Tag Archives: RPGs

Pathfinder Rise of the Runelords Minis, I Haz Them

Posted on August 24, 2012 | Leave a comment

I was in a local game store and discovered they had the new Wizkids Pathfinder Battles Rise of the Runelords minis!  I grabbed some boxes and thought I’d share.

I got one Huge box that came with a Storm Giantess,

then each of the normal boosters had a Large; I got an Ogre Brute and Malfeshnekor himself;

and then each normal booster had three medium/smalls in it – from left to right, Lucrecia, a wraith, a faceless stalker, Lyrie Akenja, a goblin commando on a goblin dog, and an ogrekin.

And here they are in ensemble to show relative sizes.

The sculpts are very nice and the painting is very nice, I like all these figures, they’re very distinctive.

I am disappointed a little in the Huge, however.  For $25 there’s no real fine painting work – her cloak, for example, is one big ol’ swath of the same purple and her trident is a homogeneous green (and made of a much more flexible plastic than the rest of the mini, it’s quite warped and not able to be made convincingly straight.  On a Huge I expect more detail than that.  The Large ogre brute is really nice and has more detail and nice washes – he looks better than the Huge; heck that whore with the cat (Lyrie) has more detail than the storm giantess.  Lucretia’s high cheekbones and piercing eyes are really, really good

But there’s a lot of improvement from the already good Heroes and Monsters minis – go see my old review of those and compare the ogre and goblins to this ogre and goblin – the ogre in particular is like 1000% better sculpt and paint.  And the small boosters having 4 rather than 1 mini is much better.

What they did right, they kept up – the bases are nice and flat, none of that D&D Minis falling over/warped base crap. Easy to unbox, all were in fine shape.

They’re high quality and nice.  I am not sure I plan to buy a lot though – they are expensive as crap! I just dropped $60 on these 9 minis.  Sure, you can get discount cases blah blah – I might do it if I were about to run Runelords, but other than that I’ll get a couple and use my rich legacy base of minis, Reaper kickstarter unpainteds, and pawns to fill in the gaps.

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Reaper Kickstarter Or OSR Manifesto?

Posted on August 24, 2012 | 8 comments

In an interesting move that’s almost a political statement, the Reaper minis kickstarter that’s going crazy ($2.5M, 13,590 backers) is giving away a Swords & Wizardry PDF with the big set of rewards now.

The weird thing about that is that the Swords & Wizardry PDF is already available for free.  So this is less a giveaway and more a promotion.  And it’s likely to be a successful promotion; I don’t know how many people have downloaded Swords & Wizardry ever but I think another 13,500 is a very significant percentage of that number.

I think it’s interesting that a minis company would push something like that basically for no real business benefit (they are selling Pathfinder branded minis, so some giveaway there wouldn’t have been as much of a surprise – or heck, it’s 3e/4e that have pushed miniature use in general a lot more than earlier D&D did, but the financial give-back from any OSR promotion is likely to be in the “maybe it’ll buy a latte” range).  I know some of it’s just personal interest, here in central/north Texas there’s a lot of OSR going on, but one can’t help but reflect during the D&D Next playtest what the implications of a lot of new blood getting their hands on the old rules might mean.  Positive things I hope; Next is starting to bloat during playtest from Basic to 4e very quickly, perhaps people will get a taste of a more stripped down ruleset and realize they don’t need all those layers of rules for fun.

My verdict – ballsy, interesting, good on you guys!

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One Day Left For The Most Insane Minis Deal Ever

Posted on August 24, 2012 | 2 comments

Man, I already have more minis than I know what to do with.  But this Reaper Minis “Bones” (unpainted resin) Kickstarter has gone nuclear, having hit $2.2M already and with a day to go, my $100 pledge is now getting me… Something like 217 minis, but it’s hard to count them all up!

If you pledge at the Vampire level ($100), you get bonus rewards at every additional increment of funding they raise – some Larges, Pathfinder iconics and goblins, lots of general stuff, all sharp looking Reaper sculpts. If you pledge more there’s all kinds of extras and whatnot (they’ll send you a form after it closes to specifically pick add-ons).  I put in an extra $50 to get a case and some dragons or something, haven’t decided yet.

This is probably the best deal one will ever find for minis, so sign up!  And then come over to my place and paint my minis for me.

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Why I’m Worried About The D&D Next Playtest

Posted on August 21, 2012 | 17 comments

I’ve been participating in the D&D Next playtest. So far, I think what I’ve seen is OK.  But I’m not sure it’s totally valid.  Here’s why.

Playtesting a subset of a rule system is deceptive.  I thought the core mechanic in 4e was just fine, it was more all the junk they ladled on top of it that was a dealkiller.

One of the main things I want out of D&D Next is to make the core rules slimmer and simpler – more like Basic/Red Box or 2e than these 300, 400, 500+ page legal tomes we’re saddled with as Player’s Handbooks nowadays. Simplifying D&D is how you’ll get the next generation on board. The initial playtest packet *seems* nicely streamlined – but is that just because they’re only giving us a small subset?

I’m getting concerned about whether they’ll be showing enough restraint that Next won’t turn into the same bloated mess.  Already they are adding on more and more stuff to the core rules because ‘someone wanted it.’ I don’t believe we need a wizard and a sorcerer and a warlock in the core rules.  I believe we need a wizard, and the others can be added on in optional supplements later. Sure, someone wants them – someone wants everything.  That’s why design by committee is a Godawful way of doing things. “Next will be maximally inclusive” looks like it may be code for that. We have opportunity attacks back too, and fighter powers.  Nice frosting but not must haves.

I don’t mind adding things on – but not in the core rules.  Everyone feels entitled to have access to everything in the core rules. Everyone pretty much has to read and understand everything in the core rules. The core rules need to be the true core of the game – fighter, wizard, cleric, thief; dwarf, elf, halfling, human; exploration rules and some weapons and some spells, go. We had plenty of fun with just that from the Red Box. That’s Dungeons & Dragons.

Mike Mearls, pay attention – if you cannot make the Player’s Handbook no more than 128 pages long, you will have failed. Take all those two years with of “but we want this other thing too” comments and pack them the hell away for future product releases. (Naturally if you are putting DM info, magic items, monsters etc. into the book so it’s a core rulebook not just a player’s handbook you get a little slack here, but you probably shouldn’t do that.)

I already have a 500 page D&D game that works fine.  I’m not interested in another.  The only way you lure me away is with a leaner, finer machine. Do it.  Stop now and ship 5e if you can’t resist adding more junk back in.

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D&D Gen Con 2012 Keynote

Posted on August 20, 2012 | 3 comments

Here’s the full video of the D&D keynote from Gen Con.  Sounds largely positive. They are taking the Domino’s route of owning up to screwing up.  Mike Mearls says that D&D R&D went astray and started to prescribe certain playstyles and they want to move back to empowering all styles and making it “your” game.  And that it’s not the rules that are important, made to be broken, a minor part of the shared gaming experience, there’s freedom to do whatever you imagine, etc.  They’ve put the rules and designers first lately and that makes in “their” game not our game. It’s nice to hear it said out loud, but they have to put their money where their mouth is.

The one thing they did do to back it up was to announce all the D&D backlist will be made available electronically!  They didn’t say “PDF,” it may end up being some crappy device-tied DRM in an unusable format, but it’s a start.

On the bad side, they’re doing yet another major Forgotten Realms shakeup, “The Sundering.” This is why I hate the Realms, its continuity is almost as bad as the comic Earth’s (DC or Marvel,  your choice). When challenged on this Mearls says “Oh sure but AFTER the sundering it’ll all become normal and the stories are yours.”  Of course this new era only lasts until they decide to do a shakeup or have a D&D After Next, says the cynic in me. They’re also going to have people send in results from published adventures with majority results to decide “what happens to the game world,” which has always been gimmicky when done before. This is less “you shape the Realms” and more “dance for me my little monkeys” IMO.

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Jade Regent – The Hungry Storm, Session 4

Posted on August 19, 2012 | Leave a comment

Fourth Session (11 page pdf) – We brave the Dead Man’s Dome, Ameiko gets roofied by a lonely ogre, and we decide to head through the Mines of Moria with our whole caravan.

I’ve been slacking on the blogging over the summer, but not on the gaming!  I’m playing in Jade Regent every other week and running Reavers on the Seas of Fate every other week.

The session takes care of the big fight at Dead Man’s Dome in less than a page, but it was a big ol’ caravan battle and took a while. The caravan got banged up but we came through it fine. And with that we finished crossing the Crown of the World!

We’re not really sure how we’re not the only caravan to cross the Crown, since you need high level adventurers to do it. But, it’s always harder for PCs, so that’s fair enough.

Then an ogre mage charms Ameiko and runs off with her.  We track him down and kill him but it’s not really clear whether he was like an agent of the Five Winds out to get us or if he was just a lonely rapist. Enquiring minds may never know.

Then we have storm  trouble (HUNGRY storms, natch) and decide to pass some mountains by taking the whole darn caravan into the Caves of Desna (aka Mines of  Moria) and go all the way through.  This seems unlikely to us but it’s where the plot wants us to go, so we go…

 

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More Gushing About Pathfinder and Paizo

Posted on August 18, 2012 | 3 comments

OK, let me just combine all this up into one post so all my posts aren’t just pro-Paizo puff pieces.

First of all, Paizo just swept the ENnie awards yet again.  Gold medals for product of the year, favorite publisher, best production values, best cartography, best minis, best cover art, etc.  It’s just embarrassing.

Next, they have some whole new product lines they’re offering via subscription.  Comics, which doesn’t excite me, but the pawns are cool.  Basically cardboard standups to replace minis (even though they have a minis line too).  You get them at about 15 cents per pawn, and they are honestly arguably better than minis – less storage, full color, you don’t have to paint them… And themed to what you need.  Very nice.

And they have reissued perhaps the best adventure ever, Rise of the Runelords, updated for Pathfinder, and with a tie-in to this year’s Shattered Star Adventure Path.

Paizo is putting out more, better product than anyone ever – even TSR at its height.  It’s a true Renaissance of tabletop gaming and they are leading it.

OK, now back to your regularly scheduled cynicism.

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Pathfinder Is For Munchkins

Posted on August 17, 2012 | 3 comments

At least it is now – because Paizo and Steve Jackson Games have joined forces to create Munchkin Pathfinder!  Munchkin is, of course, the comedic card game of adventuring which has come to all major gaming genres – and now to Pathfinder’s Golarion.  That’s hilarious and awesome.  I love how Paizo is such a community player and helps build other companies up – they earn their leadership role in the industry by really leading.  I can’t wait for this one!

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Jade Regent – The Hungry Storm, Session 3

Posted on July 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

Third Session (11 page pdf) – We head to a tower in the Arctic that is making naughty storms and sweep and clear it.  It might be a spaceship or something. We’re not sure. We kill them all and let the DM sort it out. Enjoy our continued journey through the Jade Regent Adventure Path!

Pretty much we spend the entire session in the Storm Tower. We were playing pretty smart.  We roped ourselves together going across the bridge in (saving lives), I as Yoshihiro used my see invisible to tag invisible opponents with dye arrows (saving lives), and Bjorn bull rushed many an undead off the top of the tower (saving lives).  Sadly I missed the final battle as I had to catch a plane that evening. Like many boss fights it had a lot of back and forth buffing and dispelling. Jacob piles on the frontal damage and then V’lk spikes her from behind.  Bing bang boom, we do it by the book.

 

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Paizo Violates WotC’s Corpse – Again

Posted on July 10, 2012 | 5 comments

There I was about to go to bed when I decided to check up on the latest gaming news.  Well, in a bizarre 1-2 punch,

  1. Wizards of the Coast announces they’re giving up on their virtual tabletop
  2. Paizo announces they’re launching a virtual tabletop that sounds 1000% better

Oh, snap! Wizards has been promising a VTT since the beginning of 4e and has had infinite trouble in delivering. But check out the news on Paizo’s!  Runs in a Web browser and is totally cross-platform; will have content from the Adventure Paths and all; and will be free (you’ll pay for some kind of extras). It doesn’t try to enforce rules (which is great), it just does tokens and map and initiative tracker duty.

I tell you what… Everything I hear about the PF MMO makes me think it’s going to suck, but since they are doing EVERY OTHER THING perfectly, it’s making me doubt myself – maybe it will rule too!

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Jade Regent – The Hungry Storm, Session 2

Posted on July 10, 2012 | Leave a comment

Second Session (15 page pdf) – We go mano-a-mano with a white dragon! And our caravan nearly gets murderized by ice trolls. Then we go to hungry storm undead haunted spires and hack undead like there’s no tomorrow!  And since we’re near the North Pole, tomorrow is a long time coming.

Well, our dragon hunting nearly backfired – the dragon hit us while we were trying to rappel down an ice crevasse and before we’d buffed. The fight was interestingly three-dimensional; here’s one of the cell phone camera shots of the whiteboard we took to send to Bruce (he Skypes in):

You can see V’lk and Spivey trying to flee by spider climbing up the wall of ice as the rest of us come down to help.  The “I like cake” guy is our local guide Tiktik who went into that special form of NPC stasis as soon as the action started. It was a tough and interesting fight and Jacob kept trying to commit suicide during it but once we finally cornered the thing, I spiked it through its brain-pan with my katana.

My favorite line comes from later in the session, though:

They tell him that the Snowcaster elves live up on the High Ice. They are pale-skinned and very mysterious. They might make toys and love snow-cones. They are gruff towards outsiders, but respect shows of force. “I think we can arrange that,” says Yoshihiro.

With that we wander the arctic ice some more, nearly get wiped out by ice trolls and paralyzing undead and other such random encounters.

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Jade Regent – The Hungry Storm, Session 1

Posted on July 8, 2012 | Leave a comment

We’ve moved into the third chapter of the Jade Regent adventure path and it’s chilly Arctic action all the way!

First Session (14 page pdf) – We fight snow chimeras and Wilford Brimley the Eskimo Shaman.  Real world arctic survival tip – you can’t eat the liver of a polar bear, it has so much vitamin A that it’s poisonous, but the rest is OK.

As we travelled across the Crown of the World, we get a lot of nice picaresque encounters. First was the hideous hag Arnalaak, who had stolen all of a village’s children and transformed them into water monsters. We solved that by marrying Jacob off to her; sadly, it didn’t take.

Then we fought a chimera with the heads of a dragon, walrus, and polar bear that we dubbed a cryomera. My character Yoshihiro is coming along well as an archer; one three-arrow full attack from me got it hurt bad and Harwynian finished it off with Magic Missiles.  Similarly, the next encounter with a giant pike (which tried to eat Harwynian) took a lot of magic missile and arrow damage.

Then we find the Arataki (aka Inuit aka Eskimo) village and return their kids, but a shaman who looks like Wilford Brimley has it in for us.

I don’t know what I would have done in this campaign without Suishen, the magical katana.  See invisible, wind walk, and protection from cold pretty much convert most of the impossible challenges in the AP to possible.  In this case, I saw the invisible Wilford Brimley skulk off and we trailed him directly to his lair. He attacked us with a host of frozen undead, and used a gust of wind to blow me around a lot, but I used my ever-popular dye arrow trick to highlight him (since I can see invis and I’m the archer, I bought dye arrows to mark sneaky BBEGs for party destruction).

Next time, we go dragon hunting!

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