APG Errata is out

Paizo is doing a second printing of the APG. That means the official errata is now out. The errata can be found at https://secure.paizo.com/download/pathfinder/AdvancedPlayersGuideErrata1_0.zip.

Revised Magus Available

I must have missed this earlier. As of last week, there is a new version of the Magus available. I have only looked it over briefly but it looks like they have improved the class considerably. Some of the apparent holes have been fixed.

It can be downloaded from Paizo at http://paizo.com/store/downloads/pathfinder/pathfinderRPG/v5748btpy8i0z. I have also put a link on my website at https://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-d-d-pathfinder-page.

RL Intrudes Once Again

Pam is working late the next 2 Tuesdays. I guesstimate my ETA at about 8pm

The Bigg'n

After you finish the 1st book in the Serpents Skull line.

I plan on letting you exercise your muscles with a level 17 adventure called The Witchwar Legacy.

So start thinking of a character.

I will figure out 17th level starting gold, and let you know.

..stay tuned..

-B

Time to do a HEX playtest

I have volunteered us to playtest an adventure for HEX. We will be using new, starting level characters for this adventure. I expect that this will run at least two sessions. I would like to start it next week.

I will be sending a seperate e-mail with the additional character creation details. Due to the nature of the material, I cannot post many details here.

They're making a list and checking it twice ...

The Bestiary 2 is coming. It is due for shipping next week.

Check out the promotional poster. It is a checklist of all of the included monsters.

 

Pathfinder Spell Card Generator

Bruce found a link to a Pathfinder Spell Card Generator. This could prove to be a useful tool for all you spell casters out there. The spell summaries appear to be good and you can pick which spells to print. If the spell is not in Pathfinder, you can create a custom spell card.

You can access it directly at http://www.thegm.org/perramsSpellbook.php

I have placed a link to it on my website at https://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-d-d-pathfinder-page.

On the Shiv..

It was an event filled week shipwrecked on the Smugger’s Shiv.

You found and wiped out 4 Dimorphodon nests, and managed to bring back a couple viable eggs for Sasha to dote over. You also survived an encounter with a black mamba.

And managed to explore 3 shipwrecks, the Tattooed Lady, the Tears of Grog, and the Golden bow (Which had a zombie crew haunting it).

***I missed some treasure from the haunted ship. There was 183gp(not each, total) worth of cash and gear onboard***

Hero Labs

I have copies of Dave's, Kara's, and Steve's characters. Thanks Dave.

Still awaiting the rest. I'll have to enter Kelly's when he shows up. And get Randy's if/when he shows up, I suppose.

You don't have to export or anything, just email the ".por" file.

Round 2 of Ultimate Magic playtest is published

Round 2 of the Ultimate Magic playtest is finally here. Words of Power is now available. It is a 15 page PDF outlining an alternate spell casting system.

I have updated my website with a link to the material. You can find the link at https://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-d-d-pathfinder-page.

I have not done more than ski it but it looks like there could be potential. It seems a little limited in scope (number of effects) but there seems to be a flexibility in how the effects can be combined.

Shipwrecked!

Shipwrecked!

The Serpent’s Skull Adventure Path begins with the PCs being shipwrecked on an inhospitable island, the legendary Smuggler’s Shiv.

New traits gained by the PC’s.

Aerys allows the PCs to read her unfinished epic—the Abendego Cantos are very well written and contain compelling themes of the strength of personality against incalculable odds. Anyone who reads it for 8 hours gains a permanent +1 bonus on all Will saving throws against compulsion effects.

Gelik shares several secrets of comedy and speech with the PCs—after a day of practice, these techniques grant a permanent +1 bonus to the save DC of any charm or language-dependent effect a PC uses.

Ishirou teaches the PCs some of his swordfighting styles and tricks. After a day of practice, these simple but effective tricks grant a +1 bonus to CMB and CMD while wielding a sword or similar weapon.

Jask shares a number of mantras and focusing chants—with a day of practice, these chants grant a +2 bonus on concentration checks.

Sasha reveals that her mother is an infamous Red Mantis Assassin, and that she’s learned some combat secrets from her that she can share with the PCs. Anyone who spends a day practicing her techniques gains a permanent +1 bonus on Initiative checks.

This has kept the party busy for the better part of a week. That and setting up camp, with the aid of the supplies salvaged from the wrecked ship. Which has by now has been completely swallowed by the sea, has taken up the party’s time.

In this time there were a few encounters with the wildlife of the island, but the camp was well protected during this first week, but the wildlife is getting bolder.

Sub-quests gained.

Aerys confesses that she wants to kick her drinking habit and asks for help in doing so. A remove disease spell will cure her, but she’s heard that viper nettle berries can help to hasten recovery, though, and asks the PCs to scour Smuggler’s Shiv to find a supply of this rare tropical plant.

Gelik knows of an old story about a Pathfinder Society ship called the Nightvoice that went missing in these waters, and the most popular theory as to what happened is that the ship ran aground on Smuggler’s Shiv or sank near the island. He admits that he’s currently “on probation” with the Pathfinders, and that finding out what happened to the Nightvoice could go a long way toward clearing his record with the organization.

Ishirou admits that he owns several promising treasure maps, and that one of them shows the location of an old pirate’s stash here on Smuggler’s Shiv. Alas, the notes on the map indicate that recovering the treasure will take several people. Since they’re already here on the Shiv, what’s the harm in looking for a bit of loot?

Jask lets on that one of the incriminating papers he found so long ago indicated that one of his superior’s contacts in the Shackles was a man named Avret Kinkarian. Kinkarian’s ship, the Brine Demon, reputedly wrecked here on Smuggler’s Shiv. He knows it’s a long shot, but Jask would love to track the ship down and explore the wreck on the off chance there could be more evidence somewhere aboard to prove his innocence.

Sasha finds much of the local wildlife adorable—particularly the flying dimorphodons, once she finds out they’re poisonous. She would dearly love to have a baby dimorphodon as a pet, and promises to keep it under control if the PCs can find one for her.

Loot gained.

Several keys and maps. (there was some fine wine, but alas, it has been inbibed)

a darkwood model of the Jenivere in a glass bottle worth 100 gp,

a small coffer containing 350 gp.,

a long leather satchel that holds a dozen potions for emergency use: four potions of cure light wounds, a potion of cure moderate wounds, four potions of lesser restoration, a potion of remove disease, a potion of water breathing, and a potion of water walking.

masterwork studded leather armor,

masterwork short sword,

Block and tackle, three large canvas sheets, two fishing nets, a grappling hook, two bull’s-eye lanterns, 12 flasks of lantern oil, 150 feet of hemp rope, and five shovels.(most of which were used in making the campsite.)

So, you got that going for you…

This Tuesday ...

What would we like to do this week?

I expect Bruce and Dave. Randy did not say when I saw him on Saturday.

I am not expecting Kelly (in Minnesota) or Steve (in or returning from Tennessee). I am not sure how Corey is doing (kidney stone) and if Kara has transportation (car accident).

If we only have 2 or 3 players, does someone else want to run something? If we have more than that, does someone still want to run something? I am also good with a board game.

Level up!

As of the end of last session your Carrion Hill characters have leveled to 7th.

MOAR FISHMEN

Pondering Treasure

I was recently pondering the value of having different denominations of treasure. Does the game really need CP, SP, GP and PP? Money to the CP only really matters at low levels. Once a character is equiped with mundane stuff, everything else is saving up for the high ticket items which are measured in GP.

On top of coins there are gems, jewelry and objects de art. Is it worth providing these as treasure when most of the time the players just sell everything and split the cash? I can think of some notable exceptions where a player has taken an item are part of their split like the "I fight for glory" belt buckle, the dress that Vencenzio kept to give to Ameiko or when something can be used as a spell component (100GP peals and diamond dust). Is it worth the bother or is it just more bookkeeping that slows the game?

Lastly, magic items seem to have become lack-luster. It is surprising to me how often items get put on the sell it list because no one wants them or because there is a huge GP tag associated with the item. I can understand if no one can use an item (too big, too small, class item, everyone has one, etc.) but it seems at times that folks are holding out for better loot that may never come. It seems that certain items are almost staples that the RonCo wizards should be mass producing (stat enhancing items, rings of protection, amulets of natural armor, etc.) because every character wants them.

I was surprised last week at how cool everyone thought the fish armor was. It was an interesting detail that seemed to catch the imagination.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Fish-men...

I was going thru pics from the last Gencon I went to and found this. This is probably what Enton looked like before he died.

Das Schedulen

Shall we let Keith finish the current module and then hand the GM duties off to me and Bruce? Bruce says he's ready with Serpent's Skull, and I will be ready with the next arc in the RDC soon.

Thought escape

Just a word on the previous post. Sometimes things get into my head and I just have to let them out. I am not sure what I was really expecting. I guess I was trying to engage the players in a conversation about the games we play.

I thought I would use the blog as a means to discuss topics about gaming as well as using it as a means to communicate information about the games we play.

I plan to post a topic every now and again and see what comes of it.

Feel free to do the same.

What do you consider an ideal encounter?

There seemed to be a bunch of grousing last week about the types of opponents offered and their special abilities. Rust Monsters and Black Pudding both happen to have attacks that target gear rather than just hit points. Some gear was lost and it is a obstacle that will need to be overcome to complete the adventure. I think part of the problem was that there was not a change in tactics once it was clear that the normal paradigm was not in play.

Two weeks earlier the Dracolisk caused similar issues. There was some bad luck on attack rolls and saving throws but it seemed that there was no significant change in tactics when fighting something with abilities out of the mainstream. I admit I made a couple of mistakes regarding concealment that could have factored into things going wrong but I really do not think it was completely my fault.

This got me to thinking. If these types of encounters are aggravating and/or unfair, what is the ideal encounter from the player perspective? What kinds of opponents would you like to face? What do you consider a challenge? What lines should not be crossed? Character death in general? Level loss? Destroyed equipment? Death by Coup-de-Grace? Save or die effects? Targeting companions, cohorts or familiars?

To me, it seems like opponents that have different strengths and weaknesses make for a more colorful experience. I think it is dull to just have to hack your way though hit points. I admit, it does get old if every encounter has a situation where a character cannot be effective or as effective as their ideal potential will allow. The same thing every encounter gets monotonous. The key seems to be a mix. Some characters will shine in certain encounters while others will not shine as much. On average, everyone should have an effective role to fill.

My first reaction was to tell you all to just suck it up but that is not fair. The game should be fun. I am genuinely interested in what makes the game fun for you.

This week's gaming plans

Do we have alternate plans and/or site if Bruce is not able to make it home for the game Tuesday?

He starts a new job on Monday but it is a couple of hours away. There is a chance that he will not be able to make it home on Tuesday for the game. He should know on Monday if it is going to be an issue or not.

If it is an issue and we do not have an alternate location, we will have to cancel gaming this week and maybe the next couple of weeks. Hopefully it is not an issue but I am looking for alternatives.

I do not have the space so my place is out. Food for thought for the rest of you.

Duin?

So, Other Two Guys That Read The Blog, what are we doing tonight?

Carrion Hill Treasure Pick List

It looks like there was already a treasure pick list for the Carrion Hill game.

According to a previous post the current order was:

Simone
Thune
Mahal
Groin
Alice
Delysia
Throckmorton

Looks like the last potion pick was made by Mahal.


This was prior to dividing the treasure last night.

Serpent's Skull Silver

Bruce, how much gold do we start with for your Serpent's Skull path?

Carrion Hill Treasure Assignments

Groin: Amulet of Natural Armor +1
Alice: Pearl of Power
Delysia: Cloak of Resistance +1
Throckmorton: Ring of Counterspells
Simone: DECLINES Bracers of Armor. Thune and Mahal have no use for them either. Will sell for party gold unless Alice wants to switch her pick for them.

This leaves the pick order at:
Simone
Thune
Mahal
Groin
Alice
Delysia
Throckmorton


Potion List:
Mahal: Potion of Fly

All the scrolls are arcane and I will assign the Dust to Simone as a party item. The wizards will divvy the scrolls and what they dont take will be sold. Simone is interested in copying See Invisibility and Scrying into his spellbook.

Our gold total before selling unpicked items is 3935

What Loot Shall Fall

What did the Carrion Tsar pay us for saving the world?

The undivvied treasure list that I have is as follows:

10 potions of Cure Moderate
8 potions cure lt
Ring of Counterspells (magic missile)
3 scrolls Gentle Repose
100 gold worth of supplies from Keeper Meyer
135 gold
writing instruments worth 100 gold

Scroll: See invis
Scroll: invisibility purge
Dust of Appearence
Scroll: Contact Other Plane
Scroll: Planar Binding
Scroll: Restoration
Scroll: Scrying - is this arcane or divine? It's on everybody's spell list
300 platinum
Cthulhu relics worth 500 gold
Pearl of Power, 1st lvl (any caster)
Potion: fly
Wand of Lesser Restoration
Amulet of Natural Armor +1
Cloak of Resistance +1
Bracers of Armor +1

Keeper Meyer's spellbook, already parsed by Simone and Alice
Keeper Krove's spellbook, which Keith needs to hand out

Do we have a pick order for this group? I left off some of the treasure we've gained since we started--a lot has already been divvied. If we don't have one, me and Bruce can just roll for everybody and assign picks. If people dont like that method they should read the damn blog.


Assuming I havent missed anything, the pick lists go like this:

PERMANENTS:
Pearl of Power
Amulet of Natural Armor +1
Cloak of Resistance +1
Bracers of Armor +1
Ring of Counterspells (magic missile)

Wand of Lesser Restoration (8): assigned to Delysia (party item)
Spellbooks: assigned to the wizards. Simone will carry one and Alice the other, until theyre done scribing from them, then they can switch off.

POTION LIST:
Potion: fly
3 scrolls: Gentle Repose
Scroll: Contact Other Plane
Scroll: Planar Binding
Scroll: Scrying
Scroll: See Invisibility
Dust of Appearance

Scroll of Restoration: assigned to Delysia (party item)
10 potions Cure Mod, 8 Potions Cure Lt, distributed evenly amongst all characters
Scroll: Invisibility Purge: assigned to Kara (party item)

New Hero Lab Version and Content Available

I downloaded an update to the base Hero Lab software and some free Pathfinder updates.

I also purchased the pack of content that included the Races, Regions and Armory. I only own the physical and electronic copies of some of the region and race books (Sargava, Gnomes and Orcs). I do not know what all of the content might be. There will likely be Traits, Feats, Spells, Equipment, etc.

If we plan on using that content, as a group we should plan on purchasing the material so that we have a reference available.

Ultimate Magic Playtest has Begun

Round one of the Ultimate Magic playtest has begun as of today. You can download a copy of the Magus base class at http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/v5748btpy8gte. I will also post the link on my website.

The current round will run for the next few weeks. Additional materials will be made available as we go.

I did a quick scan of the character class. It seems pretty cool. One of the major benefits is the ability to cast spells and make melee attacks during the same round. It is an alternate take on two weapon fighting. There are penalties for doing this but I could see it as being fairly powerful.

Spells are limited and only go to 6th level. HP are between fighter and wizard. Skills, armor and weapons are somewhere in the middle.

It appears to be an interesting blend of fighter and wizard. It is not as strong as either. I would be interested to see how it stacks up against a dual class or the prestige class Eldritch Knight.

What's on Tap

Next Tuesday should bring the conclusion of the Carrion Hill adventure.

After that, my immediate plans are to run some flavors of HEX. I will want to run the playtest material. After that I should be ready to run All for One.

I expect the HEX playtest to take at least a week, maybe two. You will also need to complete your playtester comment forms.

The All for One adventure will likely take 3 to 4 weeks to play. There will likely be a portion of a night for character creation.

Tsar Still Slumbers

I am still looking for character information for those with characters for the Slumbering Tsar game.

I know that Randy and Kelly do have characters. Steve claims that he does not have one. Corey and Kara do not seem to have them yet.

For those who need to make characters: Your characters should be 7th level. You can spend 15,000 GP to purchase equipment.

For those who have characters: I am looking for your Character name, Class(es), Levels per class and Race.

I would like to ensure that everyone has characters so that we can play this game when the opportunity come up. I am not sure when that will be but it could happen soon.

New Paizo Playtest Very Soon

The new open playtest for Piazo's Ultimate Magic (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/v5748btpy8g7s) book will begin on Monday.

• New options for existing classes
• New class
• New Feats
• New Spells
• Lots of goodness

More details next week.

Details starting to come together

UPDATED BASED UPON POST AND E-MAILS RECEIVED

This is what I have gathered so far. Please validate and supply any additions or corrections. (I suspect some name changes may be on the way.)

Carrion Hill

Simone DeChamplaigne – Rogue (3)/Wizard (2) – Elf – Dave
Delysia Calhoun – Cleric (5) – Human – Kara
Turbo Turbo – Barbarian (5) – Dwarf – Corey
Alice – Fighter (2)/Wizard (3) – Half-elf – Bruce
Mahal - Cleric (5) - Dwarf – Kelly
Groin Balinsohn – Cleric (2)/Paladin (3) - Dwarf – Randy
Throckmorton P Kongor - Fighter (3)/ Bard (2) – Human - Steve

Slumbering Tsar

Vincenzio - Rogue (2)/Oracle (5) – Human - Dave
Sir Slappy – Paladin (7) – Half-orc – Bruce
Rogue - Gnome – Kelly
Cleric - Randy
Steve
Corey
Kara

It was brought to my attention that Corey and Kara do not have characters yet for the Slumbering Tsar game. (I started it rather than continue the Carrion Hill game for a couple of weeks when they were not around.) You will need to make 7th level characters for the game. Does anyone remember what I did for starting equipment?

Need player input

So I can keep track and we all have a better collective memory, please send to me or post the following:

Player name
Character name
Race
Class and level

for each of the Carrion Hill (5th level) and the Slumbering Tsar (7th level) games.

I will create pages for each game on my web site. I can also create one for the Pathfinder Society if there is an interest. (I believe that I have the information for all of the characters).

Carrion Hill Question

Why dont Kara and Corey have the same resources as the rest of us? Short attention spans? Keith gave me and Randy over 10k to buy stuff. Kara and Corey fall waaaay short of that.

Ask for it and the Gods will provide ...

The first adventure for All for One came out today. That means I will be able to run this new game very soon. From the looks of it, it will take 3 to 4 sessions to complete. Everyone needs to make a character and a lackey for another player. You will play both your character and the lackey for the other player. This can lead to some interesting situations. Think Necubus and Nestor.

I also got some feedback on the HEX play testing today. I am expecting to have additional materials for next week. If I have the adventure, we will play it. You will need to make new characters. If not we will continue with the Pathfinder Carrion Hill adventure and do a bit of play testing of the new HEX rules. (I will provide these characters.)

I have a few HEX adventures for Becky and the crew. Once I have modified them we will have another 4 to 6 weeks for them.

All told, that should take us through the end of the year.

Pathfinder tomorrow and HEX playtest the following week

I plan to run Pathfinder tomorrow. I will be continuing the Carrion Hill adventure.

Next week I plan to run some HEX. I received some playtest materials this weekend and I expect some more before next week. I will be able to share what I have tomorrow. We can discuss more at the game.

Hero Lab Missing Features

So far I have discovered 3 different things missing from Hero Lab (or I have just not found the proper method for implementing):

The additional 4 class skills picks for Eidolons are unavailable

The printed character sheets leave out first level domain abilities for clerics

No options for variant classes (although it does have variant sub-domains and schools of magic)

Anybody have others? I can bundle them all into the same email to Lone Wolf

Ready to run again starting 9/7/10

I believe that Bruce is planning to run again this week. I am about 70% sure I will be there but things are still fluid. It is my anniversary and plan could change.

I should be able to run the next week assuming that Bruce is ready for a break.

I will likely run some more Pathfinder. We have the remainder of the Carrion Hill adventure and the Slumber Tsar stuff that we can continue with (for quite some time). There is also the conclusion of the lizard-themed adventure for Reggie and the gang. I have an adventure for after that but I will hold off on running anything new for a while. The only exception would be some Pathfinder Society adventures. What do the players want to do next?

I am still a few weeks from running more HEX (I have several adventures to read and modify to fit the group)and likely a few months from running All For One. As I am not very comfortable with the setting, I would like to start by running a published adventure but there are not any yet. I have it on good authoirity that eight are in the works and something should be available in the near future.

Additional All For One material on the way

It looks like Tripple Ace Games will be supporting the new All For One setting.

They have already made the Map of Paris and a character sheet available for free. These both are a part of the All For One book.

http://www.tripleacegames.com/Downloads/allforone/afo_map_of_paris.pdf
http://www.tripleacegames.com/Downloads/allforone/afo_character_sheet.pdf

Check out what will be coming in the next few months:

http://tripleacegames.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1564

To make it easier for us to play, I will be buying an electronic copy of the book as well as these Richelieu's Guides.

Added a page for Bruce's game

I added a page for Bruce to place materials about his current Pathfinder game.


I will try to update my page and my website with more meaningful material (notes, summary of what is going on, etc). I will need character names and classes for the Carrion Hill and Slumber Tsar games from each of you.

Maybe Dave can update the notes for his game? What level should we now be?

Future Gaming Planning

I have been thinking of things that I would like to run in the "near" future. It appears the list is very long.

I want to runs some more HEX. I have more adventures that I believe that I can run for Becky and the crew. I would also like to run the Wilderness Adventure Kids scenario that we were supposed to play test. (I am also looking to lay hands on some more.) There are some published adventures from Triple Ace Games available and one due out from Exile Game Studio shortly. I think that they are all surface world adventures but I will have to pick them up to see.

Then there is the official HEX playtest! I am pretty excited about that. I hope to know more about what that entails soon.

On the Pathfinder front, we have plenty of options.

I have another adventure ready for the Wandering Knights of Korvosa. When you finish the current adventure, you will be 11th level. That should take one more session to wrap up. The new adventure will take you up to 13th.

I would also like to finish the Carrion Hill adventure. (5th level characters.) We are about a 1/3 to 1/2 way through the adventure. I guess that would be another two sessions.

The question was asked about running more Pathfinder Society games. I am up for that. I have several adventures already purchased and more are available. The average party level (APL) for the group at 6 or 7 players is 3. At 5 players it will be 2. With a rating of 3 that means you would pick Tier 1-2 or 4-5 on a Tier 1-5 adventure or be slotted in Tier 3-4 on a Tier 1-7 adventure.

I show the follow character level breakdown:

Kelly -Level 1 (0 scenarios)
Steve - Level 1 (2 scenarios)
Dave - Level 2 (4 scenarios)
Kara - Level 2 (4 scenarios)
Corey - Level 2 (4 scenarios)
Randy - Level 2 (4 scenarios)
Bruce - Level 3 (7 scenarios)

We also have the Slumber Tsar adventure. The first three installments (1st adventure) are supposed to take the characters from 7th to 11th level. There are two more adventures after that (total of 11 more monthly installments). We can run this for a long time.

If that was not enough, I would really like to finish the Expedition to the Demonweb Pits that I started back in 2007. We were about half way through when we left off. Problem is, it was so long ago, I am not sure of the state of the characters. I had them at 10th level and I do not believe that they were ever done up in Pathfinder.

Here is the list that I have for active players:

Jennifred Hollibright - War Mage - Bruce
Wizard/Cleric/Mystic Thurge - Dave
Ketai Kyuzo - Samurai/Kensai - Randy
Rogue/Paladin - Steve
Rogue/Bard/Shadow Dancer - Kara

There is also Champions. When/if I start this again, I would like to bring back the Remedy. I think everyone has a character except for Corey. I would also like to run the 6th Edition of the rule. That will mean I will have to ready the book and character conversions. This one is a ways off but I am thinking about it.

All that said, what do you, the players, want me to focus on running? I will take your input under advisement. I am also enjoying playing in Dave's and Bruce's games. I will gladly give them some time to stretch their GM wings a bit.

Plan to start running Hex again soon

Re-energized by Gen Con (and a bunch of adventures that have been posted) I plan to start running HEX again soon. The plan is to continue with Becky and her crew. I would also like to run the Wilderness Adventure Kids scenario.

We will also have an opportunity to do some play testing. I am not sure what that will entail just yet but I should have an idea soon. I have sent an e-mail with the Non-Disclosure Agreement. We will need to return those first before I get any additional materials.

Nergal

I wonder if this is the same god from last night?

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0737.html

Questions and Reminders

Who is running tonight? Dave or me?

If I am running, what am I running? Who is going to be there? (What I run depends on who shows up.)

I will not be there next week. I will be out with Moose, Squirrel and Wolf. No phones. No Internet. Someone else needs to step up and run or you will not have a game.

Respec

I have respecced Vincenzo into Oracle instead of cleric. He is now Oracle 5/Rogue 2

Advanced Player's Guide Article

Check out the article about the contents of the Advanced Player's Guide.

http://paizo.com/paizo/blog/v5748dyo5lb5i

It sounds very cool and chocked full of things we all want or need.

New HEX setting All for One Preview available

A preview of the new HEX setting, All for One, is now available. You can download a 16 page PDF from Triple Ace Games.

http://tripleacegames.com/Downloads/allforone/All%20For%20One%20-%20Preview.pdf

Advanced Player's Guide ... It's almost here

The Advanced Player's Guide is almost here. Here is an image of the back cover.



For those that cannot ready the blurry print:

Explore new and uncharted depths of roleplaying with the Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide! Empower your existing characters with expanded rules for all 11 Pathfinder Roleplaying Game core classes and seven core races, or build a new one from the ground up with one of six brand-new, 20-level base classes. Whether you’re designing your own monstrous helpers as an enigmatic summoner, brewing up trouble with a grimy urban alchemist, or simply teaching an old rogue a new trick, this book has everything you need to make your heroes more heroic.

The Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide is a must-have companion volume to the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. This imaginative tabletop game builds upon more than 10 years of system development and an Open Playtest featuring more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time best-selling set of fantasy rules into the new millennium.

The 336-page Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide includes:

• Six new base classes: the monster-hunting inquisitor, the explosive alchemist, the noble cavalier, the prophecy-haunted oracle, the monster-crafting summoner, and the hex-weaving witch
• More than a hundred innovative new feats and combat abilities for characters of all classes, including Steal, Point-Blank Master, and Bouncing Spell
• Variant class abilities, rules subsystems, and thematic archetypes for all 11 core classes, such as the antipaladin, the hungry ghost monk, and the urban ranger
• Hundreds of new spells and magic items, from phantasmal revenge to the Storm King’s Cloud Castle
• A wealth of fantastic equipment, such as fireblast rods and fortune-tellers’ cards
• New prestige classes like the Master Chymist and the Battle Herald
• AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!

Does anyone who is not going to Gen Con want me to pick up a copy for them? I believe that I will get my discount when buying direct at the show. It retails for $40 plus tax. I should be able to get it for $34 plus tax.

Dave is running tonight

Dave is running his Redlands dungeon crawl tonight. We are currently 6th level. He said we would level up to 7th tonight. Bring your characters.

New PRPG and Bestiary Errata

Paizo recently published new errata for the Pathfinder core book and the Bestiary. I have posted links to my website: http://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-d-d-pathfinder-page

These changes have been incorporated into updated PDF files of the books. I downloaded my copies today.

Summoner Nerf

We apparently missed this in the rules for the Summoner. The last two sentences under
Summon Monster I (Sp) reads:

A summoner cannot have more than one summon monster or gate spell active in this way at one time. If this ability is used again, any existing summon monster or gate immediately ends.

Got a new book

I got the electronic copy of the Adventurer's Armory today.

I have only skimmed through it but it has some interesting new equipment, conversions for previously published equipment and some new game mechanics (feats, traits, alchemical power components, channel foci, etc.). Some things might get a bunch of use and others not so often.

I will have an electronic copy with me on Tuesday. The hard copy is being shipped out today.

Pretty

Official cover of the Advanced Player's Guide

Who plans to be there?

Any idea who will be at the game this Tuesday? I am trying to determine what I will be running.

If I have 4 or more players, I have the end of the current PFS adventure to complete and the WAKids adventure to playtest.

If I have three or fewer players, I will plan to run Pathfinder like last week.

Wilderness Adventure Kids this Tuesday

We will be playing the HEX scenarios for the Wilderness Adventure Kids this Tuesday. I expect that we will be making characters and will get through the first of two adventures this week. We will finish up anything that we do not get done the next week and play the second adventure.

The Wilderness Adventure Kids adventures are not necessarily traditional Hollow Earth Expedition scenarios in terms of setting. The Wilderness Adventure Kids find adventures in their neighborhoods, on camping trips, or just going for a bike ride to the lake. The might not be fighting dinosaurs or Nazis all the time, but that’s not to say that they couldn’t come face to face with saboteurs, evil scientists, or Thule agents that are skulking about their neighborhood.

Traditionally WAKids adventures take place in the 1950's.

The only real differences for this variant of play are:

• The Flaw Young (SOTSW) is not available.
• Children are considered to be size 0 instead of size –1.
• In a Wilderness Adventure Kids Adventure 1 style point may be used to offset 1 point of Lethal damage as opposed to 2 style points offsetting 1 lethal point of damage.

Upcoming games for the next few weeks

We will continue the PFS game this week. We should complete the current scenario and most everyone will level up.

Next week, and likely the week after, I plan to run a variant of HEX called Wilderness Adventure Kids. I have two scenarios. They are only supposed to take a few hour each but I know this group. I expect that we will be making characters for part of the first session. I also have some pregens but I thought that you would enjoy making your own characters. I have an adventure from Gen Con 2008. I also have one that I volunteered us to playtest for this year's Gen Con.

After that, the fouth part of the current PFS arc should be out and I will run it.

Made a treasure mistake

I made a treasure mistake during the second adventure last night.

There was some treasure that you missed during the search of the spider room. (It was hiding in a paragraph on another page. I must have mixed them up.) The treasue is:

2 potions of Cure Moderate Wounds
Leather Armor
Short Sword
Repeating Light Crossbow
10 poisoned bolts

I reported the event today. (Because the new rules came out yesterday, I received full rewards rather than half.) Looks like Randy and Corey still need to register. Kara may want to edit her character to be Simone Dickenson rather than her name.

Phi-Torr - 14524-1
Sir Roland Rittern - 14370-1
Simone Dickenson - 14365-1

We should pick up and finish this adventure next week. We will start the next one.

New Copy of the Pathfinder Society Guide

A new copy of the Pathfinder Society guide has been published. It can be found at http://paizo.com/pathfinderSociety/scenarios/v5748btpy84k4 or if you have downloaded a previous version, it needs to be personalized and downloaded again.

Chain Weapon Facts

(This came up last week and I needed to do my research before responding.)

First Dave rants about the spiked chain.

It does still receive the bonus to disarm, the ability to trip and can be used with Weapon Finesse. The only difference in Pathfinder vs. D&D 3.5 for the spiked chain is that it no longer has reach. I am not sure why nor do I really care. It is what it is and I can live with it.

Chain, Spiked - 25 gp S:1d6, M:2d4 Crit:×2/20, 10 lbs. Piercing, Disarm (+2 to attempts), Trip (allows for a trip attack, weapon may dropped to avoid tripping self), Two-Handed

Chain, Spiked: A spiked chain is about 4 feet in length, covered in wicked barbs. You can use the Weapon Finesse feat to apply your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to attack rolls with a spiked chain sized for you, even though it isn’t a light weapon.

Now Dave rants about the meteor hammer. (Which gets him ranting about the spiked chain again….)

The meteor hammer could be a cool weapon but I do not believe that it invalidates the spiked chain. It costs 4 times more to purchase than a spiked chain. The damage max is the same but the average damage is slightly lower when making a single attack. As a double weapon, the meteor hammer requires an extra feat (Two Weapon Fighting) to use the meteor storm style. It will also cost an additional 600 GP to buy a masterwork version and making one magic will cost more as well.

One more note, the Legacy of Fire Adventure Path, where this weapon is found, was done under 3.5 rules. This item may get updated/changed for the Pathfinder RPG rules. There is a new equipment book coming out in May. It may be included there.

Meteor Hammer -100 gp, S:1d6, M:1d8, Crit:×2/20, 10 lbs, Bludgeoning, Disarm (+2 to attempts), Trip (allows for a trip attack, weapon may dropped to avoid tripping self), Reach 10ft, Double Weapon, Two-Handed.

Meteor Hammer: The meteor hammer is a deceptive and unpredictable weapon, as simple as it is versatile. A typical meteor hammer consists of two spherical metal weights like flail heads attached via a 5-foot length of rope or chain. These weights are whirled and wrapped around the wielder’s body, and can be used for strikes, grabs, and trips. With a meteor hammer, you get a +2 bonus on opposed attack rolls made to disarm an enemy (including the roll to avoid being disarmed if such an attempt fails). You can also use it to make trip attacks. If you are tripped during your own trip attempt, you can drop the meteor hammer to avoid being tripped. If your trip attack is successful, you can choose to forego the knockdown in favor of dragging your opponent 5 feet closer to you. Using a meteor hammer always requires both hands and gives you a 10-foot reach. In addition to the above abilities, the meteor hammer has different effects depending on what style is being used. Switching between styles is a free action and must be declared at the beginning of the combat round.

Fortress: In this style, one of the hammers is held close in the off hand and used to parry attacks as if it were a shield. When using this style, you gain a +1 shield bonus to AC.

Meteor Storm: This style involves spinning both heads in complex patterns, occasionally smashing in from the side or coiling the rope around a forearm before launching a weight forward in a punching motion. This style allows the meteor hammer to be treated as a double weapon.

My final assessment is if you want to whack the crap out of something, take an exotic and/or two-handed weapon that deals more damage rather than take either. If you want to do the special maneuvers and have the ability to use martial weapons, take a flail (you will be able to use a shield as well). If you have Weapon Finesse and an Exotic Weapon Proficiency, take the chain. If you have Weapon Finesse, an Exotic Weapon Proficiency and Two Weapon Fighting, take the meteor hammer.

Starting Pathfinder Society Game next Tuesday

Dave is ready for a break. I will start running some Pathfinder Society scenarios.

I am registered and should have everything that I need to run the game and report results.

Everyone should register themselves and their character at the Paizo site. Just in case, I will have some pregenerated numbers at the game next week. If eveyone has a character and is ready to start on time we should be able to complete a scenario each night.

If we like it, I have a bunch of material and there is plenty more available.

It should not matter but I am curious on what everyone is planning to play. I think that I have heard Cleric (Bruce), Fighter (Corey), Bard (Kara), Sorcerer?(Dave). I have not heard anything from Randy or Steve.

Back to Bruce's Next Week

It looks like we will be moving the game back to Bruce's starting next week. The vote really came down to space. Daren's new place is very nice but the space for gaming is not very big. The setup at Bruce's works out much better for a group of our size (in number and bulk).

Thank you to Daren for having us at his place while Bruce was out of town. It is very much appreciated. It was also very nice to see you again and game with you.

I know that it is difficult for Daren to game elsewhere. I do not want to exclude him. He is always welcome to play. I am not opposed to having a game at Daren's place on occassion be it on Tuesday or some other night or weekend. Maybe with a smaller sized group (like 4 players). It will just require some planning.

I'm home now.

..and glad for it..

Game Location Change: Please vote using poll

I have not heard from Bruce yet so I am not sure if he will be back in town this week. Let's plan to game at Daren's again this week.

With that said, Daren has proposed that we move the Tuesday game back to his place on a permanent basis. As a group, we need to decide if this meets our needs.

Please vote using the poll on the left.

Pathfinder Society

As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I think that I will try my hand at running some official Pathfinder Society adventures. Essentially this is organized play and will allow you to play in sessions at conventions and to have some impact on the shaping of the official game world.

To be able to play, everyone will need to make at least one 1st level character and you will need to register it/them. I will have to register as a GM and provide reports on the scenarios.

Check out the link http://paizo.com/pathfinderSociety to learn more.

Adventures should last a single session (or so). We have flexibility running the sessions at home vs. a store or con. I currently own 17 adventures and there are several more available (30 or 40 more) and two new ones come out each month. I figure that we can get into playing one or two scenarios a month and mix in other games as we like.

There are some special rules related to character creation, experience/advancement and loot but basically it plays about the same as a normal game. Your character will advance after every three scenarios. If you miss a scenario, you will not get credit for it. Characters can be of different levels. The difficulty of the scenario will depend on the average party level. Scenarios can accommodate 4 to 6 players. You can download the rules for play that explain it all for free at http://paizo.com/pathfinderSociety/scenarios/v5748btpy84k4.

Some character creation notes:

· You must choose a faction. There are five listed in the manual.
· All classes and prestige classes from the Pathfinder rule book, Seekers of Secrets sourcebook (about the Pathfinder Society in game-I have a hard copy and electronic copy) and the 6 play test classes from the Advanced Players Guide are legal for play.
· Clerics must pick a god from Golarion.
· Abilities are point buy from the Pathfinder book. You get 20 points to spend. No score can be reduced below 7 or raised above 18 using this method. Racial modifiers are applied after the points are spent, so it is possible to begin play with a low ability score of 5 and a high ability score of 20.
· You pick 2 traits. One may be from your faction list and the other or both from the trait web enhancement found at http://paizo.com/traits. Hedge Magician, Magical Knack, Natural-Born Leader, and Rich Parents are not allowed.
· You must be of a non-evil alignment.
· Hit points are pre-determined. You will receive max for your class plus CON bonus plus any feat or trait bonus at first level. A set amount will be gained each level after 1st as determined by class.
· Characters receive 150 gold to purchase starting equipment. You may not start play with any magic items.

One more week at Daren's

We will be gaming at Daren's again this coming Tuesday. Bruce will be heading back out of town after this weekend. We will again be blessed with the presence of Virtual Bruce.

Dave's Pathfinder game is on tap. Vrock and Drow fight off the bat. Think of ways to combat high AC, Spell Resistant and Damage Resistant monsters. If Dave's train of thought was accurate, we should be expecting to level soon to 6th for those of you maintaining their own character sheets.

New Ubiquity (HEX) Setting in June 2010

Check it out. There is a new Ubiquity (system that is used by HEX) setting coming out this summer. It sounds like it might be up the group's collective alley.

http://shop.cubicle7store.com/epages/es113347.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es113347_shop/Products/CB730008

The same company is on the cusp of releasing HEX conversions for their Daring Tales of Adventure line. (I have been looking at these already but if they plan to convert them to a system we play, I will wait for them to come out before purchasing them.)

On top of that, Revelations of Mars is likely to come out this summer too and Exile is planning on coming out with a line of official PERIL adventures. I do not know much more but they sound neat.

I see some Ubiquity/HEX/Mars in our futures.

HEX Page Updated - 2/23/10

I added some resources as attachments to the HEX page.

http://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-hex-page

I added a cool book-style character sheet. It is supposed to resemble a passport.

I also added a Action Tracker and Action Space worksheets.

Logistics for tonight

We are still on for gaming at Daren's and Kara's house tonight. Dave is scheduled to run his Pathfinder game.

In case Dave forgot, I have a web cam and software with me. As long as Dave can get it to work on his laptop, we should be able to connect to Bruce in KY.

We were able to do it successfully on Saturday. It worked out fairly well. It is not as good as live but it is better than not at all.

What are the character names in Dave's game?

What is everyone's character names?

I know Bruce is Mako. Kara is Beatrice. I am Ochango. I do not remember the name of Corey's, David's or Randy's characters. I think Randy's dog is Poodle.

Thak is our goblin NPC.

I was thinking or writing some in-character fiction and I thought that it would be good to use everyone's names.

New Pages Feature

There is a new Pages Feature available for the blogs. The links to these pages will display near the top of the blog.

I have created a few place holder pages. To start with I have created one for HEX art, one for my HEX Game, one for Dave's Pathfinder Game and one for my Pathfinder game. The Home view is the normal Blog view. Each blog can support up to 10 pages.

These are static pages that can be updated by Bruce, Dave or myself. Let us know if there are new pages that you would like to see and what kind of information that you would like to see on them.

Tomorrow's Game

I am expecting Dave to run his Pathfinder game. Players that I expect are me, Corey, Kara, Daren and Bruce. Looks like Bruce will be in attendance in person this week. The start of his trip has been postponed and he is not sure when he is leaving. Randy sent me an e-mail saying that he was planning to attend. Steve is not available until March.

Daren is very excited to host the game at his new place for the next few weeks. He had some concerns about space and things like that. I told him not to worry, we would make it work. The one thing that he was concerned about was not having a character. I also told him not to worry.

Dave, do you have a character for Daren to play?

HEX Page Updated 2/10/10

The HEX page has been updated.


http://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-hex-page


I have posted two new diary entries from Becky and a photo by Margo.

Next Week the Game is at Kara and Daren's

With Bruce going out of town for a few weeks, the game will be moving to Kara and Daren's place until he gets back. (Expected to be gone two weeks.)

There address is 333 Massoit St, Clawson, MI 48017.

The game will start at the normal 7:00 time. If Dave is willing to try using Skype, Bruce will attempt to join us from KY over the Internet.

We are not expecting Steve again until March.

I am expecting Dave to run his Pathfinder game.

Ran my Pathfinder game last night

I ran my "Wandering Knights of Korvosa" game last night for Corey, Kara and Bruce.

A small group with six characters. We had fun.

This will be the game that I pick up running once Dave is ready for a break. That said, I believe that the characters need to be converted from Beta. Corey and Bruce worked on some conversion but still had more to do. Kara needs some help with her sheet. The characters should be 10th level.

Feb 2nd Game

I will run this Tuesday.

The last time we played my game Pathfinder was still in Beta. Respec your character. You may even change classes to a similar class from the current playtest (go from Fighter to Cavalier, Wizard to Alchemist, etc) or swap out a level or 2 of the new classes. Just make sure your build is somewhat similar. No going from Sorcerer to Cavalier.

You are currently 4th lvl.

HEX Page Updated - 1/15/10

The HEX page has been updated.


http://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-hex-page


I have posted a new diary entry from Becky and updated the experience section.

What's on the Menu?

What are we doing tonight? Hex?

HEX Page Updated - 1/4/10

The HEX page has been updated.

http://sites.google.com/site/zombiehomepage/Home/zombie-s-hex-page

I have posted a new diary entry from Becky, linked an image of a diorama created by Bruce and updated the experience section.