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Kingmaker

2022-07-03T16:28:17Z

2A02:8108:49C0:A04:91B8:E4B5:84E8:6080: /* The Early Story */

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[[Image:Pathfinder_Kingmaker.png|300px|center]]
''If you came here seeking the [[Kingmaker problem]], well, [[Kingmaker problem|here's the link to that]]''

'''Pathfinder: Kingmaker''' is a [[CRPG]] by Owlcat Games based on the [[Adventure Path]] of the same name published by Paizo in 2010. The game tells the same general story from the tabletop campaign but done within the confines of it being a one player game. Owlcat also took the chance to add in a bunch of new content and new character which range from fairly good to rather mediocre. In September of 2021, Owlcat released another Pathfinder CRPG, ''Pathfinder: [[Wrath of the Righteous]]''.

==The Basics==
You play a character built using a modified [[Pathfinder]] system. You character can be any of the typical fair ranging from Dwarf and Elf and Gnome but also Aasimar and (with the purchase of some DLC) Tiefling. From there you pick a class from any of Pathfinder's core classes as well as Alchemist, Inquisitor, Kineticist, Magus and Slayer. You also pick from a curated selection of feats, design a player avatar and choose or upload a picture of them and start the game. From there you are thrust into a game of exploration, kingdom building, general dungeoneering and more.

Once you get the tutorial section done and get a couple of NPC companions (including Paizo's iconic barbarian and meathead Amiri), you are thrust into the Stolen Lands, a vast wilderness frontier of rolling hills, rivers, forests and swamps to kick bandit ass and forge yourself a petty kingdom. As the name of the game implies, a very large portion of the game is making your character a king (or queen) and having to deal with things like taxes, peasant disputes and incredibly violent owlbears and trolls. For fans of old school D&D, this should be right up their alley.

As you explore the Stolen Lands you slowly begin to learn of some rather peculiar things going on centered around a particular nymph named Nyrissa but also the political machinations of a whole slew of neighbors. Once you get your kingdom right and truly established all of these storylines begin to merge and twist around one another in a rather unique and interesting way, far better written than what just the tabletop version did. In particular the player characters get to know Nyrissa exists before the final module.

==The Early Story==
{{Spoilers}}

The games starts with your character and a number of NPCs (many of whom will be companions in your game) in the city of Restov just north of the Stolen Lands in the kingdom of Brevoy. Some of the local nobles are eager to send some people south to kick various humanoid and monster ass and make some petty kingdoms because Restov is in a part Brevoy that is anticipating a civil war or worse. So why send people into the Stolen Lands? Worst case scenario Restov gets a somewhat safer border, best case scenario they have a potential ally in their war with other people in Brevoy.

After a failed bandit attack/assassination attempt (and you getting some party members) you head south and find that the region of the Stolen Lands you're supposed to settle is overtaken by weird fog and is filled to the brim with bandits, kobolds, and other threats. Thankfully a lot of the enemies are largely incidental as they are caught up in a lot of their own affairs to try and take your character on as they map out the region and slowly learn about what is going on.

There are two main "bad guys" early on for you to face down and best. First up is the bandit king who goes by the name of the "Stag Lord." He generally claims the region but is a massive drunk whose own people are not overly loyal to him but mostly obey out of fear of reprisal. Secondly is a gnome spy from the nearby kingdom of Pitax named Tartuccio who spends 90% of his time in the Stolen Lands as a kobold while he stirs shit up between the local kobold tribe and their mite allies which results in a war between them that your character gets in on (or just tells both sides to fuck off and kill them both).

You also learn that there is something evil afoot in the region and a nymph named Nyrissa is at the center of it all. Coming to you as you try to sleep, she tells you to seek out information on the Stag Lord, eliminate an evil presence at a local (now abandoned) temple and more, all while only appearing to you and being wholly invisible/unheard to your allies in your party.

Once the two main villains have been dealt with you head back to Restov and are declared a baron of the lands you just adventured in. From there you can name your kingdom, your capital and claim some more surrounding land. You also get to take some of your allies and companions and get them to work in the kingdom's administration as well as advisors. They get to do much of the day to day things like telling the peasantry to pay their taxes or running propaganda for you among other things.

It should be noted that if you don't keep up with your kingdom's management (meeting important people, assigning jobs to advisors, doing numerous tasks for you subjects or dealing with monster threats) your kingdom can collapse and it is a game over (although if you don't want to deal with that, setting the kingdom management on autopilot is also an option). You need to take on big threats fast or suffer the consequences. You also need to deal with opportunities such as getting lucrative trade deals or promoting education or the military so that your kingdom can grow more powerful as well. All of this is tied into the main story as well as your companions stories and other NPC stories running in the background. Like that Nyrissa character? She was actually using your character and tugging at their heartstrings to do her bidding, but then lures you away from your party with the thinly veiled promise of nymph nookie and tries to kill you with a manticore, a hydra, an owlbear, a small legion of redcaps and an oversized Venus flytrap, because she has morbid dreams of grandeur. Fun times to say the least.
The reason she's so ruthless is because {{spoiler|a mad fey lord tore out her heart and banished her from the First World, and she has to bring about the downfall of a thousand kingdoms before she can return. If you work hard enough, you can actually romance and redeem her.}}

==The Companions==
*'''Amiri the Barbarian''': Pathfinder's Iconic [[Human]] [[Barbarian]], she carries a big ass bastard sword and follows the old barbarian adage of "hit it until it is dead." Like tabletop, her oversized sword should be swapped for a properly sized one as soon as possible. ''Un''like her tabletop incarnation who "never speaks of the circumstances that forced her to flee her homeland" she readily tells her backstory {{spoiler|and what she tells you isn't entirely true... Her personal quest is dealing with her old tribe, and what is to become of its leadership, plus a choice of who to sacrifice to power up her sword.}}
*'''Ekundayo the Ranger''': A dour man of few words chasing the trolls who slaughtered his family. Has a "dog" animal companion (just a wolf, really) that seems to have adopted him, despite his disinterest in it. He actually gets revenge within a few hours of gameplay, and most of his character arc is figuring out what to do ''after'' that. Depending on your choices he can {{spoiler|let go of his dead family and swear to protect your kingdom in their memory so no one else winds up like them, or become a vengeance seeking slayer of all giants}}. In the great tradition of animal companions, the dog alone is one of the strongest companions, even without Ekun's considerable skill with a bow. Ekun has rolled ridiculously high on his ability scores, having the equivalent to '''36''' point buy (compared to your 20 and a mercenary's 15).
*'''Harrim the Dwarf Cleric of Groetus''': A dwarf that rejected his people and turned to worship of Groetus after being spurned by [[Torag]] who, allegedly, cursed him with the undwarfy trait of sucking at crafting. Groetus is the obscure god of the eventual, inevitable end of existence (As in "[[Planescape: Torment|ENTROPY HAS UNMADE THEM.]]"), so Harrim is naturally quite the depressing nihilist. Since Groetus's portfolio is not destruction of existence but ''outlasting'' it, Harrim channels positive energy despite his grim personality. {{spoiler|Actually ''blessed'' by Torag with the rare ability to undo flawed creation. Depending on your choices in his quest, he can reconcile with his people and become happy in spite of the inevitable end (if there's no point to it, why not enjoy it while it lasts?), or give into his spite.}}
*'''Jaethal the Undead Elf Inquisitor of Urgathoa''': Lots of necromantic powers and fights with a scythe. Specifically says she doesn't care about [[Promotions|doing naughty things]] when asked, but as an undead is incapable of it. Being undead gives her a lot of useful immunities, but she's unfortunately trapped in one of the worst classes in the game with the worst possible domain choice. Multiclass her to any other front line class ASAP. Depending on your choices {{spoiler|she can reject Urgathoa and be smote by Lady Despair herself in return for that slight, only to be returned to ''actual'' life as a reward by [[Pharasma]] much later in the game (good luck figuring ''that'' one out without a guide), be killed by you, or fall further into depravity}}.
*'''Jubilost the Gnome Alchemist''': Adventurer cartographer/travel guide writer. Pompous, stuck up and chucks both verbal and literal bombs at everything. Seeks the reason Gnomes undergo the bleaching, a question that was <s>never actually answered in Pathfinder's lore before</s> answered in Pathfinder Campaign Setting: The First World, Realm of the Fey (2016). The only full companion to appear in the original adventure path, where he was a relatively minor NPC.
*'''Kalikke & Kanerah the Tiefling Kineticists''': A tiefling pair of bickering twin sisters. After one died to a soul eating [[Daemon (Pathfinder)|Daemon]], the intervention of [[Nethys]] allowed both to live, but only one to exist on the prime material plane at a time. You can romance both simultaneously. (DLC)
*'''Linzi the Halfling Bard''': The game's framing device. Is a character fans either love or hate.
*'''Nok-Nok the Goblin Rogue''': Your own personal goblin psycho written by Chris Avellone.
*'''Octavia the Half-Elf Rogue/Wizard''': The only character that, by default, takes the opportunity to multiclass.
*'''Regongar the Half-Orc Magus''': Angry half-orc that likes to hit things plus also has magic. Somewhat unique in being Chaotic Evil.
*'''Tristian the Cleric of Sarenrae''': Heals McHealypants. Someone has to. Also has access to some proper fire magic through his archetype, in exchange for no armor and being useless with weapons. Given damn near everything resists fire, it's not worth it. {{spoiler|Actually an angel brought down to human by Nyrissa, who claims to hold his divine form hostage to help her kill your kingdom behind the scenes. Tristian is an idiot and believes her empty threats entirely, but he was also helping you by abusing her exact words to still give you some aid. His personal quest is cleaning up a cult Nyrissa has made in your kingdom and getting forgiveness from his goddess for his actions. Why Sarenrae didn't just yank his powers ''before'' he could them for genocide is unclear.}}
*'''Valerie the Fighter''': Lawful Stupid ex-Paladin of [[Shelyn]] that hates that people only recognize her beauty and the goddess's clergy attempting to bring her back into the fold. A tower shield specialist whose AC makes her neigh untouchable, but utterly useless against spells. Depending on your choices {{spoiler|she can learn to accept her appearance is part of who she is and learn to ignore Shelyn in peace, or continue to live in spite.}}
*'''Tartuccio the Gnome Sorcerer''': An evil Gnome that pretends to join the expedition but is really a Pitaxian spy trying to sabotage it. Only a companion in the prologue and becomes a secondary antagonist in chapter 1. {{spoiler|Is reincarnated into a Kobold and a secondary antagonist in chapter 2. Can join you in the final area if you spare him and do some other stuff}}. Actually appeared in the original module as minor antagonist Tartuk (which he takes as an alias in the game), but the two versions have vast differences, with only that he's a CE purple haired gnome sorcerer {{spoiler|reincarnated into a Kobold}} and the rough outline of his actions in chapter 1 (which are greatly expanded on in the game) remaining.

[[Category:Pathfinder]]

Standard Fantasy Setting

2022-07-03T16:18:31Z

2A02:8108:49C0:A04:91B8:E4B5:84E8:6080: /* Medieval European Fantasy */

You know the one. The "default" fantasy setting, <s>as codified by</s> ripping off [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] and/or [[Dungeons and Dragons]], with a few going for the [[Warhammer Fantasy]] cum Central European fantasy angle.

[[Image:Generic_Fantasy_Map.jpg|thumb|right|Typically features the generic fantasy map. You know, the one with oceans on the left, land on the right, some long mountain ranges splitting good from evil.]]
[[Image:Generic_Fantasy_Cities.png|thumb|right|The capital of the (anime) Standard Fantasy Setting: Seoul, South Korea.]]
[[Image:WouldNotExplore.jpeg|thumb|right|Another typical example (click for more detail)]]

The "distinguishing" features of the standard fantasy setting include:
* [[Elf|Elf/ves]], [[Dwarf|Dwarf/ves]], [[Human|Humans]], [[Orc|Orcs]] or their [[Games Workshop|trademarkable]] equivalents. [[Halfling|Halflings]] and other races are optional, depending on the decade it was made.
** There's usually at least one [[Always Chaotic Evil]] race; if not Orcs, then some kind of [[Demon]].
* [[Dragon|Dragons]], usually intelligent.
* [[Undead]], usually evil.
* [[Medieval Stasis]], with heavily schizophrenic technology levels the further from the center of the map you get.
* Enough magic that [[Wizard]] is a viable career path.
* Some kind of Evil Overlord, although he does not have to feature in the story or campaign.
* Fantasy versions of real world cultures. Typical are [[Al-Qadim|Arabia]], [[Kara-Tur|The Middle Kingdom]], and some variant on [[Maztica|Native Americans]].
* Either a "Dung Ages" or "Excessively Romanticized" approach to what the world looks like, sometimes both depending on its level of humor/seriousness.
* [[God|Gods]], generally [[Religion|active enough]] that there is no doubt of their existence.

Common variations of the Standard Fantasy Setting include:
*Gothic: Adds angels and demons, black-white ethical framework, and Gothic architecture
*Swords & Sandals: Very [[Bronze Age]]-esque.
*'''''[[Starfinder|IN SPAAAACE]]''''': [[Science Fantasy]], but we're in space.
Some variations will eschew the Tolkien races in favor of pulpier or slightly more obscure races/visual themes, like [[Nymph|nymphs]] and [[Frazetta Man|Frazetta Men]].

This has become more rare in literature; the likes of Dennis L. McKiernan and Terry Brooks have mined it to exhaustion, while others like Terry Pratchett and G.R.R. Martin have satirized, parodied, or deconstructed what was left. [[Fantasy Heartbreaker|Fantasy Heartbreakers]] have similarly exhausted the tabletop RPG side. [[Isekai]] still has plenty of 'em, but most Isekai are garbage.

Since most people are familiar with the Standard Fantasy Setting, it remains popular in [[Anime]], [[Video Games|Vidya]], and [[board games]].

==Medieval European Fantasy==
Distinct enough from the Standard Fantasy Setting to get its own name (and tropes page), the Medieval European Fantasy setting is, well, a setting that tries to base itself around some kind of fascimile of Medieval Europe. What distinguishes this from the Standard Fantasy Setting? Generally, that's... tricky. Expert more overt references to European culture, geography, politics, history, and so forth. This may even go so far as to bring in more elements of Arthurian legend and/or European fairytales.

There are two and a half common ways of describing the MEF to SFS relationship:

# One possible way to differentiate is to ask "is this closer to J.R.R. Tolkien or George R.R. Martin?" That is, MEF is usually more closely associated with "low powered", "more or less historically accurate", or "grimdark" fantasy, rather than Standard Fantasy Setting's "high powered", "closer to Mythology than anything realistic", or "Noblebright" fantasy.
# Another is to ask "are there cultures besides Medieval European, are they examined in any detail, and is a large amount of the story set in this non-ME culture?" If the answer to both is "Yes", you may have exited the MEF zone, and entered more of the SFS area. (Or put another way: The Daenerys parts of [[A Song of Ice and Fire]] are not MEF, if counted separately; ASoIaF as a whole counts as MEF, since that's such a small part of the story.)
# The "half" way is to just contrast MEF to the Japanese Standard Fantasy Setting.

Notable examples of this aesthetic include:
* [[Symbaroum]]
* Certain iterations of [[Bretonnia]] in [[Warhammer Fantasy]] (The rest of the world is a little too culturally advanced to fit the "Medieval" part of the name)
* [[A Song of Ice And Fire]]
* [[Dungeons and Dragons]] can be played as MEF, but it was and is more a melting pot of influences and a toolkit than anything with an actual coherent aesthetic<ref>Seriously, the 1st Edition Dungeon Master's Guide had rules for pistols, shotguns and lasers from [[Boot Hill]] and [[Gamma World]], and let's not get started on how Asian the [[Monk]] is.</ref>, and most generic fantasy follows in D&D's footsteps.

==Standard Japanese Fantasy Setting==
Whilst the Japanese love the Standard Fantasy Setting enough that you'll see it in plenty of fantasy anime, manga and video games, they've also put their own spin on it often enough that it's become a recognized aesthetic in its own right, which in turn has become a major thing in fantasy anime, manga and video games. In fact, there's very few official tabletop games set in this kind of setting, outside of Japan's own [[Dungeons & Dragons]] knock-off, [[Sword World RPG]].

Defining attributes of the Standard Japanese Fantasy Setting?

'''Races:''' In a SJFS, races are typically divided into the major categories of Humanoid, Sei ("Pure" or "Sacred"), Ma ("Magic" or "Demon"), Shin ("God" or "Divine"), Demihuman and Monster.
* Humanoid races are typically made up of Humans, [[Elf|Elves]], [[Dwarf|Dwarves]], [[Beastfolk]] and [[Giant]]s. If there's a precursor race, it's typically related to one or more or the aforementioned.
** Humans tend to be in charge, and may treat other races like crap, especially if there's a corrupt empire and/or church running humanity.
** Dwarves are very close allies with humans, and their womenfolk tend to be more prominent (often ending up as [[loli]]s or [[shortstack]]s).
** Elves often are in hiding, usually due to having warred with humanity. Half-elves tend to replace purebloods as "the elves who actually interact with humans". Dark elves are usually not evil, and tend to be quite sexual, often with blonde or white hair contrasting human-like dark skin.
** Beastfolk vary from full-on anthros to [[monstergirls]] style "human with animal bits". Often men look like anthros and women like monstergirls. Tend to be physically orientated, and often treated like crap. Some beastfolk, especially human-blooded halfbreeds, may look human or monstergirl style, but can "freak out" and transform into a more monstrous state whilst also going berserk, ala a [[therianthrope]].
* Sei races are typically a mixture of [[fey]], [[elemental]]s, and magical beasts (from "ordinary" talking animals to magical creatures like [[unicorn]]s).
* Ma races are usually dangerous and chaotic, but not universally evil (we'll get to that). Generally divided between Majuu ("Demon-Beasts"; animal type monsters or beastfolk) and Mazoku ("Demon-Tribe", humanoid and often taking visual cues from Western [[fiend]]s), with a Maou ("Demon-Lord") ruling over them all.
* Shin races, often called "Shinzoku", are typically either [[celestial]]s, [[dragon]]s, or both. They are usually ruled over one or more Gods of Good.
* [[Demihuman]]s are generally more monstrous humanoids that are begrudgingly accepted alongside humanity, but not liked very much. This may be just an alternative name for "Monster". [[Lizardfolk]] and [[Harpy|Harpies]] tend to be demihumans.
* Monsters are any creature that exists to be killed. Common monsters are [[slime]]s, [[orc]]s, [[kobold]]s, [[ogre]]s and [[goblin]]s. Orcs and kobolds, infamously, tend to resemble pig-folk and dog-folk, due to their roots in old-school D&D art.

'''Classes:'''
* The [[Gish]] archetype tends to be very pronounced, to the point where fighters who ''don't'' know at least a few spells are rare.
* Master Swordsman types, who frequently get slapped with the [[samurai]] moniker, are usually the exception to the above, relying on striking with incredible speed and force whilst not being very good at taking damage.
* Paladins, in comparison, tend to be the tanks. Due to the Japanese cosmology revolving around Light/Dark rather than Good/Evil, the whole "testing or morals" things is rare.
* Ninjas typically fill the role of "thief" or "assassin", but are usually characterized as loyal and/or self-sacrificing, unlike western Rogues.
* The traditional D&D Monk is often portrayed by women or cute little kids, for the comedic juxtaposition.
* Barbarians are usually called Berserkers, and often portrayed as somehow cursed.
* With the proclivity towards [[magitek]], expect gunners and/or artificers backed by constructs.
* Spellcasters are typically divided between Black Mages (focused on elemental or destructive magic), White Mages (focused on healing and holy magic), and Summoners.

Other notable aspects of the SJFS:
* Good and Evil in the Western sense are replaced with a focus on Light and Dark.
* Individuality is central to Goodness, which keeps powers of Good firmly in the Neutral Good and Chaotic Good alignments; the great flaw of Good is a tendency to devolve into tyranny.
* Darkness isn't evil; the Ma races aren't necessarily universally evil.
* Light isn't good; Shin and Sei races (especially Sei) can be just as dangerous or corruptible as the Ma races.
* Catholic trappings are popular for religious aspects, but the more overtly "Christian" a church is, the more likely it tends to be corrupt or outright evil (a combo of the "Lawfulness can devolve into Tyranny" cliche and Japan's lingering cultural opposition towards Christianity). References to other real-life religions beside Buddhism are, for better or worse, almost non-existent.
* [[Magitek]] is often common, and may even see fantasy Mecha.
* Ki manipulation is often a major part of the magical system, if not the default explanation for it.
* The world often has a tangible font of life energy that must be protected from abuse.
* Mana often takes solid form by crystallizing.

SJFS "light novels" have their own particular set of tropes more common to them than other media:
* Adventuring guilds are a thing.
* Dungeon crawling is often emphasized to the point that dungeons are a kind of magical-yet-natural phenomena, and/or plunging into dungeons may serve as the foundation of entire economies.
* Slavery is often present, and usually magically enforced by enchanted collars or tattoos.

==Tropes Pages==
* https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StandardFantasySetting
* https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MedievalEuropeanFantasy
* https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StandardJapaneseFantasySetting

[[Category:Gamer Slang]]
[[Category: Setting Aesthetics]]