Are there any plans to release the SCAP hardcover in pdf? I have the hardcover, and it is great, but having it in electronic form would be really helpful as well.
Over my summer holidays, I am planning on converting the Shackled City Ap to a 4th Edition Eberron campaign. This obviously involves a great deal o changes to the AP as written, dropping some sections, adding others, and extending the level range all the way to 30.
After all that, it is very likely the final AP will have probably only superficial resemblance to the Hard Cover (which I have). As such, my plan is to put not just my changes, but everything I need to run the AP into a Word Document, and run from that, and not worry about the hard cover.
To do that, instead of typing up everything from scratch, it would be much easier to cut and paste from the pdf and then edit from there. (Not to mention it would be good to have the maps and other art in the doc).
Now, I'm pretty sure a pdf of the Hardcover is a no go.
However, as a next best option, I would be willing to just buy the in individual Dungeon mags in pdf format (I think I already have a couple of them). Assuming I did go this route, how much do the Dungeon Mags differ from the hardcover? Is the background and other info summarized anywhere, or was that collated (and developed?) just for the hardcover?
Just got done reading through Karzoug's entry in Spires of Xin-Shalast, and WOW! Well done! Greg A. Vaughn has done a wonderful job with the climactic encounter with Karzoug. I can not wait to run this for my PCs.
However, and I'm sure I'm not the only one in this boat, of all the encounters in the AP, I really want to make sure I do this one justice. As this will be my first campaign at anywhere near this level (my only other campaigns have petered out around 5 or so) I am already starting to feel the pressure (even though we have only started Burnt Offerings).
I also want to "personalise" Kazoug a little bit, with options from outside the SRD. So what feats, spells, gear etc would you give to Karzoug? I am already planning on swapping out some of his feats for Persistent spell and Arcane Strike, and some of his spells for those from the Spell Compendium (wraith strike immediately springs to mind). What other changes would people make?
But the one thing I really am trying to work hard on is making the encounter with Karzoug feel like an encounter with a transmuter. I can't tell you how refreshing it was to see a well built high level wizard with solid tactics and a good spell / gear selection. However, I was a little disappointed that his tactics are basically "generic high level wizard" tactics, not "high level transmuter" tactics.
I want my PCs to come away thinking "So THAT'S what a Transmuter looks like up close. That was an awesome fight, and a great climax to the campaign." Instead of as it stands now "So THAT'S what a high level wizard looks like. That was an awesome fight, and a great climax to the entire campaign."
If anyone (especially Greg) has any thoughts on this, I am all ears. I was initially thinking gish (fighter / mage), after all, nothing says transmuter more than "buff and go toe-to-toe in melee." But giving up spellcasting levels for melee capability is not something I can see Karzoug doing.
So I think I am going to go with the Alter Self / Polymorph / Shapechange tactics. Basically, the way he deals with threats is to change shape into something big and scary and rip you limb from limb. This will obviously involve all new tactics, so I really want to hear other DMs suggestions before I go through all that work.
The big downside is that I can't find a decent PrC that rally works for a transmuter without giving up caster levels. The main options are probably a Master Specialist (Complete Mage), transmuter variant (Unearthed Arcana), or the Red Wizard (DMG). But none of them seem to really fit, and I might just end up going with the UA variant transmuter for access to some pretty good spells (I would probably go with blur, improved invis. and Dominate Monster).
So, what are your thoughts for personalising and improving Karzoug. What feats, spells, gear and other options do you think he should have. By combining our thoughts, hopefully we can show the PCs how a transmuter fights, and make sure we do the campaign and Karzoug (and Greg's and all the author's work) justice.
The first NPC to be rebuilt is Tsuto Kaijitsu. I have been racking my brains as to why he has 2 monk levels, but I can't work it out. Anyway, Tsuto's stats emphasize his mobility and if the PCs can actually pin him down and go toe to toe with him, he will drop pretty quickly, even in the face of 1st level PCs.
I decided to make him a straight Swordsage 3 (ToB), wielding shortswords, concentrating on mobility and damage when cornered. I debated whether to keep the 1 rogue level for trapfinding (and short bow proficiency), but decided against it in the end, 2nd level maneuvers were too attractive :)
Tsuto KaijitsuCR 3
Male half-elf Swordsage 3
LE Medium Humanoid (elf)
Init +4;Senses low-light vision; Listen +3; Spot+3
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Defense
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AC 20, touch 16, flatfooted 17 (+4 Armor, +3 Dex, +1 Deflection, +2 Wis)
HP 23 (3d8+6)
Fort +3, Ref +6, Will +5; +2 vs enchantments
Immune sleep
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Offense
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speed 30ft.
melee Shortsword +6 (1d6+3 19-20 x 2)
Ranged Dagger +6 (1d4 19 - 20 x2)
Maneuvers known (IL level 3rd)
1st Level Burning Blade*, Clinging Shadow Strike*, Moment of Perfect Mind*, Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Shadow Blade Technique, Sudden Leap, Wolf Fang Strike*
2nd Level Flashing Strike*
Stances Known 1st Level Child of Shadow, Island of Blades
* denotes readied maneuvers
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Tactics
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Normally, Tsuto adopts the Child of Shadow stance, but if he is forced to go toe to toe and there are still some goblins alive, he switches to Island of Blades to aid flanking. Otherwise tactics are as per the book.
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Statistics
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Str 10, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 10.
Base Attack +2; Grapple +2
Feats Shadow Blade, Weapon Finesse
Skills As per book. Concentration +8.
Languages as per book
EX Quick to Act +1, discipline focus (Shadow Hand)
Gear As per book, add 2 Shortswords and 5 daggers, remove the shortbow.
This Tsuto should last a bit longer against most parties and is actually a very dangerous foe for first level PCs, with high AC and Hitpoints, and respectable damage output (averaging around 12 damage or so). I can't wait to see how he goes against my party of 6 1st level PCs.
As you look around the town, the signs of the sickness are obvious. There have only been a few deaths to the plague, but the death toll is only likely to rise.
Just about the only topic of conversation in the town is the plague, with the residents left with prayer as their only option. Prayer they don't get sick, and prayer that their loved ones recover.
Those of you that failed the DC 14 fort save, can feel the beginnings of the sickness.
You will all start in Falcon's Hollow. Why you are there is up to you, that's what character backgrounds are for! But to get you started, here's some background info on Falcon's Hollow.
Falcon's Hallow is a rough frontier community. Most of the town is owned or controlled by the Darkmoon Lumber Consortium. The town rests on the edge of Darkmoon Vale, a dangerous, unexplored ancient forest. The town is home to fewer than 1,500 humanoids. Most of the townsfolk care only for the paltry coin paid for their backbreaking work and what simple comforts that can buy. A very few understand that what's bad for one is likely bad for them all but the community as a whole thrives on a tenacious mix of greed, debauchery, and stubborn self-reliance.
Falcon's Hollow is perhaps better described as a scattered collection of several ramshackle communities rather than a single town. A few wealthy lumber lords sit comfortably on the “Perch”, looking down at the gathering of indigents, downtrodden lumberjacks, religious zealots, and desperate settlers who in turn gaze up at them with suspicion and distrust.
Darkmoon Vale is a teeming monster-fraught wilderness that surrounds Falcon's Hollow. Danger lurks just beyond the treeline. Most of Falcon Hollow's more canny residents realize the settlement will most likely be savaged by some horrid monstrous threat sooner rather than later. Until that day, the lumber lords do their best to snatch as much darkwood from the vale as they can. It's only a matter of time before their heedless ravaging of the wilderness around the town draws the notice of a fierce woodland guardian.
In the meantime, adventurers flock to Falcon's Hollow vanishing into the shadows of Darkmoon Vale, searching for ancient dwarven ruins. Some are never to be seen again, but most lose their nerve after their first brush with the unholy terrors lurking in the dark woods. Eventually they all end up slaving away in the remote cut yards or selling their swords to the lumber lords who always need more unscrupulous ruffians to keep the rabble in line.
With all these cool adventures coming out from Paizo, I really doubt I will get the chance to run most of them, so the best solution looks to be to run them in a PbP.
So I'm going to run a PbP set in Falcon's Hollow. The plan is to go D0 -> D1 -> E1, and then we'll see what happens. I have D1 on order, it should get here before we finish D0, as will hopefully E1. (I doubt we will be anywhere near that quick.)
So I'm looking for 4-5 players that are keen to give it a shot. Preferably your character is a local of Falcon's Hollow. But if not, let me know why you are there.
Character Creation Rules
32 point buy.
125 Starting Gold
Books
Anything in the SRD.
All the Completes
All the Races of....
Spell Compendium
Magic Item Compendium
If you want other options, then ask, and I'll look at them on a case by case basis.
Oh yeah, one more thing. I am very much in the Crunch trumps flavour camp. If you like the crunch of a particular feat, class, option etc, but not the flavor, simply come up with a different flavor, and if it makes sense, it should be right. This also means most alignment restrictions are out, so if you want to play a chaotic monk, and can explain how you get your monk abilities, then it should be fine. Likewise for a Lawful Barbarian.
Races
Human
Dwarf
Elf
Gnome
Half-Elf
Half-Orc
Halfling
Here are my thoughts
Dwarven Fighter Will be wearing heavy armor, so the speed reduction of Dwarves is offset. +2 Con for a melee type is awesome. The Dwarf bonus to saves vs spells helps mitigate the poor will save of teh fighter. No Int penalty (like the Half-Orc) so the Combat expertise line of feats is an option.
Elf Bard Was going to go Gnome, but an Elven Bardic Archer who buffs and shoots behind the safety of his allies sounds like a cool character to me.
Gnome Barbarian Eberron has it's Halfling Barbarians, so why can't we have our Gnome Barbarians? The +2 to Con helps, and the -2 the Str is helped by rage. The +1 to Hit for being small helps fuel power attack, the +1 AC for being small helps with only medium armor, and the bonus to speed from barbarian overcomes the 20 foot movement of the gnome.
Half-Elf Druid Well, may as well give the Weakest race the strongest class, to balance it out. The druid needs the least help from it's race, so may as well make it the race that provides the least help. Plus the bonus to diplomacy helps at low levels to keep the Druid's grove safe. Take Spell Focus (Conjuration), Augment Summoning, Natural Spell, Extend Spell, and Quicken Spell, and you are set.
Half-Orc Monk This one may seem a bit strange. But Monks need their strength to ensure they actually dish some damage, and the Half-Orc penalties are two the 2 stats a Monk doesn't need as much (Int and Cha). Seems like a good match to me.
Halfling Rogue Halflings to me just seem tailor made to be rogues. Small size, +2 Dex, and a +1 Bonus to saving throws, all adds up to a very good Rogue, especially if you throw weapon finesse into the mix.
Human Barbarian The extra feat and skill points really help out the barbarian who has a decent skill list to spend the skill points on, and can really benefit from a number of combat feats.
Human Cleric Like the druid, a very powerful class that really doesn't matter what race you take, but with only 2+INT skill points a level, and a great skill list, the extra human skill point is great (as is the extra feat to spend on combat or casting feats)
Human Paladin The Paladin needs most of his stats to be as high as possible, so can;t really afford to take the hit most of the other races give. Also, being in melee means he can benefit greatly from feats (Mounted Attack Line, Power Attack Line), so again, human is a great choice.
Half-Orc Ranger This could just as easily be Human or Elven as well. My favourite play with a Ranger is to take the archery style, and pick up power attack for when I do get stuck in melee. Surprisingly, a good strength helps out a ranged attacker also s much as it helps melee (Strength rated Composite Longbows).
Gnome Wizard Again, this one could have gone any number of ways, Human, Elven, or Halfling are all good options, but I choose gnome to provide a nice contrast to the gnome Barbarian. the Bonus to Con and Illusion DCs also helps.
I know the stats for the 4 Iconic Characters that come with DO have been out for a while, but I only just had my first look at them the other day, and I mus say they are some poorly built characters (and that is being generous I think.)
For those who haven't seen them, check them out here.
Now, I assume the guys at Paizo actually do know how to make effective characters, they have been immersed in the game for many, many years after all. So I have to assume that these Iconics suck (for want of a better word) on purpose.
This makes absolutely no sense to me, but reflects what I often see in "official" or "sample" PCs (or NPCs). Wizards does it all the time, and I was hoping Paizo would avoid doing it, but is there some (unwritten) rule that says pre-built characters have to suck?
I would have thought pre-built characters would have been great opportunities to show new players (and those who aren't as "skilled" in character building), how to build strong, effective characters.
These are the Paizo Iconics for crying out loud, they should be great, well built, solid characters. Not characters that will be easily outclassed by any halfway optimized class.
They should be characters that anyone can pick up and play in a "normal" party. I would like to see them as a great option for those who don't want to spend time building their own characters. They should be able to just plug one of these characters in and go (maybe changing a few feats here and there, and some skill points). If you want to play a fighter, take Valeros, swap a couple of feats and skill points, and you are right to go.
But you can't realistically do that, as they are so badly built. If you want them to match up power wise, you really need to do some serious tweaking, and when it gets to that stage, you may as well just build your character yourself.
I keep seeing references to people being from Australia popping up all over these boards recently, so I thought it would be a good idea to start a thread where we can all meet one another, (and complain about the high cost of getting gaming products in Australia).
I grew up in Wagga, in South West NSW (Where Geoff Lawson, Mark Taylor and Michael Slater grew up), and now live in Sydney (from wollongong where I was at Uni).
I hope the Aussie Dollar stays strong at least until I have a few issues of Pathfinder under my belt.
I just got issue 144 today (finally, one of the drawbacks to living in Australia), and I must say Diplomacy is AWESOME. I can't wait to run it for my PCs.
However, I have a problem in that my campaign is set in Eberron, does anyone have ANY ideas on how to convert it across. With all the planar mechanations going on, will it be worth the effort, or will it basically involve a complete re-write of the entire adventure?
I was thinking of just changing the Janni to something more Eberron, but I don't really know what?
I am going to be running the Age of Worms "End Game" (from SoLS to the end) as my campaign finale for my next campaign. I was wondering if there were any Dragon Wormfood Articles that would be especially helpful for me and my players to read to get a good idea of what is going on.
Unfortunantly I can't really afford to buy all of them (need to buy a few Dungeons for the adventures, and postage to Australia is almost as much as the mags), but the budget could stretch to a couple. But I need to know which ones (if any) would be most helpful.
I have my next campaign planned out to about level 12 or so, and was looking for a good way to take the PCs to level 20 to finish it off.
I have dungeon Issues 131 - 134 (Prince of Redhand - Into the Wormcrawl Fissure), so finishing the campaign with the AoW End Game makes a lot of sense, and works out well.
However, which would be the best adventure to start on? Looking over Prince of Redhand, it looks like there really needs to be one adventure beforehand to set it up.
My second question - Is there an early adventure that does well at setting the whole campaign up? It doesn't matter what elvel it is, I can easily chage it to fit, but an adventure that covers all the background and lets the PCs know that somehting is up is what I am after.
Cauldron
Cauldron is the real star of the entire Adventure Path. As such it changes very little, instead changing Eberron around it so that it fits. Place Cauldron in the Southern reaches of the Howling Peaks. This means that Sasserine becomes Wroat, the capital of Breland.
History
There are a number of changes to the timeline as presented in the HC. The first change is to remove all reference to Kyuss and the Spellweavers.
Replace the timeline in the HC with this timeline below (All dates are according to the Eberron Calender).
• - 822 years: A Massive Earthquake rocks the region, opening a massive Gateway to Khyber in the mountains. This is the last time the Volcano of Cauldron erupted. This Gateway eventually became known as the Demonskar. Due to the isolation of this Gateway, both on the surface, and within Khyber, it takes a number of years until the Fiends within Khyber notice it and move in. Eventually it is claimed by the Glabrezu Nabthatoron as his lair. He consolidates the Fiendish presence in the region, and they begin to become a potent force.
• 288 YK: The Ancient Blue Dragon XXXX, a member of the Chamber, and one with the greatest interest in the Draconic Peophecy, chooses one of the greatest wizards of Galifar, Surabar Spellmason, as her champion to rid the region of it’s fiendish infestation. Members of the Chamber seldom need a reason to interfere with the schemes of the Lords of Dust, but in this case, she also was prompted into action by her research into the Draconic Prophecy. She gifts him the powerful magic weapon Alakast to aid him in his efforts to drive the demons from the region.
• 298 YK: Surabar leads a small army inland from Wroat, on the pretense of founding a new city of his own. He founds Redgorge in the shadow of a great volcano, and raises the Basalt Bastions to protect his men from attack while they begin building.
• 303 YK: Kozomagon Lidu, one of Surabar’s friends and competitors arrives in the region and founds the village of Liduuton, intending to horn in on what ever action had enticed her friend into the region.
• 308 YK: Surabar defeats Nabthatoron in combat and breaks the back of the demon host from the Demonskar. Nabthatoron seethes with deep seated hatred of the Blue Dragon XXXX. The destruction of XXXX becomes Nabthatoron’s sole goal, and he spends the next two hundred years rebuilding his shattered forces to launch an assault against XXXX. During the battle against Nabthatoron, Kozomagon tries to draw upon the power of an ancient Hobgoblin necropolis she discovered on the nearby lakebed, but loses control over the necromantic energy and destroys the village of Liduton instead. The village becomes known as the Haunted Village, and is shunned from this point on.
• 318 YK: Discovery of numerous profitable mines in the region attracts hundreds of prospectors and adventurers. Redgorge quickly outgrows its walls. Surabar determines that the nearby volcano is extinct, and that its cauldron would make an excellent natural defense against attack from Nabthatoron’s armies. Many of Redgorge’s inhabitant’s relocate to the region-Cauldron is founded.
• 348 YK: Surabar dies of natural causes. He is entombed in an undisclosed location. With the passing of its founder, the glory of Cauldron begins to fade.
• 398 YK: Kingfisher Hollow and Hollowsky founded by Gnomes from Zilargo looking to trade with Cauldron, but avoiding the mountains. Over the last 400 years, these have come to be more and more dominated by Humans, such that there original gnomish founders are but a memory.
• 445 YK: With Cauldron only a shadow of its former glory, it soon become home to thieves and bandits, as they thrive in the absence of any great Law and Order presence from Breland.
• 512 YK: Nabthatoron finally defeats the Ancient Blue Dragon XXXX in battle. But his victory comes at great cost, with most of his fiendish army slain in the conflict. Nabthatoron himself only barely escapes the Dragon’s wrath. This brush with destruction instils in Nabthatoron the need to pursue more “subtle” methods to accomplish his goals, and from this point forwards he aims to work through proxies. He still harbours a desire to see Cauldron and Redgorge levelled, but no longer does he desire to march in open warfare against them.
• 598 YK: Remove Shatterhorn completely. There is no Yuan-ti prescence in th region. As seen later, I am replacing this entire chapter, so the ruins don’t play any part in the campaign. If you would like some ruins for the Cagewrights / Dragon Below Cultists to use as a base outside of Cauldron, then simply replace them with some Hobgoblin ruins.
• 678 YK: Adimarchus senses that his attempts to reawaken to Lost Mark of Death are beginning to bear fruit. He sends his most trusted lieutenant, the Mind Flayer Dry’ryd to take control of one of the many cults of the dragon below dedicated to Adimarchus. Dry’ryd is tasked with tracking down the Dragonborn, and manipulating events to ensure on bearing the Mark of Death is born in a manifest zone.
• 798 YK: The red dragon Hookface arrives in the region. His attacks on merchants and cities of the region continue intermittently for a century – no heroes are able to defeat the dragon.
• 898 YK: With the start of the last war, Hookface retreats to his lair north of Cauldron with his mate, Taliraxia. The two dragons emerge rarely, usually during great upheaval (earthquakes, war, ect.). Most red dragons encountered in the region are believed to be the couple’s offspring. The population of Cauldron swells as those with ties to the other five nations rush to Cauldron to escape prejudice in the wake of the Last War.
• 966 YK: The rainiest winter in centuries results in massive flood damage to the lower reaches of Cauldron. The Flood Festival is founded the next year, and for the next several years the freakishly wet winters continue before the weather finally returns to normal.
• 967 YK: Fetor Abradius Discovers the Soul Pillars in and Ancient Giant ruin on Xen’drik. The Cagewrights relocate to Cauldron, settling in ancient Hobgoblin ruins until they can complete construction of the Fiery Sanctum under Cauldron.
• 968 YK: The Cagewrights begin construction of the Tree of Shackled Souls, and hire the Sacred Spark to aid in the construction of the soulcages.
• 983 YK: Cauldron’s newest noble, a generous lord named Vhalantru, is welcomed into the city’s aristocracy after he donates huge sums of money to fund the rebuilding of the Town Hall and several other ancient structures that were starting to fall apart. In light of his generosity, no one pries into the mysterious noble’s background.
• 986 YK: After uncovering some deep seeded corruption in the town guard, a young Sargent returned from the Last War named Terseon Skellerang enthusiastically (and some say viciously) help bring to justice those who are involved. With the support of lord Vhalantru, Skellerang is quickly promoted to the new Captain of the guard, where he quickly earns a reputation for ruthless efficiency.
• 988 YK: Zenith d’Kundarak falls under the influence of Adimarchus’s deams and disappears into Khyber on a mad crusade to cleanse it of evil.
• 989 YK: A young guard named Triel murders several of her fellow guards – her motive is never discovered. She eludes capture and becomes one of Cauldron’s most wanted criminals, although over the years her capture grows less of a concern as she remains in hiding.
• 991 YK: a plague of filth fever strikes Cauldron. Several hundred die before the city’s clerics can get the plague under control. The dead include both of Sable’s parents. (See “Urban Decay” in chapter 1)
• 996 YK: Just as the Last War is settling into its current uneasy truce, the three highest ranking clerics of Dol Arrah accidentally discover Ebril Aloustinai’s involvement with the Cagewrights. Ebril murders them before they can report the discovery and disposes of their bodies with a plane shift spell.
