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Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults

3.80/5 (based on 13 ratings)
Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults
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When the mysterious Gauntlight, an eerie landlocked lighthouse, glows with baleful light, the people of Otari know something terrible is beginning. The town's newest heroes must venture into the ruins around the lighthouse and delve the dungeon levels far beneath it to discover the evil the Gauntlight heralds. Hideous monsters, deadly traps, and mysterious ghosts all await the heroes who dare to enter the sprawling megadungeon called the Abomination Vaults!

Pathfinder Second Edition's most popular campaign yet bursts from the pages of this massive hardcover compilation, containing all three adventures in the fan-favorite Abomination Vaults Adventure Path, a dungeon-delving campaign like no other, along with support articles, rules, monsters, and more!

Content Warning: While Abomination Vaults contains typical Pathfinder action and adventure, it also presents themes of suicide, ableism, body horror, and human experimentation. Before you begin, understand that player consent (including that of the Game Master) is vital to a safe and fun play experience for everyone. You should talk with your players before beginning the adventure and modify descriptions or scenarios as appropriate.

Note: This Abomination Vaults compilation hardcover is not included in the Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscription. Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscribers who preorder Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults will receive a free PDF when their physical copy ships.

ISBN-13: 978-1-64078-410-9

"Abomination Vaults" is sanctioned for use in Pathfinder Society Organized Play. The rules for running this Adventure and Chronicle sheet are available as a free download (907 kb PDF).

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

Fantasy Grounds Virtual Tabletop
Foundry Virtual Tabletop
Pathfinder Nexus on Demiplane
Roll20 Virtual Tabletop

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This product is non-mint. Refunds are not available for non-mint products. The standard version of this product can be found here.

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

PZO2033

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3.80/5 (based on 13 ratings)

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Single enemy encounters and lack of thievery

2/5 —

Adventure recommends being good at Thievery, but there honestly isn't a point. Traps are either too high level to disarm reliably and doors are easily broken down by Athletics with no consequence.

Most encounters are like, 1 enemy, which makes it so your abilities mostly won't do anything because the enemy is strong.

The saving grace of the adventure is the narrative, with lots of factions interacting with each other, with multiple layers of history to the place.

Decent Dungeon Crawl, but not the best introduction to PF2E

3/5 —

Abomination Vaults is a decent enough dungeon crawl, but it is a rather poor introduction to PF2E - I would recommend against playing this as your first venture in Pathfinder 2E, or as a follow up to the beginner's box, as it is a high difficulty dungeon crawl that violates some of the guidelines about low level encounters to its detriment.

The setup for the adventure is simple enough - an abandoned necromancer's tower called the Gauntlight has lit up near the town of Otari, and your friend Wrin has called you in to try and figure out what is going on. Delving into the tower, you quickly determine that the necromancer Belcorra who created the tower is only mostly dead, and it is up to you to delve down into her abomination vaults, fighting your way down through ten floors of undead to lay her spirit to rest for good.

This is very much a dungeon crawl, not an RP-focused adventure; while the town of Otari is decent enough, it is barely involved in the actual adventure for the most part. Early on, there's several events that involve the town, and that's really nice for keeping the characters invested, but as you get deeper into the vaults, the town becomes less and less important; by the final three floors, Otari has been completely forgotten.

This is a pity, because Otari is only 15 minutes away from the Gauntlight, and you go back there to go to sleep every night; they could have easily given the players something to do there between each level to break up the dungeon crawl, which is otherwise generally pretty light on RP, with only a few floors in the middle having significant RP aspects to them. A lot of what you're doing is moving from room to room, killing monsters.

Belcorra, the big bad of the dungeon, has far too small a presence as well; you only start encountering her at the very bottom of the dungeon, which is a pity, as it means she gets little opportunity for characterization.

The biggest flaw with this dungeon, however, is that it is kind of brutal in the first few floors. A session zero to get a balanced party together is essential for this dungeon, as otherwise the many over-level encounters in the first half of it are likely to kill characters or even cause potential TPKs. There's a wood golem on the fourth floor which is really poorly signposted, is immune to almost all magic, and which also is resistant to physical attacks, and thanks to its configuration can easily put the characters in a spot where they're dying on the ground with no possibility of escape or being drug to safety or be safely healed. This is hardly the only encounter in the dungeon that can kill players, and the first half of the dungeon is kind of infamous for TPKs. It gets easier in the second half as the players are simply stronger than they are in the first half and have more resources, and the encounters tend to be more varied in the number of enemies in the encounter as you go in deeper.

My own group of TTRPG veteran players managed to get through the dungeon without too much trouble, though there was a character death on the third floor due to bad luck, and a temporary stand-in PC made by the DM died on the 9th floor when a player was absent for a session, with that character also dying to the same thing (multiple unlucky crits). We were never in any real danger of a TPK, though, so the dungeon, while challenging, is not grossly unfair; that being said, groups of newbies regularly struggle with this module and you see a weekly post on the Pathfinder 2E subreddit of a GM or player talking about how they're getting slaughtered by this module, looking for help with what they're doing wrong.

The dungeon is also full of monsters that are immune to precision damage, as well as a number of monsters that are immune to athletics maneuvers due to being incorporeal, which can screw up some kinds of builds, and some entire classes (gunslingers, rogues, precision rangers, investigators, grab fighters, grapple monks) are heavily penalized by the design of the dungeon as their build will not work on a number of major enemies, including the final boss.

This is a fine dungeon crawl if you are up for a bunch of combat encounters with some light roleplaying aspects here and there, but it's not the greatest module in the world - I liked it OK, but I felt like it could have been more than it was, and I've preferred Paizo's other modules to this one.



5/5 —

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Marketing & Media Manager
4 people marked this as a favorite.
CorvusMask wrote:
Aaron Shanks wrote:
Hardcovers are not included in the subscription. Usually, we have a deal where if you have the Adventure Path subscription, and you preorder the book, then you get the PDF. We will confirm.
BTW was there confirmation that if we preorder this we will get pdf as freebie?

Yes. Pathfinder AP Subscribers who preorder this compilation will get a free PDF. The Webstore team will update the product page to reflect this.

1 person marked this as a favorite.

Thank you for confirming this Aaron.
Sovereign Court Director of Community
4 people marked this as a favorite.

Removed a post discussing illegal activities as well as a post that quoted the removed post.

Marketing & Media Manager
7 people marked this as a favorite.

To set expectations, this will be a near reprint with very few changes. This is a product that will appeal to players who are looking to play the AP for the first time, not an expansion for those looking to replay this hit Pathfinder Adventure Path.

Likewise, there will not be a PDF update of the existing individual volume PDFs.

Not every AP will get a complication. This is a victory lap for the AP. Future compilations are decided on a case by case basis. Subscribers to the AP line still have the best value: high quality without the wait.
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Aaron Shanks wrote:

To set expectations, this will be a near reprint with very few changes. This is a product that will appeal to players who are looking to play the AP for the first time, not an expansion for those looking to replay this hit Pathfinder Adventure Path.

Likewise, there will not be a PDF update of the existing individual volume PDFs.

Not every AP will get a complication. This is a victory lap for the AP. Future compilations are decided on a case by case basis. Subscribers to the AP line still have the best value: high quality without the wait.

That’s a relief!!! I am however happy that this one is so complicated, and look forward to purchasing it in this more complex format.

Marketing & Media Manager
LandSwordBear wrote:
Aaron Shanks wrote:

To set expectations, this will be a near reprint with very few changes. This is a product that will appeal to players who are looking to play the AP for the first time, not an expansion for those looking to replay this hit Pathfinder Adventure Path.

Likewise, there will not be a PDF update of the existing individual volume PDFs.

Not every AP will get a complication. This is a victory lap for the AP. Future compilations are decided on a case by case basis. Subscribers to the AP line still have the best value: high quality without the wait.

That’s a relief!!! I am however happy that this one is so complicated, and look forward to purchasing it in this more complex format.

I apologize for the typo. I meant compilation, of course. ;)

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

If we preorder this (and are not Adventure Path subscribers), will the PDF be included? If not, how much will the PDF cost as an add on?

As it stands, without the PDF, it would be better to preorder this on Amazon and save the shipping charges.
Marketing & Media Manager
Neil Lilley wrote:

If we preorder this (and are not Adventure Path subscribers), will the PDF be included? If not, how much will the PDF cost as an add on?

As it stands, without the PDF, it would be better to preorder this on Amazon and save the shipping charges.

Yes. (I answered that above.) The PDF price has not been released.

Pathfinder Lost Omens, Rulebook Subscriber

I see the answer that AP subscribers will get the PDF with their print preorder. My question is will non-subscribers get the PDF with a print preorder?
Silver Crusade
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Non-subscribers have never gotten a free PDF with preorder, so I don't see that changing here.
Marketing & Media Manager
Neil Lilley wrote:
I see the answer that AP subscribers will get the PDF with their print preorder. My question is will non-subscribers get the PDF with a print preorder?

Sorry, my mistake. Non-subscribers will not get a PDF for pre-ordering, no.

Subscribers and purchasers from the Paizo Store often get their product faster than Amazon due to choices Amazon makes. Amazon is less expensive, often slower and, I have been told, does not product their packages as well as Paizo does. But they offer free shipping.

We are not completing with Amazon or any other retailer in terms of price. We charge MSRP. We support you in choosing the source that works for you.

I have not been given the PDF price.

Adventures Ahead!
Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

I can attest to Amazon’s packaging. Half the books I’ve ordered through Amazon have been bent upon arrival or had some pages coming out of the spine.

Although they somehow accidentally sent me 3 copies of King of the Mountain in 1 package when I only ordered one.
RPG Superstar 2014 Top 32

Is there any news on whether this release will spur Roll20 to offer this adventure?
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Disappointed the original ldf won't get any of the balancing changes. No matter how small.
Marketing & Media Manager
Grumpus wrote:
Is there any news on whether this release will spur Roll20 to offer this adventure?

I don't have the information one way or another yet.

Marketing & Media Manager
Aaron Shanks wrote:
Neil Lilley wrote:
I see the answer that AP subscribers will get the PDF with their print preorder. My question is will non-subscribers get the PDF with a print preorder?

Sorry, my mistake. Non-subscribers will not get a PDF for pre-ordering, no.

Subscribers and purchasers from the Paizo Store often get their product faster than Amazon due to choices Amazon makes. Amazon is less expensive, often slower and, I have been told, does not product their packages as well as Paizo does. But they offer free shipping.

We are not completing with Amazon or any other retailer in terms of price. We charge MSRP. We support you in choosing the source that works for you.

I have not been given the PDF price.

Adventures Ahead!

Sorry for the typo. I meant competing, not completing. I'll start enlarging my font. Have a good, safe weekend.

Grand Lodge

Will contain separate maps that we can use for running AV?
Marketing & Media Manager
2 people marked this as a favorite.
fingerzz wrote:
Will contain separate maps that we can use for running AV?

I am researching this.

Super excited for this adventure path to be published into one book!!!
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Aaron Shanks wrote:

To set expectations, this will be a near reprint with very few changes. This is a product that will appeal to players who are looking to play the AP for the first time, not an expansion for those looking to replay this hit Pathfinder Adventure Path.

Likewise, there will not be a PDF update of the existing individual volume PDFs.

Not every AP will get a complication. This is a victory lap for the AP. Future compilations are decided on a case by case basis. Subscribers to the AP line still have the best value: high quality without the wait.

But there are balance changes as suggested before, surely a black and white old style errata document could be put out.

Heck do you need the community to do it?

Just because not all APs will get this treatment doesn't mean it is any less of a slap in the face to those of us who have already bought it.

(Btw I am not attacking you personally for this decision, but it is very anti consume to not even offer a minor updates pdf)
Liberty's Edge
4 people marked this as a favorite.

I bought the AP and I do not feel entitled to any additional work from Paizo beyond what I paid them for. If they manage to do it and give me additional value without me paying, great. If it does not happen, I don't feel slighted at all.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

Apparently this is being converted to 5e. I must have missed an announcement somewhere.
Marketing & Media Manager
2 people marked this as a favorite.
The Gleeful Grognard wrote:
Aaron Shanks wrote:

To set expectations, this will be a near reprint with very few changes. This is a product that will appeal to players who are looking to play the AP for the first time, not an expansion for those looking to replay this hit Pathfinder Adventure Path.

Likewise, there will not be a PDF update of the existing individual volume PDFs.

Not every AP will get a complication. This is a victory lap for the AP. Future compilations are decided on a case by case basis. Subscribers to the AP line still have the best value: high quality without the wait.

But there are balance changes as suggested before, surely a black and white old style errata document could be put out.

Heck do you need the community to do it?

Just because not all APs will get this treatment doesn't mean it is any less of a slap in the face to those of us who have already bought it.

(Btw I am no attacking you personally for this decision, but it is very anti consume to not even offer a minor updates pdf)

Paizo's Editorial Department has no plans to create such a document. The Marketing Department needs to find a way to communicate what has changed at the 30,000 level. We do not have a list of changes. We have scheduled Mr. Ron Lundeen to write blogs about both this compilation and the 5e product. After that, we will see if there are gaps. He has said the changes are minor.

Marketing & Media Manager
2 people marked this as a favorite.
Fumarole wrote:
Apparently this is being converted to 5e. I must have missed an announcement somewhere.

The product page is the announcement. Paizo's Marketing & Media team (2 FTEs) generally focuses on near-team products.

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
Aaron Shanks wrote:
Fumarole wrote:
Apparently this is being converted to 5e. I must have missed an announcement somewhere.
The product page is the announcement.

Yup, that would be what I missed.

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

I am kind of salty that the 5E version looks way cooler.
Paizo Employee Creative Director
12 people marked this as a favorite.
Nicolas Paradise wrote:
I am kind of salty that the 5E version looks way cooler.

They have the same art. We did the 2E version first, is all, and didn't have the final art in when we were making the mock-up cover, and once a mock-up cover is out in the wild it's pretty much impossible to change.

In this case, the salt is unneeded. You can save it for proper dinner seasoning! :)
Dark Archive
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Yeah its fairly obvious the 2e one is mockup since paizo never reprints art from inside book on hardcover covers :D

(one of my players seems to prefer that cover though xD)
Marketing & Media Manager

Want to know more about the Abomination Vaults compilations? Watch Know Direction 273 - Abomination Vaults Everywhere!
4 people marked this as a favorite.

I can't wait to get this for Foundry VTT! :)
3 people marked this as a favorite.

A new sad issue for those of us who bought the previous books rather than the upcoming compilation.

Gotta rebuy the whole lot if you want the foundry vtt module :S.
2 people marked this as a favorite.

I wonder what happens if I own the old pdfs but preordered the compilation now? Will I get the free pdf, will I get the module discounted? I ordered the hardcover because I never got around to buying the softcovers as they're always sold out in Poland.
Grand Lodge
Tangorin wrote:
I wonder what happens if I own the old pdfs but preordered the compilation now? Will I get the free pdf, will I get the module discounted? I ordered the hardcover because I never got around to buying the softcovers as they're always sold out in Poland.

AFAIK you do not receive free PDF's. They are separate purchase which sucks. Also no information regarding discount so you will have to wait to find out.

Silver Crusade
4 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.
Grand Lodge
Cori Marie wrote:
They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.

I forgot new AP is released this week. They said that it will contain also VTT part?

Marketing & Media Manager
fingerzz wrote:
Cori Marie wrote:
They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.
I forgot new AP is released this week. They said that it will contain also VTT part?

Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults on Foundry VTT will be available for purchase on Wednesday. There is no product page yet.

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Aaron Shanks wrote:
fingerzz wrote:
Cori Marie wrote:
They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.
I forgot new AP is released this week. They said that it will contain also VTT part?
Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults on Foundry VTT will be available for purchase on Wednesday. There is no product page yet.

Aaron is mistaken here.

Abomination Vaults re-release does not occur until May, Outlaws of Alkenstar's first book - Punks in a Powderkeg releases on Wednesday, coinciding with the release of the premium content module for Foundry VTT.
Marketing & Media Manager
AnathemaMask wrote:
Aaron Shanks wrote:
fingerzz wrote:
Cori Marie wrote:
They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.
I forgot new AP is released this week. They said that it will contain also VTT part?
Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults on Foundry VTT will be available for purchase on Wednesday. There is no product page yet.

Aaron is mistaken here.

Abomination Vaults re-release does not occur until May, Outlaws of Alkenstar's first book - Punks in a Powderkeg releases on Wednesday, coinciding with the release of the premium content module for Foundry VTT.

I was mistaken. Thank you.

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Aaron Shanks wrote:
AnathemaMask wrote:
Aaron Shanks wrote:
fingerzz wrote:
Cori Marie wrote:
They've said the discount will be the price of the PDFs for any modules. What we don't know yet is the full prices of the modules, but we will on Wednesday for sure (if not earlier) when the first Outlaws of Alkenstar volume goes live.
I forgot new AP is released this week. They said that it will contain also VTT part?
Pathfinder Adventure Path: Abomination Vaults on Foundry VTT will be available for purchase on Wednesday. There is no product page yet.

Aaron is mistaken here.

Abomination Vaults re-release does not occur until May, Outlaws of Alkenstar's first book - Punks in a Powderkeg releases on Wednesday, coinciding with the release of the premium content module for Foundry VTT.

I was mistaken. Thank you.

I mean it will be available on a Wednesday! Just one at the end of May instead. :D

Dark Archive
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Sidenote, I do hope this book does come up with small fixes like "encounter says refer to map markings that don't exist" :'D

(but yeah hmm what is deadline for preordering this book for pdf along with physical? :'D )
Silver Crusade
Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber
CorvusMask wrote:

Sidenote, I do hope this book does come up with small fixes like "encounter says refer to map markings that don't exist" :'D

(but yeah hmm what is deadline for preordering this book for pdf along with physical? :'D )

You would need to be a subscriber of the Adventure Path line I believe to get that.

Dark Archive
1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Cori Marie wrote:
CorvusMask wrote:

Sidenote, I do hope this book does come up with small fixes like "encounter says refer to map markings that don't exist" :'D

(but yeah hmm what is deadline for preordering this book for pdf along with physical? :'D )

You would need to be a subscriber of the Adventure Path line I believe to get that.

Yeah hence why I'm asking when do the APs ship since I figure out I don't have long to make decision on how to spend my money :'D

Marketing & Media Manager
1 person marked this as a favorite.

Both "Know Direction 273 - Abomination Vaults Everywhere!" and "Abomination Vaults Comes To D&D 5E! Everything You Need To Know With Ron Lundeen" from Really Dicey have additional insights into this compelation.
Marketing & Media Manager
1 person marked this as a favorite.
CorvusMask wrote:
Cori Marie wrote:
CorvusMask wrote:

Sidenote, I do hope this book does come up with small fixes like "encounter says refer to map markings that don't exist" :'D

(but yeah hmm what is deadline for preordering this book for pdf along with physical? :'D )

You would need to be a subscriber of the Adventure Path line I believe to get that.
Yeah hence why I'm asking when do the APs ship since I figure out I don't have long to make decision on how to spend my money :'D

Subscription payment Authorization date is scheduled to be 5/5 and to start shipping on 5/9. Subject to change.

Dark Archive
3 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Realized I can check the price so let's see...

"Subtotal (2 items) $79.98
Estimated Sales Tax $12.01
Shipping & Handling $40.18
Order Total $132.17"

...Welp guess its cheaper to buy physical from local store and pdf separately
Pathfinder Development Manager
3 people marked this as a favorite.
CorvusMask wrote:
Sidenote, I do hope this book does come up with small fixes like "encounter says refer to map markings that don't exist" :'D

We caught as many of these as we possibly could!

Marketing & Media Manager
2 people marked this as a favorite.

Back cover text:

Enter the Megadungeon!
Spiteful evil stirs beneath the mysterious lighthouse called Gauntlight. When the lighthouse emits an eerie glow, locals suspect that something sinister threatens the countryside. Brave heroes must explore the ruins around the lighthouse and delve into the dungeon levels beneath it. Hideous monsters, deadly traps, unexpected allies, vengeful ghosts, and more await the heroes who dare to enter the sprawling megadungeon called the Abomination Vaults! The Abomination Vaults Adventure Path is a complete campaign taking heroes from 1st to 11th level.

With the new compilation coming out is there any plans to release flip maps for the vaults, would be really nice to have especially if sold as a bundle featuring each floor
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