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Hi there everyone.
Like many of you, I suspect, I'm a fan of Joey Virtue's old thread on making Challenging Encounters for 5-6 Players. I'm currently running a party of 6 players with rolled stats (avg point-buy value = 23), all of whom are using class options from after the Anniversary Edition was published. As such, I have been re-writing almost every single encounter in Rise of the Runelords, using Joey Virtue's guide as an upper-limits reference, through book 2.
Would people be interested in seeing the stat blocks / reworked encounters I've created? This would especially apply for people running Book 2, as I have actually reworked every single encounter in it.
Well, I most certainly wouldn't say no to seeing what you came up with, Askar! :)
I didn't touch much from Chapters 1-3, but if I ran them again, I'd have definitely used some post-AE content. As you saw in your Winter Festival thread, I made Nualia into a Warpriest. I just wish I'd done that back when the party faced her.
Oh, did you see my last post in that thread?
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Hm. I think I'll give it a bit of a test run. Nualia was the first enemy rework that I did (other than the Joey Virtue changes), so I think I'll start with her as a sample.
And yes, I did and very much enjoyed what you posted. Nualia is by far my favorite NPC in all of RotR, so I'm happy to see she's like, having a good time in your adventure.
XP 1,600
Female aasimar warpriest of Lamashtu 6 (Pathfinder RPG Advanced Class Guide)
CE Medium outsider (native)
Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +11
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Defense
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AC 20, touch 13, flat-footed 19 (+7 armor, +2 Deflection, +1 Dex)
hp 60 (6 HD; 6d8+12 + 9 temp)
Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +9
Resist acid 5, cold 5, electricity 5
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Offense
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Speed 30 ft. (20 ft. in armor)
Melee +1 sacred falchion +16 (2d4+11/18-20) or
. . claw +12 (1d6+8) or
. . fervor +12 touch (2d6 negative energy, DC 16 half)
Special Attacks channel negative energy [2 fervor] (DC 16, 2d6), fervor (DC 16, 2d6)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 6th; concentration +9)
. . 1/day—daylight
Warpriest Spells Prepared (CL 6th; concentration +9)
. . 2nd— bull's strength, death knell (DC 16), enthrall (DC 16), shatter (DC 16)
. . 1st— divine favor, liberating command, obscuring mist, murderous command, sanctuary
. . 0 (at will)— bleed (DC 13), detect magic, guidance, read magic, stabilize
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Statistics
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Str 20, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 16
Base Atk +4; CMB +9; CMD 20
Feats- Channel Force[ARG], Cornugon Smash, Improved Initiative, Mark of Lamashtu, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (falchion)
Skills Acrobatics -2 (-6 to jump), Diplomacy +11, Heal +3, Intimidate +11, Knowledge (engineering) +4, Knowledge (religion) +5, Linguistics +1, Perception +11, Ride -2, Sense Motive +10, Survival +7; Racial Modifiers +2 Diplomacy, +2 Perception
Languages Celestial, Common, Goblin
SQ Blessings- Strength (Minor- Strength Surge), Trickery (Minor- Double)
Other Gear +1 durable breastplate, +1 sacred falchion, MWK composite longbow [+3 Str], potion of shield of faith, quiver with 20 cold iron arrows, sihedron medallion
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Special Abilities
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Blessings (6/day) - Spend a blessing to activate a minor blessing effect. Unless otherwise stated, a blessing is a standard action.
Channel Force- When you channel energy, you may choose to affect only one target within range. If they fail their saving throw against the channel, you may push or pull them up to 5' for every 2d6 of channel energy damage you are capable of dealing.
Channel Negative Energy 2d6 (2 fervor, DC 16) (Su) Positive energy heals the living and harms the undead; negative has the reverse effect.
Cornugon Smash- When you damage an opponent with a Power Attack, you may make an immediate Intimidate check as a free action to attempt to demoralize your opponent.
Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white only).
Demon
Double (minor blessing)- As a move action you can create an illusory double of yourself. This double functions as a single mirror image, and lasts for 6 rounds, or until the illusory duplicate is dispelled or destroyed. You can have no more than one double at a time. The double created by this ability doesn’t stack with the additional images from the mirror image spell.
Energy Resistance, Acid (5) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Acid attacks.
Energy Resistance, Cold (5) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Cold attacks.
Energy Resistance, Electricity (5) You have the specified Energy Resistance against Electricity attacks.
Fervor (6/day)- Spend fervor to make a fervor touch attack or cast a spell on yourself only as a swift action. Only spells with a casting time of one round or shorter are eligible.
Lamashtu's Mark (1/day, DC 19) Melee hit grants deformity to reduce target's CHA by 1d4 for 1 hour (Fort neg).
Power Attack -2/+4 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage.
Sacred Weapon (6/day) - Grant your weapon a +1 enhancement bonus that stacks with any existing enhancement bonuses, or grant it the anarchaic, brilliant energy, defending, disruption, flaming, frost, keen, mighty cleaving, shock, unholy, or vicious weapon property (consuming a bonus equivalent to that property's bonus value).
Strength Surge (minor blessing)- As a swift action, gain an enhancement (+3) on melee attack rolls, combat maneuver checks that rely on Strength, Strength-based skills, and Strength checks for 1 round.
Tactics Changes: If Nualia gets to make the first move, either due to winning initiative, PC hesitation, she'll cast enthrall to buy time. She'll use the time afforded to assess the PCs gear, whether any are worshippers of Desna, or other information that could be useful to dissuade or kill them. In addition, she'll use fervor to cast spells on herself each turn (starting with divine favor, then bull's strength), as well as drink her potion of shield of faith. She attempts to overwhelm physically threatening warriors with Power Attack and Strength Surge, relying on her saving throws and other defenses to protect her from casters until fighter-types are dealt with.
Hi there everyone.
Like many of you, I suspect, I'm a fan of Joey Virtue's old thread on making Challenging Encounters for 5-6 Players. I'm currently running a party of 6 players with rolled stats (avg point-buy value = 23), all of whom are using class options from after the Anniversary Edition was published. As such, I have been re-writing almost every single encounter in Rise of the Runelords, using Joey Virtue's guide as an upper-limits reference, through book 2.
Would people be interested in seeing the stat blocks / reworked encounters I've created? This would especially apply for people running Book 2, as I have actually reworked every single encounter in it.
Glad you like it. I really should go back and finish it but I’m running Giantslayer and doing the same thing for it right now.
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Glad you like it. I really should go back and finish it but I’m running Giantslayer and doing the same thing for it right now.
Ah, well, you did a great job with what you did, and the dozens of samples make it easier to do our own reworking. Plus this stuff is a crazy time-sink, I can't imagine doing it for an AP I wasn't even running.
Also, I realized after posting that I made some errors re: the DCs of Nualia's spells (I made them all the same). Her level 2 spells should be DC 15 and her level 1 spells should be DC 14. I also forgot to include her ranged combat line, which should read:
Ranged MWK composite longbow +9 (1d8+6/x3)
It was a messy first go, but I'm taking quite a bit more time to write up the stat blocks I'm using for the Seven's Sawmill and consulting the Paizo examples to make sure things are in the right place.
The pre made of encounter by hero lab makes it a lot easier to get them done.
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The Undermill # Skinsaw Cabalists = # of Heroes minus 1.
XP 600
Varisian human vigilante 3 [cabalist/splintersoul] (Pathfinder Ultimate Intrigue)
LN/NE humanoid (human)
Init +7; Senses darkvision 60’, low-light vision Perception +5
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Defense
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AC 16, touch 13, flat-footed 13 (armor +3, dex +3)
hp 18 (3d8+3)
Fort +2, Ref +6, Will +4;
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Offense
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Speed 30ft.
Melee MWK War Razor +6 (1d4+2/19-20x2)
Special Attacks Spill Blood (3 bleed)
Spells Prepared (Cabalist CL 3, Concentration +5)
. . 1) adhesive spittle (DC 13), cure light wounds (DC13), ill omen, ray of enfeeblement (DC 13)
. . 0) acid splash, bleed (DC 12), mage hand, spark
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Statistics
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Str 12, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 13, Cha 8
Base Atk +2; CMB +3; CMD 16
Feats) Blustering Bluff, Extra Vigilante Talent (shadow’s sight), Improved Initiative, Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobaticsc +6, Bluff +5, Disguise +5(+25 for vigilante identity), Escape Artist +6, Kn: (Arcana, Dungeoneering, Local, Nobility) +6, Perception +5, Profession (miller) +5, Sense Motive +5, Spellcraft +6, Stealth +8, Use Magic Device +3
Languages Chelish, Common, Shoanti, Varisian
SQ Dual Identity, Seamless Guise, Skilled, Social Talents (Intrigue Feats [Blustering Bluff], Quick Change), Splintered Identity, Swift Change, Unshakeable, Vigilante Talents (shadow’s sight, Tattoo Chamber)
Gear mwk war razor, skinsaw mask, studded leather
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Special Abilities
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Blustering Bluff When using Bluff to fool a foe, you can bully that person to reduce the penalty for telling an unlikely or far-fetched lie by 5.
Darkvision You may see in the dark clearly, although only in grayscale.
Dual Identity You maintain a second identity, which may have a different alignment than you.
Low-light vision You can see twice as far as a human in conditions of dim light.
Quick Change You may switch between your normal and vigilante identities as a full-round action.
Spilled Blood Deal bleed damage equal to your cabalist level with piercing or slashing weapons against opponents who are unaware of your presence, consider you an ally, or who is denied their dexterity bonus to AC. Does not function against creatures with total concealment.
Tattoo Chamber You may conceal an item inside a tattoo on your hand or wrist. Spell trigger items can be triggered from within the tattoo. You may draw an item from the tattoo as a swift action if you have a free hand.
Unshakeable Add your vigilante level to the DC of intimidate checks to demoralize you.
Cabalist Tactics When alone, cabalists attempt to repel the PCs through mundane tactics – lying and threatening to try and get the PCs to leave for even a short while. When it appears a fight is likely, or if a PC is isolated, the cabalists will don their skinsaw masks and draw their war razors from tattoos on their wrist, allowing them to access their cabalist abilities. Against an isolated PC or a small party, they simply try and get in a first strike to trigger Spilled Blood, then use spells such as ill omen and adhesive spittle to weaken the target as they bleed out. Against a larger or more aggressive party, they’ll make a single attack (either a weapon attack to trigger Spilled Blood or an adhesive spittle, then flee for help.
While alongside a cleric, however, cabalists will stand their ground against any size party, following the clerics’ orders to provide flanking or act as barriers between the party and them. While in their vigilante identity, cabalists fight to the death after regrouping with a cleric.
Lumber Collection 3 Skinsaw Cabalists, 1 Skinsaw Cleric
XP 1,600
Elf cleric of Norgorber 4 / rogue [master of disguise] 2 (Pathfinder Ultimate Intrigue)
NE humanoid (elf)
Init +7; Senses low-light vision; Perception +12
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Defense
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AC 18, touch 15, flat-footed 14 (+3 armor, +1 deflection, +3 dex, +1 dodge)
hp 36 (6d8+6)
Fort +6, Ref +8, Will +7; +2 vs. enchantment
Defensive Abilities evasion Immune sleep
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Offense
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Speed 30ft.
Melee +1 short sword +8 (1d6+3/19-20x2)
Ranged hedging weapons +7 (2d6/19-20x2)
Special Attacks channel negative energy 2d6 (DC 14) sneak attack +1d6, Touch of Evil +7 (DC 14)
Spells Prepared (Cleric CL 4, Concentration +6)
. . 2) death knell (DC 14), dread bolt (DC 14) (x2), invisibility(D), shield of fortification
. . 1) bless, hedging weapon (x2), obscuring mist, protection from good(D)
. . 0) detect magic, guidance, light, read magic
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Statistics
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Str 12, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 14
Base Atk +4; CMB +5; CMD 18
Feats Dodge, Improved Initiative, Mobility, Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +11, Bluff +10, Climb +5, Disable Device +7, Disguise +11, Escape Artist +8, Kn: (Local, History, Religion) +7, Perception +12(+14 vs living creatures), Sense Motive +8, Sleight of Hand +8, Spellcraft +7(+9 to identify magic items), Use Magic Device +7; Racial Bonus Perception +2, Spellcraft +2 to identify magic items
Languages Common, Elven, Shoanti, Varisian
SQ Aura, Cleric Domains (Evil, Trickery[Ambush]) Consummate Actor, Elven Immunities, Elven Magic, Evasion, Finesse Training, Keen senses, Rogue Talents (Quick Disguise), Spontaneous Casting (inflict), Weapon Familiarity
Combat Gear potion of cure moderate wounds ; Gear +1 short sword, cloak of resistance +1 mwk studded leather, skinsaw mask
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Special Abilities
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Aura You radiate an aura of evil that can be detected with magic.
Chameleon Aspect (5 rounds/day) As a swift action, gain concealment against creatures 10 feet or more away, or total concealment against creatures 40 or more feet away.
Channel Negative Energy (5/day) As a standard action, create a 30’ burst that heals undead or damages living creatures for 2d6 (DC 14 Will halves). You may choose to exclude yourself from this effect.
Cleric Domains You gain the benefits of the Evil and Trickery(ambush) domains.
Consummate Actor Add half your rogue level to Disguise checks and Bluff checks to stay in character. You may don a disguise in half the time (even after being modified by Quick Disguise).
Elven Magic You gain a +2 bonus to penetrate SR with your spells. You gain +2 Spellcraft to identify magic items.
Evasion If you pass a Reflex saving throw to halve damage taken, you instead take no damage.
Immune to sleep You are immune to effects that cause sleep.
Low-light vision You can see twice as far as a human in conditions of dim light.
Mobility Gain a +4 dodge bonus to AC versus attacks of opportunity due to moving into or through a threatened area.
Quick Disguise You can disguise yourself more quickly than normal.
Sneak Attack +1d6 Attacks deal extra precision damage against flat-footed creatures or creatures you are flanking. Not multiplied on a crit.
Spontaneous Casting (inflict) You may use any non-domain spell slot to instead spontaneously cast an inflict spell of the same level.
Touch of Evil (5/day) As a melee touch attack, cause a creature to become sickened for 2 rounds. Creatures sickened by this effect count as good for the purposes of spells with the evil descriptor.
Tactics As more established and powerful members of the skinsaw cult, the clerics do not fear the PCs. They’ll initially focus on commanding cabalists while casting hedging weapons for ranged attacks or defense. Then they’ll focus on setting up opportunities to use their abilities to the greatest effect, such as flanking for sneak attack or a cabalist’s ill omen before dread bolt.
Despite recognizing human cabalists as junior members of the skinsaw cult, they will not use death knell on them, even to save their own life. However, should any PC fall unconscious within a safe distance of a cleric, that cleric will prioritize using death knell to simultaneously eliminate a threat and increase their own power. Spells like invisibility are reserved for maximizing tactical advantages, such as setting up an ambush or landing a Touch of Evil attack.
Clerics defer to Ironbriar, then Zafael if either or both is present, and will only fight to the death while commanded by one of them. Otherwise, when a fight appears lost, a cleric will use obscuring mist to aid a getaway.
Log Splitter 3 Cabalists, 2 Clerics
Workshop 2 Cabalists, 2 Clerics
Ironbriar’s Office Zafael Tzkaien, Justice Ironbriar
XP 2,400
Female dread gnome ninja unchained [Mask of the Whispering God] (Everyman Unchained: Unchained Cunning by Everyman Gaming; Pathfinder Companion Guide: Disciple’s Doctrine)
CE humanoid (gnome)
Init +3; Senses low-light vision; Perception +10
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Defense
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AC 20, touch 15, flat-footed 16 (armor +5, dex +3, dodge +1, size +1)
hp 56 (7d8+21)
Fort +6, Ref +9, Will +6; +2 vs poison, +4 vs self-poison
Defensive Abilities Defensive Training, Uncanny Dodge
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Offense
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Speed 20ft.
Melee 2 +1 short swords +9 (1d4+5/19-20x2)
Special Attacks expurgate (DC 16), sneak attack +4d6, style strike
Racial Spell-Like Abilities (CL 7, Concentration +8)
. . 1/day) bleed, chill touch, detect poison, touch of fatigue
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Statistics
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Str 6, Dex 16, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 16
Base Atk +5; CMB +2; CMD 15
Feats Deceitful, Dodge, Iron Will, Mobility, Weapon Focus (short sword), Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +13, Appraise +7, Bluff +15, Climb +6, Diplomacy +7, Disable Device +14, Disguise +12, Escape Artist +11, Kn: Local +10, Linguistics +6, Perception +11, Sense Motive +8, Sleight of Hand +11, Stealth +17, Use Magic Device +8; Racial Bonuses Perception +2
Languages Common, Elven, Gnome, Infernal, Sylvan
SQ Dispatchment, Fell Magic, Finesse Training (short swords), Ki Pool (6 points), Knack for Poison, Mask, Ninja Tricks (Ki Block, Vanishing Trick, Wall Climber), Stern Gaze (+3), Style Strike (Spin Kick), Undercover Faith, Weapon Familiarity
Combat Gear (2) potions of cure moderate wounds ; Other Gear +1 mithral chain shirt, (2) +1 short swords, cloak of resistance +1, eyes of minute seeing, skinsaw mask
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Special Abilities
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Defensive Training You gain a +4 dodge bonus against the attacks of creatures of the giant type.
Dispatchment You gain +2 attack bonus against creatures that are denied their Dexterity bonus to AC, or that you are flanking.
Expurgate When you deal damage to a target, you may spend 1 point from your ki pool to strike a target totally mute for 1d4 rounds. A successful Will save (DC 16) negates this effect). You may not use ki to make an additional attack as part of a full attack.
Fell Magic You add +1 to the DC of necromancy spells that you cast. In addition, you may cast bleed, chill touch, detect poison, and touch of fatigue each once per day as long as you have a Wisdom of 11 or higher.
Finesse Training (short sword) You use your dexterity modifier for attack and damage rolls with short swords instead of your strength modifier.
Ki Block* When you deal sneak attack damage against a creature with a ki pool, that creature must make a Will save (DC 16) or be unable to spend points from its ki pool for 3 rounds. Effects that do not require spending ki still function.
Ki Pool (6 points) You have a ki pool. As a swift action, add +20 to your base movement speed or +4 to a stealth roll for one round by spending a ki point.
Knack for Poison You gain a +2 racial bonus against poison and disease. Raise this bonus to +4 against accidental poisoning while handling poison. You also gain +2 to Craft: Alchemy.
Low-light vision You can see twice as far as a human in conditions of dim light.
Mask You have a mask appropriate to your deity. You may only use ninja class features if you are wearing the mask, except for Undercover Faith.
Mobility You gain a +4 dodge bonus against attacks of opportunity in response to you entering or moving through a threatened area.
Stern Gaze You add +1/2 your ninja level to your Sense Motive and Intimidate checks.
Style Strike (ninja) When making a full attack, you may choose one attack per round to act as a Style Strike, as per an unchained monk. This works regardless of the weapon used to make the style strike.
Style Strike (spin kick) Your style strike attack rolls vs your target’s flat-foot AC. Targets with uncanny dodge or a similar ability are immune to this ability.
Uncanny Dodge You cannot be caught flat-footed.
Undercover Faith You gain the benefits of the vigilante many guises social talent. You cannot use this ability while wearing your mask. It takes 1 minute to don a mundane identity. You must don a mundane identity out of sight to preserve your secret. Putting on your mask immediately ends this effect.
Vanishing Trick You may spend 1 point from your ki pool to gain the benefits of invisibility for a number of rounds equal to your ninja level. Activating this ability is a swift action.
Wall Climber You gain a climb speed of 20 on vertical surfaces. This does not work on perfectly smooth surfaces.
Creature One of Ironbriar’s first recruits to the Skinsaw Cult was a gnome by the name of Zafael Tzkaien. Having overcome her blanching through delight in killing and cruelty, Zafael made as capable of a lieutenant as she did a killer through her mastery of the skills involved in maintaining the Seven’s secret across decades. She holds no formal position of leadership, but her skill is as respected as Ironbriar’s himself, and she has taught most of the Skinsaw Cult’s recruits how to blend into common society, as well as how to stalk and kill without ever being caught. After all, it is her job to eliminate members of the cult who fail to clean up after themselves, as they have been drawing more and more attention to themselves in the past several years. Of course, that has more to do with Xanesha’s focus on greedy and high-profile victims than the legitimate error of fledglings, but Zafael knows little to nothing about Ironbriar’s connection to Xanesha or why the cult has had such a change in direction. She trusts Ironbriar, and it is this trust that has prevented her from recognizing that he has been charmed for years now.
Tactics Unless the PCs arrive at the Sawmill during a ritual, Zafael can be found in Ironbriar’s office, discussing their plans and the threat of the PCs. When the two of them hear fighting, Zafael leaves the office immediately to command the other cultists and join the fray. While she still has many companions, Zafael will rely on her mobility and Style Strike to consistently land sneak attacks, focusing on lightly-armored foes or obvious spellcasters when possible. When fighting spellcasterse, Zafael makes use of her Expurgate ability to render them mute, then tries to finish them off before they regain the ability to speak. If reduced to 30 or fewer hit points, or when Zafael has 1 or 0 remaining allies, she will begin making frequent use of Vanishing Trick to land sneak attacks while minimizing the damage she takes.
Zafael fights to the death unless commanded otherwise by Ironbriar.
XP 4,800
Male elf inquisitor [Reaper of Secrets] 6 / rogue unchained [Spy] 3 (Pathfinder Player Companion: Dirty Tactics Toolbox; Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide)
LE humanoid (elf)
Init +10; Senses low-light vision; Perception +12
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Defense
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AC 26, touch 19, flat-footed 15 (armor +5, dex +8, dodge +1, shield +2)
hp 90 (9d8+16) [Boss-granted max, avg. 63hp]
Fort +8, Ref +12, Will +9; +2 vs enchantment
Defensive Abilities elven immunities, evasion; Immune sleep
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Offense
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Speed 30ft.
Melee +1 mithral short sword +15/+10 (1d6+10/19-20x2)
Ranged mwk hand crossbow +15/+10 (1d4+1/19-20)
Special Attacks Bane (6 rounds/day), confusion (DC 16, 2/day), sneak attack +2d6
Spell-Like Abilities (Inquisitor CL 6 Concentration +8)
. . at-will) detect chaos/evil/good/law
Spells Known (CL 6, Concentration +8)
. . 2) cure moderate wounds (DC 14), flames of the faithful, knock, resist energy
. . 1) burst bonds, reveal secrets (DC 13), stunning barrier (DC 13), weapon wand
. . 0) brand (DC 12), detect magic, detect poison, guidance, read magic
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Statistics
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Str 8, Dex 26, Con 13, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 12
Base Atk +6; CMB +5; CMD 23
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(Base Statistics) Dex 22; Init +8
AC 24, Touch 17, Flat-Foot 15
Reflex +10
Melee +1 mithral short sword +13/+8 (1d6+8/19-20x2)
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Feats Ally Shield(Champions of Corruption), Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Mobility, Outflank, Spring Attack, Toughness, Weapon Finesse
Skills Acrobatics +15, Appraise +6, Bluff +16, Climb +3, Diplomacy +10, Disable Device +12, Disguise +7, Escape Artist +13, Kn: Arcana +7, Kn: Dungeoneering +6, Kn: Local +13, Kn: Nature +7, Kn: Planes +7, Kn: Religion +9, Linguistics +7, Perception +12(+14 vs living creatures), Profession (justice) +7, Sense Motive +17, Sleight of Hand +13, Spellcraft +6(+8 to identify magic items), Stealth +14, Survival +6, Swim +3, Use Magic Device +10; Bonuses Perception +2(+4 vs living creatures), Spellcraft +2 to identify magic items
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven, Infernal, Shoanti, Varisian
SQ Bound by Secrecy, Cunning Initiative, Deceitful Lore, Detect Alignment, Elven Magic, Finesse Training (short sword), Inquisition (Trickery[Deception]), Judgement (2/day), Low-light vision, Mind-game Tactics, Poison Use, Rogue Talents (Coax Information), Skilled Liar (+1), Soul-Piercing Gaze (+3), Track (+3), Weapon Familiarity
Combat Gear potion of bear’s endurance, potion of cat’s grace, potion of gaseous form, wand of cure moderate wounds (20 charges), (2) woundweal poison; Gear +1 mithral buckler +1 mithral chain shirt, +1 mithral short sword, (4) antiventom, (10) crossbow bolts, (2) gray justice poison, key to area D7, mwk hand crossbow, reaper mask, sheath of undetectable alignment
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Special Abilities
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Ally Shield As an immediate action, pull target ally who also has this feat in the way of a melee or ranged attack, granting yourself cover. If the attack misses due to this cover, the attacker makes a new attack roll with all of the same modifiers against your ally.
Bane (6 rounds/day) As a swift action, you may designate a creature type, or, in the case of a humanoid or outsider, a subtype. One weapon that you are wielding gains the bane special weapon property against that creature type or subtype. You may switch creature types or subtypes as a swift action. Ending this effect is a free action.
Bound by Secrecy You must worship a god of greed, secrets, poison, and murder. If you ever do not, you lose this archetype and become a normal inquisitor.
Coax Information Use your Diplomacy or Bluff in place of your Intimidate bonus.
Combat Reflexes (9 AoOs/turn) You may make additional AoOs each turn equal to your Dex mod, and you may make AoOs even if you are flat-footed.
Cunning Initiative You add your Wis mod to Initiative in addition to your Dex mod.
Deceitful Lore Add your Wis mod to your Bluff and Disguise checks in addition to your Cha mod.
Detect Alignment You may cast detect chaos/evil/good/law at-will as a spell-like ability.
Discern Lies (6 rounds/day You may cast discern lies as a spell-like ability with a caster level equal to your inquisitor level.
Elven Magic You gain a +2 bonus to penetrate SR with your spells. You gain +2 Spellcraft to identify magic items.
Evasion If you pass a Reflex saving throw to halve damage taken, you instead take no damage.
Finesse Training (short sword) You use your dexterity modifier for attack and damage rolls with short swords instead of your strength modifier.
Immune to sleep You are immune to effects that cause sleep.
Inquisition (Trickery[Deception]) You gain the benefits of the Trickery domain with the Deception subdomain. However, you do not gain the bonus spells of this domain.
Judgement As a swift action, you call upon judgement against a foe, gaining one benefit for the duration of the battle. You may select any benefit from the Inquisitor list [please see Inquisitor page – many options are available], and switch judgements as a swift action.
Low-light vision You can see twice as far as a human in conditions of dim light.
Mind-Game Tactics You treat any creature targeted by your soul-piercing gaze as if it were your ally and possessed the same teamwork feats as you do for the purposes of positioning and threatening when you determine whether you receive a benefit from you teamwork feats
Mobility Gain a +4 dodge bonus to AC versus attacks of opportunity due to moving into or through a threatened area.
Outflank When flanking a creature with an ally who also possesses this feat, your flanking bonus increases to +4.
Poison use You do not risk poisoning yourself when applying poisons to weapons.
Skilled Liar (+1) Add +1/2 your rogue level on Bluff checks to deceive someone.
Sneak Attack (+2d6) Add precision damage against flat-footed targets or targets you are flanking.
Soul-Piercing Gazze (+3) As a swift action, target a creature you can see. You add +1/2 your inquisitor level on Perception and Sense Motive checks against that creature.
Spring Attack You may move-attack-move without provoking AoOs from one creature.
Sudden Shift (5/day) As an immediate action after you are missed by a melee attack, you may teleport to a destination within 10’ of you that you can see. You must remain in reach of the creature whose attack missed you.
Track (+3) Add +½ your inquisitor level on Survival checks to track a creature
Tactics Changes When he hears signs of battle, Ironbriar will first command Zafael to join the fight while he prepares. He first drinks his potion of cat’s grace, then casts weaponwand so he can heal himself as needed. On the third round, he casts flames of the faithful, exits his office, and calls Judgement – usually Destruction unless there is a compelling reason not to. Depending on his knowledge of the party, he may spend an additional round or two or preparation drinking his potion of bear’s endurance (if he thinks he can afford the time), casting resist energy (if there are any notable offensive spellcasters he is aware of), or poisoning his hand crossbow with woundweal poison (if the party has a recognizable healer with them).
Once he joins the fight, Ironbriar has the advantage of being able to switch tactics round by round, and he will try and maximize his damage while avoiding being flanked. Spring Attack, Mobility, and sneak attack allow him to move through the battlefield to deal precise, high-damage strikes while risking little. Bane, Judgement, and Soul-Piercing Gaze are all basic abilities (and swift actions) he employs to increase his offensive power, making it as hard as possible to counteract all of his methods of dealing damage with defensive spells or abilities. Meanwhile, Sudden Shift and Ally Shield (preferably in conjunction with Soul-Piercing Gaze and Mind-Game Tactics) are immediate actions to help keep himself safe while setting up better offenses against his opponents. Remember that immediate actions use up his swift action the following turn – Ironbriar’s action economy is formidable enough without small mistakes making it even better!
Ironbriar saves his reaper mask’s ability to cast confusion until he ends up cornered by melee characters, then targets them to give himself the opportunity to move around again.
As per the AP, Ironbriar fights to the death unless Xanesha’s charm is dispelled, at which point he throws down his weapon and tries to cut a deal with the PCs in exchange for his life (and an opportunity to see Xanesha killed). If the PCs decide to kill Ironbriar anyway, but he still has access to his equipment, he will use his potion of gaseous form to escape.
Treasure Notes Ironbriar, as well as the Skinsaw Cult in general, have more and improved gear versus the AP, significantly increasing the wealth the PCs stand to gain in this section. While this is included to support a party greater than 5, you may wish the decrease the amount of treasure the PCs receive by changing the cultists’ short swords (minus Ironbriar’s) into masterwork short swords, only reducing their damage by 1, but decreasing their resale value by ~ 850gp apiece.
In addition, Ironbriar’s mithral short sword (labeled in Draconic as Teller of Secrets) and sheath that provides a constant undetectable alignment to the wearer are improved versus the AP. This is intended to make them more recognizable and memorable pieces of gear. In addition, it thwarts PCs spamming detect evil based on incidental suspicion of the Justice while providing a hint to clever users of divination magic.
Sawmill Encounter Notes As per the AP, the skinsaw cultists are distributed throughout the saw mill. However, they are not intended to be picked off in small groups – instead, after a brief exchange, surviving cultists are intended to flee upstairs to join their allies. Given that the most basic enemies (the cabalists) may inflict bleed damage, and the cultists’ tactics are highly teamwork dependent, the battles should gradually escalate in difficulty as their numbers grow, culminating in the high-damage Zafael and Ironbriar unique enemies.