Post by hubertbartels on Oct 13, 2016 15:01:04 GMT -5
CHARACTER GUIDELINES - as taken from the Iron Gods Player's Guide
You’re ready to dive into the Iron Gods Adventure Path, but what kind of character should you play? What is the best choice of character that will fit into Numeria and its themes of a savage land scattered with super-science? Should you make a tribal Kellid fighting back against the Technic League’s oppression, a foreign scholar hoping to unravel the mysteries of the otherworldly things found in Numeria, or a dungeon delving opportunist eager to find a good score of treasure?
The following hints, tips, and suggestions are designed to help you make some of these choices so that your character is best suited to exploring this land and taking on its many challenges. The following suggestions are far from exhaustive, and there are thousands of different character concepts that would work perfectly fine in this type of campaign. For more discussion of characters in the Iron Gods Adventure Path, visit the message boards at paizo.com and share your experiences with others who are playing through this campaign.
Alignment
The plot of Iron Gods makes no assumption about PC alignment. You should, of course, work with the other players in your group to ensure your character’s personality and alignment fit with the others in the group, and as with most Adventure Paths, non-evil groups will fit into the plot line easier than evil groups who have less of an interest in helping out villagers in need of aid.
Archetypes and Class Options
The majority of the Iron Gods Adventure Path involves traveling through Numeria to delve ancient technological ruins and encountering the strange guardians that call those ruins home. All classes are suitable for the Adventure Path, but some classes have more thematically appropriate options. What follows are just a few archetype suggestions for characters in the Iron Gods Adventure Path.
One of the best resources for players in this Adventure Path is the Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the River, which contains
the Numerian liberator (barbarian) and galvanic saboteur (rogue) archetypes, as well as a number of useful traits. Of the archetypes found in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide, the archivist (bard), blight druid (druid), breaker (barbarian), and savage barbarian (barbarian) fit some of the themes of this campaign.
Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Combat contains the arcane bomber (wizard), archaeologist (bard), armored hulk (barbarian), pistolero (gunslinger), and spellslinger (wizard) archetypes, all of which are solid choices for this Adventure Path. The clone master (alchemist), metal elementalist (wizard), and stargazer (oracle) archetypes suit the themes of Iron Gods, and can be found in Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic. If you want to play a character associated with the Pathfinder Society in some way, the seeker archetype (sorcerer and oracle) from Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Pathfinder Society Field Guide would fit well in the campaign. Though limited to dwarves, the foehammer (fighter) archetype in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide possesses class features that would be helpful in this Adventure Path.
Bloodlines, Mysteries, and Patrons
While there is no wrong choice of bloodlines for sorcerers and bloodragers, many of them in Numeria have the aberrant, destined, or elemental bloodlines. The starsoul and stormborn bloodlines from Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide both have thematic and mechanical benefits in this campaign. The impossible bloodline from Pathfinder Player Companion: Champions of Balance allows a sorcerer to have greater effect on constructs, and the nanite bloodline in Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the River has close thematic ties to Numeria. Oracles in Numeria often choose one of the following mysteries: battle, flame, heavens, or wind. In addition, the ancestor, dark tapestry, and metal mysteries found in Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic are good for the Iron
Gods Adventure Path. Witch patrons that would work well in this campaign include: agility, elements, fate, stars, time, and transformation.
Animal Companions and Familiars
The following animal companions can all be found in Numeria: antelope, aurochs, badger, bear, bird, boar, dire bat, dire rat, dog, elk, giant weasel, horse, mastodon, moose, pony, ram, stag, viper, and wolf.
The following familiars are commonly found serving wizards and witches in Numeria: armadillo, bat, cat, centipede, fox, goat, giant flea, hawk, hedgehog, owl, pig, raccoon, rat, raven, scorpion, skunk, squirrel, flying squirrel, toad, viper, and weasel.
In addition to these suggestions, three new alien animals are presented in the bestiary of the first volume of the Iron Gods Adventure Path.
Favored Enemies and Favored Terrains
The majority of the action in the Iron Gods Adventure Path takes place in urban environments and underground chambers. Good choices for favored terrains include underground and urban. Solid favored enemy choices include construct, humanoid (android), humanoid (human), undead, and even plant, though other creature types appear in the Adventure Path as well.
Languages
Hallit is the regional language of Numeria, and while most of the region’s inhabitants speak both Hallit and Common, when dealing with barbarians or other characters living in remote locales, knowledge of Hallit will be invaluable. Other languages, particularly Orc, will also come in handy throughout parts of the campaign.
In addition, a unique language exists in Numeria— Androffan. This is the language spoken and written by the alien crew whose ship crashed into Numeria back during the Rain of Stars over 9,000 years ago. Androffan is spoken by robots and some members of the Technic League, and writings can be found in the technological ruins scattered throughout Numeria. Note that you can gain this language for free by taking the Numerian Archaeologist campaign trait. You can also learn Androffan by investing a skill rank in Linguistics. However, this rare language cannot be chosen as a bonus language granted by an above-average Intelligence.
Races
Any and all of the core player character races (human, dwarf, elf, gnome, half ling, half-elf, and half-orc) are appropriate choices for the Iron Gods Adventure Path. As in the majority of nations in the Inner Sea region, most of Numeria’s inhabitants are human. While the majority of these humans are Kellid, other human ethnicities have moved into the area following the lure of unexplored technology and mysterious ruins. More exotic choices can be made with GM approval—in Numeria, the following races are common enough: aasimar, changeling, orc, and tiefling. Other races could work, but they may seem a bit too exotic or out of place for the adventures in Iron Gods for some groups. If your GM allows more powerful races like aasimars or tieflings, he may wish to allow less powerful choices the opportunity to bolster themselves using the race building options in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide, but keep in mind that this increases the baseline power of the PCs and the GM may need to adjust the encounters in the adventures somewhat.
Of special note in the Iron Gods Adventure Path are androids—this race is more common in Numeria than elsewhere in the Inner Sea region, yet they still remain relatively rare. The sadistic Technic League views androids as little more than property, while other inhabitants of the region view all things technological with fear and suspicion, so android PCs may well find themselves particularly challenged by some encounters in the campaign ahead. The ability to disguise yourself as a human (if only via the Disguise skill) may come in handy. See the sidebar for rules for android PCs. These same rules can be found in Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the Stars.
In addition to androids, some players might want to make kasatha characters. I will not allow kasatha characters.
Skills and Feats
There is no single skill that comes into play more often than others in the Iron Gods Adventure Path, so PCs should choose skills that generally aid in exploration—both physical exploration and the exploration of knowledge. Skills like Climb, Diplomacy, Knowledge (dungeoneering), Knowledge (engineering), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nature), Perception, and Survival would all be useful skills to put ranks into.
Despite the wealth of feats available, no single feat stands out as a necessity for this Adventure Path. However, if a character wants to make the most of the technology they might find during the course of the campaign, they would do well with taking the Technologist feat. This feat appears in Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Technology Guide and is reprinted in the Iron Gods player’s guide on page 9.
Campaign Traits will be covered in a later posting.
You’re ready to dive into the Iron Gods Adventure Path, but what kind of character should you play? What is the best choice of character that will fit into Numeria and its themes of a savage land scattered with super-science? Should you make a tribal Kellid fighting back against the Technic League’s oppression, a foreign scholar hoping to unravel the mysteries of the otherworldly things found in Numeria, or a dungeon delving opportunist eager to find a good score of treasure?
The following hints, tips, and suggestions are designed to help you make some of these choices so that your character is best suited to exploring this land and taking on its many challenges. The following suggestions are far from exhaustive, and there are thousands of different character concepts that would work perfectly fine in this type of campaign. For more discussion of characters in the Iron Gods Adventure Path, visit the message boards at paizo.com and share your experiences with others who are playing through this campaign.
Alignment
The plot of Iron Gods makes no assumption about PC alignment. You should, of course, work with the other players in your group to ensure your character’s personality and alignment fit with the others in the group, and as with most Adventure Paths, non-evil groups will fit into the plot line easier than evil groups who have less of an interest in helping out villagers in need of aid.
Archetypes and Class Options
The majority of the Iron Gods Adventure Path involves traveling through Numeria to delve ancient technological ruins and encountering the strange guardians that call those ruins home. All classes are suitable for the Adventure Path, but some classes have more thematically appropriate options. What follows are just a few archetype suggestions for characters in the Iron Gods Adventure Path.
One of the best resources for players in this Adventure Path is the Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the River, which contains
the Numerian liberator (barbarian) and galvanic saboteur (rogue) archetypes, as well as a number of useful traits. Of the archetypes found in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide, the archivist (bard), blight druid (druid), breaker (barbarian), and savage barbarian (barbarian) fit some of the themes of this campaign.
Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Combat contains the arcane bomber (wizard), archaeologist (bard), armored hulk (barbarian), pistolero (gunslinger), and spellslinger (wizard) archetypes, all of which are solid choices for this Adventure Path. The clone master (alchemist), metal elementalist (wizard), and stargazer (oracle) archetypes suit the themes of Iron Gods, and can be found in Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic. If you want to play a character associated with the Pathfinder Society in some way, the seeker archetype (sorcerer and oracle) from Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Pathfinder Society Field Guide would fit well in the campaign. Though limited to dwarves, the foehammer (fighter) archetype in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide possesses class features that would be helpful in this Adventure Path.
Bloodlines, Mysteries, and Patrons
While there is no wrong choice of bloodlines for sorcerers and bloodragers, many of them in Numeria have the aberrant, destined, or elemental bloodlines. The starsoul and stormborn bloodlines from Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide both have thematic and mechanical benefits in this campaign. The impossible bloodline from Pathfinder Player Companion: Champions of Balance allows a sorcerer to have greater effect on constructs, and the nanite bloodline in Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the River has close thematic ties to Numeria. Oracles in Numeria often choose one of the following mysteries: battle, flame, heavens, or wind. In addition, the ancestor, dark tapestry, and metal mysteries found in Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic are good for the Iron
Gods Adventure Path. Witch patrons that would work well in this campaign include: agility, elements, fate, stars, time, and transformation.
Animal Companions and Familiars
The following animal companions can all be found in Numeria: antelope, aurochs, badger, bear, bird, boar, dire bat, dire rat, dog, elk, giant weasel, horse, mastodon, moose, pony, ram, stag, viper, and wolf.
The following familiars are commonly found serving wizards and witches in Numeria: armadillo, bat, cat, centipede, fox, goat, giant flea, hawk, hedgehog, owl, pig, raccoon, rat, raven, scorpion, skunk, squirrel, flying squirrel, toad, viper, and weasel.
In addition to these suggestions, three new alien animals are presented in the bestiary of the first volume of the Iron Gods Adventure Path.
Favored Enemies and Favored Terrains
The majority of the action in the Iron Gods Adventure Path takes place in urban environments and underground chambers. Good choices for favored terrains include underground and urban. Solid favored enemy choices include construct, humanoid (android), humanoid (human), undead, and even plant, though other creature types appear in the Adventure Path as well.
Languages
Hallit is the regional language of Numeria, and while most of the region’s inhabitants speak both Hallit and Common, when dealing with barbarians or other characters living in remote locales, knowledge of Hallit will be invaluable. Other languages, particularly Orc, will also come in handy throughout parts of the campaign.
In addition, a unique language exists in Numeria— Androffan. This is the language spoken and written by the alien crew whose ship crashed into Numeria back during the Rain of Stars over 9,000 years ago. Androffan is spoken by robots and some members of the Technic League, and writings can be found in the technological ruins scattered throughout Numeria. Note that you can gain this language for free by taking the Numerian Archaeologist campaign trait. You can also learn Androffan by investing a skill rank in Linguistics. However, this rare language cannot be chosen as a bonus language granted by an above-average Intelligence.
Races
Any and all of the core player character races (human, dwarf, elf, gnome, half ling, half-elf, and half-orc) are appropriate choices for the Iron Gods Adventure Path. As in the majority of nations in the Inner Sea region, most of Numeria’s inhabitants are human. While the majority of these humans are Kellid, other human ethnicities have moved into the area following the lure of unexplored technology and mysterious ruins. More exotic choices can be made with GM approval—in Numeria, the following races are common enough: aasimar, changeling, orc, and tiefling. Other races could work, but they may seem a bit too exotic or out of place for the adventures in Iron Gods for some groups. If your GM allows more powerful races like aasimars or tieflings, he may wish to allow less powerful choices the opportunity to bolster themselves using the race building options in Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide, but keep in mind that this increases the baseline power of the PCs and the GM may need to adjust the encounters in the adventures somewhat.
Of special note in the Iron Gods Adventure Path are androids—this race is more common in Numeria than elsewhere in the Inner Sea region, yet they still remain relatively rare. The sadistic Technic League views androids as little more than property, while other inhabitants of the region view all things technological with fear and suspicion, so android PCs may well find themselves particularly challenged by some encounters in the campaign ahead. The ability to disguise yourself as a human (if only via the Disguise skill) may come in handy. See the sidebar for rules for android PCs. These same rules can be found in Pathfinder Player Companion: People of the Stars.
In addition to androids, some players might want to make kasatha characters. I will not allow kasatha characters.
Skills and Feats
There is no single skill that comes into play more often than others in the Iron Gods Adventure Path, so PCs should choose skills that generally aid in exploration—both physical exploration and the exploration of knowledge. Skills like Climb, Diplomacy, Knowledge (dungeoneering), Knowledge (engineering), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (nature), Perception, and Survival would all be useful skills to put ranks into.
Despite the wealth of feats available, no single feat stands out as a necessity for this Adventure Path. However, if a character wants to make the most of the technology they might find during the course of the campaign, they would do well with taking the Technologist feat. This feat appears in Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Technology Guide and is reprinted in the Iron Gods player’s guide on page 9.
Campaign Traits will be covered in a later posting.
