Pathfinder Society Scenario #1-17: The Perennial Crown Part 2, The Thorned Monarch

3.30/5 (based on 20 ratings)

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A Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for levels 3–6 (subtiers 3–4 and 5–6).

In part 2 of The Perennial Crown, the PCs must evade the fearsome fey known as the Thorned Monarch. This unrelenting tyrant will stop at nothing to hunt down the PCs and claim their discoveries for themself, bringing to bear not only their awesome physical and magical power, but also manipulating the innocent Bhopanese citizens in their desperate attempts to stop the PCs from fleeing Bhopan with the one item that could put an end to the evil fey's ambitions.

Written by: Alex Augunas

Scenario tags: Metaplot

Other Resources: This product is also available on the following platforms:

Fantasy Grounds Virtual Tabletop
Archives of Nethys

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

Product Availability

Fulfilled immediately.

Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at store@paizo.com.

PZOPFS0117E


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Average product rating:

3.30/5 (based on 20 ratings)

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Insert Book Promotion here

2/5

Overall the Adventures had decent story and a variety of Challenges , but as a Player the fact:

Spoiler:

That players donating their WHOLE rewards to help the Island without a representing boon feels like punishing the player while egoistic players still get the most rewards. The players will remember this and this left a very bad aftertaste which negated the whole positive adventure experience as a whole. it is two faced to expect rewards for charity but this handling of it is questionable.


So linear and railroady

2/5

Part one of this two-part adventure was fantastic. See my review.

Part two was . . . well . . . not as good.

The entire scenario was designed to lead to a boss fight. But players are robbed agency by having no capacity to pick anything about where and how to conduct the fight (except via their die rolls in a chase scene, which there is no particular reason for them to believe they should do, and which is frankly un-heroic to get involved in given the box-text lead-in).

And the fight itself is also scripted as far as how it's supposed to go, and unbalanced. I had a melee character who had a lot to do, but with resistances and special attacks up to the eyeballs lower-level PCs were sidelined.


Good story but unbalanced at the end.

3/5

I've tried to submit a longer review about four times now. It keeps being convinced that I shouldn't submit it.

The story: 1-16 and 1-17 are both great, different, and engaging. More like this Paizo.

The mechanics: great until the last fight.

Paizo, you really need to stay away from Super Giant Monster Showdown fights in PF2 at high level gaps. This brought the scenario to a grinding halt. Someone at the session said "So, this is just another giant boss showdown where we need to find the special weakness to win."

Honestly, it would have been more satisfying as a few smaller creatures than one large super-deadly encounter. In the hands of a less experienced or non-sympathetic GM, this is an easy TPK.

Still worthy of play, but you guys really need to work on the encounter balance.


Good Theme, Bad Balance

3/5

This scenario is great up till the final fight, where it suffers the same problem a lot of scenarios in Second Edition have suffered from;

The authors seem convinced they must have a single -very- strong creature against the PCs. One that is scaled so high it's difficult for the PCs to effectively do anything due to very high saves and AC, while at the same time having such high to hit it's going to crit most of the time against anything that's not a tank, which it will just hit most of the time.

It's not a fun game design and been a consistent complaint from all of my local players. It just makes the players feel bad, because they struggle to accomplish anything.

It's a disappointment, because my local tables went from loving the scenario to being frustrated at the end by the boss being overtuned, which has happened in several other scenarios as well.

It feels like authors are still balancing as if this was 1.0, when 2.0 was built to correct for the need to scale up combats so high.


Very overtuned

3/5

So far I have only played this. I have yet to read or run it.

This is a brilliant scenario. Very thematic, fast paced and utterly terrifying. You should play this immediately after playing part 1. It is a very different change of pace from Part 1 but the contrast betwen the two is excellently done.

Highly recommended, more like this please even if I was convinced we would TPK. Spoiler alert, we survived, just, mostly I think through having a generous GM. Bring your A Game, avoid doing this with one of those 6 player groups mostly composed of low tier people pushed into high tier due to CP silliness. We had 6 of us with four level 6's, a 4 and a 3.

It does look like it needs a fair bit of prep.

Having prepped and run this now I have to amend my review. this sceario is as lethal as any of the most dangerous PF1 scenarios. I would put this at the level of Sealed Gate or Bonekeep, especially for a group just creasting into high tier. Given 2E gives you far fewer tools to handle exceptionally dangerous missions this is a TPK waiting to happen in the hands of a GM who wants to push things in that direction.

Please stop using the 1E indset that you must have an over levelled big bad. 1E needed that becaus action economy would generally pull you through. That is much less impactful in 2E where you may barely be able to affect the overlevelled creature you are fighting. A level 8 boss in a 3-6 is just asking for trouble.


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Paizo Employee Webstore Coordinator

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Announced for March! Product image and description are not final and may be subject to change.

Contributor

8 people marked this as a favorite.

MY BABY!!!


6 people marked this as a favorite.

Just wanted to drop by and say: I've ran this already since I've written part I of the saga, and Alex has wrought pure GOLD here.

Seriously, this adventure beats many campaign-finales in just how epic it feels. I'm super-excited to see the final version!!


4 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber

I cannot wait to check this series out! Enz + AA = PURE GOLD!!

Scarab Sages

Does the metaplot tag indicate that this is part of a series, or is that referencing an ongoing plot of the season?

Scarab Sages

Ginasteri wrote:
Does the metaplot tag indicate that this is part of a series, or is that referencing an ongoing plot of the season?

The latter.

You know a scenario is the former if the title is like 'Ongoing Series Part X, A New Subtitle'

The above scenario is both sequel and metaplot scenario.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Huh. I'm honestly curious though,

my playstyle is pacifistic anyway but:
do players in PFS ever choose to do things that gain infamy? xD I mean, you ARE supposed to warn players that the action would gain infamy, so players can't stumble on it accidentally. I would be surprised if majority of people kill the reporting note character since you get infamy for it :p Unless GM forgets to tell about infamy I guess. I do know that lot of bad guys you can optionally spare after combat get killed in society, but I don't know in general whenever there is "hold back to avoid killing someone not clearly acting in their right mind" encounters if those npcs usually survive unless its main objective :p

The Exchange

2 people marked this as a favorite.

Auuugh.. I really want to buy both of these, but it just keeps saying "Your request produced an error." Boooooooooo.. Hopefully that's fixed soon. It sounds like these are going to be great, and just what we need for our TTS sessions.

Dark Archive

Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Ga'reth wrote:
Auuugh.. I really want to buy both of these, but it just keeps saying "Your request produced an error." Boooooooooo.. Hopefully that's fixed soon. It sounds like these are going to be great, and just what we need for our TTS sessions.

You can avoid that by either cleaning your browser's cookie cache or using incognito mode if you don't want to delete cookies

The Exchange

1 person marked this as a favorite.

My hero, Corvus! Clearing cache didn't work, but incognito window did. Really weird - I had bought something only a few hours before with no problem.

Liberty's Edge

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure Path, Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

FEAR THE MIGHTY MONARCH!

Grand Lodge

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

You're baby's first combat encounter made my players want to kill you.

It was wonderful.

Dark Archive

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

I have to say that I'm baffled by the reviews since my experience running this scenario was much better than I was led to believe from reviews. I dunno if I got lucky, but this scenario is way better than 3 stars if you ask me :p


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder PF Special Edition Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

Questions for the author:

Question 1:
Are GMs intended to warn about the possible infamy with King Webhekiz?

Question 2:
In the Chase, does it take the turn of the manifestation to damage the party, or does it happen without an action, as soon as the manifestation catches up?

Question 3:
At the conclusion, if the players offer up the Treasure Bundles they found, are they intended to lose the treasure bundles, or are they compensated for their noble deed?

Contributor

1 person marked this as a favorite.
CorvusMask wrote:
I have to say that I'm baffled by the reviews since my experience running this scenario was much better than I was led to believe from reviews. I dunno if I got lucky, but this scenario is way better than 3 stars if you ask me :p

Thank you, that's wonderful to hear! If anyone is a World of Warcraft player, I was heavily inspired by the Battle for Dazar'alor raid and the Halls of Reflection dungeon when writing this!

Spoiler:

I wanted a scenario that captured the feeling of being in this fantastic location with chaos all around you while you're fleeing from something truly horrific.

Contributor

2 people marked this as a favorite.
FLite wrote:
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

You're baby's first combat encounter made my players want to kill you.

It was wonderful.

I'm okay with being the Jack Sparrow of OP authors.

Quote:


Your players: "That combat encounter was too hard! You're the worst author I've ever heard of."

Me: "But you have heard of me."

I'm glad you enjoyed the scenario!

Contributor

The Kulak wrote:
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

Questions for the author:

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

So, all three of these questions are better suited for a developer than an author. I don't want to tell you that it's okay to do something that inadvertently creates table variance on a massive scale after all!

I'm sure this isn't the answer you wanted, and I profusely apologize. I just don't want to get into a situation where I said something that doesn't align with OP and cause them trouble. ^_^"

Paizo Employee Organized Play Developer

4 people marked this as a favorite.
The Kulak wrote:
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

Questions for the author:

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

Re: Question 1, the GM should always warn the player(s) that a PC action is about to earn a point of Infamy. It's in the Infamy rules:

"When a character expresses the intent to perform a wantonly evil or callously criminal action and you inform them that their action would be considered an evil action, if the character still persists in performing the action, apply a point of Infamy to the character."

A GM should never give out Infamy without first making the player aware that their PC's actions will earn it.


So, this scenario has only nine treasure bundles. Is this an error or was it intentional?


Pathfinder PF Special Edition Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Thanks for the clarification on the Infamy, I'm glad I ran it correctly. Can you clarify the second two questions, Michael?


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Is there any clarification that can be provided on what level the Fey Influence feat allows the spells to be cast at (given that half of them can be heightened)?


Pathfinder Maps Subscriber
Michael Sayre wrote:
The Kulak wrote:
Alexander Augunas wrote:
MY BABY!!!

Questions for the author:

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

** spoiler omitted **

Re: Question 1, the GM should always warn the player(s) that a PC action is about to earn a point of Infamy. It's in the Infamy rules:

"When a character expresses the intent to perform a wantonly evil or callously criminal action and you inform them that their action would be considered an evil action, if the character still persists in performing the action, apply a point of Infamy to the character."

A GM should never give out Infamy without first making the player aware that their PC's actions will earn it.

I think this should be explained a little better. Because the next paragraph in the Players guide makes it sound like if it is a scenario based decision then it shouldn't be warned. Otherwise, why would you present an option only to tell a player it is not an option. "Beyond GM intervention, some scenarios and written products may present evil solutions to situations. These actions will be called out within the adventure text as causes to give a character partaking in them a point of Infamy. Still, the GM is the final arbiter on what constitutes an alignment infraction and when Infamy is gained by a character at the table."

Lantern Lodge

The adventure is good but the beginning adventure needs to be re ovulated and instructions for more enemies in the last scene for more people needs to be more clear as to make it a instant tpk.


Hi, I have a question about this scenario.

spoiler:

In Webhekiz's Vaults, there is a hazard called Blood Haze:
Blood Haze wrote:

A contingent of canine-featured Bhopanese guards has wandered into the passage ahead, into a sanguine haze. The guards tear at each other in confusion, unable to tell friend from foe.

If the PCs fail to overcome the hazard, this is the listed outcome:

Failure wrote:

The PCs succumb to the blood haze themselves, blacking out and taking 2d6+5 damage (2d10+13 damage in Tier 5-6). When they come to, the PCs discover blood on their weapons and all the guards dead. The lingering mental fog leaves the PCs stupefied 1 for 10 minutes (until after the encounter in area A).

The main penalty for failure seems to be some damage and the stupefied condition, but it is implied that the PCs kill the guards while under the confusion effect of the blood haze.

It seems that this action (killing the guards) could trigger the anathema of certain deities. For example, Apsu has this anathema:

Apsu's anathema wrote:

Attack a creature without certainty of wrongdoing

A strict reading of the scenario text, along with the anathema, certainly makes it seem as though a PC failing the hazard would run afoul of the anathema.

On the other hand, the Guide to Organized Play states:

Guide to Organized Play wrote:

To allow a wide variety of characters in Society play, the rules around edicts and anathema are slightly relaxed. It is generally assumed that all characters can participate in Pathfinder Society adventures without running afoul of their deity’s edicts and anathema—attempting to perform the primary objective of an official Pathfinder Society mission by itself will not cause a character to fall out of favor with their deity.

In order to complete the scenario, the PCs must attempt to pass through the Blood Haze hazard, and can fail simply due to bad luck.

So my question is, does failing the Blood Haze hazard trigger relevant anathemas?

Thanks!


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber
Dire Mosasaur wrote:

Hi, I have a question about this scenario.

** spoiler omitted **...

They have no control over it, so similar to if they were confused or dominated, it really doesn't make sense to punish the players.


elisaelli wrote:
Dire Mosasaur wrote:

Hi, I have a question about this scenario.

** spoiler omitted **...

They have no control over it, so similar to if they were confused or dominated, it really doesn't make sense to punish the players.

Thanks for the input. It's actually my character that this happened to. I'm trying to decide if I should get an atonement (not strictly needed, as my character isn't a cleric or paladin, but I feel like the character would still care).

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