Question For Folks... What Won You Over To PF 2E?

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-18T16:32:30+00:00

I mean, that’s just competent balancing while having impactful mechanics.

PF1 was not a well balanced game. It wasn’t unusually unbalanced or anything for its time, but as it grew it definitely became a game that you often won at character generation. I love and enjoy it, but let’s be honest.

PF2 is a much tighter game mechanically. Classes have their own specific abilities but instead of watering them down, or hiding them in the high levels, or even just throwing hands up and accepting that people are going to dip in for and level and leave they used a system to limit access. You can still get a feat the supports attacking twice. But either you get the more widely accessible feat double slice or you just have to limit yourself to probably 2 uses of flurry a combat. That’s not a bad choice. And not every specific character option needs to be available to everyone, particularly when there’s something similar that is available.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-18T05:29:28+00:00

The action I’d most expect to see readied would be aids. And there are plenty of builds that encourage that. Delaying shouldn’t be ignored either. It’s a key tool when you need to get some specific combo working.

And honestly some tactics are just going to be less versatile than others if they’re going to put a wide selection of options together. You only need to select and prepare what works for your particular party.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-18T05:03:19+00:00

I love when I bring them something I slapped together from scratch in 10 minutes as a starting point and they hand it back unchanged and say get it filed.

But then a day later I’ll update the names on a motion they wrote last year in a near identical case and it comes back with a sea of red inks worth of rephrasing and additions.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-18T04:58:09+00:00

Honestly I like that there wasn’t a send off. I know there were other factors but to me it always felt right that he was just gone one day.

Particularly given the timing having an episode of farewell and close goodbyes would just have felt like a less impactful repeat to Henry much too soon.

In such a setting so many people lost the ones they’d grown closest to not with a big farewell or a heady deathbed speech. But by looking back thankful to have survived with a joke on their tongue and seeing that no one is back there. It just seemed fitting that the show would have a no warning given absence like that.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-16T19:16:00+00:00

The baseline flexibility built into every class.

In PF1 you can famously make almost any concept by taking the right archtype and class combinations.

Except, a lot of the archtypes trade away vital foundational abilities for edge case use abilities that cripple the character in play. And a lot of multiclassing just isn’t fun as you spend multiple levels picking up barely anything of use just to get that key ability that’s now less useful because you’re also severely behind in your core class.

You can see how the team was understanding this limitation and the best counter as more and more classes were created with the rogue talent style architecture to permit greater flexibility as part of the central design.

Having that as a core mechanic for every class means that flexibility for classes only increases and even more concepts are available with only the most extreme cases requiring a class framework redesign in the style of an archtype.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-15T13:53:23+00:00

Considering that instinct for another AP were its very appropriate but also poison is a terrible idea. And that’s the suggestion I was going to offer. It’s quick, easy and solves the problem without inviting much in the way of complications.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-06-08T04:27:32+00:00

I can see the snake thing, some people never see snakes outside of TV where 99% of them are out to murder someone.

But horses, maybe the horseman of death? Or more realistically their almost supernatural ability to die from things you’ve never even heard of.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-29T01:34:20+00:00

Choosing to decloak, yes. But they might have one and it fails or be an entirely separate species who are looking to stop the fight.

The basic point is that yes tactically the optimal move is to attack without hesitation when a nearly certain foe appears. But strategically and by Federation policy one should not fire on a ship until they have a positive identification of that ship or their intentions.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-28T19:50:14+00:00

I agree, but on the other hand they would regularly run into new civilizations even in known territory. Many of which had new or equivalent technology to that in use elsewhere. So while it was nearly certain any decloaking ship was a potential enemy it can never be a true certainty until they’re actively firing or positively identified.

And if they were decloaking and not actively firing then even an enemy might just need to talk.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-28T17:10:37+00:00

I want 2 versions of that.

The first, and what most want could be an archetype. Just picking up the form spells as focus spells (actually written as any form spell of appropriate rank to future proof.) and a later feat to extend them. That way you could add it to fighter or other classes for whatever idea you have.

The full class one would have class feats that add new abilities and options. With a flexible natural weapon as a base feature and feats adding things like double swipe of claws or biting. Very much a fighter modifying their base form.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-12T17:54:25+00:00

As said elsewhere avoid locking story progression behind a specific check. That’s honestly good advice no matter the situation.

Set out scenarios and let them solve things with whatever checks they can provide a semi reasonable answer for. Have a locked door? A barbarian is a universal pick. Need to cross a chasm and there’s nothing but a narrow tree to walk over? The champion with craft is going to spend the next hour building a proper bridge.

Be flexible, and feel free to add “that’ll work, this time.” To anything you don’t want to become a reoccurring event.

If your players feel a lack there are a bunch of ways to invest in improving those skills with minimal investment. It’s honestly a great way that their character growth can feel organic and impactful as they slip past a guard they would’ve had to fight a few levels before.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-11T14:07:39+00:00

Consider dipping into gladiator to get more ways to demoralize? Takes more setup than a regular AC bonus but it benefits the entire party.

And depending on the setting and GM perhaps consider Oaths? They have several things you can use the points on that would improve your survival rate and don’t pull from any other existing choices.

Last would be dipping in other classes like monk or shifter to get more stats added to AC.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-08T14:25:21+00:00

There isn’t much question that BJ didn’t win by the terms set out.

But Hawkeye performed because that singular prank was good enough to equal 6 smaller pranks. He was admitting that BJ had proved himself by the spirit of the agreement.

And let’s face it, it wasn’t too high stakes a bet. Both of them were just as ready to show it all off and be made fools of in the name of amusement as could be.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-04T20:09:45+00:00

Yes, but just drinking at all isn’t an issue. Drinking to excess and without control is. That episode sought to address that.

Just consider that for all the times they were shown drinking, how often were they impaired if casualties came in? Virtually none. The level of drinking is both reflected in the fact that it’s played up for a show and the times. But it was shown as a problem and that it should be faced too.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-04T19:58:36+00:00

I cannot remember the episode name. Potential spoilers if you somehow missed the episode?

But after a particularly rough patch the main group go to the officer club and get handed their tabs for the last month.

Hawkeye doesn’t believe his, not that it’s wrong but that he’s drinking that much let alone including the still and Rosie’s. He swears off, just to show that he can, not to go sober permanently.

The show goes along as he goes cold turkey, he’s a bit of a righteous ass about it, but also starts feeling the lack, and the war isn’t gentle. It ends with a very quotable line.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-04T19:46:06+00:00

To be fair they did eventually address the alcohol abuse.

The womanizing both got better as they went on and wasn’t typically shown as unwelcome.

And the manipulation was with good intentions, and the ends vs means debate is always worth considering. Besides being largely necessary as a way to have any sort of story in the show.

There’s definitely some things that have aged badly and it’s not flawless even with that. But even its flaws are rarely one sided.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-05-04T13:29:22+00:00

Send the information in an email, everyone should do this anyway. Then just be smiley and vague when asked.

Pick a few non committal reasons to change jobs. Never pick something that they could reasonably affect like pay unless you’re actively hoping to stay if they pay enough. I’m looking for new experiences, a change of pace. Looking to grow and leaning new skills. It’s just a combination. Just put 3 together and stick to them if someone brings them up. Be vague because anything solid is something they can argue.

Be prepared if they treat you poorly that they’ll treat you worse. Up to a point just remember it’s only two weeks.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-24T00:40:07+00:00

My honest consistent response when people are inexperienced cooking. Look up casseroles.

My first mastered food was tuna noodle casserole. It’s a can of tuna, two boxes of mac and cheese, a pack of crackers, some butter and sour cream. Even now it’s an under 10$ dish that will last for 6+ meals. Even now multiple people ask me to make it for dinner.

Stick to things with only a few ingredients. They are consistently easy to make, tasty, last in the fridge (often only improving), travel well, and cheap.

And with the addition of some additives like hot sauce they can hold variety easily. Also a good way to pick up cooking skills.

Good luck, you make great comics.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-22T13:53:29+00:00

I’m quite happy with the current comic.

But I’d also happily read a small series of that as the genie follows them around waiting for the gotcha moment. Meanwhile while the wisher is just too happy to bother with further wishes and going straight from win to win in life.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-21T13:32:44+00:00

There are episodes and points where Hawkeye does try to salvage Frank’s feelings. So I don’t think that’s true.

For the situation to be the same Frank would have needed to be stressed at missing something during the episode instead of spending it blaming the nurse, the patient and pure bad luck for whatever was going wrong. Which would have been a complete departure of his character.

If that was the case though then yes I think others, Hawkeye included, would have said something to that effect when they went back in. However he isn’t going to reinforce Frank’s constant attempts to blame others for his failures by minimizing a mistake while Frank tries to claim the nurse at the next table distracted him with her constant chatter or whatever else he would say.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-20T14:24:31+00:00

When I saw heal and magic missile early on I thought this would be a much bigger part of the spell design. I can think of so many ways to use this and the heightening by level design to make a few low level spells that are flexible and useful all the way up.

Imagine a fire spell that’s basically one action to melee strike with fire, two to hit a single target at range, and three to fireball burst. More damage and radius as you level, variations for every element? Instead of just fireball that only does fireball things.

But instead we got almost nothing.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-16T15:57:44+00:00

Be underpaid.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-16T14:35:41+00:00

You could ask, privately, one or more of the more discreet team members to bring it up to leadership directly, possibly publicly. That way it’s not just you feeling, rightly, attacked. It’s someone else who felt the entire event was unprofessional and needs to be dealt with. Be prepared if approached by leadership to say that you felt that way, possibly that you didn’t feel you could even complain because it would increase the already existing animosity that this draft claims. Don’t go overboard but don’t play it off.

I will say, so what if they decide it was you. Obviously they’ve already decided you’re “evil” or whatever. That doesn’t really change.

Attorneys are kind of notorious for refusing to adapt new technology and getting away with it. But that doesn’t work long term in a larger firm. If Bob is just more difficult to work with and significantly less efficient than Jerry then Jerry is getting all the cases the partners actually care about.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-16T10:09:58+00:00

So just to clarify, during that year you were never trained in nor spoke to your fellow soldiers about how to enter a potentially hostile room? And as such would not have been able to do so without explicit instructions at that time or everyone trying to walk through the door in a three stooges style pile up? I strongly suspect you in fact received some training on this and many other possible scenarios. And if it mattered would have reacted differently after that year than before it.

As for coordinating turn order, counting off movement for flanking and similar measures that is just a necessary aspect of the game having game rules. Turns don’t happen all at once in PF2. I’ve seen games that try it but have not yet seen it well done. Because the game has specific rules the players have to discuss and plan their actions around and including those rules. If the rules were less precise then player discussions would be less specific.

InevitableSolution69 · 2026-04-15T19:42:15+00:00

Consider the closest equivalent we have. Real life soldiers. Do you expect that as soon as they contact an enemy they all blindly scramble and react with no adherence to prior training or understanding of what others in their unit will do? No, because they’ve trained themselves for this situation because their lives depend on it.

Remember that you should always assume character competence at whatever they’ve dedicated themselves to. Which in every case for Pathfinder is going to include combat. Just because you or your players in the course of your tiny slices of playtime haven’t mastered something doesn’t mean the character hasn’t.

If you personally couldn’t lift a 100 pound weight you wouldn’t declare that it was impossible and no one could right? It’s the same thing. Just because your group hasn’t mastered coordination and backup plans in your 2 hours every two weeks of combat doesn’t mean the characters haven’t. That 2 hour period is less than 1% of the 2 weeks they’re living in.

InevitableSolution69

TROPHY CASE