Product- Pathfinder Campaign Setting Pathfinder Society Field Guide

System- Pathfinder RPG

Producer- Paizo

Price- ~$20

TL;DR- Great intro to the society! 93%

 

Basics- Welcome Pathfinder!  This book is a large summary of the Pathfinder Society for the uninitiated.  This book is primarily written for those who play in Paizo’s living campaign Pathfinder Society (PFS).  The book starts with the standard stuff any PFS GM would need like day job rolls and how to spend prestige.  Then the book discusses Absalom in-depth describing the history and geography of the place.  After Absalom itself, the book introduces each of the factions in the Pathfinder Society giving each one new ways to spend prestige.  Next the book introduces the three main branches of the Pathfinders, Scrolls, Spells, and Swords, providing new character options in each.  The book ends with a long discussion of opponents of the society and items for Pathfinders to purchase to overcome this obstacles.

 

Story or Fluff- This book is full of Pathfinder fluff.  I picked this one up to learn more as a GM, but honestly, if you want a deep introduction to the society, this is the book you need to read.  Each faction and division of the society gets a detailed write up.  The book even goes in depth on tricks to handle problems Pathfinders may find on their missions.  This might have made the book drag on a bit, but for players who haven’t been in the system as long, this may save their lives!  4.5/5

 

Mechanics or Crunch- While this is primarily a setting book since its in the campaign setting line, this book does have lots of character options.  The prestige options alone are worth the price of admission!  The extra archetypes, feats, and items, all make this a worthwhile book for any serious Pathfinder player. 5/5

 

Execution- Paizo knows how to make a geat book.  While I felt the book was a bit long, it didn’t drag to read as the text had lots of brakes to keep my eyes from glazing over.  Well done art also breaks up the text well.  I thought it was a bit long, but honestly it’s not long in a terrible way as it keeps with the other books in the setting line. 4.5/5

 

Summary- This is a well done book.  It’s a bit long as one of the largest sections is a section most experienced players will skim over as they know how to make a character survive most of the horrors out there.  Based on the amount of story in this book alone, the average PFS player needs this book to know much more about the society and its background.  The new mechanics of how to spend prestige really help make that count more in your games.  I’m honestly more excited to play some PFS than I was before this book, so that makes this book awesome in my opinion! 93%

Game- Ginkgopolis

Producer- Pearl Games

Price- $40

Players- 1-5

Set-up/Play/Clean-up- 1 Hour

tl;dr- Minor glitch in the theme, but an awesome game otherwise! 90%

 

Basics- Welcome to the future, but this one isn’t crap!  In Ginkgopolis, players take the roles of different urban planners trying to design the world of tomorrow when most of Earth recourses have been used up.  This game plays like a combination of Carcassonne and 7 Wonders.  Each turn players are given cards from the player on their right.  From these cards, players have to select one card to play.  These cards will either be used to gain more points/resources/tiles, to build on already built tiles, or expand the city.  When you build on a tile, you play the card for that tile in front of you and gain a permanent benefit.  And, the card for the tile you played goes into the draw pile, so others can build onto the tile you played.  This continues until players can’t draw tiles.  Then, all players can sell tiles back to the bank for points, and the game continues until this happens again.  When the bank runs out of tiles a second time, players finish their turns, and the game is over.  Player with the most points is the best urban planner of the future.

 

Mechanics- This game is amazingly fun and easy to play.  The game moves fast, and even with five people in my first game, the players picked up the game quickly.  The icons on the cards and player boards teach you how to play well.  And, I never had a question the rules didn’t define ahead of time.  Well Done! 5/5

 

Theme- Here is where things fall apart a bit.  The story behind the game is the world doesn’t have many resources.  So, we have learned from the Ginkgo Biloba plant and will design our cities higher and higher.  However, most of the players in our game got lots of point when they built out.  Heck, even without cards the players get bonuses for building out.  That seemed really counter intuitive when you think about the world the game portrayed.  However, I did feel like I was designing a city.   And, the cards made me feel it was futuristic.  So, the there is there, but not perfect.  3/5

 

Instructions- The rules are well written.  Lots of pictures and examples break up the text and make the game that much more approachable.  I didn’t have any questions regarding how to play, so any game where I don’t have to run off to board game geek mid-game is awesome in my book! 5/5

 

Execution- I like what I saw with this game.  The art is nice, and it helped build the theme of the future.  The box is well put together, and didn’t feel flimsy.  The cards are decent quality, and the tiles are nice and chunky.  All and all, this was well done. 5/5

 

Summary-  I really liked this game.  It’s quick with some strategy.  I had to make some choices, but I never felt like it bogged down the game.  The theme I a bit off, but if you can look past that, this game is amazing! 90%

Product– Pathfinder Society Scenario #5-15: Destiny of the Sands, Part 2: Race to Seeker’s Folly

Producer– Paizo

Price- $4

System- Pathfinder

TL;DR- An fun, short dungeon crawl 90%

 

Basics- Previously in Osirion, the Pathfinders assisted the former Grandmaster Torch in PFS #5-12, and they were provided a map to a secret location in the desert.  This adventure starts with the Pathfinder find out that other groups may be heading to Seeker’s Folly.  Can the pathfinders get to Seeker’s Folly first, find its secrets, and get out alive?

 

Mechanics or Crunch- This adventure is designed for low level characters, but some of the challenges here seem a bit too high for the average party of level one heroes.  Nothing here is excruciatingly difficult, but the last boss will KILL a party with no magic or cleric.  I would have liked the level 1-2 boss to be something much less dangerous than the level 4-5 boss.  Otherwise, this is a standard breach, bang, and clear dungeon crawl adventure, which is always some welcomed fun for PFS!  Heck there is an honest to goodness puzzle handout for the PCs to solve! 3.5/5

 

Fluff or Story- Holy cow is this one fluff-tastic!  If you wanted to learn some of the secret history of Grandmaster Torch, this is the one to GM!  Lots of side bars for the GM who want to know more lore then you can shake a stick at.  The players can put together a bunch of pieces if they read between a few lines, and there are several small details that can give the PCs some good information if they make some difficult checks.  All and well, well done! 5/5

 

Execution- Like most other Paizo products, this is a well put together book.  The information I needed was well displayed, and the product read quickly.  Nothing was buried in a wall of text, and it was a pleasure to read.  I would have liked a GM quick solution to the puzzle provided, but you can solve that pretty quickly with the information provided, and I know space is limited. 5/5

 

Summary- This is a fun adventure to read, run, and play.  It’s a bit of a challenge based on one time skill checks and a pretty hard end boss.  However, if you can get past that, you will have a great time uncovering not only the secrets of the Jeweled Sages, but those of Grandmaster Torch as well. 90%