Pathfinding

A TTRPG and Pathfinder fan blog.

[thydungeongal]

People who treat D&D's classes as like being in any way representative of fiction outside of D&D are my nemesis, I just saw a post that was like "remember the difference between a Sorcerer a Warlock and a Wizard is this" and treating like those words as if their very D&D specific meanings were like universally accepted I'm going to start taking hostages

[thydungeongal]

"remember as we all know a Paladin is like this" Oh I'm sorry I didn't get the memo that Charlemagne's twelve peers could all use divine smite and divine sense and cast divine sense and summon magic horses. You piece of shit. Don't ever talk to me

[thydungeongal]

"the difference between a Druid and a Cleric" You are nothing. Words mean things here in the real world.

[prokopetz]

The definitions aren't even consistent across different editions of Dungeons & Dragons. The earliest codified use of the term "sorcerer" in D&D had X-Men style mutant powers rather than being a wizard variant. Druids in 2nd Edition were a militant brotherhood who determined their internal rankings by having anime-style tournament arcs. The bard's first core-book appearance was as a high-level prestige class for dual-class fighter/druids. If you wanted to be a wizard with a sword in BD&D you had to be an elf, because the race/class split didn't exist, and "elf" was the hybrid arcane caster class. "Warlock" has meant about four different things. If you're trying to universalise these definitions, you aren't just going to be wrong about fantasy fiction more generally, you're also going to be wrong about most iterations of D&D.

[jamdrawers]

Proteans are fun. Some kind of... Angel of Chaos...

[vixensdungeon]

Pro-tip for actual play players: it’s okay to do the stuff your character is good at, and it’s okay to play a character who is good at the stuff you like to do. If what you like to do is talking to NPCs all the time, make your character good at that instead of having your rizzless bruiser sabotage every social interaction for “comedy.”

[vixensdungeon]

Addendum: don’t make a character who specialises in social interaction only to sabotage every social interaction for “comedy” or, worse, because “that’s what my character would do.”

[vixensdungeon]

I think it goes deeper and darker than that. There is a fear of being seen as playing a game at all. You have to apply the veneer of collaborative improvised storytelling to avoid looking like a dork, and it is not enough to simply do the stuff you do in the game. In the case that prompted this post, you can’t just try to actually survive night to night as a vampire and trust that activity and the Storyteller’s presented challenges to provide cool events, happenings, and goings-on.

I think even in the entertainment format of actual play this is a real problem, because some of us happen to think that playing games is cool and interesting.

[theonlyturtleinexistence]

Decided to redraw my orc fighter from my Pathfinder party. Still don't have a name picked yet - any suggestions?

[jormofyore]

Before I start, I was given permission by @theonlyturtleinexistence to give a small critique.

So, first off, I really enjoy the colour scheme as a whole. A lot of artists go with bright colours, but the duller, somewhat dirtier colour palette does it great justice! Seeing the ruddy-rub on the blue skirt coupled with the copious browns gives it a genuine look that she has been tustling with the foliage and her foes. The red hair creates a great windswept appearance and constrasts well with her green skin too. Also, great placement with where you put the armour, which helps suggest a more mobile and action-oriented piece. I also want to point out that the axe is a great size, as people often overestimate the size of axes compared to their users; you've drawn the axe in a way that it feels less unwieldy and more appropriate for the size of the wielder. Lastly, her face fits a grim yet resolute feel, and I think it helps bring together the piece.

So really, my only issue with the piece comes down to one main thing: the stance. Making her look off-balance is definitely the way to go, as that implies movement and action, and what you're aiming to portray is something that takes a lot of skill, so well done for getting most of the way there. My primary critique of the stance is that her back leg feels like it is in front of the leg going sideways, which means the knee should be a little higher up and her foot closer to the viewer. Possibly use some forshortening (which is hard, not gonna lie, and takes practice) to make the side leg go more of an angle, as if the knee is in front of the foot instead of lining up together, making it look like she would be pushing towards us. The back foot looks great with how it is planted, though, so nicely done there. The last part of the stance is where the arms, particularly, the elbows, could serve to be a little farther from the body. When swinging a weapon, which I've been prone to doing in the past, you want some distance between your arms and your body so that you can build solid momentum with the weapon. Too tight against your body, and you lose strength and speed. The arms being a little farther out would also imply more of an aggressive stance as well, if that is what you choose to go with.

Otherwise, this is really well done! Duller colours worked out fantastically, the stance could use a few touchups but the proportions looks great, and the armour is practical yet fun while still giving that fantasy vibe. The wind in the hair is probably what I love the most, really giving her that moving sideways look. I hope you keep posting more art in the future! Also, congrats on the newborn!

Jorm of Yore out

[jormofyore]

I Cast Guidance

I'm thinking of doing little writeups of the various classes I've either played or taken long looks at. However, instead of the usual rating system of what's optimal, I've been inspired by @catofgooddecisions' replies to write about how these classes and ancestries make me feel and what about them interests and inspires me. I guess it would be a guide of sorts, but also not really. I tend to play class/ancestry combinations based on the vibe I get from the choice, though I'm also often drawn towards the mechanical nature of doing cool things with my choices. Guides are great, don't get me wrong, but they are incredibly subjective and difficult to ascertain how optimal some things truly are given the wide range of party make-ups. For example, I'm a big fan of Prestidigitation and take it whenever I can because it adds so much flavour to how my characters interact with others.

Anyways, I've gotta figure out where to start, but what I might do is work on one for the Animist after it's officially released this week. I'm borderline obsessed with the class with all the possibilites it offers. I think I'll call them Vibe Guides.

Jorm of Yore out

[jormofyore]

My biggest dream is to make enough money to not just take care of my loved ones, but to be able to help random strangers and friends out there in their times of need without me having to check my bank account first.

[possessable]

[jormofyore]

I just had a sudden craving for the smell of a balloon.

[jormofyore]

Don't get me wrong, I am sure Baldur's Gate 3 is a fantastic game (and judging by many metrics, it IS a great game), but...I just can't get over the cliff that is the rules setting. I've tried, but I love my crunchy builds too much. I enjoy getting *something significant* practically every level. I need to feel the frequent mechanical character choices guiding me into a satisfying direction. And while the characters are interesting and the world of Faerun takes me back to the my days of 2nd and 3rd ed D&D, it really comes down to my dislike of 5E as a system. As a friend asked me, because it happened to him too, "Did Pathfinder spoil you?"

And the truth is, yes, yes it did.

Maybe I'll give it another chance in the future, especially as it was a gift from someone, but for now, I find myself feeling like my character is lacking that something special and it deeplying perturbs me.

[the-pallid-princess]

i just think it’s neat

[lynayru]

In case any of you here also use X/Twitter.

[jormofyore]

I find it interesting how both times I have run the PF1 adventure path Rise of the Runelords, with completely separate groups, that my players have "fished" a PC down the hole leading up to Thistletop Keep, only to hurriedly pull up a limp body due to the Bunyip below.

What's even more specific, is later on in the haunted manor, a paladin got possessed from a critically failed will save, threw himself out the observatory window, slid down the roof from a failed reflex save, and got saved by a critical hit from the weathervane.

[tevaselmundogiraalreves]

[quiclycasual]

This entire community was born because someone decided we didn't fit in. If you decide someone isn't a part of the community because you think they don't fit in, you are a disgrace to the community.

[jormofyore]

The most freeing part of my writing, is that I get to write how I want to, truest to myself. I don't have to be the sexuality I present to my family, born out of the fear of finally driving that final spike in and pushing the last of them away. A lot of us still closeted hide behind our art, because we can either use a psuedonym or explain it away as something else when the need is convenient. The LGBT+ community has enough enemies without; there is no need to have more within.

[the-grove]

What I want to say: Pf2es new adventure path has a focus on the Orcs of Belkzen, and it seems to be a spotlight on the way in which Orcs and the Portrayal of them have evolved over time both in the larger fantasy landscape and specifically how Paizo has chosen to depict them in recent years. It's really exciting to see them be portrayed beyond the stock evil bad guy role, and given them nuanced and unique culture and identity.

What comes out of mouth: Orcs! Orcs! Orcs! Wooo Orcs! orcs awesome. Orcs hot. Orcs cool. Orcs cuddle please.

[jormofyore]

I'm really loving how Paizo is choosing to flesh out cultures in their world, beyond just moralistic goods and evils. It's part of why I think getting rid of alignment is such a good thing, because it forces us to look at people, both in and out of fantasy, beyond binaries of having things we like or dislike.

[dingbatblr]

reminder that being against ai also means being against character.ai and not using character.ai and not interacting with character.ai

i've never talked to chatgpt i've never talked to character.ai i have no interest in talking to a chatbot even if it's fun or based on my comfort character. if we want companies to stop using ai we need to tell them we aren't going to interact with it - so don't.

don't talk to robots. full stop.

[hemipenal-system]

if you're seeing this it means you're on tumblr. there are like 600 gay people on here who will rp with you, you don't need c.ai for anything

[sentient-tapioca]

also ai covers are so shitty

"Oh look its a random character singing a random song-

DO IT YOURSELF

DO AN IMPRESSION OF THAT CHARACTER AND SING YOUR FUCKING HEART OUT

DOESNT MATTER IF IT SUCKS SO DOES THE AI

I LOVE IT WHEN PEOPLE SING WHILE DOING IMPRESSIONS OF CHARACTERS THEY LIKE BECAUSE THEY OBVIOUSLY ENJOY THEMSELVES

and the ai is replacing actual talented voice actors

the only ai should be the kind that recognizes patterns and gets used to find cancer (someone help me find the source of that there was an article about it somewhere)

FUCK GENERATIVE AI, MY POOR MOM HAS TO GO THROUGH SO MANY AI ASSIGNMENTS THAT FUTURE PHSYCOLOGISTS AND DOCTORS SUBMIT FOR AN EASY GRADE

[the-haiku-bot]

DO AN IMPRESSION

OF THAT CHARACTER AND SING

YOUR FUCKING HEART OUT

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[pumpkincalico]

its daeran loving hours (all day everyday)

[leidensygdom]

So um, it's my birthday today, and I heard you can ask for reblogs on your bday 👀 so um if you'd like to support my work today, here's a nice compilation of some of my best art from the last year!

I'm starting full time freelancing as an artist this month, so any help with visibility would be much appreciated!!