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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Starfinder RPG

Rules Index | GM Screen | Player's Guide
GM Core / Chapter 1: Running the Game

Special Considerations

Source GM Core pg. 15 2.0
As the GM, you may sometimes need to consider situations beyond the standard assumptions of the game. The following sections will help you in making these tricky calls or modifying your game to suit your unique table.
  • Adjudicating Rules gives guidelines for how to use your judgment if a rule is unclear or if you find yourself unsure how to implement it.
  • Resolving Problems contains some strategies for how to deal with common issues that can cause problems at the table.
  • Narrative Collaboration lets you know some strategies for involving your players in constructing the story of your campaign and world.
  • Group Composition covers some important information for playing with nonstandard groups.
  • Characters with Disabilities offers some rules you might want to use if a player creates a character with disabilities.
  • Rarity explains how you can use the rarity system to both deepen your setting and reward players with unusual game elements.

Adjudicating Rules

Source GM Core pg. 15 2.0
As Game Master, it falls on you to adjudicate the rules. This means you're making judgments and decisions about the rules, especially when their application is unclear. Roleplaying games encourage creativity, and however well crafted and well tested a set of rules is, players will always find situations that require interpretation and judgment by the GM. You need at least some familiarity with the rules to run a game well, but you don't need to be the foremost expert on the rules. You don't even need to know the most about the rules at your table to be a great GM! There's a key difference between “knowing” the rules and “adjudicating” the rules.

While GMing, strive to make quick, fair, and consistent rulings. Your rulings should encourage your group to work together to interpret the rules and be creative with their characters' decisions and actions. If your group is satisfied with the interpretation, you've made the right adjudication!

The Basics

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The following are some basic guidelines for adjudicating rules in play—these are the same principles that Pathfinder's game rules are based on. You might want to keep printouts of these guidelines and the DC guidelines for quick reference.
  • If you don't know how long a quick task takes, go with 1 action, or 2 actions if a character shouldn't be able to perform it three times per round.
  • If you're not sure what action a task uses, look for the most similar basic action. If you don't find one, make up an undefined action and add any necessary traits (usually attack, concentrate, manipulate, or move).
  • When two sides are opposed, have one roll against the other's DC. Don't have both sides roll (initiative is the exception to this rule). The character who rolls is usually the one acting (except in the case of saving throws).
  • If an effect raises or lowers chances of success, grant a +1 circumstance bonus or a –1 circumstance penalty.
  • If you're not sure how difficult a significant challenge should be, use the DC for the party's level.
  • If you're making up an effect, creatures should be incapacitated or killed on only a critical success (or for a saving throw, on a critical failure).
  • If you don't know what check to use, pick the most appropriate skill. If no other skill applies to a check to Recall Knowledge, use an appropriate Lore skill (usually at an untrained proficiency rank).
  • Use the characters' daily preparations as the time to reset anything that lasts roughly a day.
  • When a character accomplishes something noteworthy that doesn't have rules for XP, award them XP for an accomplishment (10 to 30).
  • When the PCs fail at a task, look for a way they might fail forward, meaning the story moves forward with a negative consequence rather than the failure halting progress entirely

Consistency and Fairness

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As an arbiter of the rules and the person who's setting the scene for the action, it's in your best interest to appear fair at all times. Your main defense against appearing unfair is consistency in your rulings.

Achieving consistency is as easy as explaining why you're ruling a certain way and comparing this ruling to past rulings you've made in a way that makes sense to your players. For example, you might say something like “When Torben swung from the chandelier and attacked the air elemental, I required an Athletics check as part of the action and gave a +1 circumstance bonus to the attack roll. Hanging from the rope bridge to attack the giant bat sounds similar, so why don't you roll an Athletics check.” Do this any time it's applicable when you make a ruling, but don't feel compelled to do so for truly new rulings.

Through the course of playing, your previous rulings will form a set of shared preferences and an understanding between you and your group—or even become formalized house rules. Over time, your players will think about these examples when planning their actions, which can improve consistency during play.

Looking Up Rules

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Remember that keeping your game moving is more important than being 100% correct. At the same time, it’s perfectly acceptable to refer to the rules during a session. However, you don’t have to do this alone. If you’re leafing through a book or searching an electronic reference, your players are idle. There are a few techniques that make these intervals more palatable for the players. Letting them know that you’re looking something up might prompt some players to also read the rule. This can increase the chances of collaboration and sets expectations for the length of the pause. Alerting your players that you’re going to take a minute and read the rules also lets them know that it’s a good time to tend to away-from-the-table tasks like refilling a drink.

Listen to the Players

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The friends around your game table are perhaps your best tool for achieving quick, fair, and consistent rulings. Sharing the task of remembering the rules makes rules discussions collaborative rather than combative, greatly increases the chances of accurate and comprehensive recall of the written rules and your own past rulings, and is true to the shared storytelling spirit of Pathfinder.

Asking if anyone knows how a specific rule rewards those players who have spent time mastering the rules and involves more people in the discussion. It signals to other players that you are willing to hear opinions before making a ruling, and it builds a more collaborative environment. In addition, for groups with access to a large number of sourcebooks or rules resources, you can ask different players to examine separate sources. This can greatly increase the speed and accuracy of a group's rulings.

Approaching the rules as a group problem also means that you should never trivialize player concerns about a rule. You must also think about each player and assess how important the rules actually are to them. Remember, though—while rules recall is a group challenge, making the final decision on the rules interpretation and getting the session moving again falls to you.

Make the Call

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Though all the above are great practices for making good rulings, often the best ruling is the one that keeps the game moving. Avoid getting so bogged down that it takes you several minutes to decide what ruling you'll proceed with. Take what's close enough and keep playing. If necessary, you can tell your group “This is how we're playing it now, but we can have more discussion between sessions.” This gets you back in the action, puts a clear stamp on the fact that this is your decision in the moment, and empowers your players with permission to express their opinions on the ruling at a later time. When in doubt, rule in favor of the player's request, and then review the situation later.

The best time to really go in-depth, possibly putting the group on a short break, is when a situation is life-or-death or has major consequences in a character's story.

Take Time for Review

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When you make a decision you’re not sure about, look back over it at the end of a session or between sessions. You might change your mind—there’s nothing wrong with that! If you change or clarify your original ruling, inform your players before the next session. No one likes being surprised by a rule change. Even better, include them in a rules conversation just like you might during a session. The guidance on discussing rules with your players still applies between sessions. Unlike at-the-table rules discussions, there’s also much more time in these situations to read existing official rulings or sources.

Saying “Yes, But”

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Some of the most memorable moments come from situations that inherently call for a rules interpretation, like when a player wants to do something creative using the environment. The variety of these situations is limited only by the imagination of your players. It's usually better to say “yes” than “no,” within reason. For example, imagine a player wants to do something borderline nonsensical like grabbing a spider and squeezing it to force it to use its web attack. But what about a player who wants to use a fire spell to deliberately ignite a barrel of oil? Surely that should have some effect!

This is where you can use a variant of the well-known improv “Yes, and,” technique: you can say “Yes, but.” With “Yes, but,” you allow the player's creative idea, but tie it into the world and the game rules via some sort of additional consequences, potentially adding the uncertainty of an additional roll. Here are some simple ways you might implement this tool:
  • Get a fleeting benefit without a roll. Example: dip a sword into a burning brazier to add 1 fire damage on the next attack against a troll.
  • Require a check, then apply a circumstance bonus to the PC's action. Example: swing from a chandelier above a foe.
  • Require a check, then apply a circumstance penalty or condition to a foe. Example: throw a barrel over a monster's head.
  • Require an attack roll or skill check to deal minor damage and gain another benefit. Examples: jump from a higher elevation down onto a foe for a small amount of damage, potentially knocking the foe prone; throw sand in an opponent's eyes.
  • Require a directed attack against an object, then allow foes to attempt saving throws against the object's effect at a DC you choose. Example: cast an ignition spell at a barrel of explosives.

Another powerful tool you can use to help you say “Yes, but” when you're unsure of the game impact is to allow the idea to work just this once, letting your players know that this is part of your decision. For instance, maybe you think a PC's attempt to Grapple a spider to aim its web attack at another foe is so fun you have to let them do it, but you're worried that the effect would be so powerful that the PCs would just carry around a spider to shoot webs for the rest of the campaign. By making it a one-time effect, you can have fun but don't have to worry about whether you're setting a disruptive precedent for later on.

House Rules

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You and your players will inevitably come across a rule you disagree with or that runs counter to the theme of your game. You might even decide to add a specific rule to an area not covered by the written rules. Collectively, these rulings, changes, and additions are known as house rules. It's a good idea to record them in a place where the group can easily access and refer to them, and where a potential new player could find them. Such record-keeping is a great thing to delegate to a player!

The best rule of thumb in these situations is to be slow to change the written rules and quick to revert a problematic ruling or house rule. The simple reason for this is that sticking to the written rules is the easiest way to remain fair and consistent. However, the more you learn your group's play style, the more often you'll find times where you and your group feel it's correct to institute a house rule of some sort.

Resolving Problems

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Being a Game Master and running a game can be a tremendously rewarding and fulfilling experience: you get to sit down with friends old and new, roll some dice, tell stories, and have fun. That said, being a GM and running a game can present unique challenges. When dealing with problems at the table, keep in mind the primary reason to play Pathfinder is to have fun. And that’s true for everyone—player or GM. Don’t “solve” a problem by reducing everyone’s enjoyment of the game or their ability to forge a path for their characters. Of course, sometimes your solution might not make everyone deliriously happy. Play style is very personal and individualized; rarely does a group agree on all things all the time. Solving problems can be as collaborative as the rest of the game. It’s not a good idea for a GM to ignore the players’ opinions—but that said, the final decision in resolving a problem rests with you.

Distractions and Interruptions

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Maintaining the players' attention keeps a game moving and leads to memorable moments when everyone's in the same zone. Too many interruptions break the flow. This is fine in moderation. A game is a social gathering, so there's definitely a place for conversation that's not directly related to playing the game. These interruptions become a problem if they're too frequent, or if people are talking over others. If a player repeatedly interrupts you or other people or undercuts every crucial moment of the game with a joke, talk to them about limiting their comments to appropriate times. Often, all you need to do is hold up your hand or otherwise indicate that the player is talking out of turn to delay them until after you or another speaker finishes talking.

Phones and other mobile devices are another major source of distraction. Banning them entirely is often impractical—many players use apps to roll dice or manage their character sheets, or they need to answer texts from their partner, check in on a work project, or otherwise stay connected with people who rely on them. However, you can set ground rules against using a device for anything that's not time-sensitive or game-related, such as refreshing social media, checking the score of a hockey game, playing a mobile game, or answering a non-urgent text. You can relax these rules for players when their characters are “offstage.” If a player's character isn't in a scene, that might be a good time for the player to use a mobile device.

Cheating

Players rarely cheat knowingly, so if you suspect a player of cheating, it's safe to assume first that they're unaware of—or simply forgot—how an aspect of the rules works. A gentle reminder of how the rule, spell, or ability in question functions is usually enough to move past the situation. Every once in a great while, you'll encounter a player who is deliberately cheating. The spirit of roleplaying is one of cooperative storytelling and overcoming challenges together, so one player cheating steals fun from every other player at the table. It's natural to feel some anger in this situation, so make sure you let some time pass between when you discover that a player is cheating and when you address it with them.

Ultimately, it will fall to you as the GM to gently make it clear that this behavior must stop. To do this well, think carefully about why the player is cheating before approaching them. The reason behind the cheating often points to a reasonable solution. When discussing the matter with your player, do your best to remain calm and inquisitive rather than accusatory.

Power Imbalances

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You might end up with one PC who outshines everyone else. Perhaps the player is a rules expert with a powerful character, other players are less experienced or more focused on the story of their characters, or there's just a rules combination or item that's stronger than you expected. In any case, this imbalance might mean you have other players who feel ineffective, or the overpowered character's player becomes bored because they aren't challenged during gameplay.

Talk to the player between sessions, and make it clear that no one at the table is to blame in this situation. Most players have no problem making some concessions for the happiness of the group. If the problem results from rules options, offer an easy way to retrain. If the imbalance resulted from an item, come up with a way that item might need to be lost or sacrificed, but in a satisfying way that furthers the narrative. If you meet resistance from the player, listen to their counterpoints. If you're still convinced they need to change, you might need to be more firm.

It's worth stating that players might still have fun, or even enjoy an instance of power imbalance. You don't have to do anything to address it unless it limits fun at your table.

Problematic Players

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Most players who cause problems do so unintentionally—perhaps bringing out-of-game issues and stresses to the table. You shouldn't immediately jump on every instance of problematic play—everyone has a bad night on occasion. However, if someone disrupts the game on an ongoing basis, you owe it to all the players to deal with the problem. If you don't, bad feelings, grudges, and even ruined friendships could result.

Handling a problematic player requires tact: making demands in front of the rest of the group is rarely the best way to resolve the problem. Attempt to handle the problem privately away from the game, or call a break to have a private conversation if the situation is really urgent. As with all emotionally charged conversations, email, text messages, and the like can lose the subtlety of speech—it's better to meet the player face-to-face, if possible.

Here are some problematic behaviors that often come up and might require you to intervene.
  • Obsessing over the letter of the rules.
  • Constantly “helping” other players make the optimal choice on their turn.
  • Making their character the center of attention without allowing space for other players.
Other behaviors are unacceptable and must be dealt with firmly and decisively. These can be severe enough to pause the game in progress. Such actions speak to a deeper problem and require more drastic action to solve.
  • Repeatedly arguing with decisions made by other players or the GM.
  • Ignoring other players' opinions.
  • Deliberately derailing the adventure's plot.
  • Being deliberately rude or cruel to other players—especially if it's on the basis of their ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, political or religious affiliation, the color of their skin, or the like.

Safety Tools

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Introducing and using safety tools at your table can help head off some problematic behaviors. The X-Card and Lines and Veils tools described on page 7 allow anyone who feels uncomfortable or unsafe to express their discomfort, with clear guidance on how the rest of the table should respond. This clarity sets obvious boundaries to help enforce the social rules of the table

Ejecting a Player

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Ultimately, there's no place for a serially or deliberately disruptive player in your gaming group. Such behavior is not fair to you or the other players, and the problematic player needs to either modify their behavior or leave the group.

Before meeting with the problematic player, discuss the situation with the other players in private to ensure you make the right call and figure out what repercussions you expect and whether the game should continue at all.

When you break the news to the problematic player, be compassionate but firmly state the decision is final and restate which behaviors are responsible. If parts of having the player in the game were rewarding or you want the player to remain a friend, make that clear and decide if a player's behavior merits other changes to your relationship.

Narrative Collaboration

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The relationship between you, your players, and the story is what makes roleplaying games successful and memorable. If all the players at the table contribute ideas, the game holds more surprises for everyone—including you! While some players like to sit back and let the Game Master control everything, most players want their contributions to shape the campaign’s story. This is central to the concept of player agency—making players feel like the choices they make really matter, and that the world is a living place they can change through their decisions. In some games, the players can step beyond the traditional divide between GM and players to directly influence how the story progresses. Below are three methods you can use to balance the narrative control of your game.

Idea Farm

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Coming up with ideas for a campaign can sometimes feel overwhelming. This is where your players come in handy! You can solicit direct feedback from them and implement their ideas into the game. This style of narrative control preserve your authority over the game while giving players the chance to incorporate elements into the game you know they want to see. It doesn't venture beyond the traditional structure of a fantasy roleplaying game.

Plan for a few checkpoints throughout the campaign where you touch base with your players to get their ideas. The most crucial comes at the start of the game. It's best to take this step before you even set to work on crafting the world or plot, so that player input can define what's important in the game world. Later, checkpoints can coincide with major story milestones. For example, if the players set off across the sea, you might ask where they want their voyage to end and what sites, if any, they'd like to explore along the way.

Creative Collaboration

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You might have players develop the stories of some of the regions or NPCs, while your contributions serve as the glue that makes it all work together. This breaks somewhat with traditional RPG structures, in that you might not be the expert on all areas of the setting and plot.

Your collaboration will depend on the interests of you and the other players. Maybe one draws a city map, another makes the stats and personality for an NPC, another controls some monsters in combat, and a fourth doesn't want to do anything beyond playing their character. There's a trade-off here, because while you'll be off-loading some of your work, you'll also need to ensure consistency across these multiple sources of ideas. It can really help to keep a log of which player is in charge of each part of your setting. If you expect one of a player's specialties to appear in an upcoming session, let them know ahead of time so they can prepare or discuss their ideas in advance with you.

Decentralized Storytelling

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What if you want to go all the way and completely break down the walls between the GM and other players? What if you want to preside over a game in which anyone can speak for any of the NPCs, and when someone tries to determine what's down the next hallway, it's just as likely to come from another player as from you? In this approach, one of your biggest jobs is asking questions or giving prompts. “When you open the door, what's beyond?” “How does the king react to Lem's taunt?” You can direct your questions to individual players, leave them open to all, and put forth your own suggestions.

This approach works best when players are comfortable with one another and willing to both take responsibility in building the story and accept that some of their ideas will go unused. It's well suited for shorter campaigns, or ones in which players take turns in the GM's seat.

Challenges

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The largest risk of putting narrative control in multiple people's hands is losing a cohesive story. When multiple people have conflicting ideas about the tone of the game or particulars of the setting, you can end up with something that doesn't satisfy anyone. One of your tasks as GM is to recap events to clarify and reinforce the shared narrative.

Shared narrative control also complicates planning ahead. The group might need to improvise an encounter, take a break while you (and maybe other players) prep to go in a new direction, or even revise their plans. It helps to limit yourself to creatures that you can quickly find stats for in Monster Core or another monster book to avoid spending hours of work on creatures you won't use.

Also, don't lose sight of your own enjoyment! You shouldn't sacrifice how much fun you have for others.

Story Points

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If you prefer, you can give players a number of Story Points at the start of each session (typically 2 or 3). They can cash these in to determine what happens next in the story. Having a currency like this means you can keep your steady hand on the tiller while allowing other players to interject when it’s important to them. For most groups, a Story Point should allow the player to suggest a plot twist that can be resolved quickly or to establish a relevant fact or NPC attitude. It can’t determine the outcome of an entire scene or vastly alter the reality of the setting.

Group Composition

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No two Pathfinder groups are exactly the same. At each gaming table, the GM and players work together to find their own style for the game and to tell their own stories. Some of these differences require the GM to make adjustments, especially for groups participating in Pathfinder Society Organized Play, large or small groups, and groups in which one or more players has additional needs.

Pathfinder Society Organized Play

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The Pathfinder Society Organized Play campaign is a thriving, worldwide organization of players and GMs. While most home campaigns provide long-running stories with a consistent group, Pathfinder Society provides adventures designed to be completed in a single game session, so that players can continue their characters' stories whenever and wherever works best for them.

To allow this flexibility while maintaining a fair experience, the Pathfinder Society campaign handles some tasks that are normally in the GM's purview, such as selecting which rules options are available to PCs. Pathfinder Society GMs are expected to stay true to the adventure as it's written but are encouraged to allow players to apply creative solutions to the situations they face. For example, PCs may be able to use illusions, bribery, or social skills to bypass a challenge that is presented in the scenario as a combat encounter. For more about playing, running, and organizing games for Pathfinder Society Organized Play, visit PathfinderSociety.club.

Unusual Group Sizes

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The standard group size for Pathfinder assumes four players and a GM. Some additional changes to your GMing strategy might be useful for groups with dramatically fewer or greater players.

Small Groups

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Small-group games focus more intently on the interests of the players and their characters, allowing for an experience that can be more customizable for each individual. However, they can also run into trouble when the PCs have gaps in their abilities. In many cases, the easiest way to adjust for a small group is to add additional characters. This could come in the form of allowing each player to play two characters or adding hirelings and support NPCs to the party to shore up roles that the PCs don’t fill. When adding GM-controlled NPCs to the party, it’s important to be sure that the PCs remain the stars of the show. In general, GM-controlled characters shouldn’t make major decisions, and they shouldn’t outshine PCs at their primary skills or roles. You can also use variant rules like free archetypes (page 84), extra treasure, or even just a few bonus trained skills to help improve the PCs’ overall flexibility.

Large Groups

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Large-group games bring together the creativity and enthusiasm of many players, and they lend themselves to combat at a grand scale. However, they also divide the GM's attention. Large groups also need to set ground rules for how many players need to be present for the game to run when some players are missing. Recaps at the beginning of each session are crucial to keep everyone on the same page. Delegation is one of your most powerful tools to keep the session running smoothly. For example, you can put the players in charge of recapping the events from the previous session, handling initiative, managing the party's treasury, looking up rules, or helping with accessories like props and music. Also consider which tasks really need to be taken care of while everyone is there. For example, you could ask your players to handle selling items, deciding which common items they want to buy, and leveling up between sessions instead of at the table.

Inevitably, there will be situations and circumstances that don't involve the whole group. In a sufficiently large group, splitting the party is not necessarily dangerous. If the party splits up for more than a short stint, you can call for separate sessions to determine what happens to the two halves of the group, allowing them to reunite and share their findings afterward. Whether or not the party splits, having more players means less active time for each character. Look for opportunities to highlight each PC by providing challenges that play to their strengths or tie in story elements to which they are particularly connected.

Player Needs

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Sometimes, making your game accessible and fun for everyone at the table requires making some adjustments to your typical GMing style or player setup. The first step is open communication so you can learn what the players need, what accommodations would be helpful, and what type of assistance players do and don’t want to receive.

Sensory Differences

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Players may have differences in the way that they process sensory information, as well as which senses they use. For players who are hard of hearing or who struggle to process large amounts of sensory information at once, selecting a quiet gaming venue and establishing ground rules about table talk (such as asking players not to interrupt each other) can make the game more accessible. Such players can also often benefit from handouts they can consult during the session. Keep in mind the way your players perceive the world when describing locations. For example, if you have a blind or visually impaired player at the table, instead of simply describing what a location looks like, describe how it sounds and smells, the temperature of the room, the feeling of the breeze, and other aspects of the scene that they can identify with.

Attention Span

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It's not uncommon for people to struggle to maintain their attention for hours on end, especially for young players. If keeping attention is an issue at your table, add breaks to the game. Whether you're just taking a break to stretch and chat or enjoying a full meal in the middle of the game, switching up the context helps players refresh their focus.

Some players remain more engaged if they have something else to do while playing, such as doodling or pacing. Maintaining attention can be particularly challenging for some players when their character is not engaged, such as when the party splits or when they have just finished their turn in a large combat. You can allow players to engage in other activities during the session, such as texting, reading, or playing other games, and then draw them back into the game when their character is active.

Characters with Disabilities

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A player might want to create a character with a disability, or their character might end up with a disability over the course of play. Work with the player to find ways to respectfully represent the disability. Conditions such as blinded and deafened aren’t a good fit for a character who has been living with a disability long-term. Here are suggestions for rules you might use for PCs with disabilities.

Mental Illness and Chronic Illness

Some disabilities, such as mental illness and chronic illnesses, are best left to the player to roleplay. Mental illness is an especially fraught topic, with a history of insensitive portrayal. Be careful about the intentions of the player and the impact the presentation might have on other players.

Blindness or Impaired Vision

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A blind character can't detect anything using vision, critically fails Perception checks requiring sight, is immune to visual effects, and can't be blinded or dazzled. You might give this character the Blind-Fight feat (Player Core 145) for free.

A character with impaired vision might take a –2 to –4 penalty to vision-based Perception checks. Spectacles or other corrective devices might reduce or remove this, which can typically be found in most major settlements.

Deafness or Being Hard of Hearing

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A deaf character can't detect anything using hearing, critically fails Perception checks that require hearing, and is immune to auditory effects. These disabilities typically don't restrict their ability cast spells or use magic items, but if they perform an action they're not accustomed to that involves auditory elements, they must succeed at a DC 5 flat check or the action is lost. It's best to give them the Sign Language feat for free, and you might give them Read Lips as well (Player Core 261). You might give one or more other characters in the group Sign Language for free as well.

A hard-of-hearing character might take a –2 to –4 penalty to Perception checks that are hearing-based. Like spectacles, corrective devices for hearing can be found in most places that adventurers find themselves trading.

Missing Limbs and Mobility

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Some magic items require certain limbs or other body parts. It's fine to allow an alternative form of the item, turning boots into bracers for a character without legs, for example.

A character with a missing hand or arm might need to spend 2 actions to Interact with an item that requires two hands, or otherwise compensate. Using a two-handed weapon is not possible. Someone missing a foot or leg might take a small penalty to Speed, and if they have no legs or are unable to walk, they might use a wheelchair, a trained mount, or flight magic. Characters can typically acquire prosthetics in most cities or settlements, which, through advanced crafting, magic, or clockwork, can provide various levels of assistive function. Many assistive devices appear on page 293 of Player Core.

Rarity

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The rarity system is a powerful tool that helps you and your group customize your story, your characters, and your world to better match your game’s themes and setting. You can also use it to keep the complexity of your game low by limiting access to unusual options.

The Four Rarities

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Let's first review the default usage for the four rarities in the game and how these already start to tell a story about your world.
  • Common elements are prevalent enough, at least among adventurers, that a player is assumed to be able to access them provided they meet the prerequisites (if any).
  • Uncommon elements are difficult to access or regionally specific, but a PC can usually find them eventually with enough effort, potentially by choosing a specific character option or spending substantial downtime tracking them down.
  • Rare elements are lost secrets, ancient magic, and other options that PCs can access only if you specifically make them available.
  • Unique elements are one of a kind, like a specific magical artifact or a named creature. You have full control over whether PCs can access them. Named NPCs are unique creatures, though that doesn't mean their base creature type is unique. For instance, an orc named Graytusk is unique, but that doesn't mean it would be any harder for a PC encountering her to tell she's an orc—just to discern specific information about her.

Rarity and Power

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Options of higher rarities aren't necessarily more powerful than common ones, but they might have unusual capabilities with large ramifications for the campaign setting or the types of narrative moments common in a heroic fantasy game. For instance, the raise dead spell is uncommon, since Pathfinder's default setting assumes that the death of important characters, like the leaders of nations or powerful villains, shouldn't be easily reversed by any common priest or spellcaster, only those who have specialized knowledge in these secret arts.

Different Contexts

Source GM Core pg. 22 2.0
Just because something is common or uncommon in one context doesn't necessarily mean it's the same in others. This is specifically true when comparing the commonality of a creature and an ancestry. For instance, while hobgoblins are a relatively common monster for adventurers to encounter and are a common creature, in most settings they're still far less prevalent than humans or elves and would be an uncommon ancestry.

Because uncommon elements are available in certain circumstances, they often vary by locale, even within the same setting. For instance, a katana is uncommon in the Inner Sea region of Golarion, but in the Asian fantasy-inspired Tian Xia, a katana would be common and some Inner Sea weapons might be uncommon. Similarly, in an elven kingdom, uncommon elven weapons like the elven curve blade might be common.

Access Entries

Source GM Core pg. 23 2.0
Uncommon elements sometimes have an Access entry in their stat block. An Access entry usually speaks to elements of a character’s backstory or experiences, such as “follower of Shelyn,” “member of the Pathfinder Society,” or “from Absalom.” A character who meets the access requirements can freely choose that option just like they would a common option, even though it’s uncommon. Unlike a Prerequisites entry, an Access entry never speaks to mechanical requirements needed to make the rules function, so if you’d like to modify Access requirements, you can do so without worrying about altering game balance.

Starting Elements

Source GM Core pg. 23 2.0
Elements like ancestries, backgrounds, classes, and heritages that a player must select at character creation can still be uncommon or rare. Obviously, there’s no opportunity for the player character to search for them during play, but these rarities still indicate the prevalence of adventurers with those elements in the world. You can decide to allow them on a case-by-case basis depending on the campaign and the story your group wants to tell. For instance, a game set in the lizardfolk empire of Droon might have lizardfolk (normally uncommon) as a common ancestry while the typical common ancestries are less common. An official player’s guide for a Pathfinder Adventure Path might have uncommon backgrounds that you can access by playing the Adventure Path.

Storytelling

Source GM Core pg. 23 2.0
You might craft a quest involving an uncommon or rare subject. For instance, players might encounter a door that requires a rare spell to open and have to travel to an academy to learn it. If a player has their heart set on an option that’s not common, look for ways to build a story in which their character acquires that option.

World Building

Source GM Core pg. 23 2.0
With the rarities at your fingertips, you and your group can start building a unique world using rarity as a tool. Imagine a world where one or more of the core classes are rare. Maybe the gods rarely answer the call of the faithful and a PC cleric is one of the only clerics in the world. Perhaps sorcerers are rare and feared by wizards' guilds, which have a stranglehold on spell access. For a grittier feel, you could make abilities that can remove afflictions uncommon or rare. You could even create a low-magic setting where all magic and magic items are uncommon or rare.

You can add, remove, or alter Access entries to fit your world. For instance, if in your world the goddess of death guards the secrets of resurrection, you might add an Access entry to raise dead and resurrection for characters who worship that goddess.

These are just a few ideas to help get you started. The number of ways you can vary rarities to adjust your setting, story, and game are nearly unlimited.