Hello again my fellow Golem devotees! Once again, it's time for the latest PAIZO NEWS ROUNDUP! They're keeping so many plates in the air over there with their site redesign and their locomotive of a schedule, so let's do our part and make sure we keep an eye on all the spinning dishes! Sorry, the metaphor got a little twisted then fell apart.
Starfinder is the new kid on the block, so of course it gets first billing from Paizo and here on the Roundup. The big news from Starfinder centers around the next major release: the Starfinder Pact Worlds. Developer Jason Keely gives us another in-depth look at this, the first major campaign setting book, the PDF of which is available March 28th.
The Pact Worlds that form the heart of the Starfinder setting consist of 14 worlds or celestial bodies, the inhabitants of which have organized themselves into a loose coalition to help ward off alien menaces. Or, extra-alien menaces, as humans only make up a fraction of the Pact Worlders! And when I say "celestial bodies", I mean it: the first civilized structure covered is actually INSIDE the sun! As you might imagine, this place is crawling with devotees to Sarenrae, but that doesn't stop solarions, efreet, Xenowardens, and corporations looking to make a buck from setting up shop.
The other standout world (at least in my humble opinion) is the Planet of Dragons! Known as Triaxus, this planet's wide and elliptical orbit causes long, extreme seasons. For those of you concerned that a certain catch phrase might rear its genre-and-copyright-defying head, worry not; winter is here, and it's been here for centuries. The planet features two major landmasses that are home to dragons, dragonkin, and the draconic ryphorians. All seems fairly peaceful, except for the few realms with expansionistic desires. Dretchnyliax is one such realm, led by a powerful green dragon Dretchnyl, who's MORE MACHINE NOW THAN…um…dragon…TWISTED AND…well, she was always evil, she's a green dragon.
But hey, that's enough about space dragons (can there ever be enough about space dragons?), let's move on to Pathfinder. There are quite a few sourcebooks coming down the pipe that look exciiiting, from both a player's and a GM's perspective, and we've got enough space to highlight two.
It might not be news to you folks, but it is news to us here at the Roundup, so let's give a hearty welcome to the up-and-coming Pathfinder Player Companion: Merchant's Manifest! The Golarion campaign setting is littered with cities that bleed commerce, and this book puts the spotlight on all of them. First and foremost is the in-depth look at 17 prominent trading hubs including Cassomir, Port Ice, Anuli, Kibew, Ular, Kel, Goka, and Ordu-Aganhei. What's also nice is the inclusion of trinkets, magic items, mundane items, and so on that really channel the flavor of their cities of origin. A Pathfinder Player Companion wouldn't be complete without some character options, and this book offers new options for players who want to get their merchant prince on.
Last but not least is a book hot off the presses and packed with flavorful taverns to add spice to your party's downtime. Inner Sea Taverns is here to give your favorite hole-in-the-wall the layer of grime it needs. You want bar games? This book has bar games. You want wanted posters? This book has wanted posters. You want bar fights? THIS BOOK HAS BAR FIGHTS.
And that about does it for this edition of the PAIZO NEWS ROUNDUP! Which book are you looking forward to the most?
contributed by Ben Reece
Starfinder is the new kid on the block, so of course it gets first billing from Paizo and here on the Roundup. The big news from Starfinder centers around the next major release: the Starfinder Pact Worlds. Developer Jason Keely gives us another in-depth look at this, the first major campaign setting book, the PDF of which is available March 28th.
The Pact Worlds that form the heart of the Starfinder setting consist of 14 worlds or celestial bodies, the inhabitants of which have organized themselves into a loose coalition to help ward off alien menaces. Or, extra-alien menaces, as humans only make up a fraction of the Pact Worlders! And when I say "celestial bodies", I mean it: the first civilized structure covered is actually INSIDE the sun! As you might imagine, this place is crawling with devotees to Sarenrae, but that doesn't stop solarions, efreet, Xenowardens, and corporations looking to make a buck from setting up shop.
The other standout world (at least in my humble opinion) is the Planet of Dragons! Known as Triaxus, this planet's wide and elliptical orbit causes long, extreme seasons. For those of you concerned that a certain catch phrase might rear its genre-and-copyright-defying head, worry not; winter is here, and it's been here for centuries. The planet features two major landmasses that are home to dragons, dragonkin, and the draconic ryphorians. All seems fairly peaceful, except for the few realms with expansionistic desires. Dretchnyliax is one such realm, led by a powerful green dragon Dretchnyl, who's MORE MACHINE NOW THAN…um…dragon…TWISTED AND…well, she was always evil, she's a green dragon.
But hey, that's enough about space dragons (can there ever be enough about space dragons?), let's move on to Pathfinder. There are quite a few sourcebooks coming down the pipe that look exciiiting, from both a player's and a GM's perspective, and we've got enough space to highlight two.
It might not be news to you folks, but it is news to us here at the Roundup, so let's give a hearty welcome to the up-and-coming Pathfinder Player Companion: Merchant's Manifest! The Golarion campaign setting is littered with cities that bleed commerce, and this book puts the spotlight on all of them. First and foremost is the in-depth look at 17 prominent trading hubs including Cassomir, Port Ice, Anuli, Kibew, Ular, Kel, Goka, and Ordu-Aganhei. What's also nice is the inclusion of trinkets, magic items, mundane items, and so on that really channel the flavor of their cities of origin. A Pathfinder Player Companion wouldn't be complete without some character options, and this book offers new options for players who want to get their merchant prince on.
Last but not least is a book hot off the presses and packed with flavorful taverns to add spice to your party's downtime. Inner Sea Taverns is here to give your favorite hole-in-the-wall the layer of grime it needs. You want bar games? This book has bar games. You want wanted posters? This book has wanted posters. You want bar fights? THIS BOOK HAS BAR FIGHTS.
And that about does it for this edition of the PAIZO NEWS ROUNDUP! Which book are you looking forward to the most?
contributed by Ben Reece
