A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for levels 1–5.
Beneath the Grand Lodge of Absalom lie the vaults, a series of storerooms and libraries that contain much of the Society’s findings from the past centuries. Cataloguing the sundry relics and texts takes time, and finds requiring closer study find their way to an extensive vault called the Overflow Archives. Soon after a pair of initiates sneaks into the archive and steals a few items on a dare, the complex inexplicably springs a leak. It is up to the PCs to investigate this strange phenomenon and put a stop to it before thousands of priceless documents are ruined forever.
Content in “The Overflow Archives” also contributes directly to the ongoing storyline of the Dark Archive faction.
Written by Scott Sharplin.
Product Availability
Fulfilled immediately.
Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at
store@paizo.com.
I have played this and run it a few times. The last time being at Dexcon this past weekend. I love running this scenario and everyone who has played it has seemed to enjoy it too. But I think I have more fun than the players. Like some of the other posts, there are some great RP moments, crazy creatures, investigation and a puzzle. Those of you who don't enjoy RP will be bored until you get to chopping but if you sit back relax and let the scenario flow (hehe) I think you will like it.
DAT MAP!!!!!! Interesting concept, and I love the play with Kreighton and Zarta. There needs to be more interaction like that, rather than just a Mission Impossible "do this" briefing.
Back to the map.... it was nice, but for the most part unnecessary. Especially given the nature of what the party was supposed to be doing. Nothing is more frustrating than having to draw out a map that has a minimal impact. BUT THANK YOU for providing a printable version.
My low tier group managed to hit the first contingency, which made the rest.... not as interesting as it could have been, but still playing the NPCs was fun.
I admit its somewhat petty, but this doesn't get 5 stars just because prepping the maps was a serious pain (ok one map in particular).
Other than that though I ran this for a group of 4 in high tier, and it was loads of fun.
1. Good roleplaying
2. Interesting creatures
3. Puzzle solving
This continues the run of awesome scenarios I've played/run in season 6. Great Job!
The Overflow Archives is definitely one of my favorite PFS Scenarios (I only have about 20 or less that I haven’t played currently, and I have GMed a few of those). I have played this once (low tier normal mode) and GMed it 4 times (once high tier normal mode, and 3 times low tier CORE). I think this scenario has a great balance of role-play encounters, environmental difficulties, combats and Puzzles.
The feel of this scenario is quite whimsical at times, and some people might not like that. Though of every table of the five I have experienced with this game has enjoyed it a great deal.
One of my favorite parts of the main Puzzle is that the part needed for success in the scenario is not too difficult and should be able to be finished even with a group that doesn’t care a great deal for such things, but there is a second part that, while not needed of scenario success, can be more satisfying for people who love puzzles.
The role-play available in this scenario is quite fun, though it is possible for a group to just hack their way through this scenario if that is their preferred play style.
The combats are interesting and varied, while fitting the theme of the scenario. I was also glad of the inclusion of a creature that I think is quite creepy and fun, and to my knowledge hasn’t been used in any previous PFS scenarios. I found that the low tier is generally quite a lot more forgiving in the combats than the high tier, but can still be challenging.
The only thing I generally did not like much about this scenario is the map of the lower level. While I greatly appreciate the theme of the map, being once a temple of Desna, it is quite difficult to draw and run combats in, especially considering the additional environmental effects happening in this scenario. When I ran this for my local group I simplified and turned the map to make it easier to draw and move around in, but I did draw out the actual map for my 3 tables at PaizoCon. I don’t feel like the change in the map had any negative effect on running the scenario.
Overall I highly recommend this scenario. I believe it would be a disservice to run this scenario without preparation, as there is quite a few moving parts, and I think it deserves to be run smoothly.
You may enjoy this scenario... or you may hate it. I hated it, though I can see why others loved it. It's very bizarre, filled with absurdities and inanity that surpasses everything else I've played. If you're into that kind of stuff, you may really like this one, but I personally found myself constantly groaning "ANOTHER riddle?" as we entered each new room. They weren't even good riddles, they were all children's nursery rhyme stuff. Several times during the scenario I almost just walked out, but since we were playing at a table of 3(with a pregen) I didn't want to screw over the other two players.
Is this the season 6 Library of the Lion / The Disappeared style scenario?
It's not quite the same style, but there are some thematic similarities. Scott's adventure has both opportunities for skillful characters to feel good as well as moments where someone with 18 Strength and a two-handed weapon will chuckle.
FYI: The description of A1 refers to a particular terrain found on page 426 of the Core book, but it's actually on page 427. Probably not a big deal for those that own a hard copy of the CRB, but I had to scroll up and down a bit in the PDF to find it. Anyhow, so far I'm loving reading it, and look forward to roleplaying the various folks in the opening scene.
Don't blame Sean; he was working off my maps. This was my first PFS assignment, and I must've got over-exuberant with the final design. I'll show more restraint next time!
But the layout of the Understacks is nearly symmetrical, so you should be able to draw half the map on a flip-mat, and then rotate when the time is right. I hope that helps!
What's more, the 31st square is just the upper wingtip of the butterfly. I suspect it won't be much of an issue if you clip the end off area B2, which doesn't have a combat encounter.
I am very happy that this is the scenario I was scheduled to run 3 times at PaizoCon. All three tables (and the two times I've participated in this scenario locally) have been great fun!
This scenario's handouts were a nightmare to translate (=
I didn´t translate the handout, only read it out loud in german several times on purpose, since the riddle seems very easy to solve to me even for people not familiar with english.
Since the scroll is supposed to be in a different language not everyone can read...
Developer
