I consider myself an old school gamer in rule preference, attitude and style of play. My "druthers" are for humanocentric sword & sorcery homebrew campaigns using original rules, but I am also a realist and know the world has moved on since 1974. I recently took WizBro's newest online survey and am reminded I fall into the "oldest players around" category, and that I still am buying almost everything they publish for 5e. I have no idea how many like me there are, or whether WizBro and company value my demographic, but I am still here, doing my thing, my way and having an enormous amount of fun doing it!
I got the chance this past weekend to referee a session of the newish Pathfinder 2e Playtest Beta system. It is a free download over at Paizo. I prefer a face -to- face game around a physical table and the reality is that it is easier for me to gather a group for one of the newer iterations of the world's most popular RPG, or to find a group to join in with as a player therefore I regularly play PF 1e. I also take every chance I get to referee my old school stuff (LBBs with modified magic rules) and happily did so just the weekend before last.
So why am I making this confession? My players and I had a good time with PF 2e beta and for me, it felt a bit "old school". Now before eyebrows raise, let me qualify that statement with an explanation regarding just what it is about the PF 2e game that felt old school.
Combat was quick and deadly. PF has always ratcheted-up the hit points and relative power level of the PCs and 2e is no different. The new action economy gives each character three actions per turn and with the healthy to-hit bonuses the first attack probably hits and there is a good chance so does the second, even with the minus 5 penalty. I recall about 10 pts. of damage per successful attack being average. Fights lasted two or three rounds with lots of HP flying!
Healing was limited to the cleric and a potion. Spell slots were used up quickly and the unlimited cantrips seemed more like minor magic than a real attacking force. The playtest monster stat lines are much abbreviated from 1e having eliminated monster feats and I feel like those stat blocks are now almost manageable.
Exploration is mechanically highlighted with different stances such as searching, sneaking, tracking, wandering, etc. determining how the PC is moving about between encounters. Double-time is a rapid, reckless movement likely to lead on headlong into traps and ambushes, yet covers ground more quickly than other exploration modes.
This is still Pathfinder, so its DNA is largely 3.5 and older editions, therefore there isn't a lot of mechanical support for role-playing or shared narrative. Hero Points represent an award for good role-play and can be used to get out of the dying condition, or spend two points and re-roll a d20 check hoping to turn failure into success. Otherwise it's up to the players to describe what the character is doing and to act in-character.
This is a playtest document and some choices may have been narrowed, but the opportunities to min-max characters during chargen seem limited at present. The available classes and races feel comfortable to me meaning there are no warlocks, tieflings or other "monster" PCs. well, goblins are added to the playable races, but they somehow seem more comical than monstrous. By limiting the available classes and races to those found in old school editions, PF2e feels more like a familiar old game.
If all goes as planned we will game the second chapter in the Doomsday Dawn playtest adventure path this coming weekend. Characters will assume level 4 status and we will get to see how the beta rules handle characters with increased power. At 1st level I found it easy as referee to stay on top of the game, adjusting the encounter combats written for 4 characters to the three players we had. The players stated the tension between feeling challenged and being on the brink of losing control of the combat was one of their positive experiences of the first session. I am hoping, of course, to maintain that level of excitement throughout the playtest.
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