Hello, and welcome to d20diaries!
Today we're finally back after a long, long, long break. Last year I took a short time off from blogging to write my first freelance RPG assignment—Starfinder Society Scenario #2-03: The Withering World. As a quest pack, this adventure was split into five parts, each penned by a different author. Working alongside Arc Riley, Jennifer Povey, Rigby Bendele, and Shahreena Shahrani was a wonderful, exciting experience that I can honestly say has changed my life.
Shortly after the release of the Withering World, I contributed to three other amazing books that release next week: Starship Operations Manual, Lost Omens: Legends, and the Advanced Player's Guide! I can't wait to see these hit gaming tables!
In the time since, I've been writing and creating steadily. I'm thrilled to be the author of two further Starfinder Society Scenarios, #2-15: The Infernal Gallery and the newly released #3-02: The Subterranean Safari. I've written two Wondrous One-Shot adventures for Dungeon in a Box: The Missing and the Mist and the upcoming Clockwork Heist, which releases August 1st. I've contributed to ten additional projects with Paizo, Dungeon in a Box, and other companies, many of which aren't yet announced. For a full list of my announced freelance RPG credits, check out the new Freelance Work page. It's a list I'm unbelievably proud of, that I'm working to expand every day.
Earlier this year, right before the Covid-19 outbreak, I was interviewed by John Godek for Presenting… on the Know Direction Network. Those of you who know me personally, know I'm terrified of public speaking, so recording an interview for a podcast is well outside my comfort zone. Thankfully, John was a delight and I didn't mess up horribly. Haha. You can listen to the interview here.
Despite quarantine, home-schooling, and freelancing, I've found equilibrium. I'm happily tackling my freelance projects ahead of schedule, while caring for my kids and the others I babysit during the week, with time to spare. Which has brought me back here.
I'm still here. I'm still gaming. I'm still creating.
I'm happy to be back.
We'll talk again soon.
SFS #2-03: The Withering World
SFS #2-15: The Infernal Gallery
SFS #3-02: The Subterranean Safari
Wondrous One-Shot: The Missing and the Mist
Wondrous One-Shot: Clockwork Heist
Advanced Player's Guide
Lost Omens: Legends
Starship Operations Manual
Hello, and welcome to d20 diaries!
Gosh, it's been a busy month!
It's summer vacation here, so my kids and I are trying to fill our time with as much swimming and trips to the park as possible. They each set themselves a few goals this summer, so we've been working on that. My son wanted to learn about robotics and make himself a robot. My daughter wanted to learn how to sew, make herself a stuffed rabbit, and learn how to bake. My son has had a lot of fun checking out books from the library, and trying to put together a robot from a little kit. He's discovered that making robots takes precision and attention to detail — both of which he's decided to needs to practise. There were a lot of points where he noticed he'd done something backwards because he wasn't paying close enough attention. Still, with some help he made himself a cute little spider robot that can motor around a bit. It drains the battery like CRAZY though, so he's decided the next one needs a better power source. He wants me to teach him about solar panels, which I am not afraid to admit is not my forte. Sounds like another trip to the library is in order! Haha.
My daughter's sewing and baking lessons are going better. I told her we would not have time to make a stuffed rabbit this summer, but I have been teaching her sewing safety and some basic stitches. She's constantly looking around the house for socks and clothes with rips in them so she can mend them herself. It's adorable. She always loves helping with baking, but this summer she wanted to make something (almost) all on her own. She's made a few batches of cookies that turned out well. She adores watching Nailed It, Sugar Rush, and Zumbo's Just Desserts on Netflix, so she was determined to enter a baking competition this summer. This past weekend she challenged some of our extended family to a bake-off for a family birthday party.
Everyone had to make a LEGO-themed cake. It had to include a bit of real LEGO on it somewhere, but otherwise, whatever you baked was up to you. She was positively thrilled everyone agreed, and set to work drawing cake plans. In the end she made a vanilla rainbow-chip cake with chocolate icing that she decorated to look like mud covered in grass. Then she stuck a big LEGO rabbit she built on top of it. My son baked a chocolate cake with chocolate icing that was in the middle of being demolished by LEGO construction workers, and I made a strawberry shortcake-style cake that was dyed inside to look like the cake was made of LEGO. So tasty. Other cakes were made to look like LEGO blocks, while my mother made a massive three-tiered cake covered with fondant work. Everyone had a great time and my kids were thrilled when some people voted their cakes the most creative, or tastiest. They really enjoyed tasting all the cakes and giving it their nit-picky judge's remarks. They had a blast.
But, my kids aren't the only ones with goals this summer. I've been working on not one, but four different freelancing assignments (currently top secret!), all of which are going really well. And of course, there's the release of Pathfinder Second Edition! The game is highly intuitive, which makes it wonderfully easy to learn, but the Core Rulebook
We'll be participating in an online gaming convention via play-by-post soon, which is hosted on Paizo's message board. There's a really welcoming community of people playing there, so if any of you are considering playing a game via play-by-post I highly recommend you sign up for the convention and give it a try. Play-by-post Gameday VIII begins on August 26th and runs until November 3rd. There's still some room for players to join games, but there won't be for long. For more information or to sign up for games, check out the announcement thread here! If you need guidance, assistance, or information about playing via play-by-post, stop by the Flaxseed Lodge, check out the helpful links at the top of the page, and make a post in the Discussion thread, letting everyone know what you need help with. There's always people willing to lend a hand and help a new players get started.
Closer to home, this coming weekend my family and I will be attending Convocation, an annual Pathfinder and Starfinder Society convention in Winnipeg. We've signed up for a short demo game of Pathfinder 2e and PFS Scenario #10-16: What the Helms Hide on Saturday afternoon, followed by PFS #10-12: Breath of the Dragonskull on Sunday afternoon. Last time we played Pathfinder Society in person at a Con we all died a horrible death, so we're hoping we have better luck this time! Haha. My kids are bringing some of their favourite characters, so wish us luck!
And after that…? My kids and I will be starting work on submissions for the upcoming issue of Wayfinder. For those of you who don't know, Wayfinder is a digital magazine full of fan-created content for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game
Well, I've got to run. My daughter is currently waving my new Core Rulebook
Until next time,
Jessica
Hello adventurers! Today we're taking a peek between the covers of Pathfinder Player Companion: Chronicle of Legends! This delightful softcover book from Paizo Inc. is packed with new character options for all character classes, themed as though they were based on legends plucked from the Pathfinder Chronicles. It contains character traits and magic items that could become more powerful over time, new talents, spells, and feats, two new prestige classes, new capstone abilities for nearly all of the classes, and more. In addition, Chronicle of Legends is the final Pathfinder Player Companion being released for Pathfinder First Edition –– a fact both sad and exciting!
Pathfinder Player Companion: Chronicle of Legends
The front inside cover features some fun references to past seasons of the Pathfinder Society, as well as it's future. After this is the table of contents, the rules index, and the introduction, which contains five new exemplar traits, as well as a heroic figure that represents each of them. Exemplar traits are stronger than regular traits and are each tied to a single category of traits (combat, faith, magic, regional, or social). Each allows you to take more traits from their linked category, and gets stronger for each one. I rather liked the exemplar traits, particularly 'Faith Unshakeable and Unassailable', which grants you a bonus on Will saves against charms, compulsions, and fear effects, and 'Traveler of a Hundred Lands' which allows you to select extra skills as class skills.
Moving on from the introduction we come to our first chapter: Chronicles of Heroes! This section contains four pages of new character options. It starts with four new banners usable by cavaliers and samurai (I particularly like the 'knave standard' which can help out your shifty companions). There's three new gunslinger deeds (check out 'thundering shot'!) and four new swashbuckler deeds (check out 'hilt hammer' and 'dodging dance'). After this there are six new ninja tricks which are all really cool. My kids adore 'spiritual companion' which can allow your ninja to get an improved familiar from a short list of very interesting options. 'All the stars in the sky' will be a great choice for shuriken users, but it's 'false face' that turned out to be my favourite. This little gem allows you to change shape as long as you have some ki. Finally, there's some talents in this chapter: five for slayers and seven for vigilantes. My favourite was definitely 'leap and bound,' a vigilante talent that lets you pull off some fun mid-air attacks and tricks.
Up next? Chronicles of Prestige! This section contains fourteen feats for characters who have levels in a prestige class from the Pathfinder Core Rulebook. They're all useful and sure to enhance the classes they're intended for. Following this is two new prestige classes: esoteric knight and ritualist. Esoteric knight is similar to eldritch knight, but for kineticists and psychic spellcasters. Ritualist is accessible to spellcasters of all kinds, and makes it's user incredibly proficient at performing rituals. Definitely a niche prestige class, but a ton of fun if you're interested in rituals.
Chronicles of Magic is two pages of new spells and a ritual. There are four new spells –– realm retribution, rival's ward, greater song of discord, and uncanny reminder. All are high level spells, clocking in at level 6, 8, and 9 depending on the spell and spellcasting class. But, it's the ritual, egoist's militia, that turned out to be my favourite. Definitely give it a read if you've got the chance.
The next section –– Chronicles of Expertise –– is my husband's favourite part of this book. These four pages are all about magic tricks! Like equipment tricks, magic tricks allow PCs to get some extra utility out of their abilities. In this case, magic spells. Each spell has five or six special ways you can use it –– presuming you have the feat 'magic trick' for the appropriate spell and the necessary skills or feats. The spells that have magic tricks aredaylight, fireball, mage hand, obscuring mist, prestidigitation, shield,andunseen servant. Although they're all really cool, my favourites are the tricks for mage hand and shield.
The nest two sections –– Chronicles of Legacy and Chronicles of Collection –– are all about magical gear. Chronicles of Legacy showcases nine new legacy items, which are unique magical items that grow in power and gain new abilities as their bearers level up or accomplish goals. Although they're intended to be given out by GMs, not purchased, they do have rules for pricing legacy items included in a sidebar. I enjoyed a lot of these items, but thebracers of antiquityandtrailblazer's boots turned out to be my favourites. Chronicles of Collection presents two feats –– collector's boon and improved collector's boon –– that allow PCs to make use of magical equipment sets. Equipment sets are a collection of magical items that, when worn together, become more powerful and unlock new abilities. There are eight equipment sets in this book, each focused on a different theme and featuring magical items already released in other books. For example, the Archmage's Vestments is great for spellcasters and consists ofgreater caster's shield, magician's hat, ring of counterspells, robe of the archmagi,andstaff of power.PCs can only make use of one equipment set at a time. The other equipment sets areAroden's Array, Beastmaster's Will, Besmara's Bounty, Dread Demoniac Armor, Irori's Meditation, Pharasma's Command,andUrgathoa's Gluttony.Each is powerful in it's own way, but they are very niche, so not all characters will want to attempt to make use of them. My personal favourite? Beastmaster's Will, although I admit it's far from the most powerful option. Haha.
Which brings us to my favourite part of the book: Chronicles of Paragons! I love options. You know what else I love? Reaching 20th level and getting an awesome ability! But, what's better than achieving your capstone powers? Having a choice of capstone power. This chapter presents an alternative capstone ability for nearly every base class in Pathfinder First Edition. Alchemists and witches instead have a new grand discovery and grand hex to add to their options. In addition, there's a dozen other capstones, which can be taken by any character that meets the prerequisites. Examples of this include arch-familiar, which grants your familiar higher intelligence and a selection of spell-like abilities of your choice; deep magics, which grants spellcasters an array of new spells known; or old dog, new tricks, which grants you a quartet of new combat feats. I really enjoyed all the universal capstone abilities. That's not to say I didn't like the class-specific capstone abilities –– because I did! –– but it's the universal ones that caught my interest most, particularly for their versatility and universal appeal. So what were my favourite class-specific capstones? Tough, tough, tough call! Probably 'proxy,' the cleric capstone which grants you an additional domain and all of its benefits, and 'huntmaster,' the hunter capstone which grants you a second animal companion.
And that's it! The end of Pathfinder Player Companion: Chronicle of Legends! This book is packed full of cool new character options for all classes that are memorable and unique. Theres literally something for everyone in this book –– quite a few somethings! –– and I would honestly be shocked if someone found this book not worth the investment. I absolutely adored it, and am pleased to see that the Pathfinder Player Companion line went out with a bang.
…But wait! There's more! Last month on Paizo's blog Luis Loza shared two extra character options written for Chronicle of Legends that they couldn't fit into the book. Two archetypes for prestige classes! 'Deadeye devotee' is an arcane archer prestige archetype that allows divine worshippers of Erastil to enter the prestige class and gain some unique new abilities, while 'thought thief' is an arcane trickster prestige archetype for psychic spellcasters. Both prestige archetypes are available on Paizo's blog for free. Thanks, Luis!
Thanks for checking out d20diaries! I hope that taking a peek at what's inside this Player's Companion helped you decide if this is the right book for you. There's plenty of great books out there (and I know I'm not the only one who can't afford them all!).
Shop smart!
Jessica
There has been plenty of exciting news and sneak peeks from PaizoCon this year and, although PaizoCon hasn't quite come to an end, we're taking the time to share our favourite bits of news, spoilers, and previews with the world.
Pathfinder Adventure Card Game
The revamped and reimagined Pathfinder Adventure Card Game launched at PaizoCon 2019, which has been a long time coming. By all accounts the game looks great and plays well, with streamlined rules, a customizable play experience, and a focus on story. Interested readers can pick up a copy of the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Core Set
Sample of scenario from the Core Set
Pathfinder First Edition
Pathfinder First Edition may be coming to an end, but that doesn't mean there weren't exciting bits of news and spoilers dropped at PaizoCon. So what was my favourite bit of information about? Midwives to Death!
Midwives to Death
Pathfinder Second Edition
There was a LOT of information, sneak peeks, and spoilers dropped about Pathfinder Second Edition over the weekend, and in the weeks leading up to it. Recently a new map of the Inner Sea was released, complete with some new nations and newly organized geographical and cultural regions. Notable new additions include New Thassilon, Oprak, Ravounel, and the Sarkoris Scar. During PaizoCon, more information was given on these regions and their organization.
Most of the spoilers regarding Pathfinder Second Edition were unveiled at PaizoCon's Preview Banquet. The page layout for the new books all looks absolutely gorgeous, which is really exciting and so reassuring. Attendees were also given spoiler cards which contained a single spoiler on it for Second Edition. 100 spoilers were given out, with the promise of more if all of the spoilers are collected on Paizo's message boards. You can also follow the spoilers on Twitter with #MyPathfinderSpoiler.
Perhaps one of the most exciting previews to come out during the Paizo Preview Banquet, in regards to Second Edition, is the announcement of the Lost Omens Character Guide and Lost Omens Gods and Magic!
Lost Omens Character Guide is a 136 page hardcover book that is the second release in the Lost Omens World Guide series, scheduled for release in October 2019. It will contain a ton of new character options, including new heritage and ancestry feats for every entry in the Core Rulebook, five factions with archetypes and other benefits of membership, templates to make faction specific monsters, and three new ancestries for player characters: hobgoblins, leshy, and lizardfolk! Honestly, it looks like an incredibly useful book, similar to the Advanced Player's Guide, but with direct ties to the Lost Omens campaign setting included. Definitely going on my must-have list!
Lost Omens Gods & Magic is a 128 page hardcover book that is the third release in the Lost Omens World Guide series, scheduled for release in January 2020. It will contain information on the gods of the Inner Sea Region, as well as an index covering important information on the hordes of deities of Golarion, updated to Second Edition. There's new domains, spells, feats, and other options to help players of all classes customize their characters. It looks awesome!
But, my favourite spoilers for Second Edition weren't revealed at the preview banquet at all, instead they were revealed at a panel on the upcoming adventure paths. Sure, Age of Ashes sounds cool, and I'm thrilled to have dragons be the big-bad's in that series, but the next one? Extinction Curse? That one's really got me excited! The Adventure Path takes place on the Isle of Kortos, occasionally known as Starstone Isle, but doesn't venture into Absalom proper. The PCs are all members of a travelling circus ready for their debut performance in a small town. Unfortunately, right before the performance begins the ringmaster turns up dead! The PCs need to take control, act as ringmaster, do their performances, ensure the show goes off without a hitch, and solve the ringmaster's murder all at the same time! Throughout the campaign the circus travels with you, which will really help to shake up the social aspects of the campaign (both within and outside of your circus troupe). The Extinction Curse Adventure Path involves the history of Absalom and the Isle of Kortos, the legacy of Aroden, Aeon Towers, and troglodytes from the darklands. An added bonus? One of the volumes is called 'Siege of Dinosaurs,' and is written by Kate Baker. It sounds amazing! Haha. My son's already planning his upcoming character for this one.
Pathfinder Society Organized Play
PaizoCon marks the debut of the new Pathfinder Society logo, which looks awesome, and some minor details about the upcoming season of Organized Play. But, my favourite sneak Peeks for the Pathfinder Society were actually released before PaizoCon, on Paizo's blog. They've announced that the factions of the Pathfinder Society will be shaken up, with none of the old factions remaining in Pathfinder Second Edition. Instead of being outside organizations that work through the Pathfinder Society, the new factions are groups of like-minded individuals within the Pathfinder Society. As Tonya Woldridge said during the PaizoCon banquet, "Everyone is Grand Lodge now. We are bringing back our core values of 'Explore, Report, Cooperate.' " The first season of Second Edition Pathfinder Society will be the Year of the Open Road.
This is an awesome change, that I can't wait to see it take effect. There will be four major factions, whose stories will continue throughout each season of the Pathfinder Society Organized Play Program, as well as two minor factions. Minor factions will have special missions during the year they are released, but will not receive much attention in later seasons. However, these minor factions will still remain open for play and will not be retired. In addition, new minor factions will be added as the stories evolve. Although these factions are all new, most are lead by familiar faces. So far two factions have been announced. Horizon Hunters, a major faction led by Venture-Captain Calisro Benarry whose focus is on exploration, discovery, and the fame of its members. And Radiant Oath, a minor faction led by Valais Durant, a Pathfinder who has really been through the wringer! Haha. This faction has a focus on compassion, kindness, and redemption. Although they combat evil, they're not as rigid or innately devout as the Silver Crusade faction of the previous Pathfinder Society. Instead, they hope to inspire small acts of kindness in all Pathfinders.
Starfinder
I love Starfinder. And there were some cool new spoilers revealed this weekend. My favourites include new details on the upcoming Alien Archive 3, which releases in August 2019. It includes 19 new playable races including turtlefolk, otterfolk, sapient bug swarms known as spathinae, sapient raptors, and Starfinder Society fan favourite: the morlamaw! There's also tons of new monsters including the giant space tardigrade and the skittermander hunting stridermanders of Vesk-6. Finally, there's creature companion rules which can let you have pets, mounts, and more! My kids and I have been hoping for rules for pets for a long time, so we're absolutely thrilled!
Also exciting is the Character Operations Manual, which releases in November and includes three new character classes (the biohacker, vanguard, and witchwarper), themes, archetypes, alternate racial abilities for all core and legacy races, and two new roles for starship combat, including the magic officer! This is going to be one useful book.
On the Adventure Path front, there was plenty of information on Attack of the Swarm!, a military focused adventure path that pits the PCs and their fellow soldiers against the overwhelming menace of the insectile swarm. Following Attack of the Swarm! is a six-part adventure path that focuses on conspiracy theories, and ever-deepening mysteries that revolve around the unseen – aliens like reptoids and grey that walk among us, hidden from sight. This adventure path is called The Threefold Conspiracy and begins in February 2020. I'm very curious to see where this Adventure Path leads!
Starfinder Society Organized Play
Before PaizoCon it was announced that the next season of Starfinder Organized play would be the Year of a Thousand Bites! This season has a focus on the Pact Worlds and the effect that the Starfinder's recent exploits and decisions have had upon the Society, and their home. It's also rumoured to involve Lao Shu Po, often known as Grandmother Rat. The Year of a Thousand Bites launches a Origins with #2-00: Fate of the Scoured God.
But, as the Year of Scoured Stars comes to an end, so to do the missions of the current First Seekers, Luwazi Elsebo and Jadnura. And, when a First Seeker's missions is accomplished, they step down, leaving an opening for a new First Seeker to take their place. That doesn't mean we'll be saying goodbye to Luwazi or Jadnura. They'll still be around, as will their faction and followers. But, that does mean a new First Seeker will be elected. And who will it be? One of us. PCs who have achieved a certain amount of reputation within the Second Seeker (Luwazi Elsebo) faction were given the opportunity to acquire a boon that instructed them to send an email with detailed information about their character to the Starfinder Society Organized Play team. These characters have been examined and four of the team's favourites will be introduced in a special scenario, #2-07. Said to be similar to #1-01: The Commencement, this mission will allow players to meet the potential candidates, perform minor tasks for them, and learn about their platforms and goals. Shortly after it releases in September a poll will go up on Paizo's blog, that allows players to vote for their favourite candidate. The winner will become the next First Seeker, and their goals will influence the storyline for Year Three. Which is amazing! I can't wait to see them!
Wayfinder #19
Finally, with PaizoCon comes the launch of another Wayfinder fanzine. Made by fans for fans, this year's issue is entitled 'Destination: Absalom Station' and features a ton of new Starfinder content. Wayfinder #19 is a free download on Paizo's website and is always an entertaining and useful read. This year's issue is especially exciting for my family, as not only did I get an article and two themes into the fanzine, but each of my children (aged seven and eight) created their own monsters which were printed in Wayfinder #19s Alien Archive. So if you want some giant space rabbits to nibble on your PCs, and broken radioactive robots to stumble around the Ghost Levels of Absalom Station and Elytrio, (or just want to see what some creative kids can create!) be sure to give it a download. And even if not? Download it anyway! It's free and full of awesome content!
We'll take a closer look at Wayfinder #19 in a day or so.
Thanks for joining us! Got a favourite moment from PaizoCon, awesome sneak peek from PaizoCon I missed, or a #MyPathfinderSpoiler? Let us know about it in the comments!
Jessica
PaizoCon and it's wonderful livestream hosted by Know Direction has got me thinking about the future. The future of Pathfinder as it transitions into Second Edition, the future of Starfinder, as it continues to grow and expand, and the future of the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game, which just launched its revamped and redesigned Core Set. The changes are big and exciting and, after seeing some of the spoilers and sneak peels that have been streamed, I think the future's looking bright! At the end of this weekend we'll be posting some of our favourite news to come out of PaizoCon, but until then, we wanted to take a peek at something iconic. The Iconics.
The Iconic characters of Pathfinder have undergone a makeover, as each core iconic has been redesigned for the launch of Pathfinder Second Edition this August. Illustrated and designed by Wayne Reynolds, many of the characters we know and love look a little (or a lot!) different, but are still recognizable as themselves. Today we're taking a quick peek at the Iconic character designs we're used to, alongside their new artwork. All art is courtesy of Paizo Inc.
For more information on the Iconic character designs and the work that went into them, check out the Iconic Evolution video series on youtube, starring Erik Mona and Wayne Reynolds. Wayne is an absolute delight to see on the screen.
You can also check out the Iconic Encounters short fiction on Paizo's blog, starring each of the Iconic characters. Written by James L. Sutter, and with accompanying art by a variety of artists, they're short, sweet, and well worth the read.
Enjoy!
Amiri, the Iconic Barbarian
First Edition Amiri by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Amiri by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter: Amiri by Roberto Pitturru
Lem, the Iconic Bard
First Edition Lem by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Lem by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Lem by Biagio d'Alessandro
Kyra, the Iconic Cleric
First Edition Kyra by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Kyra by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Kyra by Matteo Spirito
Lini, the Iconic Druid
First Edition Lini by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Lini and Droogami by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Lini by Sam Yang
Valeros, the Iconic Fighter
First Edition Valeros by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Valeros by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Valeros by Hai Hoang
Sajan, the Iconic Monk
First Edition Sajan by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Sajan by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Sajan by Robert Pitturru
Seelah, Iconic Paladin (note: paladin is now a subclass of the Champion class, which allows for multiple good-aligned paladins)
First Edition Seelah by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Seelah by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Seelah by Biagio d'Alessandro
Harsk, the Iconic Ranger
First Edition Harsk by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Harsk by Wayne Reynolds
iconic Encounter Harsk by Valeria Lutfullina
Merisiel, the Iconic Rogue
First Edition Merisiel by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Merisiel by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Merisial by Mary Jane Pajaron
Seoni, the Iconic Sorcerer
First Edition Seoni by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Seoni by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Seen by Mikhail Palamarchuk
Ezren, the Iconic Wizard
First Edition Ezren by Wayne Reynolds
Second Edition Ezren by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Ezren by Matteo Spirito
And finally, Fumbus! The new Iconic Alchemist!
Iconic Alchemist Fumbus by Wayne Reynolds
Iconic Encounter Fumbus by Federico Musetti
Which Iconic's changes do you like most? Let us know in the comments! I'm a fan of Harsk, Sajan, Seelah, and Seoni, myself. And I love that they punched up the colours to make everyone more vibrant! Although, my daughter would like everyone to know she likes the original Amiri better, since she looks "too scrawny" now. My daughter really likes Amiri.
Looking good, Pathfinder!
UPDATE: For the latest news from PaizoCon click here!
PaizoCon 2019 is officially underway!
PaizoCon 2019 is being held at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in SeaTac, Washington over Memorial Day weekend. At PaizoCon you can meet your favorite Paizo artists, authors, designers, developers, editors, and personalities. You can also play games at the Pathfinder and Starfinder Society organized play tables, attend panels, seminars, and workshops, get some snazzy sneak-peeks, and (of course) buy stuff! The Guests of Honor for PaizoCon 2019 are Liane Merciel (author of Pathfinder Tales: Hellknight), Wayne Reynolds (freelance illustrator whose work includes every Pathfinder RPG hardcover release and the Pathfinder Iconics), and The Glass Cannon Podcast (weekly live-play podcasters who play Pathfinder and Starfinder. I've previously written about them here).
Can't make it? Neither can I! But, that doesn't mean you'll be left out. Know Direction will be streaming live from PaizoCon on Paizo's twitch channel, with their full schedule posted below.
Enjoy!
Friday, May 24th
- Welcome to PaizoCon (9:00 am – 9:45 am)
- Ask the Paizo GMs (10:00 am – 11:00 am)
- Secrets of Golarion (11:00 am – 12:00 pm)
- Dungeon Design Dissection (12:00 pm – 1:00 pm)
- Organized Play Q&A: Starfinder (1:30 – 2:30 pm)
- World Building with Liane Merciel (2:45 pm – 3:45 pm)
- Moving on from the Playtest (4:00 pm – 5:00 pm)
Saturday, May 25th
- Starfinder Adventure Path Q&A (10:30 am – 11:30 am)
- Let Players Ruin Your Story, Not Your Game (12:00 pm – 1:00 pm)
- The Future of Pathfinder (2:00 pm – 3:00 pm)
- Art of Starfinder (3:15 pm – 4:15 pm)
- Secrets of the Pact Worlds (4:15 pm – 5:15 pm)
- PaizoCon 2019 Preview Banquet (7:00 pm – 10:00 pm)
Sunday, May 26th
- Pathfinder Adventure Path Q&A (10:30 am – 11:30 am)
- Starfinder Beginner Box (1:30 pm – 2:30 pm)
- The Philosophy Behind Pathfinder Second Edition (2:45 pm – 3:45 pm)
- Oblivion Oath (4:00 pm – 6:00 pm)
It's rare we take the time to talk about RPGs and other games that are crowdfunding, but today we're making an exception! Why?
Kingmaker!
Next year marks the tenth anniversary of Kingmaker, a six-part Pathfinder Adventure Path by Paizo Inc. This incredibly popular campaign was recently made into a computer game, by Owlcat Games (for more information check out this blog post). As with many of the popular Pathfinder adventure paths, Kingmaker has been out of print for quite a while. Although you can still find it kicking around on amazon, eBay, and other sites, it is not cheap!
Although Kingmaker's not my favourite adventure path (sandbox-style campaigns aren't my preference), I've always enjoyed reading and GMing Kingmaker. My copies of the adventures are more than a little dog-eared and worn. They're riddled with highlighter and post-it notes, and I have multiple notebooks full of hand-written events and expansions for the campaign. Sadly, none of my campaigns ended up making it to the end. I'm cursed! Haha.
To celebrate Kingmaker's tenth anniversary, Paizo Inc. is releasing an anniversary edition of the Kingmaker Adventure Path for Pathfinder Second Edition! Like previous anniversary editions, the campaign will be updated, enhanced, and expanded upon. Unlike previous anniversary editions, this book is huge. Seriously huge. And you know what? It has the potential to be even bigger.
Today Paizo Inc. began a crowdfunding campaign for Kingmaker 10th Anniversary Edition. There are two primary products you can purchase. The Kingmaker Adventure Path for Pathfinder Second Edition (which will be a minimum of 576 pages long!) and the Kingmaker Companion Guide, which contains information on two of the characters from the Kingmaker computer game (the gnome Jubilost and the halfling Linzi), and brings them to the table with stats, information, kingdom roles, and quests. Backers get both a print and PDF copy of the books, which are due out next year. In addition, there are some cool add-ons for this campaign. Among these are dice, hero tokens, a pin, and the Forest Kingdom PDF by Legendary Games. The most exciting add-on? The Bestiary! Kingmaker Bestiary takes all of the Second Edition creatures and NPC stat blocks and recreates them for Pathfinder First Edition or 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons! The Bestiary volumes will also contain notes and information on how to run the Kingmaker Adventure Path in First Edition Pathfinder or Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition. Stretch goals include a Kingmaker Pawn Box (which I would love to get my hands on), flip-mats, and expansions to the Kingmaker Companion Guide. In addition, the Kingmaker Adventure Path will feature more and more content as the various funding goals are met.
Colour me intrigued!
For more information on the Kingmaker 10th Anniversary Adventure Path check out the video below, or head on over to the crowdfunding campaign on Game On Table Top.
Enjoy!
Jessica
Archives of Nethys, an online database for official Pathfinder and Starfinder content and rules, recently announced the launch of their new website: 2e.aonprd.com! This new site will be dedicated to Pathfinder Second Edition and will launch on August 1st, 2019, at 7:00 am (Pacific Time). That's right! It's coming out the same day that Pathfinder Second Edition launches in print!
Exciting news!
Through the Archives of Nethys players around the world will have all the rules and characters options for Pathfinder Second Edition at their fingertips, online and free. I am absolutely ecstatic! I know cost is a huge factor to consider when deciding whether I'll be able to give Pathfinder Second Edition a try. Seeing that barrier removed is amazing.
Add your bookmarks now, folks! Archives of Nethys: Pathfinder Second Edition Database. I can't wait to check it out!
Until then, be sure to head on over to Archives of Nethys: Pathfinder Database and Archives of Nethys: Starfinder Database. It's my favourite website to look up Pathfinder and Starfinder rules questions and player options. You can also follow Archives of Nethys on Twitter @NethysArchives.
For more information on Pathfinder Second Edition, check out this blog post.
Enjoy!
Jessica
UPDATE: Pathfinder Second Edition is now out! For more information click here!
Paizo Inc. has announced the launch of the second edition of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game on August 1st, 2019! With over nine releases in August and more to come the following month, Pathfinder Second Edition is scheduled to launch with a BANG!
"The launch slate provides everything you need to set out on a world of limitless fantasy adventure," said Paizo Publisher Erik Mona. "With more than 20 years of active development and playtest feedback from more than 125,000 gamers, the new Pathfinder rules are easy to learn and exciting to master. We can't wait to see the diverse and deeply customized characters the RPG community will create!"
Pathfinder Second Edition is releasing three major hardcover rulebooks right from the start:Core Rulebook, Bestiary, and Lost Omens World Guide. TheCore Rulebook
Bestiary
Lost Omens World Guide
In addition to important rulebooks, Paizo is releasing two print adventures: Hellknight Hill, and The Fall of Plaguestone.
Age of Ashes is a six-part, monthly adventure path that begins with book one: Hellknight Hill . Said to contain "continent-spanning conflict against cultists, slavers, and a fiery draconic devastation that could unleash an Age of Ashes upon the world," this is sure to be an exciting campaign! Set in Isger, Hellknight Hill begins when your PCs investigate mysterious fires which burn atop "the towers of a nearby citadel long ago abandoned by an order of Hellknights." Written by Amanda Hamon for first level characters, Hellknight Hill will also contain a gazetteer on the town of Breechill (the starting location for this campaign), a GM guide Age of Ashes, new magic items, and over six new monsters. Hellknight Hill (and presumably all the follow-up adventure path volumes) will sell for $24.99.
The Fall of Plaguestone
Pathfinder Flip-Mat: The Fall of Plaguestone
Paizo is partnering with the awesome folks over at Dwarven Forge to release a deluxe set of pieces which will allow you to create encounter areas from The Fall of Plaguestone! Which is amazing, by the way. If you haven't seen any of the Dwarven Forge terrain you should definitely check it out. They make gorgeous 3D terrain and map components, although be warned: it's expensive!
Finally, Paizo is releasing five other accessories for Second Edition. First up? A GM screen ! Featuring beautiful artwork on one side and handy charts, tables, and information on the other side, these high-quality screens are really useful. Available in a landscape style with art by Ekaterina Burmak, or in a portrait style with art of the Iconics by Wayne Reynolds, GM Screens are $19.99.
Up next? Pathfinder Combat Pad , which is basically a double-sided, magnetic, dry and wet erase board that functions as an initiative tracker. It comes with two sheets of magnets, which break down into 13 blue player character magnets, 13 red enemy magnets, 9 green NPC magnets, two round arrows, two turn arrows, and two next round magnets. Pathfinder Combat Pad sells for $24.99.
Pathfinder Character Sheet Pack is a set of class-specific, double sided, black and white character sheets. This set contains one character sheet for each of the twelve classes, as well as extra sheets for equipment and spells. The character sheets come in a folder and costs $14.99.
Pathfinder Combat Pad
Pathfinder Character Sheet Pack
Pathfinder Condition Card Deck
Finally, my favourite of the accessories, Pathfinder Condition Card Deck ! I adore condition cards. I use them all the time in both Pathfinder and Starfinder, so I'm thrilled that they're releasing a set for Pathfinder Second Edition right out of the gate. This 110 card deck of full-colour cards contains details and rules on the many Conditions in Pathfinder Second Edition, with the most common conditions having multiple cards. Pathfinder Condition Card Deck costs $22.99.
In addition to these awesome products, the Pathfinder Society Organized Play program will release two scenarios and a short quest every month!
For more information on Pathfinder Second Edition, it's products, and to preorder, head over toPathfinderSecondEdition.com
I can't wait to see how Pathfinder Second Edition turns out! (Now, if only I had the funds to buy some of it…). What are you most excited for about Pathfinder Second Edition? Let me know in the comments.
Jessica
UPDATE: Pathfinder Second Edition is now out! Click here for more information!
Exciting news from Paizo this week as more spoilers and sneak peeks for the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game were shared with the world.
For those of you who don't know, the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game is a cooperative strategy card game that allows 1 to 6 players to take on the role of heroes and pits them against monsters, traps, henchmen, and villains. Players will also have the opportunity to discover treasure, magical spells, divine blessings, and allies, as they struggle to complete their goals. "Each player has a unique character composed of a deck of cards and a set of stats. Roleplayers will find the stats very familiar—characters have classes such as fighter, wizard, and rogue, as well as numbers that define strength, dexterity, intelligence, etc." Over time you'll customize your deck and character, either by earning new rewards, or by buying Character Add-On Decks (there's a whopping twenty-seven of these, by my count!). To begin play you need one of the Base Sets, each of which includes the first chapter of an adventure path and all the cards you need to play it. Once you're done the Base Set you can continue with follow up Adventure Decks, which continue the story for yours characters. Base Sets currently include Rise of the Runelords
But, there's changes coming to the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game! Lots of changes!
Last year it was announced that the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game was getting revamped. Not rebooted, mind you. All of your old cards will still work with new ones. But, updated.
Why?
In short, they want to make the game better, faster, and smarter. When asked what challenges the game faces, Mike Selinker explained the following issues:
- "The game is a bit too slow in all phases: how long it took to set up, how long it took to take a turn, how long it took to tear down. We looked for solutions that sped up everything, even if we gained just a few seconds here or there."
- "For a game set in one of the most expansive fantasy worlds ever made, we gave you too little story. The opportunity we had to tell stories was mostly limited to tiny boxes on the backs of cards, and conveyed very little of the depth the orignal storytellers had given us."
- "Though we tell many different stories, the game often gives off a feeling of sameness."
- "Groups of players get varying experiences by group size. A solo character is less likely to run out of time and more likely to die; the reverse is true for large groups. While that's fine, giving people the ability to toggle those variables seemed smart."
- "Many cards have complicated text. We've piled template upon template, sometimes requiring three or four powers on a card before we started making it interesting. Certain card types like armors and spells got burdened in ways we never envisioned."
- "Some sets were easy and some were hard, but regardless there was no way to control difficulty. If you wanted to make the game harder, you were on your own. We will benefit from giving players controls for this."
- "For a cooperative card game, the game is often not interactive enough. When you want to help your friend, the game generally tells you that you can't unless you have a card that does so. It's a co-op game, so it should feel more cooperative."
They've come up with a lot of ways to solve these problems and over the last few months they've shared some of the results with us. Further changes and details will continue to be released up until the release of the Core Set this summer. So what do we know so far?
The game boxes will be smaller. The Core Set will measure 9″ x 12″ with Adventure Paths measuring 7.5″ × 9″. That's a huge improvement!
The story your players go through in each game will be focused on more, and made much more clear. Personally, I'm thrilled for this change, as it's the rich stories and worlds which drew me to Pathfinder in the first place. Inspired by the exciting stories of the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game Guild, they're getting rid of Adventure Path, Adventure, and Scenario cards, and creating a storybook instead, which will have much more story and content. Each scenario will have a two-page spread in the 5.5″ x 8.5″ storybook. For the Core Set this storybook will be 24 pages long. Curious what this would look like? Check below!
There's also going to be a variety of ways for you to change the difficulty and length of your games — which is awesome! As a player with young kids, this is a must have for everyone to enjoy the game. Shockingly, my kids don't like dying all the time. Haha. To aid with this you'll have the ability to use small, medium, and large locations, and you'll be allowed to add or remove cards from the Blessings Deck, which is now going to be called the Hourglass. They've also added Wild Cards, which can alter scenarios and affect difficulty.
This past week they unveiled some further changes which highlight how they're streamlining and simplifying the game, it's text, and its rules. This would make it easier to understand, play, and would fix up any known rules quibbles and difficulties. Simple, right? Not so! That's a ton of work and much easier than it sounds! Haha. New key words have been added to the game which allowed them to get rid of a lot of repetitive and confusing text that appeared on the cards. Reload, Local, Distant, Hour, Hourglass, and Vault are among some of the new terms. But, you can bet there's plenty more where that came from. Other terms, like Basic and Elite, were removed from the game. The rulebook will contain a glossary, for ease of reference, and some notes on how to use cards from generation one that feature removed terms.
Want a sneak peek at some of the new cards? Below are some examples of what Paizo has shared with the public so far.
Wildcard: The Perils
Blessing: Cayden's Revelry
Rovagug's Destruction
Monster: Traitor
Loot: Ally: Riding Allosaurus
Loot: Armour: Voidglass Armour
Loot: Weapon: Wyrmsmite
Looking good!
So, how is this going to affect the actual products we're buying? For starters, all you need to play is the new Core Set.
The core set contains 440 cards and is based on the mega-module Dragon's Demand, an adventure that sees your players stranded in a small town called Belhaim. Shortly after arriving an old tower in town collapses, some kobold corpses turn up, and the town wizard goes missing. In time they'll see there's more going on here than meets the eye, and face off against a legendary dragon who was supposedly killed long ago. The Core Set allows 1-4 players to play. It contains 12 character pawns of the Iconic Classes (the eleven Core Iconics, plus Fumbus the new Iconic Alchemist), a set of dice, tokens for tracking scourges, a quick start guide, a rulebook, and the storybook for running the Dragon's Demand Adventure Path. In addition to the cards needed for Dragon's Demand, the Core Set also contains "a modular core for infinite scenarios that allows you to control the difficulty and speed of play." Colour me intrigued!
In addition, they'll continue to release Adventure Paths. To play, you mix the cards from the Adventure Path in with the Core Set, and you're good to go. Want to play a different Adventure Path? Just mix the Core Set with a different Adventure Path. This will even work with the previous Adventure Path releases, like Rise of the Runelords. As an added bonus, this allows you to play with a fifth and sixth player (if you so choose). And the first Adventure Path they're releasing? Curse of the Crimson Throne, which is one of my very favourite Adventure Paths. So exciting!
This one Adventure Path release contains the entirety of the Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path. Yup! No more multiple expansions needed. Just this one box and the Core Set. Awesome! It contains 550 cards, a 48-page storybook, and four new character pawns (Hakon the skald, Kess the brawler, Quinn the investigator, and Varian Jeggare the wizard). It's going to be awesome!
Want to read more about the changes? Click on the following links to read the full spoilers on Paizo's website: Designing the Next Pathfinder ACG, Injecting Story into the Pathfinder ACG, Varying Challenge in Pathfinder ACG, and Rethinking Complexity in Pathfinder ACG: Part One. More details will be released in the coming months.
Can't wait to get your hands on the Core Set and Curse of the Crimson Throne? Neither can I! Preorders are expected in May 2019.
UPDATE: The Pathfinder Adventure Card Game is OUT! You can also download a free copy of the rules from Paizo here! Want to buy a copy? Check out the links below!
Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Core Set
Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Core Set (direct from Paizo)
Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path
Pathfinder Adventure Card Game: Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path (direct from Paizo)
Source: https://d20diaries.com/tag/changes/
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