Pathfinder Adventure Path #133: Secrets of Roderic's Cove (Return of the Runelords 1 of 6)

In the PG's Circle Market Hunting Guide is each bargain item supposed to be at 10% 'off' its normal price? Or is it as written?

Yes. 10% off normal price.

I had a rather interesting misprint, my copy has pages (1)/2,3/4,5/6 so on to 15/16 then (1)/2, but then 17/18, to 91/92 and ad inserts.

So basically I got Part 1 twice.

Is this a thing that happened to anyone else?

Varian - misprints like that happen. I've picked up a couple books like that in the past. If you send an email to customer service, they will help you out.

I got to play in my first session of Return tonight. We had a lot of fun and I like the way things are being set up. I'm super excited to see how it all plays out!

I had a rather interesting misprint, my copy has pages (1)/2,3/4,5/6 so on to 15/16 then (1)/2, but then 17/18, to 91/92 and ad inserts.

So basically I got Part 1 twice.

Is this a thing that happened to anyone else?

Brother Fen is right. This unfortunately happens sometimes in mass printing. A message to customer service with the order number, details of the issue, and maybe a photo of the issue will sort this out.

Yes. 10% off normal price.

Thanks, that's how I read it anyway. My teenage sons will now be sorry they pointed it out to me before we started play.

So, uh, I'm confuzzeled, are we going to get the stats of the Runelords as they were before Earthfall hit (aka at the height of their power) or are we just going to get a few of them in their new forms? Don't get me wrong, I'm glad for whatever we get but I'm hoping one of the last things Paizo does with 1st edition Pathfinder RPG is giving us the post-Earthfall stats for the Runelords. That would be really awesome in case we'd want to use them for our own independent campaigns! :D

I just kind of hope we get the stats for the other rods of rule. So far we've gotten two.

So, uh, I'm confuzzeled, are we going to get the stats of the Runelords as they were before Earthfall hit (aka at the height of their power) or are we just going to get a few of them in their new forms? Don't get me wrong, I'm glad for whatever we get but I'm hoping one of the last things Paizo does with 1st edition Pathfinder RPG is giving us the post-Earthfall stats for the Runelords. That would be really awesome in case we'd want to use them for our own independent campaigns! :D

It's kinda all over the place. You'll see as the adventures come out. Some will have stats at the height of their power, some won't. It depends on how they interface with the plot.

Sorry guys. Going to have a bit of a grumble. I found Secrets to be pretty underwhelming and dull.

I won't presume to do a formal review of the adventure, but I have to say:
- the different groups involved were very static and really there was little or no development on their behalf throughout the adventure;
- there was no feel of a real threat to the town and the different gangs involved were pretty uninteresting and pretty forgettable;
- the locations had been done before and often in a better way - mansions, haunted house, dungeons under a flume, etc;
- none of the locations really felt alive, they were really passive, just waiting for the characters to wade through them;
- the town of Roderic's Cove was pretty uninspiring and with few plot hooks to really make the characters feel at home in town
-the Thassollian lore was pretty limited and the threat posed by Azalinst seemed distant at best
- the treasure seemed totally over the top in some areas (7,000 gp in one chest alone) and pretty generic in others.

All in all. Ehh...

Sorry I don't normally complain about these things. But as someone who has subscribed from the very first AP - I just expected something more inspiring for a return to the much beloved Runelords story arc.

The difference between this and Burnt Offerings was pretty noticeable.

I hope it is just a aberration and that the rest of the AP gets back on track quickly..

Sorry for being a grump.

Ash

Hmm, I'd say you probably shouldn't have expected new version of Burnt Offerings though. Burnt Offerings is special in that it works best as first ever campaign game for newbie pathfinder player, Secrets of Roderics' cove is written in way that seems to appeal to players who have played both previous parts of trilogy. There are lot of references to Thassilonian lore mentioned previously and at least few spoilerific thing which get people who know about Thassilon stuff get excited.

I also feel like this book is pretty weak. I'm going to carefully read the whole thing then write a review. Gonna have to do a fair bit of work as a GM to make Rodericks Cove feel like a liveable town. Just as a start (without spoiling anything):

(1) The 'factions' seem like simplistic caricatures that I think my players will have a hard time believing in. One group in particular seems really divorced from the look and feel of the rest of the town.

(2) The main NPC descriptions aren't very evocative - they don't stir my imagination or add complexity or depth that I could add subplot to.

(3) The Macguffin in this book uses a power that is dormant, for a moment, but it doesn't adequately explain why that powerful latent power arose at such an innocuous time. I think that could have been better considered or explained.

(4) Some witnesses suspect something that the PCs have already seen. (p.7). I need to give them something more to say, rather than just banging the PCs over the head something they already suspect.

(5) No Adventure Summary at the start of the book.

And I'm only on page 9 (and the NPC section) so far.

I hope it's just this book and not some overall issue with the whole AP.

Big thumbs up to the mapping! Specifically, little details about where smaller things are (I had been sketching these in myself and often guessing) and the door openings (I've been rolling 1d4 to decide left/right/in/out, then forgetting which one I had for which direction and having to roll again...)

I also have a general approval for what seems to be a greater availability and better integration of non-combat XP. Not that there's anything wrong with slaughtering hordes of evil mooks, mind you... but I appreciate the textual support for a non-hack-and-slash play mode.
1) Specific details and rewards for pieces of plot advancement, and bonuses when done "well".
2) Redeemable (and not always "Evil") antagonists. There are still some "made out of evil in a pot full of evil" villains and "you can't reason with this rabid wolf" scenarios, and there is space for most or all of the baddies being played as mustache-twirling black hats if you so choose. But between several of the antagonists being at odds at each other, and having goals that seem laudable or at least understandable, even a few of the Evil aligned characters seem less like bags of XP to pop with your sword and more like someone to work around (or with). This depends on your table's play style, of course. But I'm glad we were given enough bones with which to build.
(Of course, going too far in this direction, you end up with your PCs trying to befriend everyone they meet and bring them along everywhere and having a cast of thousands...)

(SPoiler warning)

In the stonehouse there is a creature, and a treasure, and in that treasure is a 7x Slim Platinum rods worth 1000 each.

1000gp each or 1000pp each. it is not clearly labeled.

We finished book one! Woo hoo!!!

Next up, Hollow Mountain!

Yay! I hope y'all had a good time!

We did enjoy it. We all really enjoyed the chance to tie-in legacy characters from previous APs. This adventure is ripe with opportunities for roleplay and interaction with the various factions. My Varisian bard with a fascination for Thassilon and Azlant found plenty to keep him interested.

I am getting ready to run this adventure path. I know this might be a silly question but are there any flip mats or map packs that are recommended for this?