For ages untold, a gemstone monolith has pierced the heart of the Echo Wood. Now, as civilization intrudes upon this enigmatic splinter, a strange life once again stirs in the depths—one with ties to undying evils and a might beyond time itself. The promise of wealth and power calls to glory-seekers from across the Inner Sea region, tempting them into a labyrinth of monster-haunted vaults, defiled tombs, arcane laboratories, and worse, as they seek to unveil the secrets locked below the legendary Emerald Spire.
Pathfinder Module: The Emerald Spire Superdungeon is the largest adventure ever set in the world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Designed for characters of a wide range of levels, this megadungeon opens with challenges appropriate for 1st-level characters and can carry parties to 13th level or higher. Within this deadly super-adventure, you'll find:
Lethal dungeon levels crafted by the creators of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and a host of fantasy gaming's greatest authors and designers.
A gazetteer of Fort Inevitable, a bastion of merciless order near the Emerald Spire serving as a base for exploration or a launchpad for more adventures.
Insights into the region and plots taking central stage in the upcoming Pathfinder Online massively multiplayer online RPG.
A bestiary of the Emerald Spire's myriad monstrous menaces and inscrutable inhabitants.
Dozens of new treasures, maps, side-plots, and more!
The Emerald Spire Superdungeon is intended for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Pathfinder campaign setting, but can be used in any fantasy game setting.
Written by Keith Baker, Rich Baker, Wolfgang Baur, Jason Bulmahn, Ed Greenwood, Tim Hitchcock, James Jacobs, Nicolas Logue, Erik Mona, Frank Mentzer, Chris Pramas, Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Michael A. Stackpole, Lisa Stevens, and James L. Sutter
Cover Art by Jesper Ejsing
We just finished this adventure, and what a ride. It is quite difficult, we lost a ton of characters, but almost everything felt fair.
I completely disagree with the "lack of RP" there are plenty of opportunities and tons of lore for the fans of Golarion. (The end level was... just amazing, what a reveal!)
Some levels are really mean, and it will frustrate players no doubt, but if they want to be challenged, and you like playing to the will of the dice gods, they will have a blast.
We loved the characters on Fort Inevitable and it is most fun when paired with Thornkeep. We ended up doing a lot of sidequests and meeting very interesting NPCs (Dremagne, Iliara Starcloak, Oritian, Abernard are some of my favorites) *When I say interesting NPCs, I mean that they have a lot of potential, not that they come fully fledge and with 3 pages of backstory as some GMs might expect from a written adventure. (I'm fond of the simpler NPC, so I can have fun making them my own)
I was going to give a rundown of the levels, but I feel it would had too many spoilers and I liked the feeling of surprise that we had with every new step we took towards the bottom.
Number of Sessions; 26 over 1 year 1 month.
Hours of Playing; 165+
Major NPC Deaths; 2
Character Deaths; 11 (Strix Medium, Aasimar Cavalier, Gnome Inquisitor (2 times), Undine Hellknight, Fetchling Wizard, Grippli Monk, Human Armiger, Half-Orc Oracle, Aasimar Warpriest, Suli/Elf Tecnomancer)
The final party that completed the Spire were; Grippli Monk, Aasimar Warpriest, Suli/Elf Tecnomancer, Human Gunslinger)
Spoilers:
Hardest Enemy; Lady of Thorns and Lady Estrekan of Almorain Blue
Hardest Level; 13 Throne of Azlant; for Abadar, Lady Estrekan and the Abraxas trap destroyed our group. We ended up with just 1 survivor. An incredible way to finish the Crowned Skull Quest
Best moment of the Campaign; Klanky (Controlled by our Tecnomancer) defeating the final boss of the Spire
I Completely recommend this adventure. Is not just a Superdungeon, it's an amazing story to be retold over and over.
I had blast playing this for PFS. We finally finished it. Some levels are crazy hard if the DM runs it correctly. You could be fighting 2-3 encounters at once.
We had a couple players refuse to come back and play. They couldn't handle the pressure. Another player packed his stuff up like every other session crying for mommy :). We made our diplomacy rolls and so he stayed.
I played a paladin. I loved it. Talk about being heroic. I probably saved a dozen player deaths during the sessions with paladins sacrifice.
I would make sure you have some strong players and a well-built group. I would say you need a tank, healer, and rogue. Don't be afraid to max the table out and enjoy the beat down.
One of the most "rail-free" modules for pfs - as gm you may put amazing roleplay opportunities there - there are enough backstory for npc`s (town and dungeon alike) to make them alive and have motivation. Combats are neat, exploration are neat, layouts are neat. My favorite module.
A huge dungeon crawl with minimum roleplay. I can't say the fights are easy... however most PFS gruops of The Emerald Spire are power gamers that put all source on combat. Just not challenging enough.
If you prefer roleplay or investigaion, skip this. It's made for buttkickers that want to build high-level PFS characters(with more gear than average).
I would not recommend this, but for who enjoy "draw a dungeon, than kill them all, get the treasure", that's what you're looking for.
I am running it for a group of players and everyone is having a blast. This module could have definitely been a five star rating if it weren't for all the errors such as wrong monster stats and conflicting tactics.
So there will be 8 flip-mats for this one if my math is correct, cause for Thornkeep there was two mats since the first dungeon was too wonky for a mat of its own (which I hope won't be repeated...oh all the diagonals!)
So there will be 8 flip-mats for this one if my math is correct, cause for Thornkeep there was two mats since the first dungeon was too wonky for a mat of its own (which I hope won't be repeated...oh all the diagonals!)
I've been making the map for the first level... mainly the rooms and about 15 feet of hallway where appplicable, and it is HUGE. Measuring out the diagonals to get something close to dimentions has been time consuming. That said I think it's great and I can't wait to get The Emerald Spire in the mail.
I'm a bit confused by the first line of the description. Is this a mega-dungeon designed for PC"s STARTING at levels 1st to 13th or will this module take a group of 1st level PC's ALL THE WAY to 13th level?
So I'm guessing that due to the exceptional nature of this product it will not be part of the Modules subscription?
I'm really hoping that this fact just hasn't been added to the page!
Nope, it will not be part of the subscription, you can find this text in the product description above:
Quote:
The Emerald Spire Superdungeon is not part of any subscription, but Pathfinder Module subscribers who preorder this book will receive a free PDF edition of this book when the print edition ships. (Note that you will need to have an active Pathfinder Module subscription at the time The Emerald Spire Superdungeon ships in order to receive the PDF for free.)
Thanks! I guess my eyes glazed over by the time I got to the ISBN. Still, you're basically offering the same deal that a person would get if it were part of a subscription - as long as they pre-order?
Essentially. As long as you have a Pathfinder Module subscription and have preordered the product, you will receive the free PDF version. The subscription needs to be active when the book ships to receive this benefit.
We just got in our proof copies of the Flip-Mat pack, and it is indeed thoroughly impressive. It's the kind of accessory that just makes you want to run the adventure.
How close to the proper release date will the pdf become available for people who are receiving this from the Kickstarter? Will it be like any other product that provides the pdf when the physical book ships?
I believe that we will be providing the Emerald Spire PDF to Kickstarter backers *before* the public release date, but I don't have a firm date on that yet.
The Flip-Mat Mega-Pack should be available at the same time as the module. It's $79.99. Did I mention the package is thicker than a stack of 2 Core Rulebooks?
I'm going to be helping to run this at a convention in July. Are there any blurbs about the first or second levels yet? And indication of character levels for the second (dungeon) level?
When should backers start being contacted about fulfilling our backer rewards? I backed it through my wife's Kickstarter account; I want to make sure she hasn't missed something already.
If I pre-order, will I be able to pick up my physical copy at PaizoCon?
In the past, we've had subscription pickup at PaizoCon, but this only applies to people with subscriptions and for subscription products only. Since Emerald Spire is not part of any subscription, pre-orders will not be sent to PaizoCon. However, we *may* have copies at the convention for sale.
When should backers start being contacted about fulfilling our backer rewards? I backed it through my wife's Kickstarter account; I want to make sure she hasn't missed something already.
I've sent you an email regarding this Trinite, hope to hear back from you soon!
Will we have to wait 6+ months to get PFS sanctioned? I'm still waiting to play Wardens of the Reborn Forge and won't play it unless it PFS legal. It that's been out for 6 months.
Given Wardens of the Reborn Forge starts at 12th level and takes PCs to 15th, isn't that beyond the level range of PFS? I thought there was a strict twelfth level limit.
Steve: Yes and no. There are no PFS scenarios published above 12th level, but they sanction Paizo written adventures above 12th to be played as if they were PFS Scenarios. I have a character who got to 19th level by playing Academy of Secrets, Tomb of the Iron Medusa, Tomb of the Iron Medusa, Shattered Star book 6, The Witchwar Legacy, Rise of the Runelords book 6.
I'm guessing going from 1 to 13th in 16 dungeon levels that this module will be assuming fast track progression?
That's covered in a sidebar on page 21, but the short answer is yes, it assumes the fast progressions track.
That said, you can also use Emerald Spire as something players visit in-between doing other things (if they are on a slower progression and likely to clear lower levels faster than they level up to deal with the subsequent encounters), and it is designed to allow periodic trips more easily than many superdungeons I've experienced.
Given that the Emerald Spire is in effect about as big as an AP, are we going to see an Emerald Spire Player's Guide at some point?
While nothing is impossible, I doubt it. Despite its size and unusual origin it's branded as part of the Pathfinder Module line, and those classically don't get player's guides.
I'm going to be helping to run this at a convention in July. Are there any blurbs about the first or second levels yet? And indication of character levels for the second (dungeon) level?
The second level is aimed pretty solidly at 2nd level characters, though a careful group of competent 1st level PCs could manage. If they didn't get too unlucky...