Rise of the Drow—Prologue: The Darkness Arrives (PFRPG) PDF

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Rise of the Drow: The Darkness Arrives is a D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatible Adventure that takes four to six PCs from 1st to 6th level.

This adventure may be used either as a standalone or an introduction to the Rise of the Drow trilogy (available in PDF & hardback).

The northern climes have proven difficult to cross the further the party travels, beleaguered by both the rapidly shortening days and forests that grow thicker with every mile. The ever-falling snow, whether as gentle flakes or an energy- sapping blizzard, only increase the sense of silence, darkness, and isolation. A journey between settlements of what should have been a day or two has become twice as long; everyone is desperate to reach a roaring fire and a full stew pot.

The appearance of the village, the party's intended destination, seems perfectly timed. The locals are heading for the central cathedral and talk of warmth, light, and succor while encouraging everyone to, "get out of the darkness." Following this advice, the adventurers find themselves in the middle of a service to mark the ending of the longest night and a return to the comfort of daylight—thanks to an ancient relic.

However the ceremony does not go smoothly as several interruptions prevent the high priest from properly fulfilling his duties. The PCs called upon to aid another band of travelers before helping drive off unexpected undead! But all of this is just the precursor to worse events; slavers appear, attempting to capture villagers and drag them away. These malicious enemies are like none seen before, accompanied by strange creatures that target the building and individuals alike. The local residents are hard-pressed to face these foes and the party proves to be a vital force in preventing a devastating defeat!

Can the PCs deal with the many problems before them, overcoming multiple challenges as an unknown enemy attacks the cathedral from all directions? Can the party face down the slavers, rescuing the villagers from a terrible fate, or will they fall for the tricks and bluffs of the mysterious humanoids that use the very darkness as a weapon? Can anyone stop this attack and prevent the remorseless, merciless Rise of the Drow?

"Rise of the Drow: The Darkness Arrives" includes:

  • A three part story spanning over 120 pages by the authors of Rise of the Drow and the Saatman Empire Adventure Path.
  • The perfect way to introduce your playgroup to the Rise of the Drow Trilogy
  • Introduce your PCs to members of House Gullion, the growing house of power in the Underworld
  • New exciting locations to explore like the Rybalkan Cathedral, Dark Wood, and Adrik's Folly
  • New monsters such as the Ghoublin, Skeletal Fire Mephit, and Squamp
  • New magic items like the fabledmoonshard
  • Beautiful illustrations by Mates Laurentiu, Rick Hershey, Jacob Blackmon, and more
  • Gorgeous maps by Todd Gamble introducing a brand new technique incorporating real-world model scenery into his cartography

Make sure you also pick up the other products in the Rise of the Drow series such as the Rise of the Drow: Player's Guide and the Underworld Encounter Deck—both available on Paizo.com!

129 pages, full color

Part One: The Darkness Appears by Stephen Yeardley & Jonathan G. Nelson (Authors of the Rise of the Drow)
Part Two: The Darkest Dawn by Steven T. Helt (2013 Paizo RPG Superstar)
Part Three: The Darkness Revealed by Michael McCarthy (Dreamscarred Press & Saatman's Empire Adventure Path)

Cartography by Todd Gamble (3x ENnie Award Winning Cartographer for WotC, Green Ronin, Monte Cook, and many more)

Art by Jacob Blackmon, Rick Hershey, Mates Laurentiu and many more!

Product Availability

Fulfilled immediately.

Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at store@paizo.com.

PZOPDFAAWROTDDAE


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Anyone knows if this will be available in print eventually?


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Yes, it will be available in print from DriveThruRPG.com (printed through OBS via Lightning Source in B&W and full color).

We may order extra copies to have some available for purchase on Adventureaweek.com and through Paizo.com

I will keep you posted via this thread with an ETA (could be within 2-3 weeks if all goes as planned!)


That's great, thanks! I'll jump on the bundle as soon as it appears.


Watching for the bundle also!


I'm considering running this with it set in Golarion. Anyone have any thought on where the best location would be? I'm currently considering the Land of the Linorm Kings, but not sure that's a good fit.

Thoughts?


Arknight wrote:

I'm considering running this with it set in Golarion. Anyone have any thought on where the best location would be? I'm currently considering the Land of the Linorm Kings, but not sure that's a good fit.

Thoughts?

I asked around the core team and Joshua Gullion said: "Land of the Linorm Kings is exactly where someone would want to port it to if they are wanting to use Golarion for the setting."

So yes! :D


1 person marked this as a favorite.

FWiW, that's also where I put all the AaW/Rybalka-modules - Land of the Linnorm Kings = Perfect fit. In Midgard: Northlands. In the Lost Lands: The otehr Northlands. ^^ (Also: Time permitting, this might hit site next week...)


Reviewed first on Endzeitgeist.com, then submitted to Nerdtrek and GMS magazine and posted here and on OBS. Cheers! (Next week: Main book + Epilogue)

Scarab Sages RPG Superstar 2013

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Eow, man! That's a great review! Thanks,so much!


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Thank you for the review EZG! A very happy read indeed! :)


Liz Courts wrote:
Now available!

A little vague about the format used for this product. Is there a PDF version? Same goes for this product Rise of the Drow Epilogue: The Commander of Malice. Yet this product Rise of the Drow has an option: PDF only.

Edit:
Stupid me, did not see the (PDF) at end of page title. If possible to have the link to adding to shopping cart more clear for products, like it is done for products that have multiple options.


I am getting near (in about 30 days) to running this for my home group. Looking at the Cathedral maps (pages 5 & 13), I do not see an indication of the size and there are no "squares" on the maps.

Using the maps on page 13, how big is each area please.

-- david


Hi there DM Papa, thanks for the message. This is one of those, "Err, how did I miss this out?" situations, so thanks for raising it.

The only obvious indication of the size of any part of the cathedral that I can quickly see I've included, which is the important point, is that the size of the entrance hallway is ten feet between the outer doors and the swing gates into the cathedral proper. This is correct, and means the following:

The hallway is 10 ft. by 20 ft., with the storage areas either side 15 ft. long and 10 ft. wide. The inner walls come to about 5 feet thick, making 55 ft. across in total.

The main section of the cathedral that holds the pews is 110 ft. by 55 ft. including the walls, which are fairly thin

The area with the altar is 25 ft. across and roughly 10 ft. deep.

The stairs are each 20 ft. long and 5 ft. wide (for "squares" purposes) wide.

For the rest of the maps, taking 1cm to be 10 feet gives you a working scale for "squares". This, for example, makes the first level of the bell tower (rooms 1-7) as good as 55 ft. by 40 ft. or 11 by 8 squares, while the first section of the crypt (rooms 12-25) is 45 ft. wide by 55 ft. long, so 9 by 11 squares.

I hope this helps, but if you have any other questions, do please ask! And I'll get this information out to everybody.

Happy gaming!

Stephen - co-author


Thank you !

I missed the swing-gates information.

-- david


I could have sworn that at one time someone asked about what deity Juriendor should worship, but either I am having another senior moment, or it is buried in some obscure thread that I can't find.

That said, as an LG cleric, I am thinking that maybe Sarenrae would be a good choice. Any other suggestions?

thanks,

-- david


Hi Guys,

I am two Sundays away from my guys entering Adrick Folly, and have another map question please. The Adrik’s Folly map on page 46 has no "legend" for the symbols.

My Assumptions (and we know what assume means):

S - Single Secret door
SS - Double Secret door
| - Single door (Room 14)
|| - Single door
|||| - Double door
X - ????
XX - ????

Are my assumptions correct? And what does the X's stand for?

thanks,

-- david


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Hi David,
That was, once, my map - and I didn't even realize the legend never made it into the final version, wow!

The funny doors on room 14 are stable doors - like wide, wooden gates.

The 'X' and 'XX' doors are locked single and double doors, respectively.

Also, I don't see it on the map, but it's worth noting that the 'squares' are actually a whopping 15-ft.! This isn't some tiny fort with cramped hallways.


2 people marked this as a favorite.

15 foot squares! Wow !

Thanks for the information.

-- david


Hello everyone I have a question

About a what if scenario early on in the campaign lets say the PC fail to save the church from the fire but escape with there lives. And the bell tower falls. My DM is trying to pick up the pieces of are failure to save campaign.

So looking for ideas to help him to get the campaign going.

Thank you Ahead of time


2 people marked this as a favorite.

I recently purchased this book and I must say it is cleverly written and quite challenging. I've been reading the pdf and can't wait for the softcover book to arrive in a couple weeks.

The storyline and encounters flow nicely. All of the campaign maps are detailed and well thought out. The artwork is incredible. There are many refreshing twists for the underdark and the monsters that lurk below the surface.

I can't wait to for my campaign to begin next week.

I highly recommend this product.

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