With the discovery that Runelord Alaznist has tampered with the past and set into motion devastating transformations of the timeline, the heroes must embark upon a truly dangerous and desperate gambit. Since historical texts and their own memories have been altered, the lore hidden within a time-trapped city may hold the only clues as to which events of the ancient past Alaznist has targeted. If the heroes can isolate these events, they may have a chance to correct them, but before they can even reach this repository of lore, they must brave a shadowy god's realm and find a way to enter a city that has been cut off from time itself!
This volume of Pathfinder Adventure Path continues the Return of the Runelords Adventure Path and includes:
"The City Outside of Time," a Pathfinder adventure for 14th-level characters, by Amanda Hamon Kunz.
Rules and backgrounds for several powerful magic artifacts from ancient Thassilon, by Mikko Kallio.
An examination of the sadistic and shadowy pantheon of kyton demagogues, by Gregory Hanigan.
A bestiary of monsters, including the time-racked undead spirits known as chronogeists, the frozen libitinarii kytons, planar dragons from Abaddon and Nirvana, and the powerful kyton demagogue Inkariax, by John Compton and Amanda Hamon Kunz.
ISBN-13: 978-1-64078-098-9
The Return of the Runelords Adventure Path is sanctioned for use in Pathfinder Society Organized Play. The rules for running this Adventure Path and Chronicle sheet are available as a free download (1.5 MB PDF).
Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:
Same as Oranil, when you read the summary, it sound very cool but the first two parts look really boring to play.
The third and fourth parts are much more interesting with a a lot of potential roleplay.
But here's the problem, we have potential but not developed enough.
After the high bar set by the previous adventure, I was looking forward to how the adventure path would continue. On paper, it sounded pretty exciting; sneak through the shadow plane, and hope you don’t alert the master of the domain. Infiltrate a city trapped in time, and seek knowledge lost to the ages due to various events, and take down a tyrant at her full power. Exciting, and interesting. Sign me up! The first part of the adventure was a short, non-liner dungeon crawl that, by the end of everything, feels tacked on, with little thought put into it. To be honest, it felt as if the dungeon was merely an item n a checkbox of requirements. ‘Planer travel section. Check.’ When players get to the city itself, it is presented in a sandbox style, with three opposing factions at war, with innocents in the crossfire. Sounds intense, and difficult right? Once again, it is presented in a very poor manner. Now, there are things this book does that I like. For example, everything presented here is new, not relying on previous releases as much; but in that same sense, there are references within the adventure that suggest you use flip-mats to map out encounters, rather than giving you a map for these. The fact that these encounters are major encounters within the city lessens the impact these encounters have overall. This volume also offers more roleplay scenarios than any of the previous adventures in this path. I am all for these kinds of encounters, but they are over utilized here. Granted, the situations the PC’s find themselves in can lead to some fantastic, and even very tense roleplay scenarios, but still over used. In addition to these encounters, there are several research encounters; as you are attempting to research the past, I can get why these are here, but just as with the roleplay encounters, they are over used. Lastly, I have to talk about the challenge, or rather shift in it. In previous adventures, the encounters you faced were challenging for various reasons; interesting villians, or scenarios. Workarounds, or proper preparation gave the PC’s an edge in battle, and thus a more fulfilling encounter. Here though, you are given a challenge in difficult DR encounters with little outside of that, with maybe one exception. In conclusion, I found this volume lacking in comparison. What is here has the potential to be amazing, but how much enjoyment you get will be down to each GM. One who expands on what is already here will make an incredible adventure your PC’s won’t soon forget. However, one who goes with the bare minimum may find a group grow board with the repetition of roleplay, research, and lack of anything of import happening.
I expect the time locked city refers to the Crystilan https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Crystilan. Happens to fall into Envy's domain... Belimarius would make a good final BBEG for the second to last book. I believe she is said to be lv 18 or 19.
Crud. It's gotta be Crystilan. And I've been planning on using that in my Rise of the Runelords game. My PCs are going to have to carve their way into Crystilan with a runeforged weapon opposed to abjuration to retrieve some ethillion from a laboratory in there, and it could easily happen in the next 1 or 2 sessions.
Now there's going to be a whole bunch of new world lore to tap-dance around that I won't even know anything about until November at the earliest. That makes twice this month I've had to rejigger major plotlines to conform to published lore (the other was the update on Nocticula's goals in Planar Adventures).
Sigh. Such are the risks of doing homebrew in a setting with ongoing updates. Maybe I'll luck out and they'll go a different direction, at least long enough to get my hands on this issue ...
The first D&D magazine I ever "bought" was the one about the shadow plane with the really cool scarred rogue on the front. It was given to me without the cover from the truck stop I used to work for. I know you're not supposed to do that, but I've bought thousands of dollars worth of product since, so it worked out for the publisher all right!
Point being, I have a special love of the plane of shadow and am especially excited for this volume.
A Tzitzimitl is pretty hardcore (CR 19), but i guess the Rune Giant mini from Rise of the Runelords has to be the stand-in for this gargantuan 50 foot skeleton...
Planar dragons from Abbadon and Nirvana! I'm so glad to see them included in such an awesome volume.
But I have to say that the article about the Demagogues is one of the most exciting articles since the Elder Mythos pantheon. I hope it's something similar, filled with illustrations of at least some of this dark deities.
On side note, I'm starting to worry we don't get stats for all weapons of rule in this ap so if this artifact article includes the non statted ones, that would be nice
On side note, I'm starting to worry we don't get stats for all weapons of rule in this ap so if this artifact article includes the non statted ones, that would be nice
This adventure path does not present stats for all of them, but it does present flavor for all of them.
I'm starting to get anxious to see if the actual "Nirvana Dragon" is going to be a feathered colorful dragon or maybe if it might be more akin to an imperial dragon in appearance.
The dragon from Abaddon is surely going to be something terrifying... And I'm taking the Gigas from that plane as an example.
It would also be cool if the dragons were illustrated by one of the two artists responsible for the previous ones.
So... I'd want to know about:
1. The names of the new planar dragons.
2. The names, types, subtypes and CR of the other new monsters.
3. The characters in the NPC gallery, and their alignment and class levels.
I have a request too. I would like to know how many of the demagogues got illustrations and if the article has the same format as the Elder Mythos and the Gods of Osirion articles. Could you help me with those?
I'm actually really interested in the dragons too! What's their breath weapon damage, what's its special effect and what's their (the dragons) appearance? It's so exciting to get new true dragons like that, knowing next volume we will get another one! *-*
Runelord Belimarius: Female human (pure-blooded Azlanti) abjurer 18
High Mistress Lyraesia: Female libitinarii kyton (see above) monk 6
High Master Solethex Sarn: Male human (pure-blooded Azlanti) oracle 19 (time mystery)
Planar dragons in detail:
Apocalypse dragon: Native to Abaddon. Stats are given for young, adult, and ancient. Cone-shaped breath weapon that deals cold damage, has a Virulence effect (save or contract slimy doom). Doesn't get wing attacks but can constrict. Gains buffs when creatures they grapple die. Casts spells as an oracle. Purple dragon with a cool-looking frill/crest behind its head and icy blue claws.
Bliss dragon: Native to Nirvana. Stats given for young, adult, and ancient. Line-shaped breath weapon that deals electricity damage, makes damaged creatures sparkle and take further damage when attacking. Can use lay on hands as a paladin, casts spells as an oracle. Can also turn into animals. White and ivory dragon with a gold mane and beard, green stripes down its back, and feathery wings.
Kyton demagogues article:
Follows the same format as the Gods of Osirion and Elder Mythos articles from Mummy's Mask and Strange Aeons. All nine demagogues get a half-page column each, Barravoclair, Kaikyton, Raetorgash, and Vevelor getting a piece of art.
Happy to see feathers in the nirvana dragon. I also loved the name for the Abaddon dragon. But I'm actually even more anxious to see and read about THE Kyton, Kaikyto.
Would it be to much to ask for a description of the demagogues art?
QUOTE="Dragon78"] Darn, still no dragon from the maelstrom.