Class Feature Friday: Starlit Span (Pathfinder Second Edition Magus Hybrid Study)

(art by Silvalia on DeviantArt)

Traditionally, thanks to the 1e version and pretty much every other hybrid study in the 2e version, we think of the magus as a primary melee class, with any ranged options being limited to spellcasting.

However, that need not be the case, and tonight’s subject is the perfect complement to creating a ranged alternative to the normal magus, akin to certain archetypes from first edition.

And this can be with any sort of ranged weapon too! Thrown weapons, bows, crossbows, and even firearms are all on the table here. (Although if you want a hybrid study even more focused on firearms, might I recommend checking out my Patreon)

Regardless of what you want them to specialize in, these magical warriors can lay down ranged fire support with shot and spell alike.

As one might expect, these magi can use their spellstrike with ranged weapons, though only at closer ranges for the weapon.

Additionally, as something they added in the Impossible Magic remaster, those that master the Starlit Span can ignore lesser cover while under an arcane cascade, be it because their projectiles phase or blow through the cover, or arc around it.

The conflux spell of this option empowers a projectile with a shimmering comet trail that marks a foe after the strike hits, making them easy targets for follow-up attacks from the magus and their allies.

The other spells on offer for this option include using telekinesis to hinder and disrupt foes, creating walls of wind to block enemy projectiles, and the magic of freedom to prevent them or allies from being pinned down.

The study of course comes with some feats of it’s own to expand their abilities. With Starlit Eyes, the maguc improves their senses to better target foes hiding behind cover and concealment, and they even gain a powerful sixth sense that lets them better target hidden foes when using their conflux spell to mark them. Meteoric Spellstrike lets them pierce and burn foes as their projectile travels on it’s way to it’s target with a spellstrike.

You may also find other feats useful for this option, including Magus’s Analysis, Expansive Spellstrike, Force Fang, Running Recharge, Spell Crash, Cascading Ray, Rapid Recharge, Supreme Spellstrike, and of course any others that work with your build.

This option is a great subversion of a lot of expectations of the magus class, and it certainly will change the sort of spells you pick. It is tempting to focus on ranged or area spells, but a few melee touch spells could be useful in an emergency to punish foes that get in close while still being usable to punish foes with ranged spellstrikes.

Choosing the path of the Starlit Span is much like any path as a magus, but I have to imagine that while magi normally love the thrill of combining their keen minds with a  well-trained body in the thrill of close combat, I have to imagine that those that choose the ranged path value focus and precision instead, analyzing foes and the situation with utmost focus until the time comes to strike.

Armed with nothing but an enchanted chakram, Momo the peachchild leshy already feels the urge to wander and right wrongs as his legendary parallel once did. His method of doing so is wholly unique though, as he uses arcane magic to call down the wrath of the stars on the wicked.

In the land of Eneth, mages that graduate from their masters take on bynames so that they may be recognized by others and by history, often taken from magical events they were involved in during their final lessons. Deathless Bear, for example, is not named for his bulk or strength, but for the undead bear that he put out of it’s misery with a single shot of his magically-empowered musket.

The coming of the Blood Comet is surrounded by legends of the restless dead and vampires becoming more aggressive under it’s watch, but these half-remembered stories veil the truth: that a clan of interstellar vampires dwelling in the depths of the icy sphere awaken when the ice begins to melt upon nearing the sun, and use their magic to raid various planets, seeking to slake their thirst and acquire means to further empower themselves.

Blackjacket (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)

(art by Asahisuperdry on DeviantArt)

Around 4 months ago, we talked about the Prophets of Kalistrade, that group of occultly-empowered merchants and hucksters seeking to avoid the afterlife be using rituals and raw wealth to create a personal mindscape paradise after death.

But while alive, these uber-capitalists need someone to protect their riches and of course themselves, as well as enforce their will and law upon the nation of Druma, which the upper echelons of this belief system rules over with an iron fist.

And that’s where the Mercenary League, the Kalistocrat’s police/personal enforcers/bodyguards, come into play.

Also known as Blackjackets for their signature uniforms, these enforcers are every bit of it in for the money as their bosses, but while the Kalistocrats are beholden to nothing but higher ranking members and the lifestyle preparing them for the eternity they speak, do not mistake the Blackjackets for mere thugs for hire. No indeed, the Mercenary League prides itself in it’s professionalism, and every member is rigorously trained to be not just skilled in combat and arrest, but also in thinking tactically. Turns out you can get some of the best military training out there when you’re bankrolled by some of the wealthiest people.

This archetype represents some of that training, and only requires proficiency with medium armor and martial weapons to get into. This locks out the more weenie spellcasters without special training, but it does mean you can find Blackjackets of nearly any class!

So let’s see what makes the Blackjackets so special!

The base dedication to the archetype comes with the right to wear the black outerwear of the company and also training in the lore of warfare. What’s more, they know exactly how to use the bulk of their armor to become even more intimidating.

One of the hardest and most important lessons of tactics is understanding when a particular method is not working. As such, when they see an ally stonewalled by a foe’s defense, they can call out to that ally and direct them to try a different angle of attack, allowing them to strike again without the loss of accuracy normally seen from attacking repeatedly.

Fearsome indeed, these mercenaries know how to best strike fear into the hearts of those they attack.

The first lesson of any contract work is to make a plan. And so when these individuals are set with a task, they usually take some time to come up with an effective plan of action to achieve it. Knowing what they should be doing lends them a surety to every skilled action they take in the process of achieving the goal they set for themselves.

Being flanked is a serious tactical disadvantage, but a good Blackjacket learns to extricate themselves from such predicaments, striking their foes and they step out of that compromising position.

Tactical training means being able to take advantage of any gap in a foe’s defense. As such, many Blackjackets are trained to perform reactive strikes.

With a whistle and an exaggerated movement, some of these warriors telegraph their attacks to cue allies to follow their lead. This does make the attack easier for the foe to dodge, but that guidance allows one or more allies to follow it up with greater accuracy.

The plan-makers among these mercenaries understand that the phrase “no plan survives contact with the enemy” has many meanings, one of which is that the very presence of enemy forces and how they react to a plan can unravel it if they are not careful. As such, while acting on a plan, they can single out a single foe that threatens their plan to eliminate as quickly as possible, striking hard and fast and dealing additional harm with their attacks.

Fear is the ultimate gap in defense, and by pressing in hard against a fearful foe, they can force them to panic and drop their guard even further.

The satisfaction of a plan well-carried out is bolstering to some of these mercs, causing them to gain a surge in vigor for a while.

A grievous wound is often the perfect opening to strike, and so some Blackjackets train to take advantage of an ally’s deadly blow to add one of their own to seal the deal.

This is a fairly simple and fun archetype that offers ways for a martial or semi-martial character to aid allies, buff themselves when pursing a goal, and debuff foes through intimidation, not to mention some nice tactical options. If you’re looking to get stuck into combat but be a bit more clever than just swinging freely every round, this archetype might appeal to you.

I kinda glossed over it, but much like the Kalisocrats themselves… I don’t really have any respect for these individuals in the lore. However, that isn’t to say you can’t make interesting stories with these complicated characters, and of course, this archetype can easily be adapted to any sort of mercenary or even a professional soldier character with ease.

Saheer has an infamous reputation as an adaptable commander as fluid as the many elemental powers in his blood. The suli-jann shoony may look adorable, but the party will have to find a way to outmaneuver him if they seek to get past the blockade that the canine commander has been hired to run.

The party is part of the escort hired to help a caravan carrying precious and classified cargo through the Blacktimber Forest, a place of death and decay caused by some forgotten blight. Many sickly plant monsters lurk among the dying trees, but perhaps the most dangerous are the corpseroots, undead trees of terrible malice and dark thirst.

Mount Kaggorden is perhaps the most treacherous climb in the entire Haelivian continent, and it is there that the mercenaries of the Night Eagle Company train. However, it would be foolish to assume they claim the mountain as their home, for there are secrets there that they wisely have not pried into.

Beast Lord (Pathfinder Second Edition Mythic Destiny Archetype)

(art by NocturnalSong23 on DeviantArt)

When legendary heroes are mentioned in tale or song, most often they speak of their tales alone, or perhaps those of their close companions. A lot of the time, if these heroes had animal companions with them, they are mostly listed as a footnote rather than getting the same billing as their master.

Regardless of if this is true for every mythological hero, I think we can all agree that to the hero themselves, their companion beast or beasts are anything but footnote, sticking with them through thick and thin.

Some of these animals expressly were greater than others of their kind, but all were worthy beasts indeed, from Adnuall and Bran, the hounds of Finn MacCumhaill to the White Lion friend of Sir Owain of Arthurian legend. Even modern heroes of fiction occasionally demonstrate this bond. Certainly Drizzt Do’Urden would qualify with Guenhwyvar the massive black panther figurine of wondrous power.

And so we have today’s archetype, the Beast Lord, for those with a truly legendary bond with beast that transcends all others regardless of whether it is detailed in legend or not. Those that do understand what makes the duo legendary even speak of these beings not just being bonded emotionally, but in their very souls, to the point that some legends speak of neither truly being able to die while the other lives.

Don’t think this is just limited to animals and other companions available to rangers and druids though. There is also an option for inventors and others with construct companions to have such a bond too, drawing straight out of your favorite pulp sci-fi duos of man and machine.

So with all that in mind, let’s see what being a mythically-empowered duo has to offer! As we’ll soon see, there are even some elements of the old Guardian mythic path here too, appropriate since that had companion options.

The base dedication of this archetype bolsters the intelligence of one of the hero’s companions to something more than animal or robot, if it was not already better, granting them the ability to truly understand and communicate back in a limited way with their master. What’s more, the minds of both beings are bonded together so that one bolsters the other when they are assaulted mentally.

Some of these beastmasters have a knack for guarding others, and both they and their companion keep an eye out to protect their current ward when nearby. With a bit of mythic power, they can even move with unnatural speed to drag the ward down and away from explosive blasts when needed.

Others instead choose to guard a region, and become supernaturally gifted at tracking and learning about intruders by consulting the animals and the land itself. With a bit of mythic power, they can even teleport anywhere within the designated region.

Normally even allies give each other space when fighting, but for some duos, they are so in sync with their movements that they can stand in the same area and fight together without interfering at all, and even throw off foes with the fluidity of their coordinated movements.

Like a pair of pack hunters, some of these beast masters fight together so well with their companion that escape is nearly impossible when they attack a single foe together. Even if they do escape their reach, the hunter and beast seem to have an uncanny knack for tracking down this marked prey wherever it goes or tries to hide, at least for a while.

One hero or beast can spell trouble for a foe, but two at the same time is a nightmare, particularly when warrior and beast work together, one knocking the other into the waiting embrace of the other.

Only a fool would assume that the companion of such a beast lord is a weakness to be exploited, and many reflexively stride up to punish foes that even dare the attempt, preventing it from succeeding.

Some develop such a strong bond that it actually transcends normal communication into actual telepathy, allowing beast and warrior to communicate even across large distances.

Normally companion creatures are limited in the amount of actions they can perform, but by accepting a commanding stance, the beast lord can speed up their companion, allowing them to do more.

Powerful masters sometimes find their companion changing into a true creature of myth, either by mystical blessing, mutation, or modification. Some might have baleful fluids or energies within themselves that make injuring them hazardous, some might have two biting heads, some might be warded against a certain form of elemental damage, some might grow wings or other form of flight, and some might become supernaturally durable, bypassed only by exotic materials.

Some companions become lords among their kind, to the point that they can conjure figments of hordes of similar beasts to swarm and engulf foes.

The most powerful beast lords become inexorably intertwined with their companion on a spiritual level. When one dies, their soul is stored with the other and able to speak with them, allowing them to be resurrected after a little bit of time with ease. However, even if both die, they will still reincarnate later as children and/or young creatures, and may yet find each other again. Only by slaying them both in their reincarnated youth can break the cycle permanently.

This mythic destiny is perfect for any character whose build is focused on working together with their companion. Several feats are all about working together with the companion, and others are thematic to certain builds and concepts, such as being the mythic defender of a particular location. I will say that there are surprisingly little uses for mythic power with these feats, but the ones that do exist are very useful and reliable.

The bond between master and companion here cannot be understated, but we’ve been rather coy about how one goes about establishing such a bond. Perhaps the bond was divinely ordained (such as the gods granting Bellerophon the aid of Pegasus), or simply arose when two beings were forced to put their trust in one another due to an extreme situation that awakened the spark of mythic power within. No matter what the exact reason is, you won’t often see one without the other.

On the primeval world of Kados, you won’t find humanoids as we understand them, as this is a world populated by awakened forms of the saurian natural wildlife. Most live fairly normal lives, forming civilizations, but despite their primal origins, some fall to the temptations of evil and unnatural powers. When this happens, legend has it heroes will arise, particularly those who call upon their un-awakened kin to battle against the darkness.

Bizzik the Tinker is much like any kobold, putting his mind to finding mastery and survival somewhere outside raw brawn, and so he build many curious devices and inventions. However, his greatest creation is Scrapfang, an especially cunning and strong dragon-shaped automaton. If you ask Bizzik, he will tell you the inspiration for the innovations that make the construct so special “came to him in a dream”.

Oozes are almost rarely companions for nature-aligned heroes, given how hard to train they are. Naldus the Fleshless, however, apparently is one of the few who overcame this hurdle, the intelligent skeleton being accompanied by his tomb jelly Cleaner. However, it is clear to any observer that there must be something more to Naldus, Cleaner, or both.

Battle Harbinger (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)

(art by PaladinZer0 on DeviantArt)

So, funny story. Remember when I was talking about how the avenger and the vindicator (and the bloodrager but that’s not till two weeks from now) were takes on redeeming/bringing forward classes from 1e that maybe didn’t warrant the full class treatment?

Well, I somehow forgot that Second Edition had also done that with today’s entry: the Battle Harbinger!

The battle harbinger is a cleric that focuses on bringing the power of divine magic onto the battlefield, even more so than clerics that follower the warpriest doctrine, complete with applications of divine magic that vary from what is normally available to these priests.

So yes, this is 2e’s take on the warpriest, even though the warpriest name was already used for the doctrine available to clerics without this archetype. (And no, it comes with it’s own special doctrine like a lot of class archetypes, so you can’t take this with the warpriest doctrine).

Annoyances at shared names aside, the battle harbinger promises to make your cleric a little better at combat things in exchange for some of their normal spellcasting potential.

And it even comes with art of our beloved Oloch having taken on a new deity with the death of Gorum. And honestly? Genzaeri is a better fit for helping him become a better person his mom can be proud of. Good for him.

So let’s see what the battle harbinger has to offer!

Like all class archetypes, we start with some abilities at first level before the dedication feat. In the case of the battle harbinger, they’re actually fairly drastic. First, they do not get the Resolute Faith nor the Miraculous Spell features, meaning their will save progression is weaker and they lack the ability to cast 10th level spells unless gained from a feat.

Additionally, they have the partial casting slots seen in the magus and summoner class, limiting how often they cast each day.

They also do not get the normal divine font, and instead gain 4 extra spell slots only for casting bane and bless. The rest of the archetype refers to these as battle aura spells for quick reference when it comes to certain feats.

Finally they must choose the battle creed as their doctrine, which grants a lot of abilities. These include better training in arms and armor, including improving the strength of weaker favored weapons, getting the critical specialization effect with the favored weapon, being able to reflexively attack, and so on. By comparison this doctrine is mostly the same was the warpriest, but with a greater focus on combat and getting some abilities earlier.

And all of that finally leads to getting the dedication feat, which grants greater physical training and vitality.

True to their warrior training, these harbingers can unleash a powerful attack that leaves them vulnerable afterwards.

While the basic aura spells of this archetype bolster or hamper attacks, those that would rather defend their allies or open up gaps in a foe’s armor can learn magic to do that instead.

Many of these clerics are literally fearsome warriors, and can strike with such fury as to unsettle their foe.

For a battle harbinger, attacking is not a distraction from their magical efforts, but a source of focus instead, allowing them to maintain and expand their battle auras as they keep up the assault.

Like some other magical warriors, these warpriests can channel some of the excess energies from their spells to briefly empower their weapons, either with some of the damaging energies of the spell in question, or some good old fashion magical force to empower a follow-up strike.

The will of the harbinger and the power of their deity can sometimes leave an impression even upon mindless creatures, allowing them to use their various aura spells to aid or hinder them.

While medium armor is good enough for some, a few battle harbingers prefer heavier armor, and train to use it to full effectiveness.

Those with more talent for magic sometimes develop an additional reserve of magic for casting special spells, typically those that grant additional means of mobility, buff and protect themselves and allies, and enhancing their attacks. With mastery, the potency of these spells and the options available only grow.

Some of these battle clerics can pour power into their preferred weapon to enhance it in different ways each day, preparing for the battles they know they will soon face.

Those that maintain their auras while attacking can learn to use the surge of vigor from successfully dealing a grievous blow to enhance the potency of an aura they have in effect, potentially turning such a spell into a potent buff or debuff indeed.

Others learn how to maintain multiple auras at once, covering foes in hinderance and allies in bolstering protection at the same time.

Some can even sustain auras so effortlessly that they still have time for other actions.

As they grow in power, those that provide daily buffs to their weapons can expand their repertoire, adding various elemental or divine effects to their weapons.

At the zenith of their power, some of these harbingers are able of putting up battle auras occasionally with less effort than usual, making them ever-ready for the next fight.

This archetype primarily revolves around setting up area-effect buffs and debuffs on the field and sustaining them, as well as sacrificing the cleric’s robust spellcasting in favor of partial casting and better martial training. As such, you have the option to go heavy on the auras and find ways to sustain them freely and with greater effect, or focus on being even better at combat, or both, depending on your build. Just remember that you’re not going to be the one anyone goes to for utility casting with your limited spell slots, which will no doubt be devoted entirely to combat spells.

While the mechanics of this archetype aren’t really anything like those of the old warpriest class, it still succeeds in having much the same vibe. As such, a lot of my advice for playing them remains the same. How does your character’s belief system influence how they reconcile with being a warrior? Is it a problem at all? Do they have doubts? What sort of doctrine would call for such warriors in otherwise peaceful religions?

There are few icons more recognizable than the holy knight slaying a dragon, and for most, the story of Saint Helog is one such story, where the mighty hero slew the beast and defended the innocent. However, there is a hidden truth to this story. For while the dragon was never seen again, the skull trophy in his shrine is not that of a true dragon, but of a tatzlwyrm.

Most who see an orcish battle harbinger assume they follow a god of war and bloodly battle, of violence for violence’s sake. Certainly those that believe such things have never actually interacted with orc society, but Brother Niblek especially defies such outdated expectations by being a harbinger of the Firetender, who in human civilization takes the title of the Hearthmother, a goddess of warm fires, good food, and on occasion, a furious defense of the home.

In the war of Silver Rings, a rivalry has emerged between the blessed general Halan Coarsedredge and the sinister general known only as Blackhelm. While the two have never met face to face as far as anyone knows, the conflicts they have led to them clashing many times. And yet, despite this, persistent rumors abound that Halan knows who Blackhelm is, and in fact may have history with them.

Avenger (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)

(art by Brett-Neufeld on DeviantArt)

About two months ago we talked about the vindicator archetype and how that gave new life to the old inquisitor class in a less controversial form as a class archetype for ranger, and in that entry we also mentioned another class that was a “redemption” of an older class.

Well, today is the day to talk about it because our subject is the avenger archetype!

The avenger is a rogue class archetype that is all about being a sneaky assassin for a higher calling, particularly a faith. More often than not these assassins belong to secretive religious orders, sometimes even having heretical fringe beliefs about their deity’s teachings, complete with divine power to go with it.

And you might be thinking, “This is reminding me a lot of the flavor and lore behind the old slayer class and it’s iconic character Zadim, even though any divine abilities of that class were almost always behind archetypes and the occasional talent.”

And you’d be right. The avenger is indeed the attempt to bring the slayer forward into the modern day with a bit more of the character of it’s original lore and not just “rogue plus ranger”.

Unlike the vindicator/inquisitor, this is less a redemption of the core concept and perhaps more a redemption of the iconic character themselves. Zadim being an extremist of the Cult of the Dawnflower until he could finally no longer reconcile the commands for death with his goddess’s teachings and left them, turning his talents towards more worthy goals than punishing whoever his superiors deemed was wicked. And we can all agree that a middle-eastern coded character not being an extremist is certainly better and more respectful representation in this day and age.

In any case, the avenger certainly draws upon not just the 1e slayer, but also the archetypes of it and the rogue that offered a bit of divine power to such assassins, though the exact nature of that power and how they are expected to use it varies by the god and the organization they act in the name of, with some being ruthless enough to earn back the title of “slayer”, while others might be less brutal in their methods, even focusing on other clandestine activities than just knives in the dark.

So let’s see what they offer!

The avenger is a class archetype, so it does make some changes to your character before you even take the dedication feat. In this case, a rogue must follow a deity of course, but rather than attack suddenly during the first round of combat they instead get the ability to hunt prey as a ranger does. They also get a different list of starting proficient skills.

Additionally, they get their own special racket unique to this archetype, which focuses on not relying quite so much on deception and trickery, but rather more on martial skill. This grants them training with the favored weapon of their deity, the ability to use their sneak attack with it if they couldn’t normally, as well as get the critical specialization when they crit an off-guard foe. They also train in their deity’s favored skill, get better armor training, and can choose to be strength-based rather than dex based if they so desire.

And with that, we finally get to the dedication feat. This included training to resist hostile divine spells and attacks on the spirit, as allows them to use their connections with their faith to get information as long as a congregation of that religion is locally available.

Some avengers enjoy dual-wielding, and so train to strike with both at once in powerful blows to overcome resistances.

Others with similar training use their twin weapons to parry foes.

With a bit of their deity’s divine wrath in their strikes, some of these assassins can mark a foe with spiritual doom with their favored weapon, bringing them that much closer to an early end even if the wounds wouldn’t kill on their own or are even magically healed.

As warriors of the divine, many of these slayers often face foes of rival faiths, and they know it is usually best to prevent a foe from invoking their faith with divine magic whenever possible. As such, they train to reactively lash out at foes the moment a prayer is uttered to try and interrupt them.

Powerful avengers can try to put foes to a final rest with their attacks. Foes with any amount of doom die instantly when struck down by their blows, and send their soul on so that magic meant to call them back to speak or be resurrected, or be bound in undeath, struggle to work.

With a bit of setup, a sufficiently doomed foe can be dealt a powerful, potentially fatal finishing blow by skilled avengers.

Those that trained to fight and parry with twin weapons often learn later to riposte foes with ease.

Some even use their twin weapons to overwhelm the defenses of foes, allowing them to get in minor blows with their second weapon even as their foe blocks the first.

Masters of twin combat are whirlwinds of blocking and riposting blades, able to punish multiple foes that attack them.

This is a fun archetype, though I feel like you can get two different experiences based on the favored weapon of your deity. If their favored weapon is one-handed, you have a lot of opportunity to become a two-weapon combatant, but if it’s two-handed, you’re more limited on the feats that are worthwhile to take here. Either way, a lot of this archetype if about forcibly increasing a foe’s doomed condition without downing them and then finishing them off with powerful blows. Be careful trying to use it against toughed foes though. Best to focus on the sneak attack against those instead.

While this archetype is all about killing in the name of faith, how the character feels about this killing can vary by the person and by the nature of their religion. Followers of orderly gods might view what they do as a necessary part of maintaining stability, while more goodly avengers might pray for guidance and soul-soothing afterwards. And of course, the followers of wicked gods will revel in the slaughter.

It was supposed to be a simple mission. In the name of the Boundless Explorer, Nirras was sent to assassinate a kholo chieftain and pin the blame on a rival tribe so that they would be both weakened in preparation for colonization. But when ambushed by a fearsome beast and rescued by the very man she was sent to kill, she is forced to confront that he and the rest of the hyena folk are actual, real people with a bond and right to the land, a realization that flies in the face of the god of Manifest Destiny.

When the tyrant Lizzo begins sending assassins provided by the temple of the Iron Hand, the rebellion decides to retaliate with a clever tactic, sowing chaos against their foes by conjuring a horde of proteans. “Organized” into various tumults, the chaotic monitors will certainly disrupt Lizzo’s ability to rule over the city, but some worry that they might become a problem later.

The heist is going off without a hitch, that is, until a zealous slayer that has been hunting the party chooses this moment to act, threatening to spill their blood all over the gleaming tiles. It will take serious quick thinking to get the party out of this jam, hopefully while still salvaging the mission!

Conversion Corner: More Vampire Survivors Spells part 5

Penshin Fatcha

We end off the week with the other addition to the game in the most recent update, and it is by far the most unique of them all!

Penshin Fatcha (a wordplay of the Italian idiom “A fish to the face”) is the signature weapon of Para Kooleo, a new icthyocentaur/kelpie-esque character, which summon forth a rush of water and tuna to engulf and overwhelm enemies. However, the exact nature of the weapon varies, because unlike other weapons, when it evolves the player can actually pick from a list to totally change how the weapon works, or focus on only a few, because eventually one unlocks the ability to unleash all the previously-selected weapon modes at once, allowing one to cultivate a final weapon that suits what you want it to do. (unless of course you play as one of Kooleo’s alternate skins that is locked into one version o the weapon and never changes it)

The different weapon forms are Tonno Subito, which fires conjured tuna as projectiles that explode into seawater; Tonnado, which summon mobile vortexes of water and fish that bounce around; Tonn’omoto, which rains tuna down in an arching storm of projectiles; Tonn’odeeo, which rains down fish that surge with an area of churning seawater upon hitting the ground; Tonne, which summons massive tuna that slam into the ground and churn up more seawater, and finally Unsurpassed, which summons tuna that rapidly flop horizontally across the screen.

…Needless to say, the tongue in cheek humor of Vampire Survivors and the poncle staff is on full display here. But I still plan to try and make a legitimate spell out of this nevertheless!

Sacred Fish

School conjuration (summoning); Level cleric/oracle 8, druid 8, shaman 8

Casting

Casting Time 1 standard action

Components V, S

Effect

Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)

Effect attacks involving seawater and conjured fish in various forms

Duration Concentration, up to 1 round/level (D)

Saving Throw Reflex, see text; Spell Resistance no

Description

You summon up rushing waves and conjured tuna or other large fish, weaponizing them in various forms.

When you cast this spell, choose one of the forms listed below, which takes effect. At the beginning of each of your turns during the duration, you may choose to maintain the same form or switch to another form. Switching forms consumes an additional round of duration. Some forms may allow you to choose different targets or areas affected when you choose to sustain the same form, while others may maintain the same area.

The forms this spell can take are:

===

This was a fun spell to design, able to shift forms based on the situation, but also eating up a resource to do so. Dunno if it’s fully balanced, but it was a fun idea nevertheless.

Conversion Corner: More Vampire Survivor Spells part 4

Infinite Corridor

Our second to last conversion today is the Infinite Corridor, the evolved form of the Clock Lancet, the weapon of Iguana Gallo Valletto (or just Gallo).

Gallo appears to be a powerful mage, and may in fact be the owner and creator of the Gallo Tower level in the game. Corroborating that is the fact that he actually appears as a miniboss in the midway point of a run of that level, presumably because, infested with monsters or not, he’s tired of you tearing up his house.

I have a few theories on what Gallo’s deal is, be he a victim of his students’ experiments getting out of hand, his own hubris, or perhaps being a Vegeta-esque reformed villain after you kick his booty and unlock him, but sadly there’s not much to go on aside from a few bestiary entries, such as that he created the Gallotrice enemy, and that he apparently abandoned the tower which then fell into depravity and monstrous experimentation without his guiding hand. Perhaps he abandoned it after something happened that turned Leda (a secret character unlocked in the stage) into the horrible monstrous form that lurked in the darkest bottom depths of the tower?

In any case, the Infinite Corridor functions much like it’s unevolved version, unleashing beams around the wielder in a rhythmic fashion following the 12 positions of a clock face. These beams deal no damage, but freeze enemies hit by them in stasis for a few seconds, making it useful for disrupting the approaching hordes (especially when you add arcanas that give it damage to the mix).

However, a trait that sets the Infinite Corridor apart is what happens when the beams “strike twelve”. When this happens, a pulse of rainbow energy erupts from the character, filling the screen, and halving the remaining hp of all visible enemies. This devastating effect and the freezing power means the weapon is one of two ways to reliably kill the Red Death enemy that normally ends a run.

Also, as a small bit of trivia, the name “Infinite Corridor” is a reference to an extradimensional space seen a few times in the Castlevania franchise, and the method needed to evolve it is also a Castlevania reference, needing two rings to unite with this clock-themed item. (a la, Symphony of the Night)

Doom Countdown

School transmutation; Level psychic 9, sorcerer/wizard 9

Casting

Casting Time 1 standard action

Components V

Effect

Range personal

Target you

Duration Concentration, up to 12 rounds.

Saving Throw Will negates

Description

You channel the power of inevitability and time through your body, turning yourself into a sort of doomsday clock. Beginning on the round you cast the spell and every time you spend a standard action to concentrate on the spell, you project a 30 foot line of temporal distortion. Creatures that fail their will save are slowed for 1d4 rounds. After you initial casting, every line you project with this spell must be within 90 degrees clockwise of the previous line, not including the angle of the previous line itself.

At the end of the twelfth round of concentrating on this spell, the spell concludes with a 30 ft. spread of raw entropic energy. Creatures hostile to you in the area must make a Will save or take 1d4 negative levels as they age or wear down supernaturally fast. These negative levels bypass normal immunities to energy drain.

Conversion Corner: More Vampire Survivor Spells part 3

Santa Javelin

Our next subject is the signature weapon of Santa Ladonna, a character who has a lot of ties to the lore of Vampire Survivors, being the inventor of several vampire-killing weapons (including the santa water, king bible, and cross, which she has a special ability revolving around, alongside presumably today’s weapon). The fact that she’s also clearly a reference to Santa Claus, what with the several holy items associated with her and the fact she used to run a holy weapon laboratory (a “workshop”, if you will) and even gets a free arma dio and candybox during play (two weapons that could be considered wrapped gifts since they let you pick any item you want from a list), doesn’t seem to tie into the weapon itself, but it is funny.

The santa javelin is true to it’s name, as it seems to conjure several icicle-like projectiles that rain down from above, forming a close row. What’s more, they generate a small shockwave upon landing. My best interpretation is that these falling projectiles are formed of frozen holy water, which isn’t that much of a stretch given the game already has a spell that utilizes the like, albeit in a different way.

The weapon also has an evolution: Seraphic Cry, but it functions differently enough that it ought to be it’s own spell, I think. Especially since it’s one of those weapons in VS that gets twinned by the Gemini Arcana, with the twin remaining the same so that when the original evolves you still get the attack pattern of the original while the drastically different evolution doesn’t fully replace it. See also Gatti Amari, peachone/ebony wings, Phiera Der Tuphello/Eight the Sparrow, and the like

Anyway, let’s take a stab at converting the spell!

Holy Icicles

School conjuration [cold, good]; Level cleric/oracle 5

Casting

Casting Time 1 standard action

Components V, S, M (a bottle of holy water)

Effect

Range 60 ft.

Area see text

Duration instantaneous

Saving Throw Reflex half; Spell Resistance yes

Description

You conjure a hail of icicles of frozen holy water you may direct as required. The icicles affect one 5-foot square per caster level, and each square must be adjacent to the previous square, though since the icicles fall from above they might hit higher targets or be blocked by barriers. The icicles may not extend beyond their maximum range. Creatures struck by the icicles take 1d8 piercing and cold damage per 2 caster levels (maximum 10d8). The piercing damage ignores DR bypassed by holy.

====

I actually based this spell on Fire Snake, with some modifications to fit in with divine damaging spells and the nature of the attack. It was fun to come up with!

Conversion Corner: More Vampire Survivors Spells part 2

Spirit Disturbance

We continue on, with one of the two new weapons in the most recent base game update!

The Unearthly Bolt and it’s evolved form: Spirit Disturbance are the signature weapon of Big Troubler, a Chinese sorcerer-esque character who is clearly heavily based on Lo Pan, the antagonist of Big Trouble in Little China. Beyond that, we know very little about him beyond the fact that he shows up as a merchant in the flooded catacombs called the Lycaeum, has some sort of connection to the Bat Dragon minibosses, and has the ability to use gold to protect himself and accelerate his attacks.

The weapon itself is a discharge of electricity that arcs to multiple foes in sequence and if it triggers a crit, will unleash a shockwave of power from the final target of the arc, damaging even more foes. Meanwhile, the Spirit Disturbance evolved form summons a serpentine dragon-like electrical spirit that serves as the source of the bolts, and always crits, ensuring every bolt unleashes the pulse.

Visually, I assumed the weapon was too similar to chain lightning to warrant a conversion, but the more I looked at it, the more I figured it was worth trying!

Levinwyrm Spirit

School evocation [air, electricity]; Level druid 5, magus 5, occultist 5, shaman 5, sorcerer/wizard 5

Casting

Casting Time 1 standard action

Components V, S, M/DF (a bit of charred wood from a lightning struck tree)

Effect

Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)

Effect serpentine spirit of lightning that hovers near the caster, discharging at foes.

Duration 1 round/level

Saving Throw Reflex negates; Spell Resistance yes

Description

You invoke a serpentine entity of living lightning that seethes and writhes in the air near you. As part of the initial casting and as a move action once per turn, you can command the spirit to discharge a bolt of lightning at a target within range. The target takes 4d6 electricity damage (Reflex negates). If the initial target failed its save, the bolt arcs to another target up to 30 feet from the previous target, with the same damage and Reflex saves, repeating until the bolt affects the maximum number of targets or a target makes their Reflex save. A single bolt can hit up to 1 target plus one for every 3 levels after 9th (maximum 4 targets at 18th) level. A single bolt cannot arc to the same target twice.

When a bolt finishes arcing (by running out of targets or a target succeeding the Reflex save, the electricity discharges into the surrounding area, potentially hitting nearby creatures. Creatures within 10 feet of the final target (but not including the final target) take 4d6 electricity damage (Reflex negates). This area effect can damage previously-arced-to targets as long as they are not the final target.

===

This spell was tricky, but I had fun coming up with a way to deal regular damage that can cascade to other targets, but always has the chance to be a bit underwhelming.

Conversion Corner: More Vampire Survivors Spells part 1

Song of Mana

We’re back with more spells inspired by Vampire Survivors, and I’m glad to see the game has continued to evolve since last time we did this, with new updates and another upcoming DLC on the horizon. (A pity I have to wait to play them since I’m on the Switch version).

Much like last time I’ll be focusing on weapons from the games that are original creations, avoiding the crossover DLCs (Despite the temptation otherwise).

And so we’re starting off this week with the Song of Mana, the signature weapon of Poppea Pecorina, an elegant and… physically blessed barmaid with a talent for magical song. We don’t know that much about her beyond that, aside from the fact she’s the character found in the coffin in the Milk Plant and in the World of Light and Dark adventure she is unlocked by picking up the weapon in the Gallo Tower level… Perhaps she was a talented songstress but otherwise harmless until she recovered the musical score containing the song, allowing her to weaponize her voice against the forces of evil?

The weapon itself creates a column of sparkling particles around the character, creating a vertical damaging zone whose width grows with level. The evolved form is an even wider vertical column and also slows down the enemies affected that are not slain outright. I’ll try to incorporate this effect, as well as other quirks of the attack in the final spell!

Mystic Songstream

School evocation [force, sonic]; Level bard 4, bloodrager 4, magus 4, occultist 4, sorcerer/wizard 4

Casting

Casting Time 1 standard action

Components V

Effect

Range personal

Area 85 ft. line, emitting 40 ft. in both directions with the caster in the center.

Duration instantaneous

Saving Throw Reflex half; Spell Resistance yes

Description

You begin to hum a resonant tune that fills the space around you and flows through you, creating a river of sound flowing from one direction, and through you out the other. Creatures other than you in the area take 1d4 damage per caster level (maximum 10d4) and suffer a -10 penalty to all of their movement speeds for 1d4 rounds as their body compulsively sways to the cosmic rhythm. This damage is sonic damage, but also counts as a force effect. A successful Reflex save halves the damage and negates the speed reduction.

Additionally, this spell interacts oddly with the Widen Spell feat. When affected by Widen spell, rather than increase the length of the line, the line instead widens from a 5 foot wide line to a 15 foot wide line.

===

I was actually pretty eager to do this spell since line spells that don’t just emit from the caster outward are pretty rare to nonexistent. The area might be a bit awkward to use, but the ability to slow foes could be pretty useful, not to mention damage that very few things resist.

Class Feature Friday: Way of the Triggerbrand (Pathfinder Second Edition Gunslinger Way)

(image of a german-made pistol sword, taken from a Croatian Museum)

I do love combination weapons, particularly any weapon that incorporates a firearm into it’s design. Long before Final Fantasy VIII, and certainly way before RWBY, combination weapons were absolutely a thing (typically in the late 17th to 18th century). They were literally always custom jobs (mostly because the industrial revolution was only getting off the ground), and a chance for a smith to really show off their skills.

In practice the added weight made them kinda impractical, and the firearm bit usually was limited to being a pistol of some kind, both due to weight concerns an also having a hollow tube incorporated into a weapon big enough to accommodate a full rifle kinda had a structural instability problem, leading to warping in the barrel and either misfires or full failure when used as a melee weapon.

Luckily for us, the combination weapons in Pathfinder 1e and 2e combine the love of experimental weaponry with the rule of cool, making such impracticalities not a concern. Besides, you can just say the barrel is an adamantine alloy and suddenly any concerns about bending it in normal use are out the window.

It’s funny how these things go in cycles. Combination weapons were an experiment in what you could do with putting a ranged and melee weapon together in the same hand, but then fell by the wayside with the advent of mass production, then came back again in fantasy form with games like FF8, then reviled again as “too goofy or edgelordy”, and then most recently returning with the likes of RWBY because screw being too cool for awesome things.

All of this to say that today we’re looking at the way of the triggerbrand, a gunslinger way for those that favor such combination weaponry!

Named for the triggerbrand, a pistol/shortsword combination, this is the way for gunslingers that commissioned, inherited, or even personally created a slick combined weapon. That variety, however, means that there is no one unified fighting style for triggerbrands. Some may be pugilists with black powder knuckle dusters, while others wield a heavy axe musket, and others still might be duelists wielding gun swords or pistol rapiers or even the titular triggerbrands. What remains the same, however, is that these gunslingers, like those that follow the way of the drifter, are not afraid to shift from ranged to melee combat on the fly, and often pack an extra punch when they pull the trigger on their weapon while it’s currently embedded in someone’s chest.

Like all gunslinger ways, they have a nifty way to reload, allowing them to do so as they step and shift their grip between melee and ranged.

By concealing the weapon and/or drawing it with a flourish, these slingers can begin combat with the weapon ready in their hand and moving too fluidly for foes to reactively attack them for moving or shooting for the first few seconds of the combat.

Having a combination weapon means often having a hand free, at least for a short while, so stealing belongings from a foe is surprisingly easy for them while said foe is menaced by their weapon. Plus, the shock of the brazen theft also leaves the target open to future attacks as well, as well as too shocked to level reprisal their way.

Skilled gunslingers master the art of striking with the melee portion of their signature weapon and then immediately firing the ranged portion into them at point blank range, often overwhelming their senses with the gunsmoke and leaving a bleeding wound.

The way also has two feats exclusive to it. The first is Triggerbrand Salvo, which gives them a less debilitating form of the one-two combo. The other is Triggerbrand Blitz, allowing them to unleash a flurry of both melee and ranged attacks as they move, becoming one with their weapon.

Other feats that prove useful to them include Crossbow Crack Shot (for those using combination weapons that have an inbuilt crossbow rather than a gun), Sword and Pistol, Defensive Armaments, Pistol Twirl, Alchemical Shot, Running Reload, Munitions Machinist, Deadeye, Ricochet Shot, Dance of Thunder, Fatal Bullet, Ricochet Master, Final Shot, Ricochet Legend, and any others that suit your build.

This way has not one but two ways to negate reactive strikes from firing a ranged weapon in melee or moving, so the name of the game here is naturally to wade in and out of combat shooting and swinging without fear, similar to the drifter. The fact that the special reload ability of the option lets them step, reload, and shift weapon mode is a nice touch. I will say though, having the initial feat unique to this way be just a version of an existing feat (the ability to hit in melee and follow up with a point blank shot) but at a lower level is kinda disappointing, especially when one of their high-level abilities is that same thing again except with bleed damage, but it’s not dealbreaking. Naturally, you are going to want to build with mobile mixed ranged and melee combat, so keep that in mind.

There is likely a stereotype that those that wield combination weapons are probably a bit eccentric, given the sort of weaponry they favor. However, while that may be true for some, others may simply see the benefit of having their melee and ranged armament all in one place so they never have to worry about drawing another weapon. Some may even see their manipulation of this one weapon as an artistic dance in which they shift grip to use both in melee and range fluidly to answer every challenge put before them.

Though his gun sword is an antique, it is still quite potent, and Desmond makes sure to keep ti cleaned and well-maintained every single day. The old skeleton firmly believes that doing so is what helps him keep himself in his undead state, and it’s likely he is completely right.

Once a paragon of justice, Faldric Hammerstroke fell from the path of righteousness after his wife was slain in retaliation for his freedom-fighting escapades. Now he is a grim executioner with his axe musket. However, not all hope is lost for him, as a redeemer approaches in the form of a ninkonda angel, their mind set on either redeeming the former warrior of liberty… or putting him out of his misery.

With the portal finally repaired, the Altradi people are finally ready to rejoin the material universe after half a millennium stuck in a demiplane refuge to avoid the sinking of their island home. However, they know better than to go unprepared, and so each diplomat will be accompanied by a warrior guardian, each wielding a weapon that combines blade and black powder.

Ascended Celestial (Pathfinder Second Edition Mythic Destiny Archetype)

(art by Maricu-Mana on DeviantArt)

We’ve covered a lot of these mythic destiny archetypes so far, everything from fiendish demigods to avatars of raw magic to even nacent gods themselves, but while we’ve covered fiendish demigods in training, we haven’t yet talked about the celestial equivalent, the ones who would be new empyreal lords and the like.

These are those who are born to ascend to celestial power before they die. It may be destiny, or it may be a reward and empowerment from some god. No matter the source, however, these beings represent mortality elevated to something greater, and an inspiration to all with good in their hearts, and a terror to those of unrepentant evil.

However, while they are paragons of good, don’t think that these individuals lack personal struggle. After all, it is often true that the greatest paragons are the ones tested the most, and even angels must struggle with dilemmas.

Unsurprisingly, a lot of ascended celestials are celestial nephilim/aasimar, but it’s not a requirement, and even tieflings count among their number sometimes. What’s more, they can be of any clade of celestial, be it angel, archon, agathion, azata, or something else.

So let’s see what ascending in such a way means!

The base dedication for this archetype comes with a will like iron, able to better resist mental effects, and even stubbornly refuse to move when they would otherwise behave erratically. What’s more, they can emit an aura of light that sooths the fears of those within it, and allows the would-be celestial to bless allies with a measure of their own tremendous willpower.

By transferring some of their divine essence to an ally, they can shield them in a protective barrier that not only helps protect them from attacks, but also sears the senses of the wicked and potentially pushes them back when they attempt to attack the recipient.

Blessed as they are, these holy beings leave the ground behind, gaining the ability to fly. For many, this manifests as a permanent set of angelic wings, marking them as something more than mortal.

Drawing upon the power within, some ascended celestials can cause their divine spark to flare up, not only broadening the area of it’s light, but also invigorating them and hardening their flesh against physical assault, while their own blows carry the weight of their will, knocking back foes with each swing.

While many walk the path to ascension alone, some are lucky enough to have a celestial advisor they can meditate to contact for advice. When doing so, such mentors can offer information about a topic, as well as guidance for near and distant future events so they might make the most with what portents are available.

Some celestials are able to transcend all language barriers, and so the ascended sometimes manifest this ability as well. Additionally, with a bit of mythic power they can gain supernatural insight into how to best ingratiate themselves to anyone, even enemies.

While still mortal, the celestial power of these being can sometimes manifest in an aura of otherworldliness that turns would-be lethal blows into barely noticeable strikes, disheartening the foe as they come to understand how beyond them the celestial has become.

Each day, the more warrior-like among them can bless a single favorite weapon with celestial power, letting it strike not just the body but the soul as well, blind attackers, and even leap back to the wielder’s hand with a command. With an expenditure of mythic power, they can even extend a lesser version of these benefits to allied weapons for a short time too.

Those with healing magic often find their healing arts to be even more potent, able to even cleanse diseases and poisons with basic healing magic, to say nothing of the potency of the healing itself.

An ascended celestial is truly an army of one, and with a gesture they can send out their blessed weaponry to lash out at every foe within the light of their nimbus, rendering their number’s advantage moot.

With senses unclouded, many of the ascended emulate the truesight seen in many celestials. What’s more, their association with truth makes most lies rankle their senses instinctively, making it very difficult indeed to deceive them.

Eventually, unleashing their spark doesn’t just blind foes, it actually turns the ascended celestial into a being of divine fire that burns on contact and even enhances their fire magic. This flame is especially harmful to undead, fiends, and aberrations as it cleanses their taint on contact.

Their aura can also be used to greatly inspire allies and frighten foes with a flare of mythic power as well.

Finally, the most powerful of these beings truly ascend to a celestial status, transforming into their idealized form as a celestial of the type they strove to become. In this state, their healing magic heals themselves even as they heal others, and they can revive the recently slain with a touch or use mythic power to resurrect the deceased who have been dead longer. Additionally, for these celestials death is not the end. They instead are reborn elsewhere as a celestial Nephilim to grow up under the watchful gaze of guardian celestials until they come of age and regain their power and their memories, albeit distantly so as not to overwrite their new identity.

This archetype has some fun abilities like blessing their weapons and gaining flight, but I think the core of the archetype is their holy nimbus aura and the way various feats enhance it. Divine classes are perhaps the most obvious choice here, but really any class can be an ascended celestial. In fact, many of the feats available are multipurpose. For example, turning oneself briefly into a holy fire is equally good for both monks and for spellcasters since that also improves their fire spells too. No matter what your build is, I imagine that at least some of it is dedicated to buffing nearby allies within the protective aura of their nimbus.

Being a would-be celestial comes with a lot of baggage, as you might imagine. Much like being born and aasimar or the like, it comes with a lot of expectations, but also the hope that they will rise to the challenge.Sadly we’ve seen in the Pathfinder setting how some folks are not up to the challenge, but how they choose to handle that can vary a lot, as can how they choose to behave when they can handle it as well.

Half a century ago, Saint Amelia ascended to the state of a celestial being for her effort during the Gemstone Wars. However, what few realize is that this was not a reward for services rendered, but a preparation for what was to come.

Most would consider the protoceratops to be quite the unassuming animal, but the humble courage and charming form of the dinosaur captured the heart of Velin the Brave when he was a mortal, and so it became his symbol when he became an empyreal azata lord.

Not a lot of people outside their cult know this, but the many eyes of Vigilance And Courage are not just a symbol of their role as a guardian nor their connection to angels. Indeed, they actually had those extra organs as a fleshwarp, which they kept (albeit more symmetrical and eerily beautiful after their ascension) when they became a celestial being and patron of sorcerers that use sinister-seeming bloodlines for good.

Archfiend (Pathfinder Second Edition Mythic Destiny Archetype)

(art by nickkaur on DeviantArt)

Yesterday we talked about the mythic villains that emulate daemonhood to become lesser riders of the apocalypse… and now here’s an option for everyone looking to become some other type of fiend.

Like the name implies, archfiends seek to skip the normal messy and honestly unreliable method of rising through the fiendish ranks. I mean, who has time to die? Let alone go to the lower plane of choice, become fuel for the creation of a lesser fiend and maybe… maybe if you’re lucky eventually slide up the ranks. On the one side of the equation demons don’t have a hierarchy beyond strength so what you become is entirely dependent on your sins and luck. And on the other side, anyone with brains knows that the diabolic hierarchy is a mug’s game, and the biggest fish in the pond in Hell all straight up started as something tremendously powerful elsewhere before joining the ranks of the fiends. Meanwhile, other fiend types like velstracs have their own rules.

The point is, the smart game is to start out strong enough that you become a fiend before death, and those with the mythic potential are on the fast track to do so. They act in a fiendish manner, bringing about their monstrous philosophy wherever they go, they do the rituals to infuse their mythic spark with the quintessence of the lower planes, and they work to transform and refine themselves accordingly, all with the hope that they transcend into fiendish rulers of their personal realm.

The realm is very important, as that is one of the most iconic unifying factors of most demigod fiends: their personal realms where they rule from. Part of becoming an archfiend means plotting out that personal realm in addition to accruing personal power, until the time when they can carve it out from the matter of their chosen plane and draw power from it.

And with that in mind, let’s go see what the archfiend offers us!

The base dedication for the archetype grants a powerful ideal of what the would-be archfiend’s realm would be like, including a common hazard to it that makes it inhospitable. While the realm doesn’t truly exist yet, that connection to the idea grants them resistance to that hazard, and the ability to manifest an aspect of the realm into reality, creating difficult terrain and weakening the bodies of foes within it.

Strong passion drives these ambitious scions, and they can call upon that to impress and awe others in both social contexts and even helping them overwhelm magic they attempt to dispel.

To an archfiend in the making, all fiends are potential future servants, and so they have a knack for assessing them at a glance, particularly when they spend a bit of mythic power to do so.

With a bit of mythic power, archfiends can further manipulate their manifested realm, spreading it, unleashing it’s hazardous nature on foes, or even consuming some of the energy of the manifestation to heal themselves.

Archfiends might not command full armies yet, but they often make strides in brokering deals with fiends for future service. As such, they can manifest a single fiend when mainfesting their realm to fight for them, potentially switching to a more powerful fiend later on.

Using the partially-formed realm as a bridge, some archfiends can teleport themselves, appearing in a blast of their favored element, be it a flash of hellfire, explosion of caustic or poisonous mist, or a stroke of lightning, potentially harming those nearby.

Eventually, the efforts of these fiend aspirants bear enough fruit that they can make a personal residence in their burgeoning planar realm stable enough to live and rest in, bringing themselves and others in to rest and recuperate, though the décor and layout are entirely dependent on its creator.

Having become minor fiendish princelings by this point, these beings can manifest a symbol of their power. (flaming crowns, thrones of bone, the usual) Doing so gives them an edge in intimidation. An expenditure of mythic power, however, causes foes to not only be stricken with fear, but outright grovel before the fiend’s terrible majesty.

While they cannot keep foes there forever, archfiends often develop the ability to form a prison inside their developing realm to send foes into temporarily, though it is not so impenetrable as to be inescapable, either by time or cleverness on the part of the victim.

Those with a knack for dark bargains can forge their own with willing mortals, placing harsh limitations upon the subject including sometimes being controlled by the fiend, in exchange for one request, which can be fulfilled as wish with an expenditure of mythic power. Furthermore, such subjects might incur nasty punishments if they break their end of the bargain, not that the fiend won’t twist the request to their own whim, of course.

Finally, archfiends at the zenith of their power become true mortal fiends, and their personal realm becomes fully real. Any personal residence previously created is part of this realm, and may have servants drawn from those summoned as allies as well. Normally these servants do not leave the realm, though they use their magic to form an information network to keep their master abreast of current events across the cosmos. Finally, like a true archfiend, these rulers return to their realm to recuperate when grievously injured, though they cannot leave again for a week or until fully healed.

A lot of this archetype is all about creating an area of difficult terrain and enhancing it to hamper and harm foes. However, beyond that we see various battlefield control effects, combat movement utility, and some other utility both in and out of combat. As such, pretty much any class can easily make use of being an archfiend. That being said, I wish that there were some feats that were more specific to various fiend types to further customize your aspiring fiendish tyrant, but I understand while keeping it vague is acceptable as well. Additionally, I do love any archetype that gives you a magnificent mansion-equivalent.

Keeping things vague does mean there’s a lot of customization here not just with their personal realm, but also with the type of fiend they are seeking to become. One archfiend might be a would-be diabolic tyrant, while another might be a geniekin seeking the favor of Ahriman to become a div-like being, while another might be going full cenobite as a future velstrac demagogue.

The pawns of the diabolic forces all typically hear the same spiel from their corruptors. That their role is important, that they were specially chosen. For most, it’s all bunk meant to guide such victims down the wide path to monstrosity in both deed and power. For Daelig Pitwalker, however, there is a ring of truth to it due to his spark of mythic power, but at his core, a rube he remains.

It is normally quite unusual for a conrasu to take the path of a holy champion, but such is the case with Aegis, who began to pursue the path after a dear friend of theirs began seeking demonic power for themselves. Now the wooden custodian hopes to either talk sense into their old friend, or barring that, balance the scales at the end of a blade.

Under most circumstances, urdefhan would rather seek the path of an apocalypse rider rather than willingly fall under the sway of non-daemon fiends, but High Tormentor Baxana has the heretical belief that sakhils can offer great insight into snuffing out all light and life in the cosmos, and she has been working to perform a sort of apotheosis on herself, to become a being of fear.

Apocalypse Rider (Pathfinder Second Edition Mythic Destiny Archetype)

(art by korintic on DeviantArt)

“And I heard a voice amid the four beasts, and beheld a pale horse, and his name that sat upon him was Death, and Hell followed with him.”

As much as the persistence of Christian imagery lingers in tabletop gaming, I do love that they went with the most powerful demigods among daemonkind being the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, or “Apocalypse Riders” as they are usually called now.

It just makes so much sense to depict a group of endbringers in a class of fiend that specifically want to unmake everything with that imagery since so many people are familiar with it. In fact I’m willing to say that it’s one of the better references to that religion in the game.

Now, I could go into the specific nitty gritty about the contention of whether the Horsemen in Christianity are actual entities or just metaphors, or if the Angel of Death and the Death among the horsemen are the same entity, or whether Conquest or Pestilence should be included… but that’s real-world stuff and we’re here to talk about fantasy doombringers.

Daemons as a whole have a sort of weird relationship with each other. Every single one is united by the same goal of ending all life in the cosmos, but whether they work together on any one goal at a given time varies a lot. Perhaps it’s because they’re all at their core horrible bitter beings lashing out at a greater multiverse out of spite, and so their ability to stand each other varies based on their mood and whims. Despite that, though, there is room for cooperation, and indeed upward movement as daemons and nihilistic worshippers alike seek to become the best omnicidal destroyers they can be.

And for those with the spark of mythic power, this can mean that some become lesser apocalypse riders in their own right, becoming harbingers of death and doom. Some may be blessed by a specific horseman, while others may blend elements of the core four in the same way that war breeds pestilence and famine and in turn, death.

This mythic destiny exists separate from the normal archfiend destiny because, frankly, the goals of a daemon-worshipper are so fundamentally different from every other sort of fiend cultist that it had to be the case.

The result is a destroyer that boasts great power, though not as much as a true rider… yet. (emphasis on “yet, as daemonic deacons and mortal riders alike often seek to, and sometimes succeed in, supplanting a true horseman, ascending and taking their place. (well, except for Charon, who has never been replaced).

The base dedication of the archetype grants an animal companion if the doombringer doesn’t already have one (and improves the attacking power of a previously existing one), and allows the companion more autonomy. However, it also comes with vow to never create anything that will outlast themselves, nor attempt to cheat death.

While their mount starts out as mature, they of course can undergo training or profane blessing to train the beast for various roles.

Many of these riders are haunted by echoes of the dead they have slain, and can even turn that trauma against foes, siccing them on foes they strike as the unquiet spirit claw at the soul of their foe even after they pull back their weapon .

While not all riders joust in the traditional sense, many have learned how to use the momentum of their mounted movement to add force to any two-handed weapon, and even shifting it to a one-handed grip.

Many of these doombringers are absolutely terrifying, to the point that even superior numbers balk to face them, allowing them to bully and push around even swarms and troops with ease. Even those that overcome their fear struggle to harm.

Whether they invoke the pestilence of Apollyon or the ruination of resources associated with Trelmarixian, some apocalypse riders befoul food and drink near them. With an expenditure of mythic power, they can not only spoil all mundane consumables, but even befoul potions, elixirs, and all manner of alchemical and magical foods as well.

Some mounts of these riders are fearsome shadows in the night, becoming capable of flight, or becoming more agile in the air if already flight-capable, and even becoming faster when the sun does not shine upon them.

All riders understand that death comes for all, but minions and allies are useful, so it sometimes behooves them to temporarily block death from finding their allies and pawns for a while, preventing death and even healing them over time. Rest assured that such is not mercy though, and such allies will not find the rider so generous later on.

With a mighty bellow and a charge, war-oriented riders can rush into the fray, trampling smaller foes with their mount while also inspiring their allies, granting a surge of vitality to keep them fighting and putting their best effort into slaying their enemies.

Pestilent Riders can accelerate the progression of disease and poison with their blows, pushing a foe closer and closer to death.

While Charon is a patient being, sometimes he and his minions, including riders, like to give their victims an early taste of the infirmities of age, dealing massive damage as their body ages and withers, and potentially crippling a part of their body.

Some with a knack for spellcasting can make their spells act like diseases, affecting more targets as the magic jumps from victim to victim during the initial casting, though this requires mythic power to do.

All things die, including both lesser and true Apocalypse Riders. However, many stronger riders demonstrate incredible resilience, bearing the determination to make sure that their enemies die first.

Insidious riders can inflict foes with the forgetfulness and madness of old age, causing them to struggle with otherwise familiar tasks and wither their minds in the same motion.

Not merely a conveyance, the mounts of some riders are just as hungry for death and souls as their masters. The rider can take advantage of that by stealing a soul and using their mount as a receptical when needed, either storing the soul for use later, or allowing the mount to fully consume it for a surge in vigor.

At the zenith of their ability, apocalypse riders become unaging avatars of daemonic will in the mortal universe. What’s more, their bond with their mount transcends the anything mortality can muster, as the two cannot be truly slain as long as they remain close to the other. What’s more, the rider projects an aura of final death that makes resurrection difficult for those that die near them, and might even cause their soul to spontaneously form a soul gem around itself rather than pass on normally.

Getting a powerful mount is the name of the game with this archetype, but it actually need not be the focus of your build. Those that do will find themselves with a very impressive companion supporting them all the way, as well as plenty of tricks available for mounted combat. All of this alongside a nasty selection of feats that reflect one of the four traditional houses of the Apocalypse riders. The War-themed ones tend to synergize with the mounted aspect, but you could easily ignore that to focus on going purely into one horseman’s blessing, or mix and match. As an aside, one feat in the archetype requires you to also take the battle harbinger archetype as well, further diversifying your build options.

Becoming a rider means turning your back on everything good in life out of raw spite, adopting the same sort of selfish mindset that turns souls into daemons in the first place. I wish I could say the concept was utterly foreign to me, but I think we’ve all had extremely dark moments where a part of us wants to blame everything and everyone for suffering both minor and major. The wise don’t let that define them… but others do not.

Grand Sultan Injuno, master of the ifrit people and all of the fire genie holdings, has a serious problem. A doomsday cult dedicated to finding a way to do the impossible: snuff out the fire plane, has begun to crop up. Worse still, among them is an actual minor rider of the apocalypse. Nobody has seen this figure and lived to tell of it, but it is clear that even if what they seek to do is truly impossible, they will threaten a lot of lives if not stopped soon.

Born during a typhoon, the sylph-blooded tengu Tsukanori always did have an ill omen over him, which only grew as his disposition turned foul as he aged. Now he is an agent of famine, destroying crops and infrastructure with the power of hurricane-force winds

While most modern texts either dismiss it as part of War and others as an overcomplication of Pestilence as an invading force, some apocryphal texts speak that there was once a fifth horseman, one of Conquest. Following those theories, the warrior now only known as the White Knight seeks to revive the role of the Horseman of Conquest, though he has yet to consider why the chair was so readily and deliberately forgotten.

AbadarCorp Rep (Starfinder Second Edition Archetype)

(art by Daelewd on DeviantArt (some NSFW on their page, fair warning))

I’ll be the first to admit it: playing a heroic corporate character is hard in the best of times, and certainly difficult in this day and age. Either you get removed from the picture by the less scrupulous rivals and superiors, or you break down and become part of the problem after years of trying to be the one to change things from the inside.

A lot of games and settings that have this option definitely don’t sugar coat it, making your characters morally complex in a morally dubious world like the Corpos in any iteration of Cyberpunk, but the fun thing about fiction is that we’re allowed to sometimes show a less monstrous version of capitalism on occasion, as a treat.

In the Starfinder setting, this is usually in the form of AbadarCorp, the new face of the religion of the god of civilization and prosperity. Unlike most megacorporations, AbadarCorp does actually as a whole believe in the mission statement that civilization must come first over even profit. It’s not entirely their fault that their vetting process sucks and their message is so easily twisted to justify the same sort of exploitation that other capitalist companies get up to. They just unfortunately have a bit of Abadar’s now-erased brother’s greed-based vibes clinging to the faith like a case of chronic bronchitis.

Either way, that relatively more benevolent angle to the faith does make it the perfect backdrop to this corporate agent-themed archetype, though I have no doubt that the AbadarCorp Rep could easily be retooled and reflavored for any less morally upstanding corporate character.

Now obviously, envoy and perhaps mystic or witchwarper are the most natural choices here, but a corporation needs all kinds of field agents, especially in the wild galaxy beyond the boardrooms and offices. A soldier that is their own bodyguard, an operative that hacks their way into servers that their winning smile doesn’t get them access to, and so on.

So let’s see exactly what being a corporate representative of the god of commerce gets you!

The base dedication for this archetype comes with knowledge of their company’s inner workings, giving them a new skill with which to recall such info.

Many of these suits are always running the numbers, which sometimes includes physics and literal trajectories rather than just business projections. As such, they can offer advice to benefit an ally in their skilled or combat endeavors.

Corporate movers and shakers often couch their language with buzzwords, doublespeak, and other ambiguous language. Usually this is used to sound important while passing along very little meaning, but it can be used to send hidden meanings understood by those that know what to listen for.

Businesspeople would not be very good at their job if they couldn’t manipulate people into doing things, and so many know how to use their business knowledge to convince people with deals that at least seem fair on the surface.

You don’t have to be in the business sector to know that it pays to know the right people, and these representatives demonstrate that by accruing a list of contacts of people to ask about hidden goings-on or even who can fabricate a forged set of credentials for them when needed.

With money comes power, even if it’s technically not your own. An implicit threat of reprisal from a powerful corporation can often be just as good as actually being intimidating in your own right, as many of these agents know.

Even if they’re off galivanting in the galaxy, at their core these individuals are businessfolk. As such they still know how to maximize profits and turn failure into success in a more traditional business fashion.

A fairly simple archetype for those wanting to play a character with a corpo edge to them. Exactly what that means for them will vary by the character and what build they go with. Certainly any charisma-based class is a good choice here, but don’t neglect the other options, my friends. They still have plenty to offer here. Unless you’re really leaning into the business aspect though, you probably don’t need to take all these feats.

Being a corporate representative has to be a stressful career. I have to imagine that it can sometimes feel like a spy, in that one has to suppress the true self for a constructed identity to manipulate others. One has to wonder how they handle it. Probably poorly. Makes for good drama, I suppose.

It is rare to see a living elebrian, let alone one in a position of power in the undead-dominated society that runs their world, but Denshiyna is nothing if not tenacious, and has spent her life building her power. Rumor has it that she has some great plan for the company once she has the resources at her command, and many wonder what lengths she will go to in order to see those plans through.

A branch laboratory claims to have found a way to quickly extract the gasses produced by the floating Zalyop plants, which is used in industrial and pharmaceutical purposes. However, they have been curiously recalcitrant about the specifics of the method. That is where the party comes in, supporting a company investigator to discover the truth, and whether the methodology really does provide the promised results while also obeying local laws.

Mining is hard and dangerous work, but the reports coming in from Denshaak 9 don’t add up. The supposed great riches on the barren icy world are well below standards, yet Tellurium Incorporated seems intent on pouring money into the site. Hendix of Unlimited ltd. suspects that they may be covering up some other discovery at the site, and he’s willing to do some espionage to find out what.

Occult Class Review: Medium part 5

(art by LaTaupinette on DeviantArt)

Conclusions

And so it’s time to wrap up the medium. With the possible exception of the psychic, the medium has the oldest pedigree of the occult classes thanks to being an homage to the binder of yesteryear.

However, I’d say that the class has put in serious effort to forge it’s own identity, playing with the spirits of the dead with seances and gaining appropriate powers from pacts with them, sometimes even specific powers if it’s a legendary spirit.

On that note, I’m both sad and relieved that the playtest dropped the original idea of a Harrow deck-based system. I mean, I get it. Making that many spirits would have made one class entirely too wordy, both in terms of overwhelming the players, and in terms of limited book space.

I am, however, curious about what that would have looked like. Perhaps one day I’ll homebrew the harrow deck as a series of legendary spirts?

In any case, the story of a medium can vary as much as the class itself. Some born with the gift may struggle with the demands of recurring or an ever-changing roster of spirits (played for comedy or drama), while others may see themselves as agents of the grave aiding the dead in finding their rest, or at least some solace. I suppose the unifying factor is the struggle of being one of the very few that serve as a bridge for beings whose voices normally go unheard. It’s a big responsibility, after all. One that they may embrace or struggle with.

That will do for this week though. Hope to see you through the rest of the week at GenCon though!