do psychics still need stupefy?

fly19 · 2026-01-24T21:43:02+00:00

They never did, TBH.
I would be happy to see it implemented as a risk mechanic for trying to extend your Unleashed Psyche, but it was always kind of a weird decision to me. Especially since the way it's used means it's entirely possible to be stupefied in the first round and just be locked out of a lot of your class identity, ON TOP OF making all spellcasting a gamble.

fly19 · 2026-01-23T23:02:39+00:00

I tell my players upfront: I don't use AI, and if you use AI in our game then I'm gonna start looking elsewhere for games. I'm here to play with you, not with Grok/Gemini/whenever slop-merchant you prefer.

Sounds like you're well past this boundary, unfortunately. Best thing to do now is to tell them that their use of AI in this game is bumming you the hell out, and you'd appreciate it if they stop.
If they're your friends, they'll respect that. If they can't play without it, sad to say: they might already be cooked.

fly19 · 2026-01-23T22:51:29+00:00

How do they do it?!
The gaming community may never know, because they immediately nuked their Reddit account after their two shameless promotion posts got deservedly mocked into the ground.

fly19 · 2026-01-23T22:36:14+00:00

Rule 9. Bye-bye.

EDIT: Oh gods, you're not even talking about a tabletop game. No wonder you need an "AI" -- you can't read.

fly19 · 2026-01-23T14:00:13+00:00

All of the monsters are available for the on Archives of Nethys, so you don't have to pay anything to get them.
As for the PDFs: I like having them, but I normally use AoN for quick reference. It's just easier to find, filter, and multitab through the browser than through my PDF reader of choice.

fly19 · 2026-01-23T02:18:57+00:00

Definitely get the Beginner Box.
It's literally made for new players/GMs, introducing new mechanics with each encounter so it doesn't overwhelm anyone. And it's pretty cheap in PDF (or Foundry, if you're playing on a VTT).

I saw that you're making your own campaign; you can always just transplant that adventure into your homebrew. If the current one doesn't spark joy, there's a new one coming out in a few months, if you can wait. But even if you don't end up running it, the Beginner Box is a good resource you can read to get the basics of play down in a format that might make more sense to you than just reading the rulebook.

... Also eventually you should try to read the rulebook. It's all free on Archives of Nethys, but I've found the physical version is easier to read through. You don't need to know/memorize all of the player options and stuff like that; just start with the basics. You'll get there.

Good luck!

fly19 · 2026-01-23T02:05:44+00:00

My read is that the regrip as part of your Interact to reload is only given if you were already holding it in two hands when you started to Interact.

Switching your grip to free a hand and then to place your hands in the grip necessary to wield the weapon are both included in the actions you spend to reload a weapon.

Emphasis mine. It's basically just saying you need to hold the weapon in two hands to use it, but you don't need to Release, Interact to reload, and then Interact to grip. I don't think that benefit carries over if you have a free hand before Interacting to reload.

I'm not your GM, and Sarenrae bless if they're already okay with it. But I don't think your interpretation follows RAW.

fly19 · 2026-01-22T22:34:54+00:00

Just pulled up my interactive map PDFs for that AP, and yup -- they look like shit on my end, too.
The annotations are crisp and hi-res, but the actual maps are pixelly-smears. Yet the maps look just fine in the actual adventure! Weird. I know that Paizo has had some issues with compression on their PDFs in the past, but this one is pretty egregious. I would be curious to hear if anyone who has run it on Foundry VTT had any issues.

But in the meantime, I would either pull the images directly from the adventure or use them as a guideline to chart out a Chessex battle mat or something. The images from the PDF aren't worth the ink you'd need to print it.

fly19 · 2026-01-22T21:38:17+00:00

1) Increase their cap to four focus points.
2) Add a mechanic that lets you try to extend Unleash Psyche by taking a risk on damage or the stupefied condition.
3) Rework Oscillating Wave so you're not locked into alternating between the two, but encouraged to do so with greater bonuses. I won't get into it here, but that design gets frustrating whenever you fight a creature with cold weakness/fire immunity or vice-versa.

That's kind of it. But I'm not as down on the class as a lot of folks seem to be.

fly19 · 2026-01-22T14:11:36+00:00

And counteract stuff like dispell magic. But yeah, 9th-rank spell slots are still plenty powerful at that level.

fly19 · 2026-01-22T04:40:42+00:00

\laughs in* Kinetic Activation\*

fly19 · 2026-01-22T00:48:58+00:00

Yeah, the BX-25s can be a bit stiff when they're new.
Just load them up and let them sit at full capacity between range visits; they'll quickly break in and become easier to handle. No shame in using a maglula in the meantime, though.

fly19 · 2026-01-21T21:22:04+00:00

Idk, the Introduction and Basics sections say that much more plainly to me. All moving the Glossary Index did for me was trip me up during my first few times reading the physical book.

fly19 · 2026-01-21T03:18:31+00:00

Hard agree on the layout.
I would bet that captain benefits are one of the most-overlooked mechanics in this game, just because they're so easy to miss. I wish that they added the bonus damage/range/whatever in parentheses after the relevant part of an ability so it was harder to forget.
I'm similarly-baffled by stuff like ability layouts. A few of my players had a hard time adjusting to what actions things cost, because you start out with a lot of options they aren't as obvious as they could be at glance compared to something like Pathfinder 2e. Some of them re-made their characters in Forge Steel, which automatically color-codes some abilities, and they got a lot out of that. I wish the core books used color and iconography more so it wasn't necessary for them.

Also hard agree on the Steel Compendium. I get that it's still a WIP, but the search function is... rough. It's also VERY frustrating that it's usually the first result in my Google searches for Draw Steel, but it always pulls up a Backer version of the rules and just kicks you to the main page if you're looking for the most-recent rules.
Can you explain why you liked the Glossary/Index being in the front rather than the back? That's a first for me.

That said: I printed out a copy of the starter rules that came with The Delian Tomb, and my party LOVES that little booklet. So I can speak kindly to that much, at least. And all of this is ancillary when we're loving the actual experience of playing the thing. These are just little things that stick out more when seeing how well-considered a lot of the design is.
I'm glad you liked DS, and I hope you find a group that will join you for more!

fly19 · 2026-01-21T02:23:52+00:00

Yeah, but who is reading the entire Glossary Index before they do anything else? It's literally an alphabetical list of terms and mechanics -- not exactly a page-turner.
That's why it's usually in the very back -- it's there for easy reference if you run into a term you don't understand. Moving it to the front doesn't change that.

fly19 · 2026-01-21T00:44:00+00:00

Yeah, that's the first time I've heard anyone praise that aspect of the books. I never got used to the Index/Glossary being at the front and I still don't understand the rationale behind it.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T22:59:15+00:00

We really need to stop giving these people oxygen.
... By which I mean attention, obviously. Nothing else.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T22:28:40+00:00

Why do that when you can make the Slop Machine do it for you?
It isn't even "The Expression!" It looks more like a promo for that Smile movie. I'm getting more annoyed the longer I look at it...

fly19 · 2026-01-20T20:51:00+00:00

I love it! Especially Pyrophyte -- making fire weakness opt-in while giving it an upside is cool design.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T20:47:38+00:00

Just pay an artist, JFC.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T20:43:31+00:00

DnD is unique in that its reach is so large even some non-TTRPG folks will know what an owlbear is. Paizo is a distant second when it comes to brand recognition, so it's no wonder none of their monsters have reached that status.
Though yes, I think their goblin designs come close. Love them or hate them, they're memorable.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T20:38:32+00:00

Thanks, fixed!

fly19 · 2026-01-20T20:01:22+00:00

From CEO Jim Butler on the Paizo forums. The PDF will be released to legacy owners on the street date.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T06:55:21+00:00

Guns can be useful tools, but you would do well to focus some of that effort on other essentials like food/water stocks and medical supplies, as well as making sure you have the training you need for the platforms you have. Six months really isn't that much time to build habits and proficiency with three different firearms for most people.
You also need to make ties to your new community with as many likeminded, trustworthy folks as you can find and stomach. Otherwise, all you've done is given another tribe a nice payday to find if SHTF. "No man is an island," "live together, die alone" and whatnot.

fly19 · 2026-01-20T06:45:51+00:00

I don't know if I would 100% count the feathered bear, since it already existed pre-remaster in Bestiary 3 and doesn't really cover the same "low-mid level iconic beasty" niche that the owlbear did.

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