Core Preview⚑
Below are reproduced tables, rules changes, and and spells from the core preview for your convenience.
Rules Changes⚑
Replaced Concepts⚑
| Old | New | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Ability modifier | Attribute modifier | See Attribute Modifiers |
| Ability score | See Attribute Modifiers | |
| Abyss | The Outer Rifts | Changed to update world lore. |
| Aquan | Thalassic | Changed to update world lore. |
| Attack of Opportunity | Reactive Strike | More descriptive name and reduces confusion for players coming to the game from a different rules set that uses the term. |
| Auran | Susurran | Changed to update world lore. |
| Azer | Munsahir | See Munsahir |
| City of Brass | Medina Mudii’a | Changed to update world lore. |
| Counteract level | Counteract rank | Changed to avoid confusion between “level” and “level.” |
| Darkwood | Duskwood | Changed to update world lore. |
| Sustain a Spell | Sustain | See Sustain |
| Divine ability | Divine attribute | Updated to new attribute terminology. |
| Djinni | Jaathoom | See Genie |
| Efreeti | Ifrit | See Genie |
| Flat-footed | Off-guard | Term was awkward and unclear. |
| Focus spell component | Locus | Changed to avoid overlap with focus spells. |
| Ifrit | Naari | See Ifrit in PDF |
| Ignan | Pyric | Changed to update world lore. |
| Janni | Jann | See Genie |
| Marid | Faydhaan | See Genie |
| Material Plane | The Universe | Changed to update world lore. |
| Mephit | Scamp | See Mephit in PDF |
| Metamagic | Spellshape | Changed to be more specific. |
| Mithral | Dawnsilver | Changed to update world lore. |
| Negative | Void | Negative damage and the negative trait are now “void” to reflect their meaning in the game world and avoid confusing wording when doing math. |
| Negative Energy Plane | The Void | Changed to update world lore. |
| Positive | Vitality | Positive damage and the positive trait are now “vitality” to reflect their meaning in the game world and avoid confusing wording when doing math. |
| Positive Energy Plane | Creation’s Forge | Changed to update world lore. |
| Shadow Plane | The Netherworld | Changed to update world lore. |
| Shaitan | Jabali | See Genie |
| Spell level | Spell rank | See Spell Rank |
| Sustain a Spell/Activation | Sustain | See Sustain and dismiss |
| Terran | Petran | Changed to update world lore. |
| Tools | Toolkit | Sets of tools you can wear are called toolkits to make it more clear which items are eligible to be worn. |
Attribute Modifiers⚑
We’ve removed ability scores and changed ability modifiers to attribute modifiers to make them more obviously different from the term “abilities,” which is used throughout the game. This also changes “ability boost” to “attribute boost” and “ability flaw” to “attribute flaw,” both of which are described below. Essentially, the process of building a character and using your attribute modifiers is the same, this just removes the step of building an ability score.
The main adjustment you might need to make and will see in Rage of Elements is changing prerequisites of a certain ability score. Simply find the ability modifier that score would have and use that number for the attribute modifier prerequisite. For example, a prerequisite needing a Charisma ability score of 14 would instead need a Charisma attribute modifier of +2. The rules text from Player Core is as follows.
Attribute Boosts⚑
An attribute boost normally increases an attribute modifier’s value by 1. However, if the attribute modifier to which you’re applying an attribute boost is already +4 or higher, instead mark “partial boost” on the character sheet for that attribute. If the attribute already has a partial boost invested in it, increase the modifier by 1 and uncheck the box. At 1st level, a character can never have any attribute modifier that’s higher than +4.
When your character receives an attribute boost, the rules indicate whether it must be applied to a specific attribute modifier, to one of a limited list, or whether it’s a “free” attribute boost that can be applied to any attribute modifier of your choice. Dwarves, for example, receive an attribute boost to their Constitution modifier and their Wisdom modifier, as well as one free attribute boost, which can be applied to any other attribute.
When you gain multiple attribute boosts at the same time, you must apply each one to a different modifier. This means you can’t apply a partial boost to an attribute modifier and apply another boost simultaneously to increase it.
Attribute Flaws⚑
Attribute flaws are not nearly as common in Pathfinder as attribute boosts. If your character has an attribute flaw—likely from their ancestry—you decrease that attribute modifier by 1.
Alignment⚑
The concept of alignment has been removed from the game, replaced with tools more directly pointed at what those rules attempted to accomplish. Creatures no longer have alignment, though some follow edicts and anathema or are sanctified to a holy or unholy cause, since both of these struggles are key to the setting of Pathfinder.
Edicts and Anathema⚑
For guidance on how to play a character, we’re emphasizing edicts and anathema more strongly. They’re now a voluntary, optional part of character creation for all characters. Deities, classes, and so forth can still introduce specific edicts and anathema. Most of these are similar or identical to what already appears in printed books.
Edicts and Anathema: You can choose to take on edicts and anathema to reinforce your character’s beliefs and guide how they’d react in certain situations. Edicts are behaviors your personal philosophy or code encourages. Anathema are the opposite: actions contrary to your point of view and violations of your personal code. For example, you might declare that you follow an edict to keep detailed records of any dungeon you explore, or you might consider it anathema to refuse to help a friend in need.
For most characters, these are entirely optional, though it’s best to consider taking on some as you create your character to home in on how they think. If you follow a deity, you might take inspiration from the edicts and anathema listed for them in their deity entries. Ancestry entries list edicts and anathema prevalent among their societies.
The new geniekin heritages in Rage of Elements list popular edicts and anathema, and here’s an example from Player Core for the orc ancestry.
Popular Edicts become even stronger, share knowledge you won through pain, destroy the undead
Popular Anathema accept defeat without proof of strength, reshape or reanimate a creature into something lesser
Holy, Unholy, and Sanctified⚑
New traits let you dedicate a character to the grand battle between holy forces—such as celestials—and unholy forces—such as fiends and undead. You’ll note chaos, law, and neutrality don’t have equivalents as their scope was far more limited and they matter much less in the game world. Some characters, notably clerics in Player Core, can choose to become sanctified. We may issue errata for other major character options that relied on alignment, but it’s unlikely that every single base will be covered. The rules text for sanctification and the related traits is as follows.
Sanctification: Some deities sanctify their clerics and similarly devoted followers. This gives the follower the holy or unholy trait. The holy trait indicates a powerful devotion to altruism, helping others, and battling against unholy forces like fiends and undead. The unholy trait, in turn, shows devotion to victimizing others, inflicting harm, and battling celestial powers. Deities that list “must choose” require gaining the trait, and those that list “can choose” give the devotee the option to choose the trait or not. You can have the holy trait, unholy trait, or neither, but can never have both the holy and unholy traits.
Spells and other effects can also have these traits, making them more powerful against creatures with the opposite trait. Some spells and abilities have the sanctified trait. This means that when you use the ability you add the holy trait or unholy trait to the ability if you have that trait.
Holy (Trait): Effects with the holy trait are tied to powerful magical forces of benevolence and virtue. They often have stronger effects on unholy creatures. Creatures with this trait are strongly devoted to holy causes and often have weakness to unholy. If a creature with weakness to holy uses a holy item or effect, it takes damage from its weakness.
Unholy (Trait): Effects with the unholy trait are tied to powerful magical forces of cruelty and sin. They often have stronger effects on holy creatures. Creatures with this trait are strongly devoted to unholy causes and often have weakness to holy. If a creature with weakness to unholy uses an unholy item or effect, it takes damage from its weakness.
Sanctified: If you are holy or unholy, your sanctified actions and spells gain the same trait.
Spirit Damage⚑
Though this damage type isn’t used in Rage of Elements, the Remaster rules introduce spirit damage. This will replace alignment damage (chaotic damage, good damage, evil damage, and lawful damage) in many situations. But beyond that, it also covers many situations where there wasn’t truly a suitable damage type.
Spirit Damage: Directly affecting the spiritual essence of a creature, spirit damage can damage a target projecting its consciousness or possessing another creature even if the target’s body is elsewhere. The possessed creature isn’t harmed by the blast. Spirit damage doesn’t harm creatures that have no spirit, such as constructs. Many effects that deal spirit damage also have the sanctified, holy, or unholy trait.
Fast Changes⚑
Alignment changes are the most extensive in the Remaster. If you want to use them in your game immediately, in most cases you can make pretty quick adjustments on the fly to adapt. Take care to make sure you don’t miss something, and be ready to alter your plan if the change doesn’t seem to be working as you intended.
Creature Stat Blocks: Remove the alignment entry from all creatures. If a creature’s nature is strongly suffused with the magic of good or evil, the creature has the holy or unholy trait, and often its Strikes and other actions do too. Celestials have the holy trait. Fiends and undead have the unholy trait. (As with most things, there are occasional exceptions.) A cleric, champion, herald, or similar follower of a deity might be sanctified as well, gaining the appropriate holy or unholy trait.
Aligned Damage: Change chaotic damage, evil damage, good damage, and lawful damage to spirit damage. If you have a bit more time, you can instead incorporate that damage into the other damage of the attack if it makes sense, increasing the physical damage instead, for example. Consider adding the holy trait or unholy trait to an action, spell, or item if it’s often strongly themed to a deity or the metaphysical fight of good versus evil.
Deity Sanctification: There’s no quick change for sanctification. If a player wants their character to be sanctified, you can follow what the story suggests should be true for the character and their deity. For instance, it makes perfect sense for a devout cleric of Sarenrae who has been dedicated to battling fiends and undead to be sanctified to holy. However, a cleric of Cayden Cailean who hasn’t shown any strong drive to fight for a cause might not be sanctified. Usually, you can follow the player’s wishes for their PCs and ask them to describe in the story how their sanctification comes into play.
Dedication Feats⚑
Formerly, dedication feats for archetypes listed a special entry to note you need to take two other feats from the archetype before taking a new dedication feat. Those rules are now in the rules for the trait itself. This makes them consistent and avoids needing to include repetitive text. Any archetypes that intentionally left room for exceptions—such as some archetypes that count feats from other archetypes toward this number—might get errata closer to the release of the final books.
Druid⚑
Druids no longer have an anathema against using metal! Metal is an element, and many of the metal spells are on the primal spell list and fully usable by druids. The updated list of base druid anathema is as follows. (Wildsong is the new name for the reconceptualized secret language of druids.)
Anathema despoil natural places, consume more natural resources than you require to live comfortably, teach the Wildsong to non-druids.
Sustain and Dismiss⚑
Rather than having separate rules for Sustain a Spell and Sustain an Activation, Sustain is now a specialty basic action that works largely the same way but can be used more broadly throughout the rules. Similarly, Dismiss is now a specialty basic action.
Spell Rules⚑
Spells have received some changes to make them easier to understand and use, to have them work correctly with some other rules changes, and to make some of them more fun and useful.
Spell Rank⚑
The term “spell level” has changed to “spell rank” to reduce the confusion caused by using “level” for two different scales of numbers in the game. Other parts of the game that used the same scale as spells have changed as well, such as “counteract level” becoming “counteract rank.”
School Removal⚑
Spells no longer have spell schools, which removes the abjuration, conjuration, divination, enchantment, evocation, necromancy, and transmutation traits. There is still an “illusion” trait that follows the same rules as before, but it’s no longer a “school,” just a trait.
This change makes obsolete a small number of items, archetypes, and other rules elements, which will get errata as needed closer to the release of the books. The wizard sees the greatest number of changes.
Wizard Changes⚑
The removal of spell schools has a major impact on the wizard class. A wizard now has a set of curriculum spells and spell slots, which use the following text.
Curriculum Spells: You automatically add some of the spells listed in your school’s curriculum to your spellbook. At 1st level, you add a cantrip and two 1st‑rank spells of your choice. As soon as you gain the ability to cast wizard spells of a new rank, choose one of the spells from your curriculum of that rank to add to your spellbook. A superscript “U” indicates an uncommon spell. Your GM might allow you to swap or add other spells to your curriculum if they strongly fit the theme.
Spell Slots: Each day, you can prepare an extra cantrip from your curriculum. You also gain an extra spell slot at each spell rank for which you have wizard spell slots. You can prepare only spells from your school’s curriculum in these extra slots. Any spell listed in your curriculum of a suitable spell rank is eligible to be prepared in each of these extra slots, regardless of how you added the spell to your spellbook.
Wizard focus spells are still called “school spells,” but they now represent the actual school the wizard attended (or didn’t attend for the School of Unified Magical Theory). An example of a curriculum follows. (The charming push focus spell works like charming words but can directly affect the target’s mind. Therefore, it doesn’t have the auditory and linguistic traits.)
School of Mentalism⚑
As a scholar, you know all too well the importance of a sound mind. Thus, you attended a school—like the Farseer Tower or the Stone of the Seers—that taught the arts of befuddling lesser minds with figments and illusions or implanted sensations and memories.
Curriculum cantrips: daze, figment; 1st: dizzying colors, sleep, sure strike; 2nd: illusory creature, stupefy; 3rd: dream message, mind readingU ; 4th: nightmare, vision of death; 5th: hallucination, illusory scene; 6th: never mind, phantasmal calamity; 7th: project image, warp mind; 8th: disappearance, uncontrollable dance; 9th: phantasmagoria
School Spells initial: charming push; advanced: invisibility cloak
Focus Spells⚑
Though the details don’t come up in Rage of Elements, the way characters gain and recharge Focus Points has been simplified in the Remaster. Abilities that give you focus spells no longer mention how many Focus Points they add to your pool because the rules have been simplified: The maximum number of Focus Points in your pool is always equal to the number of focus spells you know.
The Refocus action is now less limited as well. Here’s the new version!
Refocus⚑
CONCENTRATE | EXPLORATION
Requirements You have a focus pool.
You spend 10 minutes performing deeds to restore your magical connection. This restores 1 Focus Point to your focus pool. The deeds you need to perform are specified in the class or ability that gives you your focus spells. These deeds can usually overlap with other tasks that relate to the source of your focus spells. For instance, a cleric with focus spells from a holy deity can usually Refocus while tending the wounds of their allies.
Refocus Feats⚑
Some classes have feats to let you Refocus faster, and those have been streamlined to one feat. If you want to implement this change to your game, take these two steps.
- Change a class’s 12th‑level “Focus” feat (such as a sorcerer’s Bloodline Focus) to have the following rules text: “Whenever you Refocus, completely refill your focus pool.”
- Remove a class’s 18th‑level “Wellspring” feat (such as a sorcerer’s Bloodline Wellspring).
New Format⚑
The format of a spell stat block has changed slightly. Removing the spell components means the actions and traits go in the same place as in other actions and activities. The action icon appears in the header, and the concentrate and manipulate traits go in the traits line when needed. The “Cast” entry appears only for spells that take longer than three actions to cast. In addition, the “Saving Throw” entry has been replaced with “Defenses,” which is also used to note when a spell targets AC. You can see the new format in action in the spells ahead!
New & Revised Spells⚑
Augury⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Prediction
Traditions divine, occult
Cast 10 minutes
You gain a vague glimpse of the future. During the casting of this spell, ask about the results of a particular course of action. The spell can predict results up to 30 minutes into the future and reveal the gm’s best guess among the following outcomes: good, bad, mixed (the results will be a mix of good and bad), and nothing (there won’t be particularly good or bad results).
The gm rolls a secret dc 6 flat check. On a failure, the result is always “nothing.” this makes it impossible to tell whether a “nothing” result is accurate. If anyone asks about the same topic as the first casting of augury during an additional casting, the gm uses the secret roll result from the first casting. If circumstances change, though, it’s possible to get a different result.
Blazing bolt ◆ to ◆◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Attack Concentrate Fire Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 60 feet Targets 1 or more creatures
Defense AC
You fire a ray of heat and flame. Make a Spell Attack roll against a single creature. On a hit, the target takes 2d6 fire damage, and on a critical hit, the target takes double damage.
For each additional action you use when casting the spell, you can fire an additional ray at a different target, to a maximum of three rays targeting three different targets for 3 actions. These attacks each increase your multiple attack penalty, but you don’t increase your multiple attack penalty until after you make all the Spell Attack rolls for blazing bolt. If you spend 2 or more actions casting the spell, the damage increases to 4d6 fire damage on a hit, and it still deals double damage on a critical hit.
Heightened (+1) the damage to each target increases by 1d6 for the 1-action version, or by 2d6 for the 2- and 3-action versions.
Breathe fire ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Fire Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Area 15-foot cone
Defense Basic Reflex
A gout of flame sprays from your mouth. You deal 2d6 fire damage to creatures in the area with a Basic Reflex save.
Heightened (+1) the damage increases by 2d6.
Cleanse cuisine ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions divine, primal
Range 10 feet; Area 1 cubic foot
You transform all food and beverages in the area into delicious fare, changing water into wine or another fine beverage, or enhancing the food’s taste and ingredients to make it a gourmet treat. You can also choose to remove all toxins and contaminations from the food. This spell doesn’t prevent future contamination, natural decay, or spoilage, nor does it make the food any more nutritious.
Heightened (+2) add another cubic foot to the area, which must be contiguous with the rest.
Detect magic ◆◆⚑
Cantrip 1⚑
Cantrip Concentrate Detection Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Area 30-foot emanation
You send out a pulse that registers the presence of magic. You receive no information beyond the presence or absence of magic. You can choose to ignore magic you’re fully aware of, such as the magic items and ongoing spells of you and your allies.
You detect illusion magic only if that magic’s effect has a lower rank than the rank of your detect magic spell. However, items that have an illusion aura but aren’t deceptive in appearance (such as an invisibility potion) typically are detected normally.
Heightened (3rd) You learn the rank or level of the most powerful magical effect the spell detects, as determined by the GM.
Heightened (4th) As 3rd rank, but you also pinpoint the source of the highest-rank magic. Like for an imprecise sense, you don’t learn the exact location, but can narrow down the source to within a 5-foot cube (or the nearest if larger than that).
Entangling flora ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Plant Wood
Range 120 feet; Area all squares in a 20-foot burst
Duration 1 minute
Plants and fungi burst out or quickly grow, entangling creatures. All surfaces in the area are difficult terrain. Each round that a creature starts its turn in the area, it must attempt a reflex save. On a failure, it takes a –10-foot circumstance penalty to its speeds until it leaves the area, and on a critical failure, it’s also immobilized for 1 round. Creatures can attempt to escape to remove these effects.
Environmental endurance⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, primal
Cast 10 minutes
Range touch; Targets 1 willing creature
Duration until your next daily preparations
You shield the target against dangerous temperatures. Choose severe cold or heat. The target is protected from the temperature you chose (but not extreme cold or heat).
Heightened (3rd) the target is protected from severe cold and severe heat.
Heightened (5th) the target is protected from severe cold, Severe heat, extreme cold, and extreme heat.
Falling stars ◆◆⚑
Spell 9⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 500 feet; Area 4 40-foot bursts
Defense Basic Reflex
You reach into the skies and call down an array of falling stars that explode upon colliding with the ground. Choose for the falling stars to be airbursts (sonic), asteroids (fire), comets (cold), or plasma (electricity). The spell gains the trait of the falling star type you chose. The four stars’ central 10-foot bursts can’t overlap. Each falling star deals 6d10 bludgeoning damage to each creature in the 10-foot burst at the center of its area of effect before exploding, dealing 14d6 energy damage of the type you chose to each creature in its 40-foot burst. A creature in any of the areas attempts one Basic Reflex save against the spell no matter how many overlapping explosions it’s caught in and can take each type of damage only once.
Heightened (+1) the bludgeoning damage increases by 1d10, and the energy damage increases by 2d6.
Figment⚑
Cantrip 1⚑
Cantrip Concentrate Illusion Manipulate
Traditions arcane, occult
Range 30 feet
Duration sustained
You create a simple illusory sound or vision. A sound adds the auditory trait to the spell and the sound can’t include intelligible words or elaborate music. A vision adds the visual trait, can be no larger than a 5-foot cube, and is clearly crude and undetailed if viewed from within 15 feet. When you cast or sustain the spell, you can attempt to create a diversion with the illusion, gaining a +2 circumstance bonus to your deception check. If the attempt fails against a creature, that creature disbelieves the figment.
Fire shield ◆◆⚑
Spell 4⚑
Concentrate Fire Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Duration 1 minute
You create a hovering shield made of fire. As long as the shield persists, its heat grants you cold resistance 5 and makes you immune to mild and severe environmental cold. You can raise a shield with the fire shield as a normal shield to gain a +1 circumstance bonus to ac. You can use the shield block reaction (page 262) with the fire shield, which has hardness 10, is immune to fire, and has 40 hp (with no broken threshold), and its hardness is halved against effects that have the water trait. If you shield block a melee attack that is either an unarmed attack or made by an adjacent attacker, the attacker takes 2d6 fire damage.
Heightened (+2) the cold resistance increases by 5, the hp increase by 10, and the fire damage increases by 1d6.
Howling blizzard ◆◆ to ◆◆◆⚑
Spell 5⚑
Air Cold Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal area varies
Defense reflex
Freezing winds extend from your hands, pushing away from you with great force. If you cast this spell with 2 actions, it has an area of a 60-foot cone; if you cast this spell with 3 actions, it has a range of 500 feet and an area of a 30-foot burst. Each creature in the area takes 10d6 cold damage with a Basic Reflex save. Snowdrifts and icy gales fill the area until the start of your next turn, making the area difficult terrain.
Heightened (+1) the damage increases by 2d6.
Ignition ◆◆⚑
Cantrip 1⚑
Attack
Cantrip⚑
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature
Defense AC
You snap your fingers and point at a target, which begins to smolder. Make a Spell Attack roll against the target’s ac, dealing 2d4 fire damage on a hit. If the target is within your melee reach, you can choose to make a melee Spell Attack with the flame instead of a ranged Spell Attack, which increases all the spell’s damage dice to d6s.
- Crital success the target takes double damage and
1d4persistent fire damage. - Success the target takes full damage.
Heightened (+1) The initial damage increases by 1d4 and the persistent fire damage on a critical hit increases by 1d4.
Interplanar teleport⚑
Spell 7⚑
Uncommon Concentrate Manipulate Teleportation
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal cast 10 minutes; Requirements you have a planar key for the destination plane, used as a locus
Range 5 feet; Targets up to 8 willing creatures
You and your allies traverse the barriers between planes of existence. The targets move to another plane, such as the plane of fire, the netherworld, or the outer rifts. You must know the destination plane exists and use a magic planar key created from material from that plane as a locus for the spell. While the planar keys for most prominent planes are uncommon, just like the spell interplanar teleport, more obscure planes and demiplanes often have rare or possibly even unique planar keys.
The spell is highly imprecise, and you appear 1d20×25 miles from the last place one of the targets (of your choice) was located the last time that target traveled to the plane. If it’s the first time traveling to a particular plane for all targets, you appear at a random location on the plane. Interplanar teleport doesn’t provide a means of return travel, though casting interplanar teleport again allows you to return to your previous plane unless there are extenuating circumstances.
Invoke spirits ◆◆⚑
Spell 5⚑
Concentrate Emotion Fear Manipulate Mental Void
Traditions arcane, divine, occult
Range 120 feet; Area 10-foot burst
Defense Will; Duration sustained up to 1 minute
Ragged apparitions of the dead rise to stalk the living. They deal 2d4 mental damage and 2d4 void damage to each living creature in the area, with a basic will save. Additionally, creatures that critically fail the save are frightened 2 and are fleeing for 1 round.
On subsequent rounds, the first time you sustain the spell each round, you can move the area up to 30 feet within the range of the spell. Living creatures in the new area must attempt saves with the same effects as above, except that critically failing doesn’t make them flee.
Heightened (+2) the mental damage and void damage each increase by 1d4.
Know the way ◆◆⚑
Cantrip 1⚑
Cantrip Concentrate Detection Manipulate
Traditions divine, occult, primal
In your mind’s eye, you magically reorient yourself. You immediately know which direction is north (if it exists at your current location), and you can choose a location you were at within the last 24 hours and learn what direction it lies.
Heightened (3rd) you can choose a location you were at within the last week.
Heightened (7th) you can choose a location you were at regardless of how long ago you were there.
Manifestation ◆◆◆⚑
Spell 10⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
You spin secrets from the fundaments of magic, shaping them into a power with nearly unlimited potential. You duplicate a spell of 9th rank or lower of the tradition from which you cast manifestation, or a spell of 7th rank or lower from any tradition. Though you can normally choose only spells that are common or to which you have access, the gm might allow broader options.
Mirage⚑
Spell 4⚑
`Uncommon Concentrate Illusion Manipulate
Traditions arcane, occult, primal cast 10 minutes
Range 500 feet; Area 50-foot burst
Duration until your next daily preparations
You create an illusion that causes natural terrain to look, sound, feel, and smell like a different kind of terrain. This doesn’t disguise any structures or creatures in the area.
Any creature that touches the illusion or uses the seek action to examine it can attempt to disbelieve your illusion.
Heightened (5th) your image can also disguise structures or create illusory structures (but still doesn’t disguise creatures).
Mountain resilience ◆◆⚑
Spell 4⚑
Concentrate Earth Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 creature
Duration 20 minutes
The target’s skin hardens like the stone of a mountain face. It gains resistance 5 to physical damage, except adamantine. Each time the target is hit by a bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing attack, mountain resilience’s duration decreases by 1 minute.
Heightened (6th) the resistance increases to 10.
Heightened (8th) the resistance increases to 15.
Heightened (10th) the resistance increases to 20.
Mystic armor ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal Duration until your next daily preparations
You ward yourself with shimmering magical energy, gaining a +1 item bonus to ac and a maximum dexterity modifier of +5. While wearing mystic armor, you use your unarmored proficiency to calculate your ac.
Heightened (4th) you gain a +1 item bonus to saving throws.
Heightened (6th) the item bonus to ac increases to +2, and you gain a +1 item bonus to saving throws.
Heightened (8th) the item bonus to ac increases to +2, and you gain a +2 item bonus to saving throws.
Heightened (10th) the item bonus to ac increases to +3, and You gain a +3 item bonus to saving throws.
Nature’s pathway⚑
Spell 5⚑
Uncommon Concentrate
Traditions primal
Cast 1 minute
Manipulate Mental Plant Teleportation
You step into a living tree with a trunk big enough for you to fit inside it and instantly teleport to any tree within 5 miles that also has a sufficiently large trunk. Once you enter the first tree, you instantly know the rough locations of other sufficiently large trees within range and can exit from the original tree, if you prefer. You can’t carry extradimensional spaces with you; if you attempt to do so, the spell fails.
Heightened (6th) the tree you exit can be up to 50 miles away.
Heightened (8th) the tree you exit can be up to 500 miles away.
Heightened (9th) the tree you exit can be anywhere on the same planet.
Oaken resilience ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Plant Wood
Traditions arcane, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 willing creature
Duration 10 minutes
The target’s skin becomes tough, with a consistency like bark or wood. The target gains resistance 2 to bludgeoning and piercing damage andweakness 3` to fire. After the target takes fire damage, it can dismiss the spell as a free action triggered by taking the damage; doing so doesn’t reduce the fire damage the target was dealt.
Heightened (+2) the resistances increase by 2, and the weakness increases by 3.
One with plants ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Plant Polymorph Wood
Traditions primal
Duration 10 minutes or 8 hours
You can either transform into a plant or merge with plant matter. While transformed, you can’t move or affect anything outside the plant, but you can cast spells as long as they don’t require line of effect beyond the plant. You can dismiss this spell.
- Merge with plants the spell’s duration is 10 minutes. While casting the spell, you must touch a plant with enough volume to fit you and your possessions or the spell is disrupted. While merged, you can hear, but not see, what’s going on outside the plant. If the plant takes damage while you’re inside it, you’re expelled from the plant and take
10d6damage. Magic passage expels you without dealing damage. The spell ends if you’re ever outside the plant. - Turn into a plant88 the spell’s duration is 8 hours. You become a large plant—typically a tree. Perception checks don’t reveal your true nature, but a successful nature or survival check against your spell dc reveals that you appear to be a plant that is strangely new to the area. While in this form, you can observe everything around you, using your normal senses. As a plant, your ac is 20, and only status bonuses, status penalties, circumstance bonuses, and circumstance penalties affect you. Any successes and critical successes you roll on reflex saves are failures.
One with stone ◆◆⚑
Spell 3⚑
Concentrate Earth Manipulate Polymorph
Traditions arcane, primal
Duration 10 minutes or 8 hours
You can either transform into a stone or merge with stone. This spell has the same effects as one with plants, but lets you merge with or turn into stone. A stone you turn into has AC 23. You can dismiss this spell.
Peaceful rest ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 corpse
Duration until your next daily preparations
The targeted corpse doesn’t decay, nor can it be transformed into an undead. If the corpse is subject to a spell that requires the corpse to have died within a certain amount of time (for example, raise dead), do not count the duration of peaceful rest against that time. This spell also prevents ordinary bugs and pests (such as maggots) from consuming the body.
Heightened (5th) the spell’s duration is unlimited, but the spell takes one more action to cast and requires a cost (embalming fluid worth 6 gp).
Petrify ◆◆⚑
Spell 6⚑
Concentrate Earth Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 120 feet; Targets 1 creature made of organic material
Defense fortitude; Duration varies
The target’s body slowly turns into a stone statue. The target must attempt a fortitude save.
- Crital success the target is unaffected.
- Success the target is slowed 1 for 1 round as stone begins to form on their body.
- Failure the target is slowed 1 and must attempt a fortitude save at the end of each of its turns; this ongoing save has the incapacitation trait. On a failed save, the slowed condition increases by 1 (or 2 on a critical failure) as stone growths creep across their body. A successful save reduces the slowed condition by 1. When a creature becomes fully unable to act due to the slowed condition from petrify, the spell then ends in a flash of gray light, leaving the target petrified permanently as they become a statue. The spell also ends if the slowed condition is removed, which causes the stone to break off harmlessly.
- Crital Failure as failure, but the target is initially slowed 2.
Planar seal ◆◆⚑
Uncommon Concentrate Manipulate
Spell 7⚑
Traditions arcane, divine, occult
Range 120 feet; Area 60-foot burst
Duration until your next daily preparations
You create a visible magical barrier that attempts to counteract teleportation effects and planar travel into or out of the area, including items that allow access to extradimensional spaces. Planar seal tries to counteract any attempt to summon a creature into the area but doesn’t stop the creature from departing when the summoning ends.
Revealing light ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Light Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Range 120 feet; Area 10-foot burst
Defense reflex; Duration varies
A wave of magical light washes over the area. You choose the appearance of the light, such as colorful, heatless flames or sparkling motes. A creature affected by revealing light is dazzled. If the creature was invisible, it becomes concealed instead. If the creature was already concealed for any other reason, it is no longer concealed.
- Crital success the target is unaffected.
- Success the light affects the creature for 2 rounds.
- Failure the light affects the creature for 1 minute.
Critica failure the light affects the creature for 10 minutes.
Runic body ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 willing creature
Duration 1 minute
Glowing runes appear on the target’s body. All its unarmed attacks become +1 striking unarmed attacks, gaining a +1 item bonus to attack rolls and increasing the number of damage dice to two.
Heightened (6th) the unarmed attacks are +2 greater striking.
Heightened (9th) the unarmed attacks are +3 major striking.
Runic weapon ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 weapon that is unattended or wielded by a willing creature
Duration 1 minute
The weapon glimmers with magic as temporary runes carve down its length. The target becomes a +1 striking weapon, gaining a +1 item bonus to attack rolls and increasing the number of weapon damage dice to two.
Heightened (6th) the weapon is +2 greater striking.
Heightened (9th) the weapon is +3 major striking.
See the unseen ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Revelation
Traditions arcane, divine, occult
Duration 10 minutes
Your gaze pierces through illusions and finds invisible creatures and spirits. You can see invisible creatures as though they weren’t invisible, although their features are blurred, making them concealed and difficult to identify. You can also see incorporeal creatures, like ghosts, phased through an object from within 10 feet of an object’s surface as blurry shapes seen through those objects. Subtler clues also grant you a +2 status bonus to checks you make to disbelieve illusions.
Heightened (5th) this spell has a duration of 8 hours.
Speak with animals ◆◆⚑
Spell 2⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions primal
Duration 1 hour
You can ask questions of, receive answers from, and use the diplomacy skill with animals. The spell doesn’t make them more friendly than normal. Cunning animals are likely to be terse and evasive, while less intelligent ones often make inane comments.
Speak with plants ◆◆ ◆◆⚑
Spell 3⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Plant Wood
Traditions divine, occult, primal
Duration 1 hour
You can ask questions of and receive answers from plants and fungi, but the spell doesn’t make them more friendly or intelligent than normal. Most normal plants and fungi have a distinctive view of the world around them, so they don’t recognize details about creatures or know anything about the world beyond their immediate vicinity. Cunning plant or fungus monsters are likely to be terse and evasive, while less intelligent ones often make inane comments.
Heightened (4th) the duration is 8 hours.
Speak with stones ◆◆⚑
Concentrate Earth Manipulate
Traditions divine, occult, primal
Duration 1 hour
Spell 5⚑
You can ask questions of and receive answers from natural or worked stone. While stone is not intelligent, you speak with the natural spirits of the stone, which have a personality colored by the type of stone, as well as by the type of structure the stone is part of, for worked stone. A stone’s perspective, perception, and knowledge give it a worldview different enough from a human’s that it doesn’t consider the same details important. Stones can mostly answer questions about creatures that touched them in the past and what is concealed beneath or behind them.
Heightened (6th) the duration is 8 hours.
Tailwind ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Air Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, primal
Duration 1 hour
The wind at your back pushes you to find new horizons. You gain a +10-foot status bonus to your speed.
Heightened (2nd) the duration increases to 8 hours.
Tangle vine ◆◆⚑
Cantrip 1⚑
Attack Cantrip Concentrate Manipulate Plant Wood
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature
Defense AC
A vine appears from thin air, flicking from your hand and lashing itself to the target. Attempt a Spell Attack roll against the target.
- Crital success the target gains the immobilized condition and takes a –10-foot circumstance penalty to its speeds for 1 round. It can attempt to escape against your spell DC to remove the penalty and the immobilized condition.
- Success the target takes a –10-foot circumstance penalty to its speeds for 1 round. It can attempt to escape against your spell DC to remove the penalty.
- Failure the target is unaffected.
Heightened (2nd) the effects last for 2 rounds.
Heightened (4th) the effects last for 1 minute.
Telekinetic hand ◆◆⚑
Cantrip⚑
Concentrate Manipulate
Cantrip 1⚑
Traditions arcane, occult
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 unattended object of light bulk or less
Duration sustained
You create a floating, magical hand, either invisible or ghostlike, that grasps the target object and levitates it slowly up to 20 feet in any direction. When you sustain the spell, you can move the object an additional 20 feet. If the object is in the air when the spell ends, the object falls.
Heightened (3rd) you can target an unattended object with a bulk of 1 or less.
Heightened (5th) the range increases to 60 feet, and you can target an unattended object with a bulk of 1 or less.
Heightened (7th) the range increases to 60 feet, and you can Target an unattended object with a bulk of 2 or less.
Thunderstrike ◆◆⚑
Spell 1⚑
Concentrate Electricity Manipulate Sonic
Traditions arcane, primal
Range 120 feet; Targets 1 creature
Defense Basic Reflex
You call down a tendril of lightning that cracks with thunder, dealing 1d12 electricity damage and 1d4 sonic damage to the target with a Basic Reflex save. A target wearing metal armor or made of metal takes a –1 circumstance bonus to its save, and if damaged by the spell is clumsy 1 for 1 round.
Heightened (+1) the damage increases by 1d12 electricity and 1d4 sonic.
Translocate ◆◆⚑
Spell 4⚑
Concentrate Manipulate Teleportation
Traditions arcane, occult
Range 120 feet
You instantly transport yourself and any items you’re wearing and holding from your current space to an unoccupied space within range you can see. If this would bring another creature with you—even if you’re carrying it in an extradimensional container—the spell is lost.
Heightened (5th) the range increases to 1 mile. You don’t need to be able to see your destination, as long as you have been there in the past and know its relative location and distance from you. You are then temporarily immune for 1 hour.
Truespeech ◆◆⚑
Spell 5⚑
Uncommon Concentrate Manipulate
Traditions arcane, divine, occult
Range touch; Targets 1 creature
Duration 1 hour
The target can understand all words regardless of language and also speak the languages of other creatures. When in a mixed group of creatures, each time the target speaks, it can choose a creature and speak in a language that creature understands, even if the target doesn’t know what language that is.
Heightened (7th) the duration is 8 hours.
Vapor form ◆◆⚑
Spell 4⚑
Air Concentrate Manipulate Polymorph
Traditions arcane, occult, primal
Range touch; Targets 1 willing creature
Duration 5 minutes
The target transforms into a vaporous state. In this state, the target is amorphous. It loses any item bonus to ac and all other effects and bonuses from armor, and it uses its proficiency modifier for unarmored Defense. It gains resistance 8 to physical damage and is immune to precision damage. It can’t cast spells, activate items, or use actions that have the attack or manipulate trait. It gains a fly speed of 10 feet and can slip through tiny cracks. The target can dismiss the spell.
Wrathful storm ◆◆◆⚑
Air Cold Concentrate Electricity Manipulate
Spell 9⚑
Traditions primal
Range 800 feet; Area 400-foot burst
Duration sustained up to 1 minute
A massive storm cloud forms in the air above the area, spreading rain and gales. The wind imposes a –4 circumstance penalty to physical ranged attacks. The air in the area is greater difficult terrain for flying creatures. When you cast this spell and the first time each round you sustain it on subsequent rounds, you can choose one of the following storm effects. You can’t choose the same effect twice in a row.
- Blizzard the driving snow deals 4d8 cold damage to each creature in or below the storm with no save. Everything in or beneath the cloud is concealed by driving snow and any ground is difficult terrain.
- Hail each creature in or below the storm takes 4d10 bludgeoning damage with a basic fortitude save.
- Lightning choose up to 10 creatures in or below the storm to be struck by lightning. Each of them takes 7d6 electricity damage with a Basic Reflex save.
- Tornado a roughly cylindrical whirlwind appears in or below the cloud in a 30-foot radius. Each creature in the whirlwind is thrown 40 feet upward.
Heightened (10th) the range increases to 2,000 feet and the cloud is a 1,000-foot burst.
Items⚑
Most items work pretty much the same in play but have been streamlined a bit. School removal, as detailed on page 4, affects items as well as spells.
New Format⚑
Item stat blocks are getting a few minor changes in GM Core. Similar to spells, items no longer require you to refer to a list of components, instead placing the relevant traits with the Activate entry. Furthermore, permanent items now have a short name or description to explain what an activation means or looks like. This is especially useful for items with multiple activations, making the activations easier to tell apart and track. One example follows, and there are plenty more in Rage of Elements!
Clawed bracers⚑
Item 7⚑
Invested Primal
Price 325 GP
Usage worn bracers Bulk L
Animal claws are woven into the thick leather of these bracers.
Activate—Extend Claws ◆ (manipulate, morph) Frequency once per hour; Effect The bracers fuse temporarily with your forearms, with the claws extending to your fingertips. You gain a climb Speed of 20 feet and a claw unarmed attack with the agile and finesse traits that deals 1d6 slashing damage. This lasts for 10 minutes or until you Dismiss it.
Talismans⚑
To make them more useful, powerful, and straightforward, we’ve changed a large number of talismans. The following ones are mentioned in Rage of Elements, and you can find these and more in GM Core!
Mesmerizing Opal⚑
Item 2⚑
Consumable Magical Talisman
Price 7 GP
Usage affixed to armor Bulk -
Activate ◆ (concentrate)
This silver-bound opal pendant is afire with iridescence. When you activate it, attempt a Deception check to Feint. If the outcome is a success, you get a critical success instead. If the outcome is a critical failure, you get a failure instead.
Potency Crystal⚑
Item 1+⚑
Consumable Magical Talisman
Usage affixed to armor Bulk -
Activate ⬦ (concentrate) Trigger You make an attack with the affixed weapon, but you haven’t rolled yet.
This fluorite crystal glows with a strange phosphorescence. When you activate the crystal, the weapon becomes a +1 striking weapon on the Strike and until the end of this turn, gaining a +1 item bonus to the attack roll and increasing the damage to two weapon damage dice.
Type potency crystal; Level 1; Price 4 gp
Type greater potency crystal; Level 9; Price 150 gp The weapon becomes a +2 greater striking weapon for the rest of the turn, gaining a +2 item bonus to the attack roll and increasing the damage to three weapon damage dice.
Type major potency crystal; Level 15; Price 1,300 gp The weapon becomes a +3 major striking weapon for the rest of the turn, gaining a +3 item bonus to the attack roll and increasing the damage to four weapon damage dice.
Shark Tooth Charm⚑
Item 5⚑
Consumable Magical Talisman
Price 23 gp Usage affixed to armor; Bulk — Activate ◆ (concentrate)
This dried-seaweed bracelet is lined with charms shaped like small shark teeth. When you activate the bracelet, attempt to Escape using Acrobatics with a +1 item bonus to the check. If you roll a success, you get a critical success instead (if you roll a critical failure, you get a failure instead). If you fail the Acrobatics check against a grabbing creature, the creature must either release you as a free action or take 2d8 piercing damage as shark’s teeth momentarily emerge from your skin.
Creatures⚑
Rage of Elements introduces some changes to creature abilities and to some elemental‑themed creatures.
Creature Abilities⚑
The monster abilities Grab, Knockdown, and Push have changed in the Remaster. This is mostly to benefit the PCs, who might get feats or other ways to resist the listed abilities that didn’t function well due to the previous versions working automatically. They’re included below, as are some other creature abilities used in the genie stat blocks.
Change Shape⚑
Change Shape ◆ (concentrate, [magical tradition], polymorph) The monster changes its shape indefinitely. It can use this action again to return to its natural shape or adopt a new shape. Unless otherwise noted, a monster cannot use Change Shape to appear as a specific individual. Using Change Shape counts as creating a disguise for the Impersonate use of Deception. The monster’s transformation automatically defeats Perception DCs to determine whether the creature is a member of the ancestry or creature type into which it transformed, and it gains a +4 status bonus to its Deception DC to prevent others from seeing through its disguise. Change Shape abilities specify what shapes the monster can adopt. The monster doesn’t gain any special abilities of the new shape, only its physical form. For example, in each shape, it replaces its normal Speeds and Strikes, and might potentially change its senses or size. Any changes are listed in its stat block.
Grab⚑
Grab ◆ Requirements The monster’s last action was a successful Strike that lists Grab in its damage entry, or the monster has a creature grabbed or restrained; Effect If used after a Strike, the monster attempts to Grapple the creature using the body part it attacked with. This attempt neither applies nor counts toward the creature’s multiple attack penalty. The monster can instead use Grab and choose one creature it’s grabbing or restraining with an appendage that has Grab to automatically extend that condition to the end of the monster’s next turn.
Knockdown⚑
Knockdown ◆ Requirements The monster’s last action was a successful Strike that lists Knockdown in its damage entry; Effect The monster attempts to Trip the creature. This attempt neither applies nor counts toward the monster’s multiple attack penalty.
Push⚑
Push ◆ Requirements The monster’s last action was a successful Strike that lists Push in its damage entry; Effect The monster attempts to Shove the creature. This attempt neither applies nor counts toward the monster’s multiple attack penalty. If Push lists a distance, change the distance the creature is pushed on a success to that distance.
Wavesense⚑
Wavesense This sense allows a monster to feel vibrations caused by movement through a liquid. It’s usually an imprecise sense with a limited range (listed in the ability). Wavesense functions only if the monster and the subject are in the same body of liquid, and only if the subject is moving through the liquid.
Genies⚑
Starting on the next page, you’ll find a preview of the genies entry, which you can think of as an “extended cut” of what will appear in Monster Core. Come meet the five new kinds of genies and look up their more powerful shuyookhs in Rage of Elements!
Munsahir⚑
Two new munsahirs appear in Rage of Elements. These people take the place of azers and have a similar appearance. You can also use the azer stat block from Pathfinder Bestiary 3 as a munsahir without any changes to the rules text other than the name.
Naari⚑
The geniekin formerly called ifrit appeared in Bestiary 2 as a creature stat block and in Lost Omens Ancestry Guide as a playable versatile heritage. They have been renamed naari, since the new genies of fire are known as ifrits.
Scamps⚑
Scamps take the place in the Elemental Planes formerly occupied by mephits, and they have a different appearance, as shown here! They perform a similar role as servants and summoned creatures.