Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Tombs of Golarion (PFRPG)

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Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Tombs of Golarion (PFRPG)
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The Call of the Crypt!

The vaults of the dead lie scattered across the Inner Sea region, waiting for the intrepid and the foolhardy alike to explore them in search of treasures and secrets lost to the ages. From labyrinthine gilded catacombs to the submerged ruins of a forgotten nation or an arcane tower hewn from crystal, these monuments to the deceased are as filled with history and riches as they are cursed with peril and despair. Those daring enough to brave these tombs’ traps and monsters will find themselves wealthy beyond measure—or entombed with the dead for all eternity!

Presented within are six complete tombs, ready to be used as flavorful side quests or the centerpieces of entire adventures. Each one comes complete with a room-by-room breakdown, new monsters and magic items, and cunning traps and haunts sure to challenge any adventurer. Within this book, you’ll find:

  • The Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker, the tomb of an ancient Nidalese horselord, now overrun by sinister fey.
  • The Clockwork Vault, a desert mausoleum constructed by a master inventor to pass his discoveries on to worthy descendants.
  • Everforge, a former dwarven temple housing a powerful holy relic, now besieged by cultists intent on stealing souls for their dark god.
  • The Golden Ossuary, the gilded bone house where some of the wealthiest adherents of the mercantile Prophecies of Kalistrade are laid to rest.
  • The Prismatic Lantern, an arcane siege engine powered by a self-contained demiplane, which holds the final resting place of the weapon’s creator.
  • The Tomb of the Necrophage, a flooded crypt in the hurricane-ravaged Sodden Lands, now home to a tribe of ruthless cannibals.
Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Tombs of Golarion is intended for use with the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can be easily adapted to any fantasy world.

Written by Scott Fernandez, Ron Lundeen, and Larry Wilhelm.
Cover Art by Maichol Quinto.

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-720-8

Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:

Hero Lab Online
Archives of Nethys

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Perfect for Drop-Ins

4/5

Tombs of Golarion presents six fully-fleshed out adventure sites featuring lost, buried, or otherwise hard to access complexes. Each of the sites gets ten pages of coverage in the book, broken down into sections like "History", "Description", a room-by-room overview, adventure hooks, and then some new gameplay elements like magic items, new monsters or NPC stat blocks, and so forth. The great part is that everything a GM needs to run an adventure is in one place (unlike some earlier books that required GMs to populate maps with monsters and treasure themselves). The book features quality interior artwork and clear (though not beautiful) maps. The inside front and back covers are capsule descriptions of the six tombs covered in the book, and I'll summarise each of them below. But before that, I have to give a shout-out to the two-page preface, written in-character from a member of the Aspis Consortium, that features brief notes of other sites of interest not covered in the book. It's really fun to see something written from the Aspis point of view instead of all that goody-goody Pathfinder Society nonsense!

CAIRN OF ATTAI HORSE-SPEAKER

This is the tomb of a Kellid chieftan named Attai Horse-Speaker who died a good ten thousand years ago! Existing now as a wight, there's a backstory involving a nereid wanting her shawl back and a lot of interesting story detail throughout, though I imagine much of it would be hard to convey to PCs. I'd peg the adventure as around CR 9 or 10, and the chapter includes a lot of good adventure hooks to start things off. New additions include a magic item called the horse-speaker's saddle (allowing communication and even the magical awakening of animals) and a new monster named an equine bone golem. Overall, it's a solid adventure site.

CLOCKWORK VAULT

This is a really cool vault that doesn't have an undead theme. Instead, it's the burial vault of a clockwork genius in Rahadoum who died hoping that someday his descendants would carry on his work--if they proved themselves worthy by solving his tests and riddles. The map is pretty neat (it carries on the clockwork theme), and the setting is original. It's probably around CR 6, and perfect for players who are into problem-solving challenges. Three new/variant monsters are introduced: Golden Defenders, Mechanical Efreeti, and a Toy Golem (awesome pic!). I could definitely see using this tomb in a campaign.

EVERFORGE

This tomb has an awesome backstory. Under a dwarven sky citadel named Kravenkus lies an ancient temple to Magrim, the dwarven god of the underworld. The temple holds an incredible artifact called Soulforge, which allows petitioners in the afterworld speedy judgment by Pharasma and a place in Magrim's afterlife. But now, the temple is infested by duergar seeking to corrupt Soulforge to serve Droskar, the evil dwarven god of mirthless toil. The tomb is, in a sheer geographic sense, *huge*. I don't know how many flip-mats it would take to draw it all, but I'd estimate at least four or five of the bigger-sized ones. I'd suggest it for PCs around Level 12 or 13; there are some nasty traps inside. It's a great dungeon that could become the centrepiece of a mid to high level campaign.

GOLDEN OSSUARY

This is an original concept for a dungeon. The Golden Ossuary is a gold-covered boneyard for wealthy Kalistocrats in Druma. An annual lottery is held, giving adventurers 24 hours to loot as much as possible from the place! It's a fun idea, though it's too small to really take 24 hours for a group to cover exhaustively. I'd say it generally presents challenges around CR 10. A new monster, an animate hoard, is introduced (I would have done it as a swarm instead), and there's a new magic item (an ossuary mask) that's pretty forgettable.

PRISMATIC LANTERN

Another original concept, the Prismatic Lantern was a magical defence tower in Nex that had a cataclysmic explosion that someone connected it to a demiplane. Magic users will have a field day uncovering all the strange phenomenon within, though other PCs may find it a bit less interesting. This is probably for characters around levels 14 or 15. A new magic item is a force casket (designed to protect a corpse for eternity), and there are a couple of new constructs: a gravitic globe and a prismatic orrery (the latter of which is functionally an artifact if the user has the matching control rod).

TOMB OF THE NECROPHAGE

Man, you do not want to get captured by the creepy cultist cannibals (and their undead minions) that reside in the Tomb of the Necrophage! This is perhaps a more traditional adventure site than some of the others, but it's really good and quite gruesome. An interesting feature is that this tomb is in the Sodden Lands, so there are some partially- and wholly- submerged chambers. It's probably for characters around levels 7 or 8. The artwork for the juju zombie brute is nightmare-inducing.

Overall, Tombs of Golarion is a great package. It's easy for a GM in need to drop one of these locations into campaign, altering some backstory and details if necessary. I haven't really used the book yet, but it's something I'll keep in my back pocket for a rainy day when the PCs go off the beaten track and I need a well-crafted adventure site in a hurry.


Why was this in the Campaign Setting line?

3/5

In the past, the Campaign Setting line has taken a look at six individual sites - be they castles, cities, or mega dungeons - that could inspire whole campaigns. These products have also expanded on the lore of the Pathfinder Campaign Setting. While Tombs of Golarion accomplishes the latter, it fails pretty terribly at the former.

My main complaint is that, although the six tombs were interesting, they felt like set pieces more suited for the Module or Pathfinder Society Scenario line. Of the six selections, only the Prismatic Lantern feels beefy enough to build a greater adventure or even campaign around. The others are too self-contained and stunted to be anything more than throw-away sidequests.

Where Tombs does succeed is fleshing out some thus-far neglected regions of Golarion. The Golden Ossuary offers us a glimpse into the wealth-obsessed Kalistocrats of Druma, the Tomb of the Necrophage is a gruesome microcosm of the cannibalistic Koboto people, and the Prismatic Lantern proves once again that we need more information on the nation of Nex.

In summary, compared to the possibilities offered by Dungeons or Castles of Golarion, Tombs was a huge disappointment. On the other hand, if you're looking for a few story-rich sidequests with some interesting opponents, you could certainly do worse than this.


A thematically diverse set of dungeons.

4/5

This book is a really a helper when you need some kind of crypt in hurry with a few maps, enemies, and puzzles thrown in. Not big enough to warrant an adventure module on their own, the tombs can easily fit in a sandbox game or an ongoing campaign. Quite like the mini adventures that used to be added to APs back when thy still were made for 3.5E.


Ugly maps - not many good monsters.

2/5

THE GOOD:
The cover and the interior pictures are great.
3 locations in Avistan are shown on the inside front cover and 3 locations in Garund are shown on the inside back cover.
The dungeons are very diverse themed (fey, clockwork creatures, cultists, cannibals, undead).
The "animated hoard" is pretty cool.

THE BAD:
The maps are so simple - i could have drawn them in 5 minutes.
Just a few little square rooms connected by a few short rectangular corridors. In the case of the clockwork vault it´s just one big round room.
The monsters are very unimaginative - most are just "variant" or "advanced" editions of the base creatures from the bestiaries that differ very little from them, others have a few class levels.

THE UGLY:
What is a really cool concept is ruined by dungeons that are so simple that a 13 year old boy i know could have designed better.

Sadly this is the first underwhelming campain setting in years and that in a month when not much else (but the excellent Melee Tactics Toolbox)came out.


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Webstore Gninja Minion

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Announced! Cover image and description are not final.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

crosses fingers for Ustalav

Yes, it's probably obvious, but crossed nonetheless :P


Thanks, liz. Has it been decided yet whether each of these will be fully mapped?


1 person marked this as a favorite.

!!!!

Liberty's Edge

Will this more or less follow the format of Dungeons of Golarion? 6 tombs, 10 pages each?

Will there be more fully statted sample levels this time? Only two in Dungeons of Golarion was a bit disappointing.

Liberty's Edge

Samy wrote:
Will there be more fully statted sample levels this time? Only two in Dungeons of Golarion was a bit disappointing.

Castles of the Inner Sea included a "level map" for each of the six locations.

I wouldn't mind devoting more space to fewer locations, but I suspect that 10 page articles is the sweet spot for their monthly publications.


Battle maps will follow suit?

Ruyan.

Liberty's Edge

spamhammer wrote:
Samy wrote:
Will there be more fully statted sample levels this time? Only two in Dungeons of Golarion was a bit disappointing.
I wouldn't mind devoting more space to fewer locations, but I suspect that 10 page articles is the sweet spot for their monthly publications.

I agree. Six places, 10 pages apiece is good. I'm not arguing for increased page count, I'm arguing for different distribution within those 10 pages.


I will be getting this one.

Dark Archive

Oooh, sweet! WANT! :)


This will definitely help with our group's Raiders of Lost Thassilon campaigns.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

You had me at "catacombs beneath a glorious cathedral."


*sigh*

*adds to wishlist*

=)


2 people marked this as a favorite.

Looking forward to this one. I enjoy the backstory in these kinds of releases.

Grand Lodge RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Looks interesting! And great to see that Scott's one of the authors!

Shadow Lodge

Dosgamer wrote:
You had me at "catacombs beneath a glorious cathedral."

Moi aussi. There is that one specific one in the heart of a big city, afterall...

Dark Archive

Getting close to release month any chance of the art being updated soon?

Dark Archive

Still no final cover and a some products have had to be delayed/moved about is this one of them?

Webstore Gninja Minion

Product image and description updated to final.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

The Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker and the Tomb of the Necrophage sound particularly interesting!


An ancient tomb infested with fey and not undead, awesome!!!

The Prismatic Lantern sounds awesome especially if the place's creator is not an undead or evil outsider.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Nice cover art, but I really would have loved to see a demi-lich rising up out of the tomb...you know...because.

;)


Looks like the campaign setting line is heading off to some of the most neglected corners of the Inner Sea: Nidal, Rahadoum (Jitska)?, Five Kings Mts?, Druma, Absalom?, Sodden Lands.

Contributor

DeciusNero wrote:
The Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker and the Tomb of the Necrophage sound particularly interesting!

I'd love to hear what you think of them!

Dark Archive

Anyone got this yet?


This is pretty awesome stuff I gotta say.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Marco Massoudi wrote:
Anyone got this yet?

Yep! :D

Dark Archive

Any good Iconic art in this one?


Pathfinder Lost Omens, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Feros wrote:
Marco Massoudi wrote:
Anyone got this yet?
Yep! :D

If you got the melee tactics pdf as well, I have a few questions for that in the product thread over there.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Kevin Mack wrote:
Any good Iconic art in this one?

In addition to the great cover we have:

(Spoilered as these are essentially six complete dungeons and even the art might give something away)

Amiri:
Amiri fighting an Equine Bone Golem in the Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker. It's a profile of the scene with her in mid leap about to bring her sword into the huge, equine shaped skeletal creature. Not bad.

Zadim:
Zadim fighting several flying clockwork automatons at the Clockwork Vault. He's balanced on a bridge made of slender metal bands and lots of air. Very dynamic and cool!

Harsk:
Harsk charging a duergar mounted on a green gigantic spider in Everforge. We're off to his right an lower looking towards the duergar he is charging who is also moving quickly into battle.

Seoni:
Seoni blasting a calikang in the Golden Ossuary. She's crouching and holding out her hand while the six armed thing looks as though it's about to either grab her or split he in two.

Sajan:
Sajan dodging a green/yellow energy beam from the Prismatic Orrery in the Prismatic Lantern. Pretty straight forward image, but being attacked by an orrery is definitely different.

and

Seelah:
Seelah is fighting waist deep in foul water against gruesome looking mudlords (they may be juju zombie brutes, but mudlord fits the overall image and location better) in the Tomb of the Necrophage. There is light coming through from a grated portal behind her and the mudlords have an almost undead appearance (hence my hedging to the juju zombies) to them that is really creepy.


So what are the creatures found in the fey infested Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker?


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Dragon78 wrote:
So what are the creatures found in the fey infested Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker?

Creatures in the Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker:

advanced deathtrap ooze
equine bone golem
witchfire
kelpies
nereid
nuckelavee rogue
wight barbarian


A wight barbarian. That's definitely different. What's the difficulty of the tombs in general?


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Major_Blackhart wrote:
A wight barbarian. That's definitely different. What's the difficulty of the tombs in general?

There is no specific CR given for each dungeon, but this is what I would consider challenging:

Cairn of Attai Horse-Speaker—CR 9 approx.
Clockwork Vault—CR 5 approx.
Everforge—CR 10 approx.
Golden Ossuary—CR 9 approx.
Prismatic Lantern—CR 12 approx.
Tomb of the Necrophage—CR 5 approx.


Ahh ok. I wonder how inspired this stuff was by reactions from that Medusa Tomb adventure in Taldor.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Major_Blackhart wrote:
Ahh ok. I wonder how inspired this stuff was by reactions from that Medusa Tomb adventure in Taldor.

I ran my group through Tomb of the Iron Medusa as part of the campaign we were in right before our current one. It was fantastic! Great story and some deep role-playing opportunities were available.

None of these tombs feel like that one; they seem more built around the classic concept of a tomb dungeon than anything else. They have always been a popular trope of the game, so I doubt the response to Iron Tomb was responsible for this book.

I will say the response to Iron Tomb definitely wouldn't have hurt! :)

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16

Are the tombs mapped? I might pick this up just for the giant siege engine tomb. That sounds like something my players will love.

Webstore Gninja Minion

Cyrad wrote:
Are the tombs mapped?

Yes.


Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Cyrad wrote:
Are the tombs mapped? I might pick this up just for the giant siege engine tomb. That sounds like something my players will love.

Each tomb is a complete small dungeon with map, encounters, the works.

Liberty's Edge

Just checking, do you mean like, each dungeon has rooms like N1-N8 and each room has a description, monsters and treasure listed?


It certainly does.... It's six flavourful, mapped, described and fully fleshed out tombs - complete with suggested plot hooks - add to that some well developed NPC protagonists and new creatures - I'm already planning on how I might insert some of these into my ongoing campaigns... And if I don't do that, I'm definitely going to run a series of Aspis Consortium funded tomb raids!!!


Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber
Samy wrote:
Just checking, do you mean like, each dungeon has rooms like N1-N8 and each room has a description, monsters and treasure listed?

The format is a little different to a module or adventure path, but there are room numbers, descriptions, monsters and traps. There's not much treasure listed, though, other than a few specific items for flavour. I guess they leave the mundane treasure up to the GMs.

Liberty's Edge

This sounds awesome. A bunch of ready-to-use mini-dungeons are perfect for me. I was way disappointed with Dungeons of Golarion only having two fully statted dungeons, so this sounds much better in comparison.

The lack of treasure is even good for me, since I like to tailor to my PCs.


Sold....

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 16

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Liz Courts wrote:
Cyrad wrote:
Are the tombs mapped?
Yes.

Did you just cast animate objects? Because money is flying out my wallet.

Webstore Gninja Minion

6 people marked this as a favorite.
Cyrad wrote:
Liz Courts wrote:
Cyrad wrote:
Are the tombs mapped?
Yes.
Did you just cast animate objects? Because money is flying out my wallet.

I have death attack (wallet) and favored enemy (gaming budget) as class abilities.


1 person marked this as a favorite.

The description of Anuriel Malaseer on page 42 lists "Advanced Bestiary 199" as a reference. What product is this, and is that where the 'platinum-clad' type comes from?


The Advanced Bestiary is a 3rd party product that was updated to pathfinder by Green Ronin Publishing. It's actually a book of 100+ templates.

Liberty's Edge

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Dragon78 wrote:
The Advanced Bestiary is a 3rd party product that was updated to pathfinder by Green Ronin Publishing. It's actually a book of solid gold, 100% FDA approved pure awesomeness.

FTFY.


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber

Really cool and evocative stuff. Kudos!

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