RPG News you can peruse (Jobe Bittman)

Coming after the announcement for Top32, 

Goodman Games announces the winner of the Mystery Map contest, not me...heh

Mystery Map Winner Announced – We are very excited to announce the winner of our Mystery Map Adventure Design Competition. Congratulations to Jobe Bittman for his submission, “The One Who Watches From Below.” Look for it in stores later this year! Thanks to everyone who entered – the submissions were great and the competition was fierce.

Jobe seems to be living the dream, He wins the Mystery Map contest for Goodman Games, and he's an RPG Superstar contender, having made Top 32 with the,

Quiver of Spiderkind Aura moderate conjuration; CL 8th
Slot —; Price 32,000 gp; Weight 2 lbs.
Description This chitinous quiver resembles an elongated spider’s abdomen, and comfortably holds 20 arrows. When placed on the back, thin segmented legs wrap around the wearer to hold it in place. Pedipalps near the quiver’s opening can be commanded to secure a thick strand of spider silk to the end of a drawn arrow 20 times per day. The unnaturally high tensile strength of spider’s thread allows the projectile to be used like a lightweight harpoon. A ranged attack made with the arrow on a target within 50 feet temporarily grants the Grapple special ability (Ultimate Combat) to the firing weapon. When securely anchored, the spider silk can also be used for climbing. The silk can support 500 lbs of weight before snapping. Every 50 feet of silk used for climbing consumes a single daily use of the item’s power.
Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, Web; Cost 16,000 gp

RPG Superstar 2013 - Irrisen Sacrificial Athame

Well once more I did not make top32 of RPG Superstar. Here is my item that I posted, minus a few minor changes I did during posting.

Irrisen Sacrifical Athame
Aura strong necromancy; CL17th 
Slot none;Price 81,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.
Description 

This ritualistic silver knife features a wickedly curved blade; shimmering with hoarfrost, the blade is uncomfortably cool to the touch. These wicked ritualistic tools originated in Irrisen, in the hands of elder witches.  
 
As a swift action, the wielder draws the blade of the athame across their flesh, sacrificing their own life force and leaving a jagged purplish-black scar in its wake. The next spell cast applies the effects of a metamagic feat possessed by the wielder without affecting its level or casting time, as long as the total modified level of the spell does not use a spell slot above 9th level.
 
Each sacrifice costs the wielder 1 point of temporary constitution, dexterity, or strength for each spell level increase of the applicable metamagic feat. Thus adding the maximize metamagic feat will inflict 3 points of temporary attribute damage. The user must possess the relevant ability score in order to use this item (an undead creature may not sacrifice constitution.)
  
An Irrisen Sacrificial Athame may be used on any level of spell. A caster may only add one metamagic effect to any given spell with the power of the athame. The wielder may combine the athame’s effect with metamagic feats they possess. In this case, only the feats possessed by the wielder adjust the spell slot of the spell being cast, per the appropriate metamagic feat. This effect may not be combined with the effect of any metamagic rod.
  
The soft blade is unsuitable for combat, having 5 hit points and hardness 2.
  

Construction
Requirements Spell Perfection; Cost 40,500 gp

This is obviously a variation on a metamagic rod. I felt the rules tweaked it enough to make it interesting, but, obviously it wasn't enough.

This obviously belongs to Paizo now, so no publishing it...

RPG Superstar Round 2 thoughts

After having voted for nearly two weeks, and seeing probably 85-90% of the items, I'm setting my sights on round 2, hoping that my item makes it to round 2. After six years of submitting, learning, and trying my best to submit quality, balanced material, I might have done it.

Round 2 is the archetype round. Designing an archetype is tricky without being for a contest, making sure to balance powers, writing descriptions, etc, all while trying to not step on the toes of other classes. Then again archetypes are about specific types of archetypal ideals. While a Buccaneer (Fighter) is similar in theme to a Buccaneer (Rogue) the execution of said archetypes is a thin line. Dropping the heavy and medium armors for the fighter to get several skills on their class list is more balanced than giving them a full sneak attack progression.

Now the curveball. Paizo (in support of the MMO, I'm guessing), is having the archetypes be River Kingdom archetypes for this contest. Which made me throw out my initial idea for an Akiton Warrior...oh well. I'm running through several ideas now.

If you're a contestant, good luck, and I hope you make Top32!

Edit: Now that the contest is over, and Clark has posted the Top89, I realize my item was not public friendly, I'll post in the Critique thread to see what the Judges themselves would have thought of my item had they actually had a chance to look at it....which since my item wasn't in the positive voting sphere, makes me wonder about the contest as a whole, with items like Door Chalk making top89.

Voting for RPG Superstar

Sarah and I have been voting for RPG Superstar 2013....



I can't believe how many people don't pay attention to the rules, formatting, and advice given.

We're having a blast laughing at stuff though, just the visuals that some of the items create is hilarious!!

Also...PILLOW FIGHT!!!

RPG Superstar Done & Done

In other news, I did get my entry into RPG Superstar on time. I did some fine tuning to my final entry.

Here were some other ideas I didn't use, but aren't completely finished.
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This is a cool item, but, very SIAC! Also it seems like more of an artifact. I loved the concept, but couldn't really make it work.

Titanic Lock
Aura moderate transmutation CL 15th
Slot waist; Price gp; Weight 5 lbs.
Description
A thick braided belt, made from the hair of a titan, bound by bronze rings inscribed with copper runes. The Titanic Lock allows the wearer to grow to huge proportions 3 times per day upon command. The wearer grows to the size of a huge giant. Gaining the following +8 size bonus to Strength, -2 penalty to Dexterity, +6 size bonus to Constitution, +6 natural armor bonus, darkvision 120ft, +10 foot enhancement bonus to your speed, in addition, air walk, mind blank, and true seeing are in effect while in Titanic form.

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, giant form II; Cost ZZ gp
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This is the item I switched from, I hadn't finalized its abilities until now, I still think it needs work, but the overall concept is fun, I also thought of a cursed version that creates an uncontrolled Flesh Golem on a failed healing check while using raise dead.

Chirurgeon’s Mending Kit
Aura strong conjuration (healing) CL 13th
Slot none; Price gp; Weight 1 lb.
Description
Well-crafted adamantine needles, several lengths of trollgut string, and several squares of trollskin, wrapped in a small well oiled leather bundle. The kit has enough trollgut for 50 charges. The user of the kit makes a healing check (DC 15) to treat a wound. This healing check takes 10 minutes to perform. Failure consumes 1 charge. Success allows the healer to apply one of the following effects:
- Fast healing 1 for 13 rounds. (1 charge)
- Fast healing 2 for 13 rounds (3 charges)
- regenerate (5 charges)
- raise dead (10 charges)

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, Heal; Cost ZZ gp

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Please feel free to use these items, but give credit where credit it due, these items were not submitted to Paizo, thus all rights remain with me, though I'm releasing them as CCNA and OGL.

Items which I had the idea for but never developed.

(too meta for RPG Superstar)
Two-stride Boots
Allows a wearer to use a 10ft step rather than 5ft step.
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, haste
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(abandoned early on, and I just brain-stormed the rest for now, I like it. This will probably be the first one I finish.)
Aldori Dueling Gloves
Supple leather gloves which appear to be well worn. Quite common in Taldor, and are often given to a duelist who does not know how to use an Aldori dueling sword. Grants wearer proficiency in the Aldori Dueling Sword. For those who are already proficient, once per day, they may double the bonuses from an existing feat related to the Aldori Dueling Sword. For example, a character with Greater Weapon Focus may double the normal +2 to hit, to +4 to hit. The effect lasts an entire round.
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, heroism

Finishing Touches (RPG Superstar 2013)

So at the last minute I scraped the Chirurgeon's Mending Kit in favor of an earlier idea. I will post the Chirurgeon's Kit tomorrow after the 2PM Deadline has passed. (Can't have a random person entering my item that just stumbles onto the blog at the last minute now can we?)

So putting on the final touches to my item, and hopefully I will be in the Top32!!!!  I think this item really has a shot, it tweaks the game rules, is very thematic for what it is, doesn't break the main rules, definitely isn't a spell in a can, IP Violation, etc. I used a Golarion specific location for it. It doesn't grant a feat, or steal any classes abilities. I hope the community likes it.

Good luck to everyone entering!!!

RPG Superstar 2013

So, looks like Sean is going to attempt to design an item, and Ian is going to try to submit next year. However, after the contest, I'm going to try to have them design something of their own every week. Should be Fun.

It's always so hard designing something of Superstar quality. It's easy to design magic items, but SuperStar quality requires really digging deep, throwing out crappy, trite, ideas. The writing must be tight. The idea must be innovative, rules twisting is a bonus, and of course, pricing must be perfect. If you're twisting the rules, up the price just a bit. Even if you designed the item perfectly to the rules as written, when you bend rules, you need to calculate what that tweak is worth.

If you're entering, Good Luck

Designing for RPG Superstar

No, I'm not posting my entry, I will post it after it's over.

But designing a wondrous item was hard enough when you were just trying to please the judges, go by the rules and post something special, which bends rules, shows creativity, and of course, is of Superstar quality. With the new "Voting" by Paizo members to get to Top64, followed by Judging to Top32. There's a whole new Paradigm. Now we have to design down to the layman, while designing up to the judges.

Once I found out the new shift, I instantly threw out two ideas, as they might not be close enough to what paizoans might vote for. If you don't make Top64, you're not going to make Top32.

1. Naming
This is in fact one of the hardest parts of the contest.

2. Design that bends and warps rules. My entry last Year, the Eye of Abendego, bent the rules, but maybe a little too much. I mentioned lightning bolts that could be shot from the necklace, but since they were derived from call lightning I used that damaged. This was off-putting to the judges. I tweaked the rules from hurricane force winds, halving them to produce a lighter wind around the character, but the judges thought it was awkward. (Strange though, now an item or spell in the Ultimate Equipment I noticed has the same effect...)

3. Pricing This is a true pitfall, my Ghostfire Torch, was innovative, rule bending, and though it was a single use item and priced that way.  With only a limited 10 minute duration, it's overall effect was thought to be worth more than 900gp. (900gp for a single use item it a LOT).

Overall, Designing for RPG Superstar is fun, challenging and frustrating all at the same time. Hopefully, I can make it to round 2 this year. 

RPG Superstar 2013!

Well it is on again! RPG Superstar 2013. I've entered every year. My first year wasn't even a Wondrous Item, but an Anvil, which was more of an artifact. Every year I've improved, will I make Top32 this year? Competition is fierce. Are you going to be my competition?

Paizo Publishing is proud to announce RPG Superstar 2013, the sixth season of its popular RPG design contest. The search for the newest talent in RPG design begins now!
Over the last six years, RPG Superstar has discovered some of the best new RPG designers in the business. Designers discovered in this competition have found work writing for Paizo products or even joined the Paizo staff as employees. The staff are excited to see the great new talent out there, and look forward to working with the winners for years to come!

RPG Superstar consists of five RPG design challenges spanning several weeks. In the first round, members of the paizo.com messageboard community votes for their favorite open call wondrous item submissions, and a team of celebrity judges winnows those down all open call submissions to 32 finalists. In later rounds, the judges provide commentary and the messageboard community post their comments and vote on following round submissions until only four finalists remain. 

This year's ultimate winner will write a Pathfinder Module to be published by Paizo. Three runners-up will win the opportunity to write Pathfinder Society Scenarios, meaning all finalists will be offered professional writing contracts with Paizo Publishing, and an opportunity to begin their freelance careers with high-profile RPG releases!
Last year Mike Welham's Doom Comes to Dustpawn emerged victorious as 2012's RPG Superstar winner after a week of public comment and fan voting at paizo.com. His winning adventure will release as a full-color printed Pathfinder Module.

Paizo has selected three veteran RPG Superstar judges to oversee the competition--Paizo Developer Sean K Reynolds, Legendary Games president and Necromancer Games founder Clark Peterson, and notable game designer and Kobold Press founder and publisher Wolfgang Baur. Additional guest judges will assist with each installment of the multi-challenge contest. The judges will critique each round's entries.

Starting at 2 PM Pacific Time on December 4, 2012, contestants will be able to submit their RPG Superstar entry. For the first round, that entry will be a wondrous item designed for use with Paizo's Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Each entry must be 300 words or less, and must include all of the proper mechanics and flavor. Contestants must submit their entry by December 18. Voting is open to anyone with a Paizo.com messageboard account, and begins on December 20. The judges will select the best 32 entries out of the 64 most popular entries; the top 32 are announced on January 22, 2013. Those 32 contestants will be assigned a new design task and their entries will be posted on paizo.com for the public to read, critique, and vote on. The designers garnering the most votes in each round will continue on to subsequent rounds.

Specifics for each challenge will be announced as each round begins. The winner of RPG Superstar 2013 will be announced on April 2, 2012. Do you have what it takes to be the next RPG Superstar?