As part of my effort to keep things relatively fresh (and because I am excited for Wrath of the Righteous), I am looking at Pathfinder: Kingmaker. An isometric role-playing game featuring real time with pause, this game by Owlcat Studios had managed to sink its teeth into me which has lead to far more hours put into it than I expected.
So I like it a lot and feel that it is a gem with room for improvement. Improvement that I hope to see in Wrath of the Righteous.
The game takes place in Paizo's Pathfinder setting which is a tabletop setting for the Pathfinder role-playing game. I am not well-versed in tabletop games despite my interest due to a lack of time to get into them and not knowing a lot of people who would be into tabletop roleplaying.
Here is our main menu, complete with letter from the developers.
Selecting the New Game option allows you to pick the campaign to play. First time players should pick the main game as the main bulk of your time will be spent there. Plus the Beneath the Stolen Lands campaign would be integrated in the Main Campaign.
As for Varnhold's Lot, there is a certain point in time during the Main Campaign where the player is recommended to stop progress and start the DLC to avoid spoilers and to grant the story proper flow.
The game itself is pretty challenging and allows you to customize the difficulty.
One advice I can give is this: DON'T USE AUTO KINGDOM MANAGEMENT!!!
Once this is set, you have no control over Kingdom Management which can screw you over. First time players should set it to Normal or lower to reduce the hassle.
The character creator for Pathfinder: Kingmaker is pretty extensive. Here we have the pre-set characters for players to try out.
Or we can make our own.
My standard player character for most medieval role-playing games I play is an intelligent and charismatic swordsman named Aedan.
So I will do something like that without the sword. Sort of...
There is not much customization for appearance but seeing as you will be in an isometric perspective, you would not be seeing much of your character's face.
The extensive part starts with picking your class. There is the standard Fighter, Thief, Wizard and Priest along with other unique options. Under those classes are sub-classes that have their own unique set of abilities and skills.
For this time, I am going for a Two-Handed Fighter.
Humans get a Racial Bonus to an ability score of their choosing which could help the character break a limit for said score.
Abilities are varied but as indicated, there are recommended skills for each class.
Here is where you can pick the character's feats. Some of these range from feats that boost skills to usable abilities during gameplay.
Due to being someone with a large weapon with reach, I opt for Power Attack (plus I may have been following a guide).
One thing to note is that some feats may be locked off until certain requirements are met. Here I pick a fauchard as my character's weapon of choice.
This also applies to Prestige classes that can be selected later on.
This is to show the requirement.
The screen on the right previews the feats and abilities that the player character would earn as they levelled up in their particular class.
Here is where you pick your character's voice, birthday and alignment.
Out of all of these, alignment is particularly important.
Here is a screen to summarize Aedan, the fauchard-wielding Lawful Good fighter with a silver tongue.
Here is a screen of a loading screen.
And now the intro.
Aedan has joined a large gathering at the mansion of an Aldori Swordlord. To summarize them here, think of them as the ruling body of the nation we are in. A body that may be offering a job.
Also, note that we have a narrator present.
I have always been fond of isometric games. The view always allows the art style to look good from a distance and is not as detailed that it kills my mid-tier laptop.
Here is a barbarian woman complaining about the time taken to assemble for a big speech. I would say something about being impolite to the hosts but I can empathize with the impatience. May as well get things over with so that we can do other things.
Like with Pillars, this game has tool-tips to explain terminology from the source material. Also, the gnome is looking to be a prick and a sycophant.
That is so totally not a red flag...
Right on, barbarian lady! I like you already. Direct and to the point.
Ah, she sounds like the narrator and has a character portrait. She must be important.
In walks our host for the evening.
This is Jamandi Aldori, Aldori Swordlord and our host.
I guess every guest here is an adventurer. I wonder why they would allow low-level adventurers to handle a task that seems so important.
Essentially, the game primarily takes place in the Stolen Lands, a large chunk of land that has not been claimed by any nearby kingdom and/or barony. So, an ambitious sort could stake a claim and start their own barony there but seeing as the land has never been claimed for so long, there is obviously a catch.
I guess this is why they are using low level adventurers. Few high level adventurers would deign to regard bandits as a threat worth taking on even with the promise of a tenuous barony as a reward but the promise of being able to set up a barony is quite tempting for low-level adventurers to take on such a challenge.
This means ambitious but low-level adventurers would join up for the prize but are low level enough that they would be expendable if they die.
Or I am over-thinking this.
In any case, Aedan asks as to who receives the title of baron seeing as there is so many of us here.
Like I said, a prick. Already declaring himself leader without a vote.
Well, it would make sense as to how we divide up the spoils now. If not, we would build up unrealistic expectations.
Also, what a downer. Already assuming we would all die upon setting foot there.
At least Jamandi is taking charge here.
Okay, that makes sense. I am guessing that the team would elect their team leader as baron though seeing as their field leadership quality will be on display in appropriate circumstances.
Now to check as to why the bandit lord is not recognised. He did take over the territory after all.
That is a fair point from the creepy elf. I wonder how Jamandi would respond.
That is fair. Recognising a bandit lord as a barony especially when said bandit lord harms and pillages nearby settlements would set a bad precedent as a whole. If that were so, every bandit that has control over some highway could be declared a lord or baron which would be embarrassing to say the least.
Aedan now asks as to the charity of the Swordlords. It is odd that they would gladly assist the new barony without any gains.
Firstly, I swing a fauchard. Secondly, it is not a stupid question to inquire as to the generosity of the quest give.
Thirdly, you are such a prick.
Okay, that is understandable. The Aldoris get a benefit by having a friendly ally in the region especially since they were the ones who supported the fledgling barony and it would stabilize the region.
Having a bandit lord for a neighbor is problematic after all.
The tiefling is right. There is probably more political intrigue present that we can deduce.
As for now, Aedan would inquire as to the reward. Barony is one thing but what else is there?
I dunno, finances to maintain said land? It would be a shame to have land but then, lose it due to having no money in the barony's coffers.
Now, that is more like it! My financial concerns for the barony is addressed.
I guess the barbarian has a point. What else is there aside from financial aid?
Nobility aside, food is always good.
The barbarian concurs. With that, we have asked all that we need.
Time to get to know our fellow adventurers.
I kinda wish it were not so obvious as to who will be joining us though but that is a minor point.
Thank you for the addendum, Mayor.
Aedan is approached by Linzi here. She seems pleasant and a bard too.
I wonder if she is skilled with spoons...
Aedan, of course, introduces himself.
Well, I see no reason as to why she should not ask.
I agree with your assessment of Tartuccio indeed. He is a real prick.
I guess Linzi will be on Aedan's team when the time comes.
Also, a book?
Okay, Aedan is listening.
Ah, so she prefers the accompanying writer arrangement. Like Sherlock Holmes and Doctor John Watson.
It is risky due to the writer being in danger frequently but they would be able to describe everything vividly.
She has a fair point about being the Dr. Watson to a prospective Holmes. The problem is so far she has not seen anyone promising like the depressed dwarf or the prick.
What about the barbarian, Amiri? She seems like signature character material.
*nudge nudge wink wink
Well, that is fair. Someone with such a huge sword would be terrifying especially to a halfing. In any case, we can discuss the arrangement come morning.
A bard would be a good fit for Aedan's party. He is already a fighter so the bard can cover if we are missing a mage or a rogue. Now all we need is a priest.
Interestingly, the in-game journal that logs all quests is named as Linzi's journal. I guess this means the arrangement has already begun.
Holding the TAB key immediately highlights interactable characters and items.
This is a vital mechanic to know.
The nearby tooltips act as the tutorial. As seen, one can turn them off.
Most characters here do not have extensive dialogue so you can click on a bunch to get their floating dialogue.
I guess there is nothing much to do.
Incidentally, I can dual-wield torches for a laugh.
One could say that my presence is illuminating.
I guess the tiefling is keeping distant from the crowd.
Nothing wrong with that. I can actually relate to that.
Now to proceed on.
Like most games, there are tips in the loading screens.
I guess Linzi could not wait to discuss the arrangement in the morning and barged in during the night?
Oh, this is an actual emergency.
An attack? Just like with Neverwinter Nights 1!
Time to get to work.
I guess this means that some of our fellow adventurers are dead now and the guards themselves are being overwhelmed.
I had little reason to doubt Linzi but I guess that seals it.
Oh, it is Firstblood the 42nd. I wonder how he would fare.
As a Fighter, I have certain combat feats I can use per encounter.
In terms of gameplay, Kingmaker allows for turn-based or real-time with pause. For this series, I would be using real-time with pause though I can see which encounters are easier to do in turn-based.
Alas, poor Firstblood. I knew him-
No wait, I did not. So, moving on.
Now to begin the tutorial level in earnest.
Before proceeding ahead, we search the manor for resources to use. Repelling attackers uses up valuable resources that we would have to replenish.
So, I do not think Jamandi will mind us taking some valuables.
I can see the attackers were alrady hard at work taking out the rest.
At least we have stuff to take.
Oh look. Tartuccio is in trouble.
Must we help him...?
I guess we drew their attention. Oh well.
Maybe stab the gnome first before coming after us?
I guess they did not agree with my idea.
Time to rescue Tartuccio... Ugh...
We saved Tartuccio... Yay....
Fair enough. We would need their aid.
Speaking of dummies... Is that a backhanded insult?
The ring acts as a Ring of Protection +1. Useful but there is clearly a catch somewhere...
This is the inventory screen by the way,
Each character has a character sheet with a biography. This is Linzi's, she is Chaotic Good so Aedan and her would only clash in terms of lawful opinions.
And of course, Tartuccio is Chaotic Evil. Figures as much.
I think Aedan would not equip that ring. Most likely there is a curse in it or something.
Inspecting the other rooms, we find more enemies to take out. Aedan tanks while Linzi and Tartuccio attack from a distance.
It is a working strategy at least.
Potions are available on the attackers so we would not be lacking for potions.
Yeah, good thing we were awake.
Nice, Tartuccio... Mocking the fresh victims of a massacre.
Why am I assuming that you set this up somehow?
Throughout the game, you can find books that flesh out the setting's world. This book is by an in-universe author named Jubilost.
That is a fancy sounding name. I wonder if he will come into play later.
In the next room, we encounter more attackers facing Amiri.
I guess they have not moved to attack on account of her massive sword.
Once they are all dead, Amiri engages conversation. She immediately distrusts Tartuccio.
Amiri and Aedan are going to get along swimmingly.
By the way, Gorum is a god of war in the setting's pantheon. A fitting god for a barbarian to worship.
Still, I would take her company over yours any day.
True but I would prefer if they were pragmatic and wise as well. Courage can only go so far.
So, you worship a goddess of revenge on top of being a slimeball prick?
Now, I definitely suspect that you set this attack up somehow.
Looks like we need to take a detour to reach the main hall.
Meanwhile, this scene plays out.
You guards are outnumbered but you may be able to take some of them with you.
I wonder who is he talking too.
Certainly not a someone based on his response.
Oh, a giant creature.
Nice bit of detail here is that the creature actually kills the goons it tramples over on the way to the guards.
Based on the frost covering the corpses, I would guess they have a frost giant. Or something like a frost giant.
More corpses mean more potions at least.
Looks like the giant destroyed the direct way to the hall.
I smell detour.
This is where skill-checks come in. Aside from dialogue skill-checks, the game also has skill-checks with certain interactable items in the game's world.
Unlike Pillars, a neat thing about this game's skill check is that the person with the highest skill stat would be the one to roll the dice for these skill-checks which means that those who do not have good enough stats would not be penalized.
We mount over with minimal issue and immediately encounter more enemies.
Time to get to work.
Fair point, Tartuccio. We better arm up more if we want to survive against the large number of assassins.
This is an emergency after all.
Here is the tooltip that introduces the TAB highlight.
A key is always useful.
On the table is a chest full of gold that makes up the guards' salaries. Being the slimeball, Tartuccio advocates taking the gold for ourselves seeing as most of the guards are likely dead.
Linzi is correct. We only loot for bits and not for entire salaries.
Kleptomaniac heroes have standards after all.
Aedan now raises a fair point. We would be stupid to think that they would not notice how a large sum of gold had suddenly vanished from a locked chest during an attack.
Oh, so you are pointing fingers at the halfling being a tattletale.
This is obviously a trap.
See, even Linzi wants to wash her hands of this matter.
It is not even that much gold anyways.
Not worth the reputational risk.
Thus, we move on.
Now, we meet the edgy elf. Jaethal seems to have survived something deadly.
Something that Tartuccio has picked up on.
Oh, an undead elf? Interesting...
I guess questions later.
Linzi, I do not think this is the best time to ask for an undead elf's life-story.
Jaethal concurs.
With that, we have four party members in a room to loot.
As Jaethal is undead, healing spells do not work on her so keeping her alive is a bit of a challenge.
One tip I can give is to ensure you have a party member with high Perception on you at all times.
Finding hidden things in the environment requires a Perception check which uses dice roll to determine if you see said hidden thing of not.
This dice roll can fail even with a high Perception score so the Perception specialist needs to ensure that Perception is levelled at all times.
With the trap disarmed, we can proceed.
As you can see, Aedan is starting to get encumbered from all the stuff we are looting. This does have penalties so keeping your encumbrance low is important.
Looks like we have another scene.
With a treasure room. I wonder if Jamandi is okay with us searching through this,
She is rich so I doubt she would need the stuff in here.
First, we need to deal with these goons.
4 v 2? This will be a breeze.
Tartuccio is already poised to loot.
That said, I cannot begrudge him here.
We may as well search around.
As you can tell, the cache is not easy to get into.
There is clearly a puzzle here.
You could use a guide or brute force it like I usually do.
Brute forcing could be risky if you screw something up.
I guess this works.
We would need the stuff here more than Jamandi. It is not right but if I were to rail against it, I would need to rail against the usual kleptomaniac hero trope in every game out there.
By the way, I believe I missed on more cache here. I only found out there was another by reading a guide online. Whoops.
I guess this means Jamandi will not be left penniless by our larceny here.
Moving on, we now go through the bigger doors.
A courtyard. Cool.
Looks like they took down the depressed dwarf at least.
Oh, we have back up here too. That tiefling is lobbing fire at them.
Kaessi seems to be a useful ally. I do not think the attackers would like to be set on fire so there is a tangible benefit already.
True. People have died so this is not entertainment. In-universe.
Looks like Aedan picked up on Kaessi's nationality.
I guess the Arabic equivalent of Golarion? Also, aside from a remark and the floating dialogue, Aedan and Kaessi have not actually spoken with each other in detail.
I wonder if Aedan was woken up by Linzi or that he was getting ready to sleep before Linzi showed up.
Or that he sleeps in his armor.
I guess we will see her at the hall.
Now to check up on that dwarf.
Weirdly enough, he is actually fine from the looks of it. Still, we should ask him what is wrong.
No, you are not.
I guess we need to convince him to notice that he is not dying.
Passing the check, Aedan convinces him that he is fine. The dwarf then realises this and sheepishly gets back on his feet.
There must be something wrong with this guy.
Harrim is his name. He is a cleric to Groetus, a literal god of the End Times.
So, we have a doomsayer cleric in our party now.
Still, a cleric is a cleric.
Inspecting the side-passages nets us more items.
And more items.
Now to proceed along.
He seems important. Also, the fire there seems important too.
Fair point, we need to get to that hall but first, questions.
Kesten. He is likely important later with a portrait and all.
Fair enough, Kaessi. A good captain is useful in most situations.
Now to get Kesten's input as to what happened here.
Okay, that is to the point. Looks like we will need to get through the flaming corridor.
Good point, why are these assassins here? I guess we will have to find out eventually.
Aedan now asks if he should assist with putting out the flames.
Fair enough, it looks like they have it under control at least.
True though, we should repel the attack first to minimize losses. I guess we can rescue those we come across if we need to.
Time to go.
I guess that is one advantage of being a tiefling.
I would say the same but I do not know which god Aedan worships.
Now for book episodes. Like with Pillars, this is like a gamebook where you make certain decisions to reach an outcome.
Skill-checks are present here and certain actions taken in one part could have an effect later on. Here, the party drenches themselves in water.
In this case, drenching one's self is useful as we would be sprinting through a burning corridor with an exit in mind. This will buy the party some time in the burning corridor.
In real life, a wet tower around your mouth and nose could be useful though not advisable.
Now drenched, the party runs in before the water can dry up and not a moment too soon seeing as the entrance collapses just as they make it in.
Linzi is totally waxing poetical about this warrior's looks. Valerie looks to be in the process of rescuing someone and looks like there are more people to be rescued.
Seeing as Aedan is fit and of virtuous character, he agrees.
The check is passed so the party rescues the people trapped inside with Valerie and make it out just fine.
The only penalty received is fatigue on Aedan's part.
Still, at least we got those guys out and Valerie joins the party.
They are grateful about the rescue, to say the least.
Based on the giant shield on Valerie's back, she is going to be our main tank.
One neat aspect of this game is that before you leave an area and load into a new one, the game lets you check to see if you want to retrieve any item you left behind.
This does not pick up on undiscovered hidden items so it is not completely unbalanced.
With that, we move onto the main hall.
Jamandi seems to be handling that frost giant pretty well.
Now we are here to mop things up.
Rule of thumb: Always find a way to kill the mages first.
Mages can screw one over at an inopportune time so better to eliminate them as a whole.
Like so. We also get help from Amiri who shows up during the fight.
With the assassins dead, the barrier goes off and Jamandi is rescued.
If I recall correctly. examining the giant reveals that the giant is actually a reanimated corpse which is why it was not as tough as the real thing.
Therefore, we can prepare to speak to Jamandi once she is ready and once we have looted the bodies.
It is weird that she recognises Tartuccio as a leader when all he really did was follow Aedan's lead.
Ah, that is his game. Tartuccio is someone from a rival kingdom (Pitax) who is looking to remove the competition. So, I was completely right that he was the one who let the assassin's in.
Looks like the ring's curse is less benign. It was to mark me as someone from Pitax seeing as the ring bears the seal of Pitax.
With Aedan's knowledge check, he figures out that Tartuccio's name, accent and clothes are Pitaxian.
Fair enough. I guess we do not have the time to ask for a cleric to cast Know Alignment seeing as Aldori wants us to go on our expedition immediately.
While I can understand in-universe as to why Jamandi has suspicions on the both of us, it is weird when the obviously evil Tartuccio is not treated with more suspicion than the lawful good Fighter.
I guess we have to be tolerant of evil gnomes here too.
Never seen us, Kaessi? Uh... what?
Also, why are your eyes blue now?
Even Linzi is upset at Kaessi seemingly feigning ignorance of us.
There is likely more to the story.
Amiri always sides with us over Tartuccio. She knows not to side with the little slimeball.
This part here is where you find out who is in your initial party. Your actions and arguments here will determine who will be joining you for the early parts.
Here, you have a chance to argue your reasoning for looting the armory. Regardless of your success or failure, the argument decides as to who will join.
Here, Aedan apologizes for robbing the armory but argues that we did need the gear to repel the invaders.
Winning the argument is still satisfying as Tartuccio's accusations fall flat on their face.
Jamandi understands that some larceny is justifiable in light of the circumstances
The Lawful reply resonates with Valerie as well so she agrees. We did apologize for looting the armory so no harm was done.
This does not please Harrim at all who feels that apologizing for appropriate action is not reasonable and unwise.
Right... this from a guy who immediately thought he was dying despite being uninjured. I would rather be unwise than depressingly stupid.
Now, for another trick up Tartuccio's tiny sleeves.
He now claims that we purposefully delayed helping Jamandi by rescuing those soldiers in the burning corridor.
Being a good person, Aedan could not ignore dying people in need so answers accordingly.
How is that tight slap in the face doing for you, Tartuccio?
Linzi approves. After all, she approves of heroism and what better method of heroism there is by saving lives.
Jaethal does not approve. An undead elf with an edgy personality would see no value in virtue.
There is probably more to her story but not right now.
Based on the earlier dialogue, the two teams would be Aedan, Linzi and Amiri in one team while Tartuccio drags along Jaethal and Harrim in the other.
While Tartuccio has a healer in his party, we have entertainment ready at hand.
Looks like Valerie wants to join in the expedition as well.
It is weird to see Jamandi claim that Valerie is a talented warrior when her actual stats are terrible for an actual warrior.
That said, she is a useful tank seeing as she uses giant tower shields.
I guess what factors this in is whether we rescued those soldiers. Seeing as we did, Valerie joins Aedan.
Of course, Harrim does not approve of Aedan... I do not really need a healer right away.
I do like that the game does highlight and remind you of your previous actions via these tooltips.
Jaethal joins up with Tartuccio as mentioned before. I doubt she actually likes the little git.
Linzi naturally sides with the heroic and virtuous Aedan over the little slimeball prick that is Tartuccio.
The latter is also a git.
Kaessi is undecided which is fair enough, I guess. She seems different from before though.
As for Amiri, she would side with Aedan. She has seen through the little git and he would probably not let her join.
She would probably chop him in half with her sword on the first day of the job if they were party members.
As an aside, Aedan got three companions and Tartuccio only has two. Scoreboard!
Looks like we would be travelling via opposite directions to the Stolen Lands.
We even have supplies provided which is neat.
Fair enough, I guess. Aedan is technically a nobody in this setting.
We have been given a time limit now: Three (3) in-game months.
That should be plenty of time to sort things out.
Now, the adventure begins!
The loading screen with the companions do tell the current story of the companions that appear.
Here, Linzi is describing herself in her own book.
And so the party heads off. Linzi, Amiri and Valerie in tow with Aedan towards the Stolen Lands.
In this nice illustration, it is weird that Valerie is not in it but I guess this is the default party if Valerie goes off with Tartuccio somehow.
That is all for the first part of this look at Pathfinder: Kingmaker. I have already completed this playthrough so most of my commentary and opinions will be based on memory of my time playing this character.
As mentioned before, I am looking forward to Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous which is coming out next month. I may even do a look at the game.
As for the other parts, I have completed Morowind and Pillars of Eternity but need time to upload the next parts and I still need to catch up to Deus Ex and Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines.
I am also thinking of writing about Disco Elysium especially since the Final Cut is already out for a while now. It is still a favorite of mine even now, sharing a spot with Planescape: Torment, my absolute all-time favorite game.
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