Casting a Gratitude Spell ....
Casting a gratitude spell, which doesn't yet exist in PF2 but should!
Lately, my IRL dice luck has been ice cold.
But first things first: happy day-after Thanksgiving to the 55 per cent of the Ambush Tactics subscriber network who lives in the United States! And a 55-day-belated happy Thanksgiving to the 9 per cent of Canadian readers who celebrated their harvest way back in October (brrrrrrrr).
Like I said, it’s been a month of Misfortune effects for me, none of which has put the future of my personal campaign in too much peril but all of which has been deeply frustrating. Sometimes life’s like that.
(I mentioned last month that I was days away from moving into a new house with my family. Suffice to say, we are still not out of our old apartment. Ugh.)
When the dice rolls are coming in lower than those Black Friday prices — a string of 2s and 3s and 4s on that formerly productive d20 which will henceforth be relegated to “dice jail” — it’s easy to get disheartened and let morale slip.
It’s also easy to stop playing any Pathfinder!
I’m now six months into a prolonged gaming slump, but I’m reassured by the fact that I still spend a lot of time hoping it’ll end — daydreaming about the day, just around the corner, when I get my Pathfinder mojo back. Looking forward to the moment when my energy and drive to craft adventures with my friends reignites.
It’s one thing for circumstances to blockade the execution of a rich fantasy life. It’s another thing for the passion to fade. I’m thankful that my desire is still there, simmering on the back burner.
On the topic of a low simmer, please earn yourself a Hero Point by firing that heart button up top. I have no idea what it accomplishes, but I’m thankful!
And it’s a great season for giving thanks, since everyone and their dog is presently reminding me of the benefits of expressing gratitude, including my kid’s recent school newsletter where they dropped this choice quote from UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center:
Over the past two decades, studies have consistently found that people who practice gratitude report fewer symptoms of illness, including depression, more optimism and happiness, stronger relationships, more generous behavior, and many other benefits.
Thus, I’ve decided a useful Ambush Tactics exercise to keep Pathfinder hope alive would be to commemorate a few of the gaming gifts I’m grateful to have received this year.
Without further ado:
I’m grateful for my RPG Superstar win! My kunthalaka rakshasa earned a Silver award earlier this month, and will appear in the upcoming publication Battlezoo Bestiary: Elemental Storm. Thanks to everyone who voted in the public session, and to the expert judges, one of whom commented, “This is an excellent new addition to the rakshasa lineup, and I enjoy the lore you've created for it. Great job!”
I’m grateful for my Discord community on Find the Path’s server, especially my two active APs. I haven’t been the most engaged player/GM over the past weeks/months, but I can always chime into the ooc channel with gripes and move the stories forward when I find a burst of energy. I recently left my “Quest for the Frozen Flame” players hanging mid-combat against a fleet of carrion golems, so that’s next on my list of games to restart.
I’m grateful for my recurring home game in San Francisco, which I’ve been neglecting with the expectation of relaunching once I’m settled in our new house. A fresh start is catnip to a longstanding group of roleplaying friends, so I’m hopeful that once our new lodge is ready to host sessions, the cast of players will come crawling out of the woodwork like a pack of ghouls, hungry for adventure! And Haribo. Don’t forget the Haribo.
I’m grateful for the continued existence of the Bay Area PFS lodge at Game Post in San Francisco. They’re running twice-weekly games, so if I can get my various Pathfinder Society characters updated – Salia Starstrider, Kash Nobu, Fizzik — I’ve got a dedicated crew to connect with. Bonus: one of my favorite Paizo authors, Vanessa Hoskins, has recently moved to the area and attends games regularly. It would be cool to meet her.
I’m grateful for the Pathfinder actual play podcasts that I can use to scratch my gaming itch during car commutes or long runs. The Glass Cannon is still a regular listen in my queue with their new “Gatewalkers” adventure, and Roll for Combat’s “Extinction Curse” pod recently relaunched after a hiatus. Even Find the Path’s PF2 conversion of “Hell’s Rebels” will occasionally garner a listen for nostalgia purposes since I ran that adventure years ago.
I’m grateful for the veteran Pathfinder illustrator Eric Lofgren whom I commissioned to illustrate the Pathfinder Infinite solo adventure I’ve been working on for the better part of a year. While my story is still incomplete, Eric’s illustrations are done and ready to go. They’re also so damn cool, and whenever I need a pick-me-up I just open the folder on my computer called “Eric Lofgren Finals” and marvel at his work. More on this topic soon!
I’m grateful for the readers of this newsletter, without the existence of whom I wouldn’t feel a monthly impetus to share my thoughts on all things Pathfinder. Thank you for continuing to subscribe and to read my musings — yes, Substack gives me comprehensive engagement reports, so I know that quite a few of you are actually reading this! It’s my honor and deep privilege to produce this forum, and it wouldn’t exist without you.
THE MINI AND THE DICE
One of my best Pathfinder memories of the year was an outdoor game I ran this summer in San Francisco’s Presidio to celebrate my birthday, and this is an action shot from said adventure! Those shiny weighted metal dice belong to my longtime adventuring pal Das, who picked them up at their local Petaluma gaming store, Goblin Bros.
The minis represent our heroes Elysii, Vec, Zedeke, and Kanun who are aiding the NPC mushroom leshy Rain in Cloudy Day in the final combat of Pathfinder Society Intro #1. Watch out for that snapping flytrap’s Hungry Flurry!
Another fun thing we debuted for this session was the preprinted laminated flip-map, in this case Pathfinder Flip-Mat Classics: Ancient Dungeon. Once I get my gaming mojo back, pretty much every adventure I run will start out in a swamp of some sort and culminate in an ancient dungeon. Gotta get more use out of those sweet flip-mats!
NEW FROM THE WAREHOUSE
Hope springs eternal, and the new new thing on the Pathfinder block is the Remaster project aka PF2.5 which is an updated ruleset that kicked off this month with the release of new Player Core and GM Core rulebooks.
As far as I can tell, there are three reasons for the Remaster project:
To streamline a number of rules (via errata and updates) that make Pathfinder Second Edition a simpler and cleaner game to play.
To remove a bunch of proprietary names and concepts borrowed from legacy-era D&D in an effort to extricate Pathfinder from the OGL, which is the “free” gaming license that the exec geniuses at Hasbro tried to retcon earlier this year to crush their TTRPG competition. Spoiler: the ploy blew up in their faces. But that doesn’t mean Paizo wants to let them try again.
To sell more books.
I haven’t bought these new rulebooks yet, since I still haven’t found time to run games under the existing ruleset I know so well (and which is still a totally workable system to play in). And I’ll note that the new Remaster books are not included in Paizo’s Black Fireday and Cyber Moonday sale which offers 15 per cent off selected products through Monday November 27.
But they’re on my radar!
PARTY DYNAMICS
Here’s your chance to channel some gratitude in the comments section below.
This month’s prompt:
What’s one thing you appreciate about seeing this newsletter land in your inbox once a month aka what should I be doing more of? Please don’t all stampede to be the first to answer!
That’s it for this edition, my jive turkeys. And so, as I say at the end of every Pathfinder module I run: this has been Ambush Tactics. I’ve been your Game Master. I hope you had a fun time.
Adventure!