Pathfinder 2E Launches Playtest for Daredevil and Slayer Classes

Paizo has launched a new playtest for two new classes for Pathfinder 2E - the Daredevil and Slayer classes. After revealing the playtest last week on Paizo Live, the RPG company officially launched the playtest for the two new classes on its website today. Both classes have their roots in Pathfinder 1E - the Slayer was a class in the original Pathfinder edition while the Daredevil was a Bard archetype.

The Daredevil uses Adrenaline (a resource generated by taking actions with the Risky trait) to power various abilities. However, adrenaline only lasts for one round, so a player needs to continuously take Risky actions to keep their Adrenaline flowing.

Meanwhile, the Slayer takes trophies from fallen foes and uses them to reinforce weapons. Slayers choose Quarries and can spend a reaction to take an addition action while close to their Quarry, as long as the action has the Relentless trait.

Both classes will be featured in Pathfinder's summer 2027 book. This summer's Pathfinder rulebook will feature the Necromancer and Runesmith as new classes.

The Risks and Reward Playtests runs from now through April 10th.

 

[Justice and Rule]

I miss peak Paizo, when their whole business model was adventures/settings for 3.5. I have no doubt that they are far more profitable now, but imo something special was lost.

Was it really? I mean, the entire Companion line was mostly about more character options.

 

[Incenjucar]

Paizo is pretty clearly churning out classes that have no conceptual niche, but instead exist only to create mechanical differentiation (read: sell more books). Which is fine, and no shade if that's your thing, but it sure as heck ain't mine.

I miss peak Paizo, when their whole business model was adventures/settings for 3.5. I have no doubt that they are far more profitable now, but imo something special was lost.

A rather subjective thing. Daredevil is clearly based heavily on action comedy and non-magical brawling that fits a variety of non-assassin improv-based heroes. Slayer is pretty bluntly about gaining power from your fallen foes, though outside of games this tends to be a theme for creepy antagonist bounty hunters.

Before that you have necromancers who actually use waves of undead constantly instead if mostly being a caster, runesmith is basically an enchanter warrior themed after myth and a reccuring concept in fiction. Exemplar is a build-a-demigod with an unsubtle reference to a popular myth and film. Animist speaks with an ever-changing hodgepodge of spirits - I was writing about a character who did that twenty years ago. Guardian is a classic true meatwall, commader is the warlord PF style.


I would certainly prefer something a bit more wild like the the kineticist, but on the other hand the newest classes blend very easily with existing features in a way a gonzo class may not.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Pathfinder 2E is nowhere near as balanced as 4E, it just has a ton of options, it just balances out the top options and has enough options that you still have enough good options to choose from.

But you can still have feat choices of "Talk to cows" at the same level as "turn a d6 bite attack to a d8 that can grab so you can use a two-handed weapon while grappling".

Though i still say most of those tend to be segregated out into skill feats and class feats respectively. I've rarely seen a class feat that actually looked weak just some that only worked well with certain specific build support,

I'm not going to say there's none but I hadn't hit many of them at least; maybe its an issue of specific classes.

 

[Incenjucar]

Though i still say most of those tend to be segregated out into skill feats and class feats respectively. I've rarely seen a class feat that actually looked weak just some that only worked well with certain specific build support,

I'm not going to say there's none but I hadn't hit many of them at least; maybe its an issue of specific classes.

Everything is viable but there is still room for game mastery at the edges. Wand of Tailwind is considered a requirement for some tables, a ton of magic items and consumables never scale their DCs unless you have a certain class or archetype feats, etc. which are sometimes worth it and sometimes a huge waste. Very very good game with pretty decent balance but lock step it is not.