|
It was missing a nice, big Baphomet tattoo or branding, to draw the connection to the overall Worldwound incident.
The scenario's design was specifically season neutral. While the events in the Worldwound are world-shattering, The Confirmation is intended to be relevant to any PC enjoying any past or future season's meta-story.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
What I have been doing if the players begin to have a problem is to have Uori (sp?) tell a story of long ago when his great great grandfather use to come to these caves and would at times see people of the land performing rituals here. At this point he describes one of the rituals that they uncovered, I do make sure to mock Aroden with him where ever I can.Thanks, Benjamin! That sounds like a good way to handle it. What have other GMs experienced in their own sessions running the Confirmation? Have you found that players usually perform some of the rituals in B3 or are many missing these opportunites to gain benefits? It sounds like it will be a great role playing opportunity.
When I played it, we understood that there might be rituals involved but we moved on, expecting more information to present itself later. When I ran it, the players started the rituals right away, and one of them got the first half of one, but as none of the symbols I gave them could be completed in the area they were discovered, they kept trying until they got frustrated and moved on. Any advice of setting up the rituals so that the PCs have enough info to complete them without just handing the answers to them would be appreciated.
|
When I played it, we understood that there might be rituals involved but we moved on, expecting more information to present itself later. When I ran it, the players started the rituals right away, and one of them got the first half of one, but as none of the symbols I gave them could be completed in the area they were discovered, they kept trying until they got frustrated and moved on. Any advice of setting up the rituals so that the PCs have enough info to complete them without just handing the answers to them would be appreciated.
I've played this twice now. Neither time did we have the slightest clue that we were supposed to do anything in the cave except talk to the gillman. Once we copied down the artwork but just because we were being good pathfinders.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I would like to see a Confirmation-type scenario for L4s and another one for L7s that highlight the changes in the metagame of Pathfinder and prepare players for the new challenges they face. Think of it as if Tier 1-5, 3-7 and 7-11 each had a scenario that if you played immediately at the lowest level of that Tier, you would have solid understanding of how things are evolving and how to prepare for them.
Examples:
Confirmation L1 teaches you about swarms and splash weapons; Confirmation L4 teaches you about various DRs; and Confirmation teaches you about SR.
Confirmation L1 teaches you about dealing with melee monsters; Confirmation L4 teaches you about dealing with Darkness/Flying; Confirmation L7 teaches you about Invisibility/Incorporeal.
etc.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
<<Got my second star from GMing the Confirmation tonight.
Table:
L2 Barbarian
L1 Skald
L1 Warpriest
L1 Pregen Seoni to fill the table.
The Skald and Warpriest were very experienced players. The Barbarian is new to PFS (I think he had a blast tonight).
Briefing: I made sure to emphasize taking notes during the briefing and follow up. During the equipment check phase, I had Janira actually call out their lack of alchemical fires, which the players eventually bought. Good thing too because...
Forest: Two spider swarms. One spider swarm went down easily, the other one survived after two players muffed their alchemical fire throws. Janira ended up using both her alchemical fires to down the second one.
Minotaur: The PCs doubled down and decided to fight. Seoni went to the top of the cliff and rained down magic missiles. Janira dropped unconscious after two rounds, which was enough time for the PCs to get to the other side of the river. The Barbarian readied a brace and hit the minotaur solidly, but ate an attack that would have downed a L1 character. The Barbarian withdrew to join his friends and consolidate forces as they had just finished crossing the river. The Warpriest withstood the minotaurs next charge. Seoni, on her last L1 spell of the day, downed the minotaur to everyone's relief.
Pit: Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy
Puzzle/Gillman: The PCs deciphered the Aroden drawings and befriended the Gillman. After a false start, they managed to do three of the rites. They also gave the Gillman the found cloak.
Undead: Other than the weird positioning dance, a straight forward walkover for the melee-heavy skald-buffed party.
Slime Mold: Again, another quick and easy one for them.
After exiting the caves, they went back and checked the other room and I handwaved the encounter for expediency's sake.
I had the (mission giver name--sorry, blanking out) collect and grade their notes for laughs, but they completed everything successfully and received all the boons.
I will say this--if my damage rolls had been a just a few points higher, it would have been a TPK-by-Minotaur.
|
|
I'm impressed that the group of four managed to down the full-power minotaur!
The 20ish points of damage on the readied brace with a lucerne hammer against the minotaur and Seoni's constant can't miss Magic Missiles made all the difference.
Of course, if the barbarian hadn't been L2, he would have been immediately dropped by the charge damage and things would have gotten ugly.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I'm impressed that the group of four managed to down the full-power minotaur!
If you've got a couple extra minutes, the fight with 4 against the full powered Minotaur from my pbp makes a good read.
Of course you don't have the updating map but I think I do a good enough job describing what's going on that you should be able to follow at least.
|
|
I will be running this scenario soon and while prepping, it occurred to me that it is possible that the PCs could realize the value in capturing, rather than killing, a young hippogriff. Either selling one on the black market (500gp est. value) or training it as a mount or animal companion... is that possible in PFS play?
|
|
I will be running this scenario soon and while prepping, it occurred to me that it is possible that the PCs could realize the value in capturing, rather than killing, a young hippogriff. Either selling one on the black market (500gp est. value) or training it as a mount or animal companion... is that possible in PFS play?
No. PFS is paranoid about wealth (with more than a little justification). Outside of the occasional special boon , you are maxed out at what the scenario grants.
Damned communists cutting down on free enterprise....
|
|
You know... I kinda knew that (i.e. PFS rules generally err on the side of caution and conformity), but *if* a party did manage to capture one and *if* a player would be willing to pay the value of said creature (500gp), I could see it as being similar to any treasure found in the scenario being purchasable.
|
|
I'm impressed that the group of four managed to down the full-power minotaur!
So far, I've been involved in two tables, and both of them downed the full-powered minotaur, generally through teamwork rather than any crazy build.
Group 1--Taste of Its Own Medicine (5 players, but not all of them acted)
Several melees charged the minotaur, including a lancing cavalier and a smiting paladin who crit. Minotaur dropped before it could act.
Group 2--Shamans are Fun (4 players)
My Heavens shaman readied Heaven's Leap, which broke the charge. It took It still got ugly when one of the characters was dropped due to the minotaur rolling extremely high on its iterative and secondary attack rolls (another readied Heaven's Leap eliminated the primary) as well as its Reflex saves vs grease (the bard tried and failed on each round). Fortunately, we pulled through and dropped it just in time to avoid the next full attack.
|
|
Still no wand on the chronicle sheet. Wrote it down myself now.
I liked the scenario. After my group downright slaughtered the minotaur (everybody else went before the minotaur, witch casted Enlarge Person on the barbarian, bard casted Grease on the minotaur's axe) I let them have the backpack to make it easier in the caves (which were extremly easy - the centipede went down without much of a fight and the skeletons were crushed one by one).
But on that note: Would you let the PCs keep the backpack after the adventure? The witch seemed a little disappointed that Janira wanted it, making it impossible for the witch to learn the spells inscripted on the scrolls.
|
BAIRD! You suck, but I do like your scenario.
Come to KublaCon (Memorial Day weekend) and suck for my players.
I might even put your mug on a flyer and treat you nice.
I put Jason's on a flyer & it got him a lap-dance from a Sleestak and a Gorilla. Don't believe me? Ask him.
+
+
+
+
When I ran this last week, I emphasized that Janira was very serious about being the leader of this expedition. As the only full Society Agent on this mission, her orders were to be followed to the letter and without question. Otherwise she'd be forced to make an unfavorable report that would surely delay their Confirmation.
|
|
Still no wand on the chronicle sheet. Wrote it down myself now.
I liked the scenario. After my group downright slaughtered the minotaur (everybody else went before the minotaur, witch casted Enlarge Person on the barbarian, bard casted Grease on the minotaur's axe) I let them have the backpack to make it easier in the caves (which were extremly easy - the centipede went down without much of a fight and the skeletons were crushed one by one).
But on that note: Would you let the PCs keep the backpack after the adventure? The witch seemed a little disappointed that Janira wanted it, making it impossible for the witch to learn the spells inscripted on the scrolls.
Just a reminder: Other than from a potion, Enlarge Person is a full round casting time. Which means that it wouldn't have taken effect until the witch's next turn, and that would also require the barbarian to remain within touching distance until that time.
Note that this also applies to Sleep, much to many Wizard players' chagrin...
This makes full round casting spells more challenging, really, since you have more chances to both get interrupted, and the tactical situation can change so much that the spell may turn out to be a bad thing instead of a good thing.
|
|
Curses. You are right.
Well, half right (The spell's range is close, not touch, so he could've been up to 25 feet away), but still - this changes things quite a bit. I never noticed that, thanks a lot for pointing that out!
Just shows that, as I have mentioned in the past, that my memory has issues.
So, how did I manage to get to three stars? I can't remember.
RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32, 2010 Top 8
|
Group of 4 new to PFS players we didn't get all the way through due to teaching and a late start, but they had fun.
They too charged the minotaur (I forgot that he can't be flat footed) and dropped him fro 45 to 8. (GM lying trick, I was having a brain fart doing the math and asked "How much is 23 from 105"? Looks of panic were priceless.)
It then dropped the two barbarians and stepped over the body of one to deal with the cleric channelling energy. Then my dice went south (honestly) and they survived.
Aside: Played with two of the newbies Sunday (as a player) in the Stolen Heir. (I'd ran it previously) I may or may not have remembered the pit when I was goading the barbarian to charge the badguys. :-)
I'm new to GMing for PFS and The Confirmation is the first scenario that I'm running online over PbP.
I have a question regarding B2. The History of Humanity
Two questions:
1. If a PC fails a knowledge check, can he attempt a Linguistics one? The SRD states that if you fail a knowledge check you cannot try again, but there's nothing that precludes a PC from trying another skill, is there?
2. Is the DC for the Linguistics check also DC15? The text from The Chronicle says the DC15 is for Knowledge, and it seems as though that same DC applies for Linguistics as well, but the SRD states the DC as 30 for 'very old writing'. Furthermore, there is a Wisdom check upon failure to determine if the PC draws a false conclusion.
Thanks for replying Kyle - so for (2) - if the Linguistics and Wisdom checks fail, do we let the PC draw a false conclusion?
Developer
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Thanks for replying Kyle - so for (2) - if the Linguistics and Wisdom checks fail, do we let the PC draw a false conclusion?
Absolutely. That little rule doesn't see use nearly often enough, and I'm sure the PCs attempting to perform misinterpreted rituals would be very amusing.
It is totally free.
The chronicle sheet clearly indicates this: "you receive this wayfinder for free".
|
|
Confirmed Field Agent: Having successfully completed and documented your Confirmation, one of the Three Masters has formally recognized you as a field agent and given you a wayfinder engraved with your name and the date of your graduation. If this is the first time you have received this boon for any of your characters, you receive this wayfinder for free; otherwise, you may acquire it by spending 1 Prestige Point. Furthermore, if you assign this Chronicle sheet to a character whose starting XP is 0, you reduce the Prestige Point cost of any wayfinder enhancement vanities you purchase to modify this wayfinder by 1 (minimum 1).
|
|
I chose this scenario to be the first game I've GMed (for PFS and in general). It went well, but I had a few questions.
1) During the final battle, Janira's first move is to try and disarm the Minotaur. Her CMB is only +1 (+0 with being fatigued) and the Minotaur's CMD is 21. During the game, I played it as it said, but does everyone else who plays it let her burn her first turn on a 5% disarm chance?
(Unless combat maneuver rolls don't work like attack rolls where a Natural 20 is an auto-success - in which case, the disarm will never work).
I was tempted to skip it and have her first attack be the tanglefoot bag, but I decided to just go with it as is. Does everyone else adjust that at all, or is there some kind of disarm bonus I missed?2) I'm having trouble reporting it because of the "Scenario missions accomplished" part. Flipping through the scenario pdf, I can't seem to find what explicitly is supposed to go with the A, B, C, or D check boxes. Where do I find that?
I have run this three times, and she critted one time. Obviously the chance is greater than 5% ;).
|
Developer
|
2) I'm having trouble reporting it because of the "Scenario missions accomplished" part. Flipping through the scenario pdf, I can't seem to find what explicitly is supposed to go with the A, B, C, or D check boxes. Where do I find that?
Not every scenario makes use of the checkboxes; usually it's those scenarios that influence future events in the ongoing storyline. Because The Confirmation is intended to be an evergreen scenario that is equally engaging to play in this season and each season going forward, there are not any checkboxes.
If there were checkbox instructions, you would find it in the Conclusion section of the scenario. Based on feedback from GMs, I shifted these instructions to their own header just after the Conclusion section starting with #5–10: Where Mammoths Dare Not Tread (if memory serves).
|
|
1) During the final battle, Janira's first move is to try and disarm the Minotaur. Her CMB is only +1 (+0 with being fatigued) and the Minotaur's CMD is 21. During the game, I played it as it said, but does everyone else who plays it let her burn her first turn on a 5% disarm chance?
(Unless combat maneuver rolls don't work like attack rolls where a Natural 20 is an auto-success - in which case, the disarm will never work).
I was tempted to skip it and have her first attack be the tanglefoot bag, but I decided to just go with it as is. Does everyone else adjust that at all, or is there some kind of disarm bonus I missed?
No, Janira's attempt to disarm isn't optimal, but then my guess is that it's not supposed to be — she's already passed her Confirmation test, after all. ;-)
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I chose this scenario to be the first game I've GMed (for PFS and in general). It went well, but I had a few questions.
1) During the final battle, Janira's first move is to try and disarm the Minotaur. Her CMB is only +1 (+0 with being fatigued) and the Minotaur's CMD is 21. During the game, I played it as it said, but does everyone else who plays it let her burn her first turn on a 5% disarm chance?
(Unless combat maneuver rolls don't work like attack rolls where a Natural 20 is an auto-success - in which case, the disarm will never work).
Whips are weapons with the disarm property, which gives a +2, and her whip is masterwork, which gives another +1 since she's using the whip to do the maneuver. Add those to her CMB and she has an actual disarm check of +4, or +3 when fatigued.
|
|
1) During the final battle, Janira's first move is to try and disarm the Minotaur. Her CMB is only +1 (+0 with being fatigued) and the Minotaur's CMD is 21. During the game, I played it as it said, but does everyone else who plays it let her burn her first turn on a 5% disarm chance?Whips are weapons with the disarm property, which gives a +2, and her whip is masterwork, which gives another +1 since she's using the whip to do the maneuver. Add those to her CMB and she has an actual disarm check of +4, or +3 when fatigued.
Don't forget Inspire Courage for another +1. Also, for Tier 1 four players, the minotaur's CMD would drop to 19 from fatigue. All told, that's a 30% chance to succeed.
