Although I like tracking my reading, I do find that sometimes it causes unexpected stress if I'm not making sufficient progress. I thought I'd do an extremely self-indulgent post for now, and talk about what's on my docket or in process, and what I'd like to add. My pdf reader is Sumatra (I'm gradually trying to de-colonize my computer from Microsoft and other invasive corporations; my next one will probably be a Linux machine) and it will hold up to ten pdfs in the recents window. It actually will hold more, but it won't show them, but I've noticed that if I remove some from the recent list and I have more than ten, then it will populate with hidden ones. In any case, I keep ten files open either because I'm reading them or because they're on the docket to read. I also have two physical game books in my backpack, and a novel.
I just finished the Second Darkness adventure path, so Legacy of Fire is next. I've already got it queued up, but I'm thinking that I want to read a bit of something else before I jump right in.
Grok's interpretation of Karzoug - I have a physical "pocket sized" (not really accurate; it's a chonky trade paperback) Pathfinder 1e core rules book, but I also bought the pdf way back when it was pretty new, so I'm gradually reading that, one chapter at a time. I thought the physical copy would be fun, but I find that it's really too small, and it was getting a little bit beat up in my backpack for whatever reason. I'm reading the paperback. I'm due to start the Combat chapter next. It's a long, long book, and not exactly super fun reading, but I think I really want to get through it, at least once. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure I only read the 3e core books once too. Except the Monster Manual, which I've read more than once. I still skim the tables and some of the mechanics, though.
- I'm also currently reading Out of the Abyss, and that's the main focus of my digital reading until it's done.
- I also started reading Bluffside, and old 3e city sourcebook (3pp) that I bought a copy of a few months ago. It's been slow going. I'm actually thinking of putting it back into hibernation and not reading it right now, honestly. It's been a harder slog than I thought, and with a lot of other stuff on my docket, I don't need to force myself to read it right now if I don't really want to, and I don't think that I do.
- I'm interspersing my adventure path module read-throughs with stand-alone module read-throughs, and I'm all set to end the 3.5 era of Pathfinder products on both at the same time. That said, there are other Pathfinder products that are 3.5 that I'm not going to finish on this same schedule. Although for the setting stuff and whatnot, it doesn't matter quite as much. Actually, it doesn't really matter that much anyway, since Pathfinder 1e was such an obvious derivative of 3.5 that unless you really look closely at the mechanics, you probably wouldn't even notice that they're not the same. I'd like to do a round-up of the modules that I've read once I finish the 3.5 ones, and talk about which ones I liked enough to consider.
- That said, I am reading a lot of the early Golarion stuff. I'm in the midst of the Pathfinder Chronicles Campaign Setting, which was kind of an unfortunate title, really, but it's a pretty good book. I had not (until rather recently) read the gazetteer, and it's clear in retrospect that this was just a fluffed out version of the gazetteer; not much new except more added details. But still. I always liked that book, and I've always liked Golarion as a setting. It's the only really D&D-like setting that I like, given that I tend to pull away from D&Disms in general. I think if you discount the map folios, I've got seven more Pathfinder Chronicles books to read before I run out the clock no 3.5. Meanwhile, on the Pathfinder Player Companion series, I've already crossed over that line. Speaking of which, I'm carrying around the Cheliax book in my backpack. I guess I probably should put it back for a little while and focus on getting caught up to the same point in the Chronicles/Setting line instead. I know, I know... there's relatively low value in hitting the 3.5 to PFRPG changeover on all four series all at more or less the same time, but then again, it's also pretty easy to do, so why not? All I have to do is put Cheliax back on the shelf until I've read a few other books first.
- I've also been very slowly reading Prisoner of the Horned Helmet for some time, the novel that I'm reading. I don't know why I've been so stuck on it. It's not a bad novel, and this is the third time (since about 1988 or 1989, to be fair) that I've read it. But for some reason, I forget to pick it up and keep reading it. It's the first of four, and I've only recently come into the last two after searching for them at a reasonable price for many, many years. I really need to just sit down for a couple of hours and power through it. It's not that big; maybe a little over 300 pages, and I'm at least halfway done already. I should have finished it weeks ago. But, again, I have so many things that I'm juggling to read that it just kind of gets short shrift, I guess.
- I'm also reading the original 3e series of modules, and I've read most of the original eight or so of the pseudo-adventure path modules that include "The Sunless Citadel" etc. These aren't super interesting to read, but I've found that at least one of them ("Speaker in Dreams") is a module that I could enjoy running.
- I have three other trawls that I haven't touched in a while, and I'd like to read one more of them before getting back into the adventure paths; the SPCM Sagas (I really enjoyed the second one; third is on the docket), and the 3e Eberron and Forgotten Realms books; Five Nations and Silver Marches respectively. None of those are short, quick reads, but when I've got this much that I want to read as part of these trawls, that's the way that it goes.
- I've also got some 4e stuff open, but I think I'm going to remove it from SumatraPDF too, because I don't have any immediate plans to read it, honestly. If I take that and Bluffside off the list that opens up two slots. Which is good, because sometimes I need to open a file just to look at something, rather than because I want to add it to my reading list; it'd be nice to have a few slots free for that.
- Finally, I started by reading a lot of my 3e books, and I've still got plenty of those. Once I get caught up on the Pathfinder 3.5 material, I think I'll pick up the next Monster Manual (III) and put that in my backpack.
There, see? Self-indulgent, and I probably won't even read this post myself, but I feel good getting it out there. I use this blog, as often as not, as a dear diary kind of thing too, and just writing this out and thinking about it real time while writing is useful.
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