paizo.com Recent Reviews of Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDFpaizo.com Recent Reviews of Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF2018-12-04T20:11:52Z2018-12-04T20:11:52ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: How to play nice with Hellknights 101 (4 stars)TheDegradedhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2017-08-09T09:28:02Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I played this scenario last week and I’ve been struggling how to rate this scenario. Let me start by pointing out that players get to interact with one of the most evocative groups in Golarion: the Hellknights. Seeing things from their perspective in an effort to somewhat close the gap between them and the Pathfinder Society is a nice touch. The storyline is pretty story and there are a few surprises that are really well executed. Some of the opponents really will catch you off guard and the encounters are accompanied by nice mechanics to really make you feel like you’re part of a bigger struggle. Your actions matter.</p>
<p>So far so good, but then you’re forced to make a choice and this is why I’m struggling. You basically don’t get to see the entire scenario. You get to do either A, or B. There’s no way to combine them both and it leaves me with a sour taste, especially since in my opinion there’s no real choice to be made. Either you complete your mission, or you stop evil from taking over the world. The difference of magnitude and importance between the two choices is massive. The fact that the choice you make will be reflected on your chronicle sheet is nice, but it doesn’t change the fact that I struggle to see it as a difficult choice and this sentiment was shared by the other players at my table. </p>
<p>To conclude: it’s a solid scenario with some nice surprises and role-playing elements. The mechanics and opponents are nice, making this a fun scenario overall. I’m just not entirely convinced by the execution of that choice and I wonder if I would have liked this scenario more without it. I’m still uncertain about that aspect, but it shouldn’t be a reason for you to not play this scenario. It’s pretty good after all and you get to interact with Hellknights. What could possibly go wrong?</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I played this scenario last week and I’ve been struggling how to rate this scenario. Let me start by pointing out that players get to interact with one of the most evocative groups in Golarion: the Hellknights. Seeing things from their perspective in an effort to somewhat close the gap between them and the Pathfinder Society is a nice touch. The storyline is pretty story and there are a few surprises that are really well executed. Some of the opponents really will catch you off guard and the encounters are accompanied by nice mechanics to really make you feel like you’re part of a bigger struggle. Your actions matter.</p>
<p>So far so good, but then you’re forced to make a choice and this is why I’m struggling. You basically don’t get to see the entire scenario. You get to do either A, or B. There’s no way to combine them both and it leaves me with a sour taste, especially since in my opinion there’s no real choice to be made. Either you complete your mission, or you stop evil from taking over the world. The difference of magnitude and importance between the two choices is massive. The fact that the choice you make will be reflected on your chronicle sheet is nice, but it doesn’t change the fact that I struggle to see it as a difficult choice and this sentiment was shared by the other players at my table. </p>
<p>To conclude: it’s a solid scenario with some nice surprises and role-playing elements. The mechanics and opponents are nice, making this a fun scenario overall. I’m just not entirely convinced by the execution of that choice and I wonder if I would have liked this scenario more without it. I’m still uncertain about that aspect, but it shouldn’t be a reason for you to not play this scenario. It’s pretty good after all and you get to interact with Hellknights. What could possibly go wrong?</p>TheDegraded2017-08-09T09:28:02ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: Interesting spin on a well-tested recipe (4 stars)Ascalaphushttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-09-14T07:36:35Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I'd been looking forward to playing this one for a while, and it didn't disappoint. You're going along with the Hellknights and there's a nice opportunity for interaction and flavour there. Obviously you're not going to have a fight with 10 NPCs on your side all rolling attacks against dozens of enemies; when fighting starts you and they each take a separate part of the front. Nothing surprising there. There's some opportunity and even need to cross the streams so it doesn't feel entirely like mere window-dressing either.</p>
<p>The fights, mostly, weren't that hard. Lots of opportunity to rest and recover in between. All of them were interesting though; the choice of location, monsters, and tactics all helped to develop the story. No filler encounters here.</p>
<p>The story here works quite well. It builds off a little bit from Out of Anarchy (very slightly; first time you see a certain enemy). It works both for PCs who do like the Hellknights, and ones that don't. It's nice to see that the Lawful part of Hellknights is really brought forward. I also very much approve of the choice of all the enemies. It all fit together.</p>
<p>The one thing I didn't really like was The Choice. Interesting (moral) choices with consequences are fine, but this one was a choice of "which encounter are you going to do", which means that whatever choice you make, you miss out on playing the other direction. I do like however how the consequences of your choice affect the Chronicle you receive.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I'd been looking forward to playing this one for a while, and it didn't disappoint. You're going along with the Hellknights and there's a nice opportunity for interaction and flavour there. Obviously you're not going to have a fight with 10 NPCs on your side all rolling attacks against dozens of enemies; when fighting starts you and they each take a separate part of the front. Nothing surprising there. There's some opportunity and even need to cross the streams so it doesn't feel entirely like mere window-dressing either.</p>
<p>The fights, mostly, weren't that hard. Lots of opportunity to rest and recover in between. All of them were interesting though; the choice of location, monsters, and tactics all helped to develop the story. No filler encounters here.</p>
<p>The story here works quite well. It builds off a little bit from Out of Anarchy (very slightly; first time you see a certain enemy). It works both for PCs who do like the Hellknights, and ones that don't. It's nice to see that the Lawful part of Hellknights is really brought forward. I also very much approve of the choice of all the enemies. It all fit together.</p>
<p>The one thing I didn't really like was The Choice. Interesting (moral) choices with consequences are fine, but this one was a choice of "which encounter are you going to do", which means that whatever choice you make, you miss out on playing the other direction. I do like however how the consequences of your choice affect the Chronicle you receive.</p>Ascalaphus2016-09-14T07:36:35ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF (2 stars)John Scalahttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-08-20T06:18:58Z<p>There are some innovative mechanics in the combat and a pretty cool item on the chronicle sheet, but everything that's fun about this adventure is undermined by the 'choice' that happens at the halfway point.</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>Whatever decision your party makes locks you out of the other and the mechanics that make the choices mutually exclusive feel extremely contrived (Oh these locations just happen to be an hour away in opposite directions. Oh taking one path just happens to create shockwaves that would make the other impossible. Oh there just happens to be Plot-School magic that creates a barrier that forces players in or out) If you want an object lesson in bad Railroading look no further than this sort of arbitrary nonsense that doesn't respect the players enough to even give them the illusion of agency.</p>
<p>Furthermore if your party is divided (as mine was) it pretty much guarantees that half of your party won't be having fun. That could potentially become more than half if one party member isn't feeling sporting and decides to leave off on their own effectively cutting off the encounter that most of the party wanted to play. In any event it's very easy for things to become hostile if your party isn't in agreement. Especially once, after you've made your choice, the scenario might ask you to be complicit in a war crime because you didn't already have enough reasons to fight with your party members. I've seriously never come so close to asking the GM for a ruling on PvP than I did with this adventure and I really hope I don't come that close again.</p>
<p>If you plan on running/playing this make sure your party is one that generally sees eye to eye on things (if such a party exists). Don't PUG this at a con if you can help it.</p><p>There are some innovative mechanics in the combat and a pretty cool item on the chronicle sheet, but everything that's fun about this adventure is undermined by the 'choice' that happens at the halfway point.</p>
<p>[Spoiler omitted]</p>
<p>Whatever decision your party makes locks you out of the other and the mechanics that make the choices mutually exclusive feel extremely contrived (Oh these locations just happen to be an hour away in opposite directions. Oh taking one path just happens to create shockwaves that would make the other impossible. Oh there just happens to be Plot-School magic that creates a barrier that forces players in or out) If you want an object lesson in bad Railroading look no further than this sort of arbitrary nonsense that doesn't respect the players enough to even give them the illusion of agency.</p>
<p>Furthermore if your party is divided (as mine was) it pretty much guarantees that half of your party won't be having fun. That could potentially become more than half if one party member isn't feeling sporting and decides to leave off on their own effectively cutting off the encounter that most of the party wanted to play. In any event it's very easy for things to become hostile if your party isn't in agreement. Especially once, after you've made your choice, the scenario might ask you to be complicit in a war crime because you didn't already have enough reasons to fight with your party members. I've seriously never come so close to asking the GM for a ruling on PvP than I did with this adventure and I really hope I don't come that close again.</p>
<p>If you plan on running/playing this make sure your party is one that generally sees eye to eye on things (if such a party exists). Don't PUG this at a con if you can help it.</p>John Scala2016-08-20T06:18:58ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: Absolutely fantastic. (5 stars)Le Petite Morthttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-07-12T05:46:28Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I give 0-3 stars in both mechanics and fluff, and add the results together.</p>
<p>Fluff: 3 Stars</p>
<p>Everything from the briefing to the finales gives a real sense of participating in the larger narrative of the Society. The NPCs are well thought out, the investigative and social portions give a sense of atmosphere and intrigue, and I loved that there are truly meaningful choices for the party to make.</p>
<p>Mechanics: 2 Stars</p>
<p>The encounters are solidly done, but occasionally difficult to interpret as a GM. There were also a few typos. That said, I thought the encounters were truly interesting and well put together, had an appropriate level of challenge while still making the players feel Awesome, and tied into the story smoothly. The skill check portions used scenario-specific mechanics, but were outlined clearly and they didn't feel unwieldy.</p>
<p>Basically, there were some minor flaws mechanically, but overall it was solid work in that regard as well.</p>
<p>I would honestly add a bonus star for editing/organization/use of page space. As a GM, I found this shockingly easy to run despite its complexities, as DCs were sensibly located, and mechanics concisely explained. </p>
<p>So, 6 stars, but I'm only allowed to give 5. I hope to see more scenarios from Mr. Kronewitter.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>I give 0-3 stars in both mechanics and fluff, and add the results together.</p>
<p>Fluff: 3 Stars</p>
<p>Everything from the briefing to the finales gives a real sense of participating in the larger narrative of the Society. The NPCs are well thought out, the investigative and social portions give a sense of atmosphere and intrigue, and I loved that there are truly meaningful choices for the party to make.</p>
<p>Mechanics: 2 Stars</p>
<p>The encounters are solidly done, but occasionally difficult to interpret as a GM. There were also a few typos. That said, I thought the encounters were truly interesting and well put together, had an appropriate level of challenge while still making the players feel Awesome, and tied into the story smoothly. The skill check portions used scenario-specific mechanics, but were outlined clearly and they didn't feel unwieldy.</p>
<p>Basically, there were some minor flaws mechanically, but overall it was solid work in that regard as well.</p>
<p>I would honestly add a bonus star for editing/organization/use of page space. As a GM, I found this shockingly easy to run despite its complexities, as DCs were sensibly located, and mechanics concisely explained. </p>
<p>So, 6 stars, but I'm only allowed to give 5. I hope to see more scenarios from Mr. Kronewitter.</p>Le Petite Mort2016-07-12T05:46:28ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: Best of Season 7 I've seen so far (5 stars)RealAlchemyhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-07-11T02:44:21Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>The second fight in the upper tier had our party (investigator, mesmerist, sorceror, paladin, and swashbuckler) legitimately scared, and without introducing any odd new dynamics to do so, just a ruthless and effective enemy strategy.</p>
<p>Placing a moral quandry at the end allows for the possibility of more RP at the table as the party has to make a tough decision.</p>
<p>I'm looking forward to GMing this at some point.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>The second fight in the upper tier had our party (investigator, mesmerist, sorceror, paladin, and swashbuckler) legitimately scared, and without introducing any odd new dynamics to do so, just a ruthless and effective enemy strategy.</p>
<p>Placing a moral quandry at the end allows for the possibility of more RP at the table as the party has to make a tough decision.</p>
<p>I'm looking forward to GMing this at some point.</p>RealAlchemy2016-07-11T02:44:21ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: A very enjoyable story but also very rough execution (3 stars)silverace99https://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-07-10T06:43:06Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>5 stars for story, 2 stars for execution</p>
<p>A great glimpse into the Hellknights, and an exciting and atmospheric romp. The author did a very good job of guiding GM's into giving the players an immersive interaction with Hellknights, and even getting to understand them. </p>
<p>That being said, there were a number of detail problems that should have been smoothed out before the scenario was released. Please don't take my criticism to mean that I didn't like the scenario:</p>
<p>•••••••••SPOILERS BELOW•••••••••••••••
<br />
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</p>
<p>- In the first and second combats, the hellknights deal with hordes of enemies while the PC's are asked to deal with their own combat. However what inevitably happens (particularly in the first combat where there was a 1-round delay before the actual bad guys show up) is that the PC's perform actions against the "flavor" enemies and the GM is forced to make stuff up in response. This could be tightened up.</p>
<p>- In the second combat, there is only a very rough description of the situation and the GM is forced to guess where the PC's are supposed to be when combat begins. It should be more explicit.</p>
<p>- In the 3a combat (With That Which Peels Flesh), The hellknights help the PC's in an abstract way. However two problems arose. </p>
<p>a) First, the Hellknights can cast Shield Other to protect the PC's. However that makes it very easy for them to fail the secondary success condition of keeping all the hellknights alive. You shouldn't encourage the PC's to use a tool and then punish them for doing so. In fact when I ran it that is exactly what caused them to fail the success condition (although I fudged it and said the hellknight was just unconscious).</p>
<p>b) Second, every time a Hellknight helps the PC's, there is a x% chance that they straight up die as an orc kills them. There are two problems with this. The first problem is that the scenario describes all the orcs getting held back by the other hellknights, and yet somehow an orc appears and kills the hellknight that is with the party. For the GM to describe this it's instantly going to confuse the players. The second and bigger problem is that you are taking the PC's ability to control the secondary success condition and turning it into a completely random dice roll that has nothing to do with the players or their choices. As a player had I known about that I would have been extremely frustrated. And again, you are punishing players for using a feature that you encourage them to use.</p>
<p>-Finally, in the 3b combat (Temple of the Sky), there is a whole ton of description about what the PC's can do to activate the temple guardians...and then it's described that they activate on their own anyway no matter what you do. I think some proofreading would have revealed that this section of the pdf could have been tightened up a lot, as there is a ton of description of many different things and overall it could have been explained in a much shorter and concise manner that would be very helpful to GM's.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>5 stars for story, 2 stars for execution</p>
<p>A great glimpse into the Hellknights, and an exciting and atmospheric romp. The author did a very good job of guiding GM's into giving the players an immersive interaction with Hellknights, and even getting to understand them. </p>
<p>That being said, there were a number of detail problems that should have been smoothed out before the scenario was released. Please don't take my criticism to mean that I didn't like the scenario:</p>
<p>•••••••••SPOILERS BELOW•••••••••••••••
<br />
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</p>
<p>- In the first and second combats, the hellknights deal with hordes of enemies while the PC's are asked to deal with their own combat. However what inevitably happens (particularly in the first combat where there was a 1-round delay before the actual bad guys show up) is that the PC's perform actions against the "flavor" enemies and the GM is forced to make stuff up in response. This could be tightened up.</p>
<p>- In the second combat, there is only a very rough description of the situation and the GM is forced to guess where the PC's are supposed to be when combat begins. It should be more explicit.</p>
<p>- In the 3a combat (With That Which Peels Flesh), The hellknights help the PC's in an abstract way. However two problems arose. </p>
<p>a) First, the Hellknights can cast Shield Other to protect the PC's. However that makes it very easy for them to fail the secondary success condition of keeping all the hellknights alive. You shouldn't encourage the PC's to use a tool and then punish them for doing so. In fact when I ran it that is exactly what caused them to fail the success condition (although I fudged it and said the hellknight was just unconscious).</p>
<p>b) Second, every time a Hellknight helps the PC's, there is a x% chance that they straight up die as an orc kills them. There are two problems with this. The first problem is that the scenario describes all the orcs getting held back by the other hellknights, and yet somehow an orc appears and kills the hellknight that is with the party. For the GM to describe this it's instantly going to confuse the players. The second and bigger problem is that you are taking the PC's ability to control the secondary success condition and turning it into a completely random dice roll that has nothing to do with the players or their choices. As a player had I known about that I would have been extremely frustrated. And again, you are punishing players for using a feature that you encourage them to use.</p>
<p>-Finally, in the 3b combat (Temple of the Sky), there is a whole ton of description about what the PC's can do to activate the temple guardians...and then it's described that they activate on their own anyway no matter what you do. I think some proofreading would have revealed that this section of the pdf could have been tightened up a lot, as there is a ton of description of many different things and overall it could have been explained in a much shorter and concise manner that would be very helpful to GM's.</p>silverace992016-07-10T06:43:06ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: Rollin' with the Hellknights (5 stars)Matt Proctorhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-07-07T04:22:17Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>GMed this scenario for Poison Dusk.</p>
<p>Plot: You're sent to accompany a group of Hellknights to clear out some chaotic force that seems to be blossoming in the mountains, but you're also tagging along in order to check out an ancient temple in Cheliax that the Society hasn't been able to access prior. Journey along with your "merry" band of Hellknights, tackle some unique obstacles, and make a tough decision towards the end.</p>
<p>Combats: While the party absolutely rolled over every encounter for the reasons Poison Dusk laid out, I feel that the combats are likely to end up as relatively difficult for most parties without being overwhelmingly terrifying. My one gripe is that the final encounter for the route my players chose seems to assume that they'd charge into melee; unfortunately the tactics were not ready for a range/caster heavy party to simply bombard them from a distance the entire time.</p>
<p>What I Liked: The scenario gives the GM a lot of opportunities and meaty tidbits to build up the tension and escalating threat as the party journeys deeper into the mountains. There's also plenty of potential for roleplaying with your Hellknight companions that can make for some unique interactions. And while the big decision towards the end of the scenario is a little forced to keep groups from trying both, it caused a good bit of soul-searching and character introspection among the players before a decision was made, particularly after a certain Hellknight chastised their waffling. </p>
<p>What I Disliked: Not a whole lot really. The tough choice towards the end of the scenario is a little ham-fisted, but I won't be docking any stars. One encounter looked like it could easily cost players their secondary success condition due to a rather short time limit and spread out group of enemies.</p>
<p>Verdict: I rather enjoyed running this scenario and look forward to playing it in the near future.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>GMed this scenario for Poison Dusk.</p>
<p>Plot: You're sent to accompany a group of Hellknights to clear out some chaotic force that seems to be blossoming in the mountains, but you're also tagging along in order to check out an ancient temple in Cheliax that the Society hasn't been able to access prior. Journey along with your "merry" band of Hellknights, tackle some unique obstacles, and make a tough decision towards the end.</p>
<p>Combats: While the party absolutely rolled over every encounter for the reasons Poison Dusk laid out, I feel that the combats are likely to end up as relatively difficult for most parties without being overwhelmingly terrifying. My one gripe is that the final encounter for the route my players chose seems to assume that they'd charge into melee; unfortunately the tactics were not ready for a range/caster heavy party to simply bombard them from a distance the entire time.</p>
<p>What I Liked: The scenario gives the GM a lot of opportunities and meaty tidbits to build up the tension and escalating threat as the party journeys deeper into the mountains. There's also plenty of potential for roleplaying with your Hellknight companions that can make for some unique interactions. And while the big decision towards the end of the scenario is a little forced to keep groups from trying both, it caused a good bit of soul-searching and character introspection among the players before a decision was made, particularly after a certain Hellknight chastised their waffling. </p>
<p>What I Disliked: Not a whole lot really. The tough choice towards the end of the scenario is a little ham-fisted, but I won't be docking any stars. One encounter looked like it could easily cost players their secondary success condition due to a rather short time limit and spread out group of enemies.</p>
<p>Verdict: I rather enjoyed running this scenario and look forward to playing it in the near future.</p>Matt Proctor2016-07-07T04:22:17ZPathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF: Great Hellknight Interaction (5 stars)Poison Duskhttps://paizo.com/products/btpy9m00?Pathfinder-Society-Scenario-7-25-Orders-from-the-Gate2016-07-05T13:10:24Z<p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>Was a great written scenario. The Hellknights were fun to interact with. If I had one complaint, the encounters were very easy, however we had a group of mostly higher level players, and one low level who brought us down into low tier.</p><p><b>Pathfinder Society Scenario #7–25: Orders from the Gate (PFRPG) PDF</b></p><p>Was a great written scenario. The Hellknights were fun to interact with. If I had one complaint, the encounters were very easy, however we had a group of mostly higher level players, and one low level who brought us down into low tier.</p>Poison Dusk2016-07-05T13:10:24Z