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General RPG Rules Discussion[WAS CALLED "Pathfinder/OGL/D20 GAMES"] Discuss the rules of Pathfinder, d20 Modern and any other game except D&D, such as Arcana Evolved, Mutants & Masterminds, Star Wars Saga, and the like.
One thing that I notice looking at the Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting sourcebook is that it seems to be a gamer's world. By this, I mean it has a lot of elements you would expect to see in the Realms or Greyhawk.
First of all, the lands are varied and earthlike, so you have your Realms analogy. Then some of the lands seem to have classic D&D modules in mind (i.e. Ravenloft, Pharoah, City of the Gods, etc.). I really feel like I could adapt materials from any number of sources to this world.
I just wanted to say kudos to Paizo for keeping the long-term gamers in mind while still providing a fun new world that is fresh and vibrant.
You know, i donīt have a horse in this race, but... isnīt "contains references to the Realms, to Greyhawk, to classic modules" pretty much the counterpoint to "fresh"?
Just saying.
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You know, i donīt have a horse in this race, but... isnīt "contains references to the Realms, to Greyhawk, to classic modules" pretty much the counterpoint to "fresh"?
Just saying.
Heh, Good point.
But I honestly think they have achieved a really great synergy of the classic elements with just little twists to give it a new take. First and foremost, it is a lot the same. That is what the great majority of PF fans want, more of the stuff they have already been enjoying.
But they have tons of cool little changes that make it a fresh feel on exactly the classic stuff. It is like the end product is very much the same, but the path getting there is a little different.
For example, dwarves were a completely subterrainian race until a few thousand years before "today". They tunneled up following a prophecy of sky and in doing that drove orcs to the surface before them. And now that they have been on the surface, spreading out, for a long time, they are dying out. That back story could be placed on just about nay setting you wanted. It fits the preconceived notions of dwarves and their relationship to the rest of the world, deep mines and ancient wars with orcs. But it also enhances interactions with other races. It would be pretty easy, for example, to assume that a lot of elves are still ticked at the dwarves about the whole orcs thing. Classic, yeah. But fresh.
They have good mechanics people at Paizo. But story is their wheelhouse. That is where they really are the powerhouse of the industry.
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The combat system should be based on the world design. The world design should not be based on the combat system.
My 4 year ties a towel to her shoulders and pretends to be a superhero. Roleplaying is not between the covers of a book.
As an extension of that, if you tell me that any game is the same just because you roleplay the same, then as far as I am concerned, you don't get the point.
I think this sums up my feelings on things. Yes, many elements are classic in nature, but at the same time, Paizo puts a nice fresh spin on things.
For example, their halflings definitely have some hobbit inspiration. Yet when I look at their iconic halfling bard, he seems fresh and new. Their presentation of goblins and kobolds has also been refreshing. They're more than cannon fodder now. They're freaky fearsome!
So Golarion seems familiar to me, evoking a sense of nostalgia and like I can use any of my classic modules there. Yet, it puts a nice, fresh spin on things. It's a formula for success.
Totally agreed. By and large, Golarion is a classic fantasy world. The devil's in the details though, as far as the originality and freshness of the world are concerned. This tweak on that race, this take on an old fantasy meme. Little things that make the whole inspiring and vibrant.
Totally agreed. By and large, Golarion is a classic fantasy world. The devil's in the details though, as far as the originality and freshness of the world are concerned. This tweak on that race, this take on an old fantasy meme. Little things that make the whole inspiring and vibrant.
Yep. Every story has already been told, 100's if not 1,000's of times. Even Star Wars, all that changes is the characters and the specifics of the situations.
Golarion takes a good bit of old and throws in cool new characters and specifics, making it feel like a fresh, new, vibrant world. I put this past even Dawnforge for fresh newness.
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Kick butt adventures are always to be found from Paizo/Necromancer and Goodman Games.
Castles and Crusades is my fantasy game of choice.
With no more Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Wilderlands of High Fantasy, KoK, etc, there are no more general fantasy settings. To make Paizo's setting general was a Harrowing stroke of brilliance. The introduction says that it is suppose to feel familiar while still being new and fresh.
I feel they have accomplished this.
(Remember, sizable portions of this world is based on Jacobs' homebrew he started back in the early-mid 80's so its going to be influenced by ... well... D&D's classic historical settings.)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmccoy1693
With no more Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Wilderlands of High Fantasy, KoK, etc, there are no more general fantasy settings.
No more? Where did they go? Last I checked, all my Greyhawk and FR books and boxed sets were still on my shelf. I can drop players into those worlds any time I choose.
Granted they aren't supported anymore but that wouldn't stop me from finding more material on ebay for example.
When I first heard about that Paizo was creating their own generic fantasy setting, I was surprised. It didn't strike me as something that was "needed". It seems like it's been well-received so far but I wonder how much people are going to buy into the setting. Paizo seems to be releasing things at a break-neck pace.
To me, Eberron was fresh. Pathfinder, while good and I will be using it for a new game I am starting, is the same old same old.
I see Eberron as an interesting setting, but it doesn't seem that the DM can really do much with it. At least with Golarion there are enough different types of areas that I feel I can do my own thing.
You know, i donīt have a horse in this race, but... isnīt "contains references to the Realms, to Greyhawk, to classic modules" pretty much the counterpoint to "fresh"?
Just saying.
Maybe it's fresh in that it is moving past the deconstructing phase that Eberron was representing. Golarion is distilling the essence of many classical settings into one, and I think that it's needed now more than ever.
It seems like it's been well-received so far but I wonder how much people are going to buy into the setting. Paizo seems to be releasing things at a break-neck pace.
I am liking Golarion. It some how captured my youth and sold it to me.
When I look at it I remember reading about TSR's Greyhawk for the first time. Later I remember taking little stickers, labeling them with module ititials, and then putting them on the maps where the modules were. I remember searching the map for out of the way spots and rereading Greyhawk to find what was said or not said.
Golarion and Pathfinder APs have made me hungry! They wet my gaming appetite and it'll only slatted when I am running Pathfinder Society adventures and converting a whole new generation to the glory that is gaming.
Praise Paizo.
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When I look at it I remember reading about TSR's Greyhawk for the first time. Later I remember taking little stickers, labeling them with module ititials, and then putting them on the maps where the modules were.
Funnily enough, Paizo themselves did that for their own modules too, right in the hardback Campaign Setting. Page 244-245.
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This thread has piqued my interest. Is it edition neutral? i.e. could I use it with say C&C ,or 4E , or is there alot of PF/3.x crunch in the book? I've no use for the PF RPG or any PF/3.x materials, but this sounds like a good setting for my tastes.
__________________ "Maybe I'm just getting too old to want to have to deal with a heap o' rules and the steaming heap o' rules lawyers who go with them."-Gary Gygax
"D&D was meant to be a free-wheeling game, only loosely bound by the parameters of the rules." Tim Kask, Foreword, Eldritch Wizardry 1976
This thread has piqued my interest. Is it edition neutral? i.e. could I use it with say C&C ,or 4E , or is there alot of PF/3.x crunch in the book? I've no use for the PF RPG or any PF/3.x materials, but this sounds like a good setting for my tastes.
There's only a little bit of crunch - mainly prestige classes and equipment. You'll find 90% of it usable, at least, I think.
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This thread has piqued my interest. Is it edition neutral? i.e. could I use it with say C&C ,or 4E , or is there alot of PF/3.x crunch in the book? I've no use for the PF RPG or any PF/3.x materials, but this sounds like a good setting for my tastes.
Maybe it's fresh in that it is moving past the deconstructing phase that Eberron was representing. Golarion is distilling the essence of many classical settings into one, and I think that it's needed now more than ever.
See, and i believe that distilling the core of different settings into one is the least interesting thing one can do. Because every of those settings has something that makes it unique, and shucking it together is just... beyond weird. But if it works in Golarion, more power to you (or Paizo, in this case).
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