Strange party racial mix - I could use some advice for a new campaign

[CrazyOzzy]

Hello all,

I have played and DMed quite a bit of 3.x D&D but I'm fairly new to PF. I've bought the RotRL AE and I will be running it for 4 players in about a week.

I've allowed my party to play some unusual races on the condition that they come up with good backstories but the more I think about it, the more I believe there could be some issues were I to apply a realistic reaction from Varisians to their racial background.

So, in the party we have a Drow, a Tiefling, his Aasimar half-sister (great backstory to this one!) and a ... Human.

We've had great fun with the joke: "A Drow, a Tiefling, an Aasimar and a Human walk into a tavern...".

I foresee no racial issues from the Aasimar or Human but I'm not entirely sure how to make the world react to the Tiefling and the Drow. I doubt many in Sandpoint have seen their like before.

I know that there are quite a few Tieflings in Cheliax and that they are slightly feared but also considered second rate citizens. I've read that a small proportion of all races exist in Korvosa and this is where the Tiefling and Aasimar are from. The Drow is freshly escaped from Darklands.

Will the people of Varisia, and in particular Sandpoint, be disgusted by the appearance of a Drow and a Tiefling? These are characters that are supposed to become heroes to this remote and tranquil town after a session or 2. What would be an appropriate response to their presence from the NPCs of Sandpoint? In the first module there is an important NPC of the Elven kind, how would she react to the Drow?
The Tiefling wears a mask for intimidation purposes; he could probably wear this when he's in town. The Drow could do something similar. Would this be required behaviour in order to adapt to the town, at least until they become well accepted heroes?

Sorry for the longwindedness of the post but I would also greatly appreciate some general advice on running this campaign for the first time.

This is what I'm in the process of doing or have done:

-I've read the complete first module of the campaign.
-Briefly checked ahead to later stages of the AP out of curiosity.
-I've read "Varisia, Birthplace of Legends" and "Player's guide to RotRL".
-I've read the "Inner Sea Guide" with focus on Varisia.
-I've read briefly about Thassilon on the Pathfinder wiki.
-I'm printing out maps, NPC images and handouts.
-I'm reading the Community created stuff post.
-Thinking how to flesh out the town of Sandpoint and its NPCs in order to create some kind of emotional attachment since none of the PCs are from the place.
-Dreading my PCs' fights with flying creatures and lack of a full caster at later levels (Inquisitor, Rogue, Paladin and Magus all Melee!) and thinking how to help them.

Sorry if it was a bit long, I wanted to ask it all in one go!
I would appreciate your advice.

Cheers,

[MC Templar]

There are a couple Tiefling citizens in Sandpoint that the party might encounter, if you read forward to the Sanitarium segment of book two, both of the orderlies that work there are Tieflings.

Also, the lost coast is something of a dumping ground for people who fled Chelliax or Korvosa. In either case, a decent percentage of Tieflings in the populace of those locations should make Tieflings merely 'uncommon' and not downright rare amongst the settled areas of the lost coast.

So, best bet, is allow the Tiefling to be met with 'casual suspicion'. Allow the player to play up the 'heroic outsider' if that is the theme he wants, otherwise, he shouldn't be spat upon or met with torches and pitchforks wielded by superstitious locals...

...Drow, I'm less sure of, I'd say more suspicion and less welcome. Not outright hostility, but hostility simmering just below the surface, constantly.

Alternately you can play it for humor, as each village welcomes him openly as a curiosity and gives him no grief at all. When he finally buckles down and asks why everyone is so nice have a barkeep answer "well, we've heard stories that drow are bad people, but we've met dozens of them, each one was a good-hearted tragic loner carrying two scimitars and thinking he is unique as a snowflake... Quite frankly this land is lousy with good natured drow, and no on in these parts can remember the last time anyone saw an evil one... so.. what's you cat's name?"

[ddarsey]

Well if you were going in order of publication Second Darkness hasn't occured yet and the Drow are only really known to the elven kin and dwarves who've dealt with them before. If he's an elf with a skin condition, then you can get away with it probably until Magnimar where you deal directly with an elf or two.

MC Templar makes a good point though you can say they've traveled the area before. Nothing evil has befallen the land and therefore are accepted to some point.

When I have run games for folks of unusual race I tell them at times they might feel like an African American at a KKK rally, and other times it will be fine. Of course there will be times when they might be able to use the reputation to bolster threats or get info. If the player is a good role player I am sure you all will find the way that works best for you.

[Haladir]

If you play by the canonical timeline, the existence of Drow is still a deep, dark secret that's guarded fiercely by the elves. The emergence of the Drow is the main plotline of the Second Darkness Adventure Path, which takes place about a year after the events of Runelords.

If you play it that way, there will be no other drow characters that anyone has ever encountered, anywhere, and the character will usually be a true curiosity... except to those elves that are "in the know" and will probably want to kill him on sight!

Of course, it's your game, so play it how you'd like!

[CrazyOzzy]

Thanks guys. So from what I gather, the Tiefling will arouse suspicion and disdain from some but won't be a big issue. I will suggest the "Heroic Outsider" theme and I'm sure he'll love it. He's a Tiefling Inquisitor and sees himself like a kind of Hellboy. The Drow, however will be a true unknown factor.

I will play the AP in its correct timeline as we will most likely play other APs after this one, like Second Darkness or Kingmaker and I would like some chronological consistency in my Golarion.

I will sit down with the player playing the Drow and discuss how we should play out his presence on the surface. I will suggest that everyone ignorant of his origin be truly curious about him and see him as a different and strange type of Elf (maybe an Elf with a skin condition as suggested). Those in the know will most likely be hostile on first sight or worse, depending on who he meets.

[Mudfoot]

If the human is black as well (from Garund) it'll seem a lot more normal, if obviously unique. Shalelu might know about drow, but you can cover that up easily enough.

If you want full consistency between the APs, you'd better buy SD or ask about it in the forum to see the full story on the drow; it might be best if the PC was raised without any knowledge of the truth, just to keep it from the player.