Hi Cosmo! Like a few other posts on these messageboards, I received my Pathfinder #9 the other day in the mail. I received an email stating I should be receiving Pathfinder #9 as well as Pathfinder Chronicles Gazetteer. I checked my bank statement, and I was indeed billed for both products. However, only my Pathfinder #9 was actually in the mail. Could you please verify that the Gazetteer has indeed shipped? If not, I still am anxiously awaiting my copy! :) Thanks in advance for your prompt attention to this matter.
As stated in the title, this post contains Burnt Offerings spoilers, so read ahead at your own risk. Also, this does get rather long, but I think it's pretty funny, too. As always, YMMV. :)
It seems my players always find a way to do the strangest things.
Spoiler:
So, my PCs were exploring the Catacombs of Wrath this past weekend (I know, but hey, we only get to game every so often) and they came to the big fight against Erylium, the quasit.
Now, I feel I should set the scene first. The party consisted of a human barbarian, a human ranger (ranged specialty), a halfling rogue, and a half-elf swashbuckler, all 2nd level. The barbarian and the ranger are Shoanti brothers of the Skoan-Quah clan. You'll notice that there are no dedicated spellcasters at all in the party's composition. My players are challenging themselves to try to get through this AP without a spellcaster (other than the ranger) in the party. They plan on stocking up on healing potions, wands, and commissioning any magic items they may need along the way.
So, as you can guess, the party is pretty lethal against most mundane opponents, but I thought creatures like Erylium would prove to be quite the challenge. Not so. Here's how my PCs did it...
The encounter started out pretty much as scripted in Burnt Offerings - with the exception that Erylium was surprised on Round 1 (due to pretty poor Listen rolls on her part, and good Listen rolls on the rogue's part). She screamed indignantly as the PCs burst in, but was unable to take any action the first round. To compound her bad luck, she rolled poorly on her initiative check, meaning that pretty much everyone acted before her on round two.
The party didn't squander their opportunity when they saw they had the drop on Erylium. Due to her being flat-footed during the surprise round (and through a goodly portion of the party's round 2), she took quite a number of hits from a ranged sneak attack, a critical hit from a crossbow bolt, and a nasty lump on her head from a raging barbarian. Despite her Damage Reduction, they had already knocked her down to 2/3rds of her max hitpoints. However, their luck was about to change...
Once Erylium finally got her first action for the encounter at the end of round 2 (and, as a result, got to add her considerable DEX bonus to her AC), she flew up out of the barbarian's threat zone, easily avoiding his attack of opportunity. She then flew up directly above the Runewell and summoned a sinspawn.
Once round 3 rolls around, the PCs had no trouble dispatching the sinspawn as soon as it was formed, but on Erylium's next action, she turned invisible and moved somewhere else within the cathedral, planning to summon creatures and cast spells on the poor PCs with impunity. Or so I thought.
On round 4 - remember the PCs all were able to act before Erylium - the barbarian, not being one for ranged attacks even if he could see his target, becomes very angry (even angrier than a normal raging barbarian). He wanted to taunt the quasit to get back in range of his hammer. He looks at his Shoanti brother, and, without a word passed between the players of the two characters, BOTH Shoanti open their trousers and start - shall we say, relieving themselves - into the Runewell. And here I thought the adventure write up covered pretty much everything that a DM was likely to come across.
My jaw dropped and the room erupted in laughter. I don't think Erylium had planned for this. So, I had to do some serious thinking on how she would respond to this desecration. I got to thinking about how she had been waiting 10,000 years, devoutly worshipping Lamashtu, yet having her prayers gone unanswered until just 5 years ago, when the Runewell bubbled back to life.
The text mentions she more or less goes insane from the inactivity during her imprisonment in the catacombs (presumably even more unhinged than a normal CE outsider). She sees the Runewell as a sign from her goddess of her divine favor - possibly even the first sign of favor from Lamashtu in 10,000 years. (Heres where I start to extrapolate.) Couple this with the fact that she's been staring into the depths of a Runewell of WRATH for the past 5 years or so, teaching a young girl how to nurse her hatred. Agoraphobia or no, Erylium sees that Runewell as the key to the expansion of her little empire - if not outright escape.
So, when she sees the two Shoanti desecrating her Runewell - which, she incorrectly assumes (again, my interpretation) to be Lamashtu's first manifestation of her power (and her favor towards Erylium) in the last 10,000 years - I figured Erylium would have at least some sort of chance of snapping her already tenuous sanity.
I decided to have her make a relatively low Will save - DC 10 + the combined CHA modifiers of the barbarian and ranger (which in this case amounted to DC 12) - to avoid basically going into a rage herself. She has a good Will save, so it shouldn't be much of a problem. I rolled a 1.
So, Erylium frothed at the mouth, screamed in a maddening frenzy, and charged right at the barbarian - probably the absolutely worst thing a tiny spellcaster can do tactically, despite her high AC. She essentially went into a rage for two rounds, like a barbarian, clawing away (and poisoning people), but otherwise doing little actual damage.
The party, on the other hand, took advantage of her tactical blunder and set up flanks, sneak attacks, and what have you. By the time Erylium came out of her "rage", the battle was pretty much decided. She tried to use her Cause Fear ability, but to little avail. On the next round, she planned on going invisible again and casting spells, but it was too late. The party pretty much ground her to paste right there in front of the barbarian.
So, that's how they did it. I found their methods to be an interesting - if not inspired, in a toilet humor sort of way - method of turning a potentially deadly battle into a resounding victory for the PCs.
I have to admit, I was thoroughly amused by the party's creativity in the situation. So, I came to the boards both to share my tale and to hear what other crazy ways your players have overcome obstacles in your RotRL campaign.
So, what crazy schemes have your RotRL players come up with, whether they succeeded or not? I'd love to hear them! :D
So, I've found myself with some free time on my hands and I was browsing through my copy of the 4707 A.R. Golarion calendar that someone else had made. Well, with the Rise of the Runelords AP (soon to be) coming to a close, and with the Curse of the Crimson Throne starting soon, it seems like we'll soon need a new calendar for 4708 A.R. So, using this person's 4707 calendar as a base, I made a quick and dirty 4708 calendar, and I thought I'd share.
Don't expect anything fancy from it, but it should keep your dates for the new year consistent. :)
Some things to note:
1. I tried to keep the lunar cycles consistent with those of the calendar from 4707. I have no idea whether those cycles (or my own) are considered canon or not, so take that as you will. I did NOT take into account any eclipses for 4708, so again, if something in the canon suggests an eclipse for this coming year, I haven't (yet) noted it.
2. For convenience's sake, I based the dates of the equinoxes and solstices off of the dates listed for our own (real world) 2008 calendar. If this doesn't entirely match up with canon, either, be so warned.
3. In the 4707 calendar I based my own off of, the original author noted two holidays which I am unfamiliar with. These holidays are Perihelion on Abadius 3rd and Aphelion on Sarenith 2nd. For completion's sake, I kept them in the 4708 calendar on the same dates that they fell on in 4707. However, if these holidays (or the dates they're celebrated on) are not canon, please feel free to disregard them.
With all that said, enjoy, and please let me know if there's anything else I can add/modify - or if I've made some errors as it pertains to the "official" record.
Enjoy!
Note: I'm posting this in both the Rise of the Runelords forum as well as the Curse of the Crimson Throne forum, to hopefully help DMs running either campaign.
Loving it! Although I have to admit that #4 was "just" a decent adventure IMO (rather than amazing like #1 and #2 especially), I find myself watching my mailbox like a hawk every month. I really like that Paizo addresses the WHYs behind the villains - the backstories, the motivations, the aspirations, etc. - rather than just placing one baddie after another for the players to knock down. That, along with the more serious/mature nature of their villainous schemes, really adds a level of depth - and realism (in my eyes) - to the overall adventure.
Just updating you to let you know that my order did indeed arrive at my doorstep yesterday (Friday the 21st). So, please either disregard my impatience, declare the crisis averted, let everyone know that Christmas is NO LONGER cancelled, whatever. :D Happy Holidays, and thanks!
Thanks, Cosmo! I thought it might be some sort of delay due to either the weather and/or the holiday rush. If I don't see it by the beginning of the year, I'll let you know, though. :)
I was wondering if it's too early to start worrying about not receiving order #831916, which contains my Pathfinder #4, and the Carnival of Tears Game Mastery Module (and that nifty Christmas card I've read other people talk about).
I only ask because, with the last 3 Pathfinders, I've seen them on my doorstep within a week of receiving an email confirmation from you guys that they're shipping. I realize bad weather could possibly have delayed the shipment, but I was wondering if you had some way to track them through the USPS.
If I'm just being overly anxious for my next installment, just let me know, and I'll happily wait patiently, but if there's a problem with my order (or if it's lost!), please let me know so we can resolve it asap (plus, I'm dying to see this Christmas card! :D). Thanks!
I'd like to add that, no matter what you decide the effect(s) of drinking a vial to be, I'd add that the drinker should gain at least a point of wrath - if not more (depending upon his/her actions while under the influence of the potion).
Spoiler:
After all, he/she is drinking the undilluted stuff from the runewell that essentially caused the Late Unpleasantness in Sandpoint. It's been stated that we should start keeping track of what sins the PCs seem to be gravitating towards, as it will come into play in Pathfinder #5.
I'm adding my thanks to all of you at Paizo as well. Seriously, these are some of the best written adventures - let alone campaign setting - that I've seen in years.
Seeing that that "other" thread has gotten out of hand, let me just say that the scenes that are depicted in Hook Mountain Massacre, while admittedly disgusting, are very much in keeping (in my mind) with the juvenile, imbecilic nature of amoral, low intelligence brutes such as ogres.
One of my favorite things about the Pathfinder series so far is that, the NPCs and monsters you guys have created - not only in Hook Mountain Massacre but in all the Rise of the Runelords issues - have detailed motivations and backstories. This, in my mind, makes them more real to me as a DM, which (I hope) will make them more real to my players in turn. They're not just differently shaped packages of danger and XP waiting for the PCs to come along.
It is true that the ogres in this latest issue have a rather disgusting backstory, and that their lack of sanitation forces the PCs to explore some rather unsavory scenes of the attrocities commited by the ogres. As a DM, I know I can't help but be disgusted when I read through the adventure - and I hope my players are as well when I finally get to run them through it.
Why? Well, isn't that the point? Isn't it the intention of the writer of a story - regardless of medium - to invoke an emotional reaction of some sort in the reader? Isn't that the goal of literature, cinema - even D&D adventures - to involve its audience in the story? Sometimes the emotions a story invokes are not necessarily positive ones but, if the writer has done his job right, they add to the emotional impact the story has on the reader. Of course, this is all subjective, but I believe Nicolas Logue has done that for Hook Mountain Massacre (as have Richard Pett and James Jacobs).
Sorry about the length. I'll get off my soapbox now. Thanks, Paizo. You've made a great product line. Keep up the good work!
Thanks to everyone for your answers! Once again, the community and staff never ceases to amaze - and on James' day off, no less! :) These posts will give me plenty of springboards for my players. And, of course, I'll be anxious to see what other answers the gazeteer will bring! Thanks again!
As the title suggests, this thread will likely contain spoilers, but more of a historical nature than spoilers for the adventure path itself. So, you have been warned...
Spoiler:
I was wondering if the staff at Paizo or the wonderful community here could help me with a question. In Rise of the Runelords #1, it mentions that the ancestors of both the Shoanti barbarians as well as the ancestors of the native Varisians were subjugated castes kept under the Runelords' tyrannical thumb. When Thassilon fell, I could see how both castes, having been disenfranchised to one degree or another under the Runelords, would be hesitant to build another society similar to one like ancient Thassilon.
However, it's been 10,000 years since the fall of Thassilon. That's a lot of time for several new cultures to develop. I can see how the Shoanti haven't really evolved much past the tribal, nomadic hunter/gatherer society. I mean,living in the harsh environs of the Storval Plateau, having to fight for their very survival against the various giant and ogre clans like they do can't be good for stable cultural development.
So, that being said, what about the Varisians? It seems the lands they chose to be their 'stomping grounds' are a bit more hospitable. So, why are they still nomadic? Why haven't they settled down over the course of the last 10,000 years? I realise the Chelish invaders (and subsequent subjugation of both the Varisians and the Shoanti) of 300 years ago would have shaken the cultures up and sent people packing again, but what were they doing before the Chelish (Chelaxians?) arrived?
Please note I am in no way trying to demean or nitpick the history of this gaming world in any way. On the contrary, I'm absolutely loving what I see so far! I'm just at a loss for how I should fill in the gap in history for the Varisian people. You see, certain members of my gaming group tend to be very...detail oriented, and any info you folks at Paizo or the community at large can shed on the subject, the easier it will be for me to suspend their disbelief. Any help is much appreciated! Thanks!
Did I overlook where they named the calendar months in either Pathfinder #1 or #2, or were they named in a post online or something? If it's on an online document, could I please get a link? I just know that at least one person in my gaming group will want to keep a meticulous track on the dates. Thanks!
