Harrower

Zandric Zendrani's page

27 posts. Organized Play character for Mike Kimmel (Developer).



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Paizo Employee 2/5 Pathfinder Society Developer

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Trying something a little different today, and setting up a GM discussion thread myself. This is the place for GMs to discuss Pathfinder Society Scenario #3-12: Fury's Toll.

Players, be aware that there are spoilers ahead!

GMs, if you have any questions, ask away. Talking things over with fellow GMs is often helpful. I'll do my best to clarify any major issues and answer questions as soon as I can.

My first piece of advice for GMs looking to run this adventure is: please read the final battle's tactics carefully, and implement the tactics as written. There are strong narrative reasons for the enemies in the final battle to use suboptimal tactics. If you run the final enemies with optimal tactics, the encounter may be far more difficult than intended.

Enjoy!

Paizo Employee Organized Play Developer

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Does it still work with those little magnets and wet erase pens? :P

Paizo Employee 2/5 Organized Play Developer

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I'm *so* excited for this. Nice work, Jenny!

Paizo Employee 2/5 Contributor, RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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All of this sounds most excellent.

Paizo Employee Contributor, RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

Hey folks. Looking for tips/suggestions for prepping/running this adventure path for a party of two PCs. I'll be running this for my spouse and she is interested in playing a dynamic duo of sorts. She does not wish to play a larger party. We've tried that. We're also not looking to have NPCs following her around to help in combat all the time, though we may have some NPCs remain on her party's starship to act as crew members so that she doesn't have to cover every possible starship skill with two PCs.

So, what considerations do I need to make when prepping/running this?

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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All right, let's do this.

Paizo Employee 2/5 RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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It does not get more exciting than this!

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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Content/Spoiler Tags: anxiety and depression; teen suicide; mild spoilers (behind spoiler tag) for PFS #10-00: The Hao Jin Cataclysm; sentimentality; unedited, overwrought writing.

Reader,
You are a hero. Allow me a moment of your time; I’ll gladly explain. Grab a drink. Stay awhile.

Some context. I am a freelance author for the Pathfinder RPG. My most recent published work was Pathfinder Society Scenario #10-00: The Hao Jin Cataclysm. I am also a high school teacher. I just finished my fifth year at what you might call an “alternative” urban school. “The sort of school where the screwups go,” I often hear, but it’s typically the school system that screwed up, not the student.

I digress.

If you do not know me, know this: I do not pretend to be the best at much of anything. But I know I am a decent husband and father; I am a good GM; I write decent, fun adventures; I am organized; and I can make coffee and pancakes with one hand while juggling a hungry toddler in the other. The one thing I’ve come to accept that I am truly quite good at is my job, teaching.

In November of 2017, on Black Friday, one of my students, a high school freshman, died of suicide. I found out on Sunday, after a family dinner. I was this student’s history teacher and advisor.

I still do not know how to write this part.

The utter devastation to my mental health was not instantaneous. It took a few months. Some of you know what I went through, and I am sorry for that. If not, you can take my word for it, or look up the symptoms of severe secondary traumatic stress, anxiety, and depression. Seasonal affective disorder also took its toll. Winters here are long and dark and damp. I started therapy a few months into 2018; by then I could barely talk about my student or enter my classroom without having an anxiety attack. The thing about depression is that it makes everything harder, you see, and when things are harder, you begin to ignore them, or give up. When you are a teacher, and you begin to ignore things that are hard, then things get worse. More difficult. And so on. I cannot even imagine what my student was going through, and what their family went through.

Let’s jump ahead a few months, when an e-mail lands in my inbox with a new freelance writing assignment. An interactive special for Pathfinder, to debut at GenCon 2018. “Sure, I’ll take on an assignment twice as large as anything else I’ve ever written while I’m in the middle of the worst mental health crisis of my life!” is not what I thought to myself. I was simply excited, and I accepted. When I learned that I’d be writing about the Hao Jin Tapestry and the Ruby Phoenix, my excitement increased. Such an awesome place for adventure! Such a cool story!

Also, my school’s mascot is a phoenix.

Fitting, right? Second chances. Rebirth. New beginnings.

The resonance of these themes to my personal journey were not immediately obvious to me. A small piece of the story was somewhat distracting.

[The following section contains mild SPOILERS for #3-21: The Temple of Empyreal Enlightenment and #10-00: The Hao Jin Cataclysm.]

Spoiler:

In the Hao Jin Cataclysm, the PCs revisit a location from Scenario #3-21. The original scenario had some heavy themes, including suicide. My job was to revisit the location and strike a balance between revisiting those events and themes while avoiding getting too “heavy.” It’s an interactive convention game, after all.

This part of the scenario took a long time to write.

In the end, I wrote about somebody who had given up. The PCs get to save this person and “set them on a better path” through heroic deeds, luck, and a bit of demon-butt-kicking.

I do not intend to trivialize mental illness; you don’t get to beat up a few monsters and make it go away. Depression does not have a Challenge Rating. Still, something about writing this section helped me through my own struggle. It didn’t “fix” me. Treatment for mental illness is highly complex. Mine is ongoing. But, I realized this writing meant something to me.

The rest of the adventure suddenly felt bigger. More powerful.

So I breezed through it, right? Smooth sailing from here! Intense gratification! Accolades! Applause!

No. I still suffered anxiety’s sting, depression’s grasp, and the oppressive weight of constant stress. Often, my freelance work just made things worse. It is work, after all, and I have a full-time job and a family and little time or energy for friends. I do not recommend a 20,000 word writing assignment as treatment for mental illness. This tale is not about how I was gloriously reborn as a less depressed person by writing an adventure. I am not the phoenix.

Or maybe I am, a little bit. Maybe not every phoenix is the same. Maybe some of them just smolder for a while, suffer a bit, and make a few changes in their life. They don’t burn out completely. They sputter. Their flames change color. They heal up, but they keep their scars.

To me, the phoenix does not represent an ending, but a beginning. Who we are for the rest of our lives is more important than who we’ve been so far. I don’t know exactly what that means for me, but some things are clear. For the time being, I am stepping away from the classroom and into a different role in my school district. I am striving to place greater emphasis on relationships: my family, my friends, my freelancer community. It’s a work in progress.

I think I’ll always need treatment: therapy, medication, exercise, sunlight.

I see role-playing games, and those who play them, a little differently.

I had the honor of attending GenCon for the first time in 2018, as a volunteer for Paizo, and witnessed The Hao Jin Cataclysm in action. In a way, though my role in the adventure’s creation had been over for many weeks, that night I felt like a chapter in my life had closed. A friend or two remarked on my expression as the (super awesome) read-aloud text scrolled by on the big screens. I did not adequately explain what was behind that expression at the time. (To be fair, I’d just finished my fifth GM slot).

I think my primary emotion was gratitude. There are many who have played a role in my freelancing career: all of those who made RPG Superstar possible; my developers at Paizo and the rest of the Paizo team (especially Linda, my developer for #10-00, and John, my first developer); my freelancing friends; my spouse; my friends who play, and my friends who don’t play. Anyone who’s ever lent me dice. (Though, let’s be honest, it’s usually the other way around.)

I felt another, strange sort of gratitude. Something overwhelming. I could not describe it. I shall make a clumsy attempt to do so now.

I was grateful for people who play Pathfinder. Not just the people in the room for #10-00. The whole lot of you.

I began this story by calling you a hero, and I’ll leave you with this simple explanation: when you play this game, your tablemates are not alone. You are with them, telling stories together, cheering for crits together, lamenting at TPK’s together, puzzling out obtuse rules together, and talking about your characters together. Your characters are heroes, sure. But (and I say this with sincerity), you are the real heroes. Next time you sit down to play Pathfinder, don’t just thank your GM. Thank everyone at the table. Drop a note to a random person in the credits of your favorite rulebook. Thank the folks who hand-crafted your dice tower.

One of the most difficult aspects of my depression has been the insidious power of mental illness to make socialization less appealing, when human contact is a necessary part of my treatment. I have always known that tabletop games are important to me. Most of my friends (including my spouse) I’ve met through a game of some sort or other. But, in the past several months, as I’ve written this scenario and come through this struggle, I’ve started to see RPGs in a different light. They burn a little brighter now.

Go out of your way to get people gaming with you. They might just need it.


FF 1-02

Comms Uplink

Venture-Captain Arvin summons you for a briefing in the Lorespire Complex on Absalom Station. The doors to the office slide open with a soft pneumatic hiss. Inside is a well-lit and blue-carpeted office. Venture-Captain Arvin, a handsome and determined-looking damaya lashunta, sits behind a desk, his eyes riveted on a glassy display. After a heartbeat, he glances towards the open door and motions everyone to enter.

"Apologies, please come in. Be seated if you like, although this shouldn't take long." Arvin taps a button on a console and murmurs to a digital assistant, "Croyd, put everything on hold for a few minutes. If anyone calls, please explain I'm in mission briefing and I'll get right back to them." He then darkens the display to give his full attention to the assembled Starfinders.

"Right. I have an assignment for you. This one is a little different than others you might have received." He pauses before he explains, "It's an internal matter."

"You're probably aware that after the Scoured Stars incident many of our colleagues elected to leave the Society. That is unfortunate, but not surprising. We hate to lose good field agents, but no one is conscripted into our ranks. Normally we wish them well and that's that. In this case, the defector, former field agent Reynald Talbot, stole an artifact from the Lorespire Complex before departing. Theft is where the Society draws the line; I need you to get that artifact back."

Unfortunately, Talbot left weeks ago and we only discovered the theft in the last 24 hours. We launched an immediate investigation to determine the identify of the thief and their last known whereabouts. It's our bad luck that Talbot was smart enough to get off the station and head to Akiton, where there's no central government or law enforcement to easily call upon. I need you to track him down and recover the artifact. We know Talbot caught a shuttle to the Akitonian city of Maro, so that's a great place to start. The Society will, of course, cover your travel expenses."

Based on the results of a Culture check, you might know more about Akiton. You know all the information whose DC is less than or equal to the result of your check.

Culture DC 10+:
Akiton is smaller than Golarion standard with 1/3 gravity and a thin atmosphere. This means non-acclimated characters can jump three times as high ad carry three times the normal weight, although they gain no additional movement speed. Likewise, unless they wear any type of armor, they must succeed at hourly Fortitude saves or become fatigued. You know that Akiton suffered an economic crash when the revelation of Drift technology rendered the numerous pre-Drift fuels mined on Akiton virtually worthless.

Culture DC 15+:
Akiton is generally lawless, except for whatever laws a local authority might impose. Akiton survives on trade and commerce. Strangers find loyalty hard to come by, especially in the big cities. Newcomers are consequently likely to be observed and watched, especially if an organization believes it can take advantage of the strangers. If Talbot acted or did anything at all out of the ordinary, someone is likely to have noticed, and it is unlikely he would stay in the same place more than a few days.

Culture DC 20+:
Wealth is hard to come by on Akiton. If Talbot fled to the red planet, he did so for a reason. It's likely the ex-Starfinder had a plan, and that plan involved lots of credits. Given Akiton's unstable economy, such a surge should be identifiable for those who "follow the money."


FF 1-02

For discussion of out-of-character matters and logistics.


FF 1-02

Water laps steadily at the pier as sailors, laborers, and merchants rush busily around Absalom's port. Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin's summons called for a meeting aboard the Sixwing Drake, a sleek sailing ship. The Drake's captain, a Varisian woman and fellow Pathfinder named Zarah Zendrani, stands at the helm of her vessel. "It's not like Valsin to be late," she mutters, furrowing her brow.

Please take a moment to introduce and describe your characters and their reactions to receiving a summons from the Venture-Captain. You are all currently on the deck of the Sixwing Drake, awaiting Valsin's arrival.


FF 1-02

Water laps steadily at the pier as sailors, laborers, and merchants rush busily around Absalom's port. Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin's summons called for a meeting aboard the Sixwing Drake, a sleek sailing ship. The Drake's captain, a Varisian woman and fellow Pathfinder named Zarah Zendrani, stands at the helm of her vessel. "It's not like Valsin to be late," she mutters, furrowing her brow.

Please take a moment to introduce and describe your characters and their reactions to receiving a summons from the Venture-Captain. You are all currently on the deck of the Sixwing Drake, awaiting Valsin's arrival.


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FF 1-02

Welcome! This is the discussion thread for my evergreen PFS scenario, #7-10: The Consortium Compact (Table B). Recruitment for this game is closed. Currently confirmed players are Miteke, Tarondor, Mike Garlington, Caro Cogitatus, edwardsobel, and caps.

Please post here by Friday at 2:00pm to check in and let everyone know which character you plan to play. Perhaps take this time to discuss your experience with play-by-post games, or this scenario in particular (without spoiling it). Also, make sure your stats are fully loaded into your alias profile as soon as possible. I hope to start gameplay when everyone is ready, and by Monday at the latest.

Once you have determined which character you'll use, post here or PM me with the following information:

Player Name:
PFS & Character Number:
PC Name:
Class and level:
Current XP:
Current PP:
Current Fame:
Day Job Skill and Roll: (if any)
Pre-Scenario Purchases: (list items and gp/PP spent)

Finally, please take a look at my "Mike the GM" alias profile for some tips and guidelines, especially if you are new to play-by-post games.

Again, welcome aboard, and may all your hits be crits!


FF 1-02

Welcome! This is the discussion thread for my evergreen PFS scenario, #7-10: The Consortium Compact (Table A). Recruitment for this game is closed. Currently confirmed players are Escharid, GM Evil, Valjoen_KC, Michael Hallet, Faelyn, and Paladin of Baha-who?.

Please post here by Friday at 2:00pm to check in and let everyone know which character you plan to play. Perhaps take this time to discuss your experience with play-by-post games, or this scenario in particular (without spoiling it). Also, make sure your stats are fully loaded into your alias profile as soon as possible. I hope to start gameplay when everyone is ready, and by Monday at the latest.

Once you have determined which character you'll use, post here or PM me with the following information:

Player Name:
PFS & Character Number:
PC Name:
Class and level:
Current XP:
Current PP:
Current Fame:
Day Job Skill and Roll: (if any)
Pre-Scenario Purchases: (list items and gp/PP spent)

Finally, please take a look at my "Mike the GM" alias profile for some tips and guidelines, especially if you are new to play-by-post games.

Again, welcome aboard, and may all your hits be crits!

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

I bought some items at the PaizoCon store on Friday, and the order processed to my card twice. Can you cancel one of the charges?

Order 3968500
Order 3968501

Thanks,
Mike


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FF 1-02

The salty air of Aspenthar’s port yields to delicate perfumes and incense as a servant leads the way into an elegant townhouse. Another servant serves tea in Tian porcelain, offering the first cup to Lady Gloriana Morilla and the second to a regal woman wearing a colorful headscarf and a striking gold necklace.

“At last, our team has arrived!” Lady Gloriana announces, gesturing to the other teacups. “Please help yourselves. Allow me to introduce Lady Ziralia, eldest daughter of Aspenthar’s liege, Prince Zinlo. She has requested the Society’s services for a rather intriguing project."

Lady Ziralia nods. “Thank you for the introduction, Lady Morilla. As it happens, I am here today on behalf of Pashow, not Aspenthar. Like Thuvia’s other cities, Pashow relies on the sale of sun orchid elixir to fuel its economy. Unfortunately, the last two batches destined for Pashow’s auction house were lost to mishaps with teleportation magic. Emir Guldis has borrowed money to keep the city afloat, but Pashow cannot afford to lose another shipment. Magic failed the last two times, so I’ve petitioned Guldis to transport the vials in person, as my father does. I rallied enough public support that the Emir was forced to see reason, and he began building some armored convoys and training guards to escort them."

“Guldis has entrusted me with looking into his transport’s total security. Our interactions have been somewhat tense of late, and his full motives for choosing me for such a sensitive task are not yet clear. Nonetheless, the task at hand takes precedence over idle speculation. If this shipment is lost, Pashow will suffer greatly, and I respect the weight of my responsibly in preventing that fate."

“The Emir plans to send the transport on a practice run from the Citadel of the Alchemist to Pashow with a decoy elixir. Your job is to perform reconnaissance, plan an ambush, and raid the transport. To best assess the transport’s vulnerabilities, we are treating this exercise as a genuine heist. The guards don’t know they are being tested, so they will respond to you as they would respond to a real thief trying to infiltrate their operation. They do know that Guldis appointed me as his auditor, however, so my direct involvement will be limited. I am here to offer advice, monitor your strategies, note any security flaws you manage to exploit, and report back to the Emir. I will counsel you as best I can, but you should approach this heist however you see fit. I understand that this is an unusual mission, but Pathfinder agents are well known for their resourcefulness.”

Please introduce yourselves and feel free to ask questions!


FF 1-02

This thread is for discussion of the Freelance Forge community's PFS game: #7-21 The Sun Orchid Scheme, run by Mike Kimmel. This game is invitation-only.

Liberty's Edge 4/5 5/55/5 **

Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber; Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber

I Look forward to hearing more about this "upcoming project for the organized play campaign".

Paizo Employee 2/5 RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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I've been reading over scenarios and watching reviews come in for Season 7, and thought I'd start a thread where we can talk about the things that make scenarios "good." I'm hoping this can be a resource for scenario authors and developers. If such a thread already exists, I apologize, though I did poke around a little and didn't find anything at first glance.

I think there are actually two separate questions:

From a player's perspective, what makes a PFS scenario good?

From a GM's perspective, what makes a PFS scenario good?

Perhaps also: from a developer's perspective (or Paizo's perspective), what makes a PFS scenario good? (Although the answer is likely some variation of "if the players and GMs think it is good, it is good.")

Please feel free to speak generally or cite specific examples. Let's keep it positive. If anyone else feels the need to start a "what makes a scenario bad?" thread, they're certainly welcome to!

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32 , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

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Freelance Forge is an RPG freelancer think-tank, founded in 2014 by participants in that year's contest. In RPG Superstar 2015, three out of the Top 4 contestants were members of Freelance Forge! This year, Freelance Forge members such as myself are posting daily tips to our Twitter and Facebook accounts. You can find us at:

Twitter: @FreelanceForge (we're tweeting our tips to #RPGSS9)
Facebook

Our first tip is to establish a presence on the RPG Superstar forums. If you're reading this post, you probably knew that already, but if you're a "lurker," consider introducing yourself and chatting with other contestants about the contest. Voters are more likely to support you if they know you to be a friendly person, and you'll get more enjoyment out of the RPG Superstar experience if you make a few friends along the way.


FF 1-02

The reputable merchant and ally of the Society Aya Allahe paces one of the back rooms of Sharrowsmith’s Exports, a walled trade compound on the northern edge of Nantambu in the Mwangi Expanse.

“I wish I had more to offer,” Allahe apologizes before even presenting what information she has. “Nieford Sharrowsmith never truly retired from being a Pathfinder, even after he started this business. I think, in his mind, he was still the young adventurer that hiked through jungles and fought off troglodyte tribes. Sharrowsmith’s attitude changed over the last few months—I think he was concerned for his legacy and how history would remember him. Would it be for his discoveries or for the export business that dominated his later years? The answer, I fear, was unpalatable."

“It was no surprise when he packed up and left on an expedition. But that was months ago, and neither the Society nor I have heard from him since. Sharrowsmith has never left for this long without leaving some word as to his status or sending rather demanding missives about business decisions while he was waist-deep in some jungle bog. When my own contacts failed to turn up any useful information, I had no recourse but to go through his private notes.” Allahe motions to the mess of documents scattered about the office.

“What caught my eye was this translated rubbing. It appears to be the most recent piece of a very large puzzle Sharrowsmith was researching and indicated that he may be somewhere in the Bandu Hills. Traders from Fort Bandu have confirmed that he paid the garrison a visit, but that’s where my trail ran cold. Something happened out there, and Praetor Sylien—Fort Bandu’s commander—refuses to correspond with me on the matter despite knowing how close Nieford and I are. All I received in response was that Nieford had ‘done enough damage for one lifetime,’ and that if I wanted to discuss the matter further I would need to go to Fort Bandu in person.” Exasperatedly, Allahe runs a hand across her forehead and turns her distant stare out the window. “I cannot shutter the business and travel hundreds of miles on the off chance that the praetor can help; the company would fall apart. I’m hoping that you will be able to go in my stead, speak with the praetor personally to learn what has befallen Sharrowsmith and help him return.”

Allahe hands you the translated rubbing to look over. "I am happy to answer any questions you might have before you set out."


FF 1-02

For out-of-character discussion.

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

Hello everyone!

I am recruiting 4 to 7 players for the Scions of the Sky Key trilogy. This is a series of Tier 1–5 scenarios, and I'd like to get a group who can commit to playing through all three of them over the course of 3 or 4 months. I am the author of the 2nd scenario in the series, "Kaava Quarry."

This will be a sanctioned Pathfinder Core play-by-post game. I am looking for players who can post at least once a day. I will likely post multiple times each day.

To sign up, post using your PC's alias and voice your interest and availability. You can sign up with a lower-subtier character and a higher-subtier character if you want, and I'll make the decision on which subtier to run based on how many we get of each subtier. I hope to begin by the 1st week of June, if possible.

Characters must have their stats fully loaded into paizo.com aliases, for ease of GM reference. Remember that a character currently playing in a play-by-post cannot play in other games.

If you're interested, but you don't have much experience with play-by-post games, please look over this guide and this guide.

Paizo Employee 2/5 RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

I went to report a session yesterday and discovered that the factions haven't been updated to the Season 6 factions yet. I was not able to select the appropriate factions for most characters. Should I just leave it be and go back to update it when the factions are up to date on the website?

Even the page which describes the factions has not been updated yet: http://paizo.com/pathfinderSociety/factions

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

I never received this order, which includes the last 2 volumes of Mummy's Mask. The latest shipping info from July 17 says "Transfer to PO no further tracking avail," which I figured means "delivery soon!" But it didn't show up.

On July 26 I moved to a new apartment, having not received the shipment yet, and hoped it might get forwarded to my new place... but I haven't received it here and the old apartment complex hasn't received it either. Yesterday I received my first Iron Gods AP at my new address. (Hurray!)

Can someone help track my APs down? Thanks in advance!

Order #3196474


FF 1-02

Part One: Strange Days in Dustpawn

The sleepy town of Dustpawn sits near the Drumish border, in Isger. Spared the worst of the Goblinblood Wars and largely ignored by both the Isgeri king Hedvend VI and the bandits who ravage the country, it now faces a new threat... or at least, that is what you have been lead to believe by Dalviss Crenn. His invitation encouraged you to travel "with due haste" to Dustpawn and meet with him at his tavern, the Mineshaft. He hinted vaguely that he suspects the "falling star" which recently fell near Dustpawn is no falling star at all...

You encounter few threats on the road to Dustpawn, which winds through the rugged foothills and sparse forests of the region. The small town, which formerly relied on mining, is nestled amongst these hills; goats roam far and wide, and the goatherds eye travelers suspiciously, for Dustpawn lies a full seven miles from any major river or road.

Those unfamiliar with the town find that the townsfolk are willing to point them towards the Mineshaft, but are otherwise reluctant to gossip. You find the Mineshaft near the center of the small town.

Dalviss Crenn reacts warmly as you enter, bidding you to wait until "the others" have arrived to hear what he has to say. He urges you to share your own story to pass the time. There are no townsfolk at the Mineshaft today, and Dalviss shrugs off any comments by stating "times are tough." As you talk, Dalviss's sour-faced housekeeper Nalan Hossler serves you drinks and bland, overcooked food (free of charge). Dalviss listens intently to your stories and his face brightens as each new traveler arrives, but you can't help but notice that he appears tired and worn, as if he has not been sleeping.

In your introductory post, please briefly describe your arrival and what you say to Dalviss and the others about your recent activities. You can use material you've already written for your backstory if you wish, or your character can even deny to share if he/she wishes. I'll give everyone some time to introduce themselves and interact a little bit and then Dalviss will let you know why he's asked for your help!


FF 1-02

This thread is for out-of-character (OOC) discussion for Mike's Doom Comes to Dustpawn game.

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

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RPG Superstar Top 32 only, please

Now that the RPG Superstar dust has settled, let's talk play-by-post!

There was a LOT of interest for this in the Top 32 Guildhall, and I doubt I will be able to accommodate everyone who wants to play. Hopefully some others will step up to GM as well.

I suggested playing a former RPGSS module, but we could also do a homebrew, another module, or even an official PFS game. I've even got Palace of the Vampire Queen and tons of old AD&D modules lying around at home, if we wanted to kick it old school.

I am not sure I want to commit to an entire AP, simply because of how long they are. I'd want to have a good group with a good vibe established before committing to something like that.

So, what do you want to play? This will work a bit like a democracy, in that I will give most consideration to the most popular ideas. But I may also veto ones that don't interest me.

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2014 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32 , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

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City of Blood & Chains

Corentyn, situated where the Inner Sea meets the Arcadian Ocean, boasts a flourishing slave trade.The Order of the Chain oversees these dealings, but the Hellknights are not incorruptible. Resistance groups and criminals take advantage of their greed to smuggle slaves through the city. When a ruthless crime lord implicates the PCs in the murder of several Hellknights, they uncover a plot to destroy the resistance from within.

City of Blood & Chains is a Pathfinder module designed for 3rd-level characters. PCs on the medium XP advancement track can expect to reach 4th level by the adventure’s conclusion. In the adventure, the PCs must navigate the criminal underworld of the Chelaxian city of Corentyn to clear their names of a brutal crime, find the true culprits, and foil a mad zealot’s insidious plot.

Adventure Background
Even before he went mad, Drachius Vilario’s devotion to Cheliax was fanatical. As an Asmodean Inquisitor working with the Hellknight Order of the Chain, he rooted out corruption and eliminated resistance organizations within Corentyn—especially those which worked to liberate slaves. Six months ago, he discovered that several Hellknights were accepting bribes from Sorenia Lorict, a freedom fighter from Andoran working undercover as a city guard. He learned the Hellknights were on the payroll of the bugbear crime lord Borza Eyegrinder. Eyegrinder and his men made a tidy sum in Andoren coin smuggling slaves through the ancient tunnels under the Arch of Aroden.

When he learned of Vilario’s investigation, Eyegrinder captured the inquisitor and tortured him for weeks, then dumped his body in the sea beneath the Arch. Vilario survived—racked with pain, disfigured, and dangerously insane.

In the ruins at the base of the Arch, Vilario encountered a sect of Arodenites, the delusional worshippers of a dead god. He overpowered the cultists, cutting the eyes from their leaders in an echo of Eyegrinder’s favored punishment. With the cultists forced into his service, the seeds of Vilario’s plot were born.

Vilario remains devoted to Cheliax. Taking on a false persona—that of a smuggler called Bloodcoat—he has identified the corrupt Hellknights and manipulated them into turning slaves over to him. Deep in his sanctum, he puts the Eyegrinder’s lessons to use on the slaves, experimenting with the power of pain to shape their minds. He means to bend them to his will, to serve as spies amongst the slaves of Corentyn and root out those who oppose the iron law of Cheliax.

Sorenia Lorict has learned that the slaves whose freedom she so dearly bought never reached their destination. She has set a meeting with the corrupt Hellknights to confront them. Unfortunately, Eyegrinder has discovered the traitors and made arrangements for their elimination. The adventure begins as Sorenia and the PCs arrive at the scene of their grisly demise.

Getting Involved
Sorenia asks the PCs for their help in confronting the corrupt Hellknights and learning the truth about the missing slaves. The PCs might be fellow freedom fighters, former slaves, sympathetic Chelaxians, hired mercenaries, or skilled adventurers with a reputation for getting things done.

Part One: Fleeing the Scene
The PCs flee the scene of a crime they didn’t commit, avoiding arrest by Hellknights and establishing a hideout beneath the streets.

The PCs travel with Sorenia Lorict (NG female fighter 2/rogue 1) into the foggy Warehouse District. As they near the condemned warehouse where they are to meet with Sorenia’s contacts in the Order of the Chain, she cautions them to be wary of the Hellknights, who stand above the law.

Darkness shrouds the interior of the warehouse, save for a single dying lantern. Beyond the mouldering crates which clutter the floor, five Hellknights lie dead upon the floor, partially stripped of their distinctive armor and bound with chains. Their bodies display signs of torture—severed digits, bloody gashes, and empty eye sockets. Before the PCs have time to take in the scene or search for clues, two dottari (Chelaxian city guards, GameMastery Guide 260) arrive, accompanied by a Hellknight in training (guard officer, GameMastery Guide 261). Sorenia urges the PCs to flee; the Hellknight is violently disinterested in any protestations of innocence.

Once the PCs escape or defeat the guards, Sorenia takes them to a hidden entrance which leads to ancient tunnels running beneath the streets of Corentyn. The sound of Hellknights in full plate armor filters down from the streets as the PCs flee.

Sorenia leads the PCs beneath the West Drenches district, widely considered the most unruly part of town. Here she parts ways with the PCs, heading to the surface to gather information. She provides directions to Marcellus’s Mercantile, a general store that serves as a front for the underground liberation movement. There the PCs can rest and plan their next move.

At the safehouse, the PCs encounter Marcellus (NG male shopkeep, GameMastery Guide 284) and his assistant Limm (CG male halfling rogue 2), an escaped slave disguised as a human child. They allow the PCs to stay and rest, and can provide information, but are reluctant to get too involved lest they jeopardize their operation.

Part Two: The Streets of Corentyn
The PCs avoid detection while investigating the warehouse incident and the missing slaves.

Corentyn quickly grows hazardous for the PCs. Krezzik, a wicked imp in Eyegrinder’s employ, observed their actions at the warehouse and has spread rumors of their guilt. Squads of dottari patrol the streets at increased intervals. Citizens are far more distrusting than usual, and even the greediest shopkeepers avoid the PCs. If they linger in the streets, citizens point and whisper, or approach the Hellknights to turn them in. Every exit from Corentyn is heavily guarded, and the warehouse—scoured of all useful evidence—swarms with angry Hellknights.

The events detailed in Part Two can occur in the recommended order below, or another order the GM feels is appropriate. If the PCs get stuck, the GM can have Sorenia or Marcellus discover a useful piece of information leading them to one of these encounters.

Encounter 1: The Priest’s Haunt
The PCs learn that an unscrupulous judge named Magnessa Alazonn (LN human cleric of Asmodeus 5) was helping the corrupt Hellknights and taking a cut of the profits. In the evening, she frequently sits in a secluded, rubble-filled courtyard outside Gallows Walls (Cities of Golarion 15) to listen to the screams emanating from the quarantined district. A master of giving and accepting bribes, she is willing to help the PCs only if they approach her properly. Using Knowledge (local or religion), the PCs can determine how to bribe Alazonn; if they fail to follow the proper procedures, or resort to force, she attempts to chase them off with magic. However, she is a coward at heart and surrenders if seriously injured.

The PCs can learn the following information from Alazonn:

  • The corrupt Hellknights work for Eyegrinder, a bugbear smuggler known for eating the eyes of his enemies.
  • Recently, the Hellknights began working for a man called “Bloodcoat,” a fact they concealed from Eyegrinder.
  • The Hellknights were in the business of finding slaves to smuggle out of the city—for both the resistance and slavers wishing to avoid tariffs.
  • A number of city guards, former crewmen, and corrupt Hellknights serve Eyegrinder as enforcers and spies.
  • Alazonn does not know the whereabouts of either Eyegrinder or Bloodcoat, but she suggests the PCs talk to Nixthiro, an information broker in the West Drenches, to learn more.

Encounter 2: The King of Secrets
The PCs visit Nixthiro to learn more about the criminal element in Corentyn. Nixthiro, a filth dragon (R2), rules over a ragtag group of urchins and ruffians from his “throne,” a pile of detritus blocking one of the city’s waste-dumping aqueducts. Though arrogant and greedy, the self-styled “King of Secrets” is always willing to trade in information and trinkets. Nixthiro demands deference from those who would treat with him, and tasty offerings please him as well.

For a price, the PCs can learn the following information:

  • The bugbear Borza Eyegrinder is a former pirate and a smuggler. The rumors about his appetite for eyeballs are true.
  • Eyegrinder employs an imp alchemist, Krezzik, who serves as poison-maker, spy, and torturer, as well as Eyegrinder’s personal chef.
  • The last person to go snooping around Eyegrinder’s operation—an Asmodean Inquisitor no less—was tortured and dumped in the sea.
  • Eyegrinder’s smuggling operation is small but lucrative. He makes his profits by undercutting Corentyn’s tariffs.
  • Nixthiro does not know where Eyegrinder himself hides out, but he directs the PCs to the Bloody Barrel, where they can find Eyegrinder’s recruiter, Lorvel Prete.
  • The city’s newest slave smuggler, Bloodcoat, is extremely secretive. Nixthiro knows little about him, but suspects Eyegrinder is displeased by the competition.

Encounter 3: Nowhere to Hide
While traveling beneath the streets, the PCs notice a young woman (beggar, GameMastery Guide 300) following them. A former member of the Thin Wisps (thieves guild, Cities of Golarion 23) named Elia, she is now an unwilling spy for Krezzik. When the PCs notice her, she flees through the maze of ruined streets, leading them past a makeshift collapsing wall trap (new trap) protecting her hideout. She lives in squalor with a sullen earth mephit (Bestiary 202) named Plodlum. They are not hostile and put up little resistance, unless the PCs harm Elia, in which case the mephit retaliates.

The PCs can use Diplomacy or Intimidate to learn the following from Elia and Plodlum:

  • An imp regularly visits Elia to give her assignments, threatening harm if she disobeys. He forced her to follow the PCs, warning her not to trust the “vicious murderers.”
  • The imp has never revealed his name, but he has peeling, blotchy skin and carries numerous strange bottles.
  • Elia doesn’t know where to find the imp. He always comes to her, appearing out of thin air or whispering orders from the darkness.

Encounter 4: The Bloody Barrel
The Bloody Barrel, one of the rowdier establishments in the West Drenches, is more arena than tavern. Here, sailors, soldiers, thugs, and slaves beat one another senseless in front of jeering crowds for the chance to win a bit of coin. While the bouts follow the strict rules and regulations of the city, serious injuries and even deaths are fairly routine. Eyegrinder’s goons are frequent customers (and combatants) at the Bloody Barrel, and he uses the bouts to recruit enforcers. His lead recruiter is his old first mate, Lorvel Prete (NE dealer, GameMastery Guide 301), a greasy individual with a taste for mind-altering substances and berating his muscle-bound underlings. The PCs must rough up a trio of these thugs (street thugs, GameMastery Guide 265) to gain entry to Prete’s back room. Using intimidation or force, the PCs can convince him to reveal Eyegrinder’s location: the Bilge Guzzler, docked near the Warehouse District.

Part Three: The Bilge Guzzler
Seeking to find the missing slaves and confront the true murderer, the PCs go to Eyegrinder’s hideout. After defeating Eyegrinder and his crew, they discover clues leading them to Bloodcoat’s lair.

Eyegrinder’s old smuggling ship, the Bilge Guzzler, hasn’t set sail in years. Moored near the Warehouse District and exempt from inspections thanks to hefty bribes, it serves as Eyegrinder’s hideout. He conducts most of his business elsewhere, and only his most trusted toadies—primarily former crewmembers—know he resides there.

Krezzik (LE imp alchemist 2) and a pair of assassins (skulking brutes, NPC Codex 144) ambush the PCs in the Warehouse District on their way to the Guzzler. At the ship, the PCs find five crewmen (NE shipmates, GameMastery Guide 294) patrolling the upper deck. Any disturbance alerts Eyegrinder (NE bugbear fighter 3) to the PCs’ presence, allowing him ample time to prepare an ambush in the shadowy quarters below.

After defeating Eyegrinder, the PCs are free to search his cabin. Amid the jars of pickled eyes, severed fingers, and other disturbing trophies, they discover bloody Hellknight helmets, as well as a map of the Warehouse District clearly indicating the crime scene. Of possibly greater interest, they find a map of some ruined tunnels which lead beneath the Arch of Aroden to Bloodcoat’s lair, along with half-formed plans to storm the tunnels. By now it should become clear that Eyegrinder had the Hellknights killed for dealing with Bloodcoat, and that the slaves can only be saved by infiltrating the hidden lair.

Part Four: In the Shadow of the Arch
The PCs follow Eyegrinder’s map to Vilario’s underground lair, confront the fiendish creatures and crazed cultists who call him master, and face the inquisitor himself in a climactic battle overlooking the raging sea.

The map from Eyegrinder’s cabin leads the PCs through the ruined streets beneath Corentyn to the Arch of Aroden. Large, crumbling stone doors serve as the entrance to the temple of Aroden where Vilario first enslaved the cultists. A hell hound (Bestiary 173) guards the entrance. Inside the temple, near the altar where Vilario tortured his Arodenite victims, the PCs face a haunt that sickens them with memories of excruciating pain (new haunt) and heralds the arrival of a pair of hollows (new monster), the reanimated bodies of two of the cultists who died under Vilario’s blade.

New Monster: Hollow (CR 2)

Spoiler:
A hollow is the risen body of a person who died after being blinded by some horrific accident or torture. Unable to see, they rely on sound to locate their victims. When they hear a creature nearby, they grapple it and drain its vision, temporarily regaining their sight and leaving the creature blind. A humanoid slain while blinded in this way soon rises as a hollow.

Nearby, the PCs discover Ursius (LN human witch 4), the leader of the cultists, who foolishly believes the patron who grants his spells to be Aroden himself. Vilario also blinded Ursius, but the cultist survived, unable to escape past the hell hound but safe from the hollows, who ignored him due to his blindness. He tells the PCs of Vilario’s appearance and the cruelties which followed. He knows that Vilario makes his lair in the crumbling ruins above. Ursius may also tell the PCs of the shrine below, where the cult keeps its treasures—particularly if they convince him they are devout believers in Aroden’s eventual, triumphant return.

Bonus Location: The Sinking Shrine

Spoiler:
A large portion of the ruined temple to Aroden sunk below sea level long ago, and much of it lies knee-deep (or worse) in stagnant water. Numerous hazards infest the ruins, from giant vermin to submerged passages, but the most dangerous is a clever mimic (Bestiary 205) which disguises itself as a statue of Aroden within the shrine, speaking to the cultists in a deep voice to demand tributes of treasure and food. The cultists have left their “god” many gifts over the years, including numerous potions, ancient coins, weapons, and several pints of silverlight oil.

New Magic Item: Silverlight Oil

Spoiler:
When used as fuel in a lantern, silverlight oil produces a bright light which repels creatures that are vulnerable to silver. Such creatures become sickened within the illuminated area and must succeed at a Will save to remain there. Possession of silverlight oil is a crime in Cheliax due to its effectiveness against devils.

An accuser devil (Bestiary 2 84) serves Vilario as a scout and spy. It attacks the PCs as they navigate a treacherous sloping passage, using magic to hinder their progress. It fights until near death before teleporting away, then uses its infernal eye to show Vilario the intruders. As is common practice, Vilario kills the devil so that it cannot reveal his activities to others.

Two lemure devils (Bestiary 79) guard the final approach to Vilario’s lair. Fallen columns, narrow passages, and doorways blocked by crumbling stone all serve to hamper the PCs’ progress as they battle their way past the devils. Vilario’s four most devoted cultists (NE prisoners, GameMastery Guide 270) attack the PCs in the inquisitor’s meager living quarters, fighting with suicidal abandon to please their master.

Finally, the PCs confront Vilario in his torture chamber. The room is ringed with dozens of prisoners chained to the walls, to one another, or lying feebly on the floor. Though most are slaves and cultists, the prisoners include a pair of Hellknights, who wrongly suspected that Bloodcoat was behind the killing of their fellows. Parts of the western wall have crumbled, revealing the cliffs and sea beyond—providing a convenient method for disposing of corpses and other waste.

Drachius Vilario (LE human inquisitor 7), in blood-drenched black robes and an iron mask which mark him as an Asmodean Inquisitor, relentlessly attacks the PCs. Many of the chained prisoners are mad with agony or desperate for freedom. They reach out to grasp at the clothes and limbs of any PCs who wander too close, while shying away from Vilario when he comes near. This, along with the crumbling western walls, adds to the challenge of the encounter.

Conclusion
With Vilario’s defeat, the PCs free the prisoners and prevent his plot to infiltrate the slave community. Sorenia, now armed with detailed maps of the tunnels, can begin smuggling slaves to safety without involving corrupt Hellknights or criminals. The rescued Hellknights quash the investigation into the PCs and promise to look the other way regarding Sorenia’s operation.

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The Floating Bazaar
==========

Where the Great Market of Katheer bumps up against the River Pashman, enterprising merchants ply their trade among a massive sprawl of ships and boats known as the Floating Bazaar. Swaying walkways link the vessels, while colorful sails and banners fly overhead, displaying the various goods available—from spices and silks to weapons and magical trinkets. Amidst the constant buzz of haggling and hawking, slaves bear heavy loads across treacherous gangplanks, and children dare their friends to jump the widest gaps between jostling boats. Meanwhile, greedy merchants jockey for prime berths, sabotaging competitors’ ships and “accidentally” ramming smaller vessels. Savvy visitors know the city guards and port inspectors are amenable to bribery, and more often than not the authorities look the other way when an unfortunate shopkeeper finds his goods dumped in the river.

Countless urchins and beggars make their home in the Bazaar. They hire themselves out as guides for the price of a few coppers, leading visitors through the ever-shifting chaos. Overhead, flying carpets ferry wealthier customers to shops offering high-end goods. Below, petty magicians and performers use tricks both arcane and mundane to impress passersby—while cutpurses go to work on the gawking throng. More desperate thieves swim beneath the market to avoid detection, reaching up from the water to pilfer unwatched merchandise. The gambit is not without risk, as many lose hands and fingers to guards’ vicious glaives. Worse crime thrives in the shadows, from assassinations disguised as accidental drownings to the abduction of wayward children by unscrupulous slavers.

Natural fire is prohibited, and by night the Bazaar dances with the myriad hues of magical lights reflecting off the river. Those who choose to make their home on the River Pashman—whether in the elegant staterooms of the wealthiest merchant vessels or the crowded decks of floating “taverns”—quickly grow accustomed to the constant din of commerce, for the Floating Bazaar never sleeps.

The Winking Djinn (CR 4)
==========

Panicked energy pervades this section of the Bazaar. Several nearby craft are sinking into the river as their wood turns to rot and their owners frantically offload goods. A white-bearded Qadiran man in fine silks approaches at a run from the direction of a grandiose barge that lies across the sea of debris. Lettering on the side identifies it as the Winking Djinn, and several tightly-packed bookshelves stand upon the deck. The man waves with ink-stained fingers and calls “Help me! By Abadar’s all-seeing eyes, I’m being robbed!”

In recent weeks, a series of puzzling accidents has plagued the Floating Bazaar: small shops have rotted and collapsed into the river, seemingly without explanation, their goods vanishing into the depths. Rival merchants have been quick to point fingers at one another, but the true culprit is a devious guttersnipe (R2) named Stavrisi, who has been stealing the goods and hiding them in her lair.

Stavrisi’s next target is the Winking Djinn, a barge which serves as a floating library. Its proprietor, a Qadiran merchant and scholar named Zahmo Zarr, does a brisk trade in knowledge and secrets. A curious man, he has been investigating the mysterious accidents in the Bazaar and is close to discovering Stavrisi’s lair hidden beneath the docks—much too close for the greedy dragon’s comfort. A petty and spiteful creature, she has decided that the best course of action is to rob Zahmo Zarr blind, ruining his business and making a tidy profit for herself.

Stavrisi has used her rotting wind breath to sabotage most of the smaller vessels in the area over the past several hours, causing the necessary chaos to pull off her plan. The walkway leading to the barge is stable, though there is a large gap in the center where Stavrisi rotted it through. The dragon’s hired thieves, Ahmoud and Marikh, docked their rowboat there before going to work.

A railing rings the deck of the Winking Djinn. The bookshelves are secured to the deck, and the books are held in place by long, thin pieces of wood resting on hooks—except where the thieves have been at work. A cabin at the stern functions as Zahmo Zarr’s living quarters and private library. Sparsely furnished and smelling strongly of ink, the room lies in complete disarray. Books filled with Zahmo Zarr’s strange, illegible scrawl are scattered about the cabin, and claw marks mar the furniture.

The PCs might question Zahmo Zarr before helping him. These are possible answers to some of their more likely questions:

Who are you? “My name is Zahmo Zarr, seller of secrets! I own the Winking Djinn there.”

What’s going on? “When all the boats started rotting, I got to safety, but two men sailed up and climbed aboard my shop. Now they’re stealing my books! Knowledge and secrets beyond your wildest dreams!”

Why not ask the guards for help? “I tried, but they laughed in my face! Too dangerous, they said. The useless fools!”

Why are the boats rotting? “Some foul magic is at work, no doubt!”

Why should we help you? “I would be in your debt! My books are beyond value—I could grant you access to all my precious knowledge. Maps, secrets, tales gathered from the far corners of the Inner Sea and beyond!”

Creatures: When the PCs first approach, Stavrisi is already out of sight, rummaging through Zahmo Zarr’s private collection in the Winking Djinn’s cabin (map location S). Because she can’t simply sink the barge without ruining the books, Stavrisi has hired Ahmoud and Marikh, a pair of human cutpurses, to help carry away a bigger haul. They are combing through the shelves on the deck and stuffing the most valuable-looking books—the biggest, prettiest ones—into sacks. When the PCs begin to cross towards the barge, the thieves shout a warning to Stavrisi, then take cover near the walkway (map locations A and M) and use their tanglefoot bags to delay the PCs. Stavrisi quickly joins the fight, moving close and attempting to lure PCs onto the rowboat. Unbeknownst to Ahmoud and Marikh, Stavrisi has already begun rotting the hull of their rowboat. She plans to sink it and attack them as soon as they help carry the books back to her lair beneath the docks. Stavrisi uses her rotting wind breath on the boat to dump the PCs into the river; a single breath instantly destroys the weakened craft. PCs who successfully save against the rotting wind (Reflex DC 13) jump to safety on the walkway; those who fail fall into the river. Stavrisi dives into the water to assault fallen PCs with her flensing bite and wing tricks. Rotten debris fills the surrounding waters, making it a simple DC 5 Swim check to stay afloat. PCs must succeed at a DC 10 Climb check to climb onto the walkway from the water, or a DC 15 Climb check to climb onto the barge itself.

Because the barge has no means of propelling itself, the thieves cannot steal or escape with the entire vessel. If Stavrisi falls in battle, or either thief loses his companion, Amhoud and Marikh dive into the river and attempt to swim to the Bazaar to hide. Stavrisi is far more desperate to see her mission through and will fight until reduced to 5 hp or less, even if the thieves are defeated, before attempting to flee to her lair.

Stavrisi, Guttersnipe CR 3
XP 800
hp 30 (R2)

Ahmoud and Marikh, Cutpurses (2) CR 1/2
XP 200 each
hp 10 each (NPC Codex 144)

Development: If Stavrisi escapes, she flees to her hideout and waits to extract vengeance on the PCs. If either thief is captured, he offers directions to Stavrisi’s lair in exchange for his freedom, though judging by the glint in his eye it may be a more daunting proposition to claim her treasure than he suggests. Zahmo Zarr is extremely grateful for the PCs’ help if they manage to rescue his books, and offers free access to his library whenever they have need of it. When used for research, the library grants a +4 bonus to Knowledge (arcana, geography, history, and local) checks.

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This large, emaciated humanoid stands to its full height, its joints cracking sickeningly. Filth and soot cover its pallid skin, and beady black eyes glint with desperate hunger from its elongated face.

Chimney Troll CR 2
XP 600
CE Large humanoid (giant)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +6

----- Defense -----
AC 14, touch 12, flat-footed 11 (+3 Dex, +2 natural, –1 size)
hp 19 (3d8+6)
Fort +5, Ref +4, Will +1
Resist fire 5
Weaknesses wicked blood

----- Offense -----
Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
Melee bite +2 (1d4+1), 2 claws +2 (1d4+1)
Ranged debris +5 (2d4+1)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft.
Special Attacks inhale flames, soot breath, throw debris (30 ft.)

----- Statistics -----
Str 13, Dex 16, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 6
Base Atk +2; CMB +4; CMD 17
Feats Combat Reflexes, Deadly Aim
Skills Acrobatics +5 (+9 when jumping), Climb +9, Perception +6, Stealth +5; Racial Modifiers +2 Acrobatics (+6 when jumping), +6 Stealth
Languages Giant
SQ compression

----- Ecology -----
Environment any urban
Organization solitary or gang (2–3)
Treasure standard

----- Special Abilities -----
Inhale Flames (Su) As a standard action, a chimney troll can inhale a single non-magical fire within 30 feet. The fire coils through the air and enters the troll’s mouth, extinguishing itself and granting the troll regeneration 3 (cold) for 3 rounds. The fire inhaled must be no bigger than a campfire. A successful DC 13 Reflex save by an attended fire (such as fire on a held torch) negates this effect. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Soot Breath (Su) As a standard action, a chimney troll can exhale a searing cloud of smoke and cinders which winds into the mouth of another creature within 30 feet. The creature must succeed at a DC 13 Fortitude save or take 1d6 fire damage and be nauseated for 1d3 rounds. The save DC is Constitution-based. This ability can be used once each time the troll inhales flames and only within 3 rounds of using that ability.
Throw Debris (Ex) This ability functions as rock throwing, but the chimney troll throws debris (such as shingles or bricks) instead of rocks.
Wicked Blood (Ex) Chimney trolls cannot heal hit point damage naturally.

Chimney trolls are gaunt, pale creatures that skulk amongst the shadowy rooftops of towns and cities, searching for flames to heal their cursed wounds and flesh to sate their bellies. To claim the fire they need to survive, they twist their limbs into impossible positions, hiding in chimneys and sucking the flames straight up out of frightened townsfolks’ hearths.

Chimney trolls originated in the Hungry Mountains of Ustalav, where the Whispering Tyrant’s vile magic still holds sway. Many trolls there fall ill, losing their potent regeneration and strength and taking on a deathly pallor, hardly resembling their former selves. By some cruel twist of fate or malicious necromancy, their accursed bodies can only heal wounds if they consume the very substance trolls loathe the most: fire. This desperate reliance on fire has made them anathema to their kin, who drove them from their mountain homes.

Due to their diminished strength, chimney trolls prefer to harass opponents from the rooftops with thrown debris and their soot breath before closing in for the kill. Chimney trolls are 9 feet tall and weigh 350 pounds.

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Earthbind Boots
Aura moderate transmutation; CL 9th
Slot feet; Price 10,000 gp; Weight 3 lbs.
Description
Thick iron bands encircle these sturdy leather boots. With a single stomp, their wearer can rip flying enemies from the sky and pull them to the earth.

Once per day, the wearer of the boots may activate them as a standard action by stomping on the ground, causing a sound resembling rolling thunder and crashing boulders. Upon activation, the wearer targets a single creature within 180 feet that is flying, levitating, or otherwise airborne. The creature must make a DC 17 Will save or be pulled to the ground by the force of the boots’ magic. The creature lands upright and directly beneath its former location, taking no damage. It is bound by the boots and cannot fly by any means for 9 rounds, though it can still walk, run, jump, and climb normally. If the target succeeds on its saving throw, it is pulled only half the distance to the ground and is able to continue flying normally. If the creature would land on water or another non-solid surface, it instead lands on the nearest solid surface within 180 feet of where it would normally have landed.

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, telekinesis; Cost 5,000 gp


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FF 1-02

Player Characters:

Akshara
Anton Moorson
Bellicus Tonore
Elion
Leynus Chet
Teral Saevus
Valeria Baladin

Please do not post in this thread unless you are listed above. If you have any questions about our game, please use the discussion thread.

Current Date: ?? of Kuthona, 4712 AR (early winter)
Location: Somewhere in Cheliax...

After your capture, you are taken to Egorian, the City of Thorns. The jagged towers and minarets of red and black marble might impress you, if only you were allowed to leave your cells to see them. You stay in the city is brief, lasting only long enough for you to meet your new "companions" and the Thrune agent now responsible for you: Marius Vasdralo.

You are not told where you were going when you are taken from your cells in the dark of night; nor when the Hellknights, their armor decorated with thick chains and their faces concealed by hideous masks, load you into a covered jailer's wagon; nor when you spend several days on the road, let out of your wagon only as necessary and always with thick cloths over your eyes. Not allowed to see the stars or even the road, you have little idea where you are.

Then, one night, the wagon comes to a halt. Chains rattle, a key turns in a lock, the heavy iron bar groans as a guard lifts it, and the cool night air rushes in as the wagon's doors open. "Uncover their faces. Unbind them." Vasdralo, giving orders. To the point, as always. The guards obey. Shortly, you find yourselves standing on the road, still muddy from last night's rain.

The light from two of the guards' torches illuminates your surroundings: baggage horses, two wagons (including the one you have become so familiar with), a dozen guards, Vasdralo dismounting from his horse yet still towering above his fellows. His morningstar hangs at his side, as always, its cruelly-spiked head glinting in the torchlight. He gestures with a gloved hand for you to gather 'round. He is dressed slightly differently than when last you met him, back in your cell in Egorian: while he still proudly wears the black and red of Cheliax, he no longer bears the symbol of House Thrune anywhere on his person. Not visibly, at least. Nor do the guards, whose dress suggests they are soldiers but does not give any indication of their house or rank. You are reminded of the symbol magically branded on your person in a discreet location, and wonder if the guards are similarly marked.

Vasdralo calls out an order, and a guard walks on ahead. You think you see a building, but Vasdralo addresses your group, demanding your attention. "We have arrived at our destination. This is the town of Oakhurst. It is... insignificant, but for its location. There is an ancient citadel to the south. That is where our interests lie. Tomorrow morning you are to go to the citadel. If anyone asks, you are to say that you are on a mission to retrieve the bodies of two members of the Hucrele family: Talger and Sherise, brother and sister, who went to the citadel a month ago and did not return." Vasdralo pauses and looks each of you in the eye before continuing: "You are not rescuers. You are not here to save a pair of fools who got lost in a dusty old ruin. You are killers. You are to find the druid Belak, who we suspect makes his lair in the citadel, and end his life."

The guard returns, approaches Vasdralo, and whispers something to him. The Thrune agent nods and turns to you once more. "I could lock you in the jail for the night, but it would draw suspicion. We have paid for your stay at the common room of the Old Boar Inn. Go there. Enjoy your hot meals and your warm beds by the fire. Or not - I do not care. But do not draw attention to yourselves, except as adventurers who wish to help the Hucrele matron to find her poor lost children. Seek out rumors, go shopping if you must. Your possessions will be returned to you. But if you make any indication to the populace that you work for House Thrune, I will know. If you speak of your true mission, I will know. If you try to escape, I will know. Now go. Just after dawn, I will meet you outside the Inn and answer your questions. I do not wish to hear from you until then."

The guards return your possessions and escort you into the town of Oakhurst. The Old Boar Inn is crowded with those seeking a warm meal on a cold winter's night, but a table is ready for you. Heads turn as your assorted group enters the Inn, but the townsfolk, used to minding their own business when soldiers are around, quickly resume their activities. The guards leave you at the Inn and head to wherever it is they will be staying for the night...

In your introductory posts, please feel free to describe your experiences before/during/after your capture and the trip to Oakhurst. Then hop right in and let us know what you do now that you're here! We'll spend some time in town getting to know one another and then get to the adventure. How much (and in what manner) you interact with the townsfolk is entirely up to you. Feel free to make knowledge checks and other skill checks to find out more about what's going on, where you are, that sort of thing. Or just wander obliviously into the dungeon... it's up to you!

RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

This is the discussion thread for Part I of the Thralls of Thrune campaign.

Please use this thread for out-of-game conversations, including mechanics questions requiring more than a simple answer. OOC conversation in the gameplay thread should use blue OOC text.

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32

1 person marked this as a favorite.

House Thrune wants you!

And what House Thrune wants, House Thrune gets.

To say that you’ve been “recruited” to the Thralls of Thrune would be misleading. You pissed off House Thrune, the ruling family of Cheliax. Recognizing your usefulness, they offered you a choice: rather than be imprisoned or executed, you would be allowed to undertake dangerous adventures on House Thrune's behalf.

This campaign begins with your first adventure as a Thrall of Thrune. In this adventure you will explore the Sunless Citadel - a Pathfinder conversion of the original 3.0 adventure for 1st level characters. You will gain experience and treasure from the adventure normally, and House Thrune will also set a specific task (or a number of tasks) for you to accomplish as you explore the ruined citadel. Be warned: failure to accomplish these tasks will have unpleasant results! Still, being under the thumb of a Thrune Agent is better than being locked up in a Chelish prison, right? .... Right?

Will you obediently serve House Thrune until your contract is fulfilled, risking life and limb in the hope of one day earning your freedom? Or will you wait until the time is right and make a daring escape attempt, committing yourself to a life on the run until you can escape the reach of House Thrune forever?

Character Creation Guidelines
I am looking for a maximum of 6 PCs for starters. One proposal per player, please. Create your characters using the following guidelines:
Level: 1st
Ability Scores: 20 pt purchase method
Alignment: Any. Evil, Good, Chaos, Law... it doesn’t matter to the Thrune Agent responsible for your party. As long as you cooperate and get the job done, he won’t kill you. Probably. (Note: I do not want this to be an all “Evil” campaign, so submitting an Evil character may reduce your chances of getting a spot.)
Race, class, feats, and so on: Anything from the Core Rulebook and APG is automatically acceptable. Anything from Ultimate Magic (except words of power and other sub-systems) is probably acceptable. Anything from Ultimate Combat is acceptable, but I am honestly more likely to pass on gunslingers, samurai, and ninja than other classes. ARG materials will have to be a case-by-case basis; no new races introduced in that book, please. If you have any doubts about something, feel free to ask.
Gear: Begin with the average gp value for your class
Traits: Two
hp: Maximum at 1st level
Background/region of origin/etc.: You can be from pretty much anywhere as long as it makes sense for you to have been captured and forced into service by House Thrune. You could even be a member of House Thrune itself. I'll leave it up to you to justify your character's background. You do not necessarily need to know the other members of the party before we begin play, but it is perfectly acceptable for you to make PCs who know one another or are even related.

Character Leveling Guidelines
Leveling: You level when you take an 8-hour rest after reaching the xp threshold for the next level. I will let you know when that happens.
hp: High average for levels beyond 1st (d10=6, d6=4, etc.)
XP: We will use the fast track (as it is most in line with 3.0 D&D and PBP games take a long time to play.)

Other Character Stuff
Hero Points: I use hero points, from the APG. You begin with 1 and gain 1 at each level, as normal. I may award them for particularly awesome deeds as well. I do not allow the “cheat death” rule (I find it far more interesting to have characters spend hero points to act out of turn and save themselves or each other at the last moment), nor do I allow the additional rules options (feats, spells, and so on) which interact with hero points.
Item Creation: Allowed. Don’t abuse it.
Leadership: This feat is not allowed for this game.

*******************************************

You will find additional answers to some of your likely questions below. Feel free to ask others in this thread! I will respond... or send Thrune Agents to beat you up for knowing too much.

Q: Why the whole "House Thrune" angle?
A: I wanted to run the Sunless Citadel in Golarion, and I thought Cheliax would be more interesting than some place like Varisia (where a lot of other adventures seem to take place). I decided on the "forced adventuring" angle because of certain advantages it offers: PCs of all sorts can be thrown together without needing to make up tenuous reasons for trusting and liking one another; PCs have some motivation other than "finish the adventure" going on; and we can hop right in without spending time figuring out how and why the adventuring party comes together.

Q: So is there going to be an annoying “babysitter” NPC following us around?
A: No. The Thrune Agent in charge of your party will remain in or around town while you conduct your adventures. Think of him as a “patron” of sorts. A patron who will hunt you down in the night and kill you if you try to break your contract. Deep down, he’s a nice guy. I promise.

Q: Will you be changing the module at all from how it was originally written?
A: Yes. In addition to converting it to Pathfinder and the Golarion setting, I will where necessary adjust encounter difficulty and rewards based on party size. I tend to run more difficult games, so don’t expect to have an easy time just because there are six of you.

Q: How much do I need to know about Golarion or Cheliax to play?
A: I am not going to require that you buy any of the campaign setting materials, but it would be great if you read around a bit on the various Pathfinder wikis to familiarize yourself with the setting if you haven’t already done so. Characters that simply don’t fit Golarion will be unlikely to be accepted.

Q: How will the game continue after we finish The Sunless Citadel?
A: That’s partially up to you! If the party continues serving House Thrune, I will run another adventure (probably The Forge of Fury). If the party decides at any point to try to get out of their contract, the nature of the adventure will shift dramatically. It won’t be easy to escape, but it will certainly be possible, especially as you become more powerful.

Q: What if someone stops playing, becomes unreliable, or really doesn’t mesh with the rest of the group?
A: Thrune Agents will abduct that player’s PC in the middle of the night and replace him/her with a new PC played by someone else recruited on the message boards. Well, it might not go down exactly like that, but you get the idea. I reserve the right to replace players at any time. I will try to only exercise this right for the sake of keeping the game moving and giving someone else a chance to play, and if you communicate about vacations or extended delays, we can work something out.

Q: These games tend to fill up fast. How will you decide who gets to play?
A: I will definitely consider all characters submitted within 72 hours of this initial post. If you submit after that, you might have a chance, especially if there aren’t six PCs yet. I am looking to fill six slots. I am more likely to pass on a character concept if it doesn’t follow the above guidelines, or if your mechanics are riddled with errors. While posting earlier won’t necessarily help you get a slot, it can’t hurt; all other things being equal I will choose PCs on a first-come first-served basis. If I like your concept but something is a bit off, I may give you a chance to revise it.

Q: How often do I need to post?
A: I hope that you can post daily, but I understand that not everyone can make this commitment. Please communicate when you know you will be absent from the game.

Q: What do I need to know about how you intend to run the game?
A: I have few (if any) house rules regarding gameplay. I tend to let people know when a monster has become “bloodied” (reduced to ½ hit points). I like to use a grid for combat and I intend to post images with coordinates to something like Dropbox or Google Drive, so you can refer to those coordinates in posts as needed. I will likely have everyone post combat actions at once rather than wait for their turn in order to speed up play. (We'll get to the nitty-gritty stuff later.) During combat, if we are waiting on a player I may “take the reins” in order to keep things moving. If I am feeling generous this will mean you take an action; if not this will mean you simply “delay.” Be warned: House Thrune tends to notice when its Thralls are being lazy! If you communicate in advance, we can assign someone to “take over.”

Q: When can we start?
A: As soon as we have six PCs!

Q: Why is this post so long?
A: You don’t like the way House Thrune operates, eh? Then it’s back to the dungeons with you!

Q: No, please, not the dungeons!
A: That’s not a question. But your other option is... death!

Q: Enough already! How do I join?
A: Glad to have you on board! Please create your character using the guidelines above. Create an alias for that character including all of the relevant game mechanics. Then make a post in this forum (as your new alias) including answers to the questions below. Feel free to post about initial concepts or mechanics questions throughout the process.

Questions for your PC:

  • What was your life like before you were “recruited” into the Thralls of Thrune? (This is where you can talk about your family, friends, origins, that sort of thing.)
  • What did you do to piss off House Thrune? (This can be as simple as being the wrong sort of cleric in the wrong place at the wrong time, or something more involved.)
  • What would you otherwise be doing if you were not adventuring for House Thrune?

Questions for you, the player:

  • Which sources did you use when creating your character? (So I can check out the things I am less familiar with.)
  • How often can you post?
  • Finally, why do you want to play this game?

*******************************************

I will post any further clarifications in this thread as needed. Feel free to openly brainstorm ideas and ask questions. I hope you are interested in the game and I look forward to a fun adventure! Thanks in advance for your character submissions.

Paizo Employee RPG Superstar 2013 Top 32 , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

Frontier Sentinel (Ranger)
Many roads are perilous, but few more so than those that thread between disputed territories and untamed wilderness. Frontier sentinels recognize the danger of traversing these regions, and know the best protection against bandits and beasts alike is strong teamwork and a keen eye for trouble. Some frontier sentinels work as caravan guards and guides. Others dedicate themselves to serving those in need.

Traveler's Instinct (Ex): At 1st level, a frontier sentinel can sense the trustworthiness and hostility of a creature as a standard action. This ability functions like a Sense Motive check to get a hunch. The frontier sentinel can attempt the DC 20 check by rolling 1d20 and adding his ranger level and Wisdom modifier. If the check succeeds, the frontier sentinel can make an accurate prediction of the creature’s initial attitude towards the frontier sentinel and whether or not that creature is trustworthy. The frontier sentinel suffers a –4 penalty on the check if he does not share a creature type with the target. The target must be within 100 feet of the frontier sentinel and clearly visible. This ability replaces wild empathy.

Teamwork (Ex): At 2nd level, and every 4 levels thereafter, a frontier sentinel receives a teamwork feat as a bonus feat. He must meet the feat’s prerequisites. This ability replaces combat style feats.

Sentinel’s Bond (Ex): At 4th level, a frontier sentinel forms a bond with his traveling companions. This ability functions as the hunter’s bond ability, with the following changes.

If the frontier sentinel forms a bond with his companions, he grants them the use of the bonus teamwork feats he possesses from the teamwork style ability instead of his favored enemy bonus whenever he activates this ability. The frontier sentinel must be within 30 feet of a hostile favored enemy to use this ability.

Alternatively, if the frontier sentinel forms a bond with an animal companion, it gains the benefit of the frontier sentinel’s bonus teamwork feats so long as they remain bonded companions. The frontier sentinel shares only half his favored enemy and favored terrain bonuses with his animal companion. This ability replaces hunter’s bond.

Ambush Awareness (Ex): Starting at 9th level, a frontier sentinel can take a single move action during the surprise round even if he is surprised. This ability replaces evasion.

Improved Ambush Awareness (Ex): Starting at 16th level, if he is aware during the surprise round, a frontier sentinel can spend a standard action to grant each of his allies (including himself) within 30 feet who can see or hear him the ability to move up to their speed as an immediate action, even if they are surprised. This ability replaces improved evasion.

Paizo Employee Developer , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

Gloves of Flame Command
Aura faint abjuration and transmutation; CL 5th
Slot hands; Price 6,000 gp; Weight
Description
Patterns of leaping flames adorn this pair of heavy leather blacksmith’s gloves. The wearer of the gloves activates their power as a standard action by clenching a single fist, allowing the wearer to control magical fire.

Upon activation, the wearer specifies a single non-instantaneous spell with the fire descriptor within 50 feet and makes a caster level check (using the gloves’ caster level of 5) against the spell (DC 11 + the spell’s caster level). Success indicates that the wearer is now considered the caster of that spell and may immediately make or change any decisions about the effect normally made when casting the spell, such as its targets or area. For example, summoned fire creatures are now under the control of the wearer, personal range spells now target the wearer, and the wearer could move a spell such as wall of fire to occupy a new area or reverse its direction. The spell’s caster level and remaining duration do not change. A permanent spell is affected for 5 minutes and then returns to its original state. Failure indicates that the spell’s effects are merely suppressed for one round.

A brand-new pair of gloves of flame command holds 10 charges. Each activation expends a single charge. Each additional charge spent per activation adds a +4 bonus to the caster level check. These charges must be spent before making the check. Once the charges are depleted, the gloves smolder and crumble to ash.

Construction
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, dispel magic, pyrotechnics; Cost 3,000 gp

Paizo Employee Developer

I just got my copy of the hardcover edition of the Rise of the Runelords AP (yay!), which I'll soon be running for my group as soon as we finish Jade Regent. I seem to remember that someone had said there would be information in the book about how to run the game for a group that has already played JR, with advice on how to handle the "reversed" timeline. But I can't find that post/reference and I can't find that information in the book. Did I just miss it? Is it hiding somewhere? :)

I'm sure I can figure it out even if the information is not available, but if there is any advice out there I'd love to hear it.

Thanks!

Paizo Employee Developer

In this thread I will post NPCs much like those from the Game Mastery Guide’s NPC Gallery. Not all of the NPCs I post will be human, unlike those in the GMG, because I like the other races as well and certain NPC concepts come to me in the form of a dwarf or elf (for example) rather than a generic human. I will stick primarily to core races but I may use the Bestiary races from time to time. I will only use material from the PRD.

I will not post descriptions or “fluff” or boons to go along with the NPCs, because that takes time. I’d rather spend that time writing stats for another NPC, which is ultimately more useful for myself and other GMs.

Regarding alignments, all NPCs will be listed with a Neutral alignment except when a class requires a specific alignment. GMs should of course adjust alignments (and whatever else they feel like) to fit their campaigns.

I will take requests for NPCs if you’re looking for something in particular. Feel free to be as specific (or vague) as you like in your requests.

Feel free to share, cross-post, tinker, and so forth. I claim no ownership of any of these NPCs. Credit or a link to this thread is appreciated but unnecessary. I hope that you find opportunities to use these NPCs in your own games.

Here is a Google Doc of all NPCs I’ve posted, in alphabetical order. This document will include the most updated versions of the NPCs, though I’ll generally only update them if I made errors in the original stats. Please point out any errors you may find.

Thanks to Epic Meepo for inspiring me to create this thread with his “Epic Meepo Presents” series.

Enjoy!

Paizo Employee Developer

Hurray! More FAQ!

Paizo Employee Developer

2 people marked this as FAQ candidate.

I have a question about the green beam effect of prismatic spray. The effect is:

PRD wrote:
Poison (Frequency 1/rd. for 6 rd.; Init. effect death; Sec. effect 1 Con/rd.; Cure 2 consecutive Fort saves)

I don't understand the point of the secondary Con damage effect. The initial effect is death, so if you fail your save, you die and don't need further saves against the Con damage. If you pass your initial save, you avoid the poison altogether:

PRD wrote:
All afflictions grant a saving throw when they are contracted. If successful, the creature does not suffer from the affliction and does not need to make any further rolls. If the saving throw is a failure, the creature falls victim to the affliction and must deal with its effects.

Emphasis mine. So, what's the point of the Con damage?

Paizo Employee Developer , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

The thread title says it all: What is your favorite wondrous item from the Core Rulebook? Why is it your favorite?

Just thought a little discussion of wondrous items might help people get motivated and exercise the "item creation" section of their brains!

Paizo Employee Developer

In a game I ran recently, the party (which includes an alchemist) encountered a pair of flesh golems. We got into a debate about how the flesh golems' magical immunity interacts with alchemist bombs. Here are the relevant rules.

Quote:

Immunity to Magic (Ex) A flesh golem is immune to any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effects function differently against the creature, as noted below.

• A magical attack that deals cold or fire damage slows a flesh golem (as the slow spell) for 2d6 rounds (no save).
• A magical attack that deals electricity damage breaks any slow effect on the golem and heals 1 point of damage for every 3 points of damage the attack would otherwise deal. If the amount of healing would cause the golem to exceed its full normal hit points, it gains any excess as temporary hit points. A flesh golem gets no saving throw against attacks that deal electricity damage.
Quote:
Bomb (Su): In addition to magical extracts, alchemists are adept at swiftly mixing various volatile chemicals and infusing them with their magical reserves to create powerful bombs that they can hurl at their enemies. [...]

We thought one of the following must be true:

A) The golem is entirely immune to the "magical" bombs. (Seems unlikely as they are a supernatural attack and don't allow SR.)
B) The golem takes damage normally and is not slowed, because the attack is not a spell or spell-like ability and thus not technically "magical"
C) The golem takes no damage, but is slowed, which is what would happen with a "regular" magical fire attack such as fireball.
D) The golem takes damage AND is slowed, because it is not explicitly immune to the damage, and the bombs are a "magical attack" and thus fall under the category of attacks which slow the golem.

I ended up using option C in my game, and the party mopped the golems up with ease. I felt that options A and B were likely incorrect and option D gave the PC's too much of an advantage. The encounter was easy enough with option C, so option D would have made it that much easier. Still, it is unclear to me whether this was correct. Does anyone have any insight regarding alchemist bombs and the golems' immunity to magic? Much appreciated!

Paizo Employee Developer

3 people marked this as FAQ candidate.

I have what is hopefully a fairly straightforward question. If a paladin, magus, or some other class uses their special class ability (divine bond for paladin, arcane pool for magus) to add an energy enhancement such as flaming to their weapon, do they then need to take an additional standard action to activate this property? Or, does the property activate when the character uses their special ability to bestow that property upon the weapon?

Thanks in advance for any insight you can offer! Forgive me if this has already been answered in an FAQ or other forum post. I looked around but couldn't find the answer.

Paizo Employee Developer , Dedicated Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8

Thinking about it a bit more, it might make sense to post my alternate item only after the next round's entries are up, in order to help keep the spotlight on the actual top 32. :)


FF 1-02

One or two spots have opened up in my play-by-post game which started last month. It's called Into The Mists, and it is set in the Mwangi expanse. I've decided to open it up to all three of you mentioned in the post title, who previously expressed interest. Nightflier and NSpicer, if you're still interested, you can of course play as well. If you aren't one of those listed above but you're interested anyway, let me know- it's possible that you'll get a spot, either now or at some point in the future.

The game is currently in the middle of a battle, and when it finishes the current PC's will be at a good spot to meet some new folks. You will probably have a couple of days in which to make characters.