[Bridging the Gap 2026] PFS2 3-08 Foundation's Price

Game Master Kilimaro

Hello and welcome to my table! This is part of the Bridging the Gap event taking place across the Paizo forums and elsewhere. Gameplay begins on May 22 and will end no later than August 14.

Game: Pathfinder Society 2nd edition
Scenario: 3-08 Foundation's Price
Levels: 1-4
Repeatable: No, but if you want to use a replay before all scenarios become repeatable at the start of season 8, that's cool

Signups: Opened in April; Warhorn is full as of this writing

Posting expectations: At least once per day
I am in US Eastern time (GMT - 5) and will be making an effort to update the game in the morning and evening. If I know I won’t be able to update on a day, I’ll let you know here. I ask you to do the same if you know you could miss 2+ days in a row. This is the only game I’m running during this event, so you will have all of my attention.

This scenario includes some events that can happen in an order that the party chooses. I will try to use a "half and go" standard: Once three people agree on the same thing, that's what we'll do. In general, I will aim to keep things moving.

Please fill out the following as soon as you are able and definitely before game time:

RPG Chronicles signup
Slides (character names/tokens on page 3)

I am still learning the ropes with Pathfinder GMing and with GMing through PBP. Thank you for your patience. If you feel that I've made a mistake with a mechanic regarding your character, please let me know. I don't have a lot of experience with classes outside of the two Player Core books, so if you are playing one of those, a short explanation of an ability as you use it would be appreciated. Thank you. Let's have some fun in Qadira!

Hello!

Beezhul is currently in a game, but we are on the last scene, easily finished before start time. She will be Level 2 as of completing her current adventure.

I am burning a Replay, yes.

Beezhul is a Guardian with the following two mechanics that require a little attention in PbP:

Taunt
[concentrate]
With an attention-grabbing gesture, noise, cutting remark, or threatening shout, you attempt to draw an enemy to you instead of your allies. Taunt gains the auditory trait, visual trait, or both, depending on how you draw the target’s attention. Even mindless creatures are drawn to your taunts. Choose an enemy within 30 feet to be your taunted enemy. If your taunted enemy takes a hostile action that includes at least one of your allies but doesn’t include you, they take a –1 circumstance penalty to their attack rolls and DCs for that action, and they also become off-guard until the start of their next turn.
Your enemy remains taunted until the start of your next turn, and you can have only one Taunt in effect at a time. Taunting a new enemy ends this effect on any current target.

Intercept Attack
Trigger: An ally within 10 feet [or 15 taunted] of you takes physical damage.
You fling yourself in the way of oncoming harm to protect an ally. You can Step, but you must end your movement adjacent to the triggering ally. You take the damage instead of the triggering ally. Apply your own immunities, weaknesses, and resistances to the damage, not the ally’s.
Special: You can extend this ability to an ally within 15 feet of you if the damage comes from your taunted enemy. If this ally is farther than you can Step to reach, you can Stride instead of Stepping; you still must end the movement adjacent to your ally.

I will re-post these as they come up in our game. But essentially, so long as she has hit points to give, Beezhul will likely be staying close to a few of her allies, ready to absord some damage for them (especially casters), else charging the frontline with her large and varied weapons, all the while taunting one enemy at a time to either draw their aggression or allow the party to focus fire upon their compromised defenses (off-guard).

If Brimly is playing here I'll probably bring my cleric to the table. He's currently in a game that's concluding in a few days.

rainzax, my dwarf champion has been on a parallel journey to Beezhul's in Xin-Edasseril. He has also gained a level after that adventure. I was reading through yours after mine finished up, the refugees were lucky to have her out there with them in Shard Cove!

Batpony, a pleasure to see you again. Good luck to Anji as he wraps things up out there in the desert.

Ha ha I thought Beezhul was a goner for sure!

A treat to sit an an author's table.

Hopefully you fared as well (or as luckily) as we!

Current status: All of our signed up players are dotted into the game. We have 17 challenge points with Batpony still to officially choose a character on the RPG Chronicles signup. That's going to put us in the high tier (level 3-4) when our sixth character is locked in, with somewhere from 19-23 points.

Any level 1 characters - currently just Gorn the Grappler - will receive a level bump:

* Hit points increased by 10
* All attack modifiers, attack damage, and spell damage increased by 1
* All skill modifiers, Perception modifiers, saving throw modifiers, and AC increased by 1
* All class and spell DCs increased by 1

Level bump benefits subject to change if anyone has purchased a mentorship boon from their faction that improves an aspect of the level bump. For example, an Envoy's Alliance mentor boon gives +2 to skill modifiers instead of +1. Please let me know if anyone has one of these boons to apply.

For Batpony, I know your initial choice of Anji is still there in A Star's Journey. I see that's an Outpost game that's gone over the deadline. If you want me to check with HQ about you still using Anji, I can do that.

Still need tokens on the slides from Gorn, Bloody Whispers, and Batpony's PC.

Character introductions may be posted in the Gameplay section prior to the official start of the event. If anyone has any questions before we get going, please let me know!

Characters with 20 Reputation ("Liked") within one Faction can take that Faction's Mentor Boon for free by purchasing it for 0 Achievement Points.

Unfortunately, Beezhul only has 12 XP & 12 Reputation, and so isn't yet Liked by the Radiant Oath, and so cannot purchase a Mentor Boon for Gorn the Grappler or any other level one characters.

There is already a token for Bloody Whispers and his eidolon - PC #3 on the slides?

There is already a token for Bloody Whispers and his eidolon - PC #3 on the slides?

You are correct. Sorry! I misspoke.

We have Beezhul, Brimly, and Bloody, and we need Xavier, Gorn, and Batpony's PC to put tokens on the slides. The marching order is helpful so that when a battle map appears, I can place the PCs in a formation as previously indicated and don't have to put the game on hold to wait for people to place their tokens.

Current status: All of our signed up players are dotted into the game. We have 17 challenge points with Batpony still to officially choose a character on the RPG Chronicles signup. That's going to put us in the high tier (level 3-4) when our sixth character is locked in, with somewhere from 19-23 points.

Any level 1 characters - currently just Gorn the Grappler - will receive a level bump:

* Hit points increased by 10
* All attack modifiers, attack damage, and spell damage increased by 1
* All skill modifiers, Perception modifiers, saving throw modifiers, and AC increased by 1
* All class and spell DCs increased by 1

Level bump benefits subject to change if anyone has purchased a mentorship boon from their faction that improves an aspect of the level bump. For example, an Envoy's Alliance mentor boon gives +2 to skill modifiers instead of +1. Please let me know if anyone has one of these boons to apply.

For Batpony, I know your initial choice of Anji is still there in A Star's Journey. I see that's an Outpost game that's gone over the deadline. If you want me to check with HQ about you still using Anji, I can do that.

Still need tokens on the slides from Gorn, Bloody Whispers, and Batpony's PC.

Character introductions may be posted in the Gameplay section prior to the official start of the event. If anyone has any questions before we get going, please let me know!

That would be appreciated! I believe they are on the very last part of that scenario so I'm hoping it would wrap up in a day or so.

If Brimly is playing here I'll probably bring my cleric to the table. He's currently in a game that's concluding in a few days.

Brimly and magic man together again!

I have added my token and a token for my future bird. I may change my token as you cannot see much in such a small pic. Also probably will not follow where I put my token in line-up. Do not think it helps having the rogue in the back of a line. lol

Any plans to put up a skill sheet to fill out before play?

Hey folks, good to be here and excited to play! Looking forward to getting started - I'm playing a Swashbuckler (Player Core 2) and while I've never played with a level bump before, I'm sure I'll seriously appreciate it once we get into a hairy situation.

I've gone ahead and added my token to the Google sheet and placed myself in the marching order. Gorn is currently playing in a play-by-Discord campaign but I suspect it will wrap fairly soon.

Any plans to put up a skill sheet to fill out before play?

I was not planning to put one up because I am trying to limit myself to one new thing at a time for GMing a PBP scenario. This time it's the marching order slide.

I do have a macro sheet that another GM gave me, so if there are other players who'd prefer to have one to see the party's strengths/weaknesses in one glance, I can try to get that going for this game instead. TBH, it was mostly the mental hurdle of having one more thing to insist that players fill out before the game can begin that led me to tell myself I'll try that one next time.

Gorn is currently playing in a play-by-Discord campaign but I suspect it will wrap fairly soon.

How soon is fairly soon? I've been previously told that there's some wiggle room to "one game at a time" for characters being used in RL or VTT games over this weekend, so I figure it's OK to offer the same to finish off PBP/D games. However, if the PBD game goes beyond Monday, I'll have to ask HQ about what I'm supposed to do in that situation. I don't want to get chastised later for not enforcing Society play rules properly.

I have added my token and a token for my future bird. I may change my token as you cannot see much in such a small pic. Also probably will not follow where I put my token in line-up. Do not think it helps having the rogue in the back of a line. lol

I'll move back make room for you.

Hey folks, good to be here and excited to play! Looking forward to getting started - I'm playing a Swashbuckler (Player Core 2) and while I've never played with a level bump before, I'm sure I'll seriously appreciate it once we get into a hairy situation.

Level Bump if for Level One PCs only.

(or whatever the lowest tier is in a given Scenario; One for 1st-4th, Three for 3rd-6th, etc)

Xavier Lunari wrote:

Any plans to put up a skill sheet to fill out before play?

I was not planning to put one up because I am trying to limit myself to one new thing at a time for GMing a PBP scenario. This time it's the marching order slide.

I do have a macro sheet that another GM gave me, so if there are other players who'd prefer to have one to see the party's strengths/weaknesses in one glance, I can try to get that going for this game instead. TBH, it was mostly the mental hurdle of having one more thing to insist that players fill out before the game can begin that led me to tell myself I'll try that one next time.

I am not saying it is needed, just asking. I thought the skill sheet was more about helpint the GM such as seeing what our passive stats are for secret rolls or for issues unique to a player such as if a player with Trap Finder getting a check to find traps even if they are not searching.

Just so everyone has an idea of the timeline here:

GMs are free to start their scenarios when the VTT part of this con event starts - for me, that's 7pm on Friday night. I plan to start you off with the introduction on Saturday morning (US Eastern).

As there are PCs who are either being used in live games over the weekend or are waiting for current PBP/D games to end, I won't race through the introduction part of the scenario, and it will probably be Tuesday morning before I really try to get things going beyond that. Please do try to at least introduce your character and react to the initial briefing before then so that when we get moving, everybody is starting off from the same point.

Thank you! I hope we all have a fun time in Qadira.

Good to hear. I technically do not get my animal companion until after tomorrow mornings game and I am not 100% certain on the bird's name.

Sadly, magic man is locked away so bringing the originally assigned character to this adventure.

Kelumur, that's a cool avatar!

Sadly, magic man is locked away so bringing the originally assigned character to this adventure.

Bit warmer of a location for Kelumur in this scenario than the last one I ran with you.

That settles us on 20 challenge points in the high tier.

Hey folks, the game I’ve currently got Gorn in is running long so it looks like I’ll have to bring something else. And since I’m a little late on characters and we already have a guardian I guess I’ll just build something new.

I’ll look at the party composition tonight and have think about what would be fun to play.

Apologies for not posting sooner, my computer has been in the shop for a couple days.

Finished the convention and Brimly didn't die! He has now been updated to level 2.

@Gorn, you could also utilize a pregen to give you more time if you're unsure what to create, too.

Hey folks, the game I’ve currently got Gorn in is running long so it looks like I’ll have to bring something else. And since I’m a little late on characters and we already have a guardian I guess I’ll just build something new.

I’ll look at the party composition tonight and have think about what would be fun to play.

Apologies for not posting sooner, my computer has been in the shop for a couple days.

No worries - I'm waiting til Tuesday morning for a few reasons and one of them is to give people time to get settled with their character choices. Hopefully you can settle on something fun.

**

@Xavier Lunari, although I don't have a macro sheet going, is it possible for you to post a link to your sheet somewhere or put the info in your character's profile? Trying to at least eyeball what everybody has. Thank you!

Alright, I've settled on an Elven Cloistered Cleric of Nethys instead of Gorn.

Link to my sheet is below. Pathbuilder makes it a little difficult to adjust numbers for the level bump so I'll put them in my alias where appropriate and adjust on the fly for the rest.

Ready to rock!

https://pathbuilder2e.com/launch.html?build=1473608

Here is my lvl 3 charater

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lez0kapKSLA0LJFQ1yZ6xEO7jbiEIFyc/view?usp= drive_link

The forum SEEMS to have stabilized after the US holiday weekend's instability and I am going to try to proceed at what will be my more normal pace from this point in time. What I have just posted in the Gameplay section is the beginning of the real meat of the scenario.

If issues persist or resume, let me know by messaging through the Warhorn page for this table. Depending on severity or duration, I may either go more slowly or pause entirely until they are resolved.

So as not to clog up the Gameplay thread with some of this routine stuff, please let me know the following here:

1. If you have any GM glyphs and who you want to get the extra Hero Point(s)
2. Any adjustments to your daily preparations based on what you've learned about this mission
3. Choice for a Pathfinder Provision appropriate for your level
4. Your default exploration activity/modifier
5. Anything else you think I should know about your character before we really get moving

And, again, in the Gameplay thread, please communicate either with your character or just in a little OOC note which of the three tasks you wish to proceed to first.

1. None yet!
2. None. Brimly has his frying pans out unless forced to sheathe them.
3. Brimly will choose a 1st rank scroll of Heal and give it to Bloody Whispers
4. Search, or Scout if no one is scouting
5. Nothing right now!

1) 3 Glyphs
2) No adjustments to Daily Prep
3) Potency Crystal on her Spirit Thresher
4) Scout w/ Ever Ready (always gains Reaction during r1 of Encounter for Intercept Attack)
5) Nope

=)

1. No Glyphs
2. No adjustment
3. 2nd-rank scroll of dispel magic. If anyone can cast it will give it to them. Otherwise I have Trick Magic Item.
4. Avoid Notice
5. I have Trap Finder so even when not searching I get to roll for traps. I also have Deny Advantage so not flat-footed

1. 4 Glyphs.
2. No.
3. No.
4. Search.

Hey, I'm here - even though I'm having intermittent connection issues with the forum - and I'll try to get back into the game the best I can.

1. No Glyphs
2. Any adjustments to your daily preparations based on what you've learned about this mission
3. Scroll of Mystic Armor (Rank 1)
4. Exploration Activity: Investigate (Genie/Pathfinder Lore: +5; Arcana/Occultism: +5; Nature/Religion: +7
5. Priest of Nethys, God of Magic, with the Knowledge domain. My Scholarly Recollection domain spell lets me roll twice on a Perception or Recall Knowledge check; I will indicate if I'm burning a focus point beforehand. If it's a reflexive check or a GM secret roll, you can assume I'm not just to keep things moving.

That's easy enough about the glyphs. Everybody gets two Hero Points to start out. Use when you like, you can't take 'em with you.

1. 1 Glyph (Give to the Sabrael)
2. Nada
3. Lesser healing potion
4. Avoid notice
5. He has some accrued GM XP from the last time you GM'ed for Kelumur

Thanks, Kelumur!

I have absolutely no notes on Beezhul skinny-dipping in the oasis pool. 10/10, brilliant, no notes, zero way for me to top that.

Hey folks, I loved everyone's distractions - perfectly mad and inspired. Great job and I hope I get the chance to play in another "let's cause chaos" scenario with y'all again soon.

I wanted to post my "idea" for the slaver ship here, so we can see what everyone thinks and what the odds are that we can get away with it. Or, kindly inform me this plan's not likely to work.

The quick rundown:

- We handle the Overmarket and try to make a minimum of fuss. If possible, we blame any funny business on the slavers.

- We use this opportunity in the Overmarket to Gather Information and see if we can figure out who Safa's master is. We know it's someone rich enough to own a genie, that this genie's name is Safa, and that they consider Azam ibn Bashemi a rival. Hopefully this is enough (or maybe even more than enough) to figure out this guy's identity.

- We anonymously tip off Avisha al-Isman of the Satrapian Guard (or one of his flunkies) that Tadrun, the captain of the Swift Huntress, is responsible for sabotaging Azam's feast at the behest of [insert name of Safa's master here, assuming we get it].

- OPTIONAL: Find a way to lure Safa's master to the docks at the same time we're going to be there confronting the slavers and/or letting the Satrapian Guard confront the slavers. Open to ideas here!

- We let chaos unfold between the Guard and the slavers. MEANWHILE, our stealthier and stronger party members sneak aboard the slaver boat, free the captives, and dump any lingering slavers they find overboard. THEN, rig the ship for full sail, untether the boat, and let it sail at full speed out to sea, hopping overboard into the harbor at the first available opportunity. Or hell, maybe we let the freed slaves sail it to wherever the hell they feel like.

What does everyone think?

Sabrael, I read over your suggested ideas yesterday and some of what you've touched upon is kind of beyond the boundaries of what's in the scenario here, while others are just beyond what I know about Golarion. So, I took a little time to check up on some lore with Sedeq and Qadira to see where there can be improvisation. Here are my thoughts.

- On trying to turn the Satrapian Guard against the pirates: What happened there was by switching the gift, you caused Azam to insult the Guard Captain lady. She doesn't really care whether the feast was sabotaged or who did it. I would also say that the Guard is unlikely to be motivated to go against the pirates by saying they're slavers. That's not going to bring the law against them by default in this place.

- On trying to learn Safa's binder's name: There is not a mechanic for this in the scenario and I would prefer not to improvise one here. There is more to come regarding this individual's efforts to disrupt the Pathfinder Society in Qadira in the informal part two of this little arc. I'm planning to run that one (3-12 Fury's Toll) in the fall's Gameday event on these forums. Players from this game will have first dibs on those spots if they wish. So, I don't want to give it away in this game where it's not meant to be given away.

- On alternate ideas of what to do with the ship: You did hear from Safa that the ship is currently undergoing repairs, so the "let the captives sail the ship away" is something you would suspect is not an option. I think Safa would accept alternate solutions for their defiant objective (burn down the pirate ship) and there can be some more discussion about that once the party is there and sees what is going on with that situation.

Let me know if you've got any thoughts or questions. I'm happy as a GM to see people engaging with the plot of the scenario.