Intro Adventure Covers: Pathfinder

  As many of you know, when Wizards of the Coast made the jump to 4E, many if not most of the player base was frankly uninterested in swapping rules. Demand created itself new a supply, in the form of Paizo Publishing's Pathfinder. Beginning as just D&D 3.5 continued, it eventually grew (or metastasized) into it's own giant crunchy weird thing. Full disclosure, I love it, but I will be the first to admit it's a bit unwieldy for some people. Over time, as Pathfinder grew into something that was selling as well as D&D 4e, and Paizo realized if they wanted new people in they should probably try to be a touch more accessible. Thus, the Beginner Box, with simplified rules, handy punch-out miniatures, maps, dice, and a little starter adventure in Blackfang's Lair. That's what's depicted on the box cover.
  First, let's give Paizo this. For all that it's been called Dungeons and Dragons, this here is the very first time that an actual DRAGON IS BEING DEPICTED. That's kind of shameful to D&D, considering this game is technically called Pathfinder and doesn't even have the creature in the name. Meanwhile, Paizo is here depicting a dragon in a dungeon, just as we'd hope to see. Great job, guys.
  The cover illustration setting is overall interesting, a crumbling castle or similar building lit by misty sunlight in the background. The architecture is a little wonky and stylized, the angles more to look cool than actually what I'd expect to see in a real building. The action is taking place in an extremely stylized arena, on the whole...the dragon's hoard of brownish crap looks crumbly, everything is sliding and falling. Videogame again, but this a much more active one. The general style is also spiky in contrast to the unnaturally smooth Keep on the Shadowfell pictures, everyone loaded with bits, bobs, and spikes for days. It makes for a dynamic, if ugly, picture.
  I don't think there's a power differential between the monster and the player characters depicted. The dragon looks beastial, active, and has some real weight to it, if not intelligence or calculation. Meanwhile, Elf Girl and Shepard Wizard are given equal standing to the dragon in both perspective depth and in power and menace. Damage is about to occur everywhere, but you get the distinct impression that nothing that happens in the next six seconds is going to be lethal for anyone involved here. The promise here is that you're about to have a cool rad fight on even footing in a nifty arena, something that seems pretty in keeping with the hardcore-but-crunchy reality that is Pathfinder.
  Mystery? Careful environmental exploration? Moral ambiguity? Nothing there. But you can "get gud" with building your awesome fight guys to fight the awesome monsters of your friend the GM, so there's at least something there. Accurate cover.
​  Pants are back, baby.