Pathfinder 2nd Edition Homebrew Template

by Apostol Apostolov

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SECOND EDITION

Pathfinder 2nd Edition needs your homebrew!

This template allows you to create professional-looking homebrew documents for the Pathfinder Second Edition that will impress online communities and your players. While not a pixel-perfect carbon copy of the complex typography used by Paizo, this template attempts to faithfully reproduce every aspect of the layout, and will be regularly updated with new visual elements as they are introduced in later books.

Copyrighted Content

All artwork and visual layout elements in this template are copyrighted by Paizo Inc. and are used for demonstration purposes only. If you plan to distribute homebrew material using this template you must remove all elements that are copyrighted: page border, parchment background and the sidebar backgrounds. However, you may use this template to share homebrew with your players, as is.

Cover: "Pathfinder Roleplaying Game" by David Alvarez is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.

Fonts Used

Paizo uses multiple commercial fonts for their signature Corebook layout. I have been able to find fitting equivalents available for non-commercial use via Google Web Fonts.

The only exception is the font Taroca used in Pathfinder Corebook for book name and chapter and section titles. This font has unique design and is without alternative. It can be licensed from Monotype as Web Font. It costs $28.00 and allows you 10,000 page views per month, more than enough if you do not share the GMBinder link but instead use it only to print PDFs. To implement it, add the @import code in the template style, then change all references to Eczar font with Taroca Regular.

Get Support

This template is created and maintained by Apostol Apostolov. You can find me on Reddit, or the Grit and Glory Discord.


Changelog

V1.041 – 7th of March 2020

This is the first public release of the template. Improved HTML format of the item and creature templates. Fixed printing margins required by latest versions of the Chrome browser. Fixed sizes and templates for action icons.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Use this column to create a table of contents so readers navigate through your rulebook with a click. The page number or range of pages must be put in the SPAN and also in the hyperlink field at the end of each entry. When printed to a PDF, these links will still work.
An alternative method of maintaining Table of Contents entries is to check the raw HTML of the document for the exact naming of section tags. By using section tags instead of pages, the entries will update as your content is pushed to a new page.

Chapter Title (#)

This is a "wide" one column text, using "flavor" serif font used for lore and flavor text and "sibtitle" for displaying flavor under a chapter title. Even if you have no subtitle, this div is needed to display the fancy separator line under the chapter title.

Header 2 (##)

Use this header for subchapters, such as different types of equipment in the Equipment chapter.

Header 3 (###)

Use this header for various topics and separate rules, such as different aspects of combat.

Header 4 (####)

Use this header for feats and actions that need a separating line from the content below it.

Header 5 (#####)

Use this header for feats, actions and similar items that do not need a separating line from the content below it.

Header 6 (######)

Use this header for separating feats for specific level from those requiring lower or higher level.

Action Icons

The action icons supported are:

Instead adding image code every time you want to use icons, this template uses the GMBinder variables. They are already configured for you so all you need is use the codes 0A (free action), 1A (one action), 2A (two actions), 3A (three actions), R (reaction) and P (passive action). You can add more icons as they are introduced in Pathfinder rules using similar HTML code (and image should be hosted on Imgur).

Example Feat

Feat Title
FEAT 1

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
KEYWORD
List prerequisites such as skill proficiency here.
List requirements such as items held here.
Write the rules of the feat or action here, without including the results (such as success or failure) of the action. They use the HTML code blocks below. Do not add "Sucess" or "Failure" before the results as these words are added automatically, in bold. Markdown code can't be used in rule texts using this font.
Critical Success result is written here. As you can see the results support Pathfinder's signature indentation.
Success result is written here.
Failure result is written here.
Critical failure result is written here.

Example Action

Action Title

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
KEYWORD
You spend 10 minutes to do a specific action and one of several results may occur.
Critical Success result is written here. As you can see the results support Pathfinder's signature indentation.
Success result is written here.
Failure result is written here.
Critical failure result is written here.

Example Spell

Spell Title
SPELL 1

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
KEYWORD
arcane, divine, occult, primal
somatic, verbal
Needed for reaction spells.<
touchany number of creatures
20-foot burst
Fortitude, Reflex or Will
Add the spell effect here. You can copy result effects (r1 to r4 styles) from the above examples. Remember, you can't bold or italic using Markdown in rule fields.
The spell has improved effect.
Check the CSS for all heightened options.

Example Creature

Use Heading 2 for creature families that may contain one or several creatures with similar traits and abilities.

Creature Name

Use Heading 3 for individual creatures and their description, lore, habitat and behavior.

Creature Name
CREATURE 1

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
LE
MEDIUM
KEYWORD
+5; darkvision
common
Acrobatics +12, Diplomacy +15, Intimidating +12, Performance +17, Religion +14
+1 +2 +3 +0 -5 +2
19 (14 when broken) +3 +6 +3
48 8 bleed, death effects, disease, doomed, drained, fatigued, healing, mental, necromancy, nonlethal attacks, paralyzed, poison, sickened, unconscious cold 10 fire 5
30 feet
stone fist +19 (magical) 2d12+6 bludgeoning plus Grab
flaming coal +12 (finesse, fire, magical, range increment 80 feet) 2d6+6 bludgeoning and 2d8 fire
Arcane 23 +14 dispel magic, invisibility, resist energy ray of enfeeblement, true strike (×2); detect magic, ghost sound, mage hand, ray of frost, read aura
Ability Name Describe your ability here and set the proper action icon. You can copy paragraphs like this one in any section above to explain an innate ability or reaction of the creature.

Example Hazard

Hazard Name
Hazard 1

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
KEYWORD
+20
Describe what the hazard looks like.
Acrobatics DC 13 to approach without triggering the trap followed by Thievery DC 15 (trained) to disable it.
23 +13 +6 +3
Hazard Action Define each of the actions of the hazard.
Long description of the behavior model of a complex hazard.
Conditions that must be met for the hazard to reset.

Example Item

Item Name
ITEM 1

UNCOMMON
RARE
UNIQUE
KEYWORD
10 gp
held with 2 hands L
interact
4 16 8
Description of the item. If it is a poison, apply the block below. Remove it the item is not a poison.
DC 40 Fortitude 30 minutes 1 day 1d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes) 2d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes) 2d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes) 2d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes) 2d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes) 2d6 poison damage and enfeebled 1 (10 minutes)
lesser 1 10 gp
This item has +1 item bonus.
greater 6 160 gp
This item has +2 item bonus.
major 12 960 gp
This item has +3 item bonus.
CREATING NEW TEMPLATES

If you check the HTML code and CSS classes for each entry, you will quickly understand how to modify and create your own templates. By using predefined properties , that insert their name (in bold) using the :before property and separate with semicolon with the :after property, this saves you time when copying templates or starting new ones from scratch.

If you must have multiple properties on a single line, create a DIV container and place each property using a SPAN tag. This will ensure that each property follows the previous one, with the constraint of the DIV container.

One or several properties are placed in a single container that puts a bottom separator line between its content and the next container. These containers use the classes box and reqbox. The difference between them is that reqbox forces the Pathfinder signature identation while box doesn't. Also, if you need to force standard identation, use the tab class (see poison properties of the example item).

Tables and Sidebars

Table 1-1: One Column Table
Header 1 Header 2
1 One
2 Two
3 Three
4 Four
* This is a table footer clarification used to expand on table content.
Table 1-2: Two Column Table
Header 1 Header 2
1 One
2 Two
3 Three
4 Four
Header 1 Header 2
5 Five
6 Six
7 Seven
8 Eight
* You can expand, even if the table has multiple columns.

Sidebars

SMALL SEPIA SIDEBAR

This sidebar is usually reserved for small amount of related content, such as rule clarifications, rule examples, check examples related to different levels of skill proficiency, etc.

The contents of this sidebar is made of a title image and the rest of the text has a matching color background that extends as far as you push the content of this sidebar. Still, don't use it for one-line content as some of the background may spill out.

I still haven't figured how to add bottom padding to this sidebar so meanwhile use dual breaks < br > < br >

SAMPLE CHARACTER

CHARACTER NAME

Some fitting character flavor.
ABILITY SCORES

Write archetype's suggested ability score improvements.

SKILLS

Write archetype's suggested skill choices here.

FEATS

Write archetype's suggested feat advancements here.

AND MORE...

You can use the red column sidebar for any type of content that is longer than 1/3 of a column. Great for longer rule clarifications or optional rules, or any content that needs to draw reader attention.

MULTIPLE COLUMN SEPIA PAGEBOX
When a sidebar is not enough you can fit half a page of rules in the Pagebox format.

TABLE 2-1: CLASS SPELLS BY LEVEL

Your
Level		 Cantrips 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th
1 5 2 — — — — — — — — —
2 5 3 — — — — — — — — —
3 5 3 2 — — — — — — — —
4 5 3 3 — — — — — — — —
5 5 3 3 2 — — — — — — —
6 5 3 3 3 — — — — — — —
7 5 3 3 3 2 — — — — — —
8 5 3 3 3 3 — — — — — —
9 5 3 3 3 3 2 — — — — —
10 5 3 3 3 3 3 — — — — —
11 5 3 3 3 3 3 2 — — — —
12 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 — — — —
13 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 — — —
14 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 — — —
15 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 — —
16 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 — —
17 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 —
18 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 —
19 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 1*
20 5 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 1*
* This is a table footer clarification used to expand on table content.
MULTIPLE COLUMN RED PAGEBOX
You can use flavor text as wide content in your pageboxes.

You can have one, two, three or as many columns as you want in your pageboxes. Just set the "column-count" value to the number of columns, and use \ columnbreak to separate each column inside the div.

The multiple content pagebox is not meant for small amount of content and will break the decoration on the corners if you use it for less than 15 lines of text (in at least one of the columns, or the total text). If you have such case it is best that you use the single column sidebars, not a pagebox.

You can have one, two, three or as many columns as you want in your pageboxes. Just set the "column-count" value to the number of columns, and use \ columnbreak to separate each column inside the div.

The multiple content pagebox is not meant for small amount of content and will break the decoration on the corners if you use it for less than 15 lines of text (in at least one of the columns, or the total text). If you have such case it is best that you use the single column sidebars, not a pagebox.

You can have one, two, three or as many columns as you want in your pageboxes. Just set the "column-count" value to the number of columns, and use \ columnbreak to separate each column inside the div.

The multiple content pagebox is not meant for small amount of content and will break the decoration on the corners if you use it for less than 15 lines of text (in at least one of the columns, or the total text). If you have such case it is best that you use the single column sidebars, not a pagebox.

Wide Page Format

Pathfinder chapters, such as new classes, usually start with a wide column format with a small sidebar. Bestiary uses this format almost completely.

Some Lorem Ipsum...

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.

Your Sidebar

You can fit all kind of content in the sidebar, such as rule clarifications, optional rules, starting proficiencies for classes, tidbits of lore and anything else.







It is up to you to choose between sidebar on the right or on the left. On odd pages the content of the wide page will be shifted so that it doesn't overlap the edge of the page.

Your Sidebar

You can fit all kind of content in the sidebar, such as rule clarifications, optional rules, starting proficiencies for classes, tidbits of lore and anything else.

Some Lorem Ipsum...

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.

OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a

The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc ("Wizards"). All Rights Reserved.

  1. Definitions: (a)"Contributors" means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; (b)"Derivative Material" means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improvement, compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) "Distribute" means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell, broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; (d)"Open Game Content" means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and routines to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product Identity. (e) "Product Identity" means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; artifacts; creatures characters; stories, storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and special abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which specifically excludes the Open Game Content; (f) "Trademark" means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its products or the associated products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor (g) "Use", "Used" or "Using" means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open Game Content. (h) "You" or "Your" means the licensee in terms of this agreement.

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  11. COPYRIGHT NOTICE Open Game License v 1.0 Copyright 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.