Sarcedor's page

Besides that you also have the Mythic Gazetteer in War of Immortals which you could have a mythic or non-mythic AP depending on what they focus on. On these one was very clearly about RotR3 before it was announced so there is that. Here are the cliffsnotes:

Also for the good old prophecies at the end of Stolen Fate we have:

When they announced Battlecry! And the classes, I predicted there would be a war between Cheliax and Andoran, and here we are. And when they announced the Necromancer and Runesmith, the first thing that came to mind was Nex and Geb, since New Thassilon is out of the question as we've already had RotR 3, and if you add Impossible Magic on top of that, it would be extraordinary if there wasn't an AP where Nex returns (I don't know what would happen in it, whether the two old wizards would be able to rest and the countries would have to deal with their absences, but anyway). The meta-region is called Impossible Kingdoms, for the love of Aroden.

I do think there will be a full aquatic adventure, just as we'll have a full Darklands adventure; that's what the rules, ancestries, and everything else are for. I'm fairly certain about all of this, but I don't know if there will be an AP with Feybound since I don't see a Draconic AP following the Draconic Codex anywhere, so I don't know.

I thought the implication was that they called to their goddess (Jaidi) but who actually answered was Urgathoa similarly to the Horselords of Nidal calling for salvation and Zon-Kuthon answering. When the other tribes realized that their brethren got corrupted by this entity they allied with the Taldan, all of them died and the Taldan named the province in the memory of the tribes that rebelled against the Urgathoans.

She could always use a warshard, we have had 4 adventures now where the evil guys have gone "i am gonna use this to awaken some evil/ascend/change the world" so if she needs divinity she could have it. At the very least level wise she should be more that 20 if she is the final foe for the AP because to put into context level 20 pcs were able to defeat the final villain of Spore War and while she need not be that powerful yet she is definitely gonna be in that level 20 range.

There is a single mention of war crimes from a 1st person pov in the Hellfire Dispatches book so from a character pov they do exist on Golarion on some form. Of course we don't know what they are because you have poison, fungi, or diseases that could be perceived as chemical warfare (or some other name) but what does that entails? Molthune attitude of not attacking civilians or medics and the disgust at the Fort Ramgate massacre by the Ironfang from both sides shows us that that is obviously a war crime in world but with teleportation, illusion magic or trapping people outside of time things gets sidetracked.

Maybe if Abrogail or her generals get captured we will see like a trial performed in Andoran, now that is a crazy Module plot hook where you are a group of Asmodean or Norgorborites lawyers trying to prove the innocence of an obvious guilty party and things devolve into combat (as they usually do)

Abrogail II or 1. She dies fighting the PCs but uses the Cheliax Covenant and hands the nation over to Asmodeus. Portals open throughout the nation, and it's not a Worldwound 2.0 in the sense that the devils aren't like demons; they're going to engage in "diplomacy" while in their tyranny. So, even if a crusade is attempted, you also have to consider that Tar-Baphon is awake.

2. Abrogail II ascends as a new Queen of the Night using a fragment of Gorum. It seems to be a trend; I won't say who, but those pieces of armor are very useful. She loses her power to rule Golarion, whether due to the actions of the PCs or divine intervention. She becomes the patron of Cheliax, but overall, they lose the conflict; the only one who wins is her, not the country.

3. The PCs go to Hell and have a legal battle with Abrogail II, judged by Asmodeus. This ends (if the PCs obtain enough victory points) with the Cheliax Covenant dissolving. However, the fine print states that all the devils summoned to Golarion don't necessarily have to return, so all the servants, guards, and even energy cores that the devils were been used as become free. Considering what would happen with just one free Nessari, the entire nation descends into chaos. This would be more like the Gravelands than the Worldwound, since the devils aren't infinite and would try to rule, but they would face greater resistance due to their smaller numbers.

For Andoran: 1. They win the war, but Abrogail II uses a weapon that destroys either Almas or Augustana, and the loss of life is so horrific that you have this sadder and more pessimistic Andoran (similar to Ustalav, I guess).

2. Andoran wins, and although they suffer losses, they are at their peak. Militarism's popularity skyrockets because "they were not only right that there would be war with Cheliax, but we won without the help of Absalom, Taldor, or Qadira, just us" (they ignore Rahadoum). The philosophy of interventionism takes shape, and imagine the Gray Corsairs with their fight against slavers and pirates, now add the nobles of Taldor, against Rahadoum's religious prohibition, against Osirion (they have a pharaoh), against Qadira (they have an Emir or something else, I can't remember), but they are going to annoy a lot of people.

Option 3.Would you look at the time! ⏰️<--- Nothing ever happens time

Years will pass before anything happens again, but you do have some developments for the future.

I agree with Raven that the Cheliax that emerges from this should be more subtle. If we use devils as a comparison, the current Cheliax under Abrogail II is a Nessari, brutal with immense physical force and ambition, but everything they attempt directly ends up being blocked by their enemies (go, go gadget adventurers). However, if they were more like a Phistophilus, using contracts to grant power to third parties without being directly involved, they would fare better. Devils are not usually affected by the mistakes of those they empower; they don't care because they can empower others if the former fail. This Cheliax would be like a devil on your shoulder, whispering that they can grant you power—a potential ally depending on the price you're willing to pay. This contrasts with the current Cheliax, who, if you're not on their side, tries to run you over like a snowplow.

I think this could improve their goodwill with other nations, which might come to their defense in the future, since perhaps if Taldor, Osirion, or Molthune are being "helped" by them and it is in their self-interest to protect a source of power for them. Otherwise, how can Andoran be stopped after the war if it says, "You still follow Asmodeus? Then another war!" and another province becomes independent, and so on and so forth. If you have Cheliax helping the Lumber Consortium, this other country here and there, and others arround, they can become like Druma, who wants to conquer the world with money. In this case, Cheliax conquers it through these contracts. It reminds me of Aspex the Even-Tongued, who, although not a diabolist, managed to convince Andoran, Galt, and Isger to join them without bloodshed, just with a silver tongue and well-placed threats.

The thing is, aside from Nidal and """Hell""", Cheliax has no allies in this war (Absalom and Taldor will remain neutral, Rahadoum will want to control/maintain Khari, Ravounel will join when it sees that Cheliax is on its last legs and that the Cheliax Covenant is irrelevant, and the others are preoccupied with their own affairs, like Molthune with its conflicts with Nirmathas).

Corentyn is described in LO:Infernal Inheritance as "a naval power establishing its militaristic and economic might," so I believe that Kettermaul Charthagnion, the city's "mayor", will continue to lead it because it's specifically stated that 1.He was in the navy, 2.Is very friendly with the Hellknights and Lictor there, and 3.Has no devotion to Asmodeus, unlike the rest of the Charthagnions (whom we will surely face in the AP). Pezzack will probably join Ravounel, i suppose the Strix will want some kind of independence, i see Kantaria, Doggun Hold, and that whole part of the Menador as more independent than anything else, because, yeah, they killed the leaders of the Glorious Reclamation and all that, but being the birthplace of Iomedae, if Cheliax is at a low point, I don't see them wanting to be with the Diabolists anymore. Brastlewark, after what they've done to it, clearly won't be under the Thrune or whoever comes next and I have no idea about Westcrown, since if it became independent, Egorian couldn't go to sea without paying them, and then they'd have to pay Corentyn and Khari to go to the Arcadian Ocean too, so I don't know.

What I find most curious is that in LO:II the description is "Cheliax, a devil-bound nation transformed by war," and I wonder how diavolism would survive if they lose so drastically. Unless Abrogail II ascends to being a Queen of the Night in Hell or something, I don't see her still alive, or at least ruling the nation. So who does rule it? The Church of Asmodeus? Another random member of House Thrune or some other noble house? How do they maintain the nation so it doesn't collapse, it is still devoted to Asmodeus (unless the devil-bound is more of a "there is all this baggage an devil bs we have to deal with but we dont want more of that"), and we can interact with it regularly, given that they still have a good amount of influence. Atleast after the war, the political situation will at least be amusing to watch.

They made a blog a few days ago, up here it is: Blog post

Also they have updated the AP page so the players guide link is also at the bottom now: Hellbreakers

I wonder if we will get to see of play Abrogail II, the sequel of the satirical play that sparked the revolutionary sentiment in Pezzack, as i think there is no better time for it than now and it was foreshadowed that "it would spark a revolution over all of Cheliax". I mentioned 'cause my friend toll me the fist play gets mentioned in some way in Hellbreakers so i think it would be funny to do a satirical play and them beat the woman it was named after.

Good to here that the regions and the like are still gonna be there, like of course Ilvarandin can't have intellect devourers anymore but maybe they get replaced by someyhing else. I quite like the Darklands as they have societies very alien to the rest of Golarion like those pyshic pirate people that were a ray of hope underground and you can always explore them further like "what are the Darklands of Tian Xia, of Vudra, of Casmaron..." so very exciting stuff

Btw the page for Hell's Destiny is up for any interested.

Hell's Destiny.

It would appear that Cheliax gets hit from within and from without, makes sense. I imagine that even if the countries get pull into the conflict because of the Hellfire Crisis i don't think it every conflict in it would end with Cheliax defeat, if lets say Mzali and Vidrian go to war because Vidrian resources are low helping in the conflict and Mzali saw blood in the water that could continue for years. That way be could come back to resolved some other time when the call to write war stories arise again, similarly with what is going on in Molthune/Nirmathas.

The thing about evil adventures is that if you make them reactive there's no problem, but if you make them proactive, people will almost certainly complain, except in obscure areas of Golarion. You're not going to have an AP adventure in Molthune where it conquers Nirmathas because people would say "what about Ironfang Invasion?" (even if Oprak is the enemy in that ap). The same goes for Ravounel, Korvosa, Sandpoint, or any place where AP PCs (not module PCs, since there seems to be more flexibility there) have been; people would complain. You already had people complaining about the Hellknights taking over Hellknight Hill for a week or two in a Society scenario; imagine that, but multiply it by 10. I'd like to see proactive evil adventures myself, but it doesn't seem like that's going to be the case, and eventually you'll have places where you can only have reactive adventures (look at Varisia). So yeah, PCs working for evil organizations can work; they just need to be shown a little respect, that is all. In Second Darkness, you have the Lantern Bearers, who are infamous in my opinion for being a "good" organization (in the sense that you have to help them no matter what, and the drow are obviously the bad guys), but then they're xenophobic jerks to non-elves. How many parties have told them "well, see you later" and had to either create elf characters or not continue the campaign? Interesting thought.

I think a good place to have a "gray" adventure—in the sense that you can help different warring factions, some better than others, but you can choose who you side—is Brevoy. Basically, it would be a mercenary adventure, perhaps a character has their own interests in the conflict, but at the end of the day, the group chooses who to help from several valid options. Half the adventure would involve getting to know the noble houses, what each one does, helping them with their problems, and gaining an understanding of the situation. Then, in the second half, when a civil war breaks out (for example) the group can decide who to support. The stats of the soldiers and monsters would be the same for both sides so the devs don't have to write like seven different statblocks, and what you would do with the maps is that if you go againts one faction, lets call them House Tululu, you have to besiege their castle from the outside. But if you had allied with the Tululu guys, the enemies would be the ones on the attack, and instead, you would have to play defense and protect against an invasion, that way you can reuse maps but with different purpuse and approach. A campaign like this can also be done in the River Kingdoms, in Iobaria or elsewhere, different factions that you get to know, you choose the one you like and they end up fighting probably to the death later so you choose who the winning horse is gonna be.

In #7-14: Brastlewark at War, Part 2: The Gnome Liberation, the introductory paragraph states that the eastern front has advanced enough to be close to the gnome city and be able to liberate it, etc., so the ground advance is progressing well. If Hell's Destiny is on the western front, I suppose we'll sandwich Cheliax until we reach Egorian, where there will be a final confrontation, I assume.

Honestly, I hope that when Cheliax loses, it will manage to accomplish something that makes you say, "Holy crap, i cant believe that happened!" For example, I think this could be done well and an example is with Tyrant Grasp, where you prevent Tar-Baphon's ultimate objective (Absalom) but can't prevent the "secondary" one (Lastwall). I'd like it if, while Cheliax's main objective that we're trying to prevent is stop them from winning the war (obviously) or cause trouble with Asmodeus, they should achieve something secondary, like as an ex. creating a "Radiant Fire" 2.0 with the pieces of Gorum and destroying Augustana in a massive explosion. It doesn't have to be exactly that, but if Andoran and all their allies basically win easily, it shows they could easily wipe out Molthune or Nidal or whoever, and they're not going to do it "just 'cause".

Unless Andoran becomes ultra-militant and interventionist and turns into the "villain" of the region (a bit of a pipe dream, I think), I want there to be more than just the illusion of stakes; I want them to actually lose something, to make it a victory that's more sweet than bitter, but there has to be some bitterness in it.

Will the AP ending be isolated or will it affect other aspects of Ustalav? Obviously, I don't want you to reveal the ending, but my question is whether the campaign events are isolated and everything is resolved here and that's it (like Shades of Blood), or if there's some revelation or something that affects Ustalav, besides the fact that I suppose it won't have to worry about kidnapping carriages anymore. When I think of Bastardhall, Scarwall is the first think that comes to mind, and after Curse, there isn't much to say or see developing there, so I'd like to know.

A level 7-16 adventure where the PCs held some prestigious rank (they were a lieutenant in the army, a merchant lord, the right-hand man in the most important church, or a famous actress) and the antagonists of the AP destroyed their reputations (false accusations of corruption, scandal, etc.). Now, as pariahs of society, they band together to regain their influence (or surpass it).

You could make each campaign trait in the player's guide affiliated with an antagonist (if you choose the military trait, the military antagonist is your nemesis). During the campaign, the party sabotages and fights against the antagonist's subordinates until the final chapter, where the final battle is the PC group versus the antagonist group (who would be working together on some plot to take control of the country or something like that). The idea reminds me of Gaedren Lamm at the beginning of Curse, and the players would have that "It's personal" motivation.

I'm interested to know if anything has changed in the Mordant Spire since Godsrain with Acavna and all. I'd like to see enough aquatic content in the book because an AP build arround the Alghollthu would be interesting since i don't think they've had a significant role in 2e.

One cool thing would be if, instead of exploring more Varisia or New Thassilon, they could do adventures in the past. After all, the Draconic Codex shows us how the Time Dragon can open portals to the past. Although I suppose what I'm saying doesn't have to be limited to Thassilon; we could travel to Azlant, or the Jistka Imperium, etc., to experience what they were like in the past.

I know i am behind the wave here, but a Parallel Worlds AP would be interesting. Imagine going to a world where House Thrune made a pact with Heaven instead of Hell, a world where Karzoug, Areelu, Barzillai, and all the villains won their APs, and the world is terrible. I think it would be great to explore these "what ifs" since, obviously, these worlds aren't part of the "official" canon.

Sarcedor wrote:

-Chapter 3 (9-11): You know who's a level high enough to be a final boss? Illcayna Alonnor, daughter of Urgathoa, attacks with her undead army from the south to return Isger to a nation dedicated to the goddess.

Good job this isn't 1E, Illcayna was a CR 19 creature with 17th-level cleric casting in that system. Well beyond what should reasonably be pitted against an 11th-level party.

I've checked, and you're right, perhaps the threat is more direct from Cheliax. Even so, it's strange because at the end of the campaign, you'll have a powerful daughter of Urgathoa with an undead army in the south, and in the north, there's the cleric of Mammon, both with political or religious interests in Isger. The PCs won't be able to deal with them, will they? Perhaps that will be left for the future.

What interests me most about this campaign duology is seeing what happens with Andoran, since in Shining Kingdoms the more militaristic faction is established, and when the war with Cheliax starts a few months later (and they will likely win), I wonder if it will make Andoran even more interventionist and militant afterward. I find it interesting since in 1e the only ones that adventurers could come into conflict with were the Lumber Consortium, but it would be interesting to see conflicts between Andoran and Taldor or other nations and that in any of them there could be PCs that support them (in a Cheliax vs Andoran only Andoran would receive the support of the PCs as is being seen in the aps and society scenarios).

Taking into account the adventure description, and considering that even though it's a book it will likely be divided into three chapters, my prediction for the adventure is as follows:

-Chapter 1 (1-4): We start small, traveling through the countryside to different villages, solving problems and gaining support while facing hellknights and some undead. The boss of this chapter could be a hellknight from Citadel Dinyar, or perhaps that comes later.

-Chapter 2 (5-8): We've just gathered support and descend on Elidir and other cities in the Conerica Straits. The boss of this chapter is surprisingly Hedvend VI; he should be around level 9 or 10, so he won't be the final boss of the book. At the end of the chapter, we manage to take control of Isger.

-Chapter 3 (9-11): You know who's a level high enough to be a final boss? Illcayna Alonnor, daughter of Urgathoa, attacks with her undead army from the south to return Isger to a nation dedicated to the goddess. This is the only reason I see for including information about Urgathoa in the book. Another villain we couldn't face is the High Priestess of Mammon, since she's level 20 and so on.

An outcome I would wholeheartedly wish for is that Asmodeus continues to be worshipped in Isger. I don't want Isger to become Ravounel 2.0, and given the whole orphanage situation (whose children are now adults), I think it would be good if they worshipped Asmodeus in his "benevolent" form. It would be quite ironic, if in Hell's Destiny the House Thrune falls and Cheliax is torn to pieces, for Isger to be the place that preserves Asmodeus. It would be interesting, and there would be beef with Andoran, which would be nice.