Preparation for WOTR Campaign


Wrath of the Righteous


I am using this thread to bring together some of the ideas (and my own thoughts) on the boards in a singular place in preparation for my new campaign. Maybe others can use it as a reference point for their campaigns or it could only end up useful for me.

If you have ideas for the Wrath of the Righteous AP or know of ideas used in other threads or campaign journels, please share!

First item up for bid is Book 1 of Wrath of the Righteous!


It seems one of the most common additions to Book 1 is getting the players involed in Kenebres. This is often done by running a sort of prelude or mixing it up with the NPCs beforehand.

How is this best accomplished?

My Current idea that has stuck is a sort of intro into the Worldwound by way of PFS Scenario Wardstone Patrol.

Research more possible side quests or introduction scenarios.

It has been suggested adding The Demon Within as a historical event by running it stand-alone and placing it in the past before launching Book 1. The characters would have to be different as it is a high level module.

Perhaps replacing NPCs with the former PCs from The Demon Within run.


Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

You're aiming for a fine balance as its a good idea to introduce the city, its main locations and persona. However, the campaign never returns here either.

I borrowed from Runelords and built up the festivities to introduce a few NPCs. I also ran a half session for my PCs backgrounds and had each of them know an important location like the Inn, the library and the Grey Garrison.


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I have heard some groups had included the early bits of the festivities, something akin to the start of Runelords.

One thing I had thought of doing was roleplaying out the very start, and using various skill checks and the like to do things like saving some innocent from falling debris, avoiding the attention of a larger demon (possibly using Fear to drive players away from it), and the like... and slowly drive the players into a select area as buildings collapse and the like. It would culminate with the fight between the Storm King and our doomed silver dragon, with the players stuck and unable to do anything. (They could even attack and have their arrows or spells do nothing or very little... and they could also help with certain NPCs whom they will wake up with.)

That said: Don't use Mythic. If you want to have a Mythic aspect, use Regenerating Hero Points - each day, the characters have three Hero Points. With each Tier, you can up that total by one. It replicates a lot of what Mythic does on the base level, without being over the top or with some aspects that just fail entirely.


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Not that it matters to the theme of this thread but I am not even using Pathfinder so Mythic won't be a problem for me. I have seen it botes that the Mythic Rules have been problematic for some groups so the addition of that to this thread is good!


James Jacobs, Extraordinaire, suggests:

Starting the adventure with some time for the PCs to explore Kenabres and come to like the city is certainly a strong idea... but it has a hidden peril.

As a general rule, things like simply telling the players "Your characters are knocked out and fall into a hole and wake up in the dark!" is bad GMing. It's bad to assume player decisions, and to take the element of chance and free will out of the players' hands and force their characters to do something. It's the WORST kind of railroading.

The only time I feel that this kind of railroading is legit is BEFORE or AT THE VERY START of a campaign, when it's used to set up a dynamic and notable start to a campaign. That's why "Souls for Smuggler's Shiv" starts with the shipwrecked PCs already being shipwrecked and waking up on the beach.

Furthermore, by starting the adventure with what is essentially read-aloud text that throws the PCs into a hole, we can set up a cool, mythic start to the adventure while at the same time NOT killing the fragile 1st level PCs. If the PCs do anything other than just stand there and gawk at the initial events... they will die. If not from being too close to a collapsing building or being attacked by a demon or simply being too close to a CR 26+ fight... then SURELY from the fall that starts the adventure. The dragon has to cast feather fall on the PCs, and if you give them a chance to roleplay that scene rather than just narrate it... there's a REALLY good chance that a player will do something that prevents his character from being close enough to the others to gain the benefits of that feather fall. Or maybe even worse... prevents him from falling into the hole with his companions in the first place, leaving him above ground at ground zero where the average encounter is CR 17 or higher for a few hours.

The players assume that you, the GM, are putting them into challenges that they at least have a chance to handle, regardless of what that encounter is described as. If you turn control over to the PCs by starting the campaign too early, and the player characters are under the assumption that they can start making choices that will impact events before they fall into the caverns below... there's a good chance they'll either get killed or be disappointed that you fudged things.

One good way (if a bit experimental) to handle this, perhaps, is to play out the beginning of the adventure as presented, then as the PCs fall, have them black out for a bit. During that blackout... do a 1 or 2 hour "flashback" where the PCs get to explore Kenabres a bit and introduce each other. You can even use this time to introduce them to some of the NPCs, or to allow them to gather equipment. Then, as the PCs catch up in their flashback to the start of the adventure, they wake up in the dark.

Using the black out after the fall to run some introductory things to give the devastation of Kenabres some feeling. But you may run into the problem with the players "metagaming" the knowledge of the future destruction and trying to find away around it.


I think it really depends on your players. I, personally, would love to be minding my own business and walking along halfway through an adventure and then POW!!! Crazy stuff happens and I'm knocked into the catacombs. Only caveat is that if I got attached to any of the NPCs topside I want a chance to either rescue them, interact with them or have their death make an impact on my character (i.e. wake up to see their severed head lying inches from my own).

I think the Wardstone Patrol and the Scars of the Third Crusade both work well in giving them a real sense of Mendev without building up too much attachment for Kenabres. Also some of the lower level stuff in the Diamond Siege works well for extra encounters to throw into the attack on Kenabres itself.


An Aside Note on Terendelev's Scales is that some group have seemed to buff them into more potent items or removed them completely because they did not feel they were worthwhile.

Also I need to go over the scene with the Wardstone again because there was a really cool scene written in one of the journals.


laraqua wrote:

I think it really depends on your players. I, personally, would love to be minding my own business and walking along halfway through an adventure and then POW!!! Crazy stuff happens and I'm knocked into the catacombs. Only caveat is that if I got attached to any of the NPCs topside I want a chance to either rescue them, interact with them or have their death make an impact on my character (i.e. wake up to see their severed head lying inches from my own).

I think the Wardstone Patrol and the Scars of the Third Crusade both work well in giving them a real sense of Mendev without building up too much attachment for Kenabres. Also some of the lower level stuff in the Diamond Siege works well for extra encounters to throw into the attack on Kenabres itself.

I will look into Scars of the Third Crusade and Diamond Seige, thanks! I personally want to run some introductory things... including the The Demon Within which I plan on running in the past using pre-generated characters (two of which are old PCs that their players will be returning to play for that module). Some of these pre-generated characters may return in WotR in place of other important NPCs.


I think that covers most of the additions to Book 1. I am surprised that more alternate resources aren't available. Does anyone happen to have a list of PFS Scenarios / Modules that deal with Mendev and the Worldwound.

The Demon Within
Wardstone Patrol
Scars of the Third Crusade

Have been named thus far.

Now we move to Book 2.


I added orphans to rescue in Book 2 (http://stwildonroleplaying.blogspot.com.au/2014/11/wrath-of-righteous-new- encounter.html) which won't be everyone's cup of tea.

And for Book 3 I threw in the Tala Monastery (mentioned in the Pathfinder fiction) and Terendelev's Hoard (http://stwildonroleplaying.blogspot.com.au/2014/12/a-slight-detour-and-tal a-monastery.html) as a way to help their own troops and have a respite from demony goodness in the Worldwound by travelling a short way through Mendev.


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Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

What have I not added to module 3? XD

Pathfinder Society stuff (beefing up the encounters, of course):

Scars of the Third Crusade. I've moved it to Drezen (setting the pathfinders that disappear up as envoys out to set up a lodge in Drezen) and adding that the inquisitors finds the PCs to be demonic infiltrators, having stolen divine power and being in league with the demons.

The Traitor's Lodge. Also moved to Drezen.

Weapon in the Rift. Moved the tower closer to Drezen, giving the PCs the opportunity to arrange some mining and later (once the area has been cleansed of the demonic taint) set up some farming.

I've added several random events - one of the more official events being the succubus Zalmisdria and her pet dragon raiding supply boats. I'm hoping my players will decide to invade her forest and kill her - I'd love to see them forced to flee for once :-D

I've modified all of the PC's origin stories (from the traits) heavily. I've removed mythic, but I am adding some mythic elements slowly to the game. One of the characters is slowly turning into a divine being without realising it, being the one Touched by Divinity. She has started receiving prayers, believing them so far to be dreams sent by her deity instructing her to help these people.

I've also added a crazy druid which is the embodiment of an immortal intelligent inter-dimensional spaceship created by the remnants of a dying world several thousand years ago, intent on having said crazy druid accompanying them to the Worldwound, trying to cleanse the demonic taint, seemingly killing himself in the process and resurrecting all of the PC's equipment to its natural state (leather armour turning into a cow, for instance), with the equipment turning back into equipment once the PCs chase it down and slay it :-D

(said spaceship always features in one form or another in my campaigns, when my PCs discover it... they love hating it :-D )


Not being particular familiar with The Demon Within... I realized upon reading it that it serves an extremely important purpose as the prologue set years before the start of the campaign...

Spoiler:

The game starts in Kenabres and it helps make the players themselves care about Kenabres / Clydwell Keep environs because they just saved it from destruction. Even if they are playing new characters in Wrath... they are going to remember as players they were responsible for saving this town/area from the demons just years prior in game time!

This shortens the amount of introduction that will be needed to make the destruction of Kenabres felt by them.


I have a question for anyone that maybe to answer? Does anyone know what is up with the Demonscope during Wrath? Did this artifact get dropped from the meta? I am about to kick of The Demon Within... and knowing what will come in Wrath and what happens in The Demon Within. I feel like they would move this item! And since the focus is on Drezen and not retaking Clydwell it seems like a good assumption it got moved.

Silver Crusade Contributor

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Re: the Demonscope...

Demons Revisited:
Goriath, The Soul Drinker (barbarian 1; Research DC 31 G; The Demon Within 24): The balor lord Goriath has only recently ascended to this level of power, having spent the last several decades imprisoned within an artifact called the Demonscope. After a fallen paladin nearly released him, a group of heroes managed to banish Goriath back to the Abyss. This act destroyed the Demonscope as well, for as Goriath was hurled back to the Outer Rifts, he took the magical power within the artifact with him and used it to ascend to the status of balor lord. Since that day, Goriath has been working to build his own domain on the Abyss. For now, the Soul Drinker has pledged his servitude to Orcus, who has tasked Goriath with retaking a remote city-fortress on the outskirts of the Abyssal realm of Uligor that fell long ago to a pair of subversive thanatotic titans.
Goriath has the soul swallow balor lord power, and prefers offerings of powerful holy magic items worth no less than 100,000 gp that he can corrupt.

Also, if I recall correctly, The Demon Within is where we get Nexavaran Steel, which has since been disavowed by the world-building team. So treating the module as loosely canonical might be for the best. ^_^


Sweet. Now I have an idea for an ending... maybe even a link to run Paladin in Hell (old 2E module) later if one of the Sentinels get dragged along with him!


Not finding a lot of stuff to add around Sword of Valor (Book 2)... interestingly enough. Perhaps the module stands strongly on its own?

Seen some feedback about not using the massive combat rules here and there.

The original design was meant to have 4 armies (one for each PC). The idea has merit... must read the module again with this in mind.


laraqua wrote:

I added orphans to rescue in Book 2 (http://stwildonroleplaying.blogspot.com.au/2014/11/wrath-of-righteous-new- encounter.html) which won't be everyone's cup of tea.

And for Book 3 I threw in the Tala Monastery (mentioned in the Pathfinder fiction) and Terendelev's Hoard (http://stwildonroleplaying.blogspot.com.au/2014/12/a-slight-detour-and-tal a-monastery.html) as a way to help their own troops and have a respite from demony goodness in the Worldwound by travelling a short way through Mendev.

Possible additions to Book 2.


I've seen some people add more military politics in gathering armies and then the issues between armies from contradictory alignments or religious persuasions taking issue with each other, requiring a lot of wrangling.


Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Legendary Games has a supplement that can be slotted in book 2 called the Equinox Crown. It is not a straight up module but rather a series of encounters that tells a story for the PCs. All while doing what book 2 asks them to do.

Legendary Games is a 3rd party publisher for Pathfinder. They have excellent stuff. Well worth the price.

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