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Disciple’s Doctrine

We’ve been looking at a lot of Starfinder products lately, but today we’re changing gears. I recently got my hands on Pathfinder Player Companion: Disciple’s Doctrine, so today, we’re going to take a look at what’s inside.

Disciple’s Doctrine is a soft cover book that is 32 pages in length. Like the other ‘Faith’ books before it (Faiths of Balance, Faiths of Purity, Faiths of Corruption, Faiths & Philosophies, etc.), this book takes a look at a dozen complex philosophies that are found throughout Golarion. As a book in the Player Companion line, it’s aimed at players, which means that you won’t find any great secrets of the order explained in this book. What you will get is spoiler-free information about each of the disciplines inside, including what the discipline’s about, how its organized, and what’s expected of its members. In addition, you’ll find some new player options related to each discipline, typically spells and character archetypes.

PZO9488 — Pathfinder Player’s Companion: Disciple’s Doctrine

Curious? Read on!

Disciple’s Doctrine features awesome cover art by Setiawan Fajareka, and features the Iconic Psychic Rivani, and the Iconic Slayer Zadim, facing off against a devourer. The inside front cover compiles information on each of the disciplines inside the book. Each has some iconography to represent it, and a few sentences describing it in an abbreviated fashion. So what’s in the book, exactly? The Concordance of Elements, Cults of the Failed, Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye, Harbringers of Fate, Hellknights of the Godclaw, Magnimarian Mystery Cults, Oracular Council of Po Li, Prophecies of Kalistrade, Razmir the Living God, Sangpotshi, Shoanti Shamanic Traditions and Tamashigo. It’s quite an array! Some of them are expected–for example, I was well aware that the Oracular Council and the Prophesies of Kalistrade would get some attention in this book, but others are a surprise. I had honestly no idea that the Concordance of Elements would be featured in this book! I’m a huge fan of them in the Pathfinder Society Organized Play, so I’m thrilled to get a bit more background for this group. I was also super excited about getting to learn about the Hellknights of the Godclaw and the Cults of the Failed. A few of the other disciplines I’ve read about before, so I wasn’t entirely sure how much new information would be presented here on them. The Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye, for example, although mysterious to most is featured in the Carrion Crown Adventure Path–which I’m currently running for my children. (Yes, that’s a horror campaign, and yes, my children are very young. They love it, I swear! Haha! More details on that in the future!). The Shoanti Shamanic Traditions are another example of this. I LOVE them, I cannot emphasize that enough, but they were already covered in depth during the Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path (which I played through with a wonderful group of players back when it was new). Still, I was hopeful that the player focus of this book would bring something new to the table.

Up next is the table of contents, followed by the introduction. Here you’ll find some flavourful information about what’s inside the book–and what the difference is between a religion and a discipline or a philosophy. Of more interest to most players is the Rules Index, which is a handy list of all of the archetypes, traits and other rules option found in this book, with page numbers for reference. There’s also a series of six new traits focused on some of the traditions found in this book. Five are faith traits, with one a social trait. Of those, one is very focused on a specific tradition (Dogged, which is for members of the Cult of the Failed), while the others are more broad. They’re not amazing traits, and you’re certainly not going to wish you could take them with every character, but they’re thematic, and I really like them. I think that Heretic’s Caution, which gives you a bonus on bluff checks that gets better against religious figures, is going to see the most use, followed by Self-Sustaining, which grants you a 0-level spell once per day as a spell-like ability (from a small selection).

Past the introduction we enter the bulk of the book: the disciplines. Each one has two facing pages devoted to it, with approximately one page being information about the group, and one page being player options (although there is variance in these lengths).

Concordance of Elements is up first and, as previously mentioned, I was super excited for it! The Concordance of Elements is a planes-spanning organization whose goal is to preserve balance between the elemental forces of the world (air, earth, fire and water). They can act as diplomats and impartial investigators amongst the elemental planes, and also work to stop planar disturbances, planar portals and powerful magic from messing the world up. The information presented on the Concordance is all quite useful and interesting, and contained different information than that which can be found in the Pathfinder Society Roleplaying Guild Guide. In addition to general organizational information, we get to learn about the role that Concordance Agents play within the group, and how the group as a whole interacts with other organizations and religions.

As for character options, we’re treated to two archetypes and a combat style. The first is the Elemental Monk, which is a monk archetype I can’t wait to try. It’s definitely one of my favourite archetypes in the entire book! For starters, they must be true neutral, and instead of gaining stunning fist and bonus feats they gain the feat elemental fist with one special alteration: they don’t select one element for use with this feat. Instead, they select what element they want whenever they use the feat, which makes them super adaptable. At second level they gain the ability to enter any of the five genie fighting styles as a swift action, chosen each time they activate the ability. At low levels this grants them the basic fighting style feat, but as they increase in level they gain access to the more advanced fighting style options automatically. This is super cool! I’ve been a fan of style feats for a while, but they’re such a big feat investment for very specific circumstances that I’ve never really had the opportunity to make good use of them. I’m thrilled that this archetype give us a chance! There’s other abilities the elemental monk gets, but I won’t go into any more depth on it than I already have. Just know: I love this one. I want to make one. Heck, I might go make one right now. The second archetype is the Elemental Envoy for rangers, which is quite thematic and cool, but very focused. Lastly, we’re treated to the elemental combat style for rangers, which offers some quirky feat choices for a combat style. Overall, I really enjoyed getting to take a look at the Concordance of Elements. It’s one of my favourite entries in the book.

Up next is the Cults of the Failed, a group of people who pay homage to those brave souls who have attempted to achieve godhood through the Test of the Starstone and failed. They venerate, honour, and learn from these deceased mortal heroes lives, and trials. They maintain a spartan temple in Absalom which is more of a solemn memorial than anything, and have no holy texts, or official clergy. Now, having played through Pathfinder Society Scenario #6-10: The Wounded Wisp, I know a tiny bit about the Cults of the Failed, which made me very curious to hear more. The information was definitely intriguing, and I was pleasantly surprised. For character options, we get a single medium archetype: Vessel of the Failed. Now, although I love the flavour of this archetype, it’s not really my cup of tea. As previously mentioned in other blog posts, the medium is my least liked class, so it takes a lot to get me interested in a medium archetype enough to make me want to actually make one. It’s not impossible, as I learned when we took a look at Blood of the Beast, but it is hard, and this one didn’t really do it for me. Still, I was intrigued enough with the group to start thinking of other things I wanted to do with the them, which is a win in my book!

Next we come to the Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye. This elite secret society is heavily influenced by Osirion mysticism, Varisian occult traditions, and Pharasmin beliefs, which they have fused into a strange amalgam in order to achieve wisdom, enlightenment and an understanding of the occult. Based in Ustalav, this group has far reaching influence, and hidden agents throughout the world. As previously mentioned, this group is featured in the Carrion Crown Adventure Path, and an in-depth article aimed at GMs can found in Carrion Crown: Part 2: Trial of the Beast. That means that I was coming to the table with a lot of information in hand. I found that although the information on the Order inside this book didn’t offer me anything new, it was interesting, well-written and (very importantly) geared towards players, meaning the group is now accessible to a much wider audience without giving away the group’s secrets and too much history. I really enjoyed it. As for player options, there’s one archetype offered for my favourite class, the occultist, which I loved. The Esoteric Initiate focuses his studies on objects of antiquity related specifically to his Order’s teachings. Their symbolism ability is particularly interesting. There’s also a few new magus arcana which are super useful, my favourite of which is Book-Bound.

The Harbringers of Fate are up next, and I can honestly say I had no idea what these guys were about when I opened this book. And now? It think they’re cool! In short, they believe that Aroden can be ushered back into the world if the prophecies in his holy text are be made real. They gather information and attempt to manipulate events in order to bring about such prophecies. Apparently the group was recently splintered into three differing opinions, all of which are pretty interesting. Now, there’s not too much information on the Harbingers themselves, with one half of a single page devoted to information about their order, while the rest of the two pages consists of player options. We get a new Prophesy School (a focused arcane school for wizards) which I really enjoyed, and three new thematic spells, including one enchantment (debilitating speech), and two divinations (fortune’s path and prophetic lore). Although nice options, I wish there was a big more useful information on the group itself.

Then we come to The Hellknights of the Godclaw! Now, I was intrigued with these guys from the moment I first read about them on the front inside cover. They’re Hellknights, obviously, but they don’t exclusively worship Asmodeus or Hell. Instead, they worship a collection of five lawful deities–Abadar, Asmodeus, Iomedae, Irori, and Torag–believing that all five work together to put an end to chaos. Abadar is the keeper of laws, Asmodeus is the strategist, Iomedae is the perfect offensive combatant, Irori is disciplined, and Torag is the perfect defensive combatant. Together, they are the Godclaw. Now, obviously, this is super heretical to all five of those faiths, but these guys? They don’t care! Their quirky, super oppressive dogma collects the lawful aspects of those deities, and smushes them together into one religion, playing it off like these five are good pals who happen to work together to obliterate disorder in their off-time. Like some weird, super, adventuring party. I cannot express how much I love it! Haha. Suffice to say as far as information goes, I’m sold! But what about character options? I loved that too! In fact, this whole section is right up in there among my favourite parts of the book. First, we’ve got the Fist of the Godclaw, which is an archetype for war priests that sounds like a ton of fun. Because it’s so focused on defeating chaos, it’s quite specific in terms of usage. It’s not one of those universally awesome archetypes you’ll always want to add to your character, but it’s cool and I love it. Also? It’d be particularly useful in the Wrath of the Righteous Adventure Path, as well as the Second Darkness Adventure Path (to a lesser extent). After this we’ve got a new war priest blessing: Godclaw, which is useful and quirky. And lastly we’ve got four new spells called litanies, which are each activated as either an immediate or a swift action, and are for inquisitors, paladins and on occasion even antipaladins. You should really check these awesome spells out! All in all, I highly recommend you give this part of the book a read!

Up next is the Magnimarian Mystery Cults. Now, this entry isn’t really a unified group or religion. It’s a lot of religions, all focused on the worship of little known empyreal lords. These demigods are worshipped in private or in small groups, at personal shrines or sacred monuments. Typically, these beliefs are passed down through the generations. They are particularly prominent in and around the Varisian city of Magnimar, where they have been worshipped since before the city was founded. The most commonly worshipped empyreal lords in Magnimar are Arshea (the Spirit of Abandon), Ashava (The True Spark), Ragathiel (General of Vengeance), Sinashakti (The Immaculate Joy), Soralyon (The Mystic Angel) and Ylimancha (Harborwing). There’s a ton of information on these Empyreal Lords (and a lot more!), mystery cults, and the Mystery Cultist prestige class in Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Chronicle of the Righteous, but this entry contains just enough information to whet your appetite for more, and to briefly describe (just a few sentences) each of the most common empyreal lords in Magnimar. After this it moves right onto a new cavalier order, Order of the Monument. I think this Order is very cool and useful, but not suitable for all campaigns. This order requires that you select a single city or settlement to protect. You don’t need to stay in that city all the time, but it’s pretty hard to justify somehow protecting your city when you haven’t been there in a long time. So, although this would be an awesome Order to play in plenty of Adventure Paths and modules (including Curse of the Crimson Throne, Kingmaker, Hell’s Vengeance, Ironfang Invasion, Ruins of Azlant, The Dragon’s Demand and even the Crown of the Kobold King series of adventures), there’s a lot of other Adventure Paths and Modules where it wouldn’t be thematically appropriate. After this nifty new Order we get a Variant Channeling ability for each of the mentioned empyreal lords, which can also be chosen by clerics who worship deities with the same portfolios. These variant channeling abilities include Duty, Flying, Journeys, Moonlight, Monuments and Sexuality. Personally, I like the moonlight and monuments abilities best, but I’d be curious to see what everyone else thinks.

And that brings us to the Oracular Council. Located in the nation of Po Li where divine magic is revered, but worshipping the gods is forbidden, the Oracular Council uses advanced mathematics and a wide variety of divinations to foretell the future and govern their nation. In addition to information about the group itself, there’s also details on initiation and membership with the Oracular Council, as well as details on what it’s like working for the Council. Although this entry wasn’t my favourite, they did a great job of presenting thorough, but not overwhelming, details on this group. I really liked it. After this is the Divine Numerologist, which is an oracle archetype that’s pretty neat. This archetype is compatible with any mystery, and replaces the 10th, 12th, 14th, 16th, and 18th level bonus spells with divination themed ones. But, it’s the two unique revelations that really make this archetype shine. The first is Calculate the Odds, which must be taken at 1st level, and allows your character to quickly use numerology to grant herself a bonus on her next d20 roll equal to her Charisma bonus. Very cool, but I wish you could use it more often (it’s usable once per day at 1st level, twice at 7th, and three times at 15th). The second unique revelation is Program the Divine Algorithm, which you must take at 7th level, and lets you choose to take the average of a single or set of die rolls instead of rolling (so a 10 on a d20 or three 3s if rolling 3d6). All of your regular modifiers are then added as normal. The final revelation makes your character immune to aging, and allows a critical threat rolled within 30 feet of you by an ally to automatically confirm once a day. Neat. But, that’s not all this entry has to offer. There’s also five new numerology themed investigator talents, the coolest of which is Greater Numerical Alchemy. Definitely check it out!

Up next is the article I was the most excited to read about when I learned about this book: The Prophecies of Kalistrade. Now, I knew of the prophecies, and I knew that Prophets of Kalistrade were full of themselves and interested in amassing wealth. I also know that they wore long white gloves so they’d never have to come sully themselves via contact with someone not of their faith. But, I didn’t know much more than that. They have weird taboos, but I didn’t know what they were, and they wear a lot of white and gold. Voila! I know, Ygritte, I know nothing. Which is why I was hoping I would learn something more concrete about their group in this book. There was plenty of information in here, but at the end of it, I still don’t fell like I’ve got a handle on them. Maybe it’s me. I have a feeling I might ‘get’ them more if I just made a Kalistocrat and played them. Still, info aside, these guys have some awesome player options. First up is a new psychic discipline: Superiority, which focuses on the Kalistocrats absolute confidence in themselves, disdain for touching the unworthy, and their greed. The Magical Hoarder ability is particularly cool! I definitely recommend checking this one out if you’re going to make anyone who’s particularly proud or self-centred. It’s pretty awesome! There’s also three new spells, fastidiousness (which keeps you perpetually clean), hallucinatory decor (which lets you change the way things appear so they meet your high standards), and unflappable mein (which tries to stop others from touching you, and can harm them if they try). I’m not going to lie, my next bard is definitely taking fastidiousness! Haha.

A mask worn by followers of Razmir, the Living God.

Following the self-centred Kalistocrats is a guy who takes ‘self-centred’ to a whole new level: Razmir, the Living God. Now, I love to hate these guys. In everything I’ve seen Razmirans used, they’re the villain. The wonderful modules Masks of the Living God and City of Golden Death are particularly good examples of this. But, that doesn’t mean that’s all these cultists are. An entire nation worships Razmir, and most of those people are just trying to get by. They’re normal. So, I love that this is an article that aimed at them. We get some information about Razmir himself, reasons that outsiders might say he’s not a ‘real’ god but a charlatan, reasons that believers refute those claims, and reasonings behind Razmir’s teachings. There’s information on a priest’s role, and Razmir’s interactions with other religions. All of this was really helpful, and I feel like it gave me a much better understanding for them as a group. I definitely want to make a worshipper of Razmir now, which isn’t something I’ve never wanted to do before. After all this information we get to an archetype for the ninja. Yeah, when does that ever happen, right? Well, wait no longer! This ninja archetype is called Mask of the Living God, and it’s pretty awesome. Of course, it’s also intrinsically tied to the Razmiran faith, so it’s not very adaptable. After this there’s four new arcanist exploits, my favourite of which is Mending Flesh, and a single greater exploit which is pretty nifty, Convert Wand. All of the arcanist options are worth a read.

Next we have the philosophy of Sangpotshi, which is the concept that our souls are reincarnated after death into a form based upon our deeds and worthiness from our previous lives, until we eventually achieve the honour of breaking the cycle and resting in Pharasama’s Boneyard. It’s a mix of the concepts of reincarnation, karma and fate, all rolled into one. This philosophy is incredibly prevalent in Tian Xia, and is compatible with many different religions. Most of the information presented on it involves the role of a believer to the, and their relationships with other religions. There’s a spiritualist archetype up for offer, called the Seeker of Enlightenment, which I thought I would like more than I did. I think my favourite ability it offered was Words of the Past, which lets you cast comprehend languages at will as a spell-like ability. There’s also some options for vigilantes, including two social talents and three vigilante talents. My favourites were Ancestral Enlightenment, Magical Familiarity and Weapon Familiarity.

Which brings us to the Shoanti Shamanic Traditions. Now, as mentioned, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Shoanti peoples and their culture. But, I’ve also read a lot about them already. So, as much as I was hoping there’d be new information on them for me to drool over, I wasn’t sure what I’d be getting. Unfortunately, I didn’t find any new information about their traditions in this volume. However, for those of use who don’t own the original Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path, The Inner Sea World Guide, or Varisia, Birthplace of Legends, this is a great way to explore the awesomeness that is the Shoanti. The character options were quite exciting, though. The Totem Channeler is a fun looking skald archetype, while the faith trait Aspect of the Quah, allows hunters to replace one of their animal aspects with a new aspect related to a Shoanti’s quah (tribe). Shiny!

The last discipline we’re looking at in this book is Tamashigo, which is a philosophy that teaches that every part of nature has a soul and a spirit, and that these spirits must be treated with honour and respect, for their whims shape the world. This is most common in Tian Xia (which is where it is known as Tamashigo), but this philosophy can also be found in many other cultures of the Inner Sea, from Kellid tribes, to the Shoanti Quahs, and beyond. Much like Sangpotshi, this philosophy is compatible with nearly any religion, and can be used for characters of a variety of faiths. After this there’s a cool Samurai archetype, called the Ward Speaker, which honours the kami (more information on Kami can be found in Bestiary 3 or the Jade Regent Adventure Path). There are also two new bardic masterpieces, which are neat. I especially like Kaminari Drums, which allows percussionists to call lightning down from the sky.

Although that brings us to the last of the disciplines explored in Disciple’s Doctrine, this isn’t the end of the book. There’s a little bit left: a chapter called Tools of the Faith, which features three pages of mundane and magical equipment for characters to purchase, followed by two occult rituals. I particularly enjoyed the Godstar, and the Lantern of the Four Elements. The Echo of Divinity’s Promise was also cool, but too expensive. As for the occult rituals, check out the Song of the Kami’s Gift!

And that brings us to the end of Disciple’s Doctrine. This was a really good book, and I rather enjoyed it. My favourite entries were on the Concordance of Elements, The Cults of the Failed, the Hellknights of the Godclaw, and Razmir the Living God. As for character options, it’s the elemental monk archetype, the superiority psychic discipline, the arcanist exploits, and the hellknight litanies that I’m going to make the most use of.

Have your own copy of Disciple’s Doctrine? Let us know your favourite parts in the comments!

Jessica

Unleash the Wilds!

s-l300 — Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Ultimate Wilderness

There’s been exciting changes to the Pathfinder Society Organized Play this past week. On Wednesday, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Ultimate Wilderness became legal for play. So crack out your books, and calculating statistics, it’s time to make some Shifters! In addition to the Shifter class, there’s a ton of wilderness themed archetypes that became usable. Around 80 archetypes from the book are now considered legal, and nine of them are not (blighted defiler, blighted myrmidon, fiendflesh shifter, flood walker, rageshaper, raging cannibal, verdant grappler, wildborn and wild soul). Happily, all three of my favourites, the oozemorph, the season sage and the viking, made it into PFS. Nearly all of the familiar and animal companion options were made legal, as were all of the animal tricks (excluding mark territory). All but three of the spells were added to the additional resources document (with forest’s sense, grasping vine, and vine strike being the spells left out of play), making around fifty new spells up for grabs. Feats had nearly as good luck, with around a hundred feats sanctioned for play and only ten being left out (Cultivate Magic Plants, Expert Cartographer, Expert Explorer, Expert Salvager, Hide Worker, Mutated Shape, Natural Poison Antitoxin, Sproutling, Wild Growth Hex, and Wood Crafter are still not allowed). Nearly all of the miscellaneous character rules like discoveries and rage powers were made legal. All in all it’s an exciting, vast collection of new player options for us to tinker with. For full details on what’s become legal from Ultimate Wilderness for PFS Organized Play, check out the Additional Resources document on Paizo’s website and scroll down to the bottom.

The sigil of the Scarab Sages, a faction of the Pathfinder Society whose relevance is coming to an end.

On a related note, another major announcement was made last week. The storyline of the Scarab Sages Faction has officially come to an end, although characters are still allowed to keep their Pathfinder Society Characters in the faction and continue earning their season goals. In it’s place we get a new faction, Concordance. As the only ‘nature’ or ‘wilderness’ themed faction, this group was a long time coming. The two main members of the group we’ve been introduced to so far were met quite a long time ago, with the janni Jamila being introduced back in the third PFS scenario ever published, #03: Murder on the Silken Caravan, and the gnome Falbis being introduced in scenario #3-05: Tide of Twilight. The actual leader of the group, Ashasar, was introduced in scenarios #8-12: Caught in the Eclipse, and #8-24: Raid on the Cloudborne Keep. The Concordance was first utilized in the Tyranny of Winds Trilogy, which includes scenarios #8-08: The Sandstorm Prophecy, #8-10: Secrets of the Endless Sky, and #8-12: Caught in the Eclipse.

Now, I mentioned that The Concordance is a ‘nature’ themed Faction, but this isn’t strictly true. They’re not some ring of tree-hugging druids, or animal-loving rangers. They’re concerned with keeping the elements, and the elemental planes, in balance. Although they’re typically involved in affairs on the elemental planes themselves, a group of the Concordance has recently established itself on the material plane, upon realizing that its home to many extra-planar rifts, wild magic, elemental surges and the like. More properly known as the Concordance of Elements, this group is ancient and diverse. Honestly, I think they sound awesome.

The sigil of The Concordance of Elements, a new Faction joining the Pathfinder Society.

The Concordance wasn’t released on it’s own. It was also released with a society scenario which features the organization, and offers Pathfinders who play in it the chance to join the faction after playing it through to its completion (without cost or penalty). That’s pretty neat! Very rarely do you get the chance to test out a faction in this way, without committing.

The scenario itself, #9-14: Down the Verdant Path, was a lot of fun. I won’t get into the plot line too much, but know that it involves a bleached gnome, the First World of the Fey, and unnatural weather. Down the Verdant Path makes spectacular use of NPCs, both allies and enemies, and in addition to starring new characters it also features all three of the above-mentioned members of the Concordance Faction (Jamila, Falbis and Ashashar). They did a splendid job of bringing these characters to life in an engaging, fun way. Down the Verdant Path is a splendid tier 1-5 scenario, which I can’t wait to play in.

With who?

A member of the Concordance, of course! As to WHAT I’ll make her, I’m not quite sure. I’m contemplating an elf druid of some kind. I never make elves. Haha.

What are you waiting for? Unleash the WILD!

Thanks for joining us on d20 Diaries.

Jessica

Pathfinder: Second Edition

Whoah!

Big changes were just announced for Pathfinder today. The release of Pathfinder’s Second Edition.

That’s right.

Whether that causes you to jump for joy or cringe in terror, it’s big news! What does it give me? Fear.

Now, thankfully, things won’t be happening right away, or all at once. On August 2nd Pathfinder’s launching their rules as a playtest. Called, Pathfinder Playtest, there’ll be a free copy of the new rulebook available as a download on their website, as well as a new deluxe adventure module, and a flip mat. All of these downloads can also be purchased in hard cover on their website. During the first few months after the release of Pathfinder Playtest you’re encouraged to try out the new ruleset and leave your feedback on their messageboards. Upon completion of the playtest they’ll launch Pathfinder Second Edition.

I rather like the playtest phase, and I am excited that there’s a free download of the rules that’s going to be available. So, thanks for that Paizo. But, honestly, I don’t want new rules. New rules means replacing rulebooks. It means a phasing out of the content I have at home. It means trying to get a handle on a new game. And mostly, it means more money. Money I don’t have to reinvest.

Now, let’s be clear. Pathfinder’s not perfect. Are there things that could be fixed? Yes. Streamlined? Yes. Does that mean I want it changed and altered? No. I stopped playing Dungeons and Dragons the moment they switched to 4th edition and took up Pathfinder instead. Why? Is it cause I hated 4th? No. I never even gave it a try. I stopped because I didn’t want to learn new rules, or buy another new Core Rulebook. I switched to Pathfinder, because I wouldn’t have to learn anything new. And I loved it. I worry that this switch will leave me behind.

I understand where they’re coming from. I understand that lots of players will be thrilled. Games and rules for d20 games are always evolving. Always getting better. I understand wanting to make Pathfinder the best it can be. I understand making it easier and more user-friendly for new gamers. And I certainly understand that after creating Starfinder, why wouldn’t they want to do the same to Pathfinder? I mean, at its core, Starfinder ‘fixed’ and ‘improved’ a lot of the basic rules from the Pathfinder game into a ‘better’ version. After having done that, successfully, why wouldn’t they want to do the same for Pathfinder? I definitely get that.

And, I suppose, underneath my apprehension and fear, I am excited.

But what about the new rulebooks? They won’t be compatible with the old ones. What about all the wonderful books I own? I won’t forget about them. I won’t stop using them. It’s much more likely I stop buying new product. What about the Pathfinder Society? The classes? How compatible will Pathfinder Second Edition be with Pathfinder?

From a thorough reading of the information on Paizo’s website, I get the feeling that although adventures and monsters will be relatively easy to switch over to the new rules, it’s the character rules, and the basic rules themselves that will take more work. This won’t be something you just switch over. You’ll need the new rules for that.

As of August 2018 there will no longer be content published for Pathfinder (First Edition). Everything will be published for their new ruleset. However, that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to get the old books. The Pathfinder Pocket Editions will be kept in stock as long as people continue to purchase them, while PDF versions of their extensive Pathfinder collection will be available for the foreseeable future on their website.

As for Pathfinder Society? It sounds like the Pathfinder Society will continue on in two forms. Like the rulebooks, as of August all new scenarios will be to the Playtest/Second Edition ruleset. You’ll need new characters to play by the new rules. However, all of the ‘old’ scenarios will still be available for purchase, and can be run for credit with ‘old’ characters using the original ruleset. This is likely going to continue at conventions and via online play-by-post for a long time to come. Kind of like choosing between Core and Standard, now you’ll also have the addition of ‘Second’ (or whatever it’s going to be called…)

Pathfinder knows what they’re doing. And I love Pathfinder.

But when it comes down to it, what do I really think of the upcoming changes? What am I going to do?

I’m going to take a deep breath, and give it a try.

When Pathfinder Playtest comes out on August 2nd, I guarantee you I will download the rules. I will read the rules. And I will test out the rules.

In fact, I bet I’ll enjoy them.

But when Second launches will I buy the books again? Will I keep up with it?

In time? For sure. But right away?

I honestly can’t say.

What I can say, is that I think they’re going about it the right way. This playtest will be invaluable for them, both for gaining valuable feedback, and for providing nervous gamers like me the chance to try out the rules for free, before we make up our minds. We get to give it a try before investing. And most importantly? Allowing and facilitating use of the old ruleset, for those of us who decide we don’t want to move on to a ‘bigger’ and ‘better’ Pathfinder.

Want to learn more about Pathfinder Playtest? Follow the link to Paizo’s website and give the FAQs a read for yourself.

Have an opinion? Want to let me know your thoughts on Pathfinder Playtest?

Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Jessica

OutPost Commences!

Today is the official start date for OutPost I, an online play-by-post Pathfinder convention hosted on Paizo’s message boards and a few other websites. As mentioned in a previous post, my whole family is taking part, and we couldn’t be more thrilled.

OutPost is hosting a wide variety of games, including Pathfinder, Starfinder and the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game. My husband is playing in one scenario as his Pathfinder Society character Enzo Jeggare (a Chelaxian occultist who specializes in conjuring creatures), alongside my children, who will be playing Bunny Paras (a kitsune druid), Paras (Bunny Paras’ parasaurolophus animal companion), and Senton (an Ulfen ranger better known as Mr. Ice). These characters were first introduced on d20 Diaries, here. I’ll be joining them, as well, with my uncaring kitsune kineticist, Everbloom. They’ll be trying their hand at the classic scenario, Black Waters, from Season Zero! Run by one of my favourite GMs I’ve had the pleasure of playing alongside on Paizo’s Messageboards, I’m sure GM Shieldbug’s going to give us a great game.

My children and I are playing in a second scenario together, as well. Lady Naysha (an oracle of whimsy who looks like a child) alongside her stuffed rabbit, Miss Whiskers, is setting out with a very forgetful old wizard, Fuzzzy, and his pet owl, Bobby. Bobby’s a clever little bird who helps keep Fuzzzy on task. I’ll be joining them with my dwarven fighter, Juno Berik, a self-centred woman who believes she’s far more important than she’s given credit for. They’re going to be tackling a complicated maze underneath Absalom City on the search for a lost minotaur prince, Nuar Spiritskin, in another classic PFS Scenario, #45: Delirium’s Tangle.

I’m playing another Pathfinder Scenario with my beloved half-orc monk, Kenza Bloodborn. As a member of the Scarab Sages, whose faction stories are coming to an end, I’m excited to see this stoic, warrior tackle a Scarab Sage-centric mission. Taking place in the Thuvian city of Merab, Kenza’s going to be delving into haunted ruins on the hunt for a mysterious spirit that even now seeks her master’s jewels… That’s right, she’s participating in Scenario #9-04: The Unseen Inclusion! As I only own one Season Nine Scenario, I have no idea what’s down the road for her.

But not everything’s about Pathfinder! I’m also involved in three wonderful Starfinder Society Scenarios. My primary SFS character, a bold, boastful vesk solarion with far more brawn than brains by the name of Julakesh Starfist is going to be participating in SFS #1-03: Yesteryear’s Truth. I’m also using OutPost as an opportunity to try out two Starfinder classes I’ve yet to have a chance to test. I’ve created a proud, smooth-talking ysoki xenoseeker envoy by the name of Aurora Vim (Rora, for short) who will be giving SFS #1-02: Fugitive on the Red Planet a try with a whopping three other ysoki! Apparently those furry little fellows are popular! I’ve also made a curious but awkward shirrin spacefarer operative, Zez’ka, whose keen to head off on her first mission, SFS #1-04: Cries from the Drift.

However these adventures turn out, my family and I are happy to be participating. It can be really difficult to find games for children to play via play-by-post, especially ones as young as mine, so being able to sign them up not only together, but alongside myself and my husband is a really great experience. Both of them are having a ton of fun already, especially my daughter. She asks me every few hours if she can have another turn yet, and is always giggling as she contemplates what she’s going to post.

Updates on our experiences throughout OutPost won’t be up for some time. Due to the slow pace of play-by-post games, these short scenarios will take a long time to play out. However, further details on the various Starfinder Society Scenario’s currently out for purchase will be coming later this week.

So, if you’re going to be participating in OutPost, be sure to check into your games and get posting! Let us know what you’ll be playing in the comments! We’d love to hear from you.

And for everyone else? Enjoy the start of your week!

Mine came with a minor blizzard. So much for spring! Haha.

Jessica

News, news, news…

As the snow starts to melt, and our long, long, long, winter finally looks like its coming to an end, there’s plenty going on around my house this week. In addition to pulling out sunglasses, splash pants, and rubber boots, that is…

To start with, a play-by-post campaign of Legacy of Fire that I’m involved in just lost a player, and my kids were accepted as a replacement. They spent a few days after school brainstorming and planning, and together we put their characters onto the Paizo website. They loved picking out their avatars, and saying hello on the discussion board. So what are they bringing to the table?

A pair of gnome siblings who travel the world as their whims take them. They have a particular fondness for the desert, and have recently been wandering the wilds of Katapesh. My son is a sorcerer with the elemental bloodline (water). Studious and curious, Min Bunnisbeldar is a blue-haired gnome who obsessively studies and researches magical techniques and theories. Along with his elemental ray bloodline talent, colour spray is his go-to method of attack. But, his intelligence might be his greatest weapon. Min’s sister, Rab-rab, shortened her last name to Bunnis. She has a pet jackrabbit (not surprising at all, if you know my daughter’s love of rabbits), and is childish and whimsical. Rab-rab is an air kineticist who can push her enemies back with her air blasts. She loves to explore, and fly kites, using her aerokinesis to keep it aloft even when there’s no breeze. Min and Rab-rab hope to bring some excitement and optimism to the campaign when they get to join in a few weeks.

In other news, Paizo updated their website. Although I was expecting some minor maintenance, it turns out they launched an entire new site design. Ironically, I was just thinking the other day they their site was super useful and easy to navigate, but was looking decidedly old fashioned. Well, that’s no longer the case! The site looks gorgeous, and it’s much, much easier to see the current new releases. It’s bold, and works great. There are some down-sides, of course. The ‘My Campaign’ tab, which you’ll rely on constantly if you’re involved in play-by-post gaming, has vanished. There are other ways to navigate to your campaigns, thankfully, but none are as fast or efficient. Fortunately, I hear they’re working on bringing the ‘My Campaign’ function back. There were some complaints that the font hurt people’s eyes or was too small. Personally, I liked it, but the majority has spoken and the font size for the message boards was increased dramatically. I think it’s obnoxiously large, myself, and hopefully they can strike a balance in the future. Honestly, my biggest problem is the black bar on the top of the page. I find that if you look at it and then proceed onto one of the white pages–like the messageboards–you get afterimages across your eyes, which makes it hard to read and gives me a headache. All in all, I’m happy with the changes, and am excited to see how the site gets tweaked in the coming weeks.

At home, my family and I have been slowly playing through our first Starfinder adventure, Into the Unknown. Soon, I’ll be sharing our character designs and our experiences here, on d20 Diaries.

In Pathfinder news, my kids have both been working on writing an adventure in their free time. My son’s involves buried treasure, and is intended to be played by pirates, while my daughters involves a mysterious island. In the coming weeks I’ll be sharing their adventures, and our characters created for them, with you, so stay tuned!

Lastly, my son filmed a youtube video about a dungeon he made. It’s our first d20 Diaries video, so we’re pretty excited. He’s thrilled with the outcome. So if you want to see what a six-year-old D&D player gets up to in his free time watch, The Temple of Snakes, below, or check out d20diaries on Youtube! We’d love to hear what you think.

Thanks for joining us on d20 Diaries!

Jessica

Paizo: New Releases

Hey there, guys!

With the passing of Family Day here in Canada, and a wonderfully lazy long weekend over and done, it’s time to get back to work, and back to school!

So welcome back to d20 Diaries!

There’s a ton of new releases kicking around Paizo’s Pathfinder and Starfinder lines, and we’re going to look at my favourites today. So sit back, enjoy, and get ready to wish your wallets had a bit more money in them! I know I will… Haha.

Pathfinder:

There’s three great new Pathfinder products I’m dying to get my hands on! First up is a book we’ve already taken a look at here on d20 Diaries, War for the Crown: Part One: Crownfall. This is part one of a new Adventure Path which takes place in Taldor and looks AWESOME. All of the reviews I’ve read of it have been great, and I literally cannot wait to get my hands on it! I hear that the Player’s Guide is in editing, and won’t be out for another week or two.

The second release is something I’ve been waiting for since I got my hands on Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Bestiary 6. That’s right! The Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary 6 Box! There’s plenty of awesome pawns in this collection, including monkey goblins, mockinfey, a ton of new daemons and demons, enough dragons and golems to make any GM cackle madly, and–my personal favourite–the ever creepy sakhils. The icing on the (fabulous) cake? A total of six Archdevils and three Great Old ones! I hope your PCs have some mythic tiers under their belts… Currently, The Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary 6 Box is only available on Paizo’s website, but I’ll be sure to update this post as soon as it appears on Amazon.

UPDATE: Check out Pathfinder Pawns: Bestiary 6 Box on Amazon!

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Inner Sea Taverns! Newly released by Paizo Publishing.

Finally, we’re going to talk about a surprising addition: Inner Sea Taverns. I have quite a few of the ‘Inner Sea’ supplments, and the ‘Of Golarion’ line. Some of them I’m thrilled with, while others see little use around my house. I wasn’t sure where I would fall with this one. It’s about taverns, after all! But, after reading the previews and reviews, I’m actually keen to get my hands on it. This book takes a look at six unique taverns throughout the Inner Sea, including the Whispering Stone in Wati (which will be sure to see use for anyone running Mummy’s Mask: Part One: The Half-Dead City ); Runoff in Starfall, where even taking a sip of your drink is dangerous (perfect for Iron Gods: Part 5: Palace of Fallen Stars!); Formidably Maid in Port Peril (which is where Skull & Shackles: Part 1: The Wormwood Mutiny begins!); and–the one I’m most excited for–Aeylinth Vineyard, a sophisticated treetop wine bar in Kyonin! In addition to detailing these very different establishments, it’s owners and some notable patrons, Inner Sea Taverns also includes rules for barfights and some new pub games. It sounds like a ton of fun!

Starfinder:

And with that we blast off into space! As a new product, Starfinder has a ton going on right now, but we’re going to take a look at two products that just hit shelves, and one that’s coming soon!

First up? Starfinder’s first and only Adventure Path, Dead Suns: Part Four: The Ruined Clouds! This adventure is intended for level seven characters and sees the players explore an ancient alien city floating in the atmosphere of a gas giant in the middle of an unexplored star system! Throw in a powerful weapon and the ominously named Devourer Cult, and this adventure sounds like a blast! This adventure is part of a six volume adventure path, and is preceded by Dead Suns: Book One: Incident at Absalom Station, Dead Suns: Part Two: Temple of the Twelve, and Dead Suns: Part Three: Splintered Worlds.

The second new release I’m itching to get my hands on is Pathfinder Map Pack: Starship Decks. This useful collection of sci-fi rooms includes a med-bay, escape pods and a starship brigde, all of which are perfectly suited for starships and buildings. Coupled with Pathfinder Map-Pack: Starship Corridors, or Pathfinder Map-Pack: Starship Chambers, you can easily make a ton of varied environments for your players to explore.

Paizo’s Starfinder Roleplaying Game: Pact Worlds, due out next month!

The final product we’re going to salivate over is coming out next month: Starfinder Roleplaying Game: Pact Worlds! As previously mentioned on d20 Diaries, Pact Worlds is much more than a book about Starfinder’s campaign setting. Yes, it contains details on all of the major planets of the Pact Worlds. And yes, it has all kinds of awesome details on those planet’s inhabitants, settlements and environments! But it also contains new playable races, new themes, new ships, new archetypes, and new gear, spells and feats! In short, despite being a book about the setting of Starfinder, it’s got a ton of new class options for everyone. I can’t wait!

Thanks for checking out some of Paizo’s new releases with us!

See you next time,

Jessica

Preview: War for the Crown!

With the Ruins of Azlanti adventure path’s final volume out, the next campaign from Pathfinder is already on it’s way. And where, you might be wondering, is the next adventure path going to be?

Answer: Taldor.

That’s right! Today we’re talking about War for the Crown, the next campaign from Paizo Publishing for the Pathfinder RPG! War for the Crown is a six part adventure path that begins with Crownfall. Pre-order is expected to be available in a few weeks time.

So what is War for the Crown? I expect that much is obvious from the title… This one’s pretty self explanatory, guys!

Crownfall begins in Taldor’s capital city of Oppara, during a massive celebration. But conspiracies, rivalries and rebellion cause Emperor Stavian III to snap, ordering a bloodbath in the senate halls. Trapped inside the palace alongside spies and with their life in danger, the PCs will have to escape and save the heir to the throne, Princess Eutropia–just as the Grand Prince himself dies. But even if they manage to save the heir, civil war is on the horizon…

War for the Crown continues with Part Two: Songbird, Scion, Saboteur, Part Three: The Twilight Child, Part Four: City in the Lion’s Eye, Part Five: The Reaper’s Right Hand and the finale, Part Six: The Six-Legend Soul.

Now, the player’s guide for War for the Crown isn’t out yet, but a thorough (and excited!) reading of the information available on each book proves that this is a political campaign, first and foremost, which promises to forge your player’s characters into ‘legendary politicians, spymasters, and nobles in their own right.’

Cool!

While the first book, Crownfall, seems to be about survival and making allies, the second, Songbird, Scion, Saboteur, involves the player’s characters building a power base for the heir by reclaiming her lands from the Lotheed family and includes infiltrating high-society events, and working as a spy to undermine Princess Eutropia’s rivals. Book three, The Twilight Child, continues in this vein, allowing the player’s characters to infiltrate the city of Yanmass, and earn the Princess the respect of the city through espionage and what sounds like a lot of meddling. With a ton of issues plaguing Yanmass, including a cult, this volume seems like it’s going to be more varied and combat heavy than the second book, but with a strong emphasis on politics. Book four, City in the Lion’s Eye sounds like it’s raising the political stakes considerably, by pitting the player’s characters against Princess Eutropia’s rival for the throne, General Pythareus. In addition to commanding an army, the General also commands the most ruthless spymasters in the world. It sounds like the purpose of this book is to outmaneuver the General, and bring down his regime with as little bloodshed as possible in order to prevent a violent war over the throne. I’m particularly interested to see how this book plays out!

It seems like book five, The Reaper’s Right Hand, changes gears considerably, taking the players on a hunt for the First Emporer of Taldor in the planar city of Axis. Yup! You heard right!

“Hey, guys, we’re fighting goblins, what are you up to?”
“Goblins? How droll! We’re off to have afternoon tea with the First Emporer of Taldor on another plane. No biggie!”

Why are they doing this?

I have no idea! But, I’m excited to find out!

War for the Crown finishes with book six, The Six-Legend Soul, which returns the player’s characters to Taldor only to find themselves labelled traitors and murders. Hated and hunted, they’ll have to face off against a secret society known as the Immaculate Circle, and confront six of Taldor’s greatest emporers resurrected from the past!

Wow, that is one tough throne to claim!

As a big fan of urban campaigns, I’m SUPER excited for this campaign!

But, while I wait impatiently for the Player’s Guide to show up on Paizo’s website as a free download, all is not lost! The Pathfinder Society Scenario #9-08: Birthright Betrayed, is a prequel to the War for the Crown, and I happen to be lucky enough to be playing it right now by play-by-post. Want to give it a shot? Birthright Betrayed is available as a PDF download for only five dollars. And it’s not the only one. Scenario #9-11: The Jarlsblood Witch Saga, and Scenario #9-13: The Lion’s Justice, both set the stage for War for the Crown as well!

I don’t know about you, but character concepts are already flying around in my head…

I’d better get plotting! Sounds like I’ll need all the practice I can get before taking on War for the Crown!

Here’s hoping I can spy with the best of them…

Jessica

Update: All of the issues of War for the Crown are now available!

War for the Crown: Book One: Crownfall

War for the Crown: Book 2: Songbird, Scion, Saboteur

War for the Crown: Book Three: Twilight Child

War for the Crown: Book Four: City in the Lion’s Eye

War for the Crown: Book Five: The Reaper’s Right Hand

War for the Crown: Book Six: The Six-Legend Soul

Iron Gods Adventure Path

As you may have already read, my husband and I are about to start a campaign for just the two of us, to play in the evenings when my children are going to bed. I own a lot of cool campaigns, but my husband has also played a lot of them. From among the ones he hasn’t played we debated for a while between two choices: Wrath of the Righteous and Iron Gods. In the end we chose Iron Gods.

So what IS Iron Gods, anyway?

Iron Gods is a six-part Pathfinder Adventure Path that fuses sci-fi and fantasy into one awesome campaign. Obviously a ton of inspiration spread out across all kinds of media that clearly influenced this campaign, but all in all if I had to name a few things this campaign feels like, I’d mention the Borderlands Video Games (Borderlands Triple Pack – PlayStation 3, Borderlands – Xbox 360), Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (Blu-ray), Outlander (the film about vikings and aliens, not the tv show about time travel) and the old classic: He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. This campaign has an aged, grungy sort of atmosphere about it, and does an excellent job of blending sci-fi themes and worn out advanced technology with typical fantasy fare. This campaign isn’t Starfinder, or some kind of new Sci-FI d20 game. It’s the Pathfinder you know and love, with a some sci-fi themes and loot mixed in for your players to encounter.

This campaign takes place in Numeria, a land of insular barbarians that was struck by strange objects falling from the sky in the distant past. These objects are considered cursed by locals, but are sources of wealth, wonder and knowledge to foreigners. Over time, scholars, treasure hunters and adventurers moved to Numeria, intent on taking all the relics from the sky as they could. Now, Numeria is run by the Black Sovereign, a barbarian King, and the Technic League, a group of unscrupulous, tyrannical scholars who are determined to keep all the lore and technology within the country to themselves. Within this volatile nation lays the town of Torch, the starting place of the campaign and home (or temporary home) to the PCs of Iron Gods.

Torch is known for its bright purple flame that burns constantly atop a massive hill the town is built around. This flame is perfect for smelting sky metals, and is the town’s major source of income and tourism. Recently, the Torch has sputtered out. Knowing this spells disaster for the town, various groups have looked into the matter and only one had any success: Khonnir Baine. Khonnir is a town councillor and wizard who returned a while ago with a deactivated robot he discovered under the town of Torch. Believing that the source of the purple flame also lay under the town, he dropped the robot off at his home and returned underground. He never came back. In desperation the town council has offered a sizeable reward to anyone who can restore the purple flames or find Khonnir Baine. And the PCs happen to be the next group to accept the challenge!

The way I see it, there’s two basic kinds of characters you can make for Iron Gods: characters who accept technology and characters who don’t. Characters who accept technology are probably going to be interested in using technology or figuring out how it works. Whatever their reasons for doing so–greed, curiosity, convenience–they’re the kind of character who’s going to pick up a laser gun and either use it or sell it. Characters that don’t accept technology are going to do the opposite. They’re not going to use the tech they find and chances are, they’re going to try to break it.

Obviously, for either type there’s a ton of characters you can make, and these characters are likely going to have different attitudes and outlooks regarding technology. But for us? We’re going to be a small party, so I would prefer to make a character with the same outlook as my husband. So what was he going to play? I’d have to wait and see…

I set about perusing the many classes archetypes and character options available to me and came up with a few ideas that really tickled my fancy.

First up? The sorcerer. A native Kellid who manifested a bloodline tainted by nanites, this sorceress would have been cast from her tribe when her powers manifested. Left to wander the wilds, she reached Torch and stayed out of desperation. Now working as a scrapper, this sorceress is strong and fit. She knows about technology and hates it with a passion, just as she hates her own powers. Bitter, rude and blunt, I would have a blast playing this character. The nanite bloodline has some cool powers. At low levels you can use the nanites inhabiting your body to coat your weapon and poison your enemies, or use the nanites to improve your skills. At later levels you can use the nanites to heal your own wounds, avoid critical hits, and even become a living swarm yourself. Cool!

Second, a character who loves technology so much it borders on worship. A cleric with the iron priest archetype. This character believes that the Rain of Stars which brought technology falling from the heavens was a divine event. The gods intended these objects as a gift for the people of our planet to use as they desire. You know that dirty, crazed weirdo sitting on the street corner preaching about the end times? THAT’S who this character would be. Minus the whole end-times thing. Haha. With the ability to cast make whole and greater make whole spontaneously, and the ability to channel energy that harms or heals constructs instead of undead, this would be one weird cleric. And if there’s anything I love playing, it’s an eccentric! Although worshipping Brigh would be tempting, I think I’d prefer to worship Nethys, and take both the Destruction and Protection domains, believing that the technology was a gift from Nethys–just another form of magic!

The third character concept I’m interested in is the gunslinger. more specifically, the tech slinger archetype. There’s not much description needed here, really. I mean, if you’re going to play a gunslinger, there’s no better time than during a game that’s bound to give out a few guns! The techslinger archetype swaps out some of the gunslinger’s deeds with new deeds that involve using technological guns and gear instead. It’s quirky, it’s thematic, and it’s a chance to finally play a gunslinger! I’m seriously tempted.

The fourth character concept I’m contemplating–possibly my favourite–is an investigator with the scavenger archetype. Scavenger’s make tiny gadgets to deliver their spells instead of brewing potions and extracts. They give up their poison abilities to get some cool thematic abilities that make them good at making, controlling, harming and healing constructs. Finally, instead of using their inspiration for free on knowledge checks, linguistics and spellcraft, they can use it for free on disable device, appraise and knowledge engineering. This archetype is just… awesome! I love the flavour and abilities and I think it would be a great fit for the town of Torch and the Iron Gods campaign as a whole.

But there’s one concept left I’m super excited for… A psychic! Psychic? Yup! More specifically, a psychic with the mindtech psychic discipline who specializes in using psi-tech. In short, this psychic can communicate with electronic machinery and technological devices. They can amplify and focus their powers through the technology around them, and can essentially mind-control constructs and override their programming at higher levels. There’s a host of cool psi-tech abilities which they can take in place of phrenic amplifications or feat, including the ability to shoot lasers, make force field, and even upload their consciousness into technological devices like robots in order to become an AI. Weird. Cool. Awesome. My only problem? Since Iron Gods doesn’t start with technology in the hands of its players, it could be a while before her powers see good use in the game.

So, while I contemplate my character options, I’ll give my player’s guide a read. I’ll crack open my adventure path volumes and ready the awesome Iron Gods Pawn Collection I got for Christmas.

Let me know your thoughts on Iron Gods and your character ideas below! I’d love to hear them!

Jessica

Sources and Products

Iron Gods is a six part Pathfinder adventure path by Paizo Publishing. The Player’s Guide is a free download, available here. The campaign consists of: Part 1 – Fires of Creation, Part 2 – Lords of Rust, Part 3 – The Choking Tower, Part 4 – Valley of the Brain Collectors, Part 5 – Palace of Fallen Stars, and Part 6 – The Divinity Drive. The entire campaign is easy to get your hands on, and each volume is available (at the time of writing this blog post) for between $20 and $30 Canadian on Amazon. There’s plenty of supplemental material written for the campaign, two of which I highly recommend: Iron Gods Pawn Collection, which has a ton of unique pawns for use in this campaign, and The Technology Guide, a book which is packed full with rules and loot you’ll be using throughout the course of the Iron Gods Adventure Path, and some nifty archetypes. Although the Pawn Collection is a steal of a deal, the Technology Guide is currently out of print and costs a pretty penny. It’s available for much cheaper as a PDF download on Paizo’s website, here.

What classes did I talk about today? Clerics and sorcerers are from the Core Rulebook or the Core Rulebook (Pocket Edition). Gunslingers are from Ultimate Combat. Investigators are from the Advanced Class Guide and the Psychic is from Occult Adventures.

The nanite bloodline is from People of the River, a book about the River Kingdoms and Numeria and the people who live there. The iron priest archetype for clerics was published in The Technology Guide, as was the techslinger archetype for gunslingers. Scavenger was from Blood of the Beast, a wonderful little player’s book about animal-inspired races including catfolk, grippli, kitsune, ratfolk and more. Finally, the mindtech discipline for psychics is from Occult Realms.

Reign of Winter: Part One (ish)

d20 gaming happens plenty in my house, but Friday nights is special. Friday night is for adults only! While my kids and my brother’s kids run around, eat popcorn and have a movie night together, we parents play some Pathfinder. If all four of us are free we play Mummy’s Mask, and if only three of us are free we play Reign of Winter.

And this week? Reign of Winter.

The Campaign

Reign of Winter is a six-volume Pathfinder Adventure Path by Paizo Publishing. The campaign begins in the village of Heldren in the nation of Taldor during mid-summer. A blizzard appears out of nowhere, blanketing the nearby Border Wood with snow. When a wounded caravan guard delirious with frost-bite and fatigue staggers into town telling crazy stories about ice fairies, mass slaughter, and a kidnapped noblewoman, the village leaders urge the PCs to investigate his claims. Tasked with finding the missing noblewoman, discovering what happened to the guard’s caravan, and investigating the cause of this unnatural winter, the heroes set out to the Border Wood. Deep in its depths they discover a magical portal to the frozen land of Irrisen, whose supernatural winter will soon engulf all of Golarion unless the PCs can discover the fate of the otherworldly witch Baba Yaga. But following her trail of bread crumbs will take them far from home… Through the eternally frozen lands of Irrisen, and into even stranger lands beyond.

Though the premise is simple–find Baba Yaga and end this unnatural winter before it freezes the whole world–this campaign has a ton of twists, turns, and surprises. Each and every adventure in the series is well-written, fast-paced, and loads of fun. It features a lot of awesome locations, some of which are bound to take your players completely by surprise (parts four and five, here’s looking at you!). One of my favourite parts? Reign of Winter doesn’t always assume what your players do. It leaves it up to them. Although they have destinations to reach and a task that must be completed in each volume to keep them working towards their goals, how they go about achieving it, and who they decide to help or hinder is almost always up to them. This is awesome to see in an adventure path, and really lets the player’s be in control of their destiny, despite being in a pretty tight, ‘on-the-rails’ style of campaign.

In terms of supplemental material, this campaign works well with nearly everything Pathfinder. It’s particularly well-suited to the addition of occult classes and mythic tiers. Surprisingly, gunslingers will also have some distinct advantages during part of the campaign. The only class I don’t recommend is the paladin. Although mechanically they will have a ton of opportunity to shine, and they’re not forced to commit evil acts, the players will not always be able to fight the evil they see. In addition, this campaign’s major goal is to find and save Baba Yaga, an evil witch of tremendous power. Most paladin’s would have a hard time justifying this. Although it can be done, this campaign is much more enjoyable for everyone involved without being constrained by such a strict moral code.

The most important thing to keep in mind is that this is almost entirely a cold-weather campaign. Your characters will need to find ways to deal with the winter’s chill as soon as possible. But, that doesn’t limit character choices. In fact, as much as playing winter-themed characters can be fun, it’s more beneficial to go in the opposite direction. You are fighting against winter’s spread, after all. In a practical sense, many creatures native to frozen climates have resistances to the cold and weaknesses to heat. Preparation and adaptation to the cold is more important than being at home in cold climates.

I have read a lot of adventures and campaigns over the years, and I can honestly say that Reign of Winter is one of my all-time favourites. Top three, for sure! If you ever get the chance to play, read or run it, I highly encourage you to do so!

The Characters

My group of players for Reign of Winter is incredibly small. I GM it, while my husband and my brother play it. That’s it. Three people, with a two-person party. Obviously, this brings up some challenges, which will be discussed later. But for now, let’s meet the heroes of my Reign of Winter Campaign: Huxley Rangvald and Aesir Havelok.

Aesir Havelok

KRIS — Art chosen to represent Aesir Havelok. For artist information check out Kimberly80 on deviantart.

Aesir Havelok is a hunter and fisherman of Ulfen descent. During the summer months he lives in the Taldan town of Heldren. During the fall he travels north by ship to meet up with his cousins, and during the winter months he joins his cousins in their longboats, hunting great sea-beasts. He is a cleric of the agathion Ylimancha, the neutral good empyreal lord of seafarers, coastal waters, and creatures that fly. Aesir is particularly good with a bow, and has a way with animals. In addition to summoning creatures to aid him in combat he began the campaign with two beloved pets: his dog, Bjorn, and his seahawk, Bronna. Along the way he also became the proud master of a combat-trained warhorse, Ulbricht, and a wild, giant weasel, Brigga. For a time he was master of a glorious white stag he dubbed Loki.

Aesir is friendly and likeable, but not around Heldren much. He’s not quite considered a local, and is more of a welcome outsider. He’s brave and bold, and tries to inspire others to be the same. He dreams of hunting epic sea monsters, and making a name for himself that his ancestors and future descendants can be proud of! Aesir is my brother’s character.

Huxley Rangvald

Mike — Art chosen to represent Huxley Rangvald. Art is by Kent Hamilton, features the Iconic Occultist Mavaro, and is from Pathfinder’s Monster Hunter’s Handbook

Huxley Rangvald is a man of contrasts. Raised in a museum with an Ulfen father who longs for adventure, a Taldan mother with a head for business, and a horde of siblings and cousins, Huxley has become a fusion of cultures. Descended from an Ulfen warrior who once protected Taldan royalty and earned all the wealth he could carry as his pay for a decade’s work, Huxley’s great-grandfather used his eye for quality to fill his arms and backpack with priceless relics, valuable antiques and historic artifacts. But instead of heading home, he founded a museum, married a wealthy woman and lived a life of leisure.

Huxley himself grew up well-educated and wanting for nothing. But, living among the relics of legends and heroes, surrounded by history, he yearned to do more. He loves hunting for relics and bargaining for new acquisitions, and has managed to expand his family’s collection tremendously. Huxley is an occultist who uses historic artifacts to unlock and channel his own psychic powers. He is my husband’s character.

The Story so Far…

My group is currently on book one of Reign of Winter, The Snows of Summer. Having set out from the town of Heldren into the Border Wood, the duo fought against strange creatures, frigid icy fey, and the ever-encroaching cold to rescue a missing noblewoman from a group of bandits. But clues discovered in the forest led them to believe that the source of the arctic weather lay within the woods itself. After returning the noblewoman to Heldren and resupplying, Huxley and Aesir returned to the depths of the frozen woods and travelled to its centre, deep in the Somir Valley. Along the way they met a strange doll in a small house within a haunted ice maze. Made from the soul of a child by someone foul, the doll seemed an oddity at first. But as the doll began to act of its own volition, they believed it was haunted, and finally, alive. Aesir though it was creepy and should be destroyed, but Huxley thought it was amazing! He treated the doll kindly and befriended her, learning that her name was Thora. With the creepy doll in Huxley’s care they soldiered on. The cold intensified, and more strange creatures foreign to the woods appeared. After combating terrifying foes amidst a howling blizzard they followed the impossible storm to its centre and found a portal. Suddenly the doll screamed and fought like crazy to prevent them from entering.

Guardian Doll port final — Thora the Guardian Doll. Art by Miguel Regodon for Paizo Publishing.

Huxley had learned much about the doll during the journey, not only from speaking with her, but from examining her with his occultist abilities and vast arcana knowledge. He knew that whoever had killed the human Thora had captured and used it’s soul to create a dangerous construct known as a guardian doll. Such dolls much follow their creators commands, and can be given tasks to carry out, but are intelligent and cunning. In addition, they lash out against those that they loved in life. But, the dolls are still influenced by the soul used to create them, and as evil as its commands might be, the child inside the doll–little Thora–was a good girl. Huxley had finally discovered the dolls purpose: to prevent anyone from approaching the portal. Knowing Thora would attack them to the best of her ability, he bound her and blindfolded her, and stuffed her inside his bag. Although it was cruel, he hoped that upon leaving the portal behind, the doll would no longer be compelled to harm him. Then her actions would be her own again.

And if she still wanted to harm him? Well, that was her right. He did tie her up and stuff her in a bag….

Just as they were about to approach the portal a nearby tree moved, revealing itself to be a moss troll, the final guardian of the strange portal. Dealing with Thora and the troll at the same time proved a challenge, but Huxley and Aesir triumphed and moved to examine the portal. Huxley determined that the portal was the cause of the unnatural winter, and by closing it they could return the local weather to normal. Unfortunately, the source of the portal wasn’t here, it was on the other side of the portal. Knowing they would be stuck on the other side, wherever that was, they decided to pass through. Only to have something come out of the portal!

A tall figure in black armour, bleeding from many wounds, and clearly near death. The armoured knight removed his helmet and fell into the snow, revealing himself to be an incredibly old man. But this was no mortal… This was Dark Midnight, the Black Rider and one of three Heralds of Baba Yaga’s return. As he was dying, the man drew the others to him and imparted upon them both wisdom and knowledge.

Every hundred years the Great Witch, Baba Yaga, returns to her country of Irrisen to place a new daughter upon the throne. But this year, something went wrong. Queen Elvanna, ruler of Irrisen, did not wish to give her throne to another. Forgetting that the throne was not hers to give, it was Baba Yaga’s, Elvanna set out to kill the Heralds of her return, kill all those loyal to Baba Yaga, and take the entirety of Golarion as her throne. To this end, she has placed magical portals throughout the world, with the intent of spreading endless winter across the globe. Millions will perish, and Elvanna will rule over the frozen world that remains.

The source of this portal was close, within a few days travel once they passed through the portal, in a place called the Pale Tower, but the other portals throughout the world? They were farther, and they were many. Huxley and Aesir would not be able to shut them all down alone, and with even one remaining, the eternal grip of winter would continue to spread.

But Dark Midnight offered them hope.

Baba Yaga is always prepared for betrayal. She set a contingency in place–left a trail of breadcrumbs for the Herald’s to follow. But death was coming for the last of her Heralds, and the PCs would have to take up his cause. After saving their home by destroying the portal in the Pale Tower, they would need to travel to Whitethrone, the capital of Irrisen. There Queen Elvanna had imprisoned Baba Yaga’s Dancing Hut as a symbol of her power. If they could free the Hut and step inside they could travel anywhere–even across planes and to other worlds. But to do so they needed the keys to the hut. Objects mundane in appearance but attuned to different locations. Combining these objects provides navigational direction for the Hut to follow. Elvanna had deactivated the keys, but Baba Yaga had already placed a few keys in hiding for her Heralds to find, and Dark Midnight has done so. With these keys, they can follow Baba Yaga’s trail, rescue her from whatever prison she is trapped in, so that Baba Yaga can destroy the portals–all of them.

But Baba Yaga has a way of testing even those who she desires to aid. The keys are but the first in a series of trials. Where they will take the heroes, Dark Midnight doesn’t know, but he does know that there will be more. More keys to find, more clues to follow, and more trials to face. In the end, they will find Baba Yaga and Baba Yaga will put an end to Elvanna’s foolishness. But until then, they would need a final boon from him. For only Baba Yaga and her Heralds can enter the Dancing Hut. To save their world, they would need to become Her Herald in Dark Midnight’s place. They would need to usher in the return of Baba Yaga.

They hesitated only a moment. Huxley needed no incentive to accept a mission involving a MAGICAL LEGENDARY HUT! While Aesir was bound by honour to save the town of Heldren. Accepting Dark Midnight’s offer, the Herald gave them the keys to the hut, and then passed onto them, his powers. The man in the armour had died. But Dark Midnight lived. Huxley Rangvald and Aesir Havelock took on the mantle and responsibilities of the Black Rider, and with it came great power. They achieved their first mythic tier, and charged through the portal only to come out… in Irrisen.

Eventually, Thora stopped screaming and trying to murder Huxley, which made him very happy, but he did not release her from the bag. Not yet. He needed to be sure she was under no further orders before allowing her more freedom.

Nadya Petska. — Nadya Petska, from Reign of Winter Part One: The Snows of Summer.

In time they heard screams on the wind, and hurried off to find the source. Finding a caravan of dogsleds and their riders under attack by a massive praying mantis–a creature native to the Border Wood back in Taldor. Huxley and Aesir helped fight the beast off and introduced themselves to the people they had saved. Turns out it was a group of importers, returning to the nearby town of Waldsby after weeks away acquiring supplies. They thanked Huxley and Aesir, but had no time for chatting. A storm was coming, and they hoped to reach shelter before becoming trapped in it. Together, they all rode off. But they could not outrun the storm. It came upon them before arriving in Waldsby, and they sought shelter in a cave. There they settled in for the night and had a chance to socialize. Huxley and Aesir shared their tale, and their goal to visit the Pale Tower to save their town, but left out all mention of Thora, Dark Midnight and being Heralds of Baba Yaga.

The caravan was run by a woman by the name of Nadya. It had once been her husband’s business, but his death a few years ago left her in charge of the supply runs. Her husband’s business partner and good friend, Laszlo, stayed on to help her, and was here as well. The third member of their group was Inuq, a foreign woman who was the owner, breeder, and trainer of the dogs they used to pull the sleds, as well as owner of the sleds themselves. Typically, the three were the only ones in the caravan, but this last run had been long, and a few more hands had volunteered to join them. Laszlo’s son, Andrei, who had almost been eaten by the mantis, and Nicholai, Nadya’s neighbour, who was a friendly fellow, but didn’t seem comfortable this far from town. As the night wore on, they settled in to sleep, only to have a visitor arrive–a forlarren musician on her way from Waldsby to the Pale Tower. The group begrudgingly let the fey join them in the cave, but clearly the mood was tense. Nadya covered for Huxley and Aesir, lying about their purpose and claiming they were distant relatives of hers. They went along with the lies, knowing something was off, and managed to avoid confrontation with the ice fey. But as she played some local music for the group, she watched the PCs keenly, curious if they knew the words and clearly trying to discover what part of their tale was lies.

Lazlo Negevi — Art chosen to represent Laszlo Negevi, Nadya’s business partner.

The evening was tense, but in time everyone went to sleep. When they awoke it was to the sounds of Nadya screaming in pain. Something had hurt her! Huxley and Aesir charged in to see what had happened to find the forlarren gone, and Nadya wounded from intense cold–a magical spell most likely. The group muttered and worried over the attack, and wondered how the forlarren could slip away so quickly, but Huxley felt a nagging worry. He checked his bag to find Thora there, but unbound, and her tiny footprints heading toward Nadya’s tent. At the back he found a small section of canvas cut away by a sharp object, just large enough for a doll to peek through.

It wasn’t the forlarren that had attacked Nadya. It was Thora. But why?

Huxley kept this news to himself and chatted with the others. They set out for the day and Huxley continued his prying. Eventually he discovered that Nadya had three children. Two boys and a girl named Thora. While Nadya was away on a supply run the Lady of the Pale Tower and her Guard had come through Waldsby on a surprise visit. Thora had been heard making a joke about the witch, and dragged back to the Pale Tower as a prisoner. Her babysitter, Nicholai and his wife, was distraught, and told Nadya what had happened as soon as she returned home. Nadya rode for the Pale Tower, begging for her daughter back, and was promised that if she could bring back more than double her typical shipment of goods to the Pale Tower, her daughter would be released. Nadya agreed and hurried back to Waldsby. Laszlo and Inuq prepared to join her, but to bring back double would be a long trip, and they would need more sleds. Inuq had plenty of sleds and dogs, but they would need others to drive them. Nicholai volunteered out of guilt, knowing that little Thora had been in his care. Laszlo’s son volunteered out of pride and excitement, hoping to join his father on an important journey. Now Nadya was returning to Waldsby, and then on to the Pale Tower to get Thora back.

Inuq (Dogbreeder) — Art chosen to represent Inuq, a Varki dogbreeder.

But she wouldn’t get Thora back, would she? For the witch of the Pale Tower, Nazhena Vassiovna, had killed Thora, captured her soul, and turned her into a guardian doll, sending her through the portal to the Border Wood to stalk and kill all who attempted passage.

Huxley had Thora. And as a guardian doll, Thora would be compelled to lash out and kill all those who she had loved in life. Including her mother, Nadya, and her brothers… Worrying over what to do, Huxley kept his theories (and Thora) to himself. The journey continued, and they triumphed over the dangers of the frozen woods and plains.

But as Walsby came into sight, Huxley made a decision. Taking Nadya aside he told her about Thora’s death, and her rebirth as a doll. Nadya didn’t believe him, and was angry, but as Huxley pulled out Thora, Nadya broke down in tears. The doll wore her daughter’s clothes, and her daughter’s real hair had been used in the doll’s creation. After crying over the fate of her child, Nadya lashed out at the doll, tossing it into the snow. That abomination wasn’t her daughter. Her daughter was dead. That thing needed to be destroyed.

Aesir agreed, but Huxley and Inuq did not. And as Huxley cradled little Thora in his arms, he vowed he would not let anyone harm the girl, whatever form she might be in. Meanwhile, Aesir convinced Nadya that they would seek vengeance against the White Witches on Nadya’s behalf–or alongside her, if she desired.

Setting out to Waldsby with grim determination, the group entered town in order to resupply and rest. Huxley and Aesir would set out for the Pale Tower the next morning, with–hopefully–someone to guide them there.

But Waldsby was not what they expected. It was strange. A mirror image of Heldren in both layout, and its citizens, Aesir and Huxley were both creeped out. They resupplied and socialized, but found the people here hard, and cold where the citizens of Heldren had been welcoming and warm. Huxley determined that the two towns likely lay along the same ley lines, which made the town connected by both magic and psychic powers despite the distance between them. Things occurring in one place would echo across the ley lines and affect the other. Intrigued, Huxley explored the town. Although they made a few friends, more often than not these interactions ended poorly. In the end they decided to leave their animals in Inuq’s care for the night, and sleep in Laszlo’s tiny house.

But the evening was interrupted by the sounds of guards approaching. The Pale Tower Guard were here! Deciding they didn’t want Laszlo to be punished for harbouring them, Huxley and Aesir slipped out a back window and waltzed into the town square. They were immediately approached by the Pale Tower Guard who ordered them to see their commander for questioning. Aesir loudly refused, causing a loud ruckus. Although both groups resorted to intimidation and threats for a while, it ended with violence. Aesir and Huxley defeated the first few guards, but more were on the way. Aesir whistled for his animals, and Huxley used his magic and sword skills. But soon the rest of the Pale Guard were upon them–all nine–as well as their Sergeant. The battle was hard, but together, the group triumphed. With the bodies of the Pale Tower Guard around them, bleeding in the streets, Nadya insisted they leave. More guards would come, and if they were to get vengeance for the death of her daughter, they would need to leave now. Inuq and Laszlo also offered to join Aesir and Huxley on their battle at the Pale Tower.

While Huxley stripped the dying guards of their gear, and the townsfolk yelled at the outsiders to leave, Aesir called the town to arms. Surely SOME amongst the citizens of Waldsby would fight back against the oppression of the Pale Tower Guard and the White Witches? Some seemed convinced, and to these people he bestowed the weapons and gear of the Pale Tower Guard. These people would be the town’s defenders!

Huxley was pretty sure these people would die.

With all the goods they could carry, Huxley, Aesir, and Aesir’s many pets set out with Inuq, Nadya and Laszlo by dogsled to the Pale Tower. The time had come to destroy the winter portal, kill Thora’s murderer and save the town of Heldren.

If they can…

The other side of the screen:

Welcome to the other side of the screen, a place where you’ll find GM notes related to the recent game sessions you’ve read, and links to the adventures themselves. If there’s something different in the adventure, or things I’ve changed and added, you’ll find it here!

So what’s different in this session?

At its core? A bit. In the details? A lot.

For starters, it’s NOT expected that anyone will try to keep the soul bound doll containing Thora’s soul as a companion. Most groups would have left the creepy doll alone. Those that understood what she was would likely consider destroying the soul gem inside her a way to set Thora’s soul free into the afterlife–which it is. Even those groups who kept her with them for a while would likely turn on the doll the first time she tries to attack, harm or hinder the group.

Mine didn’t. No matter how many times the Thora doll tried to hurt, enchant or thwart the PCs progress, Huxley was there to stop her non-violently. He understood Thora, her impulses and her limitations. Plus, she’s a freaking magical doll! Huxley LOVES things like that. This meant that I had to put a lot of thought into what exactly, Thora’s orders were, who she was compelled to listen to, and who she was compelled to attempt to kill if she met them. It’s also important to keep in mind that guardian dolls are subtle, disturbing creatures–not straight up combatants. This turned out to be great fun, and through it all, Huxley still managed to keep her. How much longer he’ll manage when Thora’s mother is travelling alongside them–a person she is compelled to murder–we’ll see. But honestly? I’m rooting for Huxley and Thora! If they can get her through the Pale Tower, destroy her creator and keep her away from the people she loved in life, Thora has an opportunity for growth and a second chance at life. And if they can’t? It will be a heart-breaking climax to a budding friendship between a creepy soul-bound doll and a kindly eccentric.

The second minor change to this campaign so far, was characters. There’s a great primer in the Snows of Summer for both Heldren and Waldsby, which can be used to great effect in the campaign. It’s honestly my two of my very favourite towns to play in. If done well, it will be both memorable and disconcerting for your players. To compliment this collection of quirky townsfolk, everyone was given face pictures to represent them, and characters who had no names (like Nadya’s four helpers) were given identities, personalities and families. Of all the townsfolk in the campaign so far, my players have felt the most connection with Yuln Oerstag, the wounded caravan guard who initially set the PCs out on adventure back in Heldren; Nadya Petska, Thora’s mother and the importer destined to be your guide to the Pale Tower; Laszlo, Nadya’s business partner and a grizzled old hunter; and Inuq, the Varki dog breeder who supplies Nadya with her dogs and dogsleds. Of these, only the first two had names and images in the published adventure.

The major change I instituted was the mantle of Dark Midnight. In the book, accepting the position as a Herald of Baba Yaga grants you a permanent increase to an ability score, a few boons that will come up throughout the campaign (like the ability to enter the Dancing Hut) and a compulsion that makes your characters want to save Baba Yaga. However, shortly after the printing of this book, Mythic Adventures was released. In fact, Baba Yaga herself was one of the first stat blocks I had ever seen printed who had mythic tiers. Taking into consideration that I had a group of only TWO characters, I decided that this would be a great time to try out the mythic rules in one of our campaigns. And thus, taking on the mantle of the Black Rider granted the PCs their first mythic tier. Throughout the course of the campaign I expect them to get a few more. I’m very excited to see how this change affects the campaign. I think it’s going to be a wonderful fit!

Reign of Winter is a six part Adventure Path by Paizo Publishing. It’s player’s guide is available as a free download here. The first volume, The Snows of Summer, is currently out of print and can only be found for a lot of money on Amazon. However, it is available for much cheaper as a PDF download on Paizo’s website, here. The other volumes in this series are all quite affordable on Amazon, at around fifteen to twenty-five dollars (Canadian) each, which is an awesome deal! For those of you interested, the rest of the Adventure Path includes, Part 2 – The Shackled Hut, Part 3 – Maiden, Mother, Crone, Part 4 – The Frozen Stars, Part 5 – Rasputin Must Die, and Part 6 – The Witch Queen’s Revenge. To further complement this awesome adventure path quite a few game supplements were released. I highly recommend picking up the Reign of Winter Pawn Collection. It’s a steal of a deal, and provides a bunch of unique minis to use in the campaign.

That’s all for now! Thanks for joining us on our continuing adventures in the Reign of Winter Adventure Path. This one’s going to be a wild ride!

What do you think of the campaign? Is it one you’d like to play in? More importantly, what would you PLAY if given the chance to make a character for Reign of Winter? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Until next time,

Jessica

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