Starfinder Second Edition Playtest Adventure: A Cosmic Birthday

Our Price: $24.99

Preorder expected July 2024

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A nascent cosmic entity stirs deep within one of the Pact Worlds planets. To aid the god’s birth, its most devoted followers search the Ghost Levels of Absalom Station for a sufficient power source—a strange pocket dimension existing alongside the hub of the Pact Worlds. As the entity’s emergence sends ripples across space time, a group of heroes becomes trapped in the Ghost Levels! With dangerous creatures and ominous power surges threatening the station, the heroes must team up with the residents of Little Akiton to investigate these horrifying new foes, stop their meddling—and stay alive!

A Cosmic Birthday is a complete Starfinder Second Edition Playtest adventure for 1st-level characters written by Jenny Jarzabski, and features fan-favorite Starfinder creatures updated to Second Edition, all-new cosmic horrors, and a mix of classic dungeon crawling and narrative-rich sandbox adventures. This adventure is designed to introduce the Starfinder Second Edition Playtest rules, giving players like you a chance to shape the new edition through feedback surveys about your playtest experience! It also takes place during a pivotal moment in Starfinder history—even if you miss the playtest window, you won’t want to miss the adventure!

Written by: Jenny Jarzabski

ISBN-13: 978-1-64078-595-3

Note: This product is part of the Starfinder Adventure Subscription.

Product Availability

Preorder, expected approximately 1 Aug 2024

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

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Paizo Employee Sales & eCommerce Assistant

3 people marked this as a favorite.

Announced for July! Product images and descriptions are not final and are subject to change.

Silver Crusade

3 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

A BABY

Grand Lodge

Birthday time!


Happy Birthday XD


Pathfinder Adventure, LO Special Edition, Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, PF Special Edition Subscriber; Starfinder Superscriber

I don't know who the cover artist is but it feels delightfully comic-like (Is it the same person who did Angels of the Drift?)

Iseph's looking delightfully female superhero pose with their exquisitely posed butt tho :D


Pathfinder Rulebook, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Do we know what level range this adventure will cover?


Pathfinder Adventure, LO Special Edition, Maps, Pathfinder Accessories, PF Special Edition Subscriber; Starfinder Superscriber
bigcat42 wrote:
Do we know what level range this adventure will cover?

SF adventures are usually 3 levels, so I would expect finishing the adventure at level 4.

But its also entirely possible this is a bunch of milestone setpiece battles at various levels, but based on the language in the synopsis I'd expect the normal.

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

3 people marked this as a favorite.

"Ripples across space time..."

Could this make for a narrative excuse to rope in a Pathfinder PC to play alongside Starfinders? Asking for a me.

Dark Archive

2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber

Is Aucturn finally being born or is it another one of world ending threats in this solar system? :D


Does this include any premade characters?


6 people marked this as a favorite.
CorvusMask wrote:
Is Aucturn finally being born or is it another one of world ending threats in this solar system? :D

Well, Thurston just confirmed on Twitter that it's Aucturn. So I guess we solved the case, gang!

Liberty's Edge

It being Aucturn resonates with the playtest adventure for PF2.

And "a strange pocket dimension existing alongside the hub of the Pact Worlds" makes me think of the hopefully empty Cage of Rovagug.

Scarab Sages

This looks like a wild ride!

Wayfinders

6 people marked this as a favorite.

"Master, what does this mean?"

"A cosmic birthday, for some. A planetary-wide funeral, for others."

"And what does it mean for us?"

"A fun playtest such as you've never dreamed."


Will this adventure contain pregens?


1 person marked this as a favorite.

I was thinking of introducing Starfinder to my players with the playtest and this adventure. Is that a bad idea? This seems pretty lore heavy and galaxy shaking.

Liberty's Edge

6 people marked this as a favorite.
Whimsy Chris wrote:
I was thinking of introducing Starfinder to my players with the playtest and this adventure. Is that a bad idea? This seems pretty lore heavy and galaxy shaking.

Be warned that many people hated the PF2 Playtest adventure because it was more designed to test the limits of the system than to ensure GMs and players of all stripes could have fun.

One chapter was even designed to 100% get a TPK, as the devs were most interested in testing how long it would take for PC groups to go down.

Wayfinders

The Raven Black wrote:
Whimsy Chris wrote:
I was thinking of introducing Starfinder to my players with the playtest and this adventure. Is that a bad idea? This seems pretty lore heavy and galaxy shaking.

Be warned that many people hated the PF2 Playtest adventure because it was more designed to test the limits of the system than to ensure GMs and players of all stripes could have fun.

One chapter was even designed to 100% get a TPK, as the devs were most interested in testing how long it would take for PC groups to go down.

It's a Birthday adventure what could go wrong?

RPG Superstar Season 9 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2015 Top 32

The Raven Black wrote:
Whimsy Chris wrote:
I was thinking of introducing Starfinder to my players with the playtest and this adventure. Is that a bad idea? This seems pretty lore heavy and galaxy shaking.

Be warned that many people hated the PF2 Playtest adventure because it was more designed to test the limits of the system than to ensure GMs and players of all stripes could have fun.

One chapter was even designed to 100% get a TPK, as the devs were most interested in testing how long it would take for PC groups to go down.

I would bet on this one being different. The system isn't new anymore, so I doubt there needs to be as much rigorous testing on its breaking points.

Paizo Employee Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)

13 people marked this as a favorite.

Just as a heads up, we'll have something come out Soon-ish to talk more about this.

However, just to stem the comments, this adventure is structured how a normal Paizo adventure is structured and isn't intended as a stress test of the rules system. The core rules of PF2 mean that we know the math holds, and we can instead focus our testing on how the game plays in the means we intend to regularly deliver it. This is also intended as a chance to try out new characters and advance through different types of encounters from 1st-level, so it works well as an adventure for players new to the setting.

Again, more on all this #Soon!


1 person marked this as a favorite.

Hang on, the Playtest adventure...costs money?!? Like I geddit....development costs time, time equals money blah blah blah. But it seems a little off to make people pay to then playtest. First off, you want as many people to play this as possible. So making it free will ensure the most people possible *can* play it. Second of all, I find the whole "playtest" a weird kind of...value-exchange that is unequal. Sure, thousands of people want to make the game as good as possible. But you aren't paying *any* of them to "have fun" or "provide feedback", neither of which are the same in any way shape or form.

In a sense, it seems to me Paizo are asking for people to pay for the *privilege* of then working for free providing feedback for Paizo. Mon dieu!

Silver Crusade

5 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber

They have already said the PDF is free. Just like the PF2E playtest was. The physical printing costs money. Again, just like the PF2E playtest version did.

Paizo Employee Managing Creative Director (Starfinder)

17 people marked this as a favorite.
Oceanshieldwolf wrote:

Hang on, the Playtest adventure...costs money?!? Like I geddit....development costs time, time equals money blah blah blah. But it seems a little off to make people pay to then playtest. First off, you want as many people to play this as possible. So making it free will ensure the most people possible *can* play it. Second of all, I find the whole "playtest" a weird kind of...value-exchange that is unequal. Sure, thousands of people want to make the game as good as possible. But you aren't paying *any* of them to "have fun" or "provide feedback", neither of which are the same in any way shape or form.

In a sense, it seems to me Paizo are asking for people to pay for the *privilege* of then working for free providing feedback for Paizo. Mon dieu!

As people have pointed out (and we'll aim to have a blog to further detail #SOON) the Playtest PDF is going to be free. The modules, however, will have a cost associated with them.

Part of the reason for this, is because these two modules, while branded as part of the playtest, are not "nuts and bolts" style playtests like Doomsday Dawn was. These are full adventures, with the same polish and narrative that you've all come to expect from Paizo over the years. They're major setting events done in the Playtest period, so they have relevance to Starfinder fans old and new alike. These adventures will have all new art and maps and the quality of content that we put into all of our adventures.

There will of course be some free demo content and other content available as we enter the playtest window. So there will be content that is accessible and won't cost a dime to help us playtest.

The cost on these modules is to help offset the production costs that go into making a print product with entirely new swathes of art and writing. It's the team's honest hope that even with the changes we make during the playtest period into the final version of SF2E, that these modules can still work in the final version of the game!

Paizo Employee Community and Social Media Specialist

3 people marked this as a favorite.

Removed some off topic posts.

Director of Marketing

4 people marked this as a favorite.

Starfinder Playtest Product Announcements!

Second Seekers (Luwazi Elsebo)

6 people marked this as a favorite.

"Skill focus profession babysitter was a waste of a feat they said. How many credits is that going to be they said.. HAH. who's laughing now.... "


Pathfinder Starfinder Accessories, Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

It's a b-omination!


2 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Adventure, Adventure Path, Rulebook Subscriber

I'm surprised that an adventure involving the emergence of a new deity is for 1st-level adventurers. Will be curious to see how this is written.

Grand Archive

1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Lavabeing wrote:
It's a b-omination!

If they ever need an b-omination-sitter I've got the number for Belcorra Haruvex

Scarab Sages

Adventure Path Charter Subscriber; Pathfinder Maps, Starfinder Maps Subscriber

Just wondering how many pages this is? Is it one of the 64 page ones?

Director of Marketing

1 person marked this as a favorite.
sanwah68 wrote:
Just wondering how many pages this is? Is it one of the 64 page ones?

64, yes.

Dataphiles

5 people marked this as a favorite.
VestOfHolding wrote:
I'm surprised that an adventure involving the emergence of a new deity is for 1st-level adventurers. Will be curious to see how this is written.

From the description, it sounds like the party is running damage control as some cultists from Aucturn are running around Absalom Station looking for babyfood. You aren't stopping the baby from coming, just from wrecking the nursery.

Second Seekers (Luwazi Elsebo)

5 people marked this as a favorite.
Syvis wrote:


From the description, it sounds like the party is running damage control as some cultists from Aucturn are running around Absalom Station looking for babyfood. You aren't stopping the baby from coming, just from wrecking the nursery.

Over a whoosh of flames while dodging gunfire, a mass of tentacles, and negative dimensional space, the limp form of a cultist goes flying across the room.

"Get the binky! for the love of the gods GET THE BINKY!


It going to be very fun romping around Ab station and its Ghosty levels, and hoping it fleshs out the station a bit more, and perhaps fill in some blank map spots so we can slowly piece together the overall layout and eventually get a full usable map!!

One can dream it at least, can't wait to run this for my groups!!

Tom

Wayfinders

Since I must ask for all my foundry users on my discord THAT I MUST CONVERT FROM PF2 TO SF2 MUHAHHAHAHA!!! ahem....

A. Will the PDF release on the same day?
B. Will a foundry module be available also on that day?(assuming foundry has a system to download to start play testing)
C. Will there be a plushie of the birthday....creature?
D. How do you take your coffee? :)

so many questions....

Stay awesome skittergoblins!

Paizo Employee Digital Products Lead

Belor McKraken wrote:
B. Will a foundry module be available also on that day?(assuming foundry has a system to download to start play testing)

Yes!

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