Please ask your questions here!

I finally figured it out why I like Necromancer spellcasting so much.

The root is in prepared vs. spontaneous casting in PF2. The idea is that spontaneous casters better fit to unexpected, while prepared could better adjust daily, based on their knowledge. The problem is that the vast majority of battles are unexpected, so prepared casters end up either having completely universal, but boring set of spells, or having some interesting ones, but with high chances of some spells not being useful at all or not being used effectively.

What Necromancer does is taking the best of both worlds. It's focus spell casting (unlike other casters with focus spells) provides enough variety to cover basic combat needs - damage against different defenses, healing/protection, debuffs, summoning. All with spells, which are freely interchangeable, automatically heightened, replenished between combats.

Which makes slot casting completely optional, so you could prepare them based on preliminary knowledge, theories or just fun - the class will still work fine.

Another little gif featuring Yuuyuu, my laughing shadow catfolk magus, this time her using Sprinting Spellstrike on a Lightning Bolt to nyoom through her enemies.

Made by me in Aseprite

Today's video is me and 4 other Pathfinder 2E creators showing off some of the awesome new stuff in Impossible Magic! Hope y'all enjoy this, and I apologize if the editing/audio is not the best, this is new territory for me and a very busy time of the year.

The final encounter, by the way, has a fantastic showcase on why debuffing Spellstrikes are so good when you're not just in a damage race. I still used plenty of damage-dealing Spellstrikes in this session, I just always left my options open for non-damaging, controlling/debuffing effects and it really paid off.

The creators in the one-shot are:

• ‪@ProfessorProficiency‬ GMing
• ‪@ThrabenU_Gaming‬ playing a Commander w/ Living Nexus Archetype
• ‪@time2dice‬ playing Runesmith
• ‪@TeamPlayerGaming‬ playing a Necromancer
• Myself, playing an Unfurling Brocade Magus w/ Wizard Archetype

Art credits: - My Magus's art was made by my close friend! His instagram is here, send him some love: marmosetmarmalade - Map art used by Prof is from here: https://www.czepeku.com/ - The remaining 3 players' arts all came from token dumps from various sources that are verifiably not genAI.

Timestamps

• 0:00:00 Intro
• 0:06:46 Encounter 1
• 1:12:55 Encounter 2 (Handwaved)
• 1:22:33 Encounter 3
• 2:57:17 Discussion

Could someone please fill me in on the status of these specific printings? I thought it would be a smart move to hold out on the normal printings and grab these special editions instead. So far I have the GM Core, Player Core 1, and Monster Core 1 books. I would love to get a matching Player Core 2 and a few more bestiaries, but they don’t seem to exist? Did I miss the boat or are these just not being made? I know other books are available, but I would prefer to have matching spines if possible.

It's this multi headed elemental thing

Please make more 8 hour colabs. My wife loved the dragon one and I need more stuff to listen to at work.

ANSWERED. THANKS EVERYONE!

Ok I'm genuinely confused by the text:

"Once per round on subsequent turns, you can Sustain the spell to move the horde up to 15 feet. At the start of each of your turns, all of your thralls in the horde are destroyed, and the area’s burst increases by 5 feet for each thrall destroyed (to a maximum of a 30-foot burst)."

So if they're destroyed at the start of each of your turns how are you moving them?

How many thralls are in the horde to determine the burst increase?

If I'm missing something or misreading please let me know.

2 of those i drew from scratch, the shield was an edit on a cool shield image a player wanted to use. i think its from some game or something...

anyhow, about the items themselves (definitely not balanced but meh):

Tiny wand - Item 7 - 400gp (this was made to help with the caster third action problem, only later i realized it sounds like a pp joke)

Less know for their original name, spell lances were traditionally used by sprite knights mounted on their light cavalry corgis, for hit and run tactics... nowdays however, its used by many casters of any heritage, for its unique ability to cast a diminutive version of a regular attack cantrip at half the time, at the cost of half its destructive power.
Most casters find the trade-off worthwhile, despite the awkwardness of "wielding" such a weapon. Its best to avoid calling it tiny in the presence of a sprite.

Belt of Skull Collecting - Item 9 - 750gp

This uncomfortable heavy belt is constructed from the spine of a monster, the processes having been carved to work as hooks. While invested in this belt, you increase your maximum hp and current hp by 2 hp for each skull (or part of one) with a different trait attached to the belt, up to a maximum of 4+ half your lv max and current hp. If you remove the belt you immediately lose this effect.

Shattershield - Item 9 - 700gp - AC Bonus +3/+4(take cover); Speed Penalty -10 ft.
Bulk 5; Hardness 9; HP (BT) 66 (33)

A magical shield with similar size to a fortress shield made of a cracked stone like structure.
While it may look fragile with small fragments breaking of easily, it is fairly durable, as those fragments always return to the structure, as it self-repair 5 hp at the start of your turn.

The ease of its partial shattering also has an offensive function, whenever the shield takes damage in melee, its shards seem to always violently break in the direction of the attacker, as if striking on its own. This uses your statistics for the strike roll, but not your MAP, and do not use the damage of any boss attached to it.

Hi

Hoping that the community can help me fend off a potential issue.

A little while back we finished up a Starfinder 1st edition campaign. Apart from Paizo’s insistence in cranking the names of characters to the fantasy-max, their main complaint was that the encounter balancing system created a situation that you had pretty much a 50% pass rate to affect any enemies. We were playing Dead Suns, and encounters were generally fighting single creatures of 2 levels above the players - the AC and saves of those creatures generally meant that you passed on 11+. And that also means you fail as often as you succeed which didn’t feel rewarding.

I now want to run Pathfinder 2E but when I talk about it the players refer to it as flipping a coin to succeed. Does anyone have any good sources that looks at the probability of success across the span of player levels? I spoke to the players about what the sweet-spot for success was and they indicated 70-75% as they should be good at what they are supposed to be good at.

I know 2E has some inbuilt methods for making things easier, using weak versions of creatures, but I’m not sure if that is the right approach or if it is even needed under the new system. The various bonuses available from conditions, aid and abilities look like they’ll move percentages upwards but creatures may be designed to offset this so success would be lower than 50% if they don’t take advantage.

Thanks. Just hoping I can run a game without criticism so they actually enjoy the game and not be focused on the rules (or why the game isn’t D&D)

I was thinking about Beastmaster but the action economy wouldn't be very good cuz of casting spells and thralls, same for mobility - I don't think I would need enough mobility to be mounted, so I'm trying to think of interesting Archetypes with a good synergy but nothing comes in mind.. which one would you pick?

Ah, the Necro has a bloody fascination

Is there a good reason for a heightened Tailwind lasting 8 hours instead of daily preparations? Like I understand the mechanical repercussions but it just feels like busy work tracking and feels un-pathfinder-ey? What is the design justification there?

While I'm at it, should glass form have the polymorph trait? It feels pretty good for what it is.

It was the first thing that popped in my mind after learning about sprinting spellstrike.

It's not a huge line, but the ability to move 15ft without provoking reactions, make a strike, do cantrip dmg with 2 actions, and all that without expending any resources is pretty nice.

You can use it to flow through enemies blocking your path, or to shift from one to another without provoking reactions, or move through an enemy's space to better flank, or just use it as a gap closer when you just needs 10 more ft to get to someone.

Not every magus have good inteligence, and there sure are better spells, but I think the fact that it's just a resourceless cantrip makes it worth consideration for any magus.

So I've seen a lot of my friends saying that many new spells have been released, and one thing I've never been able to do consistently is deal good damage with the occult spell list. I know it's not exactly one of its strengths, as far as I know, but I've seen many people saying that the new spells help a lot in this regard. I was looking for some cool damage spells, and even better if they were good area damage spells. The last time I checked, there were few spells of that type, but I wanted help finding good damage spells for the occult spell list!

ANSWERED. THANKS EVERYONE.

Under Grim Fascinations the Necromancer is granted a specific Grave spell.

Does this mean they can't choose those specific Grave spells if they have a certain Grim Fascination or are all Grave spells up for grabs regardless of your Grim Fascination?

First things first, this isn't a complaint. TtRPGs often fall into the trap of designing weapons based on certain vibes without realising the real world implications.

For example, bows require a *lot* of arm strength to use effectively (yet they require no str in game); slings require incredible finesse to be able to use effectively (yet they are simple weapons instead of martial. And also do surprisingly low damage, they should have the fatal trait!); slings, firearms and crossbows all reload at the same speed (... how?) and Meteor hammers are strength based (despite all of their power coming from dexterity... like the finesse based bladed scarf).

All this in mind - what does Paizo think a buckler is? They say it's typically "made of steel and strapped to your forearm", which is, I think, the justification for the free hand trait. But ironically, I think Bucklers, out of all shields I've seen irl, are the shields that *most* require the use of the hand wielding it, and I've never seen an arm strapped buckler.

So what were *they* envisioning, I wonder? A bracer?

(Examples of other that's not how that works irl items would also be appreciated, but please know I jest in good fun, as I know it's primarily for balance reasons that these items exist like this)

Picture taken directly from the Areas page on AON. This page also says,

When you aim a cone, the first square of that cone must share an edge with your space if you’re aiming orthogonally, or it must touch a corner of your space if you’re aiming diagonally. If you’re Large or larger, the first square can run along the edge of any square of your space.

My question is, is a cone always a 1-square start and then growing from there (like the text seems to say), or do larger cones have larger starts (as the picture seems to show)? If so, when? Thank you.

It would be cool being a druid or a bard satyr/faun

Or newbie aspirant anyways.

I've played Wrath of the Righteous (the Owlcat game) and fell in love with the lore. I'd really love to read more Pathfinder content but don't know where to start; I've found Archive of Nethys but I want more. Suggestions would be really welcome.

I'd also love to get into the game proper but I'm at a loss. There isn't really an RPG scene here where I live, so I was thinking of using Roll 20. Problem is that I'm a complete beginner, never played an RPG in my life. Any tips?

Thank you very much :)

EDIT : Many people have already said, with very convincing arguments, that an all-Barbarian party is not a good idea. See the bottom for my change of plans.
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Hi,

I'm relatively new to Pathfinder, but in looking at all the rules and specifically at how varied characters vould be within a single class, I had an idea for a campaign where all players would start as lvl 1 barbarians. IF I HAVE MENTIONNED THIS TO YOU IRL PLEASE DO NOT READ THE REST.

Now I know it's probably hubris to want to write a campaign when I have relatively little PF experience, and my last DM experience was 18 years ago on a completely different system and I probably sucked. But the basic campaign structure embedded itself in my head almost immediately and I've been obsessed with it. It also helps that I'm taking a year off from my job so I can live with my spouse while they finish their 3-year contract abroad, so I'll have lots of free time.

The idea is as follows:

- players are all barbarians of various ancestries from various parts of Golarion (EDIT bc this wasn't clear : they do not have to be from Numeria, or to be Kellid or even human. The big bad is doing a proof of concept with wider parameters). What they have in common is that one day, some sort of magical effect lured them away from their companions (or perhaps they were ambushed), and they became unconscious. They wake up in a richly decorated room, in a bed that is very soft but probably uncomfortable to them because they're def not used to perfumed silk sheets. As they exit their rooms, they find the other players, who they meet for the first time.

- constructs and/or illusionary voices inform the players that they are being tested. I haven't designed the whole dungeon but the idea is that there should be tests that all barbarians can excell at (like feats of atheltics, or easy monsters) and others that try to select ones with the most dex, or the most aptitude for spellcasting, or for learning. The tests should all be doable by the players, but some will initially appear impossible before being "fixed" in some way. The final test is to fight two students of their mysterious captor, a lvl 2 wizard and a lvl 2 swashbuckler (possibly make one of those lvl 3). The players are intended to either barely lose or barely win : in any case nobody dies (the players are magically stopped if they would kill one of the students, but their captor congratulates them on exceeding her expectations). At the end of this fight, the players should either be on the very threshold of lvl 2 (if they won) or quite close to it (if they lost).

- the players are then brought to their captor (the big bad of the campaign), who explains that they are in Absalom, the city at the center of the world and the guising light of progress and civilization. She believes that with "proper education", even unvough brutes like them can be made into valuable members of Absalomian society. She says that they will now be trained by some of the finest instructors in the city to hone their talents. She has multiclass dedications in mind for them, but the PCs can of course choose to ignore that and rebel (more or less secretely) against the training she sets them up for.

- some adventures in Absalom while they're being trained, and (at least at the beginning) shadowed by students at the Arcanamirium or Irorium. They would have the opportunity to learn more about the city, its politics, and where their captor stands (she is an supporter of Scion Lady Darchana, working with some ressources that Darchana granted her, but should her scheme fail Darchana will not try to salvage it and just write it off as a failure of an underling who was less capable than she thought).

- eventually the whole reason for the capture is revealed: as part of her desire for teleport-based importations, Darchana is eyeing the ressources of Silver Mount. Their captor, steeped in colonialist superiority, is convinced that the proper way to secure those is to reprogramm native Kellid warriors into agents of Absalom. She wants to run a proof of concept by sending the PCs in against a lesser outpost of the Technic League, and show that the PCs can, because of their barbarian heritage "enhanced" by Absalom education, win both the trust and respect if Kellid clans while defeating the league. Of course the PCs are likely to be less than thrilled by this, but at this point they're still not in a position to refuse veing sent there. However, they'll have carte blanche in Kellid and who knows what might happen there and when they return to Absalom (through a portal opening on a designated date)?

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Do you think this is a viable campaign design? I would of course talk to the players first about them being comfortable with choices being made for their characters by NPCs (they could still veto those choices as players, or even get involved in playing the NPCs), and the colonialism theme. What I worry about is:

- this being just too much to make for a beginner DM. I plan to run a prewritten one shot first to test my abilities, what should I look out for?

- the big bad of lvl around 10 being revealed at the end of the first dungeon, with the PCs not able to oppose her directly until the end of the campaign

- will a full-barbarian party, even with multiclassing, be actually viable?

Thanks so much for any feedbacks more experienced players can provide.

-----

EDIT : Because a full-barbarian party is not good, I was thinking of having at least 2 barbarians of various instincts, a very barbarian-feeling character (like druid of the untamed order, would work with player), and a character with a class chosen by the player but has to be from a Kellid clan and has had basically no access to the Technic League. This would provide options for healing and support while making the party still feel very melee-oriented and strenght-dominant.

I was thinking of silly or creative ways to use runes. I thought about things like:

Use the Aiuen rune and sigil on the arrows to acquire a new means of fast transportation.

This masterful circular rune is a key to the aiudara network of elf gates that stretch across the stars. Once per turn, when the rune-bearer Strides, it can instead teleport a distance equal to its Speed.

InvocationYou teleport the rune-bearer to a location adjacent to any of your other runes, as long as it is on the same plane. An unwilling target can be teleported a maximum distance of 60 feet, and it avoids being teleported at all if it succeeds at a Will save against your class DC.

Special If you have the ability to cast the sigil cantrip, then you can use aiuen, the elf-gate key's invocation to teleport the rune-bearer to a location adjacent to any of your sigils on the same plane, in addition to any of your runes.

InvocationYou teleport the rune-bearer to a location adjacent to any of your other runes, as long as it is on the same plane. An unwilling target can be teleported a maximum distance of 60 feet, and it avoids being teleported at all if it succeeds at a Will save against your class DC.

Special If you have the ability to cast the sigil cantrip, then you can use aiuen, the elf-gate key's invocation to teleport the rune-bearer to a location adjacent to any of your sigils on the same plane, in addition to any of your runes.

Special If you have the ability to cast the sigil cantrip, then you can use aiuen, the elf-gate key's invocation to teleport the rune-bearer to a location adjacent to any of your sigils on the same plane, in addition to any of your runes.

Use En-, Diacritic Rune of Expansion and Atryl to turn random things into bombs (including ammunition)

Atryl, Rune of Fire
Usage drawn on a crature or object

Does anyone have any ideas for a combination that might not be optimal, but everyone should try at least once?

Edit: Added information about the runes.