Chris Perkins now Senior Producer, D&D RPG

[JeffB]

Point is: if you are looking for the "story driven content" that Paizo is praised for - then you need to read the story driven products -- which is what their Adventure Paths are.

I think its just confusion of terminology- when I hear people say "PF is great at "story"- I'm talking fluff- not just in APS, but in their world/setting products. But if the Osirion book (thx for the reminder) is supposed to support the AP why would it be "less good" than the AP itself, from a "good story" (or "good fluff") standpoint? And why not the standalone adventures, or the Golarion CS book either? I suspect that regardless of whether it's a support product with "fluff", a stand-alone module, the CS, or the AP itself, Paizo is putting out the same quality and type of writing. Maybe not, but that would be kind of stupid to write awesome APs, and then mediocre support products and standalones.

I'm curious though. How could you know that "you don't like Adventure Paths" if you haven't read one?

I have experienced APs through the first two 3.x versions in Dungeon Magazine (and 4E's scales of war) - it's not an adventure format I like, regardless of who publishes it or system (as I explained in my first post)

At any rate, Paizos "style" is not to my tastes (despite all the claims I hear to the contrary about them being better at storylines/fluff), and my point was I'd hate to see WOTC go that way. I'm not sure why thats so hard to understand.

 

[Steel_Wind]

I think its just confusion of terminology- when I hear people say "PF is great at "story"-

I think that's fair. The entire name "Pathfinder" was settled upon by Paizo to evoke and key off of their Adventure Paths published in Dungeon.

Later, the world setting created to support those APs took the same name. And later still, the RPG they released also used the name. So... yeah... the terminology might confuse, depending upon whose post you are reading or recalling.

I have experienced APs through the first two 3.x versions in Dungeon Magazine (and 4E's scales of war) - it's not an adventure format I like, regardless of who publishes it or system (as I explained in my first post)

Well, I can see your point of view. I never like Shackled City much, and while I did enjoy Age of Worms, the format of that AP led to a very significant, nay, relentless amount of combat by reason of the whole intention of taking a character from first to 20th.

But Paizo has done a LOT of these APs now. They did three in Dungeon, and are on their sixth AP currently under the Pathfinder brand (4 as OGL products, with two more statted under the PFRPG rules). The seventh is set to premiere at Gencon.

Paizo has vastly more experience at this than anybody else, and with that experience they have improved and refined their AP concept with each successive interation. Since the Dungeon APs, they have since backed off of the 1st through 20th level concept. Their APs now go to about 13th level only (in the main). The structure has also become more free-form in parts. Indeed, the current AP, Kingmaker, is designed more as a great sandbox with some external events and story influence, an far less as a tightly controlled railroad to Awesome Town.

My point: perhaps your impressions were formed concerning certain aspects of an AP that you dont like - without taking into account that the product lines have changed greatly as a result over the past six+ years since SCAP was first published?

At any rate, Paizos "style" is not to my tastes (despite all the claims I hear to the contrary about them being better at storylines/fluff), and my point was I'd hate to see WOTC go that way. I'm not sure why thats so hard to understand.

Perhaps that was because your "first post" didn't say that and was less declaratory -- and more seemingly inquisitive on the surface -- than the above statement you have just made lead me to believe?

 

[Jools]

Have any of you guys checked out Wizard's newest adventure "The Slaying Stone"? Its absolutely excellent. I was very disatisfied with all their previous modules but if this is the new format from now on I will be very happy indeed.

 

[ourchair]

I've always liked Chris Perkins. But to be honest, the longer he has been at WotC, the further removed he's become from the things I enjoyed of his the most: his adventure writing.

Lots of designers and devs have come and gone at TSR and WotC over the years. But in terms of a prime timer who can design an adventure and tell a geat story along side the very best in the business? Chris Perkins is that man. And to be honest -- there aren't many of those guys left at WotC. They bulked up on crunchy guys over the years, but the adventure writers? They left; of course, many of them gravitated to Paizo or became freelancers.

"Chris Perkins, Producer" obviously has other "people" and organizational skills that have lead to his steady promotion within WotC over the years. Good for him.

But I still miss reading the work of "Chris Perkins, gamer."

I came to D&D late in my adulthood, despite knowing most of the rules from the SSI Gold Box games and the Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures program and I just want to know...

Which adventures has Chris Perkins written? Is there somehow a complete bibliography somewhere (2E, 3E, 3.5E, 4E, I don't care) ? I really enjoy watching his adventure design and have even taken away a few lessons from his video sessions: Being Gentle for Other People’s First Time « My Girlfriend is a DM

I'd love to look at his written material and cannibalize it for my own adventures.

 

[coyote6]

I think he wrote a bunch of adventures for Dungeon magazine; he was also editor-in-chief for Dungeon for a while.

His credits are here.

 

[Nagol]

I came to D&D late in my adulthood, despite knowing most of the rules from the SSI Gold Box games and the Forgotten Realms: Unlimited Adventures program and I just want to know...

Which adventures has Chris Perkins written? Is there somehow a complete bibliography somewhere (2E, 3E, 3.5E, 4E, I don't care) ? I really enjoy watching his adventure design and have even taken away a few lessons from his video sessions: Being Gentle for Other People’s First Time « My Girlfriend is a DM

I'd love to look at his written material and cannibalize it for my own adventures.

http://pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=420

and

Ptolus (Ptolus)
Inaugural Celebrity Pro/Am Crawl Module & GM Screen (Xcrawl)
Mega-City One's Most Wanted (Judge Dredd)
Legions of Hell (d20 System (generic))
Sherpa (Sherpa)
Terror in Freeport (Freeport)
A Matter of Family (M&M Superlink)
Shackled City Adventure Path, The (Dungeons & Dragons)
Slayer's Guide to Undead, The (Slayer's Guides)
GURPS Martial Arts Adventures (GURPS)
Freeport: The City of Adventure (Freeport)
Tunnels & Trolls Rule Book (UK edition) (Tunnels & Trolls)
Nocturnals: A Midnight Companion (Mutants & Masterminds)
Bow & Blade: A Guidebook to Wood Elves (d20 System (generic))
Caprice Book Two: Liberati Sourcebook (Heavy Gear)
Jade Dragons & Hungry Ghosts (d20 System (generic))

(which were listed under an unassigned Chris Perkins in the same source)

 

[Stormonu]

Have any of you guys checked out Wizard's newest adventure "The Slaying Stone"? Its absolutely excellent. I was very disatisfied with all their previous modules but if this is the new format from now on I will be very happy indeed.

I'm in the middle of Slaying Stone. At first blush, it seemed good - non-linear plot, a decent storyline, some extended skill challenges that looked like it was going to make it a lot of fun.

However, now that I'm actually in the middle of it, it's pretty bad; it's hard to make heads or tails out of where you are in the adventure (bad organization), there's several missing details (such as where are the details on the Locate Slaying Stone ritual) and it's still fight, fight, fight.

 

[ourchair]

Christopher Perkins :: Pen & Paper RPG Database

and

Ptolus (Ptolus)
Inaugural Celebrity Pro/Am Crawl Module & GM Screen (Xcrawl)
Mega-City One's Most Wanted (Judge Dredd)
Legions of Hell (d20 System (generic))
Sherpa (Sherpa)
Terror in Freeport (Freeport)
A Matter of Family (M&M Superlink)
Shackled City Adventure Path, The (Dungeons & Dragons)
Slayer's Guide to Undead, The (Slayer's Guides)
GURPS Martial Arts Adventures (GURPS)
Freeport: The City of Adventure (Freeport)
Tunnels & Trolls Rule Book (UK edition) (Tunnels & Trolls)
Nocturnals: A Midnight Companion (Mutants & Masterminds)
Bow & Blade: A Guidebook to Wood Elves (d20 System (generic))
Caprice Book Two: Liberati Sourcebook (Heavy Gear)
Jade Dragons & Hungry Ghosts (d20 System (generic))

(which were listed under an unassigned Chris Perkins in the same source)

So technically his adventure design credits (outside of 'design manager' and other supervisory positions) outside of Dungeon magazine are actually pretty limited?

I understand he started out as a Dungeon contributor and contributing editor when he was younger.

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

So technically his adventure design credits (outside of 'design manager' and other supervisory positions) outside of Dungeon magazine are actually pretty limited?

You make it sound like adventures published in Dungeon magazine are somehow not a big deal worth counting.

 

[P1NBACK]

However, now that I'm actually in the middle of it, it's pretty bad; it's hard to make heads or tails out of where you are in the adventure (bad organization), there's several missing details (such as where are the details on the Locate Slaying Stone ritual) and it's still fight, fight, fight.

I'm confused. Do you mean, "it's one fight after another with no roleplaying between" or do you mean, "it's got lots of fights in it"?

Because, if it's the former. Good to know.

If it's the latter, isn't this what D&D is about?