Not sure I understand the dislike for this scenario. I played it Tier 1-2 with seven AND a sub-optimal mix of classes (rogue, ninja, wizard/monk, summoner, oracle, and two gunslingers), but all the people playing had a great time. Our GM had run it before, and he did an outstanding job bringing it to life, managing the group, and making up for whatever lacks some might think the scenario has.
Not only did a fine GM redeem this, but so did something else: actual roleplaying and teamwork. Have we forgotten what that's like? Sometimes, I think we have. We played as a team, thought out situations, and pulled off some really cool play with a bunch of low-level characters. We played the whole thing in three hours and everyone went home happy.
In short, I've been playing PFS for more than two years now (my son and I do this as a father/son activity) and this was one of the more memorable scenarios I've played because all the pieces of a good PFS session fell into place.
Maybe with different folks playing and a less adept GM this scenario would be so much dog doo. But it wasn't. Perhaps that's the magic of RPGs in the hands of creative players intent on having a good time.
Season 4 for is proving challenging--not for PCs but for the clock. PFS nights at our FLGS allow for 4-4.5 hours. All three of the Season 4 scenarios I have played felt like 6-hour scenarios. Squeezing them into 4 hours is diminishing the experience greatly.
The Sanos Abduction suffered for this. Our first encounter took forever to resolve, and most of the party was playing down. While GMs most often bear the blame for not hustling an encounter along, I can't say that is entirely the case this time. In fact, I have found that all three of the Season 4 scenarios I've played (4-01, 4-03, and 4-05) have had a drawn-out first encounter, and with three different GMs.
The problem here is that a long first encounter doesn't leave time for anything that follows. The GM starts rushing, all that wonderful flavor the designers built in gets glossed over, optional encounters get dropped, and toward the end, it's like a sprint to get done. That final battle and what leads up to it can't be savored. The result is a scenario that had a lot of wonderful elements that got skipped or rushed through. And that leads to a sub-optimal experience.
I think The Sanos Abduction had some fine flavor to it. Good to be outside, mostly, especially for the druid character I play. Nice to see the fey in play, even if they were more as potential flavor than as actual NPCs. Seeing unusual monsters is always best, and the racial mix of NPCs was good. I thought the scenario had creative touches that made it memorable.
But the time issue is a growing problem, literally. I hope future PFS scenarios will offer a little more flexibility in their formula so that a four-hour scenario can truly be played to the hilt in four hours.
One word describes this first Season 4 scenario: Perfunctory.
Standard monsters, standard dungeon, standard everything--well, except for the odd, disconnected faction missions that felt like indigestible bits in this bland stew.
Our six PC party (Tier 1-2 ninja, gunslinger, summoner, wizard, sorcerer, bard) waltzed through this in just under four hours. Nothing stood out, even when the GM gave it his all. You've got to have something to work with, and this scenario just exists.
After some strong momentum coming out of Season 3, this was disappointing. Thankfully, 4-03: The Golemworks Incident is one of the best scenarios I've play in two years of Society play, so there is hope for the season still. You just won't think that after the dullness of 4-01.
This is the perfect example of a scenario that tried for differentness and succeeded. Clever gameplay, settings, foes, and more. A bit overlong in the new Season 4 vein, but has a science-fiction feel toward the end that is worth it. Our crew (weather druid, draconic sorcerer, cleric, fighter, and two barbarians) suffered a bit in the first battle, but thanks to optimal play and genuine teamwork learned from that debacle, we dispatched the BBEG and his minions easily.
Poor party composition might hurt you (a healing cleric is a must have), and failing to sleep will doom you (you'll need all your spells at max availability time and again), so play smart. And more so than most scenarios, this needs a prepared GM.
We had a blast with The Golemworks Incident, and it is definitely one of the best PFS scenarios my son and I have played.
Our party of four (L5 Barbarian/Ranger, L5 Druid, L5 Sorcerer, L4 Bard) waltzed through this one. One four-on-four battle was over in one round. The final boss battle was over in two rounds and our party took no damage. Seriously underpowered bad guys for the higher tier. If the rest of the scenario were truly interesting with some well-conceived "glitter," it wouldn't have been so bad, but there was nothing new here to counter the fluff bad guys. Cannot recommend.
