Would You Like To See More Pathfinder Character Conversions?

As my regular readers know, I have a side feature where I write two Pathfinder character conversion guides every month. Whether it's Tyrion Lannister, The Winter Soldier, or even Harley Quinn, I provide a full guide that starts with your attributes, race, and traits, and goes all the way through classes, feats, special powers, and other ear marks players can use to translate these character from their original mediums and into the Pathfinder RPG.

As of right now, I have 40 different character guides sitting pretty on my Character Conversions page.

Seriously, it's a rather crazy amount of conversions.

Now, overall, the response to my conversions articles has been positive. I write them with players in mind, and I keep to the Paizo rules without including any third-party books or wonky house rules. They're useful for DMs, too, in the event you want a ready-made bad guy like Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane, or Killer Croc to throw at your players.

However, I'm running into a bit of a problem, and it's a problem I'd like to ask all my readers for help on.

If A Tree Falls in The Forest...

This project started as a one-off post when I wrote up a character guide for building The Incredible Hulk, showing how I had brought the green goliath as a cohort in a game I was playing. That was three years ago. The response from my readers was so popular that I wrote guides for the rest of the movie Avengers, and Loki as well. People seemed to really like it, so I kept up on the project, trying to put up at least one new character conversion every month.

The problem I'm running into isn't that I'm running out of characters or ideas (I could, in all likelihood, keep this feature going as long as there are people playing Pathfinder). The problem I'm running into is that the amount of response the articles is diminishing, and it's a little overwhelming when compared to the amount of time and effort that goes into researching and writing them.

This is the part where you all get to be big damn heroes.

 

 If you're a fan of my character conversions, even if you just found out about them, here's what I'd like you to do right now.

- Click over to my Character Conversions page.

- Find a character conversion article that you like.

- Share that character conversion on your social media pages (Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, etc.).

And... that's it, really. If you can help me spread the word about my character conversions by telling your friends, fellow players, DMs, and if we can get some of those fine folks to like and share them as well, then I'll be able to keep giving them the care and attention you've come to expect (since it's the traffic that pays the bills around these parts). And, best of all, this doesn't require anything from you but time, and a little effort.

Oh, and before I forget, you might also enjoy some of the other bonus gaming articles I've been putting out. As of time of writing, they include:

- 5 Tips For Playing Better Paladins
- 50 Shades of Rage: Flavoring The Barbarian's Signature Power
- Table Attorneys Vs. Rules Lawyers: How To Be Fair Without Bogging Down Your Game

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. Hopefully you enjoyed, and if you've used run these kinds of games before, leave us a comment to let us know what worked for you!

For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

How To Create a Character Conversion in 4 Simple Steps!

Those who've been regular readers of my work for the past two years know that one of my favorite RPG hobbies is character conversions. For those who haven't been reading me that long, now you know. All you need to do is stop by the Character Conversions page, and you'll see my takes on the Avengers, Gotham City's vigilantes, and on a pretty big swath of the Game of Thrones cast.

Some swaths are bigger than others.

Since I started writing character conversions I've gotten a lot of praise, some thoughtful additions, and one recurring question; how do you make a character conversion?

It's harder than it looks, but I guarantee you it's easier than you think it is.

Step One: Choose Your Character

This seems self-explanatory, and at least some of you reading this had a character in mind before you got to this step. That's good. Now ask yourself, can I play this character?

Also, just because you CAN, that doesn't mean you SHOULD.

I'll give you an example of what I'm talking about. After I finished my most recent character build for Loras Tyrell, the Knight of the Flowers a Reddit user asked me how I would build Prince/King Joffrey. I answered that I wouldn't, not because I find Joffrey to be a repugnant human being, but because he doesn't fit the mold for a player character.

In an RPG the character you're playing has to have both the ability to act, as well as the desire to do so. The problem with characters like Joffrey Baratheon, his mother Queen Circe, and even (it could be argued) Tywin Lannister is that they are not characters that do, they are characters who have it done. While these characters might make ideal NPCs for a game, their preferred methods of "order an underling to do my bidding," makes then passive participants.

Put another way, M is a necessity to MI-6, but I'm pretty sure you'd rather play James Bond.

Step Two: Identify That Character's Traits

Characters are known by their traits. Think about the Hulk. He's inhumanly strong, durable, brimming with rage... oh, and he normally looks like this guy.

Incredible!

A character's defining traits are what make them who they are, and as such they represent the core ideas you're going to have to convert. Whether it's how Sir Lancelot was a knight who only kept his legendary strength as long as he remained true, or how Wolverine has adamantium claws, the nose of a tracking hound, and a regenerating anatomy, you're creating a list of things your final conversion needs to have in order to accurately represent the character's abilities.

Step Three: Represent Those Traits

It seems pretty easy, at a glance. Once you have your complete list of traits all you have to do is figure out some way to translate them into your game world. The question you have to ask yourself at this point is what things must be translated in a certain way in order for the conversion to work, and which things can be re-skinned or hand-waved simply to give you the feeling of the character?

I feel an example coming on...

Thanks to the power of movie magic (and the charisma of Robert Downey Junior), Iron Man is one of Marvel's most popular characters. With three movies all his own, as well as appearances in two Avengers movies at time of writing, Iron Man has inspired somewhere between dozens and hundreds of gamers to try and create their own armored titan in their games of choice.

If you were to go to Paizo's forums and post the question, "How Do I Build Iron Man in Pathfinder?" you'd get a dozen different suggestions within the hour. You might also start a flame war that will get the question shut down pretty quickly, because everyone has an opinion on this issue. The most common suggestions you're going to get are:

- Play a straight Magus. Stark is a genius, and this class lets you cast in full armor with no penalties pretty fast.

- Play a Summoner with the Synthesist archetype. This lets you summon your eidolon and wear it like armor, allowing you to wreck shit at level 1.

- Play a Wizard/Fighter/Eldritch Knight. You'll be able to fight and cast spells without really losing the access to what you can do as a wizard, and you'll be able to craft your own armor.

- Play a 3rd party class. This thing was specifically built to have an Iron Man feel to it.

Now, none of these are inherently wrong. If you examine the motivation behind the choice, though, you'll find different players are interested in different aspects of the character. For instance, the Magus players often feel that the ability to use magic while wearing armor is enough to accurately portray the character, especially since magi draw their power from their intelligence. Summoners, on the other hand, often feel that Iron Man should be a powerhouse, and that they should be able to throw their weight around at level 1 instead of building up to the armored Avenger by level 15 or 16. The third option is typically offered by players who take a long-game view, and will re-enact a fantasy version of Stark discovering and refining his armor, instead of simply being a spellcaster who can do his thing while encased in steel.

Players who suggest 3rd party material often feel that if someone has already gone to all the hard work of creating a class that is meant to let you play this specific archetype, thereby rendering conversion on your part minimal, why not do that?

When I decided to write my Iron Man Pathfinder conversion I had a single goal for it; actually creating the armor. That was why I advocated a wizard with all of the feats and skills necessary to forge magical construct armor, which protects the magic user inside, and grants the wearer all sorts of additional strengths and powers. Flight? Sure. Durability and strength? Covered. Gauntlet loaded with wands for disposable searing ray? Yup, got that, too.

Step Four: Whip Cream, Cherries, Enjoy!

The last step in a character conversion is figuring out how much of the initial character's story gets poured into the new mold. For example, if you want to make Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane, how much of him are you putting in? He's monstrous big and monstrous strong, yes, but is he also a knight? Is your version a brutal killer, or is he a misunderstood monster who uses his size to stop problems so he doesn't have to pull steel?

Do you go all the way, find a halfway point, or scrap the story entirely and create one of your own?

Lastly, remember how I said there's no wrong way to do a character conversion? It's an extension of the rules that says there's no wrong way to enjoy playing a character. While there are some conversions that are more accurate than others (making your Hulk a Master Chymist who actually changes forms when he hulks out according to game mechanics, instead of simply playing a barbarian who has a mental schism when he rages according to player flavor, for example), how much accuracy you need for the conversion to be complete is entirely up to you as a player.

As always, if you want to support Improved Initiative then stop by The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page and become a patron today! If you want to make sure you don't miss even a single update then follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, or Twitter to stay plugged-in.

Improved Initiative Needs Your Help!

I regret to interrupt your regularly scheduled blog post, but this is a pretty important announcement.

Improved Initiative Needs Your Help!

Got your attention? Good.

Not quite what I meant, but you get the idea

First of all, hi! My name is Neal Litherland, and I'm the fellow who runs Improved Initiative. I'm a freelance writer and author, but most of you probably know me as the guy who provides interesting content on character builds, obscure rules, and roleplaying flavor. It's been my privilege and sincere pleasure to create content that makes your games better. I fully intend to keep doing that, but there's a slight problem.

You see, my monthly income just took a sucker punch in the face.

What Happened?

I'm glad you asked that bold, italic text. Some of you may have heard of Yahoo! Voices, but if you haven't it's a huge network that pays contributors $2 for every 1,000 hits their content gets. Some of you may have seen my Avengers character builds there. Recently my page views at Yahoo! have provided me with enough royalties that I thought I would be able to relax a bit, start saving, and focus more on blogging and writing a novel.

So, of course, Yahoo! Voices is slamming its doors closed forever August 2014.

Hold onto your nappies, it gets worse.

What This Means For You

When August comes around it means that all of my content (400+ articles at last count) is going to be deleted off of Yahoo's system. I'm currently running helter skelter to try and save the articles that are worth saving. You'll likely see my Avengers articles, as well as my Gotham Knights series (Batman, Robin, Huntress, etc.) showing up on here in the next few months. I'll also keep creating new content and trying to offer shiny, new ideas for your next campaign.

That said, the fact remains that I'm losing a big chunk of income from Yahoo's up-front payments, in addition to losing the royalty check that comes at the end of the month.

What I'm Asking

I need help, and before you start telling me you don't have any loose change, you don't need any. Here's a list of all the ways you can help, and I'm not asking anyone to do more than they're able.

Divine intervention is welcome, if you have a solid track record.

# 1: Become a Patron

Maybe you don't have any cash laying around, but maybe you're one of those folks who has a secure day job to support your gaming habit. If that's the case, and you'd be comfortable donating as little as $1 a month to keep the gaming articles flowing, the stop by my Patreon page by clicking right here and becoming a patron. It's pretty simple; you pledge a certain amount per blog (say $1), and then when I update my Patreon page it will charge you that $1. You can also set your maximum donation per month so that even if I updated this blog every day you'd only ever spend that single Washington on my behalf.

Make sense?

For those who choose to become a patron, you all have my sincere thanks. Since I know those aren't worth very much, I'll also throw in one of my ebook titles for free to sweeten the pot. Lastly, while I will be moving my articles from Yahoo! over to Improved Initiative, all the transfers will be done free of charge! Woo, more content for everyone!

#2: Leave a One-Time Donation

Maybe you never noticed it before, but on the upper right hand side of the page there's a little box titled "Bribe the DM". That tip jar connects directly to my Paypal, and you can choose to drop some spare in there whenever you have it. So if you've got a couple bucks this month, but you don't want to commit to a regular thing, I'll gladly accept any and all donations left in my virtual glass.

#3: Tell Your Family, Tell Your Friends, Tell Your Table!

This one gets an exclamation mark because it's the best way to help, and it requires nothing but your time.

Improved Initiative, like any blog that uses Google AdSense, makes money based on its ad clicks. When someone clicks an ad, that earns a fee. So the more traffic this blog receives, the bigger the chances are that my readers will see an ad that interests them. Also the more traffic I manage to get the better my page ranking will be, the easier the blog will be to find... you get the idea. If your website becomes popular then that very popularity has a way of sustaining itself.

What I'm asking you to do, valiant readers, is to help spread the word. If you see an entry you like, don't be afraid to share it on your Facebook or your Tumblr page. Hell, throw it up on Reddit if you feel compelled to do so. If you have friends looking for advice, send them over this way. Don't be afraid to dig through my archive to see what topics I've covered, and to share those too. In short there's no such thing as bad traffic.

Lastly, don't be afraid to submit your email on the top right and get my updates on the regular. The more followers Blogger says I have, the better I look, the more people see me... you get the idea.

What Do You Get Out of This?

I don't expect something for nothing.

That's why I'm a really shitty bank robber.

First and foremost, you get my sincerest thanks. Since I know precisely what that's worth, you also get my pledge to keep creating great content for your enjoyment and use. If I can manage 10 new patrons I will also do my best to increase my updates to 3 times per week with a Moon Pope Monday feature, a character build conversion, and one of my other features (Crunch, Fluff, or a Table Talk story on a rotating cycle) to fill in the rest of the week.

I think that about wraps it up. Thanks very much for your patience, and I hope next week to return you to your regularly scheduled awesome.

The Avengers, Fantasy Edition

This week on Moon Pope Monday we do away with the amusing and present something amazing! The Avengers are assembled, but their looks have been tweaked for a fantasy setting. If you've ever wondered what the team would look like wrecking medieval mayhem, well wonder no longer!

Also, for those who are curious, Pathfinder builds for every character (excluding Nick Fury... for now) may be found here. Lastly, for more updates, follow us on Facebook or on Tumblr; the latter is where I found this series, but the originals may be found at Deviant Art here by the Durrrrian.

Now, without further ado...

Seizing the Initiative

"Who takes Improved Initiative?"

This question, blatantly asked in The Gamers 2: Dorkness Rising, is one that most players voice at a table. Feats are a big deal after all, so why waste it just to help you go first when combat breaks out?

I'll tell you why.

If you go first then you have the chance to claim the battlefield, and to make the opening moves. You catch your enemies unawares, and you have a better chance of dealing out damage and dropping the threat before it can even draw its sword. The right spell, or the right alchemical item, can completely change the course of combat from that point onward. Characters who go first have the chance to strike hard, fast, and without mercy. That's the kind of player who takes Improved Initiative, and that's the sort of gamer we welcome with open arms.

What's This Blog About?

In the spirit of the title, this blog is here to share tips, tricks, and character builds for all those who are looking for a new and interesting twist on their mechanics. In addition to tuning up your sheet though, we'll also have articles for dungeon masters on the little ways to turn a good game into a great game, and to help players breathe real life into their characters. In between all of that we'll have great gaming stories, amusing pictures, character portraits, and maybe the occasional video that will make any gamer's day.

And Just Who The Hell Are You?

Since I've been using the royal "we", I'll tell you just who the hell I am and why you should listen to me. My name is Neal F. Litherland, and I am an author. I'm also an avid role playing gamer, a DM, and I've contributed to Paizo's Pathfinder game both on the fictional and mechanical sides of things. Before you ask, no, this blog isn't connected to Paizo in any way; these are my own thoughts and opinions about games I've played and that I've both loved and hated.

For those of you who still aren't quite convinced, I've got a couple of references that might pique your interest.

The Irregulars The Irregulars is my first contribution to Paizo's Pathfinder Tales. With Molthune gearing up to go to war, Andoran sends in a team of experts to gum up the works. A suicide squad of loose cannons and skull crackers, the Irregulars are the best and the brightest of the bottom of the barrel. Note that, though this was once free, Paizo has since put it (along with the rest of the Pathfinder Tales up on sale on Amazon... still, it's just a handful of change for a story that I think holds up pretty well!

A Guide to the Best Alchemical Items For those players who want to have a little ace in the hole, there's nothing like the right alchemical tool for the job.

More Bang For Your Bomb A guide I wrote for Kobold Quarterly to help turn your Alchemist into a walking conflagration.

The Laying on of Fists: Feats and Features for Battle Clerics and Paladins This title is pretty self-explanatory; another Kobold Quarterly piece.

Calling in the Cavalry: Mounted Mayhem in Paizo's Pathfinder After I played a Shining Knight, I just had to put this guide together.

50 Shades of Rage: Flavoring The Barbarian's Signature Class Feature:  Because there's more to Rage than meets the eye. Remember that.

You're in the Army Now This is one for the DMs. Does your party fall apart like a soggy sandwich? Whip them into shape and give them a purpose!

Anything Else We Should Know?

I think that's about it for now. However, for those who are more interested in writing than roleplaying, check out my other blog The Literary Mercenary for tips and tricks on being a professional pen monkey. For even more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, its sequel Painted Cats, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

If my readers want me to discuss any particular game, or any particular topic under the umbrella of gaming, just drop me a line and I'll look a little deeper into it. If you have something you want to share, let me know and I'll consider people who are serious about guest posts.

Lastly fellow gamers, I leave you with these words of wisdom. Remember, it is always better to do a thing.