paizo.com Recent Reviews of Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)paizo.com Recent Reviews of Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)2024-01-19T21:58:15Z2024-01-19T21:58:15ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6) (5 stars)detdenverhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2024-02-06T05:09:51Z...detdenver2024-02-06T05:09:51ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): A serviceable start (3 stars)Leon Aquillahttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2021-09-28T18:02:50Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>There's been a lot of words written about the Dead Suns AP as a whole. I don't want to rehash what other people have written, but here are my thoughts: </p>
<p>1. <b>Requires buy-in from the players, no players guide</b> - As it starts out almost as abruptly as Abomination Vaults for PF2. You're here to meet a dwarf about joining the SF Society, he gets murked, you get drawn into a conspiracy. If the players are disinterested, then no amount of begging by the Shirren SF Society contact is going to make them care. </p>
<p>2. <b>Red Herrings</b> - There's several red herrings floating around involving corporate bureaucratic infighting between a mining guild and a corporation over who gets to claim the Drift Rock that's never really elaborated upon and is honestly just a time-waster as there's no payoff for the group at all. I think it's better to excise this part entirely. </p>
<p>3. <b>Another Red Herring</b> - There's a character that you meet who basically disappears and is never mentioned again, except that your choice to complete the job or not complete the job may affect whether you get somebody's away message in the third AP. Was kind of disappointed. </p>
<p>4. <b>The Ship Is A Deathtrap</b> - Part 2 takes place on a derelict. Really cool, really spooky, except the players are marooned on this ship with no choice but to go forward. Good to chase the players up a tree, bad in that they probably were not prepared for this. My suggestion? Have an unethical space goblin/Wytchwyrd merchant dock with the derelict and offer medical services or consumables to the group. They will need them, if most peoples accounts of playing this AP are to be believed.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>There's been a lot of words written about the Dead Suns AP as a whole. I don't want to rehash what other people have written, but here are my thoughts: </p>
<p>1. <b>Requires buy-in from the players, no players guide</b> - As it starts out almost as abruptly as Abomination Vaults for PF2. You're here to meet a dwarf about joining the SF Society, he gets murked, you get drawn into a conspiracy. If the players are disinterested, then no amount of begging by the Shirren SF Society contact is going to make them care. </p>
<p>2. <b>Red Herrings</b> - There's several red herrings floating around involving corporate bureaucratic infighting between a mining guild and a corporation over who gets to claim the Drift Rock that's never really elaborated upon and is honestly just a time-waster as there's no payoff for the group at all. I think it's better to excise this part entirely. </p>
<p>3. <b>Another Red Herring</b> - There's a character that you meet who basically disappears and is never mentioned again, except that your choice to complete the job or not complete the job may affect whether you get somebody's away message in the third AP. Was kind of disappointed. </p>
<p>4. <b>The Ship Is A Deathtrap</b> - Part 2 takes place on a derelict. Really cool, really spooky, except the players are marooned on this ship with no choice but to go forward. Good to chase the players up a tree, bad in that they probably were not prepared for this. My suggestion? Have an unethical space goblin/Wytchwyrd merchant dock with the derelict and offer medical services or consumables to the group. They will need them, if most peoples accounts of playing this AP are to be believed.</p>Leon Aquilla2021-09-28T18:02:50ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Disappointing (2 stars)Jhaemanhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2021-02-11T13:22:36Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>NO SPOILERS</p>
<p>Ok, here we go! The first adventure path for Starfinder, <i>Dead Suns</i>. I got to play it in a campaign that took a couple of years of biweekly sessions. My starting PC was a hyper-caffienated energy drink loving barathu envoy, B'rll'blub. He was great fun to play, but proved startlingly ineffective in combat and died later in the campaign—but it was through his eyes I first experienced what I'm reviewing today, Chapter 1: <b><i>Incident at Absalom Station</b></i>. In the flagged section below, I discuss the adventure in detail. My general thoughts might be summed up as: it's okay, but nothing spectacular, and with some encounters that aren't really fair to the PCs. Here in the "No Spoilers" section, however, I'm going to discuss everything in volume one that's not part of the adventure—the front and back matter.</p>
<p>[Cut for space: my hatred of the cover, and my description of the inside front and back covers and the author's foreword.]</p>
<p>The first piece of proper back matter is a twelve-page gazetteer of Absalom Station, the center for humanity in the Pact Worlds solar system (the main campaign setting for Starfinder). An interesting history is provided for the station, and I like how it cleverly integrates some concepts from Pathfinder (like the Starstone, some neighborhood names) while making it its own thing. Absalom Station is perhaps the most important location in the setting, as it holds the headquarters for the Pact Worlds government, the Starfinder Society, the Stalwarts (intergalactic peacekeepers), and more. It also serves as a natural starting location for adventures, and a probable home for PCs since it's a pretty multicultural place—a bit like Babylon 5. Although much of this information is probably replicated in the <i>Pact Worlds</i> hardcover, the gazetteer does a good job describing the different areas of the station and leaves a lot of room for GMs to customise as necessary for the adventure they want to tell. There are some "feel and flavour" elements that I think are missing—how do people get around (elevators? trams? vehicles?); what's it like for newcomers when they arrive (visas? security inspections? customs taxes?); and what laws are in place regarding weapons (frowned upon? side-arms only? everyone's got a rocket launcher?). This last issue in particular has proven problematic for a lot of gamers as it goes to varying real-world conceptions of what's normal for urban communities. As a complete aside, I can't help but note that the artwork of the dude on page 43 is •clearly• an intentional likeness of Jon Bernthal from Netflix's <i>The Punisher</i>!</p>
<p>Next up is "Relics of Golarion", a four-page-long collection of new magical items that have historical links to the now-missing planet. The writer clearly knew their Pathfinder lore, as there's a rich evocation of setting elements in the backstory to each item. In terms of actual usefulness, many of the items are too expensive or too high-level to be useful for most PCs, but I liked the falcon boots (allowing a PC to make a sort of personal gravity field so they can walk on walls or ceilings, even in Zero-G) and the (perhaps overpowered) chained weapon fusion which gives any melee weapon the reach property! I liked the section, though as a timing matter I think it was probably too soon and the space should have been devoted to making Starfinder more its own thing instead of tying it so closely to Pathfinder. New readers can be turned off if they feel they can't get the full story without playing an entirely different game.</p>
<p>A bestiary-style "Alien Archives" introduces 7 new creatures, with each receiving a page. The line-up is: akatas, bone troopers, driftdead, garaggakal, rauzhant, vracinea, and void zombies. The artwork is really strong here, though I don't see much in the way of creative ideas here (and a couple of just updates of Pathfinder monsters). Five of the seven appear in the adventure proper, which is a nice way to save word count there.</p>
<p>Finally, there's the "Codex of Worlds", a one-page description of a planet ripe for adventure that's located somewhere outside of the Pact Worlds system. This issue's entry is "Heicoron IV", an ocean planet with rival civilizations. Although they share a common ancestry, one has adopted to living on floating cities while the other has made the depths their home. There's a "first/early contact" situation for explorers. A classic SF concept that could have appeared (budget-willing) on Star Trek. It's not easy to design a world in one-page, but I liked what I saw with Heicoron IV.</p>
<p>The pattern established in this first issue of the AP persists in subsequent issues, with each including a setting element, a bestiary section, some player-facing character options, and a one-page new world. It's worth noting these volumes are also much shorter (just 64 pages each) compared to first edition Pathfinder APs, making them less of a value for the budget-conscious.</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>NO SPOILERS</p>
<p>Ok, here we go! The first adventure path for Starfinder, <i>Dead Suns</i>. I got to play it in a campaign that took a couple of years of biweekly sessions. My starting PC was a hyper-caffienated energy drink loving barathu envoy, B'rll'blub. He was great fun to play, but proved startlingly ineffective in combat and died later in the campaign—but it was through his eyes I first experienced what I'm reviewing today, Chapter 1: <b><i>Incident at Absalom Station</b></i>. In the flagged section below, I discuss the adventure in detail. My general thoughts might be summed up as: it's okay, but nothing spectacular, and with some encounters that aren't really fair to the PCs. Here in the "No Spoilers" section, however, I'm going to discuss everything in volume one that's not part of the adventure—the front and back matter.</p>
<p>[Cut for space: my hatred of the cover, and my description of the inside front and back covers and the author's foreword.]</p>
<p>The first piece of proper back matter is a twelve-page gazetteer of Absalom Station, the center for humanity in the Pact Worlds solar system (the main campaign setting for Starfinder). An interesting history is provided for the station, and I like how it cleverly integrates some concepts from Pathfinder (like the Starstone, some neighborhood names) while making it its own thing. Absalom Station is perhaps the most important location in the setting, as it holds the headquarters for the Pact Worlds government, the Starfinder Society, the Stalwarts (intergalactic peacekeepers), and more. It also serves as a natural starting location for adventures, and a probable home for PCs since it's a pretty multicultural place—a bit like Babylon 5. Although much of this information is probably replicated in the <i>Pact Worlds</i> hardcover, the gazetteer does a good job describing the different areas of the station and leaves a lot of room for GMs to customise as necessary for the adventure they want to tell. There are some "feel and flavour" elements that I think are missing—how do people get around (elevators? trams? vehicles?); what's it like for newcomers when they arrive (visas? security inspections? customs taxes?); and what laws are in place regarding weapons (frowned upon? side-arms only? everyone's got a rocket launcher?). This last issue in particular has proven problematic for a lot of gamers as it goes to varying real-world conceptions of what's normal for urban communities. As a complete aside, I can't help but note that the artwork of the dude on page 43 is •clearly• an intentional likeness of Jon Bernthal from Netflix's <i>The Punisher</i>!</p>
<p>Next up is "Relics of Golarion", a four-page-long collection of new magical items that have historical links to the now-missing planet. The writer clearly knew their Pathfinder lore, as there's a rich evocation of setting elements in the backstory to each item. In terms of actual usefulness, many of the items are too expensive or too high-level to be useful for most PCs, but I liked the falcon boots (allowing a PC to make a sort of personal gravity field so they can walk on walls or ceilings, even in Zero-G) and the (perhaps overpowered) chained weapon fusion which gives any melee weapon the reach property! I liked the section, though as a timing matter I think it was probably too soon and the space should have been devoted to making Starfinder more its own thing instead of tying it so closely to Pathfinder. New readers can be turned off if they feel they can't get the full story without playing an entirely different game.</p>
<p>A bestiary-style "Alien Archives" introduces 7 new creatures, with each receiving a page. The line-up is: akatas, bone troopers, driftdead, garaggakal, rauzhant, vracinea, and void zombies. The artwork is really strong here, though I don't see much in the way of creative ideas here (and a couple of just updates of Pathfinder monsters). Five of the seven appear in the adventure proper, which is a nice way to save word count there.</p>
<p>Finally, there's the "Codex of Worlds", a one-page description of a planet ripe for adventure that's located somewhere outside of the Pact Worlds system. This issue's entry is "Heicoron IV", an ocean planet with rival civilizations. Although they share a common ancestry, one has adopted to living on floating cities while the other has made the depths their home. There's a "first/early contact" situation for explorers. A classic SF concept that could have appeared (budget-willing) on Star Trek. It's not easy to design a world in one-page, but I liked what I saw with Heicoron IV.</p>
<p>The pattern established in this first issue of the AP persists in subsequent issues, with each including a setting element, a bestiary section, some player-facing character options, and a one-page new world. It's worth noting these volumes are also much shorter (just 64 pages each) compared to first edition Pathfinder APs, making them less of a value for the budget-conscious.</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>Jhaeman2021-02-11T13:22:36ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Good starting adventure, but not that good intro (3 stars)CorvusMaskhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2021-02-01T10:06:06Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>So I'm having bit of problem with these reviews because I'm doing them while running the final book, so by now players' reactions and such isn't super fresh in my mind :p But at least my impressions have had time to age.</p>
<p>The adventures premise of "your contact got killed that ropes you into plot between two factions competing for same thing" and gags involved in it IS interesting.... But have no relevance to rest of the plot at all, so it all feels kind of... Irrelevant? </p>
<p>If Dead Suns is structured like a scifi action adventure movie, this book is essentially pre credit roll intro thing. Like Indiana Jones stea- err finding that golden idol and having it stolen by his evil counterpart. Except instead of lasting 5-10 minutes, it lasts for one sixth of the story.</p>
<p>(that said, actual adventure is fun, I like use of akata and stuff in the drift rock in itself, but its weak overall plotwise when you look at the ap as whole. It does have interesting stuff like potential enemy you can turn to friend and I do like idea of drift rock's discovery setting you up on grand journey. Though this book has several moments of straight up railroading that feels unnecessary or like if it could have been written around differently)</p>
<p>P.S. Gevalarsk Nor is the best npc of this ap. I do find it bit of mixed bag in how its kept secret for gm what his subplot is actually about, but I do like it you can reasonable figure it out by paying close attention through entire ap.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>So I'm having bit of problem with these reviews because I'm doing them while running the final book, so by now players' reactions and such isn't super fresh in my mind :p But at least my impressions have had time to age.</p>
<p>The adventures premise of "your contact got killed that ropes you into plot between two factions competing for same thing" and gags involved in it IS interesting.... But have no relevance to rest of the plot at all, so it all feels kind of... Irrelevant? </p>
<p>If Dead Suns is structured like a scifi action adventure movie, this book is essentially pre credit roll intro thing. Like Indiana Jones stea- err finding that golden idol and having it stolen by his evil counterpart. Except instead of lasting 5-10 minutes, it lasts for one sixth of the story.</p>
<p>(that said, actual adventure is fun, I like use of akata and stuff in the drift rock in itself, but its weak overall plotwise when you look at the ap as whole. It does have interesting stuff like potential enemy you can turn to friend and I do like idea of drift rock's discovery setting you up on grand journey. Though this book has several moments of straight up railroading that feels unnecessary or like if it could have been written around differently)</p>
<p>P.S. Gevalarsk Nor is the best npc of this ap. I do find it bit of mixed bag in how its kept secret for gm what his subplot is actually about, but I do like it you can reasonable figure it out by paying close attention through entire ap.</p>CorvusMask2021-02-01T10:06:06ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): I expected so much more from Paizo then this... (2 stars)Richard Redmanehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2020-10-11T23:48:53Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>While I generally do not play published adventures, Incident at Absalom Station is exactly WHY I don't play published adventures.</p>
<p>Without spoiling too much of the plot, IaAS is a railroady, contrived adventure that tries to be a murder-mystery but was written by someone who clearly had no idea how to write a murder-mystery.</p>
<p>The book kicks off with the players being newly recruited Starfinder Society members that arrive only to see their Society contact get gunned down in front of them. What follows is a paint-by-numbers story of corporate intrigue that drags on for much longer then it needs to be. Five minutes of dice rolling and roleplaying, and most intelligent players will have found both the main suspect and the motive. But because the writing is contrived, the party still has to trudge through largely pointless filler and no, you cannot call on the Starfinder Society to help speed things up (remind me why we joined these guys again?)</p>
<p>After the initial mystery resolves itself with an unsatisfying bit of Deus Ex Machina, we get to the second half of the adventure, a fairly standard dungeon crawl. Other then the fact that the encounters as written are not balanced for a standard party of four level two adventurers, this actually isn't all that bad. And yes, there is errata available that makes the dungeon encounters more manageable. That one was on us.</p>
<p>I will not elaborate on the ending other then it is fittingly unsatisfying for an adventure that had little player agency and was horribly contrived almost from the get-go. For a company that had been writing adventures for 14 years before Dead Suns dropped, Paizo's first outing into the Pact Worlds should have been better then this.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>While I generally do not play published adventures, Incident at Absalom Station is exactly WHY I don't play published adventures.</p>
<p>Without spoiling too much of the plot, IaAS is a railroady, contrived adventure that tries to be a murder-mystery but was written by someone who clearly had no idea how to write a murder-mystery.</p>
<p>The book kicks off with the players being newly recruited Starfinder Society members that arrive only to see their Society contact get gunned down in front of them. What follows is a paint-by-numbers story of corporate intrigue that drags on for much longer then it needs to be. Five minutes of dice rolling and roleplaying, and most intelligent players will have found both the main suspect and the motive. But because the writing is contrived, the party still has to trudge through largely pointless filler and no, you cannot call on the Starfinder Society to help speed things up (remind me why we joined these guys again?)</p>
<p>After the initial mystery resolves itself with an unsatisfying bit of Deus Ex Machina, we get to the second half of the adventure, a fairly standard dungeon crawl. Other then the fact that the encounters as written are not balanced for a standard party of four level two adventurers, this actually isn't all that bad. And yes, there is errata available that makes the dungeon encounters more manageable. That one was on us.</p>
<p>I will not elaborate on the ending other then it is fittingly unsatisfying for an adventure that had little player agency and was horribly contrived almost from the get-go. For a company that had been writing adventures for 14 years before Dead Suns dropped, Paizo's first outing into the Pact Worlds should have been better then this.</p>Richard Redmane2020-10-11T23:48:53ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Amazing adventure for starting a campaign (5 stars)Tazerahttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2019-10-27T00:10:19Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>My party and I really loved this module, so far, the best in all the campaign!</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>My party and I really loved this module, so far, the best in all the campaign!</p>Tazera2019-10-27T00:10:19ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Decent but generic (3 stars)Carla the Profanehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2019-07-24T21:45:18Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p>Carla the Profane2019-07-24T21:45:18ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Ring Side Report- RPG Review of Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalo (4 stars)fine_young_misanthropehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2019-02-25T16:56:25Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Originally posted at <a href="http://www.throatpunchgames.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Throat Punch Games</a>, a new idea everyday! </p>
<p><b>Product</b>- Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)
<br />
<b>System</b>- Starfinder
<br />
<b>Producer</b>-Paizo
<br />
<b>Price</b>- $23.00
<br />
<b>TL; DR</b>-Not the brightest star, but a decent start. 83%</p>
<p><b>Basics</b>- ARE YOU READY FOR ADVENTURE!? Incident at Absalom Station kicks off the first Starfinder adventure path. Players step off the ship and into gangland warfare as their contact is gun downed within seconds of seeing him. Why? What dark secrets are at play? Who is involved? Also, this book contains a gazatier on Absolom station, several new monsters, and a whole new world for your players to play in.</p>
<p><b>Mechanics or Crunch</b>-Ah the intro adventure! What can a level 1 nothing do on their first day? Not much, but LOTS OF SKILL CHECKS! Paizo has a history in their adventure paths of having players do lots of checks to get past those first few levels. This adventure is no different. It’s not bad, but once you get past the first fight, its checks. And, if your party doesn’t have the right checks, then its a slog. Past that its balanced and fun. After the checks, there are some simple space fights to get those mechanics out there, an exploration with some progressive fights to get those mechanics out there, and then we’re off to the next adventure book. Overall it’s balanced, but the standard paint by numbers of a new RPG needs to really get players into the system and teach them the rules can be a bit boring. 4.25/5</p>
<p><b>Theme or Fluff</b>-Repeat after me-PLAYERS HATE FIGHTS WHERE THE ENEMIES SHOULD RUN AWAY. I’m not talking big bads, I’m talking regular grunts above the player’s level. Players want to KILL! This adventure starts with gang war above the players pay grade, and the players want everyone dead. It’s not supposed to happen, but my players are always EVIL, SPITE-FILLED MONSTERS who must kill EVERYONE! If that describes your players, then as written, they will be mad. For check section I mentioned above, the players need to talk to people, and if your party decides Charisma is for suckers, then that is a SUPER slog as my Cha 10 fighter attempts to talk to people as the -1 to -2 modifier other players hope for 20s to even get the middle of the ground information. Past that first fitful start, it’s a fun adventure as players can find the roles they need and better understand what they should do next. This adventure runs like a train-slow, clunky start but then smooth sailing the rest of the way. 4/5</p>
<p><b>Execution</b>-PDF? Check! Hyperlinked? NOPE! Why not hyperlink this book? It’s 60+ pages! Next, Starfinder isn’t going to get the 64 page world building books that went with the Pathfinder line. That’s ok, but now my players don’t get as much world building as before as unless I print of sections and hand those out, they players either can read the book or spoil the adventure. The items are nice, the monsters are interesting and have great pictures, and the layout is well done. But, no new races! Part of the fun of Starfinder is if you want to be an intelligent mist, then we got stats for that baby! But, I’m not seeing that here. Throw me a new playable race each mod! There are a few other issues as some things just don’t fit well. The water world of Heicoron IV is ok, but there are no mentions of how I can play either of the races that live there. It feels thrown in. It’s not bad, but reference your other books or give me stats, so I can have a whole adventures with the fish people. This is a good but, but it has some flaws that do knock it down a bit 4.25/5</p>
<p><b>Summary</b>-I’m ready for more, but I have some notes. Overall, I like what’s here. It’s done well, readable, and a good introduction to the mechanics of the system. The story itself has a few issues, but those issues are part of every adventure path’s start. I have more notes on the new execution of the Starfinder line. I want separate books and changes to how they are produced. New races, new tech in the books, and some focus will help improve this line. Will I get that? Most likely not. But, as a GM running a game, I think this is a good way to get your players rolling dice and understanding how to play Starfinder 83%</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Originally posted at <a href="http://www.throatpunchgames.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Throat Punch Games</a>, a new idea everyday! </p>
<p><b>Product</b>- Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)
<br />
<b>System</b>- Starfinder
<br />
<b>Producer</b>-Paizo
<br />
<b>Price</b>- $23.00
<br />
<b>TL; DR</b>-Not the brightest star, but a decent start. 83%</p>
<p><b>Basics</b>- ARE YOU READY FOR ADVENTURE!? Incident at Absalom Station kicks off the first Starfinder adventure path. Players step off the ship and into gangland warfare as their contact is gun downed within seconds of seeing him. Why? What dark secrets are at play? Who is involved? Also, this book contains a gazatier on Absolom station, several new monsters, and a whole new world for your players to play in.</p>
<p><b>Mechanics or Crunch</b>-Ah the intro adventure! What can a level 1 nothing do on their first day? Not much, but LOTS OF SKILL CHECKS! Paizo has a history in their adventure paths of having players do lots of checks to get past those first few levels. This adventure is no different. It’s not bad, but once you get past the first fight, its checks. And, if your party doesn’t have the right checks, then its a slog. Past that its balanced and fun. After the checks, there are some simple space fights to get those mechanics out there, an exploration with some progressive fights to get those mechanics out there, and then we’re off to the next adventure book. Overall it’s balanced, but the standard paint by numbers of a new RPG needs to really get players into the system and teach them the rules can be a bit boring. 4.25/5</p>
<p><b>Theme or Fluff</b>-Repeat after me-PLAYERS HATE FIGHTS WHERE THE ENEMIES SHOULD RUN AWAY. I’m not talking big bads, I’m talking regular grunts above the player’s level. Players want to KILL! This adventure starts with gang war above the players pay grade, and the players want everyone dead. It’s not supposed to happen, but my players are always EVIL, SPITE-FILLED MONSTERS who must kill EVERYONE! If that describes your players, then as written, they will be mad. For check section I mentioned above, the players need to talk to people, and if your party decides Charisma is for suckers, then that is a SUPER slog as my Cha 10 fighter attempts to talk to people as the -1 to -2 modifier other players hope for 20s to even get the middle of the ground information. Past that first fitful start, it’s a fun adventure as players can find the roles they need and better understand what they should do next. This adventure runs like a train-slow, clunky start but then smooth sailing the rest of the way. 4/5</p>
<p><b>Execution</b>-PDF? Check! Hyperlinked? NOPE! Why not hyperlink this book? It’s 60+ pages! Next, Starfinder isn’t going to get the 64 page world building books that went with the Pathfinder line. That’s ok, but now my players don’t get as much world building as before as unless I print of sections and hand those out, they players either can read the book or spoil the adventure. The items are nice, the monsters are interesting and have great pictures, and the layout is well done. But, no new races! Part of the fun of Starfinder is if you want to be an intelligent mist, then we got stats for that baby! But, I’m not seeing that here. Throw me a new playable race each mod! There are a few other issues as some things just don’t fit well. The water world of Heicoron IV is ok, but there are no mentions of how I can play either of the races that live there. It feels thrown in. It’s not bad, but reference your other books or give me stats, so I can have a whole adventures with the fish people. This is a good but, but it has some flaws that do knock it down a bit 4.25/5</p>
<p><b>Summary</b>-I’m ready for more, but I have some notes. Overall, I like what’s here. It’s done well, readable, and a good introduction to the mechanics of the system. The story itself has a few issues, but those issues are part of every adventure path’s start. I have more notes on the new execution of the Starfinder line. I want separate books and changes to how they are produced. New races, new tech in the books, and some focus will help improve this line. Will I get that? Most likely not. But, as a GM running a game, I think this is a good way to get your players rolling dice and understanding how to play Starfinder 83%</p>fine_young_misanthrope2019-02-25T16:56:25ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Good adventure ... if everyone doesn't die (3 stars)ComicViolencehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-12-13T18:43:02Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>There is a lot of good content in this adventure, but some major issues. It does a good job of introducing the setting and gives you a chance to uses some of the unique starfinder rules. The major down side is that there is one fight that is so incredibly hard that it almost guaranteed to kill a PC, if not all of them. Additionally, there is some major rail-roading (see spoiler for details). [Spoiler omitted]</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>There is a lot of good content in this adventure, but some major issues. It does a good job of introducing the setting and gives you a chance to uses some of the unique starfinder rules. The major down side is that there is one fight that is so incredibly hard that it almost guaranteed to kill a PC, if not all of them. Additionally, there is some major rail-roading (see spoiler for details). [Spoiler omitted]</p>ComicViolence2018-12-13T18:43:02ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Classically glamorous + mechanically ambitious = good fun! (5 stars)LotsOfLorehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-10-01T15:15:28Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>This is a classic sci-fi adventure, with a modern twist towards the end, and perfectly crafted. We just started it and I am enjoying preparing it thoroughly as a GM. My players are loving it, will wait to hear their final impressions on it.
<br />
Starfinder is looking daaaam good.</p>
<p>P.s.: I've seen a number of low ratings... I don't understand most of them, they seem to have very weird unmet expectations.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>This is a classic sci-fi adventure, with a modern twist towards the end, and perfectly crafted. We just started it and I am enjoying preparing it thoroughly as a GM. My players are loving it, will wait to hear their final impressions on it.
<br />
Starfinder is looking daaaam good.</p>
<p>P.s.: I've seen a number of low ratings... I don't understand most of them, they seem to have very weird unmet expectations.</p>LotsOfLore2018-10-01T15:15:28ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Fine but hope it gets better (3 stars)FlorianFhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-08-18T19:37:32Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Nice adventure, if you set aside the fact that level 1 PCs are recruted for this crucial task.</p>
<p>The end is the weak part. It's a space dungeon. Fine with that. But it's horribly designed, as if casting aside decades of dungeon design. The rooms are barren, minuscule (go fit a sniper in a 25' room!), and often bypassable. Also, it's just fight after fight with no interesting way to affect them - eventhough some are ripe for social, mystical or technical interaction; would have been a good way to mitigate their difficulty.</p>
<p>Also, as usual, zero effort put to mitigate repeated rests. There's basically nothing that prevents the heroes from sleeping it out after each encounter.</p>
<p>Loot is also very weird. There's salvageable stuff in unexpected places (e.g. a bar), and none in others (a filled cargo hold).</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Nice adventure, if you set aside the fact that level 1 PCs are recruted for this crucial task.</p>
<p>The end is the weak part. It's a space dungeon. Fine with that. But it's horribly designed, as if casting aside decades of dungeon design. The rooms are barren, minuscule (go fit a sniper in a 25' room!), and often bypassable. Also, it's just fight after fight with no interesting way to affect them - eventhough some are ripe for social, mystical or technical interaction; would have been a good way to mitigate their difficulty.</p>
<p>Also, as usual, zero effort put to mitigate repeated rests. There's basically nothing that prevents the heroes from sleeping it out after each encounter.</p>
<p>Loot is also very weird. There's salvageable stuff in unexpected places (e.g. a bar), and none in others (a filled cargo hold).</p>FlorianF2018-08-18T19:37:32ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): A Big Step Down from Pathfinder APs (3 stars)Cellionhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-07-16T15:30:56Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Incident at Absalom Station can best be summed up as serviceable but dry. All the necessary bits and pieces are in place and the adventure does a good job of providing a variety of both combat and skill challenges. But the adventure as written lacks the vibrant characters, varied combat scenarios and absorbing plots that I've come to appreciate and expect from Paizo's Pathfinder AP line. </p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Incident at Absalom Station can best be summed up as serviceable but dry. All the necessary bits and pieces are in place and the adventure does a good job of providing a variety of both combat and skill challenges. But the adventure as written lacks the vibrant characters, varied combat scenarios and absorbing plots that I've come to appreciate and expect from Paizo's Pathfinder AP line. </p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]</p>Cellion2018-07-16T15:30:56ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Great start! (5 stars)Mystery Culthttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-03-12T11:58:37Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I am absolutely unable to understand why this adventure has such a low rating. Of course, there are a lot of clichés of science fiction and space horror, but, in fact, what did you expect? Personally, I have received only pleasure while recognised in various scenes familiar moments, clearly inspired by favorite classic books and movies (I would say that there is "Blade Runner" or "Total Recall" meets "Aliens"). The plot, as in all parts of the "Alien" movies is fairly predictable, but again it's a such genre. I put a solid 5 and be happy to play on!</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I am absolutely unable to understand why this adventure has such a low rating. Of course, there are a lot of clichés of science fiction and space horror, but, in fact, what did you expect? Personally, I have received only pleasure while recognised in various scenes familiar moments, clearly inspired by favorite classic books and movies (I would say that there is "Blade Runner" or "Total Recall" meets "Aliens"). The plot, as in all parts of the "Alien" movies is fairly predictable, but again it's a such genre. I put a solid 5 and be happy to play on!</p>Mystery Cult2018-03-12T11:58:37ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Great and scary intro'! (5 stars)Eric Collins - Francehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2018-01-11T21:23:48Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I like this adventure a lot.
<br />
It starts in media res, and with a bang.
<br />
Goes on to have a very rich investigation and interaction part, where you get to discover Absalom Station, the Startfinder Society and the world of the game.
<br />
Then things get spooky and spookier and harder and harder!
<br />
You get some space combat, so fighting in 0 G etc..
<br />
A bit of everything, but with a nice storyline, that keeps you interested as things get harder and harder!</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I like this adventure a lot.
<br />
It starts in media res, and with a bang.
<br />
Goes on to have a very rich investigation and interaction part, where you get to discover Absalom Station, the Startfinder Society and the world of the game.
<br />
Then things get spooky and spookier and harder and harder!
<br />
You get some space combat, so fighting in 0 G etc..
<br />
A bit of everything, but with a nice storyline, that keeps you interested as things get harder and harder!</p>Eric Collins - France2018-01-11T21:23:48ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Stellar Introduction to Starfinder: Don't Listen to the Naysayers (5 stars)James Hunnicutthttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-12-20T16:45:35Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Wow, I'm really blown away by the negative reviews of this adventure. I've run it twice now as the GM, and everyone — players and GM alike — had a great time. And both groups approached the adventure in different ways. I really agree with the other reviewer who said that it's well structured. It's a fun introduction to the new mechanics of the Starfinder game as well as to the flavor and backstory of the game world, starting with the "Grand Central Station" of the Starfinder universe. </p>
<p>If you're going to be a player, avoid reading:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>I listened to the Roll for Combat podcast too. They're playing the whole adventure, and I learned some tips and insights from that too.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Wow, I'm really blown away by the negative reviews of this adventure. I've run it twice now as the GM, and everyone — players and GM alike — had a great time. And both groups approached the adventure in different ways. I really agree with the other reviewer who said that it's well structured. It's a fun introduction to the new mechanics of the Starfinder game as well as to the flavor and backstory of the game world, starting with the "Grand Central Station" of the Starfinder universe. </p>
<p>If you're going to be a player, avoid reading:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>I listened to the Roll for Combat podcast too. They're playing the whole adventure, and I learned some tips and insights from that too.</p>James Hunnicutt2017-12-20T16:45:35ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Great start for a new system (5 stars)Name Missing From Databasehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-12-18T14:46:47Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>My small group and I are veteran PFR players and were interested in taking things into space.</p>
<p>This adventure path has been quite a bit of fun - we just finished this one and have begun the second.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>My small group and I are veteran PFR players and were interested in taking things into space.</p>
<p>This adventure path has been quite a bit of fun - we just finished this one and have begun the second.</p>Name Missing From Database2017-12-18T14:46:47ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Meh (3 stars)bmsattlerhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-12-14T15:06:35Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I found the overall AP to be fairly flat, if serviceable. It doesn't seem like much effort was made to come up with anything original. You could say that they were trying to riff off of various Sci-Fi movies like Alien, but I was kind of expecting something more to introduce the Starfinder game to players.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I found the overall AP to be fairly flat, if serviceable. It doesn't seem like much effort was made to come up with anything original. You could say that they were trying to riff off of various Sci-Fi movies like Alien, but I was kind of expecting something more to introduce the Starfinder game to players.</p>bmsattler2017-12-14T15:06:35ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): To infinity and beyond! (4 stars)AFlashInTimehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-11-12T06:48:52Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>The following is based on my experiences as a GM running Incident at Absalom Station in “campaign mode” for Starfinder Society with a table of seven level 2 players at my local gaming store…</p>
<p>The Dead Suns Adventure Path is off to a great start with Incident at Absalom Station. The 4/5 rating for me is for the Adventure Path itself and doesn’t take into account all of the extra world-building goodies in the book (which are great!). For the adventure path itself, the three-part series is split into one part investigation and, effectively, two parts dungeon crawl with a starship combat thrown in. </p>
<p>The AP is a good blend of major Starfinder elements, both from a gameplay and universe-building standpoint. For gameplay, the mix of living and undead as well as NPCs with class levels and monsters gives the PCs a wide range of foes to try their skills against. For universe-building, the introduction to Absalom Station is great (especially with the additional material in the book), as well as getting a (very quick) intro to the Starfinder Society and, later, the Eoxians.</p>
<p>There are a few reasons I didn’t rate this a 5/5. First, while a solid adventure, the adventure seemed a little short and I feel could’ve fleshed out some of the organizations involved (i.e. the Starfinder Society) a little bit more. The PCs are showing up at Absalom Station to meet a contact at the very beginning of the adventure, but •minor spoilers• the AP doesn’t ever specify what the PCs were going to meet with him about; it’s all quickly swept away after the first encounter. </p>
<p>Also, in the last combat [Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>All in all a good adventure path that serves as a great into to Absalom Station and Starfinder in general!</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>The following is based on my experiences as a GM running Incident at Absalom Station in “campaign mode” for Starfinder Society with a table of seven level 2 players at my local gaming store…</p>
<p>The Dead Suns Adventure Path is off to a great start with Incident at Absalom Station. The 4/5 rating for me is for the Adventure Path itself and doesn’t take into account all of the extra world-building goodies in the book (which are great!). For the adventure path itself, the three-part series is split into one part investigation and, effectively, two parts dungeon crawl with a starship combat thrown in. </p>
<p>The AP is a good blend of major Starfinder elements, both from a gameplay and universe-building standpoint. For gameplay, the mix of living and undead as well as NPCs with class levels and monsters gives the PCs a wide range of foes to try their skills against. For universe-building, the introduction to Absalom Station is great (especially with the additional material in the book), as well as getting a (very quick) intro to the Starfinder Society and, later, the Eoxians.</p>
<p>There are a few reasons I didn’t rate this a 5/5. First, while a solid adventure, the adventure seemed a little short and I feel could’ve fleshed out some of the organizations involved (i.e. the Starfinder Society) a little bit more. The PCs are showing up at Absalom Station to meet a contact at the very beginning of the adventure, but •minor spoilers• the AP doesn’t ever specify what the PCs were going to meet with him about; it’s all quickly swept away after the first encounter. </p>
<p>Also, in the last combat [Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>All in all a good adventure path that serves as a great into to Absalom Station and Starfinder in general!</p>AFlashInTime2017-11-12T06:48:52ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6) (1 star)Armeniushttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-10-30T16:47:11Z...Armenius2017-10-30T16:47:11ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): A bit above average (4 stars)Gregor Müller-Clevehttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-10-18T09:01:01Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>First: It should be a 3,5 as 4 is a little bit too positive.
<br />
Just a few thoughts:
<br />
1) I think this adventure is benefitting from a good GM. It stands and falls with the quality and creativeness of the GM. If you see an AP as a dogma, as the 1 star reviewer, you will have even less fun than with other APs that are more "dogmatic" in how you as a GM have to approach the AP.
<br />
2) I think it's really well structured. The three chapters made it easy to split it into three sessions and also made preparations much easier for me as the GM.
<br />
3) It's a bit short and I was disappointed about the scope of information that were included about the Starfinder universe. I think it's lacking currently and while it has its charm to come up with own ideas, it's not well suited for fans of lore and not everyone is happy with a "do it your own" approach.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>First: It should be a 3,5 as 4 is a little bit too positive.
<br />
Just a few thoughts:
<br />
1) I think this adventure is benefitting from a good GM. It stands and falls with the quality and creativeness of the GM. If you see an AP as a dogma, as the 1 star reviewer, you will have even less fun than with other APs that are more "dogmatic" in how you as a GM have to approach the AP.
<br />
2) I think it's really well structured. The three chapters made it easy to split it into three sessions and also made preparations much easier for me as the GM.
<br />
3) It's a bit short and I was disappointed about the scope of information that were included about the Starfinder universe. I think it's lacking currently and while it has its charm to come up with own ideas, it's not well suited for fans of lore and not everyone is happy with a "do it your own" approach.</p>Gregor Müller-Cleve2017-10-18T09:01:01ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Good content and challenging combat... A few issues. (3 stars)ANDREW RAIhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-10-03T00:07:57Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I GM'd this with 5 players and generally enjoy it. Good areas to explore and a pretty high difficulty despite the extra player. The included gazetteer gives a lot of great detail on Absolom Station, but the plot never gives a lot of reason to visit any of the locals.</p>
<p>I found the pacing a little weird. The beginning has the players leave their shuttle and immediately go into combat. I personally had the players start in "The Arms" and see a few of the sights/have lunch before combat. </p>
<p>There are a couple RP scenes that take place in Chapter 2 that don't have any reason or stakes to engage in as there are no alternate paths to take. It gives insight to the characters, but is an opportunity wasted.</p>
<p>My last nit pick is that there are no general laws defined for Absolom Station, which is weird since legal matters are at the heart of this adventure. You're just kinda having casual shootouts and looting the dead in a hub city in a modern setting...weird. A paragraph about it would have been enough.</p>
<p>Chapter 3 is a blast. Basically back to back dungeons...SPACE DUNGEONS.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I GM'd this with 5 players and generally enjoy it. Good areas to explore and a pretty high difficulty despite the extra player. The included gazetteer gives a lot of great detail on Absolom Station, but the plot never gives a lot of reason to visit any of the locals.</p>
<p>I found the pacing a little weird. The beginning has the players leave their shuttle and immediately go into combat. I personally had the players start in "The Arms" and see a few of the sights/have lunch before combat. </p>
<p>There are a couple RP scenes that take place in Chapter 2 that don't have any reason or stakes to engage in as there are no alternate paths to take. It gives insight to the characters, but is an opportunity wasted.</p>
<p>My last nit pick is that there are no general laws defined for Absolom Station, which is weird since legal matters are at the heart of this adventure. You're just kinda having casual shootouts and looting the dead in a hub city in a modern setting...weird. A paragraph about it would have been enough.</p>
<p>Chapter 3 is a blast. Basically back to back dungeons...SPACE DUNGEONS.</p>ANDREW RAI2017-10-03T00:07:57ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Oh dear... (1 star)JULIAN Hoxterhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-09-24T14:40:01Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I have experienced the first section of Incident at Absalom Station as a player. I haven’t read the scenario and I don’t yet know how it ends (although we plan to persevere with it, despite major reservations). If things improve I will happily edit this review and light some more stars. However, I have strong feelings about my first experience of an official Starfinder scenario and felt it would be appropriate to offer them as a contribution here. Full disclosure: my own RPG background as player and GM stretches back to D&D first edition (the white books) via Runequest, Traveller, Call of Cthulhu, Paranoia and others. I recently played my first game of Pathfinder and really enjoyed it.</p>
<p>This is the shorthand version of how events transpired during our play session. I’ll try and keep the description as non-specific as possible, but inevitably there will be SPOILERS. First of all, simple RNG and the poor writing denied us the opening battle. Nobody shot at us (rolled a 1) in the opening event and we had no basis upon which to pick sides. We simply ducked and walked out of the room and all the GM’s efforts in setting up the scene and drawing maps etc. were wasted. Then we were not able to investigate because none of our characters had the requisite Diplomacy skill and only one had poor Intimidate. The classes and specialisms we wanted to play (technomancer, engineer, soldier) would have had some of their own important skills gimped if we had specced into these areas. Of course we fudged this, by now the GM was annoyed (at the way the scenario was written) and she was fudging as fast as she could! After play had finished, the GM told us that the scenario requires these particular skills over and over again and also hides vital information behind the RNG wall of a very high roll that would be impossible (as far as I can work out with my limited experience of the rules) unless a level one character is specced unrealistically in order to make this even possible. Having indications of alternative routes to the same outcome (hacking the gang, surveillance etc.) would have been sensible. Fudging is fine, up to a point, and we managed to fudge because of long gaming experience, but a scenario for beginning players and GM should offer suggestions.</p>
<p>Then we discovered that the big mystery about responsibility for the crime is no mystery after one single dice roll and talking to one person. We had assumed the answer anyway, given SF clichés about capitalism (no doubt justified), and everything led predictably to the resolution of the “mystery” without any drama or interest whatsoever. The scene at the night club assumed we would either give up our guns and be helpless or blast our way in. Indeed, the scenario kept assuming all we wanted to do was shoot people and let that lazy assumption stand in place of proper tactics or motivation. When we finally did shoot somebody, the gameplay was uninvolving because the encounters didn’t require us to do anything other than stand still and shoot a pistol or swing a Vesk melee weapon. Oh, my technomancer healed a couple of times, but that was about it. </p>
<p>Of course, this is a level one scenario and it was being kept intentionally straightforward, but there is a difference between straightforward and boring. I have no problem with combat heavy RPGs (many happy years of D&D in my past) but the first major section of this scenario pretended to be about more than that and ended up not delivering on either engaging combat or storytelling. The problem, from my perspective as a player, was that it assumed its central mystery and investigation was involving and important and it separated it from the action in too many ways. Chatting afterwards we agreed that it would have been much more fun if we had been clearly aligned (however temporarily or contingently) with one side in the opening fight and had used that alliance for the purposes of exposition and to drive an action sequence. For example, what if we had met the contact and his protective gang members before he was shot? Then we would have been part of the battle and invested in its outcome for reasons other than simple self-preservation. The gang could have led us in a running fight through Absalom Station – sightseeing while shooting – down to their HQ in the dodgy part of town. In the middle of a gang war we would have scrabbled around for solutions and then launched a counter-raid on the enemy etc. etc. My point is not to offer a specific alternative, rather to suggest how the storytelling and the action might have been much more fun if the writers had been honest about the simplicity of their story. It wouldn't have taken more page space either. In short, even the most hackneyed space opera genre clichés are really fun when you are actually enjoying them!</p>
<p>In conclusion, this first session was a major disappointment. We will keep playing through Incident at Absalom Station, because we like the Starfinder system so far and we are learning through playing, but we hope things will improve as the story develops. Sadly, this was not an auspicious introduction to the adventure path.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>I have experienced the first section of Incident at Absalom Station as a player. I haven’t read the scenario and I don’t yet know how it ends (although we plan to persevere with it, despite major reservations). If things improve I will happily edit this review and light some more stars. However, I have strong feelings about my first experience of an official Starfinder scenario and felt it would be appropriate to offer them as a contribution here. Full disclosure: my own RPG background as player and GM stretches back to D&D first edition (the white books) via Runequest, Traveller, Call of Cthulhu, Paranoia and others. I recently played my first game of Pathfinder and really enjoyed it.</p>
<p>This is the shorthand version of how events transpired during our play session. I’ll try and keep the description as non-specific as possible, but inevitably there will be SPOILERS. First of all, simple RNG and the poor writing denied us the opening battle. Nobody shot at us (rolled a 1) in the opening event and we had no basis upon which to pick sides. We simply ducked and walked out of the room and all the GM’s efforts in setting up the scene and drawing maps etc. were wasted. Then we were not able to investigate because none of our characters had the requisite Diplomacy skill and only one had poor Intimidate. The classes and specialisms we wanted to play (technomancer, engineer, soldier) would have had some of their own important skills gimped if we had specced into these areas. Of course we fudged this, by now the GM was annoyed (at the way the scenario was written) and she was fudging as fast as she could! After play had finished, the GM told us that the scenario requires these particular skills over and over again and also hides vital information behind the RNG wall of a very high roll that would be impossible (as far as I can work out with my limited experience of the rules) unless a level one character is specced unrealistically in order to make this even possible. Having indications of alternative routes to the same outcome (hacking the gang, surveillance etc.) would have been sensible. Fudging is fine, up to a point, and we managed to fudge because of long gaming experience, but a scenario for beginning players and GM should offer suggestions.</p>
<p>Then we discovered that the big mystery about responsibility for the crime is no mystery after one single dice roll and talking to one person. We had assumed the answer anyway, given SF clichés about capitalism (no doubt justified), and everything led predictably to the resolution of the “mystery” without any drama or interest whatsoever. The scene at the night club assumed we would either give up our guns and be helpless or blast our way in. Indeed, the scenario kept assuming all we wanted to do was shoot people and let that lazy assumption stand in place of proper tactics or motivation. When we finally did shoot somebody, the gameplay was uninvolving because the encounters didn’t require us to do anything other than stand still and shoot a pistol or swing a Vesk melee weapon. Oh, my technomancer healed a couple of times, but that was about it. </p>
<p>Of course, this is a level one scenario and it was being kept intentionally straightforward, but there is a difference between straightforward and boring. I have no problem with combat heavy RPGs (many happy years of D&D in my past) but the first major section of this scenario pretended to be about more than that and ended up not delivering on either engaging combat or storytelling. The problem, from my perspective as a player, was that it assumed its central mystery and investigation was involving and important and it separated it from the action in too many ways. Chatting afterwards we agreed that it would have been much more fun if we had been clearly aligned (however temporarily or contingently) with one side in the opening fight and had used that alliance for the purposes of exposition and to drive an action sequence. For example, what if we had met the contact and his protective gang members before he was shot? Then we would have been part of the battle and invested in its outcome for reasons other than simple self-preservation. The gang could have led us in a running fight through Absalom Station – sightseeing while shooting – down to their HQ in the dodgy part of town. In the middle of a gang war we would have scrabbled around for solutions and then launched a counter-raid on the enemy etc. etc. My point is not to offer a specific alternative, rather to suggest how the storytelling and the action might have been much more fun if the writers had been honest about the simplicity of their story. It wouldn't have taken more page space either. In short, even the most hackneyed space opera genre clichés are really fun when you are actually enjoying them!</p>
<p>In conclusion, this first session was a major disappointment. We will keep playing through Incident at Absalom Station, because we like the Starfinder system so far and we are learning through playing, but we hope things will improve as the story develops. Sadly, this was not an auspicious introduction to the adventure path.</p>JULIAN Hoxter2017-09-24T14:40:01ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Shoot For The Stars (5 stars)captain yesterdayhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-09-08T18:00:57Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Yay!</p>
<p>Maiden voyage for the Starfinder Adventure Path, and boy is it fun!</p>
<p>I really liked the adventure itself, featuring a mix of fights, investigating, negotiating, clubbing, starship fights and asteroid spelunking, it's been a lot of fun.</p>
<p>There is also a fun and colorful gazetteer of Absalom Station, featuring Sutter at some of his best.</p>
<p>The relics of golarion was also a fun read and I clapped aloud when I saw the picture on page 53.</p>
<p>And lets not forget a wonderfully alien archive with both old (Akata, Skeletal Champion with a new name and a fresh look) and new faces (Driftdead, Vracinea, Rauzhant, my favs).</p>
<p>We also have a new planet in the codex of worlds, a delightfully little flooded world, possibly doomed to war. </p>
<p>And lastly, on the inside front and back covers we have the stats, background, picture, and floor plan for a new starship, I only wish there was a pawn for it somewhere... •hint hint•</p>
<p>Overall, a great buy and well worth the same value as the books in the Pathfinder Campaign Setting line. </p>
<p>I highly, highly recommend it. </p>
<p>Kudos to Paizo for taking a chance with Starfinder. </p>
<p>Now, where's my towel...</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Yay!</p>
<p>Maiden voyage for the Starfinder Adventure Path, and boy is it fun!</p>
<p>I really liked the adventure itself, featuring a mix of fights, investigating, negotiating, clubbing, starship fights and asteroid spelunking, it's been a lot of fun.</p>
<p>There is also a fun and colorful gazetteer of Absalom Station, featuring Sutter at some of his best.</p>
<p>The relics of golarion was also a fun read and I clapped aloud when I saw the picture on page 53.</p>
<p>And lets not forget a wonderfully alien archive with both old (Akata, Skeletal Champion with a new name and a fresh look) and new faces (Driftdead, Vracinea, Rauzhant, my favs).</p>
<p>We also have a new planet in the codex of worlds, a delightfully little flooded world, possibly doomed to war. </p>
<p>And lastly, on the inside front and back covers we have the stats, background, picture, and floor plan for a new starship, I only wish there was a pawn for it somewhere... •hint hint•</p>
<p>Overall, a great buy and well worth the same value as the books in the Pathfinder Campaign Setting line. </p>
<p>I highly, highly recommend it. </p>
<p>Kudos to Paizo for taking a chance with Starfinder. </p>
<p>Now, where's my towel...</p>captain yesterday2017-09-08T18:00:57ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Not up to their usual standards (3 stars)Rob Barkerhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-08-29T21:59:09Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>General:
<br />
It is hard to not look at the Incident at Absalom and compare it to other adventure path volumes from Pathfinder. The first thing that strikes me is that it is about 30 pages shorter than a typical Adventure Path. In in of itself that would not be too much of an issue; however, coupled with the price point it does make one wonder what is going on. It is all of $2 less expensive than current AP products for Pathfinder.</p>
<p>Content:
<br />
The adventure is not that inspiring. It is fine for what it is but I was left wanting a bit more from the first AP installment from a new product. There are some interesting things going on but some that are not. What it does well is that it will allow for all PC types to have a place and will allow for the GM and players to explore quite a bit of the mechanics of the system through the adventure. That said, the missing 30 pages seem to have come directly from the adventure.</p>
<p>Extras:
<br />
This part I find to be excellent. The description of the space station, the relics, aliens, and world profile are all very good. </p>
<p>Conclusion:
<br />
This AP suffers from the brevity of the adventure. It is very short in terms of other APs. For example, Mummy's Mask: Empty Graves has a 51 page adventure and Hell's Vengeance: Hellfire Compact has a 49 page adventure to the 31 page one provided in this product. In the end, there just isn't enough there to justify the price point. My hope is that future AP products will get better. This is not really up to their usual high standards.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>General:
<br />
It is hard to not look at the Incident at Absalom and compare it to other adventure path volumes from Pathfinder. The first thing that strikes me is that it is about 30 pages shorter than a typical Adventure Path. In in of itself that would not be too much of an issue; however, coupled with the price point it does make one wonder what is going on. It is all of $2 less expensive than current AP products for Pathfinder.</p>
<p>Content:
<br />
The adventure is not that inspiring. It is fine for what it is but I was left wanting a bit more from the first AP installment from a new product. There are some interesting things going on but some that are not. What it does well is that it will allow for all PC types to have a place and will allow for the GM and players to explore quite a bit of the mechanics of the system through the adventure. That said, the missing 30 pages seem to have come directly from the adventure.</p>
<p>Extras:
<br />
This part I find to be excellent. The description of the space station, the relics, aliens, and world profile are all very good. </p>
<p>Conclusion:
<br />
This AP suffers from the brevity of the adventure. It is very short in terms of other APs. For example, Mummy's Mask: Empty Graves has a 51 page adventure and Hell's Vengeance: Hellfire Compact has a 49 page adventure to the 31 page one provided in this product. In the end, there just isn't enough there to justify the price point. My hope is that future AP products will get better. This is not really up to their usual high standards.</p>Rob Barker2017-08-29T21:59:09ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): A Robust But Lacking Start To Starfinder (3 stars)The Good Brotherhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-08-28T01:23:54Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Incident at Absalom Station is a robust introduction to Starfinder, highlighting what makes the stellar new system unique and showing off the fun elements of the game. Further, the story is playable and usable, providing a great template for any sort of party or any types of players. Unfortunately, from a story perspective, the story fails to "go large." While it serves as a systematic sampler and introduction, it doesn't do anything new or exciting in the idea of Space Operas. </p>
<p><b> What Makes It Pop </b></p>
<p>The opening scene has a pretty standard hook, but opens with a strong action scene. The party is thrust into conflict and that conflict shapes the later adventures. From there it launches into an open-ended diplomacy and investigation scene, with the party given sides to choose or ignore while cracking a mystery.</p>
<p>The adventure uses to good effect the unique elements of Starfinder. It merges technology and magic in seamless fashion, having Android administrators bump elbows with Undead diplomats, spellcasters and hackers work together, and spirits and aliens haunting the same dark corners.</p>
<p>In so doing, it also incorporates many of Starfinder's rule sets, including skills, multiple types of combat, and myriad creatures and items.</p>
<p>Finally, it has an element of mystery that will hopefully propel party to greater exploits (And the rest of the AP). While much of the adventure relies on the party choosing their better angels, there's enough to justify a party of any make-up getting involved.</p>
<p>Spoilers follow:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p><b>What Brings It Down </b></p>
<p>Much of the adventure is a dungeon crawl and - at that - a fairly bland one. It's hard not to compare this to Rise of the Runelords; fair or not, both are launching product lines. Rise of the Runelords took long-standing tropes and used them, but breathed fresh life into them, creating a vibrant coastal town with intrigue, ancient weapons, bitter revenge, family drama, and a touch of humor. Here, its' a standard opening to nearly every space opera game, but without many of those same touches of originality, vibrancy, or uniqueness. It also calls on some of the unique flair from earlier Pathfinder Adventure Paths, which seems duplication more than homage.</p>
<p>Spoiler examples:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p><b>Overall Thoughts</b></p>
<p>Incident at Absalom Station benefits from starting with a bang, building interesting connections for the party, and setting the new Starfinder Pact Worlds well. It sadly fails to tread any new ground for Space Operas, but if the base it lays here is used properly it could lead to a roiling adventure. All in all, I'd recommend buying it for anyone interested running a Starfinder game, especially for the information on Absalom Station and the additional bestiary.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Incident at Absalom Station is a robust introduction to Starfinder, highlighting what makes the stellar new system unique and showing off the fun elements of the game. Further, the story is playable and usable, providing a great template for any sort of party or any types of players. Unfortunately, from a story perspective, the story fails to "go large." While it serves as a systematic sampler and introduction, it doesn't do anything new or exciting in the idea of Space Operas. </p>
<p><b> What Makes It Pop </b></p>
<p>The opening scene has a pretty standard hook, but opens with a strong action scene. The party is thrust into conflict and that conflict shapes the later adventures. From there it launches into an open-ended diplomacy and investigation scene, with the party given sides to choose or ignore while cracking a mystery.</p>
<p>The adventure uses to good effect the unique elements of Starfinder. It merges technology and magic in seamless fashion, having Android administrators bump elbows with Undead diplomats, spellcasters and hackers work together, and spirits and aliens haunting the same dark corners.</p>
<p>In so doing, it also incorporates many of Starfinder's rule sets, including skills, multiple types of combat, and myriad creatures and items.</p>
<p>Finally, it has an element of mystery that will hopefully propel party to greater exploits (And the rest of the AP). While much of the adventure relies on the party choosing their better angels, there's enough to justify a party of any make-up getting involved.</p>
<p>Spoilers follow:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p><b>What Brings It Down </b></p>
<p>Much of the adventure is a dungeon crawl and - at that - a fairly bland one. It's hard not to compare this to Rise of the Runelords; fair or not, both are launching product lines. Rise of the Runelords took long-standing tropes and used them, but breathed fresh life into them, creating a vibrant coastal town with intrigue, ancient weapons, bitter revenge, family drama, and a touch of humor. Here, its' a standard opening to nearly every space opera game, but without many of those same touches of originality, vibrancy, or uniqueness. It also calls on some of the unique flair from earlier Pathfinder Adventure Paths, which seems duplication more than homage.</p>
<p>Spoiler examples:</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p><b>Overall Thoughts</b></p>
<p>Incident at Absalom Station benefits from starting with a bang, building interesting connections for the party, and setting the new Starfinder Pact Worlds well. It sadly fails to tread any new ground for Space Operas, but if the base it lays here is used properly it could lead to a roiling adventure. All in all, I'd recommend buying it for anyone interested running a Starfinder game, especially for the information on Absalom Station and the additional bestiary.</p>The Good Brother2017-08-28T01:23:54ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Excellent Beginning (4 stars)Steve Geddeshttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-08-24T04:43:55Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>This is a great first instalment in the Starfinder AP line. There's no doubt that there are far fewer Science Fantasy adventures around than pure fantasy so, for me at least, I have very little to compare it to and find myself with only nebulous, ill-formed expectations. I expect this will become my 'first level Starfinder adventure' measuring stick for a good few years.</p>
<p>I generally prefer to run adventures before reviewing them and will not be running this until I've read all six instalments. In this case, I wanted to make some comments about the backmatter, so have broken that rule. As such, the impression of the first section (the adventure part) is based purely on a read through, not on how it survived contact with the players.</p>
<p>The adventure is shorter than a Pathfinder AP instalment which suits me down to the ground. It provides a good showcase of the new rules - some combats, some skill based investigation, starship combat, and so forth. It's also a nice introduction to the universe of Starfinder - introducing some parts of Absalom Station, the Starfinder Society and one feels is setting the scene for further explorations of the Pact Worlds and some of the factions vying for influence.</p>
<p>The second section is a gazetteer of Absalom Station and is a good introduction to some of the neighbourhoods and sites of interest. It's no doubt a difficult problem. but I find myself struggling to really picture the place without a map and none is provided here - rather we get a picture of the station overall and a handful of illustrations of differing places within. It's clearly a problem to come up with a meaningful map, but I think it's a problem that needs to be solved. I'm very much hoping the upcoming Pact Worlds book provides a lot in the way of maps.</p>
<p>The third section is my least favorite. A whole bunch of magical items from pre Gap Golarion. It is inevitable that Paizo utilise the fact that this universe is the same as the one Pathfinder is set in (there's some valuable IP there that has clearly caught the fans' attention, so it would be silly to leave it behind). Nonetheless, I find myself pondering why they bothered having the Gap at all, given so much of the Starfinder material coming out seems to me to be tying in to "how things were" anyhow (from several of the factions, to the pantheon, and now a whole bunch of relics from Golarion which could have been new themes, starship enhancements, or an exploration of some new-world mysteries.</p>
<p>I really, really hope Section Three doesn't become "bringing stuff from Pre-Gap Golarion into space" in every AP issue.</p>
<p>The fourth section is aliens and the selection was a nice mix of pretty low level threats - ideal for now, especially given it will be a little while until the Alien Archive is available. Paizo do monsters well so I tend to take their bestiaries for granted - it's hard to remember how well they do it when it's always such high quality. Based on this selection, I expect the Alien Archives to continue with equal quality.</p>
<p>The final section is the first in a Codex of Worlds series - a one page write up of a new planet. This was my favorite - I love lore above mechanics and this page was pretty much pure flavor. I can't wait to begin collecting these and can imagine this developing into a fully fledged, standalone product line (perhaps adding a couple of pages of aliens/technology/etcetera).</p>
<p>Finally, there was the back and front inside covers - this was also my favorite (thanks to Tacticslion for the revelation that one can have multiple favorites). The front cover is a picture, some flavor material and then stats for a tier 3 ship which the players "earn" through the adventure. The back cover is a floorplan. I can't fault the execution of this in any way.</p>
<p>Overall, I'd like to give it four and a half stars - the lack of a decent map of Absalom Station Gazetteer, although understandable, is still a noticable ommission. The "Relics of Golarion" section was the only true disappointment. I've rated it four merely so I have room to improve.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>This is a great first instalment in the Starfinder AP line. There's no doubt that there are far fewer Science Fantasy adventures around than pure fantasy so, for me at least, I have very little to compare it to and find myself with only nebulous, ill-formed expectations. I expect this will become my 'first level Starfinder adventure' measuring stick for a good few years.</p>
<p>I generally prefer to run adventures before reviewing them and will not be running this until I've read all six instalments. In this case, I wanted to make some comments about the backmatter, so have broken that rule. As such, the impression of the first section (the adventure part) is based purely on a read through, not on how it survived contact with the players.</p>
<p>The adventure is shorter than a Pathfinder AP instalment which suits me down to the ground. It provides a good showcase of the new rules - some combats, some skill based investigation, starship combat, and so forth. It's also a nice introduction to the universe of Starfinder - introducing some parts of Absalom Station, the Starfinder Society and one feels is setting the scene for further explorations of the Pact Worlds and some of the factions vying for influence.</p>
<p>The second section is a gazetteer of Absalom Station and is a good introduction to some of the neighbourhoods and sites of interest. It's no doubt a difficult problem. but I find myself struggling to really picture the place without a map and none is provided here - rather we get a picture of the station overall and a handful of illustrations of differing places within. It's clearly a problem to come up with a meaningful map, but I think it's a problem that needs to be solved. I'm very much hoping the upcoming Pact Worlds book provides a lot in the way of maps.</p>
<p>The third section is my least favorite. A whole bunch of magical items from pre Gap Golarion. It is inevitable that Paizo utilise the fact that this universe is the same as the one Pathfinder is set in (there's some valuable IP there that has clearly caught the fans' attention, so it would be silly to leave it behind). Nonetheless, I find myself pondering why they bothered having the Gap at all, given so much of the Starfinder material coming out seems to me to be tying in to "how things were" anyhow (from several of the factions, to the pantheon, and now a whole bunch of relics from Golarion which could have been new themes, starship enhancements, or an exploration of some new-world mysteries.</p>
<p>I really, really hope Section Three doesn't become "bringing stuff from Pre-Gap Golarion into space" in every AP issue.</p>
<p>The fourth section is aliens and the selection was a nice mix of pretty low level threats - ideal for now, especially given it will be a little while until the Alien Archive is available. Paizo do monsters well so I tend to take their bestiaries for granted - it's hard to remember how well they do it when it's always such high quality. Based on this selection, I expect the Alien Archives to continue with equal quality.</p>
<p>The final section is the first in a Codex of Worlds series - a one page write up of a new planet. This was my favorite - I love lore above mechanics and this page was pretty much pure flavor. I can't wait to begin collecting these and can imagine this developing into a fully fledged, standalone product line (perhaps adding a couple of pages of aliens/technology/etcetera).</p>
<p>Finally, there was the back and front inside covers - this was also my favorite (thanks to Tacticslion for the revelation that one can have multiple favorites). The front cover is a picture, some flavor material and then stats for a tier 3 ship which the players "earn" through the adventure. The back cover is a floorplan. I can't fault the execution of this in any way.</p>
<p>Overall, I'd like to give it four and a half stars - the lack of a decent map of Absalom Station Gazetteer, although understandable, is still a noticable ommission. The "Relics of Golarion" section was the only true disappointment. I've rated it four merely so I have room to improve.</p>Steve Geddes2017-08-24T04:43:55ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Looks Great! (5 stars)GeneticDrifthttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-08-14T01:51:12Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Having finally ran Dead Suns 1, I can say it was enjoyable. Absalom Station is a great location and a good start to an adventure path. Any character idea can fit and grow here. The players started to work together better as the challenges became more difficult. I am excited to start dead suns 2. </p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Having finally ran Dead Suns 1, I can say it was enjoyable. Absalom Station is a great location and a good start to an adventure path. Any character idea can fit and grow here. The players started to work together better as the challenges became more difficult. I am excited to start dead suns 2. </p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>GeneticDrift2017-08-14T01:51:12ZStarfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6): Blast Off to Nowhere (5 stars)Ryskyhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9tmf?Starfinder-Adventure-Path-1-Incident-at-Absalom-Station2017-08-10T21:02:01Z<p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Before the review, an impromptu Player's Guide.[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>Ok now to the adventure. I love the beginning hook! That's a great way to moviate people, and the whole concept of a spooky derelict ship with mysterious cargo is a personal favourite of mine. That and even for the first adventure it comes with a rather climatic end! Or should I say beginning? There's still 5 more books...</p>
<p>The writeup on Absalom Station is informative, and I love the elected official in charge, Kumara, and her polices, it's a message needed right now. That and the Station itself is rather interesting... in that we don't really know what all it does...</p>
<p>The relics of Golarion chapter is a blast, with one very peculiar standout in the lineup...</p>
<p>And Alien Archives.</p>
<p>AKATAS!!!!! MOONDOGGOS!!!! WITH AWESOME ART!!!!</p>
<p>The two Drift creatures are VERY interesting. Speaking of the Drift, it's f&@+ed up. There's really no way getting around that, especially with the reveals of the extent of what it does and what occurs within.</p>
<p>And now for my favourite part, the World Codex. HEICORON IV is a lovely tropical planet almost completely covered in water concealing vast and very recent ruins (as ruins go anyway). It once was more, "temperate", but something occurred during The Gap that caused the polar ice caps to melt.</p><p><b>Starfinder Adventure Path #1: Incident at Absalom Station (Dead Suns 1 of 6)</b></p><p>Before the review, an impromptu Player's Guide.[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>Ok now to the adventure. I love the beginning hook! That's a great way to moviate people, and the whole concept of a spooky derelict ship with mysterious cargo is a personal favourite of mine. That and even for the first adventure it comes with a rather climatic end! Or should I say beginning? There's still 5 more books...</p>
<p>The writeup on Absalom Station is informative, and I love the elected official in charge, Kumara, and her polices, it's a message needed right now. That and the Station itself is rather interesting... in that we don't really know what all it does...</p>
<p>The relics of Golarion chapter is a blast, with one very peculiar standout in the lineup...</p>
<p>And Alien Archives.</p>
<p>AKATAS!!!!! MOONDOGGOS!!!! WITH AWESOME ART!!!!</p>
<p>The two Drift creatures are VERY interesting. Speaking of the Drift, it's f&@+ed up. There's really no way getting around that, especially with the reveals of the extent of what it does and what occurs within.</p>
<p>And now for my favourite part, the World Codex. HEICORON IV is a lovely tropical planet almost completely covered in water concealing vast and very recent ruins (as ruins go anyway). It once was more, "temperate", but something occurred during The Gap that caused the polar ice caps to melt.</p>Rysky2017-08-10T21:02:01Z