Reminiscing about 1E Pathfinder - Oct 6

 Obligatory disclaimer: real life sucks, but the reason as to why I kept a silence on my blog post-‘Mulan-2020’ is…because of it, really. Our TV/cable box, (sponsored by Rogers™!), has died, we tried to replace it, and may now replace our TV instead, because it is that old. It is a huge heavy thing, and I do not envy the task of getting it out of our home, because I will be the one doing it, most likely. …Getting rid of the TV, that is. Did I mention that real life sucks, already? Anything else?

We have been trying our luck with Pathfinder™, and by Pathfinder™, I mean that we are making our own 1E campaign, to use their terminology. In it, our PCs were commissioned to go down to the Mwangi jungles to capture an okapi, (it is a real life animal – look it up on the Wiki), for their patron. Not the most intense motivation, but hey, when you are playing for yourselves and for your own enjoyment, you can live with it.

…You do need some villains to spice up the game, and so, enter ‘Nature’s Scourge’ from the 1E ‘Villain Codex’ – a collection of various villains, all of whom have some connection to nature. Pause.

On the topic of the 1E Pathfinder™, the NPC Codex was just a list of stats of the 10 primary classes from 1 to 20, plus the matching 10 prestige classes, plus the NPC classes, all delivered in the same layout. (Plus the appendix, but we are deliberately ignoring it). The Monster Codex contained info on 20 different monsters/monster races, plus some paraphernalia – class archetypes, feats, spells, etc., all of which are appropriate to ‘their’ monster – gnolls, serpentfolk, lizardfolk and so on – in order to make them more derived and challenging. And the Villain Codex?

…And the Villain Codex tried to do something similar, but since most of the characters presented there, are humans, or at least humanoids, who do not have too much in common with each other, this makes the paraphernalia part more tricky… Pause.

NPC Codex was simple – here is a list of rogues, rangers, monks, etc. from the lowest to the highest, Villain Codex was more complex as each organization – whether it’s the aforementioned ‘Nature Scourge’ or, say, the ‘Brutal Slavers’ – is quite heterogeneous, plus they’re… generic.

The speciality of prestige classes is that they give something unique to the characters, something that the base classes by themselves just can’t, plus by choosing to eventually invest in a prestige classes, the players behind to mould their characters appropriately, by choosing the proper feat(s), which may have their own prerequisites, by designating a certain amount of skill ranks to a specific skill, and so on, which results in a more unique character than an average character would be.

…Unfortunately, team Pathfinder™ had its’ own issues with the prestige classes to begin with. Oh sure, they were there; there was, in fact, an entire supplementary rule book titled ‘Paths of Prestige’, dedicated precisely to this topic, but somehow, you could tell that their heart wasn’t in it.

This brings us to archetypes. In the D20 Modern system, there were ‘talent trees’ or something similar – i.e., you could choose what special abilities and qualities your character would have, not to mention that instead of rangers, rogues and bards, the characters of the D20 Modern system were differentiated from each other by their strength, speed, toughness, and so on. As I’ve written way back, the (1E) Pathfinder™ was more influenced by the D20 Modern than by D&D, (despite their own similarities), so not surprisingly that they had something similar – the archetypes, which were, fundamentally, the various special abilities and qualities of rangers, rogues, bards and etc., that replaced some of the others – they were called substitution levels in the 3.5 D&D. So what?

Therefore, the team Pathfinder™ had some issues with the prestige classes – they practically never used them in their adventure paths and co. Even in their later days, when they pushed more and more info about their exalted, evangelist and sentinel prestige classes, they’ve never actually used them in the canon, and any RPG material that isn’t used in a RPG canon is practically stillborn, (pardon the not quite appropriate imagery). Prestige classes were never very widely used in the 1E Pathfinder™, (though there was quite a lot of them, to be fair), and the various archetypes, (i.e., a ‘regular’ rogue is different from a rogue with a ‘poisoner’ archetype, for example), just were not the same.

…Yes, the 3.5 ed. D&D also had archetypes, especially in the ‘Complete Champion’ sourcebook, but we are not talking about this angle right now. What we are talking about is how the source in the Villain Codex was a tangled mess at worst and a heterogeneous one at best, and ‘Nature’s Scourge’ is one of the better one – an evil organization dedicated to reclamation of civilization by nature via occult rituals and what else have you; but what the point?

The point is that Pathfinder-1E never knew where it was going as a franchise. For a while it prospered, but now it seems to have collapsed, as Pathfinder-2E appears to be a lot less grand with a lot less material to offer its’ fans – mostly the various monster conversions, and that just isn’t the same. Still, we are enjoying playing our own campaign, (we still have not come up to our elusive jungle giraffe, eh), and it helps us get away from the concept that real life sucks, and this is also the reason as to why I’ve stayed away from my blog for the time being.

PS: Here is a poacher from the NPC codex with a bestial simple template (Lost Treasures 17) for old times’ sake:

 

POACHER CR 2

XP 600

Bestial human ranger 3

CE Medium humanoid (human)

Init +1; Senses Perception +7

DEFENSE

AC 15, touch 11, flat-footed 13 (+3 armor, +1 Dex, +1 natural)

hp 30 (3d10+9)

Fort +5, Ref +4, Will +2

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee 2 mwk handaxes +6 (1d6+3/×3) or

2 claw attacks (1d4+3) and 1 bite attack (1d3+1)

Ranged mwk heavy crossbow +5 (1d10/19–20)

Special Attacks favored enemy (animals +2)

STATISTICS

Str 17, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 8, Wis 13, Cha 6

Base Atk +3; CMB +6; CMD 17

Feats Double Slice, Endurance, Quick Draw, Two-Weapon Fighting, Weapon Focus (handaxe)

Skills Climb +9, Intimidate +2, Knowledge (geography) +3, Knowledge (local) +0, Knowledge (nature) +4, Perception +7, Stealth +7, Survival +5

Languages Common

SQ favored terrain (forest +2), track +1, wild empathy +2

Combat Gear potion of bull's strength, potions of cure light wounds (2), potion of hide from animals; Other Gear masterwork studded leather, masterwork handaxes (2), masterwork heavy crossbow with 20 bolts, 63 gp.

What do you think? Comments, criticisms are welcome.

Pathfinder: OB VII - Oct 4

As our journey through the Occult Bestiary goes to the conclusion, here's still another creature from it - a psychic vampire, made from a clown from the Villains Codex. How it looks?

CLOWN CR 9

Human psychic vampire slayer 8

CE Medium undead (augmented humanoid)

Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft., thoughtsense; Perception +18

DEFENSE

AC 21, touch 13, flat-footed 14

hp 126 (8d10+88)

Fort +10, Ref +12, Will +6 (+4 vs. mind reading)

Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4; DR 10/cold iron and magic; Immune undead traits; Resist cold 10, fire 10

Weaknesses psychic vampire weaknesses

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee +1 handaxe +13/+8 (1d6+6/x3) or

           Slam (1d4+6 plus drain psychic energy)

Ranged handaxe +12/+7 (1d6+5/x3)

Special Attacks drain psychic energy (DC 25), possession, sneak attack +2d6, studied target (2^nd, swift action)

Psychic Magic (CL 8^th; Concentration +12)

8 PE—burst of adrenaline (1 PE), haste (3 PE), mental block (2 PE, DC 22), spider climb (2 PE)

STATISTICS

Str 18, Dex 18, Con 0, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 20

Base Atk +8; CMB +11; CMD 24

Feats Alertness (B), Combat Expertise (B), Deceitful, Dodge (B), Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative (B), Iron Will (B), Lightning Reflexes, Toughness, Weapon Focus (handaxe)

Skills Acrobatics 16, Bluff +31, Climb +12, Disguise +23, Intimidate +19, Perception +18, Perform (comedy) +16, Stealth +24 Racial Modifiers +8 Bluff, +8 Perception, +8 Stealth

Languages Common

SQ possess object, slayer talents (bleeding attack +2, combat trick, foil scrutiny, surprise attacks), stalker, track +4

Combat Gear potion of invisibility; Other Gear +1 glamered studded leather, +1 handaxe, handaxes (2), cloak of resistance +1, disguise kit, entertainer’s outfit, 254 gp.

Pathfinder: OB V - Sep 28

New entities, derived from the 'Occult Bestiary' - a prana ghost, made from the pyrokineticist, (out of the Villains Codex), and a psychoplasmic gorgon, (from the very first bestiary). What do you think?

PRANA GHOST FIREBREATHER CR 7

Human prana ghost pyrykineticist 7

NE Medium outsider (augmented humanoid, extraplanar, human, incorporeal)

Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +17

DEFENSE

AC 16, touch 15, flat-footed 15 (+1 deflection, +4 Dex, +2 Wis)

hp 105 (7d8+70); 21 nonlethal damage from burn

Fort +10, Ref +10, Will +3

Defensive Abilities fortification (15%), incorporeal, rejuvenation, searing flesh (3 damage); Immune dazing, disease, effects requiring a physical body, exhaustion, fatigue, nonlethal damage, paralysis, poison, sleep effects, stunning

Weaknesses living prana

OFFENCE

Speed fly 30 ft. (perfect); astral step (2/day)

Melee dazing touch +15 incorporeal touch attack (1d6 plus daze)

Ranged fire blast +11 touch (4d6+6 fire) or

              Blue flame blast +11 touch (8d6+6 fire)

Special Attacks dazing touch (DC 15), kinetic blast, metakinesis (empower)

Kinetic Wild Talents Known

Defense—searing flesh

Infusions—burning infusion (DC 16), fan of flames (DC 16), mobile blast (DC 16)

Kinetic blasts—blue flame blast (8d6+6 fire), fire blast (4d6+6 fire)

Utility—basic pyrokinesis, cold adaptation, fire sculptor, flame jet, heat adaptation, skilled kineticist

STATISTICS

Str 0, Dex 22, Con 22, Int 8, Wis 12, Cha 13

Base Atk +5; CMB +6; CMD 21

Feats Alertness (B), Delay Blast, Dodge, Extra Wild Talent, Improved Initiative (B), Point-Blank Shot, Stealthy, Toughness (B)

Skills Acrobatics +25, Escape Artist +20, Intimidate +7, Knowledge (nature) +6, Perception +17, Perform (dance) +5, Stealth +25

Languages Common

SQ burn (2 points/round, max 7), elemental overflow +2, expanded element (fire), gather power, infusion specialization 1, internal buffer 1

Combat Gear potion of cure moderate wounds (2), potion of gaseous form, flash powder (2), keros oil (5), paper candle fireworks (100), skyrocket fireworks (2); Other Gear +1 studded leather, heavy mace, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection +1, entertainer’s outfit, 85 gp.

psychoplasmic GORGON CR 9

XP 4,800

N Large outsider (augmented magical beast, extraplanar)

Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +21

DEFENSE

AC 21, touch 9, flat-footed 20 (+13 natural, –1 size)

hp 100 (8d10+56)

Fort +13, Ref +6, Will +7

DR 5/magic or adamantine; Resist cold 10, electricity 10, fire 10; SR 14 (psychic spells bypass SR)

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft., fly 60 ft. (fly on Astral Plane only)

Melee gore +14 (2d8+7), 2 hooves +9 (1d6+3)

Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.

Special Attacks breath weapon (60-foot cone, turn to stone, Fortitude DC 21 negates), mindlock (DC 16), trample (2d8+10, DC 21)

STATISTICS

Str 24, Dex 14, Con 24, Int 6, Wis 16, Cha 9

Base Atk +8; CMB +16; CMD 26

Feats Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Perception)

Skills Perception +21

SQ compresson

ECOLOGY

Environment temperate plains, rocky hills, and underground

Organization solitary, pair, pack (3–4), or herd (5–12)

Treasure none

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Breath Weapon A gorgon can use its breath weapon once every 1d4+1 rounds to create a 60-foot cone of green gas. Those caught in the area of the gas can attempt a DC 21 Fortitude save to resist the effects, but those who fail the save are immediately petrified. This petrification is temporary—each round, a petrified creature can attempt a new DC 21 Fortitude save to recover from the petrification as long as it is not caught within the area of effect of the gorgon's breath weapon a second time while petrified. A creature exposed to the gorgon's breath a second time while already petrified becomes permanently petrified, and can no longer attempt to make additional Fortitude saves to recover naturally. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Pathfinder: OB III - Sep 24

So, to continue with the Pathfinder version of the occult, here's the psychic lich template, applied to the ringmaster from the Villain Codex. What do you think?

Human psychic lich mesmerist 11 CR 12

NE Medium undead (augmented humanoid)

Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +23

DEFENSE

AC 23, touch 18, flat-footed 21 (+5 armor, +5 natural, +1 deflecton, +2 Dex)

hp 140 (11d8+88)

Fort +9, Ref +11, Will +14

Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, psychic feast, rejuvenation; DR 15/bludgeoning and magic; Immune cold, electricity, undead traits

Weaknesses mind-affecting effects

OFFENCE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee mwk whip +7/+2 (1d3-1 nonlethal), touch +2 melee (1d8+5 plus bewildering touch)

Special Attacks bewildering touch (DC 20), bold stare (disorientation, susceptibility, timidity), hypnotic stare (-3), manifold tricks (3), mental potency (+2), mesmerist tricks 9/day (linked reaction, meek façade, misdirection, psychosomatic surge, reflection of weakness (DC 21), spectral smoke), painful stare (+5 or +3d6+5)

Mesmerist Spells Known (CL 11^th; concentration +15)

4^th (3/day)—dominate person (DC 21), mind probe (DC 20), phantasmal killer (DC 20)

3^rd (5/day)—aura alteration, displacement, dominate animal (DC 20), glibness

2^nd (5/day)—detect thoughts (DC 18), eagle’s splendour, glitterdust (DC 18), oneiric horror (DC 18), suggestion (DC 19)

1^st (6/day)—charm person (DC 18), command (DC 18), detect secret doors, disguise self, hideous laughter (DC 18), sleep (DC 18)

0 (at will)—detect magic, ghost sound (DC 16), light, lullaby (DC 17), message, prestidigitation

STATISTICS

Str 8, Dex 14, Con 0, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 20

Base Atk +8; CMB +7; CMD 20

Feats Deceitful, Excoriating Stare (DC 21), Extended Stare, Great Fortitude, Persuasive, Psychic Combatant, Psychic Defendant, Spell Focus (Enchantment), Toughness

Skills Bluff +27, Diplomacy +14, Disguise +10, Intimidate +22, Perception +23, Perform (oratory) +18, Sense Motive +23, Spellcraft +8, Use Magic Device +18

Languages Common

SQ consummate liar +5, glib lie (DC 28), touch treatment 7/day (greater)

Combat Gear potion of cure moderate wounds, wand of mirror image (8 charges), wand of shield (40 charges); Other Gear +1 glamered mithral chain shirt, +1 light crossbow with 20 bolts, mwk whip, cloak of resistance +2, dust of illusion, ring of protection +1, disguise kit, 42 gp

Pathfinder Villains V - Jan 16

Here is a character from Villain Codex, rearranged as a daemon-blooded tiefling:

GRIMSPAWN CR 10

Tiefling rogue 11

NE Medium outsider (native)

Init +4; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +22

DEFENCE

AC 24, touch 15, flat-footed 20 (+5 armor, +1 deflection, +4 Dex, +4 natural)

Hp 75 (11d8+22)

Fort +5, Ref +12, Will +8

Resist cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5

Defensive Abilities improved evasion, improved uncanny dodge, trap sense +3

OFFENCE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee +1 short sword +14/+9 (1d6+3/19-20)

Ranged +1 light crossbow +13 (1d8+13x3)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10^th; concentration +13)

1/day—death knell

Special Attacks sneak attack +6d6

STATISTICS

Str 10, Dex 20, Con 12, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 8

Base Atk +8; CMB +8; CMD 23

Feats Iron Will, Psychic Sensitivity, Skill Focus (Stealth, Use Magic Device), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (short sword)

Skills Acrobatics +20, Appraise +18, Climb +14, Disable Device +27, Disguise +13, Escape Artist +20, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +12, Knowledge (local) +13, Perception +22 (+26 to hear conversation or find concealed objects), Sleight of Hand +20, Stealth +26, Use Magic Device +21

Languages Aklo, Common, Daemonic

SQ rogue talents (canny observer, fast stealth, finesse rogue, improved evasion, quick disable), trapfinding +5

Combat Gear potion of bear’s endurance, potion of cure moderate wounds, potion of invisibility, potion of spider climb, wand of barkskin (CL 9^th, 12 charges); Other Gear +2 studded leather, +1 light crossbow with 20 bolts, +1 short sword, cloak of resistance +1, ring of protection +1, mwk thieves’ tools

Pathfinder: Villains IV - Jan 15

So, here is a tengu pirate with some racial features, and class features changed:

TENGU SNEAK CR 4

Tengu rogue 5

CE Medium humanoid (tengu)

Init +4; Senses low-light vision; Perception +11

DEFENCE

AC 19, touch 14, flat-footed 15 (+5 armor, +4 Dex)

Hp 31 (5d8+5)

Fort +2, Ref +9, Will +3

Defensive Abilities evasion, trap sense +1, uncanny dodge

OFFENCE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee mwk rapier +9 (1d6+1/18-20)

Ranged mwk composite shortbow +8 (1d6+1/x3)

Special Attacks sneak attack +3d6

STATISTICS

Str 12, Dex 18, Con 11, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 8

Base Atk +3; CMB +4; CMD 18

Feats Acrobatic, Tengu Wings, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (rapier)

Skills Acrobatic +13, Appraise +10, Bluff +7, Escape Artist +11, Fly +5, Intimidate +7, Perception +11, Sense Motive +9, Sleight of Hand +11, Stealth +13, Swim +8

Languages Common, Elven, Tengu, Undercommon

SQ carrion sense, rogue talents (fast stealth, finesse rogue), swordtrained, trance (crane trance)

Combat Gear potion of invisibility; Other Gear +1 chain shirt, mwk composite shortbow (+1 Str) with 20 arrows, mwk rapier, cloak of resistance +1

Pathfinder: Villains 3 - Dec 26

And a member of the Diabolical church, remastered as a hellspawn tiefling instead:

HELLSPAWN CR6

Tiefling antipaladin (tyrant) 7 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide 118, Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Intrigue 64)

LE Medium outsider (native)

Init +1; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Perception -1

Aura Cowardice (10 ft.)

DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 11, flat-footed 21 (+9 armor, +1 Dex, +2 shield)

Hp 71 (7d10+28)

Fort +8, Ref +5, Will +6; +2 resistance vs. good

Immune disease; Resist cold 5, electricity 5, fire 5

OFFENSE

Speed 20 ft.

Melee +1 ranseur +12/+7 (2d4+5/x3)

Ranged mwk repeating heavy crossbow +9/+4 (1d10/19-20)

Special Attacks slavery/tyranny variant channeling 2/day (DC 15, 2d6 plus -2 channel penalty), smite good 3/day (+2 attack and AC, +7 to damage)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 7^th; concentration +9)

At will—detect good, pyrotechnics

Spell Prepared (CL 4^th; concentration +6)

2^nd—hold person (DC 14)

1^st—bane (DC 13), death knell (DC 13)

STATISTICS

Str 18, Dex 12, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 12

Base Atk +7; CMB +11; CMD 22

Feats Blind-Fight, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (repeating heavy crossbow), Intimidating Prowess, Selective Channeling

Skills Bluff +5, Diplomacy +6, Intimidate +13, Knowledge (religion) +9, Sense Motive +7

Languages Common, Infernal

SQ cruelties (shaken, staggered), fiendish boon (weapon +1, 1/day), touch of corruption 5/day (3d6), unholy resilience

Combat Gear potions of cure light wounds (2), alchemist’s fire (2), unholy water (2); Other Gear mwk spiked full plate, +1 ranseur, mwk repeating heavy crossbow with 10 bolts, spiked gauntlets (2), silvery unholy symbol, 33 gp.

Pathfinder: Villains 2 - Dec 26

A member of the demon knights', remastered as a pitborn tiefling:

PITBORN MURDERER CR 9

Tiefling rogue (knife master) 10 (Ultimate Combat 72)

CE Medium outsider (native)

Init +4; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Perception +15

DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 15, flat-footed 17 (+6 armor, +4 Dex, +1 Dodge, +1 natural)

Hp 88 (10d8+40)

Fort +8, Ref +12, Will +6

Defensive Abilities blade sense, evasion, fiendish resistance, improved uncanny dodge

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee +1 dagger +12/+7 (1d4+4/19-20)

Special Attacks shatter 1/day, sneak attack +5d6 +2 Str damage

STATISTICS

Str 15, Dex 17, Con 14, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 12

Base Atk +7; CMB +8; CMD 23

Feats Great Fortitude, Iron Will, Stealthy, Step Up, Toughness, Weapon Finesse

Skills Acrobatics +16, Bluff +14, Climb +15, Disable Device +14, Disguise +14, Escape Artist +20, Perception +15, Sense Motive +11, Sleight of Hand +16, Stealth +20

Languages Abyssal, Common

SQ hidden blade, rogue talents (crippling strike, fast stealth, fast tumble, finesse rogue, surprise attacks)

Combat Gear potion of blur; Other Gear +2 glamered chain shirt, +1 dagger, amulet of natural armor +1, cloak of resistance +1

Pre-New Year Rant - Dec 26

And so, 2016 is almost coming to an end. Odds are, we will be celebrating New Year in the USA, where I will not be able to regularly access the Internet, most likely, so first, let me wish everyone a happy New Year beforehand.

Secondly, let us wish good luck and good riddance to 2016. With less than a week to go, we had a major airplane crush in Russia, (no survivors), death of George Michael in the U.K., and the fallout between U.S. and Israel in the U.N. The last is particularly WTF-worthy: throughout its existence, Obama’s administration, (and the man himself), was very slow-mo. Now, with less than a month left, it, including Obama itself, is trying to compensate for 8 years of missed chances and opportunities, by running around like some crazy chicken making one mess after another. (The only thing different between now and then is that now Obama is making his usual snafus at a breakneck speed, rather than slowly, as he did back then). Either way, I feel sorry for Obama; I am not the biggest fan of the Donald, but I can see why the Americans have voted for the latter: the man is an unknown entity, while Hillary would have just continued Obama’s plotlines and strategies, and the Americans had enough of this for the last 8 years.

…The problems is that Obama himself just continued the strategies of the Republican president George Bush Jr. in those last 8 years, so regardless of what the president-elect has promised has electorate, there is no guarantee that things will be fundamentally different after January 20^th, 2017. People want variety, but they also want stability, and democracy is not very stable, (just ask the ancient Greeks – in Sparta they invented communism instead). With the election of Trump, the American society has once again put the plebeians/proletariat against the patricians/elite, and now both sides must figure out where to go from here. In Ancient Rome, it can be seen even in plays of Shakespeare – ‘Coriolanus’, ‘Julius Caesar’, ‘Anthony and Cleopatra’ – this conflict brought the end to the Republic, and paved way to the Empire. George Lucas, your Star Wars franchise says hi to the real world…maybe.

SW, incidentally, have developed its own issues: they do not know how to move forwards, now that the old canon has been declared apocrypha and redubbed ‘Star Wars: Legends’ instead. SW7 was very good, but it heavily relied on SW4 in terms of the script; ‘Rogue One’ is even better, but it is still set in the past, in the realm of the movies 4 through 6, (and it isn’t much different from some SW novels set in the ‘Legends’ universe. Still better than the real life U.S. politics, though).

Back in real life, there are not any breakthroughs or major shifts of the happy variety; in my own life…ditto. The TV and the like? Well, we have to look forwards the rest of ‘The Librarians’ S3. They seem to have conflated Horus and Ra – or confused him, but so did the ancient Egyptians. Ra was a sun god and the creator of the ancient Egyptian world. Horus was the brother and/or son of Isis and Osiris, (and just a brother of several other Egyptian gods); he was more of a war god instead. But! Both of them had the falcon as their sacred animal. Both of them had solar qualities in their divine portfolios. And! For a while, the ancient Egyptians worshipped both of them in the figure of Ra-Horakhty, so the differences between Ra and Horus are not important. What is important, (relatively speaking), that in S3, ‘The Librarians’ are faced with Apep, a snake-demon of darkness and night, and they are bringing a magical artefact of a sun god, (or the sun as a god) to challenge him. Frankly, they could have done the Greek version with Apollo and Python instead – it would be really similar, and as the S3 episode with the oracle has shown, they are keeping/have kept it in mind already.

…But still, this cavalier attitude towards the Egyptian mythology is grating. Rick Riordan and his novels were able to keep it straight; this really bad movie, ‘Gods of Egypt’, was able to keep it straight; so why ‘The Librarians’ cannot? Who knows…?

Then we have ‘For Honor’ game, by Ubisoft. It had appeared earlier in 2016, very exciting, but with flaws. Yet it continues to develop, and so far, it has appeared better than even before – not just with the new characters, but even a new game plan, that of Apollyon the warlord, who has to be stopped with plenty of melee fighting, maybe ranged too.

No, seriously, so far in all the game simulations, the combat was melee – but in the Apollyon promo, there are bows and arrows too, as well as combat-trained animals, maybe? Wolves and at least one war elephant… This game is shaping up to be really exciting, believe it!

The mention of war elephants reminds me of DW – I have been rewatching some of its episodes, the last one being ‘Ming Warrior vs. Musketeer’, which showed DW at its best. The hosts were unprejudiced; the tests showed the relative weaknesses and strengths of the various weapons, and the combat simulation was well orchestrated and interesting. The lack of prejudice really showed, too, as opposed to such S3 episode as ‘Hernan Cortez vs. Ivan the Terrible’, for example. For the first two seasons, DW was a good show, and then in S3 it went downhill so rapidly, that DW got cancelled – no funding, no staff, no anything. Even AoS has done better than DW – it is in its’ fourth season, remember?

…Mind you, for a while probably the entire MCU had problems: not only Luke Mitchell had left, but Jaimie Alexander (Sif) and Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter) did, as well as who knows whom else. However, MCU – including AoS – survived. ‘Agent Carter’ did not…

Speaking of TW, a new show – ‘Riverdale’ – is coming to the screens in 2017. It is based on the characters from ‘Archie’ comics, but-

On one hand, Archie and his friends are very flexible. There were crossovers with the Predator movie franchise, the Walking Dead TV series, the Ramones’ music group, the Marvel comics (such as the Punisher, who might be getting his own TV series in MCU, BTW), etc. The ‘Riverdale’ adaptation – a soap opera/drama/mystery/etc. – is not very different. But-

On the other hand, ‘Archie’ was very demanding and particular when it came to its’ mark/brand/whatever. It generally took down the smaller folk who tried to use them for its’ own game, but when it came to someone more powerful – like the Marvel comics – it generally backed down first. Now, when faced with the CW and the ‘Archie’-based show, it seems to have reached a compromise with them: ‘Riverdale’ will keep the ‘Archie’-based character names, but the trademarks and everything else? It will probably something separate from ‘Archie’ comics instead. This is how ‘the Cursed Child’ works, after all. It is still a fanfic, but Ms. Rowling endorsed it at least to a point, for a part of the profits at least. Everyone got happy and we will have to see how ‘Riverdale’ works in 2017.

This is the end of this rant, and for now? Have a happy 2017!

PS: Here is a pallid vector ogrekin based on the new ‘Villain Codex’ rules:

OGREKIN (HALF-OGRE) CR 4

XP 600

Male human ogrekin fighter 2

CE Medium humanoid (giant)

Int +5; Senses low-light vision; Perception +1

DEFENSE

AC 16, touch 11, flat-footed 13 (+1 Dex, +6 natural)

hp 25 (2d10+10)

Fort +7, Ref +1, Will +1

Defensive Abilities bravery +1, pale rebirth

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft.

Melee shortspear +7 (1d6+9 plus disease), bite +2 (1d4+4 plus disease)

Special Attacks disease

STATISTICS

Str 23, Dex 13, Con 22, Int 8, Wis 14, Cha 6

Base Atk +2; CMB +7; CMD 18

Feats Cleave, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Power Attack

Skills Climb +12, Swim +12

Languages Giant

SQ deformities (oversized maw, weak mind)

ECOLOGY

Environment any

Organization solitary or family (2–6)

Treasure NPC gear (spear, other treasure)

Pathfinder: Villains 1

Merry Christmas! Here are a couple of monstrous entries from the new Villain Codex with alternate racial traits!

BLUDGEONEER CR 4

Hobgoblin fighter 5

NE Medium humanoid (goblinoid)

Init +2; Senses Darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +0

DEFENCE

AC 18, touch 12, flat-footed 16 (+6 armor, +2 Dex)

Hp 47 (5d10+15)

Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +3; +1 vs fear

OFFENCE

Speed 20 ft.

Melee mwk Warhammer +11 (1d8+6/x3) or

Mwk Warhammer +9 (1d8+6/x3), mwk light hammer +8 (1d4+2)

Ranged mwk composite longbow +8 (1d8+3/x3)

Special Attacks weapon training (hammers +1)

STATISTICS

Str 16, Dex 15, Con 16, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 12

Base Atk +5; CMB +8; CMD 21

Feats Bludgeoner, Iron Will, Skill Focus (Intimidate), Two-Weapon Fighting, Weapon Focus (Warhammer), Weapon Specialization (Warhammer)

Skills Intimidate +12, Stealth +8

Languages Common, Goblin

SQ armor training 1, bandy-legged, battle-heardened

Combat Gear poition of displacement, potion of jump; Other Gear +1 scale mail, mwk composite longbow (+3 Str) with 20 arrows, mwk light hammer, mwk Warhammer, 36 gp

CRUSHER CR 7

Orc barbarian 8

CE Medium humanoid (orc)

Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 ft., scent; Perception +11

DEFENCE

AC 16, touch 9, flat-footed 15 (+7 armor, +1 Dex, -2 rage)

Hp 105 (8d12+48)

Fort +12, Ref +4, Will +5; +4 morale bonus vs. spells, spell-like abilities and supernatural abilities, +2 racial bonus vs. nausea, sickened condition and disease

Defensive Abilities improved uncanny dodge, trap sense +2; DR 1/-

OFFENCE

Speed 40 ft. (30 ft. in armor)

Melee +1 heavy flail +17/+12 (1d10+11/19-20), gore +10 (1d8+3)

Ranged mwk composite longbow +8/+3 (1d8+5/x3)

Special Attacks rage (20 rounds/day), rage powers (fiend totem, lesser fiend totem, scent, superstition)

STATISTICS

Str 24, Dex 12, Con 21, Int 6, Wis 11, Cha 8

Base Atk +8; CMB +15; CMD 24

Feats Furious Focus, Power Attack, Raging Vitality, Weapon Focus (heavy flail)

Skills Intimidate +10, Perception +11

Languages Common, Orc

SQ dayrunner, fast movement, squalid

Combat Gear earth elemental gem; Other Gear +1 breastplate, +1 heavy flail, mwk composite longbow (+5 Str), with 20 arrows, cloak of resistance +1, 249 gp