Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Kickstarter Update #3: Mounted Combat & Cavalier Stretch Goal
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Kickstarter Update #3: Mounted Combat & Cavalier Stretch Goal
Game News - posted by Infinitron on Thu 6 February 2020, 23:47:00
Tags: Owlcat Games; Pathfinder: Wrath of the RighteousThe Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Kickstarter campaign hit its second stretch goal this evening, and Woljif Jefto the Thiefling companion is in. As many of you guessed, the campaign's third stretch goal at $575,000 is indeed mounted combat, a feature that hasn't been seen in this sort of RPG since Neverwinter Nights' Wyvern Crown of Cormyr premium module. And of course you can't have mounted combat without the Cavalier class, which will be added to the game alongside it. It's two-for-one special.
We’ve funded another stretch goal! Thanks to your support, a new companion, the Thiefling and your best party vendor Woljif, is already at the door, rubbing his hands in anticipation. And now we are moving on to the next stretch goal — we know you’re gonna love it! Because who doesn’t love the idea of riding a mastodon?
Mounted warriors are a fantasy staple, be it noble knights with lances on charging warhorses, wolf-riding orcs, or skeletal knights riding undead horses. And in many fantasy stories, those warriors fight each other on horseback (or on whatever-they-are-riding-back). Without mounted combat, epic fantasy loses some of its luster.
In pen-and-paper Pathfinder, there are lots of ways to make your character capable of mounted combat. The easiest and most efficient is to select an animal companion. A druid can call lightning down upon their enemies while riding on a bear. A ranger can shower their enemies with arrows from the back of an elk. A mad dog barbarian can charge into enemy lines on a mastodon.
On the whole, tabletop RPGs rarely shy away from mounted combat. Although that might not always be appropriate: charging into a claustrophobic dungeon on the back of a mastodon probably isn’t the best idea. But, for some reason, video game adaptations usually ignore this exciting and fun feature. Now, thanks to your generous backing, the time has come to fix this issue.
We will make all the appropriate animal companions into mounts, and all your party members will be able to ride them. While mounted, all classes will be able to shoot, attack, cast spells, and generally do most of the things they can do on foot. We know that many players liked the animal companions in Pathfinder: Kingmaker. There were a lot of fans of the mastodons, leopards, and smilodons. Especially the smilodons. Maybe you would have loved them even more had you been able to perform a full-party smilodon cavalry charge?
As always, with any new facet of gameplay, there exists a character specialization to match. Mounted combat must have a dedicated mounted combatant — presenting the cavalier, who charges into enemy lines and leads allies in the heat of battle. This class encompasses a dozen character templates and comes with no alignment restrictions, so a knight in shining armor and a skeletal knight can both be cavaliers in their own right.
Each cavalier pledges himself to a specific order, and with different orders come different personal restrictions and bonuses. Cavaliers of the Order of the Dragon are loyal and faithful to their allies, and their abilities improve the party's strengths. Cavaliers of the Order of the Staff fight together with spellcasters, receiving more significant benefits from magical buffs, and reducing the opponent's saving throws. And cavaliers of the Order of the Cockatrice focus on personal goals and fame, demoralizing enemies and taking down powerful opponents to achieve greater glory in battle. And that is just a small selection of the orders available.
Among the cavalier’s other abilities, two are especially notable. The first is called Challenge: a cavalier may challenge any foe to combat, focusing above all else on bringing that foe down and inflicting additional damage on that enemy at the cost of defending against other opponents. The other ability is called Tactician: befitting a battle leader, this ability allows the cavalier to gain bonus teamwork feats and share them with their party.
Yet not all cavaliers fit this mold; there are other archetypes. The gendarme cares little about tactical precision and specializes in mounted combat even further. The beast rider replaces his warhorse with an assortment of different beasts (including the fan favorite smilodon). The standard bearer raises the morale of allies. The knight of the wall elects to protect their party members instead of leading them. And for those who have no interest at all in mounted combat (though if that’s you, why have you read this far?), there is the disciple of the pike, a cavalier that challenges monsters with his polearm or spear.
So, to arms, crusaders! Get ready to charge into battle on your noble steed!
After a slow morning, Owlcat finally remembered to announce the campaign to their Kingmaker backers today and the money is pouring in again. They'll certainly hit this stretch goal by tomorrow. If you look at the campaign page, the next one looks like it might be pretty cool also.Mounted warriors are a fantasy staple, be it noble knights with lances on charging warhorses, wolf-riding orcs, or skeletal knights riding undead horses. And in many fantasy stories, those warriors fight each other on horseback (or on whatever-they-are-riding-back). Without mounted combat, epic fantasy loses some of its luster.
In pen-and-paper Pathfinder, there are lots of ways to make your character capable of mounted combat. The easiest and most efficient is to select an animal companion. A druid can call lightning down upon their enemies while riding on a bear. A ranger can shower their enemies with arrows from the back of an elk. A mad dog barbarian can charge into enemy lines on a mastodon.
On the whole, tabletop RPGs rarely shy away from mounted combat. Although that might not always be appropriate: charging into a claustrophobic dungeon on the back of a mastodon probably isn’t the best idea. But, for some reason, video game adaptations usually ignore this exciting and fun feature. Now, thanks to your generous backing, the time has come to fix this issue.
We will make all the appropriate animal companions into mounts, and all your party members will be able to ride them. While mounted, all classes will be able to shoot, attack, cast spells, and generally do most of the things they can do on foot. We know that many players liked the animal companions in Pathfinder: Kingmaker. There were a lot of fans of the mastodons, leopards, and smilodons. Especially the smilodons. Maybe you would have loved them even more had you been able to perform a full-party smilodon cavalry charge?
As always, with any new facet of gameplay, there exists a character specialization to match. Mounted combat must have a dedicated mounted combatant — presenting the cavalier, who charges into enemy lines and leads allies in the heat of battle. This class encompasses a dozen character templates and comes with no alignment restrictions, so a knight in shining armor and a skeletal knight can both be cavaliers in their own right.
Each cavalier pledges himself to a specific order, and with different orders come different personal restrictions and bonuses. Cavaliers of the Order of the Dragon are loyal and faithful to their allies, and their abilities improve the party's strengths. Cavaliers of the Order of the Staff fight together with spellcasters, receiving more significant benefits from magical buffs, and reducing the opponent's saving throws. And cavaliers of the Order of the Cockatrice focus on personal goals and fame, demoralizing enemies and taking down powerful opponents to achieve greater glory in battle. And that is just a small selection of the orders available.
Among the cavalier’s other abilities, two are especially notable. The first is called Challenge: a cavalier may challenge any foe to combat, focusing above all else on bringing that foe down and inflicting additional damage on that enemy at the cost of defending against other opponents. The other ability is called Tactician: befitting a battle leader, this ability allows the cavalier to gain bonus teamwork feats and share them with their party.
Yet not all cavaliers fit this mold; there are other archetypes. The gendarme cares little about tactical precision and specializes in mounted combat even further. The beast rider replaces his warhorse with an assortment of different beasts (including the fan favorite smilodon). The standard bearer raises the morale of allies. The knight of the wall elects to protect their party members instead of leading them. And for those who have no interest at all in mounted combat (though if that’s you, why have you read this far?), there is the disciple of the pike, a cavalier that challenges monsters with his polearm or spear.
So, to arms, crusaders! Get ready to charge into battle on your noble steed!
