JonathanBolding
First Post
Later this year Paizo will release the NPC Codex for the Pathfinder RPG. I spoke with Jason Bulmahn, Lead Designer on Pathfinder, to get the details.
Sometimes you see an RPG supplement with a name so self-explanatory that you think there's not much more to it than a name. Yeah, we all know what's in the Bestiary or the Monster Manual. We get what the Game Master's Guide is. NPC Codex is a pretty straight forward name, and so I asked Jason: Does it do precisely what it says on the tin? He said: Yes.
And hey, it looks like that's going to be a good thing.
"Now that we have a significant catalog of books with a plethora of options for people to play with, we find that the reliance on the old materials has dwindled a bit" Jason told me. So the natural decision is to diversify the line. Paizo has been putting out a Bestiary every fall since the game's inception - and so in late 2011 the idea of doing something different was raised. "We were like, you know, we could probably risk taking a break," said Jason with plenty of sarcasm in his voice. "Three bestiaries is a lot." Jason said the decision to do NPC Codex was that simple: it was about giving Game Masters "something they don't expect."
A keen observer could have seen it coming. "One of the key resources that every GM needs is NPCs, and while frequently they can hand wave that away, when it comes time to draw swords and roll initiative they need statistics, and frequently generating an entire NPC from scratch can be a bit of a pain." There are tricks, he said, to using the system and generating fast NPCs, but one wouldn't want to generate all of one's own monsters either. So the NPC Codex fits into Paizo publishing's fall slot. It's what Jason called "a big, meaty tool book for Game Masters."
Filling a Niche
I asked Jason if, at its heart, the book was a addressing a weakness to the Pathfinder system. The need, after all, to consistently put a lot of time into NPC statistic generation was a deterrent to using NPCs in your campaign. Jason told me that "It's really designed to fill a niche that helps shorten a GM's prep time." But that wasn't all they had in mind while designing - there's a lot of room for NPC Codex to help Game Masters improvise.
He used a comparison to monsters in Pathfinder. "Yes, you could design all of your own monsters and fit a lot of custom and unique flavor in there. It's a lot easier just to pull a troll out of the bestiary." That helps, as well, with everyone's verisimilitude, and verisimilitude is one of the key tenets of design for the Pathfinder game. He noted that NPCs don't necessarily need or want that type of verisimilitude - not every Rogue is the same - but that there was still a burden on creation of statistics. "Let's be frank," he said, "Pathfinder is a complicated game ... and there are shortcuts. Now one of the shortcuts you might take is the NPC Codex."
So what's in this thing, anyways?
The book will include hundreds of stat blocks for Pathfinder NPCs. It will include all of the Pathfinder core classes up to 20th level, all of the NPC classes up to 10th level, and a selection of stat blocks for each of the ten prestige classes. The great thing about these blocks is that they will all be equipped with NPC level treasure - which in Pathfinder parlance means they're particularly encounter ready. Some of those stat blocks will include little sketches and suggestions of personalities for times when the PCs really catch you unprepared. The book will also include a selection of stat blocks for the Pathfinder iconic characters equipped as player characters. It's a smart move, because it means that someone could come to your table without a character and have one within minutes. It's a feature that will also make it easy for a group to play a one or two session game of Pathfinder on the fly. Those stat blocks will also be legal for Pathfinder Society games. About three quarters, Jason said, of the blocks have illustrations - and I don't think anyone would expect less from a Paizo book.
There will also be a variety of pre-compiled encounters in the book to aid GMs in improvising. Jason said that sometimes "the PCs decide that 'hey, that forest looks interesting' and the GM looks at his notes and the forest is just a squiggly line on a map that says FOREST OF BANDITS." Now, however, the GM could simply look to the thieves' guild entry in the back of the book for solutions. It's all part of easing improvisation for either the veteran or inexperienced GM - which I wholeheartedly support for more complex systems like Pathfinder.
Overall it looks like NPC Codex will not only be filling an interesting niche for Pathfinder, but providing something new for Game Masters at the Pathfinder table. NPC Codex will be available some time at the beginning of December. It does what it says on the tin, people, and don't you forget it.
The Future
Jason and I wrapped up our conversation talking about some new things in store for Pathfinder into next year, including the fabulous sounding Ultimate Campaign and Mythic Adventurers. Mythic Adventurers rules will be going into beta in the coming months, so expect that announcement soon.
Folks is a column on ENworld where we speak to people who make the games industry tick.
Sometimes you see an RPG supplement with a name so self-explanatory that you think there's not much more to it than a name. Yeah, we all know what's in the Bestiary or the Monster Manual. We get what the Game Master's Guide is. NPC Codex is a pretty straight forward name, and so I asked Jason: Does it do precisely what it says on the tin? He said: Yes.
And hey, it looks like that's going to be a good thing.
"Now that we have a significant catalog of books with a plethora of options for people to play with, we find that the reliance on the old materials has dwindled a bit" Jason told me. So the natural decision is to diversify the line. Paizo has been putting out a Bestiary every fall since the game's inception - and so in late 2011 the idea of doing something different was raised. "We were like, you know, we could probably risk taking a break," said Jason with plenty of sarcasm in his voice. "Three bestiaries is a lot." Jason said the decision to do NPC Codex was that simple: it was about giving Game Masters "something they don't expect."
A keen observer could have seen it coming. "One of the key resources that every GM needs is NPCs, and while frequently they can hand wave that away, when it comes time to draw swords and roll initiative they need statistics, and frequently generating an entire NPC from scratch can be a bit of a pain." There are tricks, he said, to using the system and generating fast NPCs, but one wouldn't want to generate all of one's own monsters either. So the NPC Codex fits into Paizo publishing's fall slot. It's what Jason called "a big, meaty tool book for Game Masters."
Filling a Niche
I asked Jason if, at its heart, the book was a addressing a weakness to the Pathfinder system. The need, after all, to consistently put a lot of time into NPC statistic generation was a deterrent to using NPCs in your campaign. Jason told me that "It's really designed to fill a niche that helps shorten a GM's prep time." But that wasn't all they had in mind while designing - there's a lot of room for NPC Codex to help Game Masters improvise.
He used a comparison to monsters in Pathfinder. "Yes, you could design all of your own monsters and fit a lot of custom and unique flavor in there. It's a lot easier just to pull a troll out of the bestiary." That helps, as well, with everyone's verisimilitude, and verisimilitude is one of the key tenets of design for the Pathfinder game. He noted that NPCs don't necessarily need or want that type of verisimilitude - not every Rogue is the same - but that there was still a burden on creation of statistics. "Let's be frank," he said, "Pathfinder is a complicated game ... and there are shortcuts. Now one of the shortcuts you might take is the NPC Codex."
So what's in this thing, anyways?
The book will include hundreds of stat blocks for Pathfinder NPCs. It will include all of the Pathfinder core classes up to 20th level, all of the NPC classes up to 10th level, and a selection of stat blocks for each of the ten prestige classes. The great thing about these blocks is that they will all be equipped with NPC level treasure - which in Pathfinder parlance means they're particularly encounter ready. Some of those stat blocks will include little sketches and suggestions of personalities for times when the PCs really catch you unprepared. The book will also include a selection of stat blocks for the Pathfinder iconic characters equipped as player characters. It's a smart move, because it means that someone could come to your table without a character and have one within minutes. It's a feature that will also make it easy for a group to play a one or two session game of Pathfinder on the fly. Those stat blocks will also be legal for Pathfinder Society games. About three quarters, Jason said, of the blocks have illustrations - and I don't think anyone would expect less from a Paizo book.
There will also be a variety of pre-compiled encounters in the book to aid GMs in improvising. Jason said that sometimes "the PCs decide that 'hey, that forest looks interesting' and the GM looks at his notes and the forest is just a squiggly line on a map that says FOREST OF BANDITS." Now, however, the GM could simply look to the thieves' guild entry in the back of the book for solutions. It's all part of easing improvisation for either the veteran or inexperienced GM - which I wholeheartedly support for more complex systems like Pathfinder.
Overall it looks like NPC Codex will not only be filling an interesting niche for Pathfinder, but providing something new for Game Masters at the Pathfinder table. NPC Codex will be available some time at the beginning of December. It does what it says on the tin, people, and don't you forget it.
The Future
Jason and I wrapped up our conversation talking about some new things in store for Pathfinder into next year, including the fabulous sounding Ultimate Campaign and Mythic Adventurers. Mythic Adventurers rules will be going into beta in the coming months, so expect that announcement soon.
Folks is a column on ENworld where we speak to people who make the games industry tick.
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