Time Frames

[Michael Radagast]

So I've seen something in the way of timelines for the APs, but little sense of time frames. Which season did you start in? Any particular reason? How long did it take to complete the AP?

[Mort the Cleverly Named]

They are assumed to be set in the month and year they were published +2700. However, seasons are rarely mentioned, nor are time frames, and great leeway is given for individual GMs to start things whenever they want. I would imagine the reason for this is that different parties are going to take different amounts of time, so making an adventure that absolutely required you be in winter or on a specific holiday would be problematic. Occasionally an adventure will give advice that a couple of months should pass here or there, but it is really just advice. Some players like to travel back to a metropolis between adventures to buy and sell, others power through straight from one adventure to the next. Some parties will use a bunch of consumables to finish a dungeon in one go, others will slowly grind away at it for a week. AP's need to be able to accommodate different types, thus necessitating loose time frames. Over the course of a campaign, differences in style could easily mean a difference in completion time of months, if not years.

[Jenner2057]

The only one I remember specifying is Serpent Skull. I believe it's mentioned that you start Part 1 during mid-summer so the heat hazards are very real (equatorial island and all).
Then you have the added pleasure of a crosscountry journey deep into the jungle (in Part 2) through the remainder of the summer for added fun.
Mostly just an environment/atmosphere thing. Shrug.

[Michael Radagast]

Well, I've started Carrion Crown basically just into a new year, so cold. I like the icy atmosphere in contrast to the burning-prison memories. I'm not sure what Ustalav in the summer will be like - wet, probably. Depending on how much they travel, I may progress the season up into the next autumn/winter. It's also possible that one of the encounters I've made up will take longer in the outside world than in their own experience, such that the enemy's plans are much progressed. Partly, that's to give the PC's a jolt, and partly it's because I like the AP in winter. :P

Also just starting Skull & Shackles, and I'm thinking springtime...not that there's a whole lot of difference in the Caribbean sort of climate, but there's enough that I should keep track of it, aye?

[Jenner2057]

Michael Radagast wrote:

Also just starting Skull & Shackles, and I'm thinking springtime...not that there's a whole lot of difference in the Caribbean sort of climate, but there's enough that I should keep track of it, aye?

Oh certainly. There's not much of a temperature difference in winter/spring, but you do have the rainy season. Not sure what the Eye does for weather patterns around the Shackles, but even our own equatorial islands have a monsoon/hurricane/rainy season.

Or at least that's what my coworker from Hawaii just told me. I had to turn around and ask him.

[Inkwell]

I've started Carrion Crown in 4717 on March 5th. One of my players wanted to be related by birth to a character in another campaign, hence the year change. It wasn't a big deal,

all its affected so far was:

Count Caromac from Trial of the Beast who I made a bit senile for him to not know about the Whispering Way's next move.

As for the date:

its a Pharasma Holiday for free burials. In The Haunting of Harrowstone, My players reasoned that was the reason for the delay of the burial and why Kendra Lorrimor wasn't mentioned getting gold in the will, only the PCs.

Its going to get foggy in my game soon, limiting visibility for the winter-spring mixed weather.

[Liz Courts]

Rise of the Runelords starts at the Swallowtail Festival, which *references her Google Calendar of Golarion holidays* is on the Autumn Equinox, so Rova/September 22nd this year (4712 in Golarion time).