I'm running this encounter in a couple of days for a group of 6 PCs. So far I've added a mook to mook encounters and added the advanced template to single monsters and "bosses" to scale the CR for them. I wanted the final encounters to stand out, however, so I've given Zandalus the Invincible mythic template so he'll be able to survive a few rounds (without making him deadly) and I've given The Tatterman the Agile mythic template, which seemed fitting. It beefs him up a little and improves his action economy. I've written an alternate fear system for the encounter based on the Horror Adventures system. I don't like the idea of one or more PCs missing the entire last fight because of one bad roll, and I think the encounter will be deadly if 3 or more flee, so I'm hoping this system makes the fight last and adds an element of suspense, while removing the deadly aspect of "OMG all my friends ran away and now my character is going to get slaughtered." Let me know what you think. "The mist finally condenses into humanoid form and the Tatterman - the nemesis of your dreams - stands before you. A chill runs down your spine as you relive the horrific nightmares of the past nights, revisiting in gory detail the death you found at your dream-stalker's hands." When the Tatterman manifests, each PC makes a will save against his Fear Aura. Those who succeed become spooked, while those who fail become shaken. Each round, at the beginning of their turn, each PC must attamept a new save. Those that succeed reduce their fear level by one step, while those who fail increase it. A spooked character who succeeds on one of these saves loses the condition and does not need to continue making saves. A scared character who fails is staggered for one round. When the Tatterman activates his Frightful Presence abilty, all PCs must immediately save or increase their fear level. A character who has already fought off the effect of the Fear Aura but fails to save against Frightful Presence becomes spooked and must save at the beginning of each turn once more, as outlined above. Neither of these abilities can impose a condition of Greater Fear.
Oradin was my first thought but I abandoned it for a couple of reasons. First, I have a Holy Tactician Paladin PFS character who, while not an Oracle, has a similar "heal/buff/smash in equal measure" feel and I try not to play the same character twice. Second, we're using a non-standard alignment system in our game and the paladin's restrictions and abilities would be more troublesome and less useful, respectively, as a result. Your advice gave me an idea for a War-acle (Warpriest/Oracle) that might work as an alternate, however, so thanks very much!
"A few very powerful monsters are vulnerable only to epic weapons—that is, magic weapons with at least a +6 enhancement bonus. Such creatures’ natural weapons are also treated as epic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction." If its slams are "treated as epic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction," then they are considered to be the equivalent of a +6 weapon. Weapons with an enhancement bonus of +4 or higher count as adamantine for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. Yes, I know this is a fairly liberal interpretation of the text but it doesn't actually say "for the purpose of overcoming EPIC damage reducation". By RAW it implies all forms of damage reduction that could be overcome by an epic weapon are bypassed. After all, we're talking about a CR19 30HD Construct that's made primarily of adamantine. Doesn't it make sense that it can overcome DR that's completely ignored by a level 5 fighter's adamantine dagger?
Every RPG campaign world has its "focus area" - the Forgotten Realms has Faerun, Eberron has Khorvaire, and Pathfinder has the Inner Sea. Each of those other settings has other regions, continents, and even planets to explore but they are purposefully not fully fleshed-out to allow GMs to create their own stories and histories in an established world. Expecting Paizo to delve too far into regions beyond the Inner Sea isn't realistic. Tian Xia is not the focus area of the Pathfinder campaign setting and it has already seen more development than any other non-focus region of Golarion. That all said, Paizo's campaign model has thus far been different from D&D and other companies' (i.e. a new edition every few years that comes with new developments in the campaign world) so who knows? I'm not saying a Tian Xia module/race guide/gazetteer/etc. would be a bad thing - if it happens I can enthusiastically avow that Paizo will get my money for it, as they always do! I'm just saying there's enough existing content for a GM to set up their own Tian Xia campaign with relative ease and that the effort could be better spent elsewhere in Golarion. It's only my opinion, of course. I just feel that there have been enough products set there to sate my curiosity about that continent, and that I'd rather see adventures set in Casmaron, Arcadia, or Azlant which, to the best of my knowledge, have had none set there before.
I love Tian Xia and am always for new modules exploring areas beyond the Inner Sea. However, between the Jade Regent AP and the many PFS scenarios set in Tian Xia, I feel like that continent has been explored in enough detail to provide ample starting points for campaigns set there. What about a module set in Casmaron, or Arcadia, or <crosses fingers and prays to whichever deity will listen> a high-level module where PCs scour the ruins of Azlant to uncover the secrets that led to Skyfall?
My witch just hit level 13 and has over 80,000gp to spend. While some of that money is already spoken for, I'll have quite a bit left over and I was thinking of upping my defense. However, my AC is never going to be high enough to matter much so I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for alternate protective items, maybe something that offers a miss chance. The 20% miss chance from a Minor Cloak of Displacement doesn't really seem worth giving up my Cloak of Resistance for, and the Major Cloak has limited uses and takes a standard action to activate as best I can see - is it really worth that hefty price tag!? What are the alternatives?
Actually, it's pretty clear that rendering Pendleton unconscious wouldn't automatically eject the cyberplasm: "A cyberplasm can end its infestation as a move action, appearing in any space adjacent to the infested creature. If the host is slain, the cyberplasm is immediately ejected and is dazed for 1 round. A remove disease spell has a 50% chance to force a cyberplasm from a host, but the creature receives a saving throw against this effect. Anytime a creature infested with a cyberplasm is subjected to electricity damage, it can attempt another DC 15 Fortitude save to eject the cyberplasm." Whether or not knocking Pendleton unconscious with NL damage would limit the cyberplasm's ability to control the body is the part that's open to interpretation or GM judgement. If the GM ruled that the body collapsed, the cyberplasm would likely end the infestation of its own volition.
I've played 6-01 and I've prepped 6-02 ready to GM tonight. Both scenarios offer plenty of opportunities for a "skill focused" character to shine. There are also instances where you can't rely on your skills and will actually have to think your way around an obstacle. If you really do "enjoy both role-playing and roll-playing to resolve challenges", these are the scenarios for you! Avoid them? Hell no, sign up for them ASAP!
I think handing out freebie magic items and allowing temporary rebuilds is pushing the limits of GM fiat and setting an unnecessary precedent. It also over-complicates the issue. If you want your PCs to be able to roll a Knowlefge check, let them roll. No one Is going to arrest you. |
