Paizo Ends Pathfinder Adventure Path Softcovers, Switching to Quarterly Model

Paizo is ending its line of monthly Pathfinder Adventure Paths, with a new quarterly hardcover replacing the long-running product. Paizo announced the change yesterday on its blog, with the shift beginning next year. The new hardcover Adventure Paths will be a minimum of 256 pages and will have a retail price of $79.99, which is cheaper than the cost of purchasing four softcover adventure paths. Paizo also stated that they'll release one Adventure Path starting at Level 1, another ending at Level 20, with the remaining two falling somewhere in between. Each Adventure Path will cover 9-10 levels of play.

The first two Adventure Paths announced for this format are Hellbreakers and Hell's Destiny, which both cover the upcoming war between Andoran and Cheliax.

The Pathfinder Adventure Paths series started as an evolution of Paizo's monthly Pathfinder magazine series. To date, Paizo has released 222 Pathfinder Adventure Paths. Early Pathfinder Adventure Paths were for campaigns that lasted six issues and typically encompassed Level 1-Level 20 play. However, more recently, the Adventure Path structure has shortened and grown more flexible, with shorter length campaigns with more variable levels of play.

 

[AlwaysMerlin]

I like this change. It has me considering renewing my subscription for the adventure paths.

It’s cheaper to buy the books from an online store with a discount+free shipping but getting the PDF and paying for shipping once makes that a wash.

I also prefer a single book that should have less story issues that need fixed while running the game.

 

[darrenkitlor]

I am pretty sure the monthlies are $30 currently, so you are saving $10.

Yes, mothlies are 30. An adventure path is 3-6 of those, so it was 90-180 previously.

I think this change is better for shops. A bunch of irregular order APs inevitably take up too much space. That’s why the LCG format moved away from smaller, piecemeal expansions to larger formats.

 

[Retreater]

Hmmm. I'm struggling to find something negative to say about this change - and that's something coming from me.

 

[Eyes of Nine]

This will reduce the "excitement" for a new release every month, so instead the hype cycle will need to be deeper and broader for the quarterly release. Whether this will result in greater net profits in the short and long term remains to be seen...

What I'm wondering is whether the single quarterly adventure will still be written by different people across spans like the AP volumes were (at least in the older days)? I did not like it, as there was often a different emphasis in what was important when different creators/designers were writing the different volumes. So I hope these single volumes will also be written by a single person

 

[TheSword]

I got most of the hardcover compilations Paizo released, Shattered City, Crimson Throne, Runelords, Kingmaker. They are much easier to run through than juggling multiple different books and remembering which NPC or Item was detailed in book 3 or 4.

Every AP that I ever ran or played in (about a dozen full APs in all and read a similar number) had at least one dud chapter though. We would usually skip it out of the AP and go in to the end a bit under-levelled which actually improved the experience. The disadvantage of the new structure is that you have to buy them all. That said, I was buying it anyway to find out I don’t want to run it. So there is very little difference.

My hope with the new structure is that they become a little less dungeon-heavy and increase the proportion of event/faction/pc goal opportunities. As they do tend to be a little formulaic. Some broke the mold but not many.

 

[GreyLord]

I got most of the hardcover compilations Paizo released, Shattered City, Crimson Throne, Runelords, Kingmaker. They are much easier to run through than juggling multiple different books and remembering which NPC or Item was detailed in book 3 or 4.

Every AP that I ever ran or played in (about a dozen full APs in all and read a similar number) had at least one dud chapter though. We would usually skip it out of the AP and go in to the end a bit under-levelled which actually improved the experience. The disadvantage of the new structure is that you have to buy them all. That said, I was buying it anyway to find out I don’t want to run it. So there is very little difference.

My hope with the new structure is that they become a little less dungeon-heavy and increase the proportion of event/faction/pc goal opportunities. As they do tend to be a little formulaic. Some broke the mold but not many.

I don't think I ever heard of Shattered City.

I thought I had all the Hardback AP groups, including one mini-AP (Crown of the Kobold King hardback). (ah yes, can't forget abomination vaults hardcover either, haven't gotten gatekeepers though).

I even have Shackled City (the 3.X conglomeration of Dungeon Adventures that was published in Hardback, wish they had done the same with the other two [ex: Age of Worms] as they did with that one).

I even have the Starfinder AP Hardback that they collected together and sort of expanded.

Not sure how I missed Shattered City. I did a google search and can't even find it.

 

[GreyLord]

Question on the new Hardback APs if anyone knows. Are they going to continue the numbering of them, or are they discontinuing numbering them, or are they restarting over at 1?

Edit: Found the answer to my own question. The Spines will no longer be numbered, but internally and on the PDF's it still will have a number identifier that will continue in the same numbering as those before it (so, no number officially, but it will be numbered in the PF format on the PDF and internally).

 

[Starmaster]

Here's the current real cost of the monthly periodical (physical + digital copies) for me. It will vary for others due to differing discounts, taxes, and shipping. I've been an Adventure Path subscriber since issue 49. The current regular price of the magazine is $29.99, but I got a 30% discount for subscribing back in the day and that discount has carried through to the present. I don't know what discounts, if any, are offered for new subscriptions. I'm billed for each individual issue just before the issue ships.

$20.99 (magazine) + $1.47 (7% sales tax) + $4.78 (shipping in a stiff cardstock envelope) = $27.24 Total.

This is for a physical copy of the magazine plus a free PDF copy. The PDF sold separately would retail for $19.99 but it is free with the subscription.

 

[Reynard]

This will reduce the "excitement" for a new release every month, so instead the hype cycle will need to be deeper and broader for the quarterly release. Whether this will result in greater net profits in the short and long term remains to be seen...

Is monthly hype a thing for the adventure paths? I thought sales were mostly subscriptions, so the hype is more around the AP as a whole.

What I'm wondering is whether the single quarterly adventure will still be written by different people across spans like the AP volumes were (at least in the older days)? I did not like it, as there was often a different emphasis in what was important when different creators/designers were writing the different volumes. So I hope these single volumes will also be written by a single person

It could still be a team but also improve because they can make the 3 chapters more cohesive, developing them simultaneously as opposed to staggered.

 

[BigZebra]

I don't think I ever heard of Shattered City.

I thought I had all the Hardback AP groups, including one mini-AP (Crown of the Kobold King hardback). (ah yes, can't forget abomination vaults hardcover either, haven't gotten gatekeepers though).

I even have Shackled City (the 3.X conglomeration of Dungeon Adventures that was published in Hardback, wish they had done the same with the other two [ex: Age of Worms] as they did with that one).

I even have the Starfinder AP Hardback that they collected together and sort of expanded.

Not sure how I missed Shattered City. I did a google search and can't even find it.

I think perhaps he meant Shackled City - which Paizo did during their Dragon/Dungeon-run. It was released as a hard cover in like....oh I think 2003.