PFS2 6-01 Intro for Year of Immortal Influence

[Matt Duval]

Enjoying reading through this so far. Prepping it for tomorrow and noticed the map locations for Area B appear to be off slightly, with the map marked B1 for area B2, B2 for B3, B3 for B4, B4 for B5, and B5 for B1.

[TomParker]

Yeah, I like the scenario but it's really confusing.

Mapwise, it's not clear how the PCs get to the southeast watchtower. And while the map seems to show the levels of locations with the black outline, I'm not sure what the spot labeled B5 is really supposed to be—there's no apparent way in, and it's clearly not the top of the watchtower with a trap door for access. That's not too hard to resolve—using the first side of the map, it shows the top of the watchtower, so there's no need to transition to the second map at that point.

As for the events of the ritual, the timeline is very confusing. You can stabilize the victim, but with the ritual still ongoing it seems they're going to die anyway and you've merely burned time you need to stop the ritual. Do you have to stop the ritual AND stabilize them? That seems to contradict the development when stopping the ritual, that it frees the victim.

If you go directly to the ritual, you have 25 minutes to disrupt it or the victim dies. But if the victim isn't stabilized in 20 minutes, they die. This scenario really would have benefitted from a timeline of the events from the time the ritual starts to when the victim dies.

My GM at GenCon was very lost at times and now I understand why.

[Talon Stormwarden]

Some of your questions are answered here

[Talon Stormwarden]

I’ve read the scenario now. As written, it seems to me that stabilizing the victim (via a 10 minute treat wounds) is a red herring (though seemingly unintended). As you mention they will still die at 15 minutes if Norvix isn’t stopped, and at 25 minutes if the ritual isn’t disrupted (via dispel magic or a 10 minute skill check).

[logsig]

Summarizing the Q&A from the Major Events Planning Server from back when this was a SUPER SEKRIT scenario premiering at GenCon.

The following clarifications were provided by Shay Snow, PFS developer.

Orts' Subservience ability: The imps cannot take command of the Orts.

If someone ends the scenario afflicted by Putrid Plague/Zombie Rot/Corrupting Spite: Handwave the consequences.

The Crushing Crowd hazard: This hazard has a HP value as all stat blocks do, but is not intended to be disabled via HP damage. If the PCs intend to attack it, GMs should warn that will result in a point of infamy.

[Sebastian Hirsch]

I am currently prepping this one and the flip mat chosen really does it no favors

[MadScientistWorking]

logsig wrote:

If someone ends the scenario afflicted by Putrid Plague/Zombie Rot/Corrupting Spite: Handwave the consequences.

Ok. I gotta know. Since the rules clearly spelled this out in the first place since I dunno season 2(?) to do this how is this any different that it became a question?

[Talon Stormwarden]

It's true that diseases are cleared for free after all scenarios, so the advice is definitely redundant for Putrid Plague and Zombie Rot.

As for Corrupting Spite, it's a curse, but has listed Stages, which I think means you could eventually remove it with enough successful saving throws, as Curses with stages follow the normal Affliction rules. So yeah, the whole statement is a bit redundant, but maybe good to clarify for the curse.

[Dubious Scholar]

I have to assume the original 15m is a typo and intended to be the same 25m as later in the text, because otherwise stopping to stabilize them makes it impossible to have enough time to disrupt the ritual via skill checks. I choose to resolve the contradiction in the way that makes it not incredibly punishing to the PCs for acting to save someone.

Even then, stabilize should normally be a 2-action Administer First Aid activity, not Treat Wounds. Making it take 10m means that it increases the DCs to disrupt the ritual to Very Hard, and you'll only have time for one check per PC as well.

Of course, strictly speaking, since the fight takes a nonzero amount of time, it's impossible to get in two rounds of checks to disrupt the ritual anyways, even if the PCs rush right to it (as the victim dies at the 20m mark unless stabilized). At least, without splitting the party (or having a Summoner, I think the victim is close enough to the ritual that their double exploration activities can manage it), so even though the check to stabilize the victim adds 5m to the clock... you spent 10m to do it and didn't actually buy any extra time. Given that, I strongly thing it should just be Administer First Aid there, and I'd definitely allow the Stabilize cantrip or other healing magic to work.

As written, the best possible interpretation I can give is that it is always a bad idea for the party to try and save the collapsed victim via Medicine instead of rushing to the ritual. Succeeding makes ultimately saving them harder outside of those edge cases I mentioned above, and risks killing them immediately.

[MNGwinn]

I can't tell, but I think you have to both disrupt the ritual and stabilize the victim for them to not die.

"This increase is most likely to happen if the PCs opt to spend time recovering after the fight in the Fiendish Watchtower, or if they investigate the ongoing ritual first. If the victim isn’t stabilized within 20 minutes of first falling unconscious, they die." implies that if you go deal with the ritual and don't stabilize the victim than the victim dies.

[Sebastian Hirsch]

After prepping and playing it, the stabilization seems to be there to give people a chance to heal up, at higher levels that first encounter can be a bit rough.

That said, when the situation was presented to the group, players understood that doing what felt natural (to level someone behind to stabilize and run to the ritual location) was not something that org play regularly wants players to do.

The second fight was.... well almost over before my character got to act, but when the fight starts with a gunslinger critting the BBEG to death, there is only so much you can do.

I think the adventure goes downhill after resolving that fight, but I am still working on a constructive way to communicate that.

[Talon Stormwarden]

Ran this twice this past weekend. One group of 6 left TWO PCs behind to stabilize/guard the downed NPC. I was a bit worried for the rest of the group who chose to take on Norvix without the other two, but they handled it fine, thanks in part to some bad roles on my part. But low level casters just don't pack much punch.

I did notice that the trap for Ulthun's office location makes the combat occur at the same time as the trap is encountered, as the trap is located at the top of the stairs and Norvix is in the landing right there. My reduced party handled all of it with aplomb. The encounter is too easy, IMO.

The Crowd hazard was bad at one table because I randomly rolled 2 of my 4 players to be in the initial crowd area (I misremembered the scenario text that stated that at least 1 of the PCs should be in the initial area), one of the squishies came up. The crowd rolled higher initiative so that PC took both the initial reaction damage and the routine damage, and I think they crit failed on of the saves. Even though that PC went down, they calmed the crowd easily once their turns came up.