-01-24T14:00:00.000-05:00 2023-01-24T14:00:00.000-05:00 Play a slime, mimic, demon, nymph, and more with Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters! Tuesday, January 24, 2022 Hi everyone, Roll for Combat Director of Game Design Mark Seifter here! 2023 has already been a wild year for Roll for Combat and the entire RPG industry, but it’s also the start of something exciting: the Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters! With Year of Monsters, you can play a creative monster ancestry each month of 2023, plus receive a final compilation book as a capstone with additional content! The ancestries are demons, gremlins, intelligent weapons, dungeons expanded (you can get the original dungeon ancestry for free at https://battlezoo.com/), oni, nymphs, doppelgangers, minotaurs, slimes, sthenos, mimics, and sidhe. Each ancestry will receive at least twice as much content as a standard-size ancestry, such as those presented in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook or Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide, and some of them have been expanded to add versatile heritages, double-length content, and more surprises! The Year of Monsters subscription comes with: Thirteen ancestry PDFs—one for each ancestry, and then the expanded Year of Monsters Compilation book at the end of the year. The Foundry VTT module, which will automatically update itself 13 times with the latest ancestries throughout the year. Thirteen ancestry files for import into Pathbuilder 2e. No less than 21 digital assets for each ancestry. A private invitation to join our design team for special design streams, one per month for each ancestry, and have your ideas heard as we incorporate them into an expanded compilation at the end of the year. In addition to everything listed above, you can get the final compilation book in hardcover at https://battlezoo.com/. Finally, while we still recommend the full experience with Foundry VTT integration and special design streams where you can join the design team for the ancestries and have us add your ideas, we also want to make Year of Monsters available and affordable to as many people as we can. To that end, we’ve worked with one of the Pathfinder 2e discord moderators, ink, to put out a special club aimed at new players and old who would like just the PDFs and digital assets of Year of Monsters for a lower price: the Battlezoo Digital Monsters Pledge. The more people who pledge, the less expensive the Digital Monsters Pledge will be. Simply fill out the form here to commit to the pledge! Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters lets you play the monster with a creative monster ancestry each month of 2023, plus a final compilation book as a capstone with additional content! I’m excited to have you join us for this adventure as we explore what it means to be a monster in a world full of diverse ancestries! Mark Seifter Director of Game Design, Roll for Combat Author Bio: I’m Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, and one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out Arcane Mark, my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific, and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord at https://tiny.cc/arcanemark! Tags: Pathfinder, Pathfinder Second Edition Play a slime, mimic, demon, nymph, and more with Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters!
Tuesday, January 24, 2022
]]>Hi everyone, Roll for Combat Director of Game Design Mark Seifter here! 2023 has already been a wild year for Roll for Combat and the entire RPG industry, but it’s also the start of something exciting: the Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters! With Year of Monsters, you can play a creative monster ancestry each month of 2023, plus receive a final compilation book as a capstone with additional content!
The ancestries are demons, gremlins, intelligent weapons, dungeons expanded (you can get the original dungeon ancestry for free at https://battlezoo.com/), oni, nymphs, doppelgangers, minotaurs, slimes, sthenos, mimics, and sidhe. Each ancestry will receive at least twice as much content as a standard-size ancestry, such as those presented in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook or Pathfinder Lost Omens Ancestry Guide, and some of them have been expanded to add versatile heritages, double-length content, and more surprises!
The Year of Monsters subscription comes with:
- Thirteen ancestry PDFs—one for each ancestry, and then the expanded Year of Monsters Compilation book at the end of the year.
- The Foundry VTT module, which will automatically update itself 13 times with the latest ancestries throughout the year.
- Thirteen ancestry files for import into Pathbuilder 2e.
- No less than 21 digital assets for each ancestry.
- A private invitation to join our design team for special design streams, one per month for each ancestry, and have your ideas heard as we incorporate them into an expanded compilation at the end of the year.
In addition to everything listed above, you can get the final compilation book in hardcover at https://battlezoo.com/.
Finally, while we still recommend the full experience with Foundry VTT integration and special design streams where you can join the design team for the ancestries and have us add your ideas, we also want to make Year of Monsters available and affordable to as many people as we can. To that end, we’ve worked with one of the Pathfinder 2e discord moderators, ink, to put out a special club aimed at new players and old who would like just the PDFs and digital assets of Year of Monsters for a lower price: the Battlezoo Digital Monsters Pledge. The more people who pledge, the less expensive the Digital Monsters Pledge will be. Simply fill out the form here to commit to the pledge!
Battlezoo Ancestries: Year of Monsters lets you play the monster with a creative monster ancestry each month of 2023, plus a final compilation book as a capstone with additional content!
I’m excited to have you join us for this adventure as we explore what it means to be a monster in a world full of diverse ancestries!
Mark Seifter
Director of Game Design, Roll for CombatAuthor Bio:
I’m Mark Seifter, Roll for Combat director of game design and Paizo’s former design manager, and one of the four leads on the creation of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m @markseifter on twitter. Check out Arcane Mark, my Twitch stream with Linda Zayas-Palmer, Tuesdays at 7 PM Pacific, and Saturdays at 10 AM Pacific at https://www.twitch.tv/arcanemark, as well as my Roll for Combat Live youtube stream with Stephen Glicker at https://www.youtube.com/c/RollForCombat/. Both shows cover a variety of RPG and Pathfinder topics! You can also join my discord at https://tiny.cc/arcanemark!https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2764 AtlantaPFS Convention Update 2023-01-23T17:29:36.000-05:00 2023-01-23T17:29:36.000-05:00 Anyone who’s been involved with GeorgiaPFS and AtlantaPFS is familiar with the two mainstay conventions we’ve supported – MomoCon and DragonCon. Last year, we picked up a third convention – Southern-Fried Gaming Expo. This year, we’ve picked up two more events – Marietta the Gathering and Multiverse. Marietta the Gathering is in its first year and is being put together by the City of Marietta Department of Parks & Recreation. They reached out to invite us to participate in the inaugural event, and we are going to do whatever we can to help make it both memorable and successful. We plan to run sessions of both PF2 and SF Beginner Boxes, PF2 and SF Bounties, and “Build & Play” sessions where players and Game Masters will discuss and work on building characters the players can then run through a Bounty immediately after creation is completed. One of our former Venture-Officers is involved with Multiverse, and has been discussing our participation with their Gaming Director. As of today, we’ve been asked/given the okay to join in the fun with some introductory adventures to help people learn the games, putting emphasis on games where people can drop in, pick a pregenerated character to play, enjoy their session, and (hopefully) rejoin us with a character of their own at a future time. Convention names, dates, locations, and websites: Marietta the Gathering March 4 Historic Marietta Square, Marietta, GA https://www.mariettaga.gov/1480/Marietta-the-Gathering MomoCon May 25-28 Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, GA https://www.momocon.com/ Southern-Fried Gaming Expo July 28-30 Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel & Convention Center https://gameatl.com/ DragonCon August 31 – September 4 Midtown Atlanta https://www.dragoncon.org/ Multiverse October 20-22 Westin Atlanta Perimeter North https://www.multiversecon.org/ MomoCon can trace its origin back to 2004, when the first convention took place under the name Techwood Con and has expanded greatly since it first was held. Planning is currently underway for MomoCon 2023, though it is likely safe to say that there will be an emphasis on lower to mid-level scenarios and bounties for PF2 and SF. Could PF1 be part of the mix? When the official schedule is complete, all will be revealed. Southern-Fried Gaming Expo will be celebrating its 10th year this year. Last year was our first participating in this convention, and it was also their first year offering TTRPGs. We learned a lot and shared not only our learnings from this convention, but what we’ve learned from others with convention leadership so we can continue to grow together. DragonCon began in 1987 with an initial estimated attendance of 1400. Its pre-pandemic attendance reached an estimated 85000 people in 2019. For those who may have missed the announcement made a few days ago (see https://atlantapfs.org/news.php?extend.42 for more on this), we plan to run 9 interactive specials at DragonCon this year and to offer tables of Pathfinder 1st Edition as well as 2nd Edition and Starfinder. The conventions we support by offering game sessions either share or have similar values to Paizo Organized Play with respect to equality, diversity, and inclusion. The scenarios we offer also reflect these values.
This year, we’ve picked up two more events – Marietta the Gathering and Multiverse.
Marietta the Gathering is in its first year and is being put together by the City of Marietta Department of Parks & Recreation. They reached out to invite us to participate in the inaugural event, and we are going to do whatever we can to help make it both memorable and successful. We plan to run sessions of both PF2 and SF Beginner Boxes, PF2 and SF Bounties, and “Build & Play” sessions where players and Game Masters will discuss and work on building characters the players can then run through a Bounty immediately after creation is completed.
One of our former Venture-Officers is involved with Multiverse, and has been discussing our participation with their Gaming Director. As of today, we’ve been asked/given the okay to join in the fun with some introductory adventures to help people learn the games, putting emphasis on games where people can drop in, pick a pregenerated character to play, enjoy their session, and (hopefully) rejoin us with a character of their own at a future time.
Convention names, dates, locations, and websites:
Marietta the Gathering
March 4
Historic Marietta Square, Marietta, GA
https://www.mariettaga.gov/1480/Marietta-the-Gathering
MomoCon
May 25-28
Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, GA
https://www.momocon.com/
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo
July 28-30
Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel & Convention Center
https://gameatl.com/
DragonCon
August 31 – September 4
Midtown Atlanta
https://www.dragoncon.org/
Multiverse
October 20-22
Westin Atlanta Perimeter North
https://www.multiversecon.org/
MomoCon can trace its origin back to 2004, when the first convention took place under the name Techwood Con and has expanded greatly since it first was held. Planning is currently underway for MomoCon 2023, though it is likely safe to say that there will be an emphasis on lower to mid-level scenarios and bounties for PF2 and SF. Could PF1 be part of the mix? When the official schedule is complete, all will be revealed.
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo will be celebrating its 10th year this year. Last year was our first participating in this convention, and it was also their first year offering TTRPGs. We learned a lot and shared not only our learnings from this convention, but what we’ve learned from others with convention leadership so we can continue to grow together.
DragonCon began in 1987 with an initial estimated attendance of 1400. Its pre-pandemic attendance reached an estimated 85000 people in 2019. For those who may have missed the announcement made a few days ago (see https://atlantapfs.org/news.php?extend.42 for more on this), we plan to run 9 interactive specials at DragonCon this year and to offer tables of Pathfinder 1st Edition as well as 2nd Edition and Starfinder.
The conventions we support by offering game sessions either share or have similar values to Paizo Organized Play with respect to equality, diversity, and inclusion. The scenarios we offer also reflect these values.]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si7z?January-2023-Organized-Play-Scenario-Previews January 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews 2023-01-20T17:00:00.000-05:00 2023-01-20T17:00:00.000-05:00 January 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews Friday, January 20, 2022 Hello, Starfinders! Welcome to 2023! It’s been an eventful start to the year and now, more than ever, I’m proud to be a part of this community and the Paizo team. This month we’re diving back into our metaplot when First Seeker Ehu Hadif dispatches a team of brave Starfinders to find and explore a missing colony in the Vast. Abandoned by the Pact Worlds, erased from all official records, and silent for nearly a century—it’s up to you to find the forgotten! Their fate is in your hands. Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten is an adventure for 7th- to 10th-level characters written by Kate Baker and Dennis Muldoon. Enjoy! Jessica Catalanl Starfinder Society Developer Left to right: Snapping Turtle automaton illustration by Beto Lima and monsterous bear illustration by Blake Davis Hello, Pathfinders! First off, happy new year! We hope you enjoyed your holidays! This month we’re getting back to the Thuvian desert! A group of people have gathered around Star’s dig site, hoping to gain information from them or have Star ally with their organization. However, Aslynn has her eyes (and her spy!) set on taking Star as a new weapon and ally for her nefarious plans. It’s up to the Pathfinders to not only convince Star of their good intentions, but also to protect them when attacked by multiple villains! Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s Fate is an adventure for 3rd- to 6th-level characters written by Alex Speidel. Have fun and we’ll see you next month! Josh Foster Pathfinder Society Developer Shay Snow Pathfinder Society Developer But wait, there’s more news! For some reason, orcs seem to have become very popular with our community lately. While we figure out why, we’ve decided to bend to your whims this once. As of today, the orc ancestry/species is now always available for both Pathfinder and Starfinder Society! Our oracles indicate a striking number of these new adventurers will be trained in Legal Lore or have the Profession (lawyer) skill. Adventure onward! Illustration by Sandra Duchiewicz Alex Speidel Organized Play Coordinator Tags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios January 2023 Organized Play Scenario Previews
Friday, January 20, 2022
Hello, Starfinders! Welcome to 2023! It’s been an eventful start to the year and now, more than ever, I’m proud to be a part of this community and the Paizo team.
This month we’re diving back into our metaplot when First Seeker Ehu Hadif dispatches a team of brave Starfinders to find and explore a missing colony in the Vast. Abandoned by the Pact Worlds, erased from all official records, and silent for nearly a century—it’s up to you to find the forgotten! Their fate is in your hands.
Starfinder Society Scenario #5-13: Finding the Forgotten is an adventure for 7th- to 10th-level characters written by Kate Baker and Dennis Muldoon.
Enjoy!
Jessica Catalanl
Starfinder Society DeveloperLeft to right: Snapping Turtle automaton illustration by Beto Lima and monsterous bear illustration by Blake Davis
Hello, Pathfinders!
First off, happy new year! We hope you enjoyed your holidays!
This month we’re getting back to the Thuvian desert! A group of people have gathered around Star’s dig site, hoping to gain information from them or have Star ally with their organization. However, Aslynn has her eyes (and her spy!) set on taking Star as a new weapon and ally for her nefarious plans. It’s up to the Pathfinders to not only convince Star of their good intentions, but also to protect them when attacked by multiple villains!
Pathfinder Society Scenario #4-08: Battle for Star’s Fate is an adventure for 3rd- to 6th-level characters written by Alex Speidel.
Have fun and we’ll see you next month!
Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society DeveloperShay Snow
Pathfinder Society Developer
But wait, there’s more news! For some reason, orcs seem to have become very popular with our community lately. While we figure out why, we’ve decided to bend to your whims this once.
As of today, the orc ancestry/species is now always available for both Pathfinder and Starfinder Society! Our oracles indicate a striking number of these new adventurers will be trained in Legal Lore or have the Profession (lawyer) skill. Adventure onward!
Alex Speidel
Organized Play CoordinatorTags: Organized Play, Pathfinder Society, Pathfinder Society Scenarios, Starfinder Society, Starfinder Society Scenarios
]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2763 New Atlanta Venue 2023-01-20T16:30:05.000-05:00 2023-01-20T16:30:05.000-05:00 Beginning next month, we will be offering sessions in Acworth! Thanks to the venue reaching out to Luke, we've added The Crazy Book Lady to our footprint. The Crazy Book Lady 5058 Cherokee St. Acworth, GA 30101 (678) 695-3064[/url][url=http://voice.google.com/calls?a=nc,%2B16786953064] Beginning next month, we will be offering sessions in Acworth! Thanks to the venue reaching out to Luke, we've added The Crazy Book Lady to our footprint.
The Crazy Book Lady
5058 Cherokee St.
Acworth, GA 30101
(678) 695-3064[/url][url=http://voice.google.com/calls?a=nc,%2B16786953064]]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2762 Making DragonCon Special 2023-01-20T16:28:13.000-05:00 2023-01-20T16:28:13.000-05:00 DragonCon 2023 is coming August 31 – September 4. While we are awaiting final word on whether we will be in the same location or how much floor space we’ll have, the planning started in September, when DragonCon 2022 ended. We want DragonCon to be special, to be can’t miss, to be memorable. How do we plan to accomplish this? In a word – Specials! To expand on that – All the Specials! That’s right. There are (or will be by the time DragonCon rolls around) 9 specials between PFS2 and SFS. The plan is to offer all of them. There are 11 time slots at DragonCon . Thursday 8 pm – 1 am Friday 9 am – 2 pm Friday 2 pm – 7 pm Friday 8 pm – 1 am Saturday 9 am – 2 pm Saturday 2 pm – 7 pm Saturday 8 pm – 1 am Sunday 9 am – 2 pm Sunday 2 pm – 7 pm Sunday 8 pm – 1 am Monday 9 am – 2 pm The current plan has us at 12 tables (this number is subject to change, based on the number of volunteers we get). The proposed breakdown will be for in-person only, but that may change if we get online interest as well. 2 tables of Bounties on Demand (not offered in time slots 1, 4, 7, 10, or 11); 1 each of PF2 and SF 4 tables of PFS2 Scenarios 4 tables of SFS Scenarios 1 table of PFS1 Scenarios 1 table of Build & Play for PFS2 & SFS Character creation and bounties right after (also not offered in time slots 1, 4, 7, 10, or 11) Why am I talking about it now? There are reasons, obviously, including an ulterior motive. The first reason is to get people thinking about DragonCon and talking about DragonCon. The second is the obvious reason – to get people to attend. The ulterior motive is simple – to pull this plan off, we need volunteers. To pull off this audacious plan, we need people to volunteer for GM, Overseer GM, and HQ/HQ GM spots. There are 117 GM spots, 9 Overseer GM spots, 11 HQ spots, and 11 GM HQ spots needing to be filled, for a total of 148 open spots. Signing up for 5 spots gets you a free badge for the entire convention. Additionally, for volunteering to run 3 slots or more, you get 6 tickets to play in games. To volunteer or to get more information, visit https://atlantapfs.org, click on Join us on the top menu and then go to Volunteer for Conventions. That will trigger me adding you to a mailing list for DragonCon to send out more information as it comes in from the organizers. DragonCon 2023 is coming August 31 – September 4. While we are awaiting final word on whether we will be in the same location or how much floor space we’ll have, the planning started in September, when DragonCon 2022 ended.
We want DragonCon to be special, to be can’t miss, to be memorable. How do we plan to accomplish this? In a word – Specials! To expand on that – All the Specials!
That’s right. There are (or will be by the time DragonCon rolls around) 9 specials between PFS2 and SFS. The plan is to offer all of them.
There are 11 time slots at DragonCon
.
The current plan has us at 12 tables (this number is subject to change, based on the number of volunteers we get). The proposed breakdown will be for in-person only, but that may change if we get online interest as well.
- Thursday 8 pm – 1 am
- Friday 9 am – 2 pm
- Friday 2 pm – 7 pm
- Friday 8 pm – 1 am
- Saturday 9 am – 2 pm
- Saturday 2 pm – 7 pm
- Saturday 8 pm – 1 am
- Sunday 9 am – 2 pm
- Sunday 2 pm – 7 pm
- Sunday 8 pm – 1 am
- Monday 9 am – 2 pm
Why am I talking about it now? There are reasons, obviously, including an ulterior motive. The first reason is to get people thinking about DragonCon and talking about DragonCon. The second is the obvious reason – to get people to attend. The ulterior motive is simple – to pull this plan off, we need volunteers. To pull off this audacious plan, we need people to volunteer for GM, Overseer GM, and HQ/HQ GM spots. There are 117 GM spots, 9 Overseer GM spots, 11 HQ spots, and 11 GM HQ spots needing to be filled, for a total of 148 open spots. Signing up for 5 spots gets you a free badge for the entire convention. Additionally, for volunteering to run 3 slots or more, you get 6 tickets to play in games.
- 2 tables of Bounties on Demand (not offered in time slots 1, 4, 7, 10, or 11); 1 each of PF2 and SF
- 4 tables of PFS2 Scenarios
- 4 tables of SFS Scenarios
- 1 table of PFS1 Scenarios
- 1 table of Build & Play for PFS2 & SFS Character creation and bounties right after (also not offered in time slots 1, 4, 7, 10, or 11)
To volunteer or to get more information, visit https://atlantapfs.org, click on Join us on the top menu and then go to Volunteer for Conventions. That will trigger me adding you to a mailing list for DragonCon to send out more information as it comes in from the organizers.]]>https://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo6si7y?The-ORC-Alliance-Grows The ORC Alliance Grows 2023-01-19T19:00:00.000-05:00 2023-01-19T19:00:00.000-05:00 The ORC Alliance Grows Thursday, January 19, 2023 Over the course of the last week, more than 1,500 tabletop RPG publishers, from household names going back to the dawn of the hobby to single proprietors just starting out with their first digital release, have joined together to pledge their support for the development of a universal system-neutral open license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics and encourages innovation and collaboration in the tabletop gaming space. The alliance is gathered. Work has begun. It would take too long to list all the companies behind the ORC license effort, but we thought you might be interested to see a few of the organizations already pledged toward this common goal. We are honored to be allied with them, as well as with the equally important participating publishers too numerous to list here. Each is crucial to the effort’s success. The list below is but a representative sample of participating publishers from a huge variety of market segments with a huge variety of perspectives. But we all agree on one thing. We are all in this together. Alchemy RPG Arcane Minis Atlas Games Autarch Azora Law Black Book Editions Bombshell Miniatures BRW Games Chaosium Cze & Peku Demiplane DMDave The DM Lair Elderbrain EN Publishing Epic Miniatures Evil Genius Games Expeditious Retreat Press Fantasy Grounds Fat Dragon Games Forgotten Adventures Foundry VTT Free RPG Day Frog God Games Gale Force 9 Game On Tabletop Giochi Uniti Goodman Games Green Ronin The Griffon’s Saddlebag Iron GM Games Know Direction Kobold Press Lazy Wolf Studios Legendary Games Lone Wolf Development Loot Tavern Louis Porter Jr. Designs Mad Cartographer Minotaur Games Mongoose Publishing MonkeyDM Monte Cook Games MT Black Necromancer Games Nord Games Open Gaming, Inc. Paizo Inc. Paradigm Concepts Pelgrane Press Pinnacle Entertainment Group Raging Swan Press Rogue Games Rogue Genius Games Roll 20 Roll for Combat Sly Flourish Tom Cartos Troll Lord Games Ulisses Spiele You will be hearing a lot more from us in the days to come. Tags: Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game The ORC Alliance Grows
Thursday, January 19, 2023
Over the course of the last week, more than 1,500 tabletop RPG publishers, from household names going back to the dawn of the hobby to single proprietors just starting out with their first digital release, have joined together to pledge their support for the development of a universal system-neutral open license that provides a legal “safe harbor” for sharing rules mechanics and encourages innovation and collaboration in the tabletop gaming space.
The alliance is gathered. Work has begun.
It would take too long to list all the companies behind the ORC license effort, but we thought you might be interested to see a few of the organizations already pledged toward this common goal. We are honored to be allied with them, as well as with the equally important participating publishers too numerous to list here. Each is crucial to the effort’s success. The list below is but a representative sample of participating publishers from a huge variety of market segments with a huge variety of perspectives. But we all agree on one thing.
We are all in this together.
- Alchemy RPG
- Arcane Minis
- Atlas Games
- Autarch
- Azora Law
- Black Book Editions
- Bombshell Miniatures
- BRW Games
- Chaosium
- Cze & Peku
- Demiplane
- DMDave
- The DM Lair
- Elderbrain
- EN Publishing
- Epic Miniatures
- Evil Genius Games
- Expeditious Retreat Press
- Fantasy Grounds
- Fat Dragon Games
- Forgotten Adventures
- Foundry VTT
- Free RPG Day
- Frog God Games
- Gale Force 9
- Game On Tabletop
- Giochi Uniti
- Goodman Games
- Green Ronin
- The Griffon’s Saddlebag
- Iron GM Games
- Know Direction
- Kobold Press
- Lazy Wolf Studios
- Legendary Games
- Lone Wolf Development
- Loot Tavern
- Louis Porter Jr. Designs
- Mad Cartographer
- Minotaur Games
- Mongoose Publishing
- MonkeyDM
- Monte Cook Games
- MT Black
- Necromancer Games
- Nord Games
- Open Gaming, Inc.
- Paizo Inc.
- Paradigm Concepts
- Pelgrane Press
- Pinnacle Entertainment Group
- Raging Swan Press
- Rogue Games
- Rogue Genius Games
- Roll 20
- Roll for Combat
- Sly Flourish
- Tom Cartos
- Troll Lord Games
- Ulisses Spiele
You will be hearing a lot more from us in the days to come.
Tags: Community, Paizo, Pathfinder, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game
]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2759 Happy New Year & Year End Thoughts 2022-12-31T21:01:28.000-05:00 2022-12-31T21:01:28.000-05:00 Happy New Year & Year End Thoughts Happy New Year & Year End Thoughts]]> https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2755 Open Call for GMs for Marietta the Gathering 2022-12-30T13:04:52.000-05:00 2022-12-30T13:04:52.000-05:00 Marietta the Gathering occurs on March 4, 2023, in Historic Marietta Square from 10 am - 8 pm. The City of Marietta Department of Parks and Recreation has invited us to participate. We need GMs for this event. There are 2 time slots: 10-3 & 3-8. In each time slot, we're looking for 7 GMs and 1 HQ person. These are the scenarios or session types being offered: Menace under Otari (both upper and lower) from the PF2 Beginner Box Steel Talon's Lair from the SF Beginner Box 2 tables of "Build & Play" with 2-3 hours of character creation followed by either a Bounty of the GM's choice or an Intro scenario (if it will not run longer than the time allotment) 2 tables of Quests/Bounties on Demand (a full 5-hour slot commitment from each GM is requested). To volunteer, please fill out the AtlantaPFS Volunteer Form and sign up on the Warhorn event page I'd like to have volunteer slots closed by January 15, however, I can extend to February 15 at the absolute latest. Player registration and sign-ups will open on February 4, though I expect more walk-up traffic than pre-registration.
There are 2 time slots: 10-3 & 3-8.
In each time slot, we're looking for 7 GMs and 1 HQ person.
These are the scenarios or session types being offered:
Menace under Otari (both upper and lower) from the PF2 Beginner Box
Steel Talon's Lair from the SF Beginner Box
2 tables of "Build & Play" with 2-3 hours of character creation followed by either a Bounty of the GM's choice or an Intro scenario (if it will not run longer than the time allotment)
2 tables of Quests/Bounties on Demand (a full 5-hour slot commitment from each GM is requested).
To volunteer, please fill out the AtlantaPFS Volunteer Form and sign up on the Warhorn event page
I'd like to have volunteer slots closed by January 15, however, I can extend to February 15 at the absolute latest.
Player registration and sign-ups will open on February 4, though I expect more walk-up traffic than pre-registration.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2740 Open Call for a single table GM for Titan Smyrna 2022-11-27T17:11:15.000-05:00 2022-11-27T17:11:15.000-05:00 Venue: Titan Smyrna Date: Saturday, December 10, 2022 Time: 3 PM - 8 PM Scenario: Multi-Table Special 3-98: Expedition into the Pallid Peak Other Requirements: Sign-in and chronicle sheets are being handled using RPGChronicles.net. The GM will need to create a session on the site using the event code for the Toys for Tots event (which will be provided to the volunteer GM). Background Info: We are joining with the Northern Virginia PFS Lodge and have enlisted Titan Games & Comics in Smyrna to participate in the annual Toys for Tots drive. As part of this drive, the PFS2 Season 3 multi-table interactive special, 3-98: Expedition into Pallid Peak, will be run at all participating venues and coordinated over Discord. At the end of the event, the Northern Virginia lodge is also requesting the following information as part of the reporting: Est. Number of attendees VO Who helped Organize the event Picture of the Toys for donation. Any Other Store or VO/GMs are welcome to be part of the pictures! Website and Store Location Information. EST. Number of Toys gathered. Venue: Titan Smyrna
Date: Saturday, December 10, 2022
Time: 3 PM - 8 PM
Scenario: Multi-Table Special 3-98: Expedition into the Pallid Peak
Other Requirements: Sign-in and chronicle sheets are being handled using RPGChronicles.net. The GM will need to create a session on the site using the event code for the Toys for Tots event (which will be provided to the volunteer GM).
Background Info:
We are joining with the Northern Virginia PFS Lodge and have enlisted Titan Games & Comics in Smyrna to participate in the annual Toys for Tots drive. As part of this drive, the PFS2 Season 3 multi-table interactive special, 3-98: Expedition into Pallid Peak, will be run at all participating venues and coordinated over Discord. At the end of the event, the Northern Virginia lodge is also requesting the following information as part of the reporting:
]]>
- Est. Number of attendees
- VO Who helped Organize the event
- Picture of the Toys for donation. Any Other Store or VO/GMs are welcome to be part of
- the pictures!
- Website and Store Location Information.
- EST. Number of Toys gathered.
https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2739 Marietta the Gathering - March 4, 2023 2022-11-22T19:21:59.000-05:00 2022-11-22T19:21:59.000-05:00 Marietta the Gathering is a new festival hoping to be held each March in Glover Park at the Historic Marietta Square celebrating Geek Community, pop culture, and the arts. The festival will include the Guild Show, a collection of art makers, merchandisers, crafters, and smiths; Tourney Alley, a street full of board games, card tournaments, and possibly video game arcade; as well as several other panels, performances, and contests in and around Glover Park. City of Marietta - Marietta the Gathering Event Page City of Marietta - Marietta the Gathering Facebook Event Page AtlantaPFS was invited to participate in the inaugural Marietta the Gathering Event on March 4 at Marietta Square and has accepted. Pathfinder 2nd Edition and Starfinder will both be offered, with Bounties, Quests, Build & Play sessions, and Beginner Box sessions of both game systems. We are looking forward to participating in this event and doing anything we can to help make it successful for both the City of Marietta and for AtlantaPFS. To volunteer to represent AtlantaPFS by running sessions or Headquarters at Marietta the Gathering, please fill out the Volunteer Form, which is also accessible via our website under the Join Us dropdown menu. GM and HQ sign-ups are open effective today (November 22) and will close on January 15. Player registration will open on February 4. The event code for Marietta the Gathering is 2710164 Marietta the Gathering Warhorn page
Marietta the Gathering is a new festival hoping to be held each March in Glover Park at the Historic Marietta Square celebrating Geek Community, pop culture, and the arts. The festival will include the Guild Show, a collection of art makers, merchandisers, crafters, and smiths; Tourney Alley, a street full of board games, card tournaments, and possibly video game arcade; as well as several other panels, performances, and contests in and around Glover Park.
City of Marietta - Marietta the Gathering Event Page
City of Marietta - Marietta the Gathering Facebook Event Page
AtlantaPFS was invited to participate in the inaugural Marietta the Gathering Event on March 4 at Marietta Square and has accepted. Pathfinder 2nd Edition and Starfinder will both be offered, with Bounties, Quests, Build & Play sessions, and Beginner Box sessions of both game systems.
We are looking forward to participating in this event and doing anything we can to help make it successful for both the City of Marietta and for AtlantaPFS. To volunteer to represent AtlantaPFS by running sessions or Headquarters at Marietta the Gathering, please fill out the Volunteer Form, which is also accessible via our website under the Join Us dropdown menu. GM and HQ sign-ups are open effective today (November 22) and will close on January 15. Player registration will open on February 4.
The event code for Marietta the Gathering is 2710164
Marietta the Gathering Warhorn page]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2728 New Lodge News Update Posted 2022-10-29T19:54:15.000-04:00 2022-10-29T19:54:15.000-04:00 I posted a new update for the Atlanta Lodge, including information on the holiday party. Original post
Original post]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2723 2022 GA PFS Holiday Party 2022-10-24T12:58:08.000-04:00 2022-10-24T12:58:08.000-04:00 The 2022 Holiday party Warhorn page is up and open for registration/sign-ups. There is also a link on the Warhorn page to the Potluck sign-up sheet. Date: January 7, 2023 Time: 10 am - 7 pm Location: Fort Yargo State Park, Group Shelter B Warhorn page is up and open for registration/sign-ups. There is also a link on the Warhorn page to the Potluck sign-up sheet.
Date: January 7, 2023
Time: 10 am - 7 pm
Location: Fort Yargo State Park, Group Shelter B]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2719 GA PFS Holiday Party 2022 2022-10-07T08:32:30.000-04:00 2022-10-07T08:32:30.000-04:00 It's that time of year again when we start heading into the holidays and start planning the annual holiday party. The group shelter at Fort Yargo has been booked. Now, we just need game suggestions, potluck dishes, and participants to make it a success. What: GA PFS 2022 Holiday Party Where: Fort Yargo State Park, Group Shelter B When: Saturday, January 7, 2023 Setup - 9:45 - 10:00 Slot 1 - 10:00 - 3:00 Dinner and Socializing - 3:00 - 7:00 Warhorn page will be up once scenarios are selected (SFS 4-12: A Festive Operation is the only one currently being scheduled, and I am open to PF1 and PF2 suggestions). Dinner will be a potluck, so please sign up to indicate what you will be bringing. It's that time of year again when we start heading into the holidays and start planning the annual holiday party. The group shelter at Fort Yargo has been booked. Now, we just need game suggestions, potluck dishes, and participants to make it a success.
What: GA PFS 2022 Holiday Party
Where: Fort Yargo State Park, Group Shelter B
When: Saturday, January 7, 2023
Setup - 9:45 - 10:00
Slot 1 - 10:00 - 3:00
Dinner and Socializing - 3:00 - 7:00
Warhorn page will be up once scenarios are selected (SFS 4-12: A Festive Operation is the only one currently being scheduled, and I am open to PF1 and PF2 suggestions).
Dinner will be a potluck, so please sign up to indicate what you will be bringing.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2715 Follow up on holiday party 2022-10-02T13:29:06.000-04:00 2022-10-02T13:29:06.000-04:00 For those who may have missed it, Fort Yargo only has the group shelter available the weekend of January 7-8. With that being said, Who's available that weekend? https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2712 Who's up for a party? 2022-09-26T17:36:05.000-04:00 2022-09-26T17:36:05.000-04:00 A Holiday party, that is. Looking to gauge interest and availability for a joint holiday party and to gather volunteers for the food as well as any requests for scenarios to be offered during the party. Select an option from the poll and leave your requests for scenarios in the comments. Once the requests are in and the venue is booked, I'll put together a Warhorn page for the event. @BrienneofDarth - Are you still willing to coordinate the food portion of the party? If not, we'll need someone to coordinate the food as well.
Looking to gauge interest and availability for a joint holiday party and to gather volunteers for the food as well as any requests for scenarios to be offered during the party. Select an option from the poll and leave your requests for scenarios in the comments. Once the requests are in and the venue is booked, I'll put together a Warhorn page for the event.
@BrienneofDarth - Are you still willing to coordinate the food portion of the party? If not, we'll need someone to coordinate the food as well.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2708 Already planning for convention season 2023 2022-09-16T10:16:27.000-04:00 2022-09-16T10:16:27.000-04:00 I know convention season 2022 just ended, but, it's never too soon to start thinking about next year. next year.]]> https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2703 Thank you! 2022-09-05T17:04:27.000-04:00 2022-09-05T17:04:27.000-04:00 Thank you to all who supported our efforts during the 2022 convention season. I'm already looking forward to next year's conventions and am hopeful we can see more people out there. After discussions with DragonCon Campaign RPG Leadership, as long as we have the volunteers to do so, we will be including Pathfinder 1st Edition at DragonCon next year. My intention is that DragonCon will be the only of the three conventions to feature PF1E only because MomoCon and Southern-Fried Gaming Expo are more acquisition conventions for us than DragonCon is. Also being considered for all three conventions for Atlanta next year will be a slightly different plan of offerings: 1: Campaign RPG - Scenarios and Specials 2: "Build & Play" - New Player Nights will be renamed to become Build & Play, and it will be an offering for the conventions to help both new and experienced players with character creation and then try out the characters in a Bounty. 3: Bounties on Demand - "Standby" GMs would need to be available at HQ for this one. Since Quests and Bounties are typically not placed on the schedules for our conventions by name, this would require that GMs be ready and available to run any of a handful of bounties as players walked up with an interest in just playing. This could end up being done mostly with pregens, but there may be some player characters involved as well.
After discussions with DragonCon Campaign RPG Leadership, as long as we have the volunteers to do so, we will be including Pathfinder 1st Edition at DragonCon next year. My intention is that DragonCon will be the only of the three conventions to feature PF1E only because MomoCon and Southern-Fried Gaming Expo are more acquisition conventions for us than DragonCon is.
Also being considered for all three conventions for Atlanta next year will be a slightly different plan of offerings:
1: Campaign RPG - Scenarios and Specials
2: "Build & Play" - New Player Nights will be renamed to become Build & Play, and it will be an offering for the conventions to help both new and experienced players with character creation and then try out the characters in a Bounty.
3: Bounties on Demand - "Standby" GMs would need to be available at HQ for this one. Since Quests and Bounties are typically not placed on the schedules for our conventions by name, this would require that GMs be ready and available to run any of a handful of bounties as players walked up with an interest in just playing. This could end up being done mostly with pregens, but there may be some player characters involved as well.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2683 "New Player Nights" 2022-07-19T17:13:46.000-04:00 2022-07-19T17:13:46.000-04:00 I just put up a new post on the Atlanta PFS website about an idea I'd like to try out (though likely not until after DragonCon) and would like to get some feedback. The concept is this - we schedule a 4-5 hour time slot at one of our venues once a month (possibly more frequently, depending on the demand and whether it takes off) where a GM will have a prepared bounty and will help guide players, both new and established (if they wish) through character creation, followed by testing that character's viability in an hour-long bounty. What are your thoughts? new post on the Atlanta PFS website about an idea I'd like to try out (though likely not until after DragonCon) and would like to get some feedback.
The concept is this - we schedule a 4-5 hour time slot at one of our venues once a month (possibly more frequently, depending on the demand and whether it takes off) where a GM will have a prepared bounty and will help guide players, both new and established (if they wish) through character creation, followed by testing that character's viability in an hour-long bounty.
What are your thoughts?]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2682 Southern-Fried Gaming Expo and Covid-19 Protocols 2022-07-09T14:14:22.000-04:00 2022-07-09T14:14:22.000-04:00 Original post I posted this to the AtlantaPFS website and pushed the link to our Twitter feed, the Pathfinder Society of Georgia Facebook page, my personal Facebook account, the Discord server, and am posting it here as well. However, I am posting the full content here rather than only the link to the post on the AtlantaPFS website. Southern-Fried Gaming Expo 2022 With Southern-Fried Gaming Expo 2022 just days away, I wanted to remind everyone that COVID is still out there making an impact on people's lives and urge anyone attending, whether as a volunteer or a player, to take appropriate precautions. The community transmission rate in Cobb County, GA, where the convention will be held, is currently listed as High. The CDC recommends indoor masking in areas of high community transmission. As of my last discussion with Campaign RPG Leadership, they are not staffed to enforce a masking or vaccine policy, so the convention, unless the host venue states otherwise, will continue to be a masking optional/recommended/appreciated event. The room where we will be offering sessions will be shared with at least one to two other gaming groups, so I am going to urge any GAPFS members attending to please wear a mask. I added both KN95 masks and Purell hand sanitizer to our event support kit and will be providing these to the volunteer GMs as well as to HQ. Priority for these supplies will go to the volunteers, however, should a player come to a table without a mask and the table GM wishes to have their players masked, they will have masks to distribute as needed. At the end of the day, I want us all to be safe and have fun. For more information SFGE 2022 Health & Safety Policies Covid Act Now (Cobb County, GA) Cobb and Douglas County Public Health Departments The CDC From the VO Handbook 4.1.7. Public Health[url=https://www.organizedplayfoundation.org/Lorespire/VO-Handbook#Public_Health][/url] During times of public health crises (or even for con crud/flu season), conventions should keep the safety of their communities in mind. All convention planners must follow federal, state, and local health policies. In the case of policy changes, local government press releases and websites (such as those designating “opening tiers”), including the convention’s website, should include the most recent updates to their health and safety policy. All VOs and volunteers are required to adhere to the policies set forth by the convention, however, as stated below, if you feel these policies are not appropriate to keep you and your players healthy and safe, it is completely within your power to decline to participate. Remember, if you do not feel the convention is taking appropriate measures to safeguard your health and safety, it is always within your power to decline participation in the convention. This right to decline to participate extends to all volunteers at a convention, not just VOs. VOs should make sure their volunteers are aware of this as part of the recruiting process. Original post
I posted this to the AtlantaPFS website and pushed the link to our Twitter feed, the Pathfinder Society of Georgia Facebook page, my personal Facebook account, the Discord server, and am posting it here as well. However, I am posting the full content here rather than only the link to the post on the AtlantaPFS website.
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo 2022
With Southern-Fried Gaming Expo 2022 just days away, I wanted to remind everyone that COVID is still out there making an impact on people's lives and urge anyone attending, whether as a volunteer or a player, to take appropriate precautions.
The community transmission rate in Cobb County, GA, where the convention will be held, is currently listed as High. The CDC recommends indoor masking in areas of high community transmission. As of my last discussion with Campaign RPG Leadership, they are not staffed to enforce a masking or vaccine policy, so the convention, unless the host venue states otherwise, will continue to be a masking optional/recommended/appreciated event.
The room where we will be offering sessions will be shared with at least one to two other gaming groups, so I am going to urge any GAPFS members attending to please wear a mask. I added both KN95 masks and Purell hand sanitizer to our event support kit and will be providing these to the volunteer GMs as well as to HQ. Priority for these supplies will go to the volunteers, however, should a player come to a table without a mask and the table GM wishes to have their players masked, they will have masks to distribute as needed.
At the end of the day, I want us all to be safe and have fun.
For more information
SFGE 2022 Health & Safety Policies
Covid Act Now (Cobb County, GA)
Cobb and Douglas County Public Health Departments
The CDC
From the VO Handbook
4.1.7. Public Health[url=https://www.organizedplayfoundation.org/Lorespire/VO-Handbook#Public_Health][/url]
During times of public health crises (or even for con crud/flu season), conventions should keep the safety of their communities in mind. All convention planners must follow federal, state, and local health policies. In the case of policy changes, local government press releases and websites (such as those designating “opening tiers”), including the convention’s website, should include the most recent updates to their health and safety policy. All VOs and volunteers are required to adhere to the policies set forth by the convention, however, as stated below, if you feel these policies are not appropriate to keep you and your players healthy and safe, it is completely within your power to decline to participate.
Remember, if you do not feel the convention is taking appropriate measures to safeguard your health and safety, it is always within your power to decline participation in the convention. This right to decline to participate extends to all volunteers at a convention, not just VOs. VOs should make sure their volunteers are aware of this as part of the recruiting process.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2681 VrockCon V - Greenville, SC 2022-07-05T20:32:13.000-04:00 2022-07-05T20:32:13.000-04:00 Hey guys. Just in case there is any interest I wanted to post this to the GAPFS group to make you aware of a small gameday we are having in Greenville, SC later this month on July 30th. About 2 hours from Atlanta and 1.5 hours from Athens. All the information and schedule is on the Warhorn site. We are starting VrockCon back up and hope to expand to 2 days next year. https://warhorn.net/events/vrockcon-v Sean Williamson - Venture Agent - Game Kastle #21935
All the information and schedule is on the Warhorn site. We are starting VrockCon back up and hope to expand to 2 days next year.
https://warhorn.net/events/vrockcon-v
Sean Williamson - Venture Agent - Game Kastle
#21935]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2662 AtlantaPFS Updates - Venues, Conventions, Free RPG Day 2022-06-07T21:12:27.000-04:00 2022-06-07T21:12:27.000-04:00 Manuel's Tavern Return You asked for it, so you're getting it. AtlantaPFS is returning to Manuel's Tavern in Atlanta. Beginning on Wednesday, June 22, we will be offering games at Manuel's on the 4th Wednesday of the month from 6:30 PM - 11:00 PM. We have a GM for the first session already. Look for sessions to start showing up on the group Warhorn page. New Venues Added Viking Alchemist Meadery in Smyrna has been added as a venue. We do not need a reservation as they have open gaming on Sundays from 1 - 6. I've spoken to both Caffeinated Gamers and Dice Goblin Games & Grill over the phone, and both are excited to host us in person. I will be visiting each site within the next few weeks to firm everything up. Sessions will be up on the group Warhorn page as they're added. Southern-Fried Gaming Expo Our next major convention is Southern-Fried Gaming Expo, July 15 - 17. Non Venture-Officer volunteer sign-ups close on 6/24. Venture-Officer volunteer sign-ups close on July 1. Player sign-ups open on 6/15. If you're interested in volunteering, [email=%20joel@atlantapfs.org]send me an email[/email] and I'll forward you the instructions for signing up. To sign up to play (on or after 6/15), to go the Warhorn page Free RPG Day Free RPG Day is on 6/25. The Free RPG Day website has a list of participating venues in the area. Currently, 2 venues in our footprint are participating - Level-Up and Giga-Bites. We are checking with other venues to see if they are participating but not yet listed on the Free RPG Day website. We are able to run games on 6/25 and 6/26 for Free RPG Day at participating retailers only. Free RPG Day content becomes available to openly run on July 23. Manuel's Tavern Return
You asked for it, so you're getting it. AtlantaPFS is returning to Manuel's Tavern in Atlanta.
Beginning on Wednesday, June 22, we will be offering games at Manuel's on the 4th Wednesday of the month from 6:30 PM - 11:00 PM.
We have a GM for the first session already. Look for sessions to start showing up on the group Warhorn page.
New Venues Added
Viking Alchemist Meadery in Smyrna has been added as a venue. We do not need a reservation as they have open gaming on Sundays from 1 - 6.
I've spoken to both Caffeinated Gamers and Dice Goblin Games & Grill over the phone, and both are excited to host us in person. I will be visiting each site within the next few weeks to firm everything up.
Sessions will be up on the group Warhorn page as they're added.
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo
Our next major convention is Southern-Fried Gaming Expo, July 15 - 17. Non Venture-Officer volunteer sign-ups close on 6/24. Venture-Officer volunteer sign-ups close on July 1. Player sign-ups open on 6/15. If you're interested in volunteering, [email=%20joel@atlantapfs.org]send me an email[/email] and I'll forward you the instructions for signing up. To sign up to play (on or after 6/15), to go the Warhorn page
Free RPG Day
Free RPG Day is on 6/25. The Free RPG Day website has a list of participating venues in the area. Currently, 2 venues in our footprint are participating - Level-Up and Giga-Bites. We are checking with other venues to see if they are participating but not yet listed on the Free RPG Day website. We are able to run games on 6/25 and 6/26 for Free RPG Day at participating retailers only. Free RPG Day content becomes available to openly run on July 23.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2660 Post MomoCon Update 2022-05-30T14:31:04.000-04:00 2022-05-30T14:31:04.000-04:00 Now that MomoCon is over and SFGE is 6 weeks away, it’s back to business as usual for a bit. We have one GM (aside from me) who is willing and able to run sessions at Viking Alchemist Meadery in Smyrna (3080 Jonquil Dr, Smyrna, GA 30080). Do we have players who are able to join sessions there? Our next normal “big event” is Free RPG Day on June 25th. As you may or may not know, Paizo will only permit us to run the free material at participating retailers or digitally for those who would normally play at a participating retailer, with it being able to be released to the rest of the world on July 23. I am going to reach out to the VOs to see who may have something going for the event this year (and yes, Skittermanders are back on the SFS side this year). Level-Up and HobbyTown may have things on offer, but I’ll know more after talking with the VOs. On the venue front, we don’t need to reserve a spot at Viking Alchemist as they offer open gaming days on Sundays. In speaking with management at Titan, it sounds like mid-July is when they’re aiming to let TTRPG back into the store for events. At last check-in, Giga-Bites was open to us to reserve a spot on Sundays. HobbyTown is open to us and is being scheduled on the final Saturday of each month. Level-Up is open and being regularly scheduled on Warhorn. We’re going to check on My Parents’ Basement (they’re o closed today, so I can’t call them and check). The Wasteland was open to us returning, with the last information being the 1st Saturday of the month was possibly good. Manuel’s was also open to us returning, though the parking lot next to them no longer exists, putting parking at a premium. We also have some other potential new venues coming up in Hiram, Rockmart, Roswell (Caffeinated Gamers), and Cumming (Dice Goblin). If anyone is interested in running sessions at any of the venues, please reach out to me here or via email - joel@atlantapfs.org and I’ll get in touch with the VO responsible for the venue.
We have one GM (aside from me) who is willing and able to run sessions at Viking Alchemist Meadery in Smyrna (3080 Jonquil Dr, Smyrna, GA 30080). Do we have players who are able to join sessions there?
Our next normal “big event” is Free RPG Day on June 25th. As you may or may not know, Paizo will only permit us to run the free material at participating retailers or digitally for those who would normally play at a participating retailer, with it being able to be released to the rest of the world on July 23. I am going to reach out to the VOs to see who may have something going for the event this year (and yes, Skittermanders are back on the SFS side this year). Level-Up and HobbyTown may have things on offer, but I’ll know more after talking with the VOs.
On the venue front, we don’t need to reserve a spot at Viking Alchemist as they offer open gaming days on Sundays. In speaking with management at Titan, it sounds like mid-July is when they’re aiming to let TTRPG back into the store for events. At last check-in, Giga-Bites was open to us to reserve a spot on Sundays. HobbyTown is open to us and is being scheduled on the final Saturday of each month. Level-Up is open and being regularly scheduled on Warhorn. We’re going to check on My Parents’ Basement (they’re o closed today, so I can’t call them and check). The Wasteland was open to us returning, with the last information being the 1st Saturday of the month was possibly good. Manuel’s was also open to us returning, though the parking lot next to them no longer exists, putting parking at a premium. We also have some other potential new venues coming up in Hiram, Rockmart, Roswell (Caffeinated Gamers), and Cumming (Dice Goblin).
If anyone is interested in running sessions at any of the venues, please reach out to me here or via email - joel@atlantapfs.org and I’ll get in touch with the VO responsible for the venue.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2641 GA PFS Atlanta Lodge Conventions Open Call for Volunteers 2022-04-04T19:08:37.000-04:00 2022-04-04T19:08:37.000-04:00 The Atlanta Lodge of GAPFS is looking for volunteers for MomoCon (May 26 - 29), Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (July 15 - 17), and DragonCon (September 1 - 5). Instructions for volunteering for each convention: MomoCon Southern-Fried Gaming Expo DragonCon The Atlanta Lodge of GAPFS is looking for volunteers for MomoCon (May 26 - 29), Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (July 15 - 17), and DragonCon (September 1 - 5).
Instructions for volunteering for each convention:
MomoCon
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo
DragonCon]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2639 MomoCon 2022 Call for Volunteers 2022-03-31T20:12:04.000-04:00 2022-03-31T20:12:04.000-04:00 MomoCon 2022 is opening up player pre-registration in just a few days. We still need GMs and HQ Volunteers. I will be trimming games from the schedule on April 5 (at least hiding them pending the final volunteer signup date being given). MomoCon takes place over Memorial Day weekend (May 26 - May 29). We look forward to seeing you there! GM or HQ Volunteer Instructions AtlantaPFS MomoCon Offering Schedule (subject to change) ]]>
- GM or HQ Volunteer Instructions
- AtlantaPFS MomoCon Offering Schedule (subject to change)
https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2637 MomoCon 2022-03-29T19:54:32.000-04:00 2022-03-29T19:54:32.000-04:00 MomoCon will be opening for player signups soon. AtlantaPFS is still looking for volunteer GMs and HQ personnel. Anyone interested in volunteering to run sessions for AtlantaPFS at MomoCon should fill out this form and you will be sent further info. form and you will be sent further info.]]> https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2631 Not-A-Con 2022 is next Saturday, March 26, 2022 2022-03-19T17:43:02.000-04:00 2022-03-19T17:43:02.000-04:00 Not-A-Con 2022 is one week away! https://warhorn.net/events/not-a-con-2022 Pre-generated character-friendly Pathfinder Second Edition and Starfinder scenarios are what's on offer this coming Saturday - so you don't have to build or print. Just bring your mask, dice, and your favorite gaming toys. Three solid tables have mustered so far - with considerable room to expand. More players and GMs are welcome! This event is free, but the Georgia State Park does require a $5 parking fee. Please contact me if you have requests, questions, or concerns. See you next week at the Not-A-Con! https://warhorn.net/events/not-a-con-2022
Pre-generated character-friendly Pathfinder Second Edition and Starfinder scenarios are what's on offer this coming Saturday - so you don't have to build or print. Just bring your mask, dice, and your favorite gaming toys.
Three solid tables have mustered so far - with considerable room to expand. More players and GMs are welcome!
This event is free, but the Georgia State Park does require a $5 parking fee.
Please contact me if you have requests, questions, or concerns.
See you next week at the Not-A-Con!]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2622 Not-A-Con 2022 - Registration is now open on Warhorn 2022-03-01T08:49:34.000-05:00 2022-03-01T08:49:34.000-05:00 Welcome to the Spring 2022 Not-A-Con! Come and enjoy FREE LIVE GAMES of Second Edition Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder, GA on Saturday, March 26th. 10-11am Coffee Hour 11am-4pm Gaming Slot 4pm-7pm Dinner/Social Time We will offer four tables to start - and see how many sign up. Tables will be added or collapsed as numbers solidify. Registration for this event is now open on Warhorn. CDC Guidelines have relaxed, but masking for safety is encouraged. Not sure what else to say here. Since it has been awhile, don't worry about building and printing characters - we are running all scenarios for pre-generated characters. For this event, we will be offering the new Pathfinder and Starfinder "One-Shots" for pre-generated characters as well as some pre-gen scenarios for both systems. If there is a particular scenario you would like to see run (or run) at this event, please contact me and we'll try to set something up. We also need GM volunteers – your additional contributions of time and effort are greatly appreciated. Sign up as GM when registering for sessions on Warhorn. Thank you in advance! If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact me. Many thanks, Tiffany H. Venture Captain - Athens, GA Welcome to the Spring 2022 Not-A-Con!
Come and enjoy FREE LIVE GAMES of Second Edition Pathfinder Society and Starfinder Society at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder, GA on Saturday, March 26th.
10-11am Coffee Hour
11am-4pm Gaming Slot
4pm-7pm Dinner/Social Time
We will offer four tables to start - and see how many sign up. Tables will be added or collapsed as numbers solidify. Registration for this event is now open on Warhorn.
CDC Guidelines have relaxed, but masking for safety is encouraged. Not sure what else to say here.
Since it has been awhile, don't worry about building and printing characters - we are running all scenarios for pre-generated characters. For this event, we will be offering the new Pathfinder and Starfinder "One-Shots" for pre-generated characters as well as some pre-gen scenarios for both systems. If there is a particular scenario you would like to see run (or run) at this event, please contact me and we'll try to set something up.
We also need GM volunteers – your additional contributions of time and effort are greatly appreciated. Sign up as GM when registering for sessions on Warhorn. Thank you in advance!
If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact me.
Many thanks, Tiffany H.
Venture Captain - Athens, GA]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2621 Open call for GMs and HQ Staff for MomoCon (May 26 - May 29) 2022-02-28T21:07:21.000-05:00 2022-02-28T21:07:21.000-05:00 Open call for GMs and HQ Volunteers for MomoCon (May 26 - May 29) GM/HQ Sign-up Instructions Open call for GMs and HQ Volunteers for MomoCon (May 26 - May 29)
GM/HQ Sign-up Instructions
]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2620 Convention Volunteer Call and Survey 2022-02-28T12:50:44.000-05:00 2022-02-28T12:50:44.000-05:00 @everyone - If you are interested in being a GM or running HQ during one of the Atlanta area conventions where Georgia PFS has either a physical or digital presence, please fill out the following form: https://forms.gle/9qNd6VhhvyXKuifq9. The open call for MomoCon GMs is coming very soon, and GM sign-ups will be open on Warhorn (I got access to the Warhorn site today and need to populate it with the scenarios and schedule I put together). https://forms.gle/9qNd6VhhvyXKuifq9.
The open call for MomoCon GMs is coming very soon, and GM sign-ups will be open on Warhorn (I got access to the Warhorn site today and need to populate it with the scenarios and schedule I put together).]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2608 Atlanta 2022 Plan 2022-01-30T16:44:52.000-05:00 2022-01-30T16:44:52.000-05:00 Welcome to 2022, everyone. I hope everyone is safe and well. I also hope that, at some point this year, we’re able to get face to face again, even though we will also not be abandoning our virtual presence on the various Virtual TableTops. On January 1, I launched a hub/wraparound site for Atlanta (https://atlantapfs.org). This site has a members area that, at least right now, doesn’t have any special content, but there will be some coming in the future. Why a member's area? It's a two-fold reason, honestly. Reason 1 is that there will be things that are specifically for members of the lodge that are currently not able to be hidden from public view here on the forums (for instance, any discounts that conventions may offer to members of the lodge vs. those they release to the general public). Reason 2 is that it helps us to meet requirements put on us by Organized Play to keep a list of our players and GMs. We also had a few changes to the Venture-Officer group, with 3 Venture-Officers stepping away, whether permanently or temporarily. As we ramp up towards going in-person again, I’ll have to take a look at who’s still around, which venues we still have/are permitting in-person TTRPG, and assess any needs we have, at which point, the existing Venture-Officers may start talking to some of you about becoming a Venture-Officer. My intent is also to embrace the digital age in which we live this year and encourage all GMs and VOs to use tools like RPG Chronicles for their sign-in and chronicle sheets, even in person. I know there are people who prefer paper, and I respect that, but, with Organized Play wanting to move to a more digital format, and at least one of the chronicle sheet sites soon offering lodge level support where you can also see what has been reported on Paizo’s site, it will make things easier in the long run. To that end, I've signed up for convention support on the RPG Chronicles website and this is how we will manage sign-ins and chronicle sheets for the convention. It will mean needing to have players provide an email address since chronicle sheets will be automatically emailed at the end of the game session. For those hesitant to provide an email address (though one was required to be given as part of signing up for an OP number on the Paizo website), a Discord ID can be provided where the GM or a member of HQ can later send a copy of the chronicle sheet. The developer behind the site is also working on a feature for those hesitant to do even that where it will not require printing at or prior to the convention. If you have any concerns about the privacy of your information via the RPG Chronicles website, take a moment to review the privacy policy (https://www.rpgchronicles.net/privacy). That may help alleviate any concerns. Planning for this year’s convention cycle began in September, immediately after DragonCon ended. The plan this year is for us to have a presence at three conventions (in chronological order): MomoCon, Southern-Fried Gaming Expo, and DragonCon. The current plan, COVID-dependent, is to be in-person at each convention. That plan, however, is subject to change, depending on the level of risk (reported cases, transmission rates, hospital/ICU bed capacity, etc.) associated with it at the time of each convention. Because we have been relatively inactive in the local community since COVID started, I am looking at each convention as an acquisition convention, focusing on lower-level scenarios more heavily than the higher, with the mindset of trying to interest people in joining our community. Consider this a save the date/precursor to open call for GMs for all three conventions. This is also a call for any special requests for scenarios, whether for players or for GMs. For anyone interested, since I am a numbers guy, I have a breakdown of the offerings for each convention by level range. My intention is to not have anything offered where it is outside the range where pregens are available at any convention. MomoCon opted to skip the normal convention cycle last year and hold WinterFest. Whether they will do similarly this year or not, if the numbers look bad, is TBD. They have already indicated there will be both a vaccine and mask mandate at the convention this year, with the possibility of a testing mandate as well. Once their final decision is made, I will make sure to pass it on. We will be offering both Pathfinder 2nd Edition and Starfinder Society games, and I have been asked whether we will offer Pathfinder 1st Edition. I left that option open, but it is as dependent on having interested players for PF1 as it is to have interested GMs. The current plan for MomoCon is for 45 total tables, with 36 from Campaign RPG (18 each for PF2 and SF, unless we do get PF1 interest, in which case the table count will differ) and 9 from Quests and Bounties (running 2 for each system during each 4-hour block). Southern-Fried Gaming Expo will be an in-person convention unless forced to cancel. They checked vaccination status at the door last year and did have a mask mandate in place, which they were responsible to enforce. Their health and safety requirements will likely be announced approximately 30 days prior to the convention. I have one caveat to add to SFGE, and that is this – even though I am looking at it as an acquisition convention, I also plan to offer both Pathfinder and Starfinder Specials from last season at this event (the new specials will not both be released in time for this event). DragonCon already indicated their plan is to remain a blended convention moving forward. Their requirements last year were for vaccinated and masked participants only, as well as having limited the number of attendees to approximately 42,000 people. I expect DragonCon’s Health & Safety Requirements to be put out anywhere from 2 weeks to a month prior to the convention. Unless it looks likely that the mayor will ban large gatherings in Atlanta, I plan for us to be represented both physically and virtually, depending on DragonCon’s final plan. I have contingency plans in place already for all three possible convention options (online only, blended, in-person only). The most recent specials will be offered at DragonCon, as both will have been released in advance of the dates of DragonCon. Feel free to reach out with your scenario requests, questions, or concerns, and be on the lookout for the open call for GMs (which will come after Paizo makes any announcements for the new seasons of each game system). Welcome to 2022, everyone.
I hope everyone is safe and well. I also hope that, at some point this year, we’re able to get face to face again, even though we will also not be abandoning our virtual presence on the various Virtual TableTops.
On January 1, I launched a hub/wraparound site for Atlanta (https://atlantapfs.org). This site has a members area that, at least right now, doesn’t have any special content, but there will be some coming in the future. Why a member's area? It's a two-fold reason, honestly. Reason 1 is that there will be things that are specifically for members of the lodge that are currently not able to be hidden from public view here on the forums (for instance, any discounts that conventions may offer to members of the lodge vs. those they release to the general public). Reason 2 is that it helps us to meet requirements put on us by Organized Play to keep a list of our players and GMs.
We also had a few changes to the Venture-Officer group, with 3 Venture-Officers stepping away, whether permanently or temporarily. As we ramp up towards going in-person again, I’ll have to take a look at who’s still around, which venues we still have/are permitting in-person TTRPG, and assess any needs we have, at which point, the existing Venture-Officers may start talking to some of you about becoming a Venture-Officer.
My intent is also to embrace the digital age in which we live this year and encourage all GMs and VOs to use tools like RPG Chronicles for their sign-in and chronicle sheets, even in person. I know there are people who prefer paper, and I respect that, but, with Organized Play wanting to move to a more digital format, and at least one of the chronicle sheet sites soon offering lodge level support where you can also see what has been reported on Paizo’s site, it will make things easier in the long run. To that end, I've signed up for convention support on the RPG Chronicles website and this is how we will manage sign-ins and chronicle sheets for the convention. It will mean needing to have players provide an email address since chronicle sheets will be automatically emailed at the end of the game session. For those hesitant to provide an email address (though one was required to be given as part of signing up for an OP number on the Paizo website), a Discord ID can be provided where the GM or a member of HQ can later send a copy of the chronicle sheet. The developer behind the site is also working on a feature for those hesitant to do even that where it will not require printing at or prior to the convention. If you have any concerns about the privacy of your information via the RPG Chronicles website, take a moment to review the privacy policy (https://www.rpgchronicles.net/privacy). That may help alleviate any concerns.
Planning for this year’s convention cycle began in September, immediately after DragonCon ended. The plan this year is for us to have a presence at three conventions (in chronological order): MomoCon, Southern-Fried Gaming Expo, and DragonCon. The current plan, COVID-dependent, is to be in-person at each convention. That plan, however, is subject to change, depending on the level of risk (reported cases, transmission rates, hospital/ICU bed capacity, etc.) associated with it at the time of each convention.
Because we have been relatively inactive in the local community since COVID started, I am looking at each convention as an acquisition convention, focusing on lower-level scenarios more heavily than the higher, with the mindset of trying to interest people in joining our community. Consider this a save the date/precursor to open call for GMs for all three conventions. This is also a call for any special requests for scenarios, whether for players or for GMs. For anyone interested, since I am a numbers guy, I have a breakdown of the offerings for each convention by level range. My intention is to not have anything offered where it is outside the range where pregens are available at any convention.
MomoCon opted to skip the normal convention cycle last year and hold WinterFest. Whether they will do similarly this year or not, if the numbers look bad, is TBD. They have already indicated there will be both a vaccine and mask mandate at the convention this year, with the possibility of a testing mandate as well. Once their final decision is made, I will make sure to pass it on. We will be offering both Pathfinder 2nd Edition and Starfinder Society games, and I have been asked whether we will offer Pathfinder 1st Edition. I left that option open, but it is as dependent on having interested players for PF1 as it is to have interested GMs. The current plan for MomoCon is for 45 total tables, with 36 from Campaign RPG (18 each for PF2 and SF, unless we do get PF1 interest, in which case the table count will differ) and 9 from Quests and Bounties (running 2 for each system during each 4-hour block).
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo will be an in-person convention unless forced to cancel. They checked vaccination status at the door last year and did have a mask mandate in place, which they were responsible to enforce. Their health and safety requirements will likely be announced approximately 30 days prior to the convention. I have one caveat to add to SFGE, and that is this – even though I am looking at it as an acquisition convention, I also plan to offer both Pathfinder and Starfinder Specials from last season at this event (the new specials will not both be released in time for this event).
DragonCon already indicated their plan is to remain a blended convention moving forward. Their requirements last year were for vaccinated and masked participants only, as well as having limited the number of attendees to approximately 42,000 people. I expect DragonCon’s Health & Safety Requirements to be put out anywhere from 2 weeks to a month prior to the convention. Unless it looks likely that the mayor will ban large gatherings in Atlanta, I plan for us to be represented both physically and virtually, depending on DragonCon’s final plan. I have contingency plans in place already for all three possible convention options (online only, blended, in-person only). The most recent specials will be offered at DragonCon, as both will have been released in advance of the dates of DragonCon.
Feel free to reach out with your scenario requests, questions, or concerns, and be on the lookout for the open call for GMs (which will come after Paizo makes any announcements for the new seasons of each game system).]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2584 GAPFS XMAS PAAAAAARRRTY 2021-11-14T15:07:03.000-05:00 2021-11-14T15:07:03.000-05:00 Announcing the GAPFS Christmas Party - cancelled due to lack of interest It's too soon, we'll try again next year. When: Sunday Dec 12 2021 Where: Ft Yargo State Park, Shelter B Time: 10AM - 5PM We're casually going to work our way back into live gaming. Current format is: 1 slot of gaming (4-5 tables) then a potluck/hangout. Tiff has graciously agreed to coordinate the potluck. Seeking GMs to schedule tables. PM me here or on Discord and I'll set your table up on Warhorn. The site will open when I get the key around 9:45 AM, I need to turn the key back in by 9:45 PM. You do not have to game to attend, but we ask that you not distract the tables too much during the games. The event itself is free, but the site requires the purchase of a parking pass for $5 at the park office, and they do check. Covid related stuff: We're not going to ask your vaccination status or ask for a clean test. However, we do ask you to mask if you are not vaccinated, and to please stay home if you are feeling truly unwell. (we do realize there are allergy issues with it being an outdoors site) Honor system folks. Let's play it safe so we can keep playing. Announcing the
GAPFS Christmas Party - cancelled due to lack of interest
It's too soon, we'll try again next year.
When: Sunday Dec 12 2021
Where: Ft Yargo State Park, Shelter B
Time: 10AM - 5PM
We're casually going to work our way back into live gaming.
Current format is:
1 slot of gaming (4-5 tables) then a potluck/hangout. Tiff has graciously agreed to coordinate the potluck.
Seeking GMs to schedule tables. PM me here or on Discord and I'll set your table up on Warhorn.
The site will open when I get the key around 9:45 AM, I need to turn the key back in by 9:45 PM.
You do not have to game to attend, but we ask that you not distract the tables too much during the games.
The event itself is free, but the site requires the purchase of a parking pass for $5 at the park office, and
they do check.
Covid related stuff: We're not going to ask your vaccination status or ask for a clean test. However,
we do ask you to mask if you are not vaccinated, and to please stay home if you are feeling truly unwell.
(we do realize there are allergy issues with it being an outdoors site)
Honor system folks.
Let's play it safe so we can keep playing.
]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2582 Momocon Winterfest 2021 2021-11-08T14:58:42.000-05:00 2021-11-08T14:58:42.000-05:00 [Note: David Shaw is actually overseeing the PFS/SFS side of things, so any questions about the specific content are best directed to him, which can be accomplished by emailing the Hello Everyone! I'm looking for a few volunteers to help with Winterfest presented by MomoCon Come celebrate the Holidays with MomoCon! Join us for this new event: MomoCon Winterfest 2021. Winterfest will bring some of your favorite aspects of MomoCon: Exhibitors, Artists, Games, Guests, Panels, Cosplay, and more over this special 2-day event. Details What: Momocon Winterfest 2021 When: Dec 18-19th, 2021 Where: Atlanta, GA - Georgia World Congress Center Hall A Requirements: Fill out the application below and confirm to run at least ONE 2-hour learn-to-play session for the game system of your choice. There are no minimum hours required for this show. Volunteering gets you a free badge for the entire weekend! Deadline: Dec 05, 2021 11:59 pm Eastern Time Apply Now: https://www.eventeny.com/events/volunteer/application/... Additional Details We will have 10-12 tables in the main hall with all of the other events. No programming will be in the Omni for Winterfest. There are NOT any options for comped volunteer hotel shares This event may be best for those who live more local, but all are welcome. Content to run will be provided for D&D 5e and Pathfinder/Starfinder. Other systems should have pregens and a quick reference available for new players. Please let me know if you have any questions about what you can run. There will ONLY be learn-to-plays offered at this smaller event. I am open to ANY game system!! Please message me or send an email to rpgs@momocon.com with any questions! Thanks so much! Ginny Loveday, RPG Director
Hello Everyone! I'm looking for a few volunteers to help with Winterfest presented by MomoCon
Come celebrate the Holidays with MomoCon! Join us for this new event: MomoCon Winterfest 2021. Winterfest will bring some of your favorite aspects of MomoCon: Exhibitors, Artists, Games, Guests, Panels, Cosplay, and more over this special 2-day event.
Details
What: Momocon Winterfest 2021
When: Dec 18-19th, 2021
Where: Atlanta, GA - Georgia World Congress Center Hall A
Requirements: Fill out the application below and confirm to run at least ONE 2-hour learn-to-play session for the game system of your choice. There are no minimum hours required for this show. Volunteering gets you a free badge for the entire weekend!
Deadline: Dec 05, 2021 11:59 pm Eastern Time
Apply Now: https://www.eventeny.com/events/volunteer/application/...
Additional DetailsPlease message me or send an email to rpgs@momocon.com with any questions!
- We will have 10-12 tables in the main hall with all of the other events. No programming will be in the Omni for Winterfest.
- There are NOT any options for comped volunteer hotel shares
- This event may be best for those who live more local, but all are welcome.
- Content to run will be provided for D&D 5e and Pathfinder/Starfinder.
- Other systems should have pregens and a quick reference available for new players.
- Please let me know if you have any questions about what you can run.
- There will ONLY be learn-to-plays offered at this smaller event.
- I am open to ANY game system!!
Thanks so much!
Ginny Loveday, RPG Director]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2514 In Light of Recent Online Events... 2021-09-16T10:17:31.000-04:00 2021-09-16T10:17:31.000-04:00 Good morning, all. In light of what's going on in the world of Paizo, I felt an "official" statement of some sort should be made. Some of what I am going to say may sound a little tone deaf, but I ask you to bear with me and you'll understand why I make the statements I do. While the Internet world is taking sides and jumping to believe one or the other, that's not why I'm here. What I believe or don't believe is inconsequential. To a large degree, I really don't care what goes on at the corporate office until or unless it impacts our group, our reputation, or our credibility in the community. Do the allegations bother me? Absolutely they do. Having been the target of attempts to get me fired at prior jobs for being male or for a vague accusation of "not feeling safe around me because I'm angry all the time" (by the very person who always made me angry, and on purpose to attempt to trip me up) and having been through HR investigations as a result, not to mention having been on the other side of it where I've had to investigate employee misconduct when I was in management, I understand how complicated things get, especially when people let their feelings get in the way of facts. The truth is, we may never know what happened, who's telling the truth, or be willing to accept either side's opinions and statements on the matter. As I stated yesterday during the VC Zoom call/dinner as well, I don't care about what happens at the national level. GenCon and the other flagship/national/international conventions are not my concern. My concern is helping the local community flourish. That is what being a Venture-Captain is about - the local community. I do want to make one thing crystal clear, however, and that is this: I won't tolerate the type of behavior that's alleged to have taken place in our community. If anyone ever feels that anyone's behavior crosses a line, is being done to exclude them, or otherwise is not holding to the spirit or the written word of the Community Code of Conduct, I want you to know I'm here to listen and will take whatever action is appropriate to address the situation. I hold myself and the VOs in the area responsible for making sure we're doing what's right for the community and each other. If at any time you feel we're not, hold us accountable by saying something to any VO, to me, or to our RVC. If you're still not satisfied, take it up the chain to Organized Play. But, no matter what, say something because we can't make things right if we don't know they're happening. Stay safe everyone.
In light of what's going on in the world of Paizo, I felt an "official" statement of some sort should be made. Some of what I am going to say may sound a little tone deaf, but I ask you to bear with me and you'll understand why I make the statements I do.
While the Internet world is taking sides and jumping to believe one or the other, that's not why I'm here. What I believe or don't believe is inconsequential. To a large degree, I really don't care what goes on at the corporate office until or unless it impacts our group, our reputation, or our credibility in the community.
Do the allegations bother me? Absolutely they do. Having been the target of attempts to get me fired at prior jobs for being male or for a vague accusation of "not feeling safe around me because I'm angry all the time" (by the very person who always made me angry, and on purpose to attempt to trip me up) and having been through HR investigations as a result, not to mention having been on the other side of it where I've had to investigate employee misconduct when I was in management, I understand how complicated things get, especially when people let their feelings get in the way of facts. The truth is, we may never know what happened, who's telling the truth, or be willing to accept either side's opinions and statements on the matter.
As I stated yesterday during the VC Zoom call/dinner as well, I don't care about what happens at the national level. GenCon and the other flagship/national/international conventions are not my concern. My concern is helping the local community flourish. That is what being a Venture-Captain is about - the local community.
I do want to make one thing crystal clear, however, and that is this: I won't tolerate the type of behavior that's alleged to have taken place in our community. If anyone ever feels that anyone's behavior crosses a line, is being done to exclude them, or otherwise is not holding to the spirit or the written word of the Community Code of Conduct, I want you to know I'm here to listen and will take whatever action is appropriate to address the situation. I hold myself and the VOs in the area responsible for making sure we're doing what's right for the community and each other. If at any time you feel we're not, hold us accountable by saying something to any VO, to me, or to our RVC. If you're still not satisfied, take it up the chain to Organized Play. But, no matter what, say something because we can't make things right if we don't know they're happening.
Stay safe everyone.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2507 New Store In Cumming - Dice Goblin Games and Grill 2021-09-04T17:18:44.000-04:00 2021-09-04T17:18:44.000-04:00 Hey guys there is a new game store in Cumming GA called Dice Goblin Games and Grill. I am posting this to gauge interest in setting up some Society play at the store. Here is a general idea of game frequency Once a month Probably the 1st or 2nd Sunday of the month. Time will be around 2-7, depending on availability/ player preference There are 2 options for setting up a table. Free Play but the schedule is not fixed and the date and time will need to be set up month to month and based on events in the store/ availability of tables. $5 per player and the game is set up through the store. This means the date/time is more fixed and we will have table priority. So let me know your opinions. Thanks Kaiser
I am posting this to gauge interest in setting up some Society play at the store. Here is a general idea of game frequency
- Once a month
- Probably the 1st or 2nd Sunday of the month.
- Time will be around 2-7, depending on availability/ player preference
There are 2 options for setting up a table.
So let me know your opinions.
- Free Play but the schedule is not fixed and the date and time will need to be set up month to month and based on events in the store/ availability of tables.
- $5 per player and the game is set up through the store. This means the date/time is more fixed and we will have table priority.
Thanks Kaiser]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2503 Our DragonCon games are up 2021-08-29T01:03:30.000-04:00 2021-08-29T01:03:30.000-04:00 DragonCon begins on Thursday. All games are on sale with plenty of available seats. https://tabletop.events/conventions/drag...539A6C9B47
https://tabletop.events/conventions/drag...539A6C9B47]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2488 GA PFS @ DragonCon 2021 Online 2021-08-06T19:50:55.000-04:00 2021-08-06T19:50:55.000-04:00 With the surge in COVID cases in the Metro Atlanta area, GA PFS will be offering virtual sessions for DragonCon 2021. As of this moment in time, DragonCon is intended to be held as a blended in-person/virtual convention, however, the Mayor of Atlanta indicated in her press conference on 8/3 that the city may roll back to phase 2 of its reopening plan, which would ban gatherings of greater than 10 people, effectively canceling DragonCon's in-person portion if the city goes down that road. With that having been said, I am still looking for volunteers to step up and run sessions or man HQ during DragonCon 2021. The GM and HQ Sign-Up process has a few steps: Submit the Google Form to indicate your interest in volunteering Submit the Google Form for DragonCon Online Volunteers If you intend to volunteer for 5 slots or more, submit the DragonCon Volunteer Form Review the schedule and sign up for slots, whether to run sessions or for virtual HQ. Make sure to get me what you intend to run prior to August 12 so I can submit to get any scenarios you may not have Get access to the DragonCon Discord Server Have a way to get chronicle sheets to players after the session (my recommendation is RPGChronicles.net) Get your prep done on whichever Virtual Tabletop you intend to use Show up and check-in at least 20 minutes prior to session time on game day. Have fun. For players, the DragonCon Gaming Site will begin being populated as more groups submit their schedules. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com. Thanks for participating and helping GA PFS with DragonCon. Joel
With that having been said, I am still looking for volunteers to step up and run sessions or man HQ during DragonCon 2021.
The GM and HQ Sign-Up process has a few steps:
- Submit the Google Form to indicate your interest in volunteering
- Submit the Google Form for DragonCon Online Volunteers
- If you intend to volunteer for 5 slots or more, submit the DragonCon Volunteer Form
- Review the schedule and sign up for slots, whether to run sessions or for virtual HQ.
- Make sure to get me what you intend to run prior to August 12 so I can submit to get any scenarios you may not have
- Get access to the DragonCon Discord Server
- Have a way to get chronicle sheets to players after the session (my recommendation is RPGChronicles.net)
- Get your prep done on whichever Virtual Tabletop you intend to use
- Show up and check-in at least 20 minutes prior to session time on game day.
- Have fun.
For players, the DragonCon Gaming Site will begin being populated as more groups submit their schedules.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com.
Thanks for participating and helping GA PFS with DragonCon.
Joel]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2487 Southern-Fried Gaming Expo 2021 2021-08-06T07:21:46.000-04:00 2021-08-06T07:21:46.000-04:00 Grab your dice, books, pencils, minis, and character sheets and join the Georgia Pathfinder Society from Friday, August 20, 2021 – Sunday, August 22, 2021 at Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (https://gameatl.com), being held at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel and Convention Center. Badges are required for entry, and can be purchased directly from the Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (SFGE) website. Health and Safety requirements have been announced on their site, and masks will be required at the event. We will have our own private area in a restaurant at the facility that will not be in use, and will request vaccinated players only (SFGE will check for proof of vaccine and provide wristbands to indicate vaccination status). Pictures of the area we will be in can be seen at the following link https://photos.app.goo.gl/BhzMmCHjUAeFWSXu9 GM and Player sign-ups are already open on the SFGE Event Warhorn Page (https://warhorn.net/events/ga-pfs-at-sou...aming-expo). Make sure to use the code PAIZOINSIDER by August 16 for 35% off the normal badge price. Additional information can be found on the SFGE website (https://gameatl.com), on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/southernfriedgamingexpo), or their Discord channel (https://discord.gg/3JvPhTrUpq). If you have any questions about GA PFS, please feel free to reach out to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com. Look forward to seeing you there. Grab your dice, books, pencils, minis, and character sheets and join the Georgia Pathfinder Society from Friday, August 20, 2021 – Sunday, August 22, 2021 at Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (https://gameatl.com), being held at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel and Convention Center. Badges are required for entry, and can be purchased directly from the Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (SFGE) website. Health and Safety requirements have been announced on their site, and masks will be required at the event.
We will have our own private area in a restaurant at the facility that will not be in use, and will request vaccinated players only (SFGE will check for proof of vaccine and provide wristbands to indicate vaccination status). Pictures of the area we will be in can be seen at the following link https://photos.app.goo.gl/BhzMmCHjUAeFWSXu9
GM and Player sign-ups are already open on the SFGE Event Warhorn Page (https://warhorn.net/events/ga-pfs-at-sou...aming-expo). Make sure to use the code PAIZOINSIDER by August 16 for 35% off the normal badge price.
Additional information can be found on the SFGE website (https://gameatl.com), on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/southernfriedgamingexpo), or their Discord channel (https://discord.gg/3JvPhTrUpq).
If you have any questions about GA PFS, please feel free to reach out to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com.
Look forward to seeing you there.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2442 DragonCon 2021 2021-07-01T18:14:55.000-04:00 2021-07-01T18:14:55.000-04:00 Even though there is still a good amount in flux with this year's DragonCon, I'm putting out the call for GMs. If you're interested in GMing at DragonCon, please fill out the GM Questionnaire. If you've never volunteered to GM at DragonCon before, you will need to register with them at Eventeny. Thanks! GM Questionnaire.
If you've never volunteered to GM at DragonCon before, you will need to register with them at Eventeny.
Thanks!]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=2438 DragonCon 2021 2021-06-26T19:38:03.000-04:00 2021-06-26T19:38:03.000-04:00 Hi, everyone. I have some news from the land of DragonCon. Last time I’d heard from DragonCon management, they were evaluating how to handle gaming, since AmericasMart One’s first floor now has permanent residents, the second floor has space dedicated to an atrium, and the third floor space had not been evaluated. As of today, that evaluation took place. The third floor and the health and safety precautions AmericasMart has in place (both masking and 6’ distancing), or had in place at the time of the last message I received, are not conducive to gaming as we know it from years past. One of the other considerations being evaluated at that time was to move gaming to one of the hotels. With changes to everything whether by AmericasMart getting new “permanent” residents or the pandemic, adaptation is required. Today’s statement by DragonCon management is summarized as follows: Campaign gaming will take place on the 10th floor of the Westin The room will be shared by us with DDAL and possibly others. The total number of tables for the room will be 35. There is a single bathroom for this setup. There will be a very restrictive cap on attendance. HQ for PFS and DDAL will be on the 9th floor The 10th floor is only accessible via a single escalator, and a hidden elevator for handicapped access. The 9th floor does not have any room space due to overlooking the Peachtree Ballroom on the 8th floor. Open gaming overnight will be sharing the same space we’ll be using, so it will not be possible to leave things in the gaming room overnight. Gaming time slots will remain the same (9-2, 2-7, 8-12) but the final slot does not have a hard stop due to the open gaming group coming in behind us. Due to this shared room arrangement, people will be going in around 8 a.m. (including volunteers from among our group) to reset the room after Open Gaming vacates. On Demand gaming content (quests and the like) will be run on the third floor of AmericasMart. Nothing has been discussed yet about an HQ setup on the third floor. There will also be online content for gaming as well as the Discord server to facilitate the online portion. DragonCon management is okay with us not running specials, if we decide to go that route, but they are also looking into the feasibility of using the Peachtree Ballroom for specials, since it is not used until 9 p.m. The use of this space is not guaranteed. What does all this mean? It means the planning for DragonCon is now a three-pronged approach. Some of our content will be offered in-person, some will be online, and the in-person content will be split between buildings. If we are unable to utilize the Peachtree Ballroom for specials, then specials will be saved for a different occasion. It means the time has come to put out the call for volunteers for in-person GMs (for both the campaign and on-demand content) and online GMs as well as for HQ personnel (possibly for both buildings as well as online) for September 2 – September 6. It means putting together the list of scenarios to offer is going into full swing. If you have requests (especially if you’re willing to GM or play the scenario you’re requesting), send them to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com. Thanks. Joel
I have some news from the land of DragonCon.
Last time I’d heard from DragonCon management, they were evaluating how to handle gaming, since AmericasMart One’s first floor now has permanent residents, the second floor has space dedicated to an atrium, and the third floor space had not been evaluated. As of today, that evaluation took place.
The third floor and the health and safety precautions AmericasMart has in place (both masking and 6’ distancing), or had in place at the time of the last message I received, are not conducive to gaming as we know it from years past. One of the other considerations being evaluated at that time was to move gaming to one of the hotels.
With changes to everything whether by AmericasMart getting new “permanent” residents or the pandemic, adaptation is required. Today’s statement by DragonCon management is summarized as follows:
- Campaign gaming will take place on the 10th floor of the Westin
- The room will be shared by us with DDAL and possibly others.
- The total number of tables for the room will be 35.
- There is a single bathroom for this setup.
- There will be a very restrictive cap on attendance.
- HQ for PFS and DDAL will be on the 9th floor
- The 10th floor is only accessible via a single escalator, and a hidden elevator for handicapped access.
The 9th floor does not have any room space due to overlooking the Peachtree Ballroom on the 8th floor.
Open gaming overnight will be sharing the same space we’ll be using, so it will not be possible to leave things in the gaming room overnight.
Gaming time slots will remain the same (9-2, 2-7, 8-12) but the final slot does not have a hard stop due to the open gaming group coming in behind us.
Due to this shared room arrangement, people will be going in around 8 a.m. (including volunteers from among our group) to reset the room after Open Gaming vacates.
On Demand gaming content (quests and the like) will be run on the third floor of AmericasMart.
Nothing has been discussed yet about an HQ setup on the third floor.
There will also be online content for gaming as well as the Discord server to facilitate the online portion.
DragonCon management is okay with us not running specials, if we decide to go that route, but they are also looking into the feasibility of using the Peachtree Ballroom for specials, since it is not used until 9 p.m. The use of this space is not guaranteed.
What does all this mean?
It means the planning for DragonCon is now a three-pronged approach. Some of our content will be offered in-person, some will be online, and the in-person content will be split between buildings. If we are unable to utilize the Peachtree Ballroom for specials, then specials will be saved for a different occasion.
It means the time has come to put out the call for volunteers for in-person GMs (for both the campaign and on-demand content) and online GMs as well as for HQ personnel (possibly for both buildings as well as online) for September 2 – September 6.
It means putting together the list of scenarios to offer is going into full swing. If you have requests (especially if you’re willing to GM or play the scenario you’re requesting), send them to me at loki.the.mischievous@gmail.com.
Thanks.
Joel]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1841 Giga-Bites March 21, 2020 Game Day SFS / PFS 1.0) 2020-02-18T11:26:50.000-05:00 2020-02-18T11:26:50.000-05:00 I currently have a need for a second Starfinder GM for the morning (11:00) slot for March 21 at Giga-Bites. I will also need a PFS 1.0 GM for the afternoon (4:30) slot for March 21 at Giga-Bites.
I will also need a PFS 1.0 GM for the afternoon (4:30) slot for March 21 at Giga-Bites.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1810 Giga-Bites February 1st, 2020 Gameday - Need GMs! 2020-01-27T17:26:08.000-05:00 2020-01-27T17:26:08.000-05:00 As the title suggests, I need a second GM for both slots for the February 1st Giga-bites PFS 2 gameday. That's this coming weekend. It's to run this in the evening in the evening: Scenario: #1-13: Devil of the Cross Roads (Levels 3-6) Tags: Faction (Vigilant Seal) The link to the gameday thread can be found here: Giga-Bites February 1st, 2020 Gameday Link
It's to run this in the evening in the evening:
Scenario: #1-13: Devil of the Cross Roads (Levels 3-6)
Tags: Faction (Vigilant Seal)
The link to the gameday thread can be found here:
Giga-Bites February 1st, 2020 Gameday Link]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1678 Giga-Bites December 7th, 2019 Gameday - Need GMs! 2019-11-30T08:39:38.000-05:00 2019-11-30T08:39:38.000-05:00 As the title suggests, I need a second GM for both slots for the December 7th Giga-bites PFS 2 gameday. That's this next coming weekend. It's to run this in the morning: Scenario: #1-08: Revolution on the Riverside (Levels 1-4) Tags: None And this in the evening: Scenario: #1-09: Star-crossed Voyages (Levels 3-6) Tags: Faction (Horizon Hunters) I can cover the evening slot myself if necessary, but I will need help in the morning as I have yet to learn to cast simulacrum. The link to the gameday thread can be found here: Giga-Bites December 7th, 2019 Gameday Link
It's to run this in the morning:
Scenario: #1-08: Revolution on the Riverside (Levels 1-4)
Tags: None
And this in the evening:
Scenario: #1-09: Star-crossed Voyages (Levels 3-6)
Tags: Faction (Horizon Hunters)
I can cover the evening slot myself if necessary, but I will need help in the morning as I have yet to learn to cast simulacrum.
The link to the gameday thread can be found here:
Giga-Bites December 7th, 2019 Gameday Link]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1612 Giga-Bites November 2nd, 2019 Gameday - Need a Morning Slot GM 2019-10-27T10:21:58.000-04:00 2019-10-27T10:21:58.000-04:00 As the title suggests, I need a second GM for the November 2nd Giga-bites PFS 2 gameday. That's this next coming weekend. It's to run: Scenario: #1-07: Flooded King's Court (Levels 1-4) Tags: Faction (Vigilant Seals) The link to the gameday thread can be found here: Giga-Bites November 2nd, 2019 Gameday Link
It's to run:
Scenario: #1-07: Flooded King's Court (Levels 1-4)
Tags: Faction (Vigilant Seals)
The link to the gameday thread can be found here:
Giga-Bites November 2nd, 2019 Gameday Link]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1586 Giga Bites October 19th 2019-09-27T09:41:03.000-04:00 2019-09-27T09:41:03.000-04:00 I'm looking for 2 GMs for October 19th at Giga-Bites. 1 will be needed for the morning slot to run Starfinder Scenario 2-07 (Four for the First), and 1 will be needed for the afternoon slot, preferably to run a Pathfinder scenario, unless more players sign up for Starfinder 2-08. With respect to the Pathfinder scenario, I'm open to suggestions.
1 will be needed for the morning slot to run Starfinder Scenario 2-07 (Four for the First), and 1 will be needed for the afternoon slot, preferably to run a Pathfinder scenario, unless more players sign up for Starfinder 2-08.
With respect to the Pathfinder scenario, I'm open to suggestions.]]>https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1545 Sept 28 2019-09-15T05:04:55.000-04:00 2019-09-15T05:04:55.000-04:00 HobbyTown U.S.A. in Kennesaw needs a GM for the finale of the Emerald Spire on Sept 28th. https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1450 2nd GM needed Tues, 07/23 at Level Up games 2019-07-20T00:34:23.000-04:00 2019-07-20T00:34:23.000-04:00 Our normal 2nd GM is having family issues and cannot prepare to run. Could I get another GM to help next week, please? https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1446 Hobbytown GM needed, July 27th 2019-07-17T13:35:48.000-04:00 2019-07-17T13:35:48.000-04:00 Looking for a GM who can run Emerald Spire at hobby town, tables are practically guaranteed to make at this point. https://gapfs.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=1439 2nd GM needed for Starfinder July 20 @ Giga-Bites 2019-07-08T10:28:02.000-04:00 2019-07-08T10:28:02.000-04:00 We have enough players in the second slot that we’re going to need a second GM at Giga during the afternoon slot on 6/20. Respond here or on the 6/20 thread if you are interested in GMing.