The latest lore supplement for the Pathfinder Second Edition (PF2) tabletop roleplaying game by Paizo is live. Aptly titled Lost Omens: Gods & Magic, this book is jam-packed with the great content that you’d expect from Paizo. But that’s not even the best part!
What I really enjoy about these lore-based books is that they offer worthwhile insights to anybody playing in Golarion. That is to say that First Edition players and Gamemasters (GMs) will still find this to be a valuable tool.
As I’ve mentioned before, Golarion is such a wonderfully diverse world. Paizo draws inspiration from so many different cultures and mythologies. Their divine pantheon for the Inner Sea region is no exception. In this book, you’ll find details on all of your favorite deities, demon lords, outer gods, Great Old Ones, and so much more. Not only that, but Paizo also included a bunch of new character options for us to play with.
I have you covered with my review of this detailed book on Golarion’s higher powers. Let’s get to it!
If you do some research on the deities of Golarion, you’ll find a lot of symbols and text on who they are and what they stand for. It can be difficult to really visualize how they might be depicted in Golarion’s artwork. Lost Omens: Gods & Magic brings many of these deities to life, right on the page.
The well-known Inner Sea deities, like Irori, Sarenrae, and Shelyn, already have some official art out there. Giving them a fresh, updated PF2 look is a nice touch that reminds us who they are.
What I really enjoy, however, is the more obscure deities getting some artistic love. Ever heard of Mother Vulture or Pulura? Me either, but seeing a picture of them is really helpful in understanding their individual mythos.
Obviously, Paizo didn’t line up art for all of the ‘minor’ gods, but I’m really happy with the amount of coverage that they received. There are entire sections dedicated to the major groups of deities. Each lists an overview and includes some text about each of the deities that fit within that group.
Here are the groups covered in the book:
- Gods of the Inner Sea
- Archdevils and Queens of the Night
- Demon Lords
- The Eldest
- Elemental Lords
- Empyreal Lords
- The Horsemen
- Monitor Demigods
- Outer Gods & Great Old Ones
On top of that, you also get a detailed section on Philosophies and Spirituality. Not every character worships one of the mainstream deities. This section offers alternative spiritual paths for characters to tread, like the Green Faith and the Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye.
The layout makes it easy for players to navigate through the sections to find what they’re looking for. In general, Paizo has really done a fantastic job with their page layouts in Pathfinder Second Edition. My hat’s off to their design team.
Just reading through the entries gives me so many ideas for new Pathfinder characters. My next idea involves a skittish, apprehensive character who believes they’re being followed by The Lantern King. If anything goes wrong or seems out of the ordinary, it’s time to blame that mischievous trickster. Over time, however, it might come out that the trickery comes directly from the character.
As a GM, I’m always searching for ways to improve the game for my players. I want to offer a deep experience that really digs into the lore for the things that matter to their characters.
Lost Omens: Gods and Magic is a huge boon, ripe with details galore. First off, you have ways to easily add Theme Templates to a character. Want to make a ruffian be a worshipper of Pharasma? Depending on their level, you’ll add things like spells, favored weapon Strikes, and more to that character.
The second thing that grabs my attention are the Divine Intercessions. How many times have players wanted to be directly connected to their deities? I don’t know about you, but I’m always roleplaying interactions like that.
Divine Intercessions allow minor, moderate, and major boons or curses that deities might grant to those who favor or oppose them. These are AWESOME mechanics to accompany the flavor of a god’s blessings.
Take Erastil, for instance. The Elk Father can grant bonuses to longbow usage and allow casting of the commune with nature ritual. I absolutely love it.
Thirdly, the back has an Appendix that compiles all of the information in the book to an easy-to-read table. Everything is sorted by deity group, even including such granularity as Elven Gods or Sarkorian Gods.
We get an abundance of useful information from this table. We’re talking about alternate Titles, Domains, Cleric Spells, Key Edicts, Key Anathemas, and more. I’d have liked a few more sorting options, like deities grouped by domain or alignment, but I’ll take what I can get.
What’s a new supplemental book without some juicy content for the players? With Pathfinder Second Edition, Paizo is really placing an emphasis on making their supplements appeal to both players and GMs alike. Lost Omens: Gods and Magic gives us 22 pages of character options in a dedicated section.
Obviously, for a book dedicated to the divine, many of the options center around domain spells. There are a couple pages, however, offering new items and weapons that pertain to the deities in the book.
Something I really appreciate is the art showing the casting of these spells. While spell descriptions can give you a general idea of what’s going on, these images help prop up your imagination. Just take a look at Draconic Barrage and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
For those of you who are a bit more number-orientated, here are my counts for what you’ll find within the bindings of this book:
- 1 Bodacious Background
- 13 Wonderful Weapons
- 15 Fantastic Feats
- 66 Sizzling Spells (36 are Focus Spells for Domains)
- 14 Interesting Items
You’re also getting some details on benefits to the Avatar spell. Depending on your deity, the Avatar spell grants specific benefits. For example, an Avatar of Shizuru can air walk, gains sunbolt arrors, and additional ways of dealing damage with a katana.
Which of these character options am I most excited about? It has to be Swarm Form. This spell allows you to turn into a swarm of Tiny creatures. It’s one of those utility spells that works equally well in or out of combat!
Gods and Magic: Parting Thoughts
Sometimes a book comes along that speaks to you on a primal level. Lost Omens: Gods and Magic does that for me. Every page has so much detail, and I just want to keep turning those pages to see what’s next. This book is the comprehensive authority on Golarion deific lore; it deserves a coveted spot on your shelf.
Couple this with the Lost Omens World Guide, and you’ll be a Golarion expert in no time! I’m anxious and excited to use some of this information at my table, and totally WOW my players.
You can pick up your copy of Lost Omens: Gods and Magic directly from Paizo, on Amazon, or better yet, your FLGS.
If you’re in the market for more Pathfinder Second Edition content, I’ve completed a Class Concepts series for all of the base classes. You can also check out our Staying in Character series, where we build characters from pop culture, like Black Widow and the Mandalorian.
It’s an exciting time to be a Pathfinder!