Mistfinder: Pathfinder in Ravenloft

[Jester of the FoS]

On a semi-related topic, the beastiary is out and looks excellent, with some very nicely rebalanced monsters. I'd be tempted to break it out for a standard 3.5 game given the changes.

[doctor-evil]

Paizo have just release the new PC classes of "cavalier" and "oracle" for playtesting. these are freely available and can be found her:

http://paizo.com/store/downloads/pathfi ... 48btpy8bcj

The oracle is basically a better version of the favoured soul, and their curses make them very ravenloft playable. The class is begging for a "mists" focus.

An "order of the dragon" calaviler would make a great ravenloft NPC, and the other orders are also verty playable in teh setting with only minor name changes or slight tweaking needed to give them a ravenloft flavour.

Upcoming classes for play testing include the witch, summoner, inquisitor and the alchemist.

My group is definitely shifting to Pathfinder rules for our ravenloft games from now on.

The pathfinder rules (and 99% of basic monsters) can be freely accessed online at:

http://paizo.com/store/downloads/pathfi ... 48btpy8bcj

[brass]

My humble attempt at a Pathfinder Half-Vistani. Suggestions appreciated.

Half-Vistani Racial Traits
• +2 Wis
• -2 Char
• +2 to One Ability Score: Half-Vistani characters get a +2 bonus to one ability score of their choice at creation to represent their varied nature.
• Survivor (ex):
+2 Racial bonus on Survival checks.
Half-Vistani may re-roll any attempt to light a fire (in any weather conditions) or rolls not to become lost while in the mist. They may pick the best of the two rolls.

Choose one tribe where your Vistani parent originated and apply the below traits to your character.

Canjar Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Spellcraft checks.
• +4 Racial bonus on learning a new spell.

Corvara Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Disable Device checks.
• +2 Racial bonus on Sense Motive checks.

Equaar Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Handle Animal checks.
• +2 Racial bonus on Ride checks.

Kamii Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on metal-based Crafts checks.
• Appraise check to identify a metal in detail.

Naiat Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Perform and Diplomacy checks.

Vatraska Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Heal checks.
• +2 Racial bonus on Profession (herbalist) checks.

Zarovan Tribe
• +2 Racial bonus on Ride checks.
• You may re-roll your Intiative checks, but must take the second result.

[The Giamarga]

Those seem to based on 2E right?

Did you see this thread ? John Mangrum posted his version of the 3.5 Vistani in there and they get the 3.5 half vistani traits in his version. I would copy the format, name and description of those tribal abilites from there and adjust everything for PF.

You forgot the favoured class. The 3E Vistana racial traits are in the Monster section of the core book sand in the RL Monster manuals. They have favoured classes depending on tribe. I don't remember how it is with e half vistani though..

I'd take a look at the PF human and PF halelf for inspiration. What changes did PF make to them and what would be appropriate for halfvistani? The PF halfelf has 2 favoured classes for example, a throwback to 2E where halfelves could multiclass more than anyone else. Perhaps a look at the 2E half vistani could give a similar inspiration...

[brass]

Those seem to based on 2E right?

Did you see this thread ? John Mangrum posted his version of the 3.5 Vistani in there and they get the 3.5 half vistani traits in his version. I would copy the format, name and description of those tribal abilites from there and adjust everything for PF.

You forgot the favoured class. The 3E Vistana racial traits are in the Monster section of the core book sand in the RL Monster manuals. They have favoured classes depending on tribe. I don't remember how it is with e half vistani though..

I'd take a look at the PF human and PF halelf for inspiration. What changes did PF make to them and what would be appropriate for halfvistani? The PF halfelf has 2 favoured classes for example, a throwback to 2E where halfelves could multiclass more than anyone else. Perhaps a look at the 2E half vistani could give a similar inspiration...

Apologies they are indeed 2e, I will post up some in the more recent format soon enough.

Favoured class is a different prospect for Pathfinder.

Favored Class
Each character begins play with a single favored class of his choosing—typically, this is the same class as the one he chooses at 1st level. Whenever a character gains a level in his favored class, he receives either + 1 hit point or + 1 skill rank. The choice of favored class cannot be changed once the character is created, and the choice of gaining a hit point or a skill rank each time a character gains a level (including his first level) cannot be changed once made for a particular level. Prestige classes (see Prestige Classes) can never be a favored class.

I was also considering what to do with the moon madness aspect of things, any suggestions?

[brass]

my pathfinder changes to Monster Hunter, sorry about the format on forums. I think classes were generally a little more robust in pathfinder and generally have a capstone ability. I would take suggestions as too additions to the spell list for monster hunter.

Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special
1st 0 2 0 2 Studied foe
2nd 1 3 0 3 Monster knowledge, Mettle
3rd 2 3 1 3 Craft talisman, 2nd Studied foe
4th 3 4 1 4 Hunter's confidence
5th 3 4 1 4 Slippery mind, 3rd Studied foe

Mettle (Ex) If you make a Will save against a spell whose
description says “Will partial” or a Fortitude save
that says “Fortitude half”, actually take no effect at all
(i.e., ‘evasion’ for Will & Fortitude)


All the Speciality hunters now receive a capstone ability at 5th level in their class.

Beast Hunter
Run!(Ex)
Once per encounter you receive a +20ft morale bonus to your base speed for one round. This is a swift action.

Ghost Hunter
Ghost Touched(Su)
Designate one melee weapon, after possessing that weapon for 24 hours it is considered to have the Ghost Touch weapon ability. If you lose this weapon you may not designate another weapon for one week.

Vampire Hunter
Distasteful (Ex)
You have discover a way of treating your food to make your blood foul tasting to creatures who attempt to drink it. Creatures that attempt to feed on you must pass a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 HD+ Int Mod) or recoil and not attempt to feed on you again for an hour. This ability is peculiar to your metabolism and you may not treat anyone else's food. The cost associated with such an ability is 1gp per day in ingredients.

Witch Hunter
A Witch Hunter gains Diplomacy as a class skill.
Pitchforks and Torches (Ex)
When in the presence of a crowd, as long as you continue to speak or direct the crowd (Diplomacy Check) members of the crowd of 4th level or lower receive the following bonuses. All weapons wielded by effected members of the crowd are considered magic, The effected members of the crowd gain a +3 morale bonus to hit, damage and on fear, horror & madness effects.

Demon Hunter
Strike True (Su)
Designate one melee weapon, after possessing that weapon for 24 hours it is considered to be magical and composed of both sliver and cold iron for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction. If you lose this weapon you may not designate another weapon for one week.

[Jadeite]

The next to playtest classes for the APG are out now, the summoner and the witch. Both seem rather fitting for a Ravenloft game, especially the witch, and I'm presuming the same will apply to the two missing classes, the inquisitor and the alchemist:
http://paizo.com/store/downloads/pathfi ... 48btpy8bka

[brass]

What point buy will people be using for their games in Pathfinder?

I'm currently thinking 10, as all the races have an ability bonus.

[brass]

An important note for all DMs using Pathfinder with Ravenloft is that Undead can now be sneak attacked and be critted.

To counteract this somewhat Undead can now add their Charisma mod onto hit dice instead of Constitution.

In short this means you can now shoot zombies in the head and your charismatic vampire though closer to human is less frail.

[brass]

Those seem to based on 2E right?

Upon rereading the RPH 3.5, I found those tribes to be correct for 3.5.

Still looking for a good mechanic for moon madness.

[The Giamarga]

Aren't there already 3E mechanics for it? I seem to remember Wil saves. Only what happens on a failure was a bit vague iirc. "Run wild under the night sky".

I found this on the internet:

Half-Vistani Racial Traits

- +2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma: Giomorgo retain traces of their Vistani parent's powerful sixth sense, but as outcasts, they lack the Vistani's fierce ethnic pride.
- Medium: As Medium creatures, haff-Vistani have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
- Half-Vistani base speed is 30 feet.
- +2 racial bonus on Survival checks. a giomorgo inherits his/her Vistana parent's affinity for nature. Provided fuel and some means of igniting a spark, half-Vistani can always light a fire as a standard action, even under adverse conditions (pouring rain, gusting winds and so on). When wilderness survival depends on being able to start a fire, the half-Vistani racial bonus on Survival checks rises to +4.
- Diluted Blood: For all special abilities and effects, half-Vistani are considered human, though they do not gain the extra feat or skill point standard humans receive. Only pureblooded Vistani can use special spells or magic items with racially specific Vistani powers.
- Moon Madness: A giomorgo suffers from the lunatio during the full moon each month, his/her mind clouded by restlessness and anxiety. He/she cannot prepare spells or heal naturally during this period. On each of the three nights of the full moon, he/she must succeed at a DC 15 Will save or run wild under the night sky.
- Base Outcast Rating#: 2. A giomorgo who hides his/her Vistani heritage can reduce the base OR to 0 with a successful Disguise check (see above).
- Automatic Languages: Any domain language. Bonus languages: Any domain language, patterna (including tralaks) provided there is an opportunity to learn these. Half-Vistani often learn the tongues of their Vistana and giorgio parents.
- Recommended Feats: Alertness, Ethereal Empathy, Lunatic, Track, Voice of Wrath. [Note - I'll post info on these feats later.]
- Tribal Heritage: A player playing a giomorgo character must select a tribe from the following list at the time of creation, reflecting the branch of his/her Vistani ancestry. This tribe determines additional benefits and favored class.
Canjar: +2 racial bonus on Spellcraft checks. This bonus rises to +4 when attempting to learn new spells. Favored class: Wizard
Corvara: +2 racial bonus on Open Lock and Sense Motive checks. Favored Class: Rogue
Equaar: +2 racial bonus on Handle Animal and Ride checks. Favored Class: Ranger.
Kamii: +2 racial bonus on any metal-based Craft checks (e.g., blacksmithing). With a successful Appraise check, Kamii can identify metals and determine where any metal item originated. Favored Class: Rogue
Naiat: +2 racial bonus on Perform checks. Naiat have a base Outcast Rating of 0. Favored Class: Bard.
Vatraska: +2 racial bonus on Heal and Profession (herbalism) checks. Favored Class: Cleric.
Zarovan: Racial bonus of (1d10-1d4) to initiative. Roll at the start of each encounter. Favored Class: Sorcerer.

The description of the effectsof Moon Madness in Domains of Dread (2E) were a bit more detailed than the 3E ones iirc.

I suggest building the actual lunatio as a madness effect with temporary effects. So there will be wisdom loss and probably a set (or custom) madness effect (can't remeber which one fits offhand).

Also check out this thread on lunatio. In it Rotipher posts the following:

I don't take a half-Vistani PC from a player's control during lunatio, so long as the player is willing to role-play the experience. Like Fear checks, IMO, it's not necessary to impose such behavior on a PC if the player is already acting out suitable responses in-character.

FWIW, I've always thought of lunatio as more like being drunk out of your mind than anything else. Yes, drunk people sometimes get themselves into trouble, and yes, they can be destructive, but usually being drunk only exacerbates impulses that are already present (and are normally repressed). If a half-Vistana likes to look at flowers on a normal day, she might wander through the fields picking them and tying them in her hair, singing about flowers, during lunatio. If another likes to whistle at pretty giorgios when their men aren't around, he might "run wild" in a village by making passes at anything in a dress, and get himself strung up for his trouble! How lunatio affects a character should be more personalized, and how the PC experiences it (and has survived it) makes for a nice bit of character backstory.

You might want to build the custom madness effect around this description. Or you could in fact actually apply one of the many 3E mechanics for being slightly drunk during the time.

[brass]

With some thought, just to simplify things as far as the race goes.

Moon Madness (su)
During the period of the full moon each month, the half-vistani suffers a -2 morale penalty on Wisdom. During this period if the half vistani is indoors they are shaken and when outdoors gain a +5ft morale bonus on their base speed.

Opinions?

[brass]

Not sure what needs to be changed other than the new classes coming out with the Advanced Players book needing to be Ravenlofted.

[hidajiremi]

Just wanted to note that the third round of class playtests is out, with the Inquisitor and the Alchemist. The inquisitor seems perfect as a Ravenloftian monster hunter class (indeed, one of my current players is chomping at the bit to rewrite his current PC into an inquisitor).


Jeremy Puckett

[Joël of the FoS]

I was thinking the other day that the sorcerer's blood lineage should be remade à al RL, since Pathfinder includes many fantastic creatures not really found in RL.

Second question, should it be creature-based or domain-based (à la domain powers for fiends) ?