paizo.com Recent Threads in Round 4: Create a Golarion locationpaizo.com Recent Threads in Round 4: Create a Golarion location2017-06-02T21:39:29Z2017-06-02T21:39:29ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: Voting Booth: Round 4 - Top 8: Create a Golarion location with mapRoss Byershttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lwsn?Voting-Booth-Round-4-Top-8-Create-a-Golarion2011-02-22T22:00:00Z2011-02-22T22:00:00Z<p>Vote for your favorite RPG Superstar contestants — you can select up to <b>four</b> candidates. You can change your mind anytime until voting closes Monday, February 28 at 2 p.m. Pacific time.</p>
<p>If you select more than <b>four</b>, you will not see the "Your vote has been recorded" message beneath the "Vote" button, and your vote will not be counted.</p>Vote for your favorite RPG Superstar contestants -- you can select up to four candidates. You can change your mind anytime until voting closes Monday, February 28 at 2 p.m. Pacific time.
If you select more than four, you will not see the "Your vote has been recorded" message beneath the "Vote" button, and your vote will not be counted.Ross Byers2011-02-22T22:00:00ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: Razorbreath ChasmTrevor Merbackhttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw5y?Razorbreath-Chasm2011-02-18T21:46:41Z2011-02-18T21:46:41Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Razorbreath Chasm</b></span>
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Situated along the northern border separating the Realm of the Mammoth Lords and Irrisen, Razorbreath Chasm is a natural fissure carved into the glacial wall that connects the Crown of the World with the southern lands. In ages past, the Mammoth Lords forced megafauna into the box canyon, where they could kill the isolated beasts. When Baba Yaga established Irrisen and its frozen borders were drawn, the White Witches of the North drove a defiant Kellid tribe into Razorbreath Chasm. Even as they were pushed into the chasm, they knew their fates were sealed; they were doomed to die like the beasts that they had hunted for generations. Though the tribe fought with the ferocity of a cornered animal, they could do little to resist the White Witches and their minions. Indulging in their cruelty, the Daughters of Baba Yaga imprisoned the proud Kellid chieftain within a frozen cavern behind a transparent sheet of ice. The elder helplessly looked on as the White Witches of the North slaughtered every adult member of the tribe, then rounded up the children and abducted them to parts unknown. The spirits of this now-forgotten tribe remain trapped within the ice, awaiting a champion to avenge their deaths.</p>
<p>During the day, Razorbreath Chasm appears similar to many large fissures along the Winterwall Glacier. It has the same tall, jagged walls of ice, sheds the same blue-green light, and is close enough to Irrisen to be caught in a perpetual winter. The remains of numerous creatures litter the chasm floor, picked clean by scavengers (a DC 15 Heal check reveals that some of these remains are humanoid). As one ventures deeper into the fissure, bones cover the ground, causing footsteps to crunch from more than just snow. Creatures periodically inhabit offshoots of the chasm, but rarely stay for more than a few weeks. Polar bears, winter wolves, the occasional remorhaz, and more nefarious creatures are said to have been seen in the chasm.</p>
<p>At night, Razorbreath Chasm becomes aggressively inhospitable. A howling wind tears through the fissure, dropping the temperature below -20° F, kicking up snow, obscuring vision, and hampering hearing (snow, severe wind, and extreme cold, <i>Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook</i> 438-439 & 442). The towering, slick walls of the crevasse seem to close in over those foolish enough to trespass (40 ft. high, DC 25 Climb check to scale). Explorers and travelers who have been to the fissure at night have reported hearing voices in the wind and seeing shadowy figures within the ice by the light of their lanterns. Furthermore, rumors persist of long-dead mammoth bones that rise to assault those who linger past dark.</p>
<p>Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer has stalked the PCs for several days and deemed them worthy prey. In order to lure them to his hunting grounds, he captured the daughter of a wealthy Tian merchant traveling north to Icestair and taken her to Razorbreath Chasm. The party encounters the distraught merchant, Leng, immediately after his daughter, Shen, was taken, and he promises the party a reward and his eternal gratitude if they rescue his daughter from the Shapeshifting Huntsman, emphasizing the need to act swiftly. Hoarfrost prepared the chasm in advance, hoping to take advantage of its natural features. The PCs arrive at nightfall but do not have time to rest if they wish to save Shen before she dies of exposure or worse, requiring them to enter the dark, howling fissure without delay. When they first enter the chasm they can hear her screams of pain and terror echoing from the gloom, but the chasm distorts the voice and makes it difficult to follow. A trail of freshly frozen blood leads towards the back of the chasm.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Feed them to the Wolves (CR 8 or 11)</b></span>
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<span class=messageboard-ooc>Snowdrift has collected against the jagged ice walls of this passage. Ice, snow, and bones are scattered about the floor. At the point where two side passages converge, a massive, fleshless ribcage juts from the snow. A young, pale-skinned woman lies on the blood-soaked snow, a large iron spike driven through her leg pinning her to the ground. A constant flurry of wind and snow makes it impossible to see further into the dark side passages.</span></p>
<p>Hoarfrost has chosen this location as his killing grounds and prepared it as such. Bear traps are hidden in the snow around the maiden (DC 15 Perception check to notice, one for Tier 7-8 or four for Tier 10-11) and a set of handholds have been carved out of the ledge along the western passage (DC 15 Perception check to spot, DC 10 Climb check to scale).</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> Hoarfrost's worgs are hidden under the snow (granting a +2 on their Stealth checks until they take an action) in both side passages and impatiently wait for his signal to attack. Hoarfrost is perched on the ledge, also taking care to remain concealed, and has casts <i>feather step</i> and <i>longstrider</i>. When he notices the PCs approaching, he casts <i>magic fang</i> on his natural attacks.</p>
<p>The Shapeshifting Huntsman waits until one of his bear traps captures an enemy before signaling his worgs to attack, activating shifter's blessing, and letting arrows fly from his longbow, targeting spellcasters and favored enemies. If his traps or worgs are spotted, Hoarfrost orders the attack early. After an enemy falls (either from being tripped or dropped unconscious) Hoarfrost’s bloodlust gets the better of him and he joins the fray. Hoarfrost drinks his <i>potion of enlarge person</i>, leaps off the ledge (DC 15 Acrobatics check to negate falling damage), and takes a moment to activate his hunter’s bond before flying into a rage and wading into melee.</p>
<p>If reduced to less than 15 hit points or if his worg allies are defeated, Hoarfrost attempts to flee, making use of the mobility granted by his <i>feather step</i> and <i>longstrider</i> spells.</p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 8):</b></p>
<p><b>Hoarfrost CR 7</b>
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XP 3,200
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<b>hp</b> 78 (RPG Superstar 2011, round 3)</p>
<p><b>Worg (2) CR 2</b>
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XP 600 each
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<b>hp</b> 26 each (<i>Pathfinder RPG Bestiary</i> 280)</p>
<p><b>Bear Trap CR 1</b>
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XP 400 (<i>APG</i> 186)</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 11):</b></p>
<p><b>Hoarfrost CR 7</b>
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XP 3,200
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<b>hp</b> 78 (RPG Superstar 2011, round 3)</p>
<p><b>Rage Worg (4) CR 4</b>
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XP 1,200 each
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<b>hp</b> 67 each (<i>NPC Guide</i> 39)</p>
<p><b>Winter Wolf (2) CR 5</b>
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XP 1,600 each
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<b>hp</b> 57 each (<i>Pathfinder RPG Bestiary</i> 280)</p>
<p><b>Bear Trap (4) CR 1</b>
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XP 400 each (<i>AGP</i> 186)</p>
<p><b>Development:</b>
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After Hoarfrost is defeated and Shen is rescued, the howling winds suddenly die down. The chasm begins to rumble and a sheet of ice falls from the eastern wall and shatters, revealing a small cavern at area A7. An elderly man dressed in furs sits cross-legged in the center of this cavern, eyes closed and countenance troubled. He died ages ago from exposure, his body still preserved by the cold. The walls of the cave are covered with carvings that depict a bloody battle between men mounted on wooly mammoths and pale women commanding monstrous forces. The carvings tell the story of the massacre of the forgotten Kellid tribe. </p>
<p>When a PC enters the cave, a ghostly voice begins speaking in Hallit. “You have proven yourselves champions, having demonstrated your bravery, skill, and honor. Long have the spirits of my tribe been trapped within this ice, restlessly awaiting ones such as yourselves. By defeating that honorless dog and selflessly rescuing that helpless woman, we are convinced that you have the might and spirit to carry out our vengeance. We beseech you, slay the White Witches who slaughtered our tribe and stole our children, so that we may finally move on to our final hunting grounds.”</p>
<p>If none of the PCs speak Hallit, Shen will translate the message.</p>Razorbreath Chasm
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Situated along the northern border separating the Realm of the Mammoth Lords and Irrisen, Razorbreath Chasm is a natural fissure carved into the glacial wall that connects the Crown of the World with the southern lands. In ages past, the Mammoth Lords forced megafauna into the box canyon, where they could kill the isolated beasts. When Baba Yaga established Irrisen and its frozen borders were drawn, the White Witches of the North drove a defiant Kellid tribe into...Trevor Merback2011-02-18T21:46:41ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: Red Snow RavineEthan Day-Joneshttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw58?Red-Snow-Ravine2011-02-18T20:01:42Z2011-02-18T20:01:42Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Red Snow Ravine</b></span>
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Located in the south-eastern Irrisen hinterlands, in the foothills of the Kodar Mountains, Red Snow Ravine was, until a few years ago, simply another unnamed and unremarkable bit of wilderness. The coming of Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer(R3) has changed that. No one, other than Hoarfrost and his rage worg companions, has come back out of the depths of the ravine alive; however, a few souls who have stumbled across the entry to Hoarfrost’s lair, and have lived to tell about it, have told tales about the sights within. Central to these stories are the half-a-dozen dismembered, mutilated, and otherwise defiled corpses hanging from posts and from boughs of the evergreen trees at the entryway to the ravine; the gory drippings of which have given the ravine its name.</p>
<p>The tactics that have driven his reign of terror in the region have been both simple and brutally effective. Hoarfrost likes to catch unwary women or children and kidnap them, dragging them back to his lair. There, they then serve as the bait for his true prey; those brave souls who venture out to rescue the captives. Hoarfrost stalks his prey through the pine forests and frozen hills around his lair, before eventually ambushing them, killing them, and turning them into ghastly souvenirs.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Rage Worgs’ Lair (CR 9 or 12)</b></span>
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<span class=messageboard-ooc>The ravine widens here, opening in to a small glade some fifty feet wide before closing again to a narrow path after about seventy feet. Along the eastern wall a small waterfall trickles down the rocks feeding a small, mostly frozen over, pool some thirty feet across. Along the western wall a rocky overhang provides some shelter from the elements. In happier circumstances this glade would be a beautiful natural area, but the effect is ruined by the smell of blood and rotting meat wafting from the western side of the glade.</span></p>
<p>Hoarfrost’s rage worg allies have turned the area under the rocky overhang into their den. This overhang is only 5 feet tall, and so medium and larger bipedal creatures have to squeeze in order to move or fight inside it. </p>
<p>The walls of the ravine are about 40 feet high in this area, and due to both their sheer faces and the slippery ice that coats them, require a DC 25 Climb check to climb. While it is possible to climb the hills around the ravine, the steep sides of the ravine make it impossible to see in to the ravine without standing right at the edge. The shifting drifts of snow at the edges of the top of the ravine make for dangerous footing, and anyone attempting to make an attack, cast a spell, or any other vigorous activity not related to keeping their footing on the dangerous surface must make a DC 20 Acrobatics check or slip and fall into the ravine.</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> If the rage worgs have been alerted to the presence of intruders (most likely by their allies in Area 1) then they are actively hiding in their den, preparing to pounce. They have also alerted Hoarfrost, who stands at the back of the clearing, behind his hidden bear traps, bow in hand. </p>
<p>If the rage worgs have not been alerted, they are simply in their den eating or sleeping, and come charging out as soon as they detect anyone in Area 3. Once they attack, their howls alert Hoarfrost, who is in his campsite in Area 5. Hoarfrost comes running to see what the commotion is after taking 2 rounds to prepare for combat. </p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 9):</b>
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<b>Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer CR 7</b>
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XP 3,200
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<b>hp</b> 78 (R3)</p>
<p><b>Rage Worg (2) CR 4</b>
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XP 1,200 each
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<b>hp</b> 67 each (<i>NPC Guide</i> 39)</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 12):
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[b]Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer CR 7</b>
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XP 3,200
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<b>hp</b> 78 (R3)</p>
<p><b>Vicious Rage Worg (4) CR 7</b>
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Worg barbarian 5
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CE Medium magical beast
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<b>Init</b> +3; <b>Senses</b> Darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; <b>Perception</b> +11
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<b>===== Defense =====</b>
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<b>AC</b> 15, touch 11, flat-footed 12; (+2 armor, +3 Dex, +2 natural, –2 rage)
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<b>hp</b> 101 (9 HD; 4d10+5d12+47)
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<b>Fort</b> +13, <b>Ref</b> +8, <b>Will</b> +6
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<b>Defensive Abilities</b> improved uncanny dodge, rage powers (superstition), trap sense +1, uncanny dodge
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<b>===== Offense =====</b>
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<b>Spd</b> 40 ft.
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<b>Melee</b> bite +17 (1d6+21 plus trip)
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<b>Special Attacks</b> rage (15 rounds/day), rage powers (no escape)
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<b>===== Tactics =====</b>
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<b>During Combat</b> As soon as combat begins, the worgs activate their rage ability. They then attempt to pair off against opponents, flanking and tripping them, then using power attack on any that are prone.
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<b>Morale</b> Vicious rage worgs fight to the death.
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<b>Base Statistics</b> When not raging, the worg’s statistics are AC 17, touch 13, flat-footed 14; hp 83; Fort +10, Will +3; Melee bite +15 (1d6+18 plus trip); Str 22, Con 17; CMB +12, CMD 28 (32 vs. trip); Skills Climb +10, Swim +10.
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<b>===== Statistics =====</b>
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<b>Str</b> 26, <b>Dex</b> 17, <b>Con</b> 21, <b>Int</b> 8, <b>Wis</b> 14, <b>Cha</b> 8
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<b>Base Atk</b> +9; <b>CMB</b> +17; <b>CMD</b> 30 (34 vs. trip)
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<b>Feats</b> Endurance, Furious Focus, Intimidating Prowess, Power Attack, Step Up
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<b>Skills</b> Climb +12, Intimidate +13, Perception +11, Stealth +12, Survival+10, Swim +12
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<b>Languages</b> Goblin, Hallit
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<b>SQ</b> fast movement
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<b>Gear</b> masterwork leather barding</p>
<p><b>Hazard:</b> The icy pond on the eastern side of the ravine presents two possible hazards to the party. If anyone attempts to charge or run on any of the icy spaces they must succeed at a DC 15 Acrobatics check or fall prone in the first icy space they move through. Additionally, the ice in Area A is strong enough to support any number of medium creatures, but a larger then medium creature on the ice will break through the ice in their space(s) and fall in to the frigid water beneath. The ice in Area B is thinner, and instead breaks if any medium or larger creature enters the space. While the water is no more than three feet deep at any point, any creature in the water must make a DC 14 Fortitude save when they fall in, and at the beginning of any round they are still in the water, or become fatigued for 1 minute. For each round a creature remains in the water, the DC of this save goes up by 2. Climbing out of the water requires a DC 10 Climb check due to the slippery conditions.</p>
<p><b>Trap:</b> At the 4 spaces marked with X’s, Hoarfrost has carefully hidden and anchored a bear trap. Hoarfrost and all of the rage worgs are aware of the locations of the bear traps and will attempt to lure opponents into them if possible.</p>
<p><b>Bear Trap CR 1 (4)</b>
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<b>Type</b> mechanical; Perception DC 15; Disable Device DC 20</p>
<p><b>Effects</b>
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<b>Trigger</b> location; <b>Reset</b> manual
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<b>Effect</b> Atk +10 melee (2d6+3); sharp jaws spring shut around the creature's ankle and hold the creature immobile; the creature can escape with a DC 20 Disable Device check, DC 22 Escape Artist check, or DC 26 Strength check</p>
<p><b>Development:</b> If Hoarfrost was not previously alerted by activity at the entrance to the ravine, he arrives on his initiative count in the third round of combat in Area 2. He usually takes a moment to assess the battle at that point, preferring to stay back behind his bear traps and fire his bow or throw his <i>javelin of lightning</i> at any likely targets. However, he does not hesitate to begin raging and wade in to melee if any opponents come within 20 feet. If forced to retreat, Hoarfrost hopes to use the time his bear traps can buy him to slow down his adversaries long enough to arm his trap in Area 4 and then drink his 3 <i>potions of cure light wounds</i> before making a stand in Area 5.</p>Red Snow Ravine
Located in the south-eastern Irrisen hinterlands, in the foothills of the Kodar Mountains, Red Snow Ravine was, until a few years ago, simply another unnamed and unremarkable bit of wilderness. The coming of Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer(R3) has changed that. No one, other than Hoarfrost and his rage worg companions, has come back out of the depths of the ravine alive; however, a few souls who have stumbled across the entry to Hoarfrost’s lair, and have lived to tell about it, have...Ethan Day-Jones2011-02-18T20:01:42ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: The Old Cassomir DollhouseJerall Toihttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw4o?The-Old-Cassomir-Dollhouse2011-02-18T18:32:13Z2011-02-18T18:32:13Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Old Cassomir Dollhouse</b></span>
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Hours after his father's death, Varstrius petitioned Cassomir's churches to resurrect his dead sister. As the only heir to his father's fortune, he could afford the expensive ritual and necessary components. Sadly, he never considered that Sulliana's soul would not want to return to him. Angry and bitter, Varstrius now seeks to bring Sulliana back through other means.</p>
<p>Varstrius’ family home is a large, three-storied manor located within the Old Cassomir district. Varstrius has recently repurposed the basement level of the old house, connecting it with the maze of sewers, tunnels, and forgotten vaults found beneath Cassomir. He now uses those wide tunnels as a base of operations for the slavery operation which has grown up around him, and his obsession with his deceased sister. </p>
<p>Varstrius has eleven mercenaries in his employ, but at any given time, 1d4 of them are not present in the basement. Treat the mercenaries as Turnkeys (<i>GameMastery Guide</i> 271) for tier 7-8 and as Sellswords (<i>GameMastery Guide</i> 283) for tier 10-11. In addition, there are currently 1d4 halfling or gnome prisoners held in the basement.</p>
<p>If a lone mercenary encounters the PCs, he will attempt to flee and alert the rest of the basement to their presence. If multiple mercenaries encounter the PCs at once, one will attempt to flee and alert the rest of the basement, while the remainder will engage the PCs in combat.</p>
<p>Unless otherwise noted, the walls of the basement are superior masonry walls and the doors are good wooden doors. Normally, only the cell doors (<b>area 2</b>) and the door to the tea room (<b>area 5</b>) are locked.</p>
<p><b>1. Stores:</b> This chamber serves as the manor’s stores, pantry and wine cellar. A DC 20 Perception check reveals a secret door, which connects the area to the rest of the basement.
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<b>2. Cells (CR 3 or 7):</b> This area, which is constantly guarded by one mercenary, holds Varstrius’ halfling and gnome prisoners. The corpse of a young male halfling lies in a puddle of filth in one of the cells. A DC 15 Heal check reveals that he was strangled to death. Searching the corpse (DC 20 Perception) reveals a small blue bellflower embroidered on the inside of his shirt’s collar.
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<b>3. Sewer Entrance (CR 5 or 9):</b> There are always two mercenaries guarding this area. Varstrius increased the guard presence here, after his men encountered a roving band of strange, blue-skinned humanoids in the tunnels. Several halfling and gnome bodies have been temporarily discarded a short distance down this tunnel. A DC 15 Heal check reveals that these corpses have had parts surgically removed.
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<b>4. Barracks:</b> This room acts as the living space for Varstrius’ mercenaries.
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<b>5. Tea Room:</b> Varstrius has decorated this area to match his sister’s bedroom, which remained untouched since her death, in the manor above. This is where he keeps the prisoners which most resemble Sulliana, often dressing them up to look like her and indulging in sessions of forcefully role-played tea parties.
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<b>6. Study:</b> A large oak desk dominates the finely decorated space. Two paintings adorn the walls of the room: one depicts Varstrius' father and the other, a family portrait of Varstrius, his father and Sulliana. His father's image has been defaced in the family portrait. A ledger, found in the room, details slave shipments to Andoran. The most recent entry indicates that Varstrius’ daughter, Sarrisia, has just left Cassomir with another shipment.
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<b>7. Stairwell:</b> This stairwell leads to a secret door (DC 20 Perception) which opens into the master bedroom on the top floor of the manor.
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<b>8.1 Dev’s Room:</b> This untidy area serves as the living space for Polald’s apprentice, Dev. The floor is barely visible under the piles of dog-eared books and stacks of paper thereby creating difficult terrain.
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<b>8.2 Polald’s Room:</b> Polald Tibarat was hired by Varstrius to assist in the process of returning Sulliana to life. This area acts as Polald’s private bedroom for the occasional night when he works late. However, he spends most of his time at his home nearby, leaving a homunculus to keep an eye on Dev. There is enough paperwork in this room to confirm Polald’s identity and involvement with a DC 20 Knowledge (arcana) or Knowledge (local) check.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Sulliana’s Rebirth (CR 10 or 13)</b></span>
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<b>9. Laboratory:</b> <span class=messageboard-ooc>A grotesque mannequin, stitched together from the limbs and organs of several donors, rests upon a metallic slab in the center of the room. As you enter, a young man, wearing blood-spattered robes, having just completed the last steps of casting a spell, blasts the gruesome construct with electric energy. The mass of dead meat begins to move, pulling itself upright, accompanied by the sickening sound of damp flesh peeling off from the cold metal. </span></p>
<p>Varstrius commissioned Polald to construct a flesh golem, built in Sulliana’s image. This chamber serves as Polald’s laboratory. Halfling and gnome prisoners, unlucky enough to share a feature with Varstrius’ idealized memories of Sulliana, have been used for parts in the golem’s construction. The golem has even been dressed in clothing similar to the outfit worn by Sulliana in the portrait found in <b>area 6</b>. Despite its size, the golem is made more horrifying by several delicate features, such as its childlike hands and soft-featured face.</p>
<p>Varstrius will make his stand here, relying on any remaining mercenaries, Dev, and the animated mockery of Sulliana to help bring down any foes.</p>
<p><b>9A: Alchemist’s Lab:</b> This lab holds all the necessary alchemical reagents required during the construction of a flesh golem. Characters may hurl the alchemical equipment as improvised grenade-like weapons. To determine the effect of a hurled item, roll 1d4 and consult the table below:
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<ul><li>1. Treat the item as a flask of acid
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<li>2. Treat the item as a flask of alchemist’s fire
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<li>3. Treat the item as a smokestick
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<li>4. Treat the item as a tanglefoot bag.</ul>
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Only 2d4 grenade-like items can be found here. </p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> Clearly crazed, Varstrius rejoices loudly at the successful animation of the golem. To him, Sulliana’s new body is not a horrid amalgamation of flesh, staples and wire - it is a chance to recapture a life, which his father had once stolen, with his sister at his side. The only obstacles remaining are the PCs. Varstrius will follow his normal combat tactics, commanding Sulliana to assist. Dev will attempt to use his electricity spells to simultaneously damage foes and heal Sulliana. Polald’s homunculus will assist by lobbing grenades from the alchemist’s lab. The mercenaries aim to provide flanking bonuses for Varstrius and Sulliana and try to intercept dangerous melee combatants before they can get close to Dev.</p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 10):</b> </p>
<p><b>Varstrius CR 7</b>
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XP 3200
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<b>hp</b> 76 (RPG Superstar 2011 R3)</p>
<p><b>Dev, Battle Mage CR 5</b>
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XP 1600
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<b>hp</b> 33 (GameMastery Guide 256)
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<b>Wizard Spells Prepared</b> (CL 6th, concentration +9)
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3rd—dispel magic, fly, haste, lightning bolt (2) (DC 17)
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2nd—resist energy, glitterdust (DC 15), mirror image, scorching ray (2)
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1st—burning hands (DC 15), color spray (DC 14), mage armor, shocking grasp (2)
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0 (at will)—dancing lights, detect magic, light, message</p>
<p><b>Turnkey (2) CR 3</b>
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XP 800 each
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<b>hp</b> 37 each (GameMastery Guide 271)</p>
<p><b>Homunculus CR 1</b>
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XP 400
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<b>hp</b> 11 (Bestiary 176)</p>
<p><b>Sulliana, Young Flesh Golem CR 6</b>
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XP 2400
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<b>hp</b> 69 (Bestiary 160)</p>
<p><b>9B. Trap:</b> The metallic slab, and the devices beneath it, retains some of the electrical energy used to animate Sulliana. Treat the metal slab as a burning hands trap (CR 1, <i>Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook</i> 420) with a trigger of touch, dealing electricity damage instead of fire damage.</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 13):</b></p>
<p><b>Varstrius CR 7</b>
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XP 3200
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<b>hp</b> 76 (RPG Superstar 2011 R3)
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<b>Additional Gear</b> Sulliana’s guardian amulet</p>
<p><b>Dev, Battle Mage CR 5</b>
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XP 1600
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<b>hp</b> 33 (GameMastery Guide 256)
<br />
<b>Wizard Spells Prepared</b> (CL 6th, concentration +9)
<br />
3rd—dispel magic, fly, haste, lightning bolt (2) (DC 17)
<br />
2nd—resist energy, glitterdust (DC 15), mirror image, scorching ray (2)
<br />
1st—burning hands (DC 15), color spray (DC 14), mage armor, shocking grasp (2)
<br />
0 (at will)—dancing lights, detect magic, light, message</p>
<p><b>Sellsword (4) CR 7</b>
<br />
XP 3200 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 80 each (GameMastery Guide 283)</p>
<p><b>Homunculus CR 1</b>
<br />
XP 400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 11 (Bestiary 176)</p>
<p><b>Sulliana, Flesh Golem Shield Guardian CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 79, fast healing 5 (Bestiary 160)
<br />
<b>SQ</b> berserk, controlled, find master, guard, immunity to magic, shield other, spell storing (none)</p>
<p><b>9B. Trap:</b> The metallic slab, and the devices beneath it, retains some of the electrical energy used to animate Sulliana. Treat the metal slab as an electricity arc trap (CR 4, <i>Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook</i> 420).</p>
<p><b>Development:</b> Any surviving mercenaries within the basement respond to the sound of battle, joining the battle within 2d4 rounds. Even if the PCs are victorious, the matter of dealing with the rogue wizard, Polald, and the slaver, Sarrisia, remains.</p>The Old Cassomir Dollhouse
==========
Hours after his father's death, Varstrius petitioned Cassomir's churches to resurrect his dead sister. As the only heir to his father's fortune, he could afford the expensive ritual and necessary components. Sadly, he never considered that Sulliana's soul would not want to return to him. Angry and bitter, Varstrius now seeks to bring Sulliana back through other means.
Varstrius’ family home is a large, three-storied manor located within the Old Cassomir...Jerall Toi2011-02-18T18:32:13ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: Ruined Temple of Saint BraxtusArtus Nematihttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw4k?Ruined-Temple-of-Saint-Braxtus2011-02-18T18:21:38Z2011-02-18T18:21:38Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Ruined Temple of Saint Braxtus</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
Two thousand years ago, Braxtus the Resplendent, priest of Abadar, walked the lands of Taldor spreading the word of the master of the First Vault. Stories tell of how Braxtus entered the Verduran Forest and carved out of the uncivilized wooded hills a gilded shrine for his divine master. Tales say that this beacon of civilization stood for hundreds of years before succumbing to an ill-fated disaster.</p>
<p>While some truth lies within the stories of Braxtus the Resplendent and his gilded shrine, the true story holds a darker reality. Braxtus did found a shrine within the wilderness of Verduran Forest, but his purpose for doing so lay not in creating glory for Abadar. Deep within the wooded hills of Verduran Forest, Braxtus and his adventuring companions came upon an evil hidden deep in a natural cave. Unable to exorcise the evil from Golarion, the group instead sealed the entrance deep under the hill, and Braxtus built a temple to Abadar upon the location in order to guard the site for generations to come. The head priests of this temple were tasked with guarding the <i>ward keys</i> that kept the evil safely contained.</p>
<p>Over time, the wards weakened, allowing some evil miasma to escape and seep into the hearts and minds of those worshiping in the temple. Eventually, this evil drove the temple's inhabitants to insanity, and within one night, the halls of Saint Braxtus's temple filled not with the sounds of prayer but the sounds of murder.</p>
<p>In the present, not much remains of the once magnificent halls. Nature has reclaimed much of the open grounds of the temple, and bandits and treasure hunters have already stripped most valuables from the area. Currently, the dashing Acton Venarys, also known as the Gentleman Knave (R3), uses the location as one of his many bases of operation within the Verduran Forest. The underground sections of the temple are largely intact, and the Knave tends to use the underground worship hall when he requires meetings with his many lieutenants. The Knave found the last intact, but brittle, <i>ward key</i> upon his commandeering of the temple, and while he has not found a way to integrate the release of a great evil onto the very center of Taldor into his plans, he still keeps the <i>ward key</i> on his person during his short stays in the temple.</p>
<p>All that remains of the Temple of Saint Braxtus are three interior chambers and the ruins of two exterior rooms. The few remaining exterior walls count as 8 foot tall reinforced masonry walls with the broken condition (hardness 8, hp 89, break DC 45), while the smooth interior walls count as magically treated hewn stone walls (hardness 16, hp 1080, break DC 70). The interior ceilings are 10 feet tall unless otherwise noted. The temple was built into a rugged cliff face that stands 50 feet tall. Trees dot the top of the hill and along the base where the temple is located.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>2. Worship Hall (CR 10 or 13)</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
<span class=messageboard-ooc>A large oaken round table surrounded by wooden chairs sits at the center of this repurposed prayer hall. Piles of maps, diagrams, and books litter the table and surrounding area. Light emanates from a multitude of torches lining the walls of the room, brightening the room and casting shadows on the 20 foot tall ceiling. The open doors on the east and south walls can be seen from the entrance. The room smells faintly of ammonia and sweat.</span>
<br />
The walls of the worship hall are almost perfectly smooth, and as such, a PC may not attempt to climb them without assistance. The room contains six <i>everburning torches</i> which provide normal illumination within the entire area.
<br />
The table in the center of the room can be used by up to four Small or Medium creatures (or one Large creature) to gain high ground over their attackers, and the top of the table and the area immediately surrounding it count as difficult terrain (PF RPG pg 193) due to the large amounts of books and papers haphazardly strewn about.
<br />
A DC 15 Knowledge (engineering) check determines that the design of this worship hall dates back to Taldan architecture of the early to middle Age of Enthronement.
<br />
A DC 25 Knowledge (religion) check determines that the room is designed to channel prayers towards something to the south.
<br />
<b>Creatures:</b>
<br />
The Gentleman Knave often scours over a myriad of maps and plans that have been strewn over and around the great table in the center of the room. On several occasions, he has gathered several of his lieutenants here to discuss his grand strategic objectives. The Knave is always accompanied by at least four of his lackeys (variant guard officers PF GMG 261). Two of his lackeys guard the western entrance to the room while the other two keep close to the room's eastern wall so as to be near the Knave if he requires aid.
<br />
If the Knave is holding a meeting, six of his lieutenants (highwaymen PF GMG 259) will be present and sitting with the Knave around the table while six lackeys walk around the perimeter of the room.
<br />
Unless alerted by someone fleeing from area <b>1</b>, the occupants of the room will be surprised as the players enter the room. If alerted, the lackeys will gather near the western door while the lieutenants, if present, move into safer positions behind them. The Gentleman Knave stays to the east side of the table where he can address and taunt the players from a relatively safe location before entering the fray.
<br />
Once in combat, the lackeys will use Dazzling Display to try and demoralize as many opponents as possible. Afterwards, they try to gang up on one player so that the Knave and any present lieutenants can use them for flanking purposes. The lackeys also try to draw one player towards the center of the room where the player can be isolated from the rest of the party. Lackeys will also throw their nets on prone characters.
<br />
Any present lieutenant attempts to take up a flanking position and trip an opponent with his <i>+1 spiked chain</i>. If any spellcasters are in the attacking party, two lieutenants will drink their <i>potions of invisibility</i> and attempt to move towards the offending players.
<br />
The Knave follows the tactics section of his entry during the fight except as follows. After using <i>vanish</i> to facilitate his escape, the Knave flees to location <b>3</b> where he makes use of the secret exit found in location <b>4</b>. Before climbing the ladder in location <b>4</b>, the Knave uses a standard action to break the final <i>ward key</i> in the hopes that unleashing any horror from beneath the temple will delay pursuers. </p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 10):</b>
<br />
<b>Knave's Lackey (4) CR 3</b>
<br />
XP 800 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 34 (Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide 261)
<br />
<b>Melee</b> mwk greatsword +9 (2d6+5/19-20)
<br />
<b>Morale</b> The Knave's lackeys fight to the death as long as the Gentleman Knave is present. If the Knave is downed or flees, they attempt to surrender.</p>
<p><b>The Gentleman Knave CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 78 (RPG Superstar 2011 Round 3)</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 13):</b>
<br />
<b>Knave's Lackey (6) CR 3</b>
<br />
XP 800 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 34 (Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide 261)
<br />
<b>Melee</b> mwk greatsword +9 (2d6+5/19-20)
<br />
<b>Morale</b> The Knave's lackeys fight to the death as long as the Gentleman Knave is present. If the Knave is downed or flees, they attempt to surrender.</p>
<p><b>Lieutenant (6) CR 6</b>
<br />
XP 2400 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 53 each (Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide 259)
<br />
<b>Morale</b> A lieutenant fights until reduced to 10 or fewer hit points. He will then drink his <i>potion of invisibility</i>, if available, and flee through the western exit.</p>
<p><b>The Gentleman Knave CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 78 (RPG Superstar 2011 Round 3)</p>
<p><b>Development:</b> If the Knave escapes, two rounds after the Knave leaves location <b>2</b>, the altar in location <b>5</b> shatters in a fierce explosion. Anyone within location <b>5</b> at the time of the explosion takes 4d6 piercing damage (DC 14 Reflex save for half damage). The explosion of the altar can be clearly heard throughout locations <b>2</b>, <b>3</b>, and <b>5</b>. Location <b>5</b> also comes under the effects of <i>desecrate</i> and <i>darkness</i> (both CL 15). Below the destroyed altar lies a gaping hole that leads down in the dungeon sealed away by Saint Braxtus.
<br />
If the Knave fails to escape, then the players find the <i>ward key</i> along with his other possessions. A player using <i>detect magic</i> may make a DC 35 Spellcraft check to determine not only that the <i>ward key</i> is tied to some great seal, but also that the <i>ward key</i> is near breaking. The <i>ward key</i> loses one of its remaining 14 hit points each midnight until it breaks. Lesser spells like <i>make whole</i> and <i>mending</i> have no effect on the <i>ward key</i>, but a DC 10 Knowledge religion check allows a player to recognize the symbol of Abadar on the <i>ward key</i>.</p>Ruined Temple of Saint Braxtus
==========
Two thousand years ago, Braxtus the Resplendent, priest of Abadar, walked the lands of Taldor spreading the word of the master of the First Vault. Stories tell of how Braxtus entered the Verduran Forest and carved out of the uncivilized wooded hills a gilded shrine for his divine master. Tales say that this beacon of civilization stood for hundreds of years before succumbing to an ill-fated disaster.
While some truth lies within the stories of...Artus Nemati2011-02-18T18:21:38ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: Apep's HeadJohn Bennetthttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw4i?Apeps-Head2011-02-18T18:12:15Z2011-02-18T18:12:15Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b> Apep’s Head</b></span></p>
<p><b>Description:</b> Legends in Garund speak of Apep or the “Destroyer”, a giant from the stars that appeared almost eight thousand years ago. Made out of strange metal and standing hundreds of feet tall, the ancients believed it to be a punishment from the gods. The scourge of ancient Osirion, Apep was finally defeated in a furious battle. All that remains of the metal giant is its head, which rests deep within the Eternal Oasis in modern day Rahadoum.</p>
<p>Ancient Osirions avoided the spot where the giant’s head rested, fearing the place cursed. Centuries later, when the decadent Pharaoh Shaket came into power, he became fascinated with Apep’s head, believing it to be from an ancient god. To demonstrate his power to his subjects, he refurbished the head, designing with magic a beautiful hanging garden in its interior. Stories say that Shaket was able to command the head to shoot fire from its eyes, reducing his enemies to ashes. The head fell into disuse after Shaket’s death. As the years passed, Apep’s head was forgotten, swallowed by the jungle around the Eternal Oasis, and the horrors of the metal giant became but a myth.</p>
<p>The head, standing 35 feet high and made of a dull grayish metal, not unlike steel, rests in a large clearing in the Eternal Oasis. The head’s jutting features appear to be almost human, but the eyes, nose and lips are composed of hard angles, softened slightly by erosion. While the features are weathered, there is not a spot of rust on the head. Its smooth surface makes it impossible to climb without magic. A set of stone steps leads up to a large metal door set in Apep’s pursed lips.</p>
<p>The PCs, having previously encountered Voracek, discovered his plan to build a doomsday device from skymetal. Voracek needs a valuable crystal located somewhere in Apep’s head to power the device. The PCs are here to get the crystal first, if they can find it. As they approach the head, thunder rumbles nearby. Voracek and his gargoyle allies who also venerate Ayrzul, having bribed the services of a thunderbird, will be here soon. The PCs know they do not have much time.</p>
<p><b>Apep's Head (Ground Floor)</b></p>
<p><span class=messageboard-ooc>Inside, soft light, like daylight, emanates from fixtures set in the ceiling, falling on lush gardens in carefully sculpted beds amongst wild vegetation. The perfume of exotic flowers fills the air. More greenery hangs from stone terraces along the outer walls twenty feet up. Invading vines dangle in clumps from the high ceiling. Graceful statues of a regal looking man carved from marble, his features weathered by the elements, stand seven feet tall on pedestals. At the far end of the room, a metal pillar rises up, growing wider in width.</span></p>
<p>The pillar, like the walls, ceiling, and floor, is made from a completely smooth metal. It is 20 ft. wide at its base, widening to 50 ft. at its top. There are no stairs visible to reach it. The head, except the first 15 ft. of the entrance, rises to 35 ft. in height. The entrance is only 20 ft. in height as the fire cannon platform is above it.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-ooc>Behind the pillar on the ground floor sits a small metal altar, three feet high, a mosaic of small flashing lights, lighted glass, buttons, and levers on its top.</span></p>
<p>Operating the altar requires a DC 25 Use Magic Device or a Knowledge (Arcana) skill check. A successful skill check immediately causes a circular disc, 10 ft. wide, to rise slightly from the ground near the base of the pillar. The disc can support 2,000 lbs. After a minute, the disc rises straight up to the top of the pillar.</p>
<p><b>Apep's Head (Top Floor)</b></p>
<p>At the top of the pillar sits a metal chair on a 2 ft. dais. Nearby is a long metal altar like the one below (hardness 15, hp 120). The crystal is housed in the interior of the altar and powers the room. A successful DC 25 Use Magic Device or Knowledge (Arcana) skill check operates a thin bridge that rises out of the ground floor, connecting the pillar top and the platform. A loud thrumming sounds from the one working fire cannon. </p>
<p>The platform contains two fire cannons described below. The westernmost cannon is broken but the eastern cannon is operational. If the command deck has been activated, the metal shields in front of the window, 4 ft. in diameter, open.</p>
<p><b>Fire Cannon</b>
<br />
<b>Space</b> 5 ft. by 10 ft.; <b>Weight</b> 3,000 lbs.
<br />
<b>Hardness</b> 15; <b>hp</b> 1,080
<br />
<b>Range</b> 200 ft.
<br />
<b>Description</b>: This seven foot long metal cylinder lies horizontal on a swivel platform. Attached to a platform is a chair and trigger controls for the operator. To the PCs it looks like some kind of Golarion cannon. The operator can turn the cannon anywhere in a 360 arc and can tilt it as a move action. Once per round as a standard action, the operator , using the controls, can fire the cannon, shooting a concentrated beam of energy that deals 4d6 points of fire damage similar to a <i>scorching ray</i> spell. The attack is a ranged touch attack that uses the operator’s ranged attack bonus. The fire cannon ignores range penalties due to weather.</p>
<p>Thick vines hang 15 ft. from the ceiling, supporting 250 lbs. They can be grabbed with a DC 15 Acrobatics skill check. It is possible to swing from the vines to the flower beds on the outer wall.
<br />
<b>Creatures:</b> There is a 25% that the vine is an Advanced Assassin Vine that immediately attacks the PC.</p>
<p><b>Advanced Assassin Vine (1) CR 4</b>
<br />
XP 1,200
<br />
<b>hp</b> 38 (Pathfinder Bestiary 22, 294)</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Voracek’s Assault</b></span></p>
<p>Allow the PCs some time to look for the crystal or set an ambush, reminding them that the thunder is getting closer, before reading the following.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-ooc>Roaring thunder shakes the ceiling. Suddenly, it explodes in a shower of debris. Hideous gargoyles pour in through the breach, bringing wind and thunder with them. One figure sticks out, illuminated by lightning, a stone skinned man with glowing blue tattoos cackles madly as he’s carried in the talons of a giant, gray bird.</span></p>
<p>Falling debris rains down on any PCs on the pillar, dealing 1d8 points of damage, a DC 15 Reflex save for half. See hazards below.</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> Voracek and his allies swoop in. A thunderbird carries Voracek in its talons, dropping him by the altar and then flies far enough away to be out of combat but keep its storm aura in effect. Voracek begins to push various buttons on the altar. It will take him 6 total full action rounds operating the altar to open it and reach the crystal. If engaged in melee, Voracek tries to sunder his opponents’ weapons. He crushes his <i>elemental gem</i> to put another ally between him and the PCs. If reduced to half hp or less, he rages, using empowered strike to smash the altar to get at the crystal.</p>
<p>The gargoyles attempt to grab PCs in their talons and hurl them from the pillar to keep them away from Voracek. They target spellcasters and smaller creatures first. If thrown off the pillar, PCs can attempt to grab the vines with a DC 15 Reflex save (-4 for the thunderbird’s storm aura).</p>
<p>Wind, caused by the thunderbird, swirls in from a 30 ft. by 30 ft. hole in the ceiling located over the pillar. See hazards below.</p>
<p>The fight ends if:
<br />
Voracek retrieves the crystal, plunging the head into darkness and deactivating the fire cannon. He sounds a horn and the thunderbird swoops in and carries him away.
<br />
Voracek retreats as above if reduced to 30 or less hp. He gathers his strength and plans to strike at the PCs within a few days time to take back the crystal. </p>
<p><b>(TIER 7-8) CR10</b> </p>
<p><b>Voracek CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6,400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 116 (RPG Superstar 2011 R3)</p>
<p><b>Giant Gargoyles (2) CR 5</b>
<br />
XP 1,600
<br />
<b>hp</b> 52 (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 137, 295)</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> This encounter runs similar as above. However, the thunderbird hovers near the hole in the ceiling and uses thunderbolts to keep PCs away from Voracek and targets archers, swooping in to hurl PCs off the pillar.</p>
<p>The fight ends under the conditions above. If the thunderbird is killed, one of the giant gargoyles will carry Voracek if he retreats.</p>
<p><b>TIER (10-11) CR 13</b></p>
<p><b>Voracek CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6,400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 116 (RPG Superstar 2011 R3)</p>
<p><b>Giant Gargoyles (4) CR 5</b>
<br />
XP 1,600
<br />
<b>hp</b> 52 (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 137, 295)</p>
<p><b>Thunderbird CR 11</b>
<br />
XP 12,800
<br />
<b>hp 147</b> (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 264)</p>
<p><b>Hazards:</b> Garden and wild vegetation areas count as difficult terrain (Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 193).</p>
<p>The following hazards are in play when the encounter starts:</p>
<p>The debris from the ceiling causes the pillar to be considered difficult terrain (Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook 193).</p>
<p>The thunderbird’s presence causes the pillar to be affected by its storm aura special ability (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 264).</p>Apep’s Head
Description: Legends in Garund speak of Apep or the “Destroyer”, a giant from the stars that appeared almost eight thousand years ago. Made out of strange metal and standing hundreds of feet tall, the ancients believed it to be a punishment from the gods. The scourge of ancient Osirion, Apep was finally defeated in a furious battle. All that remains of the metal giant is its head, which rests deep within the Eternal Oasis in modern day Rahadoum.
Ancient Osirions avoided the spot...John Bennett2011-02-18T18:12:15ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: The Rotting KremlinSean McGowanhttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw48?The-Rotting-Kremlin2011-02-18T17:28:02Z2011-02-18T17:28:02Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Rotting Kremlin</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
In the south of Irrisen, between the Marbleflow River and the Hoarwood, a walled hilltop tower overshadows a small thatched village. Even at a distance, the tower looks decrepit beyond measure, yet it still stands, as it has since the time of the villager's grandfather's grandfathers. The once-gilded dome rises a hundred feet; below, three shorter minarets cluster in the courtyard. These smaller towers hold carillon bells beneath their eaves, and occasionally bright pealing rings through the valley. The sound brings no joy to the villagers; rather, every parent weeps. For here, the sound of bells means that Koschei the Deathless has chosen a new bride.</p>
<p>Centuries ago, the powerful ogre mage Koschei raised this tower with the aid of his twelve druid sisters, collectively called the Scarlet Doves. Tales proclaim him a general in the Winter War, granted this feif for his services; other stories promote him as an upstart, puissant enough to defy even Baba Yaga and her spawn, who claimed his own dukedom. Whatever the truth, he enjoys semi-autonomy; paying taxes to Whitethrone, but otherwise rarely bothered by the queen or white witches. His serfs fail to appreciate this; many would prefer being beholden to the jadwiga rather than Koschei. More than half of what food they can produce goes to the tower; taxes are crippling; all lawbreakers are given to the Scarlet Doves as sacrifices for their rites in the Hoarwood. Worst of all, every few years Koschei selects a bride from the fairest daughters of the village. They are lavished with gifts and finery for a month-long engagement before being brought before their groom- and never seen again. Their exact fate remains a mystery, but days or weeks later Koschei drapes his tower with black crepe, announces himself a widower, and mandates a year of mourning.</p>
<p>Koschei is called 'Deathless' because he has removed his life from his body and hidden it far away, granting immortality until it is found. His sisters seem unaging as well, though rumor says they can be killed. The tower itself seems to reflect the decay that should long ago have claimed the family; it looks thrice its age, the walls crumbling. Those who have been inside report chambers and furnishings mouldering with grime and dust. This persists until Koschei walks into a room; in his presence, the halls are filled with finery; tapestries mend, air clears, and surfaces shine with gold and polish. Koschei seems unaware of this effect, or of the true condition of his home; strangely, mentioning either to him invites a bone-shattering rage. The learned of the village suggest his immortality preserves the original condition of the tower in his presence while hastening the decay of the rest. Regardless, the tower defies expectations, showing no inclination to collapse, simply deteriorating where it stands.</p>
<p>Freedom eludes his vassals; attempting escape is certain doom. High among Koschei’s servants is a huntsman of great skill who enjoys little more than tracking down fleeing subjects and presenting their heads to his lord. Heroes who come intending to overthrow Koschei must first get past this guardian; he has yet to fail. Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer is his name, and no less than threescore adventurer’s heads adorn the tower walls.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Courtyard Maze (CR 9 or 12)</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
<span class=messageboard-ooc>The gate’s hinges cry out their age as it swings open onto a vast courtyard, the flagstones crumbling as much as the kremlin walls. The three bell towers stand at the center of the yard, surrounding a dirty white fountain. Beyond, a flight of stairs rise to the tower doors. The view is suddenly obscured as vines spring up across the bailey, instantly growing and forming themselves into dense hedgerows. They are in as poor a state as the rest of this place; their leaves are withered and frost-coated, their roses brown and dry. They still bear long, sharp thorns, however. Regardless of their condition, they look well-tended, forming neatly squared walls around a flagstone path. Wolves begin to howl somewhere beyond the hedges.</span></p>
<p>The courtyard walls are 20 feet tall, with a climb DC of 25. The hedge maze is described under Hazards. It forms automatically when uninvited guests pass through or fly over the courtyard walls. It is dismissible with a password which Koschei, his sisters, and Hoarfrost know. It will otherwise last for 9 hours before fading away.
<br />
The fountain (1A) is sculpted of bone, depicting twelve ogre women clustered together, a steaming red liquid splashing from the carved hearts they each hold in their hands. Contrary to expectations, this is not blood, but wine. Wine mulled with bone marrow and spices, but wine nonetheless, with a distinctly meaty flavor. The marrow-wine acts as a <i>potion of false life</i> (CL 14th) and also has additional effects upon the imbiber’s movement through the maze. The vines shift aside for anyone who has drunk marrow-wine in the past day, allowing them to pass without taking damage. Moving through the hedge in this fashion only counts as moving through difficult terrain. The fountain fills daily with enough marrow-wine for up to twenty draughts, but only one draught will affect a creature in a 24-hour period. Marrow-wine removed from the fountain loses all effect if not consumed within a minute.
<br />
The minarets (1B) are 50 feet tall, and hollow inside; a spiral staircase leads up to the carillon. At the top of each, <i>unseen servants</i> hold the bell ropes and watch the courtyard.</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b>
<br />
Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer (R3) is in the kennels (area 2) with his pack; as soon as the maze forms he releases them and begins hunting. He and the worgs all drink marrow-wine daily; the temporary hit points are counted in their statistics. Using scent, the worgs track the party, making an effort to keep hedges between themselves and their quarry. If the party becomes separated by one of the traps, the pack use this as their cue to attack, focusing on whichever group has smaller numbers. Otherwise, they wait for an opportune moment, preferably tyring to catch the party moving around a corner. The pack splits and runs through the hedges, half attacking the front of the party and half attacking the rear. Hoarfrost himself waits a round to attack, casting <i>magic fang</i> on himself before bursting through the hedge in the middle of the PC’s formation, attempting to savage spellcasters in action. The worgs coordinate their attacks, flanking opponents where possible; both worgs and Hoarfrost will gleefully attempt to bull rush an opponent into the thorns if the opportunity presents itself. If two worgs die, the pack breaks off the fight and retreats; continuing to harry the party with hit and run attacks. If all else fails, they make a last stand in the center of the yard, attempting to hit the party from all sides before they pass into the open area. Hoarfrost fights to the end here; death being kinder than the punishment for failing Koschei.</p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 9):</b></p>
<p><b>Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer CR 7</b></p>
<p><b>Worgs (6) CR 2</b>
<br />
XP 600 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 41 each (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 280)</p>
<p><b>Rage Worgs (2) CR 4</b>
<br />
XP 1,200 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 82 each (NPC Guide 39)</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 12):</b></p>
<p><b>Hoarfrost Throat-Tearer CR 7</b></p>
<p><b>Rage Worgs (6) CR 4</b>
<br />
XP 1,200 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 82 each (NPC Guide 39)</p>
<p><b>Advanced Winter Wolves (4) CR 6</b>
<br />
XP 2,400 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 85 each (Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 280)</p>
<p><b>Hazard:</b> All hedges are 10 feet high. They are identical in most regards to a <i>wall of thorns</i>; magical fire will burn away a hedge, but will only burn as many squares as the spell would affect; the fire will not spread to adjacent hedge squares. (Minimum one 5-foot square for spells without an area.) The hedges are persistent magical effects cast at 9th level. A successful <i>dispel magic</i> removes a 10-foot section of wall.</p>
<p><b>Trap:</b> Locations marked on the map create additional hedges when a creature passes through them. These are designed to separate large groups; they are primed when a creature enters a square containing one and activate the moment that creature leaves the square. These walls are 10-by-10-by-5, completely filling the pathway they intersect. Anyone standing in this space, or walking five feet or less directly behind the one who triggered it, is caught inside, as per a <i>wall of thorns</i> spell. Unlike the normal hedges, these walls only last 90 minutes.</p>
<p><b>Thorn Trap CR 7</b>
<br />
<b>Type</b> magic; <b>Perception</b> DC 30 <b>Disable Device</b> 30
<br />
===Effects===
<br />
<b>Trigger</b> proximity (<i>alarm</i>) <b>Reset</b> none
<br />
<b>Effect</b> Spell effect (<i>wall of thorns</i>, 25 minus AC damage); multiple targets (all targets in a 10-by-5 foot area marked on map)</p>
<p><b>Development:</b> If Hoarfrost dies the <i>unseen servants</i> in the minarets have instructions to sound the carillon bells for ten minutes. This alerts the inhabitants of the tower; of immediate concern to the party, Veslana and Lubschile, the two Scarlet Doves from the third level, move down to the balcony overlooking the entrance hall (area 16) and wait for intruders.</p>The Rotting Kremlin
==========
In the south of Irrisen, between the Marbleflow River and the Hoarwood, a walled hilltop tower overshadows a small thatched village. Even at a distance, the tower looks decrepit beyond measure, yet it still stands, as it has since the time of the villager's grandfather's grandfathers. The once-gilded dome rises a hundred feet; below, three shorter minarets cluster in the courtyard. These smaller towers hold carillon bells beneath their eaves, and occasionally...Sean McGowan2011-02-18T17:28:02ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: The Broken Crucible FoundryCody Coffelthttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw39?The-Broken-Crucible-Foundry2011-02-18T12:23:18Z2011-02-18T12:23:18Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Broken Crucible Foundry</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
The Broken Crucible Foundry is an imposing, warehouse-like building, made of once-sturdy brick walls and a sloped tile roof. It was built during the height of Westcrown’s prosperity by a group of metallurgists in the flourishing Rego Plea district. Having harnessed the power of a shackled fire elemental, they produced high-quality goods, sold far and wide. During the civil wars of Cheliax, the city was filled with turmoil, the Rego Plea district ruined, and the foundry was abandoned.</p>
<p>The building now squats within the miserable Blood District, surrounded by a cluster of tenements and drug dens. The beautiful stained glass windows are shattered, and the brick walls are in need of repair. Despite the condemned appearance, the foundry is still in use. Behind the boarded windows a group of dark folk work the forges. In exchange for magical trinkets they pump the bellows and pour the molds to make cheap materials of questionable quality. Recently a group of worshipers, dedicated to Zyphus, have joined them and encouraged the dark folk to create even shoddier items. These faulty wares are then snuck out to construction sites across the city where they may one day cause the accidental deaths that please Zyphus.</p>
<p>The interior of the Broken Crucible Foundry is a place of gloom, inhabited not only by the dark folk but by the strange creatures they keep company with. One of the rooms has been converted to a shrine of Zyphus, with traps appropriate for the god of accidents. The largest section of the foundry is the main mold room. In here, buckets of molten metal swing through the air from chains and pulleys, pouring lines of searing fire. The furnace room is equally dangerous with pools and crucibles used to smelt the ore.</p>
<p>A Knowledge (local) or bardic knowledge check might reveal information to players.</p>
<p><b>Knowledge (local)</b>
<br />
<b>15+</b> Shadowy figures dressed in rags have been spotted coming and going from the foundry.
<br />
<b>20+</b> Occasionally, the foundry shakes and spews plumes of acrid smoke, as if something were bound within; struggling to break free of its confines.
<br />
<b>25+</b> The Broken Crucible Foundry was known long ago for producing golems. Rumors are that a <i>golem manual</i> is still on the premises, and could be in the process of being used.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>Retreat to the Forge (CR 9 or 12)</b></span>
<br />
==========
<br />
<span class=messageboard-ooc>Shouts erupt in the crowd as two wheels on a wagon collapse, nearly crushing a passerby. A gruff-looking man begins to run from the scene with a hammer and wedge in his hands while the guards call after him. Before the dottari can give chase the crowd erupts into panic, making passage difficult. Meanwhile, the suspect has begun to climb a wall, glancing over his shoulder in search of pursuit.</span></p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b> Tarvin Haddon, Agent of the Grim Harvestman (<a href="http://paizo.com/rpgsuperstar/round3/tarvinHaddonAgentOfTheGrimHarvestman" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">R3</a>), has been using the Broken Crucible Foundry as a base of operations, spreading the faulty materials crafted there throughout Westcrown. Having finally been spotted in the act, he flees along a booby-trapped escape route back to the foundry where his dark folk allies wait to ambush the PCs.</p>
<p>The beginning of this encounter uses the chase rules (Pathfinder RPG GameMastery Guide pg. 232). The chase consists of 8 sections and finishes at the entrance to the Broken Crucible Foundry. The speed for the chase is 30 ft. Tarvin begins with a head-start, three sections ahead of the PCs. Having set the traps on the route, he knows how to avoid triggering them, and receives a +4 bonus to overcome obstacles due to his familiarity with the route. His goal is to outrun the PCs or at the least thin their numbers with the traps (see <b>Traps</b> within appropriate Tier). Once he reaches the foundry, Tarvin warns the dark folk that the PCs are coming and they prepare for a fight. The dark folk remain hidden until a PC enters the foundry, then they use their spell-like abilities during the surprise round and attack. When they strike, Tarvin uses the controls for the bucket to attack PCs. If the fight is turning sour, he flees to the shrine (see <b>Development</b>).
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
[Spoiler omitted]
<br />
<b>Development:</b> In the shrine Tarvin informs the clerics of Zyphus about the situation and uses his <i>oil of arcane lock</i> on the door. Should the PCs make it through the locked door he immediately heads to the work room, where he activates the partially-constructed iron golem. As a last-ditch effort, Tarvin will release the unstable fire elemental in the furnace room and flee to the streets.</p>The Broken Crucible Foundry
==========
The Broken Crucible Foundry is an imposing, warehouse-like building, made of once-sturdy brick walls and a sloped tile roof. It was built during the height of Westcrown’s prosperity by a group of metallurgists in the flourishing Rego Plea district. Having harnessed the power of a shackled fire elemental, they produced high-quality goods, sold far and wide. During the civil wars of Cheliax, the city was filled with turmoil, the Rego Plea district ruined,...Cody Coffelt2011-02-18T12:23:18ZForums: Round 4: Create a Golarion location: The Black MirrorSam Zeitlinhttps://paizo.com/threads/rzs2lw2o?The-Black-Mirror2011-02-18T07:29:12Z2011-02-18T07:29:12Z<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>The Black Mirror</span>
<br />
==========</b>
<br />
Amidst the barren sands of the Mana Wastes, there lies an inky stain: the Black Mirror, a lake of tar a mile wide. Everything is still here. No bird calls; no errant wind disturbs reflections on the lake’s oily skin. Only the carcasses of the giant golems that fell here puncture the lake’s surface, their desiccated limbs and faces forming islands in a dark sea. Voracek (R3), herald of the dark lord of Elemental Earth, has built his stronghold amidst this desolation. If his plans are not stopped, the power that felled the vast golems will return to smother all Golarion.</p>
<p>During his interminable war with the archmage Nex, the necromancer Geb constructed two enormous golems from the bones of giants and the skin of angels. Geb named them Bane Titans, and at his command the golems destroyed all that Nex could send against them. Fearful of their might, Nex compacted with an extraplanar power: dread Ayrzul, lord of Elemental Earth. Nex promised countless slaves and relics to the Fossilized King in return for his aid against the Bane Titans. Draining his vaults of skymetal, Nex constructed an artifact called the Conduit, through which Ayrzul could manifest his power on the material plane. On the battlefield, Nex’s servants activated the Conduit. Ayrzul’s wrath poured through as a sea of living tar, dragging the Bane Titans to the ground and destroying them.</p>
<p>But Ayrzul betrayed Nex. The Conduit did not close when the battle was won. More and more writhing tar gushed forth from the Conduit, accompanied by Ayrzul’s elemental host. Realizing that the endless tar would soon consume both their kingdoms, Nex and Geb briefly put aside their hostilities to fight the Fossilized King. The two wizard-kings drove Ayrzul’s forces back to the Conduit, and destroyed it. This done, they returned to their endless feud. </p>
<p>Although the tar became inanimate when the Conduit was destroyed, a vast quantity of it still remains, forming the Black Mirror. The lake stood silent for centuries until Voracek’s arrival. Atop the long-dead Bane Titans in the lake’s center, Voracek forced kidnapped smiths to forge his pilfered skymetal into a new Conduit. Soon it will open.</p>
<p>If the new Conduit becomes active, the Black Mirror will again be suffused with Ayrzul’s might, and his armies will return to Golarion. With the Conduit protected by Ayrzul’s horde, the Black Mirror will begin to spread. Left unchecked, it will cover the entire surface of Golarion, creating a new realm of Elemental Earth – one ruled by Voracek in Ayrzul’s name. Over millions of years - a blink of an eye for an immortal - the bones of everyone entombed beneath the tar will slowly become fossilized, slaves to the Fossilized King.</p>
<p><span class=messageboard-bigger><b>I. The Conduit (CR 10 or 13)</span>
<br />
==========</b>
<br />
<span class=messageboard-ooc>Seven rune-encrusted platforms form a loop, anchored by bridges to the eyesocket of an enormous golem’s lifeless face, half-submerged in the tar. Above the loop floats a seven-pointed metallic star nearly 20 ft across. Its shape seems wrong, somehow, and it hurts your eyes to stare at it. The star spins slowly in the air, making a sound like a knifepoint scraping across glass.</span></p>
<p>There are seven slaves on the loop, one chained to each vertex by his ankle. They are smiths and mages abducted to build the Conduit. Months of brutal slavery have broken their wills. Now they perform a final service for Voracek: the ritual to open the Conduit (it cannot be performed by an outsider, native or otherwise).</p>
<p>Perception and Knowledge (arcana or religion) checks reveal more information. If a higher DC check is made, give the information from lower DCs as well.</p>
<p><b>Knowledge (arcana or religion):
<br />
DC 15</b> The metal star is the Conduit, forged from seven skymetals.
<br />
<b>DC 20</b> The Conduit is boring through the boundary of the Material Plane into the Plane of Earth, and will finish in minutes if not stopped.
<br />
<b>DC 25</b> Skymetal alloys disband when charged with enough positive energy (like healing magic)</p>
<p><b>Perception:
<br />
DC 15</b> The seven humans chanting hoarsely are chained to the platform by their ankles; they look haggard, miserable, and terrified.
<br />
<b>DC 20</b> The ritual is near completion. A small sinkhole has appeared beneath the metal star and is rapidly widening.
<br />
<b>DC 25</b> The metal star looks “wrong” because it is an impossible object whose angles and edges should not be able to meet in three dimensions .</p>
<p>Treat the surface of the Black Mirror as if it were quicksand (<i>Pathfinder Roleplaying Game</i> 427). However, earth-subtype outsiders, and anyone bearing a holy symbol of Ayrzul (like those in area G), can walk on or burrow through the tar as if it were earth. Fires lit on the Black Mirror do not extinguish normally; instead, at the end of a round, fire spreads to a random adjacent 5 ft. square.</p>
<p>Once this encounter begins, the PCs have 15 rounds until the sinkhole expands to the size of the Conduit, at which point Ayrzul’s power can manifest (see the Development section). Don’t penalize the PCs for scouting – if a scout makes the DC 20 Perception or Knowledge (arcana or religion) check, inform him that the ritual is nearly complete, but give the PCs time to arrive in force before starting the countdown. If the PCs delay, reduce the countdown to 10 rounds.</p>
<p>There are several ways to stop the Conduit. If four slaves are incapacitated, the ritual halts. The slaves have AC 12, 20 hp, Fort +4, Ref +3, Will +6. They can be killed, physically removed (they are held by standard manacles), or talked down. The slaves are terrified of Voracek; controlling them requires a DC 30 Diplomacy or Intimidate check; attempting to influence multiple slaves with one check inflicts a -2 penalty per additional slave. Once the Conduit is fully active, the slaves become irrelevant.</p>
<p>The Conduit can be broken. It has AC 6, hardness 15, and 60 hp; Fort +5, Ref +5, Will +5; and break DC 28. It is also 10 ft in the air above a rapidly-widening sinkhole of tar. The Conduit can support 300 additional pounds before falling. While the Conduit is intact, it cannot be pushed beneath the tar. Bringing the Conduit to the ground does not disrupt its activation, although it does make the Conduit easier to strike. If enough positive energy is poured into the Conduit to heal the equivalent of 60 hp, it disintegrates. Destroying the Conduit works even once it’s fully active.</p>
<p>Killing Voracek has no effect on the ritual or Conduit.</p>
<p><b>Creatures:</b></p>
<p>Voracek waits on the golem’s head, kneeling in prayer. Elementals wait burrowed under the tar by the bridge connecting the golem head to the loop.</p>
<p>When the PCs arrive, Voracek rises. “I knew you would come,” he says, “Ayrzul has sent you. You are the final tribulation I must face before I am exalted.” Voracek lacks the subtlety to stall effectively, but he will let the PCs waste time with idle threats. The elementals use <i>earth glide</i> to move close to the PCs while remaining beneath the tar. When combat begins, Voracek stamps his foot (an immediate action), signalling the elementals to attack.</p>
<p><b>Tier 7-8 (CR 10):</b></p>
<p><b>Voracek CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6,400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 116 (R3)
<br />
<b>=====Tactics=====</b>
<br />
<b>During Combat</b> Voracek crushes his elemental gem, then rages and attacks the strongest foe. He uses empowered strikes, power attack and destructive smites to quickly destroy opponents. He uses knockback to pitch foes into the tar. Voracek uses <i>dispel magic</i> or summoned creatures against flying foes.
<br />
<b>Morale:</b> To defend the Conduit, Voracek fights to the death.</p>
<p><b>Large Earth Elementals (2) CR 5</b>
<br />
XP 1,600 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 68 each (<i>Pathfinder RPG Bestiary</i> 122)
<br />
<b>=====Tactics=====</b>
<br />
<b>During Combat:</b> the elementals herd foes away from the Conduit, bull rushing them into the tar and fighting there.</p>
<p><b>Tier 10-11 (CR 13):</b></p>
<p><b>Voracek CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6,400
<br />
<b>hp</b> 116 (R3)
<br />
See above.</p>
<p><b>Greater Earth Elementals (2) CR 9</b>
<br />
XP 6,400 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 136 each (<i>Pathfinder RPG Bestiary</i> 123)
<br />
<b>=====Tactics=====</b>
<br />
<b>During Combat:</b> the elementals herd foes away from the Conduit, using awesome blow to knock them into the tar and fighting there. If the Conduit is under direct attack, they defend it.</p>
<p><b>Huge Earth Elementals (2) CR 7</b>
<br />
XP 3,200 each
<br />
<b>hp</b> 95 each (<i>Pathfinder RPG Bestiary</i> 122)
<br />
<b>=====Tactics=====</b>
<br />
<b>During Combat:</b> See large earth elementals above.</p>
<p><b>Development:</b> If the Conduit is fully opened, 1d4 large (Tier 7-8) or huge (Tier 10-11) earth elementals emerge from the sinkhole each round. The Black Mirror becomes animate. Treat this as a <i>black tentacles</i> spell (CL 8th) affecting the entire surface of the lake. It does not impede earth-subtype outsiders or those bearing Ayrzul’s holy symbol. If dispelled while the Conduit is open, the tendrils return 1d4 rounds later.</p>
<p>All of these effects cease immediately if the Conduit is destroyed. If the PCs fail to stop to the Conduit, the Black Mirror also begins to expand, increasing its diameter by 5 ft every hour and eventually threatening all Golarion.</p>The Black Mirror
==========
Amidst the barren sands of the Mana Wastes, there lies an inky stain: the Black Mirror, a lake of tar a mile wide. Everything is still here. No bird calls; no errant wind disturbs reflections on the lake’s oily skin. Only the carcasses of the giant golems that fell here puncture the lake’s surface, their desiccated limbs and faces forming islands in a dark sea. Voracek (R3), herald of the dark lord of Elemental Earth, has built his stronghold amidst this...Sam Zeitlin2011-02-18T07:29:12Z