Next month's Pathfinder marks more than just the launch of the Second Darkness Adventure Path, it also premieres a new addition to Pathfinder's pages with the first of our new Set Piece adventures! Eight-page adventures tied to that month's Adventure Path entry, Set Pieces present GMs with a host of options whether they're playing the ongoing Adventure Path, running their own games, or simply need an iconic location. Each Set Piece is built as an optional Adventure Path episode and includes details on how to include it in the month's adventure. For GMs craving lighter fare, though, these scenarios are flexible enough to adapt to any ongoing campaign or even serve as short, one-night adventures. There's also no telling when your game might need a familiar fantasy location—whether it be a thieves' guild, pirate ship, monster-haunted ruin, or one of countless other archetypical adventure sites—making Set Pieces useful to GMs who need a locale on the fly when their players zig when they're supposed to zag.
The first Set Piece, Tim Hitchcock's "Saint Caspieran's Salvation," presents a Riddleport thieves' den insidiously hidden beneath the guise of a rundown chapel. Forced to distinguish scheming swindlers from the truly needy, the PCs need to wade through a crowd of questionable castoffs to uncover the misdeeds rooted amid the hostel's good work.
Unfortunates of St. Caspieran's d6 Mission Encounters
1 Ukkar the Fierce: Once a raging warrior, Ukkar's legs were crushed in a cart accident and had to be amputated when they turned gangrenous. Now he sits in a small cart and pushes himself about with his calloused hands.
2 Sylee: This orphan girl stares silently with fearful eyes, desperately clutching a dirty rag doll with a missing arm.
3 Lil' Lirt: A young boy tries to slit one of the PCs' pouches or pockets with a razor and make off with whatever's inside. If caught, he bawls for mercy.
4 Jhonas: When away from Father Padrick's side, Jhonas walks the mission, talking to different parishioners and vagrants, trying to learn from their perspectives as much as offer them his blessings.
5 Pauper's Hand: These troublesome thieves are always milling about. If one spots a PC, he hurries to alert the other guild members.
6 Mika the Fallen: This poor mad fellow walks around barefoot wearing nothing but old sackcloth. He believes he's a fallen angel sent to redeem himself by offering comfort to lost souls. To those he feels suffer most, he offers true salvation—walking with them up to a high rooftop and pushing them off.
You'll meet this lot and more of Riddleport's most desperate and despicable residents in "St. Caspieran's Salvation," the first Pathfinder Set Piece adventure, coming up next month in Pathfinder #13.
