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1/5


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Solid adventure with glaring issues in the last segment

3/5

This is one of the better Adventure Path books I've ran or read. There's a clunky introduction with a carnival troupe that never shows up again (I'm also not entirely comfortable with the troupe of "freaks" presented), though the investigation and battle can be interesting depending on the group.

The second section deals with an investigation into the Beast's crimes overlapped with a dungeon crawl you can complete over the multiday investigation period. It's a comfortable time limit, with enough time that you aren't in huge danger of failing, but not enough time that it's a pointless addition. The actual areas and court room scenes are interesting enough, though the haunted town can get into rinse and repeat encounters that are either tedious or deadly depending on the group.

The dungeon crawl is solid with nothing especially deadly or weak, though unfortunately there is little writing on what would happen if you tried to instead resolve the situation diplomatically. It expects the PCs to realize evil is afoot and simply raid the compound.

After the trial, it leads into a much larger dungeon. The first part is fine. The encounters are interesting, but the maps are wrong (Most of it should be twice as larger but not all of it) and there are a lot of empty rooms with flavor but little in content.

The glaring flaw in the book comes in the last section of the dungeon. First of all, all of the doors are barred requiring dc 28 strength checks. The writer thinks enough to give you a magical item to bypass the doors, but even with the magical item you would need to roll a 19 on the die with it at full power, and the item has charges. Once you break past the FIRST door you enter an entirely flooded dungeon. Everywhere is difficult terrain and if you are size small you have to make swim checks everywhere. The first two encounters in this section are behind traps, though the traps are not themselves deadly unless you have a player wearing heavy armor. The problem is that behind one of these traps is TWO high level swarms. Underwater. That can do both ability damage AND drain. My group had a pyrokineticist so could at least do infinite cone attacks, but even those would require very high caster level checks to get past it being underwater. I decided to just ignore the encounter after the first round when the crossbow user took dex damage and drain.

There's also an encounter with a near invisible basilisk that could easily end the game before anyone can react. I removed that one as well. To top it all off, almost every encounter, and room, is completely avoidable with no loss of loot or story.

The final mini-boss and boss are fine, though the final boss can be especially deadly with the wrong group or tactics. It seems perfectly survivable as long as the GM uses the exposition NPC nearby appropriately.

This would have been a 4 star book easily if not for the flooded section.


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Bad encounters

1/5

A creature with 10 hardness and a creature with permanent invisibility, both with negligible accuracy and damage to be fought at second level are bad encounter design.


Full Name

Lady Vulpina of Katapesh

Classes/Levels

CN Kitsune Picaroon 1/Mysterious Stranger/Scatter Gunner 1 | Panache 6/6 | AC 14, T 13, FF 11 | 18/18 hp | Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +1;| Init +3 | Percep +5 | Low-Light Vision | CMD 15

About Lady Vulpina of Katapesh

Lady Vulpina
Female Kitsune Picaroon Swashbuckler 1 | Mysterious Stranger/Scatter Gunner Gunslinger 1
CN Medium humanoid (kitsune, shapechanger)
Init +3 (+3 Dex); Senses Perception +1 (+1 Wisdom), Low-Light Vision
Grit Panache Grace 6 (+3 CHA/Swash, +3 CHA/Gunner)

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Defense
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AC 14 (+3 Dex, 1 armor), touch 13 (+3 Dex), flat-footed 11 (+1 armor)
hp 18 (1d10 +1 CON, 1d20 +1 CON)
Fort +3 (+2 class, +1 Con), Ref +5 (+2 class, +2 other class, +3 Dex), Will +1 (+1 Wis)
CMD 15 (+3 Dex, +2 BAB)
Defensive Abilities
Dodging Panache: +CHA to AC in response to a triggering attack, costs 1 panache and an immediate action
Opportune Parry and Riposte: can make opposed attack roll vs. enemy's to force a miss so long as she has 1 panache at the cost of 1 attack of opportunity, if successful can follow up with an attack against that opponent at cost of 1 panache and immediate action
Gunslinger's Dodge: +2 to AC and move 5 feet as an immediate action for 1 grit.

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Offense
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Speed 30 ft
Melee mwk wakizashi +6 (+2 BAB, +3 Dex, +1 mwk) (1d6/18-20) deadly
Ranged mwk dragon pistol +6 (+2 BAB, +3 Dex, +1 mwk)
mwk pistol +6 (+2 BAB, +3 Dex, +1 mwk)
CMB +2 (+2 BAB) without weapon, +6 (+2 BAB, +3 Dex, +1 mwk) with
Offensive Abilities
Careful Shot (Ex) As long as a scatter gunner has at least 1 grit point when making a scattering shot, he takes a penalty equal to his Wisdom modifier on his attack rolls against any allies in the area. He can spend 1 grit point when making a scattering shot to automatically miss a number of creatures equal to his Wisdom modifier.

Focused Aim (Ex): At 1st level, as a swift action, the mysterious stranger can spend 1 grit point to gain a bonus on all firearm damage rolls equal to her Charisma modifier (minimum 1) with all firearm attacks she makes until the end of her turn. At 7th level, when she uses the dead shot deed, she multiplies this bonus by the number of hits she made while rolling the Dead Shot attack. This deed replaces the quick clear deed.
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Statistics
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Str 10, Dex 17, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 17
Base Atk +2;
Feats Two-Weapon Finesse, Combat Reflexes, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Wakizashi), Gunsmithing
Traits Rich Parents; Never Stop Shooting
Skills 8+2 FCB=10

Acrobatics +10 (+3 DEX, +2 ranks, +3 class skill, +2 racial)
Bluff +9 (+3 CHA, +1 rank, +3 class skill, +2 racial)
Climb +4 (+1 rank, +3 class skill)
Craft (alchemy) +4 (+1 rank, +3 class skill)
Diplomacy +7 (+3 CHA, +1 rank, +3 class skill)
Disguise +6* (+3 CHA, +1 rank, +2 racial)
-Disguise as Human +16 (*+10 race)
Knowledge (nobility) +4 (+1 rank, +3 class skill)
Perception +5 (+1 WIS, +1 rank, +3 class skill)
Sleight of Hand +7 (+3 DEX, +1 rank, +3 class skill)

Languages Common, Tien, Sylvan, Kelish
Gear
300gp mwk dragon pistol
300gp mwk pistol
335gp mwk wakizashi
180gp mwk silken ceremonial
2gp 2 waterskins
35sp 7 trail rations (largely smoked game, berries, and fermented tofu)
0 hot weather outfit
1gp grooming kit

1110gp, 5sp spent

Total Budget
1800gp

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Special Abilities
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Change Shape: Can take a single, specific human form.
Derring-Do: Add +1d6 to certain skills, additional dice for each 6 rolled up to CHA mod
One-Handed Reload: Can reload with one-handed firearm in one hand and one-handed or light piercing weapon in the other. Cannot use Opportune Parry and Riposte until next turn.

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Physical Description

A woman of slender build with messy dark hair, arranged in braids around the edges of her face to keep her sight clear. Wears fancy attire and keeps a blade in the sash of her attire, and her pistol hidden in her jacket.

History

Good question! Unfortunately, the esteemed Lady Vulpina resists attempts to discover her past.

DC20 Knowledge (nobility):
Lady Vulpina does not specify a title or lineage, and bears a remarkable similarity to the recently-disowned Yulai Reipia of a Minkaian noble family, who has been shamed after forcing her betrothed to duel him for her hand in marriage, then unmanning him with a hidden pistol when they were to draw blades.

Build Points
Biteless kitsune: 12 points
Rich Parents: 5 points
Combat Reflexes: 6 points
EWP (Wakizashi): 10 points
Never Stop Shooting: 3 points

Parries:

[dice=Parry 1]1d20+5[/dice]
[dice=Parry 2]1d20+5[/dice]
[dice=Parry 3]1d20+5[/dice]