The Mad Priest

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Organized Play Member. 25 posts (39 including aliases). 22 reviews. No lists. 1 wishlist. 21 Organized Play characters.



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Not exceptional, but not detestable

3/5

I played this on high tier with my Alchemist on the weekend, and while I loved the idea of going back into the Gloomspires, apart from the first combat there wasn't much engaging me in the story in this one unlike the predecessors in the upper levels.

Having played in the Gloomspires previously will be of a benefit, so if you have a character in tier that has gone through the previous adventures here you will have an easier time of it.

The Previous Scenarios:

6-06 Halls of the Flesh Eaters
7-19 Labyrinth of Hungry Ghosts

While still fun, it could have been a touch longer and a might tougher for the high tier.


Sufficient, but lacking in any real tension

2/5

While I had fun with the monster of the week format of this one, the altitude rules are harsh, but so is the altitude, but should you players have any experience, or knowledge they will know that climbing the mountains might make them a long short...

Apart from that, the tension was sorely lacking in this one, and while it shows it age a little, it wasn't as bad as many people have made out. With a table of 4 at low tier we were still done inside of 3 hours, so it makes for a short scenario.


Stellar, absolutely stellar!

5/5

An excellent, well rounded adventure, with a deep story (with a few tiny holes), and with an ending that will suck you right in.

The one is a tough cookie, but if you gauge it right anyone can get in and out of this, but not unscathed.

This one should be run and played by everyone at least once, I plan on re-running it for my crowd over the Spring and Summer.

Excellent work all round on this one.


An odd little jaunt into The Mana Wastes

3/5

This one was a bugaboo, I quite liked it though, although I am in agreement with the other previous posters, that the design was a little out of whack.

Although I thought it gave off a very Lovecraftian feel (my particular spin on this one), and I worked it as such, with the aloofness of the locals being notoriously hard to crack outside of certain small aspects.

That Thing is what??:
The Soulbound doll was unsettling to my players, the way it seemed to mimic the missing agent, that and Robori itself, whom they spoke to with provided items, but he only frustrated them further with little information forthcoming.

My players enjoyed the combats and we played it in high tier, they were frustrated by what they viewed as plotholes or omissions in the story, until they finished and noted where that misgiving was reached.

Hinging success on a few odd points, if you're not careful, you can easily get lost, and lose out in turn, but my guys finally got to the bottom of the mystery, and dealt with the situation with aplomb.

The story here is fine, from a GM's perspective, but it can get bewildering on the other side of the table...

Another one of those "Close, but no cigar" adventures, but still fun, in it's own way.


Nice Flow, and Decent Story!

4/5

I Gm'ed this one with 3 players and a Pre-gen. I played it earlier in the season, and thought it would be an awesome offering to my players.

The story struck a nice balance with me, multiple possible offenders, set in Nirmathas, and expanding on it's exposition, and the combats are good and tough without being unforgiving to more discerning players.

Oh Dear, My Poor Party:
My Party consisted of a Pre-Gen Paladin, an Alchemist, a Hunter, and a Cleric, they got as far in as the battle in the Red Light District and were systematically killed after the Alchemist killed the Pre-gen Paladin with an imprecise bomb. Otherwise, they might have made it

The BBEG in this one is a tough nut, because of her adaptability, and when I played it, she made a mess of the party we had, but we still made it.

Another solid effort on this one.


Options, Options, Options!

5/5

There are so many ways this one can be played. A fully diplomatic party can roll through, or a full combat party, and a balanced party, such as the one I had will love the options.

Don't let the options fool you though, even though this is only a 1-5 tier scenario there is some crunchy bits, if the party stumbles.

The balance of the scenario was excellent, returning to the Drownyards was quite an experience, both emotional and physical for J. and for the players involved.

Should I have the chance to play this later on, I will jump at it, full marks on this one!


Some hard yakka in Flintyreach

4/5

I got to GM this one in High tier.

The combats can be a massive scale and our 1st encounter took the better part of an hour before they downed the enemies, afterwards, even I needed to decompress.

Depending on skills and demeanour, an unbalanced party will find the going tough, combat aside some of the RP pieces in this have skill checks that can be easily missed by all but the most devoted to a particular skill.

I quite liked this one, options abound, but don't get too caught up in them, especially early on!


Numeria, We hardly knew ye!

4/5

Before I start anything on this scenario, I actually love the tech mix in this season, and if you are not a fan, then you will not like this one too much.

The beginning RP portions, can drag on or be a delight dependent on party makeup. If you have a party lacking finesse or a small amount of charm, this can make later situations more difficult, but not impossible. once the work is in Chesed is done, the scenario hits a rail line.

The combats are challenging and fluid, and can cause wrinkles if unprepared.

one preparation note:
It is an absolute must to either purchase or have access to the Tech Dungeon flipmat in my honest opinion, otherwise that drawing is just merciless, and if you have the Iron Gods Pawns set, it will help out also, a lot of the robots encountered in this scenario can be found there.

Timewise, you might run over, but with a decent story like this one, and good combats, who's going to complain? Not me, that's for certain.


Tough run for low levels.

4/5

I have run this on 2 separate occasions, both on high and low tier.

On the outside it seems like it would be a breeze, but there are some situations that if not correctly noted or underscored by the GM can cost the party dearly.

The combats are not overly involved, but the plot is a touch convoluted for new GMs, and you must prepare for the many permutations this scenario can bring, but if you have it down (I suggest at least a solid week of prep time), then it is fine, then it depends on player makeup and play style, but consistently at my tables and others witnessed, this seems scenario seems to run over into overtime, even with experienced players.

While I have no issue with longer play times, I echo the other posters here by saying that this could have been fleshed out into a module easily with a few tweaks to the story.

Apart from that the plot and story were awesome and helped show Pezzack as a town on the precipice of destroying itself in rebellion.

A solid effort, but hectic, no matter how you slice it! Still a 4 star adventure even with the wrinkles.


A jaunt in the Mindspin Mountains

3/5

I found this one to be slightly confusing also, the mechanics are relatively sound, but the encounters come off as a little weak, granted I played 6 people at my table for this, so that might have something to do with it.

While I like the premise of the scenario, it just lacked a certain panache, that small something that set it apart from the rest. Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun running it, and my players enjoyed the BBEG, all other encounters were done in 2 to 3 rounds, as one might expect, especially with a strong arcane magical party as I had. (ie: 2 Magi, 1 Wizard, I Diabolist, 1 Cleric, and 1 Dragon Disciple)

Not a bad run, just not especially memorable.


A corker, and may the dice be forever in your favour!

4/5

This Scenarios fights all boil down the final action, where if you are simply unlucky, you can be slaughtered.

I believe this sort of risk is needed once in a while, and is truly bracing, because if the BBEG has his druthers, he'll drop 2 before you can blink.

I Gm'ed this in mid-tier, and can see how it can be very obviously deadly even to the most prepared players, however, my version failed spectacularly, and was trounced in short order...

"Sometimes all it comes down to is a roll of the dice, a flip of a coin, or a turn of the wheel" - Dr. Dealgood in "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome"


A Cracker of a run in Magnimar!

4/5

Good times to be had in this investigation adventure I the Varisian city of Magnimar. My table ran in high tier and consisted of a Rogue 5, Wizard 5, Cleric 7, Bloodrager 6, Barbarian 6, and Dragon Disciple 7.

The combats in this one can be tough, but if they are thought through.

First Combat:

Spoiler:
Antaios is stealthy enough to get by some folks and if he does, the damage can be crippling, my group tried to pin him down by the loading dock door, but were threshed about, they eventually took him out at range.

Later on:

Spoiler:
Chawda, and Terliss can make a powerful combination, especially if Terliss is able to get off a few sneak attacks or if Terliss can aim his wand of Fireball and do what he needs to, the fireballs can be deadly to a mass of foes. The wizard fell to 2 such CL7 Fireballs, thankfully he was able to raise with Prestige and money.

The investigation element of this is actually quite smart and succinct and roleplaying in this one is a delight, albeit minimal.

A solid 4 and a half star effort on this one!


Nice City Adventure for Greenhorns and Vets alike!

4/5

While not exceedingly difficult, if the right choices are made, The Wounded Wisp is a nice adventure to ease Brand new PFS Members and seasoned Vets wanted to start afresh.

A small amount if prep is required by the GM, but nothing inordinate, and the randomness of some of the encounters works real well, most players will never see the same names twice in the same order if they replay this scenario.

Drandel Dreng is at his usual finest, but unusually not waking you up at midnight, which is his usual trope, for me it was a welcome change.


Rough and Tumble in the River Kingdoms

3/5

Like a few have already spoken of in their reviews, I loved the premise of river pirates and monsters messing up trade routes.

The encounters in this one have not stood up well against the test of time, and seem a little scant or easy when coming up against characters that are just too powerful for the limited engagements.

Still, the story is a good one, and this one might serve better in a Core Campaign where there are limits to power.


Long Hard Road... Pharasma is watching!

5/5

I've both played and now Gm'ed this Module, and love it to bits.

What I missed in my play through lore-wise, I received as the GM, and the story was mind blowing.

I played it through with a 4 player team, and GM'ed it with a 6 player crew, even though it is set for level 1 characters astute decision making and prudent choices are sometimes needed in the tight spaces.

In both instances we made it to the BBEG, whereas the team I played with made it with some luck and hard work, the Team I had Gm'ing it was killed.

Again, I cannot give it any more praise than what I am now. Another 5 star effort.


Nice Balance

4/5

GM'ed on low tier; the adventure would have had perfect balance, had the party balance not been so skewed, I liked how the fights even for this mix was still tough.

Party as it was:
Level 4 Arcanist, Level 4 Hunter, Level 4 Ranger, Level 4 Sorceror, Level 2 Barbarian, and a level 1 Sorceror.

Once Inside:
All but 1 Character ate the rotting corpse, with such high wills bonuses it was surprising that all but 1 sorcerer fell to it, and the sickened condition makes for some tense situations later on.

Overall the encounters worked very well, and as others have mentioned in previous reviews, there is a sense of accomplishment from all variety of character types.

I would recommend this one, prep is a relative cinch, 2 maps? took me 30 minutes, and I was being lazy.

I hope there is more traversing into the Gloomspires, as a GM I found the place very interesting Lore-wise. a solid 4 star scenario!


Peerless with or without hard mode

5/5

Nicely succinct but excellent story, and the encounters are awesome to behold, the traps are diabolical, and the puzzles are hard even on the regular side of things. Being the GM for this one makes you kind of jealous as to how the Players get out of certain situations.

How My Party Got Through It All:
My Party wasn't much for traprunning, so most of these were run into and the ensuing explosions were wondrous.

The Party talked their way around and escorted the Hound Archons out without combat.

The Allip formerly known as Ghalcor was dealt with Pretty handily, and the backstory he was able to provide for the short time he was there after was awesome.

The final combat ensued and Ollysta survived, even with extra Abrikandilu Demons being summoned, and even one of the characters at my table took it to the massive Shemhazian Demon, and took a licking but kept going.

If you haven't GM'ed or played this scenario (or even if you have), I would play this in a heartbeat when offered. I cannot say enough to praise it.


Nice Little Adventure in The Puddles

4/5

The background for this one is excellent, and the basis for stopping this foe sounds a little grandiose initially, but it's balanced out by the combats offered. In their Heyday I imagine these combats could've been a bit nasty but now with as many choices for classes, and ways around things, they seem a little lackluster now, even with the numbers game against the Players.

Combat

Spoiler:
These are nothing too challenging, multiple thugs and Special Black Echelon Operatives are none too challenging unless you use the BEO's fog, then it gets a touch annoying

The Adventure itself plays a little of everything, and doesn't come across as too much too soon, but there can be a sense of urgency if played right.

RP Portion

Spoiler:
The 5 Chests that Grandmaster Torch wants you to crack can be a wonderful RP segment with the right party and helps to flesh the scenario out.

All in all, in it's place it plays well for a new crew of people, just remember it uses the 3.5 rules not the Pathfinder ones, and prep is a cinch.


Not Great, but not terrible either...

3/5

After both playing and GMing this one, I can safely say, it's a nasty meatball, especially as many have pointed out, if you are unprepared for some of the combat, you might get trounced. The premise seems simple enough, but goes off a tangent that can leave all but the most conspiratorial amongst us, to feel a little left out

While I've seen other posters speak of the Technologist feat for this scenario, it's not a necessity, sure you won't have a clue what certain things are, but remember, it's an age of discovery of technology from the past, and nothing outside of Numeria has been seen since, so don't despair.

a good little bit of RP with the NPC's helps move this one along, and if you play your cards right, they may be more than meets the eye.

Good fun, to be sure, but sometimes you have to take the good with the bad.


So, a maze eh?

2/5

While I don't mind the premise as most adventures with Grandmaster Torch have a flair or weird situation involved in them, this one was lost on me.

The combats for upper tier were much too simple, with a full party (2 barbarians, a Slayer, a Sorcerer, a Bard, and my Cleric) the only real decent Combat came after you left the maze proper.

If you have a GM with a flair for the dramatic, it might work better, but if you also have a group that prefers a bit of action, then miss this one... The maze is just a bunch of skill checks, which does not make for a thrilling adventure...

Not horrid, but there are better ones out there.


Mad little run in Kobold infested sewers!

5/5

I have to say this has been one of my favourite Scenarios to GM since I started, bear in mind I haven't got many tables to my name, by the whole scenario just fits together well, with the old Kobold Chief hanging on to the last bit of power, to his ambitious, if flighty, daughter, and explosive Son.

There were so many ways to play the Kobold tribe and while my take was slightly comical, when they got to the Chief, the old bugger was all business, as well it should be.

Top notch fun for GMs and players alike!


Ripper of an starting Adventure

5/5

I've both played and been a GM for this scenario, and it's an awesome starting point for anyone wanting to get into PFS.

It eases you into the action, but once it starts, it's pure gold!

I would heartily recommend this adventure for new GM's as well, as the mechanics for me are stellar.