A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th to 11th level characters (Tiers: 7-8 and 10-11).
A priceless manuscript has gone missing from the Pathfinder lodge in Almas, and the Pathfinder Society has traced its current whereabouts to a remote monastery off the coast of southwestern Nex. Arriving at the Monastery of the Unremitting Tide, the PCs face the suspicious scholars who study there, and in the process risk enraging an ancient spirit and uncovering a long-lost secret that, more than possibly costing them the stolen manuscript, could cost them their very lives.
Written by Martin Long
This scenario is designed for play in Pathfinder Society Organized Play, but can easily be adapted for use with any world. This scenario is compliant with the Open Game License (OGL) and is suitable for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
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I played this at high tier with a five person party.
Starting with a 3 score I adjust that for
+1: Background
This is an investigation scenario that fully delivers on the background AND embeds it solidly in Golarion lore. Everything made sense AND is explained.
+1: BBEG
Another plus for the BBEG. All the actions make sense, if you step into it's shoes. I actually felt sorry for what happened to her.
-1: Map
Minor Spoiler:
So we have several buildings on the compound and we are forbidden to go into some of them? Really? Where do you think the macguffin can be found?
Having two seperate locations would have helped: place the forbidden buildings somewhere else on the island and let the PCs find that (or be told that it exists once they have proven themselves)
I played this under Woran's GMing a while back. I had a good time. The balance of investigation and fighting worked for me; it took us quite a while to figure out what was going on, but it all fit into place when it did. And the combats against sometimes rather weird enemies are the logical result of that plot. I'll also add the combats weren't walkovers but not unfair either; just the way I like it.
Sadly we had to rush the ending; possibly we took too long on the investigation. I recommend scheduling this on an evening where you have plenty of time, so you don't have to diminish the atmosphere by rushing.
Intense and deep roleplay opportunities! Take your time with this one!
I fully plan to expand this review in the near future, but let me say that this is one of my top five scenarios, modules, or AP sections of all time!
Perhaps the tactics aren't "perfect" for every single encounter - eh, so what? The roleplay opportunities, on the other hand - from the players' reactions to their very first perception check at "the gates" to the final combat forgone conclusion are just dripping (dare I say hanging?) with rich plot!
Rather than retype past posts, here are two other times I've gushed about this scenario in the past. If your players like deep roleplay, nonlinear plot, powerful monsters (see most recent reviewer before mine for [redacted]), and potentially personal-paradigm-shifting plot - run this for them!!!
Mike Bramnik
Venture Captain, Bloomington IN
PS - This is one of VERY few scenarios prior to John Compton taking the helm where the PCs can learn all of the scenario's backstory during the scenario itself! A major plus in my book!
PPS - I really wish I could GM this for the first two reviewers who left only 1-2 stars for this scenario. This one might not be best for a convention setting where you have to rush to fit a tight schedule, but is much better for when you really want to take your time and enjoy the RP!
Due to some people talking excitedly about this scenario on the PFS boards, I looked it up.
I decided to run it, as practically no one had played this in my region.
I have to say, I really liked it. While the first encounter can be a bit underwhelming, using intelligent tactics in confided spaces can make up for a lot of it.
Siccing two [redacted] or a single [redacted] on the players in act two was a real treat. They literally did not see it coming.
Overall, its a nice balance of a combat and investigative scenarios. There is a lot of opportunity for roleplay, and I played up the eeriness by making little handouts for players, with a couple of them specially tailored for their specific characters.
I've both played an run this scenario in the last month, and I have to say, I was really surprised by how good it is. The lack of reviews and the lack of a GM thread made me think it must not be that good, but it's a really enjoyable scenario. As others have mentioned, the story is something that the PCs learn through playing the scenario, not through the GM explaining things after the fact. Figuring out the story also helps prepare the PCs for the final fight. It's great when the knowledge the PCs acquire is actually useful both to the story and to dealing with the enemies.
Don't listen to the complaints about the fights in the early reviews of the scenario. The fights that are labeled too easy are easier for a reason. The ones that are labeled too deadly are... potentially deadly, but I think the power level of the average PC has gone up in the last 4 years, and what were once extremely difficult fights are not just challenging. Both when I played it and when I ran it, a PC was in danger of death more than once, but no one was actually killed, and that was with several character playing up into 10-11. For a CORE campaign or a group of 4, this could prove to be a very challenging scenario at 10-11, but I think an in-tier group would still be able to handle the fights.
Also, just a small compliment to Martin Long... the stock dialogue written for the BBEG is some of the most flavorful I can remember from an earlier season scenario. There's lots of good stuff there to work with.
I'm running this in a few days and I just realized that there's no description as to where the 3rd part of the manuscript is. There's an implication in the Mission Notes of M2, but I couldn't find anything else. Anyone know?
I'm running this in a few days and I just realized that there's no description as to where the 3rd part of the manuscript is. There's an implication in the Mission Notes of M2, but I couldn't find anything else. Anyone know?
Never mind, I found it. It's listed in the gear for the 7-8 tier, but was left out of the 10-11 tier gear.
