Pathfinder 1E Pathfinder Advanced Player's Guide Preview

[ffanxii4ever]

Hmm, this looks pretty interesting, if a bit of a mixed bag. 126 feats is an awful lot to winnow out the gems from the stinkers. Ironguts seems more of a fluff feat (Great Fortitude could do the same thing- given the same name).

More feats, more fun! Plus, it isn't like WotC ever published a lot of feats for DnD 3.x, now did they?

The weapon blanch seems like a noteworthy addition, certainly something an alchemist could make and a good way to get around the magical item golf bag problem without having a separate spell for each damage reduction (like they did in 3.5). I'm just wondering about the cost and the duration of it.

No idea about the cost, but the duration is mentioned right in the weapon blanch description:

Weapon Blanch (adamantine, cold iron, or silver): These alchemical powders have a gritty consistency. When poured on a weapon and placed over a hot flame for a full round, they melt and form a temporary coating on the weapon. The blanching gives the weapon the ability to bypass one kind of material based damage reduction, depending on its type. The blanching remains effective until the weapon makes a successful attack. Each dose of blanching can coat one weapon or up to 10 pieces of ammunition. Only one type of blanch can be used on a weapon at one time, although if the weapon is made of a special material, that material still applies.

So it is a bit like a paladin's extra damage while smiting an evil outsider, an evil dragon, or an evil undead; it lasts for the first successful attack.

57 pages worth of spells I'm also circumspect about. More variables to watch out for in already powerful classes.

True enough, but you can't also discount that a good number of those spells will most likely be for the new classes? Not saying that the Clerics, Druids, Sorcerers, and Wizards aren't getting anything new to play with, I mean there are ten new bloodlines, four new schools of magic, and a metric ton of new subdomains, but still. See above comment regarding feats.

The magical items sound fun. I'm wondering what soul soap does (is that like a lesser restoration in soap form?). A party could actually get some use out of that cursed ring of truth. First, if you have an Inquisitor wanting to ask a captive some questions, well, just slip it on his finger. If you have a less that truthful PC rogue who secretly stiffs the party on treasure, do the same thing.

I gotta agree with you completely on this; new, unique magic items are always alot of fun.

 

[IronWolf]

More feats, more fun! Plus, it isn't like WotC ever published a lot of feats for DnD 3.x, now did they?

Well, there is some debate about that:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/284786-reducing-options-increase-fun.html

I still have high hopes for the APG and anxiously await its release.

 

[Shisumo]

More feats, more fun!

For comparison purposes, the PF Core has 180 feats, give or take a couple. So we're talking about roughly 2/3 what the original book has to offer.

 

[IronWolf]

For comparison purposes, the PF Core has 180 feats, give or take a couple. So we're talking about roughly 2/3 what the original book has to offer.

More like 9/10 (if there are 180-ish Core rulebook feats). There are 163 feats in the APG.

 

[Kaisoku]

There's also 6 new base classes, and 8 new prestige classes (14 total classes, compared to the 21 classes in core).
That's without taking into account over a hundred new archetypes (which amount to replacing many of the PrCs from the past WotC books).
That's a lot of character concepts and class abilities that deserve support from feats and spells (how many feats are teamwork feats, for example, or elemental spells).

This is a book to upgrade every class in the game. Imagine combining all of the Complete Series into one book. Even with simpler and streamlined mechanics (archetypes), it'll take a lot of crunch to cover all the roles and themes when it comes to feats and spells. I mean, it almost seems like you'll be able to play most character builds from 3.5e with this one book (barring really strange stuff like the Alienist).

It just seems like it's going to be a really big book.

 

[IronWolf]

There's also 6 new base classes, and 8 new prestige classes (14 total classes, compared to the 21 classes in core).
That's without taking into account over a hundred new archetypes (which amount to replacing many of the PrCs from the past WotC books).
That's a lot of character concepts and class abilities that deserve support from feats and spells (how many feats are teamwork feats, for example, or elemental spells).

All good points.

I am expecting good things from this book and anxiously awaiting its release (as are my players in an upcoming Kingmaker campaign). The options it brings to the table are impressive.

I just have some caution to my optimism, hoping this doesn't turn into the Complete books with the introduction of out of balance power creep.

 

[BryonD]

I just have some caution to my optimism, hoping this doesn't turn into the Complete books with the introduction of out of balance power creep.

Agreed, though everything after the first preview has moved me back toward confidence.

There is always unintended consequences. But I'd much prefer agreeable players working for the fun of the game over limiting available options.

Broken stuff is easy, you just don't use it.

Unintended power combos are mostly easy, you just agree not to use the powers in unintended ways. Though even that can be tricky at times. Clever use of abilities and broken combos can be a hair's breadth apart at times.

Power creep is the trouble. Because one thing doesn't really cause any trouble, but sooner rather than later the system is out of whack and there is no one problem to remove.

Lots of cool stuff so far and one power creepy thing. Looks like a good batting average. Hopefully I'll know the final score in 2 or 3 days....

 

[billd91]

Woot! Just downloaded my subscription copy of the APG (and in process of getting last installment of Kingmaker and first of the new AP) as a PDF. Yeah. I've got the PDF at least a week before the book can be in my hands given the shipping time.

Thank you, Paizo, for being the best damn D&D-based RPG publisher in the biz.

 

[IronWolf]

Woot! Just downloaded my subscription copy of the APG (and in process of getting last installment of Kingmaker and first of the new AP) as a PDF. Yeah. I've got the PDF at least a week before the book can be in my hands given the shipping time.

Nice! Don't forget to stop back by and give us a report!

Thank you, Paizo, for being the best damn D&D-based RPG publisher in the biz.

Agreed!

 

[Hunter In Darkness]

The AGP PDF is now in the hands of some subscribers. So some stuff is now being leaked and posted

Such as this feat


Crossbow Mastery (Combat)
You can load crossbows with blinding speed and even fire
them in melee with little fear of reprisal.
Prerequisites: Dex 15, Point-Blank Shot, Rapid Reload,
Rapid Shot.
Benefit: The time required for you to reload any type of crossbow is reduced to a free action, regardless of the type of crossbow used. You can fire a crossbow as many times in a full attack action as you could attack if you were using a bow. Reloading a crossbow for the type of crossbow you chose when you took Rapid Reload no longer provokes attacks of opportunity.
Special: Starting at 6th level, a ranger with the archery
combat style may select Crossbow Mastery as a combat
style feat.