Pathfinder Module: We Be Goblins! (PFRPG) (based on
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Paizo Publishing, LLC
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A most unusual adventure for 1st-level goblin characters.
The Licktoad goblins of Brinestump Marsh have stumbled upon a great treasure—fireworks! Yet unfortunately for them, the tribe member responsible for the discovery has already been exiled for the abhorrent crime of writing (which every goblin knows steals words from your head). To remedy this situation, the Licktoads’ leader, His Mighty Girthness Chief Rendwattle Gutwad, has declared that the greatest heroes of the tribe must venture forth to retrieve the rest of the fireworks from a derelict ship stranded in the marsh. In order to prove themselves as the Licktoads’ bravest goblins, the PCs must complete a series of dangerous dares, from swallowing bull slugs and braving the dreaded Earbiter to dancing with Squealy Nord himself. Yet even once they’ve proven their mettle, the adventure is just beginning. For the ship in question is far from uninhabited, and Vorka the cannibal goblin would like nothing better than a few tasty visitors....
We Be Goblins! is an adventure for 1st-level characters in which the PCs play a horde of malicious and murderous goblins, written for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and compatible with the 3.5 edition of the world's oldest RPG. The adventure takes place outside the town of Sandpoint in the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can easily be adapted for any campaign world. It also serves as a preview of Pathfinder Player Companion: Goblins of Golarion, and as an optional prequel to Pathfinder Adventure Path's upcoming Jade Regent Adventure Path.
Written by Richard Pett.
This special 16-page Pathfinder Module was initially made available for Free RPG Day on June 18, 2011.
Note: Due to the special nature of this product, it is NOT part of the Pathfinder Modules Subscription.
We Be Goblins! is sanctioned for use in Pathfinder Society Organized Play. Its Chronicle Sheet and additional rules for running this module are a free download (232 KB zip/PDF). Pregenerated characters are available here (803 KB zip/PDF).
We played this as our first game before we begin playing a series of Pathfinder Society games. It is a fun little game and a great chance to get a group started. A fun little intro for the Pathfinder rule set and no one is tied to their character so they wont be destroyed if the character is KIA, which really lets people ham it up as Goblins.
Story: Extremely entertaining, and fun. The explaining it from a goblin's point of view, and then what it really looks like to us. Is an entertaining way of seeing through the goblin mentality.
Roleplay: The entire scenario is one gigantic roleplay moments. Even the weakest roleplayer can slip into the goblin mentality and have a blast with this.
Combat: While nothing that I would task as "Difficult" the fact that you're being a goblin, and the sheer difference in point of view makes every combat in this scenario memorable.
Originality: I, in my experience have never read, seen, or done anything like this. This scenario strikes me as extremely original.
Not only was the Goblins a lot of fun to play and to run for the adventure is perfect for them. Full of all things that make Goblins the most wonderful recreation Paizo has made.
Not only was this module fun simply because the PCs play as straight up goblins (complete with hilarious pre-gens) but the content is creative, entertaining and surprisingly unique. I had imagined playing one of the little minions from Overlord many, many times and this totally sweet module did it for me!
I ran this adventure as a one off on our normal gaming night. Two of my players couldn't make it, so the rest of us had Goblin hilarity for the evening.
One of the players is brand new to Pathfinder. This is the first RPG he has ever played. This was a hilarious, rip-roaring fun introduction for him! Most of the damage the players took was from each other Three Stooges style.
Loved the module. My players now want more Goblin goodness!
Paizo, I think, has a hit on its hands with their enchanting, unique, imaginative, and detailed take on what has traditionally been one of the weakest, most obvious, and most forgettable monsters in any fantasy RPGs. With a scary but adorable new face and a ton of personality, it seems that Goblins have become a sort of mascot for Pathfinder, and they should be!
"We Be Goblins" is an incredibly entertaining read from start to finish, and I couldn't help grinning non-stop like a kid on Christmas even after the third or fourth time I read it.
The .pdf of this adventure for Goblin PCs is currently free, but I am more than happy to pay for the print version, and just ordered it alongside "Goblins of Golarion", to go with my copy of "Classic Monsters Revisited" with its section on Goblins.
I'm now a fan of Pathfinder and Paizo based on the strength of the Goblins alone.
I would love to see further adventures built around these little critters in the future, and I think the content of "Goblins of Golarion", the Goblin chapter of "Classic Monsters Revisited", "We Be Goblins", and any other Goblin content and fiction would make a fantastic collection bound in one volume with a couple other Goblin adventures, the next time Paizo wants to print any or all of these items; I'd happily buy the collection in addition to the originals. Furthermore, I would vote in a heartbeat for Goblins supported as a core PC race in future editions of the core rulebook.
Seriously, the Goblins should get their own novels, comic books, movie series, toy line... must have more Goblins! :)
This module is fun and has the potential for some crazy endings. A lot of the fun will depend on how much everyone likes roleplay. 5 star for roleplay players, 3 star otherwise.
There's not too much that hasn't already been said except for:
1) This needed a lot more prep than I thought it would (although it can easily be run straight)
2) The GM has to add more detail / excitement to the middle encounter, which is fine I guess.
3) Many reviews say this module took 2 hours, my particular groups likes to roleplay and it took 3.5 hours.
4) This is the first module in at least 10+ years where I actually read the box text almost word-for-word.
This adventure is a lot of fun. I ran it as a play-by-post game and had a blast. There is a lot of humour injected into the adventure (not surprising as Pathfinder goblins have a very comical bent to them) and groups may end up spending large amounts of time laughing at the antics they get up to, both from scripted and non-scripted events.
The adventure is split into two main parts. The first part takes place in the goblin village where the PCs undergo a series of comical tests (such as riding an ill-tempered pig like at a rodeo) to prove their mettle as goblin heroes. The second part is a short overland journey to a shipwreck containing the prized fireworks. Although the format of the second part is fairly standard fare, there are a number of goblin-like twists thrown in. The main villain is a cannibal goblin who (gasp!) keeps dogs and horses as pets!
The adventure comes with four pregenerated goblin characters; however, it’s perfectly possible for players to create their own characters. Indeed, a group with more than four players will have no choice but to create some of their own. There are only four tests in the opening section (each one somewhat geared towards one of the pregenerated characters), so gamemasters with larger groups may want to invent some extra tests so that each PC has a chance to complete one.
Since goblins are, by nature, evil, this adventure can bring with it some of the problems of evil campaigns. In my own pbp group, there was some arguing and infighting that luckily did not result in the characters killing each other. But it might have. GMs should be prepared to deal with an evil party when they run this adventure. I, personally, am not a fan of evil campaigns. However, as a short one-off comedy adventure, this adventure works really well.