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Pathfinder: Curse of the Crimson Throne Player's Guide (OGL)

Pathfinder: Rise of the Runelords Player's Guide (OGL)

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Pathfinder #1—Rise of the Runelords Chapter 1: "Burnt Offerings" (OGL) PDF
Paizo Publishing, LLC

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Chapter 1: "Burnt Offerings"
by James Jacobs

The Rise of the Runelords Adventure Path begins in the small coastal town of Sandpoint. In a time when rumors of rampaging dragons and massing armies of giants have everyone on edge, the people of Sandpoint eagerly anticipate the coming festival to commemorate the consecration of a new temple. Yet, at the height of the ceremony, disaster strikes. A band of goblins assaults Sandpoint, and it falls to the heroes to defend the new temple.

In the days that follow, a mysterious malady that leaves its victims monstrously deformed and dangerously insane spreads through the town. The PCs must not only determine what’s causing this strange contagion, but also discover the sinister connection between the plague, the goblin attacks, and the emergence of a strange rune from an empire thought to be long dead.

This volume of Pathfinder also includes extensive details on the town of Sandpoint, several new monsters, and information on the mysterious ancient empire of Thassilon, whose cruel and despotic rulers may not be as dead as history would have us believe.

For characters of 1st to 3rd level.

Pathfinder is Paizo Publishing's 96-page, perfect-bound, full-color softcover Adventure Path book printed on high-quality paper that releases in a monthly volume. Each volume is brought to you by the same staff which brought you Dragon and Dungeon magazines for over five years. It contains an in-depth Adventure Path scenario, stats for about a half-dozen new monsters, and several support articles meant to give Game Masters additional material to expand their campaign. Because Pathfinder uses the Open Game License, it is 100% compatible with the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game.

ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-035-3

Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at webmaster@paizo.com.


Product Reviews

Average product rating: FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar (4.4) based on 59 reviews

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21 to 30 of 59    show all << first < prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | next > last >>
FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Reviewed after running it to completion
Reviewer: Watcher

The short answer- I loved this adventure. I got my money's worth. I recommend it to others.

A little more detail? An excellent start to a beginning campaign with an engaging new setting, the world of Golarion.. revealed a little at a time. For new and experienced GMs, this is a great starting point.

Comments: Many have complained about the font size, I disagree. The art is a little rough at times, but I don't mark it down for that. With the transition from a more active partnership with WOTC, and the fact I've seen the next five chapters- the art improves.

Here's the one thing I would see done differently.

Spoiler:
In the end, the PC's never come into direct contact with the main villain's interesting and tragic background. They get the "big picture" after defeating her and reading her diary. That was a little bit of an anticlimax in actual play. Background written just for the GM to have a personal insight or rationale is nice, but it doesn't help the players. Ultimately their needs to be met as much as the GMs.

Don't let that one niggle convince you not to buy this though. Otherwise this is a great adventure with an engaging story. I heartily recommend this adventure. It's a winner.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Well done Paizo!
Reviewer: Sydrill

I finally played this first offering if Rise of the Runelords, and it's great. Paizo has made a product that really works well at the table. This is the best interpretation of goblins that I've seen as well.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Great start for a new group...
Reviewer: finerion

I have long purchased a wide range of 3.0/3.5 products from a number of 3rd party publishers and I must say that this is by far the best module I have read. I am currently running a small 4-man group through this module and they are loving every minute of it. With 2 of the members being brand new to role playing games this AP is going to serve as a great way to introduce them to the hobby.

Paizo, you guys have made me a believer.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Rather Happy
Reviewer: Shawn Vars

I am a charter subscriber to Pathfinder and have found that pathfinder is a well made and thought through product. The art is wonderful, and the side bars help a great deal to running the adventure, but what I would like to see added in the future is a side bar on how to convert the adventure to different levels or maybe different worlds. I understand they can't mention anything from other printed worlds but generic reference might help out. All in all I look forward to my issue of Pathfinder if nothing else for the great art work.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Golarion FTW!
Reviewer: Yasha0006

I am absolutely loving Rise of the Runelords. Burnt Offerings has completely reinvented goblins for me and I actually want to use them again. The antics evoke images from 'Gremlins' and 'Labyrinth', just the right kind of dark humor that I enjoy. The Adventure is also very well structured and written and doesn't place too much on the PCs shoulders. A perfect starting adventure.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar An RPG Resource Review
Reviewer: Megan Robertson

In this, the very first of Paizo's Pathfinder adventure series, the Introduction sweeps you up from the outset, explaining how - due to the death of a god about a century ago - a land once comfortable in the certainty of oracles and prophecies which charted their future has been thrown into chaos, and that it is now time for heroes to stand forth and stamp their own order on the land. Those heroes are, you've guessed it, your characters; and as well as an adventure this book contains background material to make the whole setting come to life. Oh, and there's a cute list of '10 Fun Facts about Goblins'... who feature large in this particular adventure.

The main body of the book is taken up with Burnt Offerings, the first adventure in this campaign. Set in the town of Sandpoint, which is assumed to be your characters' hometown (or at least, where they live at the moment), the resurgence of powerful ancient magic is causing turbulence to the once sleepy town... beginning with a plague of violent nightmares that caused sleepers to awaken in a fit of blind rage. While for most the rage faded with the light of day and reason, some found a resonance and committed terrible acts. These are known as the Late Unpleasantness and are, to the relief of the good folk of Sandpoint, now behind them... this is where the adventure begins, with a rich background that foreshadows what you will place before your players as the adventure proceeds.

Overall, this is an excellent beginning to what promises to be a memorable campaign. The cartography is beautiful, as are many of the 'scene-setting' paintings, although the NPC/monster illustrations are rather too cartoon-like for my taste. Presentation both visual and in terms of organisation of text is well done... looking forwards to the next one!

Read the full review at http://www.rpg-resource.org.uk/

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Lacklustre artwork and small font detracts.
Reviewer: TommyJ

I like the content. It's cool stuff, with plenty of background material, that really brings the villains, places etc. to life.
In fact the whole thing would have gotten a much higher rating from me if not for two things.
The interior art is of varying quality. It may be chalked up to personal taste, but I really dislike the chunky style (p. 19 & 23 for example) by one of the artists, and the weirdly colored stuff (p. 12 & 29). The maps and other illustrations are fine! (or more than fine actually).
Finally there is the font. I see other people here mocking those, who find the font too small (check your prescription etc.). No, there is nothing wrong with our eyes! The font setting is too small. I really hope you fix this for the next books.
Looking forward for the rest of the series.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Fantastic Print Version & Great PDF
Reviewer: Tars Tarkas

I am still reading and absorbing Pathfinder 1, but I can say now with certainty that this book offers intriguing reading and spectacular production quality.

The craftmanship and detail put into this project is producing results greater than I imagined, and I imagined an elaborate work. (Combined with my GameMastery Module subscription, I'm happier now than when I was just reading Dungeon and Dragon every month.)

Thank you, James, for all of your creative ideas, and thank you Paizo for making this happen.

And another thank you to Paizo for the great bonus PDF with my subscription!

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Terrific Product
Reviewer: wedgeski

This book just oozes quality. The production, artwork, and writing quality are superb. There's a lot packed in there and the presentation shows every inch of the professionalism I would expect from Paizo. I love the differently themed chapters and the mix of writing talent is a stroke of genius. I marked it down only because the adventure needs a bit more 'bite' to it, but I have no hesitation recommending Pathfinder to anyone looking to start a new campaign in a rich setting.

FullStarFullStarFullStarFullStarFullStar Excellent, and I liked the art!
Reviewer: fireinthedust

I don't give ratings unless the product deserves it. This is a great read, and I LIKED THE ART. the goblins, obviously a highlight, but the so-called Cartoonish style is excellent (like Ameiko, madame mvashti, brusthamus, but especially the main villain was well accomplished). I hope they keep this style of art and hire the artists again (as seen in, I believe, d20 apocalypse). It's high-quality cartoonishness, frankly, and I hope to see more.

James Jacobs did a heck of a job, and I am now a fan.

the setting likewise is fun, so I'm continuing the subscription.


Product Discussion
126 posts. See all discussion for this product.

Pathfinder #1 -- Rise of the Runelords Chapter 1: "Burnt Offerings" (OGL)
Ryan Snyder,

I'm rabbidly awaiting my copy of Pathfinder #1, but in the meantime my friend has graciously let me borrow his copy he picked up at Gen Con '07 this year. I think it has the potential to outstrip Dungeon magazine. In your face WotC. Sadly it doesn't have as many crunchy bits as Dragon magazine. But that is what GameMastery Item cards are for.

John Warren,

Demogorgon Final Hiresa avatar

I agree with everyone who says that this is a gorgeous product. And the $19.99 pricetag (less if you subscribe) is very reasonable considering all the 32-page modules out there for $10-$13.

I also have to agree about the tiny print being a problem, though. I'm glad that the staff is cramming as much info as possible into the available space, but the tiny type is off-putting. (At least I also get a free PDF of the issue, so I can view the text at larger size on my PC if I have to.)

I picked up Conquest of Bloodsworn Vale yesterday, and the font in that module is much easier to read. I would love to see Pathfinder use the same layout as the GameMastery modules.

cambion,

Jack avatar

The font, the font, oh my... the font! After years of reading a magazine with the same size font, one would think that the complaints about font size would have occurred prior to their subscription running out. If the font size is that much of a factor, Paizo sells a magnifying glass, as does the local pharmacy (hint, pick one up). Most everything in the module (I began in the eighties, I use old school terminology, deal with it) creates an atmosphere and setting that is unique, above all that is essential for creating a long term game. Some of the elements are left open for questions to allow people to go their own route or await further development. It works rather nicely, although creation of a new world is difficult, it seems to be handled rather well by the people at Paizo. Well done.

Rob G,

Lucky 2 avatar

The only thing that makes me sad about the new Pathfinder is that Paizo has to keep reinventing the wheel by building an entirely new game world and wasting so much space fleshing out a new world. If only they had a setting that was already in existence, as they were able to do with the Dungeon and Dragon magazines, there'd be a lot more substance for the gaming material. I give them a ton of credit for relegating much of that background to the Player's Guide, however. The adventure looks like it'll be a lot of fun to run, the art is beautiful, and the whole thing is well-worth the value for a person who just wants to pick up an adventure and run with it. I hope the next one is worthy of it; I have no doubt it will be.

Andoran James Laubacker (Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber),

Publican avatar

Can we ask questions about the material in Burnt Offerings here? I don't think any of them are spoilers, just have some background questions I'd like to ask.

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