No it isn't a breakfast cereal, nor an old school RPG, but after a weekend spent with the new Pathfinder 2e beta (PF2) I am excited to play this game. It's PF so there are lots of moving parts and a 430+ page beta rulebook that has no bestiary section (its own 120+ page download). The rulebook, playtest adventure and all the peripherals are free downloads on the Paizo website.
The book/.pdf cover art is by Wayne Reynolds and is of the high quality, imagination inspiring type we have come to associate with Paizo products (yes, that's a goblin PC). Interior art (also by Mr. Reynolds) is a mix of full color pieces (some from previous publications) and some sketches that give the book a work in progress look - a technique I saw in FFG's Genesys and very appropriate to a beta. Am I the playtester Paizo wants to hear from? I am not sure. Is Paizo interested in bringing some of the OSR folks into their fold?
So what does an Original Edition/White Box guy like me like about PF2? At this point, there is a lot for me to like. For starters, it is one book with a manageable number of character options and rules. The Combat system is cleaned up and perhaps a bit less tied to the grid. Each round a PC has three actions and a reaction. Fighters are the only ones who get attacks of opportunity (unless you take a feat) and shields are useful. If you ready (raise) your shield, you can use it and your reaction to increase AC or absorb damage, otherwise it just hangs there at your side. The PC's three actions can be used to attack, attack again (-5) and attack again (-10) or you can move, draw a weapon, cast a spell, use and item, etc. Many spells can have their range and effects increased by taking additional actions to add components while casting.
Chargen is another area where I see vast improvements over PF1. Race is now "Ancestry" and what we generally think of as racial abilities are Ancestry Feats. The half orc and half elf are specific Human ancestry traits/feats. You combine class, background and ancestry to generate the PC's attributes. This is a major departure from 1e point-buy where min-max is just too easy. I am not saying you cannot power game this chargen system, but I think it encourages thinking about who the character is role-wise and what that means in terms of stats. Feats (are fewer in number and) are tied to class and ancestry and make more sense in terms of the character's role. It also takes a feat in order to multi-class and one usually has to spend at least three levels in each class. I am not a fan of class dipping and appreciate this change.
PF2 includes fewer skills than 1e and I see that as a positive change. Gone are all the specific "knowledge" skills that so limited role-play imo and many of the other skills have been lumped together to give general skills that seem more useful. Skills can be played a number of ways at the table and I get along with the concept by hand-waving the easy uses and asking for descriptions of how the player wants their PC to go about using the skill prior to a die roll... and maybe asking the player to describe what that outcome looks like.
PF2 seems to be mechanically influenced by 5e, but Paizo has followed their own drummer. PF2 makes use of something similar to the 5e Proficiency bonus except it is more granular and called TEML which stands for Trained, Expert, Master and Legend. If a skill or weapon/armor is used untrained there is a -2 penalty. Trained means you add the PC's level, Expert adds lvl plus 1, Master lvl +2, and Legend lvl +3 to the dice roll.
The concept of Resonance limits how many uses of magic items a PC may make. Spells may be cast at higher levels enhancing their effects which can often be combined with taking more actions to add somatic, verbal or material components to the spell which also enhances it's effects. Bloodlines are more colorful and seem to count for more in-game effects such as determining if the Sorcerer uses occult, divine, arcane or primal magic. Each has its own list of spells. Spells are subject to criticals and fumbles adding unpredictability and humor.
Characters start with more hit points and there is a feeling that they may be even more powerful at 1st level than 1e Pathfinder PCs. This isn't a game like Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG where your character may start out life as a pig farmer or a shoemaker. These are competent and dangerous adventurers from the start, however the Playtest rules seem to put the brakes on some areas I personally felt were leading to overpowered and unmanageable characters, yet others may balk at the new limitations. The purpose of the beta is of course to gather feedback which will presumably influence the final product.
There is a new death mechanic which sounds (fearfully) interesting and I look forward to seeing it play out. I think it may address the "I'm down", heal, "I'm up and swinging" situation. Once a PC goes to zero hit points they may remain unconscious for a lengthy period even if healed. They may also come up with some temporary handicap...something that reminds them of having "hit the ground" as a result of a big nasty blow delivered by a powerful foe.
For the present, PF2 is a single book with plenty of room for additional material either to be supplied by the referee, or eventually by Paizo. As a beta document there are areas that currently seem unclear to me and I welcome the opportunity to do some interpreting (at least until I am told there is an "official" ruling. I am pretty sure all of this and more will eventually be addressed by the final document and the expected additional volumes to follow.
No comments:
Post a Comment