Help with Book 1 written events ! (Spoilers)


Hell's Rebels


I have just played through an eventful first Silver Raven session

So the first session since the Ravens were formed

We kind of rushed through the rebellion game for one week.
I dangled an opportunity for the arcane caster who could help with the linguistics to do more than just roll (detect magic) but didn’t get a bite

The group wanted to test what happened if they broke curfew. Long stort short they killed one guard in combat and then tortured and murdered the other two . A potential problem but not the subject of this post

When they got back they trigggered the wall collapse event and found the sabotage evidence (which is an easy DC).

Now the book seems to assume that they just shrug , say “that is unusual” and move on.
My group has become obsessed with the traitor. They gripped Rexus, Laria , all the remaining street performers and the Fushi sisters , obviously getting nothing.

They are now trying to set a trap by loudly talking about “key rebellion plans” and placing them near the Calistria statue and watching

What should I do? They are simply not going to let this go. But the imp seems to have the tools to allude them?

***

And that note the book provides an example of a patsy for the imp to trick. I have some concerns/questions:

- who is he supposed to be in theory? A member of a team or a supporter? I assume only team members access the wasps nest?

- given how my group just dealt with guards who tried to arrest them for breaking curfew (legitimate authority responding to an actual broken law) I shudder to think what they will do when an enchanted follower starts acting suspiciously. It would not be pleasant

They are going down an alarmingly dark party quite quickly. One character is an “ex assassin” who is supposed to be reformed but is drifting too far down the old path so far. I am hoping this will be a story turn / wake up call (as this AP doesn’t suit murder hobo behaviour)

In fact should I brief them that being murder hobos is an iffy long term plan? Or let it play out in rebellion events ?


The patsy is Morgar. He's an early supporter who they met at the rally or just joined up early. If they torture/kill him and then discover that they got the wrong guy later, maybe it can be a way for the ex-assassin to see that they need to take a new path. But if they do fully interrogate him, a talking rat should get their attention. Remember--they lose a supporter if they use intimidate on him.

Their current investigative tactics sound a lot like they get a Security 20 check during the upkeep phase to have someone briefly spot the imp between invisibility and disguise shifts. Then, they'll be taking 20 with a +5 bonus to perceive him. And the imp will not then get an invisibility bonus to their stealth.

You can also use Rexus and Laria to periodically interject non-murder solutions to problems if they're stuck in a rut. Alternatively, you can send a message by having the imp, when captured, say that it's been watching them and really likes how they're running things, and thinks that it would fit right in.

If the arcane caster has a familiar with scent, that's the achilles heel of the imp, as it kind of negates the invisibility advantage.


Yes, I think AP assumes the pc's will hit a brick wall :) in their investigation of the collapse and have no choice but to carry on with other activities. But this neglects two realities: most player groups don't work that way (mine sure doesn't) and the game does provide some options.

The imp can be invisible but that doesn't prevent detect magic on the magic items she carries nor does it prevent detect evil. Further she is a 5HD evil outsider so she has a strong aura and leaves a lingering aura that lasts 10-60 minutes. Yes, she has a scroll of misdirection but that only helps her once (and not at all if all the party casters make their Will save - like mine. :)

My players were very annoyed at the wall collapse and put considerable energy into finding out what happened, sweeping the Coffeehouse and Wasp Nest with detect magic and detect evil. Notable background: they were also perplexed by the music in the in Livery and could not find its source (even returning to the Livery later to search again.) All they found was the sign of a small nest...

After the collapse, they had moved Rexus and his work on the documents upstairs in the Coffeehouse and out of the Nest. Searching with the detect spells found nothing in the Nest, but they persisted in searching the entire building and finding her aura in the sleeping areas upstairs. Insert short chase around the upstairs and a brief confrontation (her use of the misdirection scroll totally failed given all the successful saves) before she fled out a window and into the air where the pc's could not follow, lacking flight. The fact she seemed to be "following" Rexus and the documents drove them to examine them again - this time they found the contract concealed by secret page. The party has a Divine Agent of Shelyn so they know a caster who can cast dispel magic, a caster inclined to help them if done surreptitiously (Zachrin Vhast.) I ruled he had one memorized when they visited him - that failed but the party paid the cost for a scroll and voila! contract revealed. Sayonara, Imp.

Yes, the patsy is meant to be a member of a team, in your case it seems like they have a team of street performers.

While they might be ruthless with guards (which I'll discuss in that thread) that doesn't mean they will be with a team member who was under magical compulsion.


My players were also perplexed about the music but I don't think I can get them there now . They probably won't leave until the sabotage situation is sorted

I will try to explain it is built into the rebellion rules (unless they refuse to trust anyone else in the rebellion)

In my flustered response to them not going with what the book assumes (and I really should no better but it was getting late) I didn't remember / read ahead for the bit about DC20 Organisation check to spot an Imp during the week - now just to convince them they can leave in this time (or perhaps not - lie low might be a good idea after the guard shenanigans)


If the group is too focused on Blosodriette and you want them to move on for the time being having her lying low and have other events throughout the city happening.
I always try to have two or three different things for my group to look into that way they feel a certain degree of pressure to get things done. Murders in the Nursery was a favourite of mine (one PC is a tiefling so it hit really close to home), Clenchjaw's was good as well because a PC worked there, Unsanctioned Excruciation nearly resulted in a PC death as he was there before anyone else was.
Personally, introducing things like those made the group realize that there was more than one thing to focus on.

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