Pathfinder Society Scenario #8-02: Ward Asunder (PFRPG) PDF

4.10/5 (based on 10 ratings)

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A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for levels 3–7.

The legendary sorceress Hao Jin transferred many abandoned historical sites to her museum demiplane, though even her magic had limits, forcing her to transport only part of an architectural treasure. The half of a temple she left behind in the jungles of Dtang Ma has developed a haunted reputation in the centuries since. Now an unlikely ally has approached the Society with tales of unspoiled historical secrets and hidden treasure left within the shattered sanctuary of Yamatsumi, the mountain god.

This scenario is designed for play in Pathfinder Society Roleplaying Guild but can easily be adapted for use with any world. This scenario is compliant with the Open Game License (OGL) and is suitable for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

Written by Mikko Kallio.

Note: This product is part of the Pathfinder Society Scenario Subscription.

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Average product rating:

4.10/5 (based on 10 ratings)

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Flavourful but can easily drag on in the opening

3/5

The main problem with the adventure is that the opening is rather open ended. If the GM leaves players to their own devices as was done when I played through players can easily draw things out as they attempt to be as thorough as possible. The first two hours end up devolving into a series of paranoid and mostly superfluous skill checks that draw things out unnecessarily.

That said the story was fun and interactions were interesting.


Wonderful flavor

4/5

I played the high Tier with a pretty combat tweaked party. I could see how some people might not like the scenario because it is heavily skill check focused. The combats that we encountered were pretty weak but my understanding is that we bypassed the difficult ones.

That being said, I really liked the scenario. There was so much fantastic cultural information crammed into the scenario that it kept me entertained and focused throughout. The only real issue I had was that we were done in well less than 3 hours so it seemed short. If you have any intrest in Tien culture and are't a devoted hack and slasher there is a lot of fun here.


4/5

This scenario had a quite good story but there were FAR too many skill checks -> Especially the knowledge checks were far too many. It would help to reduce the number of checks and collect them in fewer checks. Sometimes we rolled more than 7 Checks in one room and it became tedious sometimes.
The encounters were interesting and especially the Respect-Interactions were very nice. The encounters were easy.

Spoiler:
We did not fight in the final encounter so any Information about this encounter -> But I liked the roleplaying opportunities there.

I love the boon interactions but it is not useful to have the follow-up-boon to a 5-9 in a 3-7. Some of my players were very upset about this and my own Character was already retired.


Exceptional Writing, Fun to Run and Play

5/5

I had the privilege of playing this scenario, and running it four times at GenCon 2016, and in spite of being able to now run it in my sleep, I would happily do so because it is so fun. Chocked full of opportunities to take on characters and voices, the GM can have a lot of fun leading PCs on this unique journey.

PCs have the opportunity to test their metal in battle, their skills in a number of implicit and explicit challenges, and the players their own minds as they tease out the secrets of this mountain temple ruin. With the PCs actions strongly impacting not just the outcome of the scenario, but the shape of the final encounter.

I think what was surprising to me, in running it so many times, was that experienced players had the hardest time setting aside their preconceived notions and murder hobo habits, while new players fell more readily into the story and the tone the module sets.

Can't wait for new scenarios from Mikko in the future!


Excellent writing and creativity

5/5

I GM'd this scenario at Gen Con 2016 and it was a blast. The story was fun to tell, and the setting was very colorful. I especially enjoyed the temple set in the mountains. It gave me a great place to be able to paint the scene for the players.

Each one of the challenges that the PCs face, whether they know they are facing a challenge or not, was very fun to adjudicate. I really enjoyed presenting them with situations and having the ability as a GM to give them more control over how they handle it, and also the framework to understand how it would affect the ongoing story that we were creating.

I really want to note that it is very important to be prepared to run this for your players. There are some background things going on throughout the entire adventure that the GM needs to be on top of. It isn't difficult or complicated by any stretch, but it plays such an important role in the scenario that it is important for the GM to be aware of it in order to give the players the full experience by the time it is all over. In fact, I think you will find that understanding those underlying threads will give you as the GM more ways and opportunities to create a scene for your players and also get them to interact with it.

Pay attention to the combat encounters as well. The foes of the PCs can be formidable (but not impossible) if the GM doesn't hose it up. Failure to be prepared can lead to an encounter that the PCs roll over and as a result, don't have as much fun. I'm all about fun on both sides of the table.

I would happily run this again, and I would absolutely love to play it, even though the behind-the-scenes stuff and reveal at the end is spoiled for me. As I mentioned about the fun, all 7 of us at the table had a great time. Definitely get this scenario!


6 to 10 of 10 << first < prev | 1 | 2 | next > last >>
Shadow Lodge

Ah, maybe a chance to meet a certain spirit oni again?

Grand Lodge Contributor

This was a fun adventure to write! I hope folks will enjoy playing and running it as much as I did writing and playtesting it. :)

Gen Con GMs running Ward Asunder should feel free to send me a pm when you start prepping the scenario, if you need any clarifications or such. And as usually, I'll be answering any questions about the adventure in a GM thread after it's published.

Paizo Employee Pathfinder Society Lead Developer

Maps Appearing in Ward Asunder:

This adventure features only a custom, full-page map.

Scarab Sages

When can we download this Scenario for Gen-Con?

Grand Lodge

Pathfinder Adventure Path, Rulebook Subscriber

minor typo?:
writing some what obliquely to defeat spoiler readers, but GMs should get this. In the final battle in tier 3-4 the creatures weapon changes between phases, becoming more powerful, where as in tier 6-7 it starts as more powerful and stays that way. I assume that in Tier 3-4 (to be more tier 3-4) the weapon should not power up but remain the more vanilla version?

ps x4 crit is bad... 89 damage... left a tier 6-7 barbarian glad to have taken raging vitality...

As an aside, I've already run this 4 times and reviewed it, I really enjoyed this one.

Grand Lodge Contributor

Galnörag, thank you for the review, and thanks for running the scenario at Gen Con! I'm glad to hear you liked it, and I hope the players (including the person who played the barbarian) also did.

Warning: Spoilers

Spoiler:

The weapon changing between the phases in lower subtier looks like a copy-paste mistake. As the sidebar suggests, the better version of the weapon should appear in the higher subtier only.

You're right about the 4x crit, potentially very deadly. The main reason I chose that weapon was that it's the deity's favored weapon, and it made sense to give it to the BBEG rather than just being loot to be found in a room. I hope it won't end up killing too many PCs!

My advice to GMs is to ask the players if they have encountered that type of weapon before, and then mention that it has 4x crit modifier, so that any PCs going into melee know the risks.

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