Pathfinder Adventure Path # 4: "Fortress of the Stone Giants" (Rise of the Runelords) [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

In my traditional backwards fashion for these reviews, I'll cover the back-matter of the AP volume first because it won't spoil the adventure.  AP # 4 includes four major sections after the adventure portion concludes: an article on stone giants, an article on dragons, a piece of fiction featuring Eando Kline, and a bestiary.

"Born of Stone: A Pathfinder's Guide to Stone Giants" (6 pages) provides a very detailed ecology of the race.  Stone giants in Golarion live simple lives and are in tune with nature, but they're not "savage" or "uncivilized."  They have an intriguing history dating to ancient Thassilon, and this article goes into additional cultural matters such as their daily life, how they view death, their treatment of magic, and their religion.  The section introduces a couple of new pieces of equipment ("shatter boulder" and "mammoth lance") as well as a few adventure hooks for incorporating stone giants into adventures outside the scope of the AP.  It's readily apparent just from this how much quality writing and artwork goes into each issue.

"Dragons of Golarion: The Myth and the Flame" (12 pages) details the legendary origins of dragons and it's . . . frankly a bit cheesy.  The section goes on to discuss each of the colours of dragons, ascribing them astrology-like personality traits.  Most of this section isn't Golarion-specific, and the only bits that I found original were their genealogical obelisks and their obsession with numerology.  Overall, the section didn't incline me to want to use dragons in Pathfinder, or persuade me that Golarion had better lore on the topic than many other campaign settings.

Things pick up with "Fool's Gold" (6 pages), the continuation of Pathfinder Eando Kline's tale.  It's good, exciting storytelling (with just the edge I love) that involves theft, a cool fight in the sewers of Korvosa, and an awesome escape from a thieves' guild.  In some ways it's a bit of a gazetteer for Korvosa, and would serve nicely as an introduction to the city for Curse of the Crimson Throne players and GMs.  Eando Kline is exactly what a Pathfinder should be, and I'm looking forward to sitting down and reading these stories all at once at a future date.

The bestiary introduces six new monsters.  Deathwebs (gargantuan undead spiders) and runeslaves (a template for giants that gives them short bursts of speed at the cost of their lifespan) are reasonably interesting.  Redcaps (malevolent fey) are great--memorable and creepy.  Lovecraft fans will appreciate the hounds of tindalos (extraplanar menaces), and I like the inclusion of some example victims that could be incorporated into a game.  I still don't really "get" taiga giants (nomadic ancestor-worshipping giants) or what they bring to the table that other giants don't.  Forgefiends I appreciate just for the possibility of destroying some PC gear.  Shining children are creepy cool, and their "theories of origin" section is fantastic.  The artwork here ranges from awesome (the deathweb, the redcap, the hound of tindalos, the shining child) to the okay (the runeslave) to embarrassing (the taiga giant and forgefiend).  As always, I find the bestiary sections in these early APs retain value even after the creatures appear in a future Pathfinder Bestiary volume, because the entries here go into a lot more detail on their background and place in Golarion.

Now onto the adventure.

SPOILERS

 The usual caveat: I GM'd this using the Anniversary Edition, though I didn't notice any major differences between the original and the hardcover.  The title of the volume, "Fortress of the Stone Giants," gives you a pretty big clue about what this section of the AP is going to be about.  A two-page preface by James Jacobs explains that the adventure (written by Wolfgang Baur) was inspired by the classic D&D "Against the Giants" modules.  I never played those and had no particular feelings about stone giants one way or the other coming into Chapter Five, so we'll see how well Paizo did on selling the idea that a volume of RotRL should be centered on the race.

The backstory to the adventure is an interesting one.  It tells how the runt of a stone giant tribe named Mokmurian was expelled when his wizardly leanings became known.  Mokmurian wandered Varisia for many years before eventually entering the Black Tower, a monument long taboo to the stone giant tribes.  Deep below the tower, Mokmurian found an ancient library full of the knowledge of Thassilon.  It provided him with enough clues to seek out Xin-Shalast and make a pilgrimage there to dedicate himself to the rebirth of Karzoug.  Now, in the present, Mokmurian has returned to the Black Tower as a mighty wizard and persuaded several outcast stone giant tribes to rally around his banner for a planned war of conquest!  But whether the giants succeed or fail, the fact that thy're marked with the Sihedron rune means that Karzoug will gain power either way!

Part One ("Stones Over Sandpoint") is probably my favourite part of the adventure.  The PCs come back to Sandpoint (either on their own accord or via request) and are present when a large stone giant raiding party attacks the town from different directions.  The mechanics of the assault are designed well, with a round-by-round chart of which parts of the town are invaded and by whom.  The idea is that the PCs will have to be mobile, make quick decisions, and maybe even split up in a bid to be "everywhere at once."  The attackers include several stone giants, their dire bear companions, and (most dramatic of all) a red dragon!  It serves as a great way to get the PCs to feel their connection to Sandpoint and its NPCs (some of whom may be killed or kidnapped), especially since all of Chapter Three took place away from the town.  After the raid, the PCs are assumed to interrogate a prisoner to learn that the raid was launched from Jorgenfist--a fortress that Mokmurian has had constructed around the Black Tower.  It's a thrilling start to the chapter.

Part Two ("Journey to Jorgenfist") assumes the PCs will set out for Jorgenfist, either to rescue some kidnapped town folk or to stop Mokmurian before he can launch a true invasion of Varisia.  This is a short section, as the PCs could take various routes, but includes a few encounters to help flavour the journey.  I like how it was done, as it incorporates necessary flexibility for PC autonomy while not putting *all* the burden on the GM's shoulders to spice things up (like the journey to Hook Mountain at the start of Chapter 3 did).  Speaking of Hook Mountain, my PCs decided on the unusual strategy of teleporting there and trying to cross the mountain ranges on foot to reach Jorgenfist.  They were turned back by terrible weather and arduous climbing conditions (not to mention stone giant patrols) in a scene reminiscent of Fellowship of the Ring when Gandalf realizes there's no choice but to go through the Mines of Moria.  Good stuff.

Part Three ("Into the Valley of the Black Tower") provides a full write-up of the fortress around Jorgenfist.  There are, quite literally, dozens and dozens of stone giants and their allies camped around the massive fortress, so a frontal assault is pretty much out of the question.  It's an excellent opportunity for players to strategise how they're going to gain entry, with possibilities including setting the tribes into conflict with each other, trying to sneak over the fortress walls, etc. The GM is provided with a lot of detail on what happens if there's an alarm, what patrols are like, etc., to help deal with different possibilities.  The interior of the fortress and the Black Tower itself has some cool encounters with things like harpies, an ancient Thassilonian mummy monk, and more.   Suspiciously lucky PCs like mine may come across a secret tunnel in the back of a cliffside cave that allows them to bypass the surface entirely and reach the subterranean level.  The artwork in this section (of the fortress, of some wyverns, etc.,) is very good.

Part Four ("Under Jorgenfist") contains artwork of more mixed quality, with a depiction of lamias on page 39 particularly amateurish.  This section details the first subterranean level of the fortress, home to barracks, a kitchen, a shrine to Lamashtu, etc.  One of the major strengths of Paizo APs is that their depiction of dungeons is reasonably realistic: monsters aren't just standing around to be murdered.  They're in different places at different times of the day, they have backstories and relationships and conflicts with their own allies, etc.  Much of this detail isn't seen by the PCs, but it does offer a lot of depth when the surface is scratched.  Although the vast majority of this chapter is combat-focussed, there is one important role-playing element here in the form of a renegade stone giant named Conna who is willing to help the PCs depose of Mokmurian.  On a side note, I particularly liked the little kobold (Enga Keckvia) wearing the necklace of fireballs; its presence is a reminder that little things can pack a big punch!  Last, I'll mention that a seemingly minor encounter here (two lamia clerics) posed the biggest problem of the chapter for my PCs, as it took them three tries to overcome with multiple deaths along the way.  Sometimes simple defensive spells (like mirror image) and simple offensive spells (like hold person) can prove a deadly combination!

Part Five ("The Ancient Library") is the conclusion of the adventure.  Deep below the fortress, a complex dating to ancient Thassilon holds the library that Mokmurian discovered.  The encounters leading up to the big battle against Mokmurian are a bit rote (of the "enter room, fight" variety), but the creatures involved are interesting.  As for the showdown, I have to report it was a complete bust.  Apart from the usual action economy problem of one boss against four to five PCs, the obvious flaw in Mokmurian is vulnerability to a spell like feeblemind.  Checking the forums, I'm not the first GM to run into that specific problem, and perhaps word of the exploit is spreading.  After building up the event so much, it was a splash of cold water and reminded me to expect less of these chapter-ending climaxes.  The one redeeming feature is the awesome moment where Karzoug possesses his defeated minion's body and speaks to the PCs directly for the first time in a great little speech.

An appendix goes through what the PCs can learn about Karzoug and Xin-Shalast from research in the ancient library.  It's presented here as a set of Knowledge (history) DCs, but I used the optional research rules from Ultimate Intrigue and they worked quite well.

Overall, the best part of this adventure is the beginning, and then it starts to slope slowly downward from there.  It's never bad, but much of it is frankly average.  It does lend some flavour to stone giants in Golarion, but I think that's a small amount of value for an adventure that is otherwise unremarkable.

RealmsToowoomba Recap # 73 [RPG]

[22 Flamerule 1372, continued]

As a heavy rain begins to fall over Longsaddle, the adventurers continue planning their raid on Nesme.  Mellia sends another magickal request for information to Rufus Greenleaf, who is on his way to the High Forest.  Rufus replies with a brief statement that there’s a temple in the center of the city.  Mellia tells the others that if she gets a chance to see the temple, they can teleport directly there and launch an attack.  Meanwhile, Markus and McBronzebottom head back into the village to collect Wrex, and see him watching a store across the road.  Wrex tells them the storeowner’s wife is cheating on him, and shares the fact that the barkeep at the Horn and Hoof is actually a fence.  The three talk about Nesme, the new mephit, and more before borrowing a tarp from Trappy to return to the campsite for another strategy session.

During the session, Ralkin promises that he’ll be able to land five solid hits with his bow during a battle.  He accepts Mellia’s suggestion that he learn her spell to create an extradimensional space, and that during the battle he pop in and out of it in order to gain some protection against counter-attacks.  Markus suggests attacking during the Aurilites’ prayers, but unfortunately, no one (including Cain) knows when those prayers take place.  The swordsman also emphasizes that the group have to have an escape plan.  “I’ve learned that the hard way,” he says.  After a discussion of various ways to scout the city, the group decide that Mellia and Wrex will teleport outside of Nesme, hide in an extradimensional space, and then use spells to survey the city from a distance.

The first try at the plan goes awry, however, as Mellia loses control over her teleport spell and the duo end up in the middle of an unknown wilderness.  Frustrated, Mellia teleports them back to her and Cain’s room at the Gilded Horseshoe, and sends Cain a message about the failure.  Wrex finds the instantaneous jumps through space daunting, and becomes nauseated.  He heads outside, and finds Markus and Urist.  Talk turns to combat, and Wrex demonstrates how to put a bag over an enemy’s head and then slit their throat!

When Cain returns to the inn, he’s confronted by Ardarac Harpell and told, in no uncertain terms, that the time has come for the cleric of Kossuth to leave Longsaddle.  Cain says he’ll take the “advice” into consideration.  After talking it over with Mellia, the decision is made that everyone will leave the village in the morning.  Meanwhile, Markus, Wrex, and Urist experiment with a portable device to deflect the rain and Cain’s mephit gets up to mischief.

Late that night, Mellia (in bed with Cain) and Wrex (secretly following the barkeep of the Horn & Hoof tavern) feel a powerful tug on their thoughts.  Each are able to resist the psychic pressure, but Wrex recognises a familiar aspect to it and decides to lower his mental defenses.

[23 Flamerule 1372]

In the morning, when Cain comes down to breakfast, he notices that Ralkin has small horns protruding from his forehead—much like Myst used to have!  Ralkin seems as surprised as anyone, and Mellia deduces that the horns are actually illusionary.  After breakfast, Mellia goes to wake Wrex, who never came down.  She finds him in his room, putting away some drawings, and asks him if he also felt a psychic tug from the night before.  Wrex confirms that he did, and that, as happened months ago, he found his psyche drawn through space to a high tower in a large castle far away.  Inside a chamber filled with glass statues and magickal respositories for other psyches like his own, Wrex said he saw the mysterious dark figure angrily ranting.  The figure, who had a beaten and bound priest of Myrkul on the floor next to him, said he had been too forgiving with the Hunters for the Crown and that this was going to change.  According to Wrex, the dark figure said that the priest had been blabbering about there being just 70 days left until the behemoth rises and the Crown is destroyed.  Mellia asks if all of the glass figures were still intact, and Wrex dissembles.

The adventurers head north along the Long Road, hoping to find a new, well-hidden campsite.  It takes them a few hours in the pouring rain to find a suitable place and set up camp with a tarp overhead to keep dry.  The group quickly put their plans to scout Nesme into action.  Mellia turns herself, Ralkin, and Wrex invisible and then teleports the trio to the west bank of the Surbrin, near where Mellia first laid sight of Nesme many months ago.  Seconds after they arrive, Mellia creates a small extradimensional pocket for the trio to hide in (Ralkin takes care to hide his magickal containers outside) and then she sends out magickal sensors to scour the city for information.  Ralkin spends his time in the space learning the spell that Mellia used to create it.

On the western bank, the sensors report that the Citadel of the Riders, which had been a shattered ruin the last time Mellia saw it, was a veritable beehive of activity, as dozens of stonemasons were rebuilding it using massive blocks of granite transported to the area on ramps of ice.  A tall, arching bridge of ice spanned the Surbrin, connecting the Citadel and the city itself to allow a connection that the priestesses of Auril could easily sever in times of threat.  The outer walls of the city were also undergoing reconstruction, still supported by remnants of the icy dome that had shielded the city.  At particular points in the city, armoured bears were being trained in warfare, winter wolves were housed, and bands composed of a mixture of Aurilites, Riders of Nesme, armoured bears and wolves were patrolling.  The magickal prying eyes confirm Rufus’ account of a temple being expanded in the center of the city, using the building that originally housed the Council Chambers.  Interestingly, the sensors report that several buildings near the temple have been laid to ruin, only some of which can be rebuilt.  Wrex does a little scouting himself, and notices that above the city not a single bird is in sight; instead, several small winged imps covered in ice and snow keep a close watch on the city below them.

Having spent the entire day in the extradimensional space, the trio have supper while Mellia’s sensors gradually return.  Wrex asks if Mellia ever got in trouble, and mentions it must be tough to be a mother.  He asks what Mellia’s daughter is like, and the diviner, although suspicious, gives Wrex a description of Allia.  Mellia adds that her daughter tries to be ladylike, but at just four years old, is in many ways still a toddler.  Gideon, she says, was very good with children.  Wrex brings out a music box that plays a simple, but very beautiful melody.  Mellia asks Wrex about the person he’s trying to rescue by finding the Crown of Horns.  Wrex says the man is old; not a father, but the closest thing he’s ever had to one even though it’s been a few years since he saw him.

When all of the sensors have returned, the trio of adventurers teleport back to the “hidden” campsite north of Longsaddle to discover that the others have allowed Cain’s mephit to build a massive bonfire!

Rise of the Runelords Recap # 56 [RPG]

[30 Kuthona 4707]

The feeble morning sun illuminates the adventurers’ campsite halfway up Hook Mountain, its inhabitants having mostly recovered from the attack of the flame drakes just hours previously.  The intrepid mountain climbers redouble their efforts to make it to the cave that Artemis spotted on his previous climb.  Although Kang did well the previous day, he struggles for the entire morning to make significant progress.  At about midday, Vier and Artemis decide to climb ahead of the others to surreptiously set up a camp just a few dozen feet below the lip of the cave.  As Artemis ascends a particularly treacherous slope, he wipes away some frost from an icy patch and is startled to realize that a face is staring back at him!  He clambers up, hearing the ice crack from his weight and heat behind him.  Fearful of an undead monstrosity, Artemis draws his heavy pick and swings it overhand into the back of the creature that stumbles out of its imprisonment in the ice!  The figure staggers and nearly drops to the ground.  It turns, and Artemis realizes he’s not dealing with a monster: but with a shivering, bedraggled, newly awakened kitsune!  With fiery red hair, a fox’s tail, and a delicate rapier, the figure may once have cast quite the dashing figure, but now it looks like death warmed over.

Realizing his mistake, Artemis apologizes.  The irritated kitsune says his name is Jinkatsyu, and stands shivering while Artemis hurriedly assembles his tent.  Soon after the pair are inside, Vier arrives and asks for an explanation.  Jinkatsyu explains that he came to Hook Mountain on the trail of a trio of witches who kidnapped and murdered his birth parents—the last thing he remembers is confronting them when they cast some sort of spell in unison.  Still holding a grudge over getting, quite literally, stabbed in the back by Artemis, Jinkatsyu answers the archer’s question about how long he’s been in the ice and says he’s not sure—he arrived in the month of Neth . . . in the year 4705!

Kitsune are anthropomorphic fox-like beings, capable of taking on human forms. 
Native to Tian Xia, they're known for their love of trickery and beautiful things.

Kang stumbles into the tent about an hour later, fatigued and frostbitten from the climb in freezing temperatures.  Kang is understandably startled to see a newcomer in the tent, but quickly takes advantage of an opportunity: he tells Jinkatsyu that he can provide magical healing if the kitsune will help defeat the Kreeg ogres.  Jinkatsyu seems inclined to help, if for no other reason than that the ogres and witches may be working in concert.  As they all wait for Katzumi, the lack of oxygen at this mountainous altitude takes its toll, and Vier finds himself wheezing and exhausted.  Finally, in the middle of the afternoon, Katzumi arrives, embarrassed.  Jinkatsyu notices something that none of the others, including Katzumi herself, noticed: a severely burned dead pixie has flopped out of her backpack!  Katzumi sobs upon realizing that Yap is dead and insists upon burying the pixie despite the icy, rocky terrain.  Vier helps her, and they manage to scrape out a small furrow and then cover the body with snow.  The delay is costly, however, and Jinkatsyu also begins to suffer from altitude sickness.

With the sun beginning to set, the adventurers have a momentous decision to make: attack the Kreeg clanhold now, despite their own weakened state; rest overnight and attack at dawn; or even retreat completely!  Vier pushes for the latter, stating that he wouldn’t last two seconds in a fight.  But Kang and Katzumi argue that they’ve come too far to turn back, and that further delay only risks further suffering from the cold and altitude.  The consensus is reached to take the battle to the enemy now before it’s too late.  But having decided to attack, inexplicably, no further plans are made.  The result is a tragic one.

As the conversation winds down, Artemis sets off on his own initiative and easily crests the final craggy outcrop that conceals the cave entrance from below.  The same two ogres are on patrol, but, unlike last time, Artemis has taken advantage of the rocky terrain to avoid being seen.  Without waiting for his allies, he begins the assault by firing an arrow: it tunnels into the belly of one of the ogres, who gives a shout of surprise and anger.  Both charge towards Artemis’ position.  Vier and Kang, happening to form the second wave of the assault, arrive on the scene but are without the benefit of clever tactics or a formidable warrior to halt the ogres’ advance.  Vier hurls a dagger that grazes one of the ogres, but takes the long end of an ogre hook in the sternum for his trouble!  Before he can escape, the hooked end of the weapon literally disembowels him!  Alas, the ill-fated adventurer’s prediction that he wouldn’t last seconds in a fight against the ogres has proved prescient.  But the worst is far from over: before Vier’s body even hits the ground, the other ogre catches Artemis by the back of the neck with his hooked weapon and then punches him in the face so hard his skull crumples inward.  In the time it takes for Kang to utter a single shout, two of his allies, including the group’s ostensible leader and someone who had been by his side since the Sandpoint days, are dead.

Hill giants are considered the
 least of the "true" giants.

Kang hurls an explosive that kills the ogre that Artemis shot with an arrow, leading the other to loose an echoing shout for reinforcements.  Kang’s reinforcements arrive first, as Katzumi and Jinkatsyu reach the cave in the third and final wave.  They surround the ogre and with skilful swordplay manage to kill it, but in moments, heavy footsteps can be heard approaching rapidly.  Kang takes to the air and hovers just below the ceiling of the passageway as two more ogres and a hill giant thunder into view!  Even more enemies can be heard advancing in the distance, leading Katzumi to shout for the others to run as she heroically tries to buy them time by charging the hill giant.  But in the wide entryway, the three adventurers quickly find themselves surrounded by enemies and overmatched. Katzumi stands her ground and trades blows with the giant, but soon she too lays dead.  Kang, wounded severely in the fighting, shouts to Jinkatsyu that he’s leaving.  He flies out of the cave entrance and hovers nearby, watching as the kitsune, too tired to flee, raises his rapier in defiance as almost a dozen additional ogres flood into the entryway, pushing and shoving for the privilege of tearing apart an intruder.

Kang knows the battle is lost, but sticks around a moment longer to try a desperate gamble.  Having noticed the structural weakness in the lip of the cave, he hurls a bomb to shatter the natural faultline, sending Jinkatsyu tumbling down the mountainside like a pinwheel alongside a cloud of rock and snow.  Kang quickly flies downward and scoops up his newest, and only surviving ally.  “We have to get off this mountain and get to safety.  We’d need an army or a dragon to overcome those ogres,” Kang concludes.  “It’s over.”

Unprepared for the weather, the altitude, and the difficulty of climbing Hook Mountain, the adventurers persevered and reached the Kreeg Clanhold.  But whether through poor tactics, exhaustion, or atrocious misfortune, three of their number are now dead.  Has evil triumphed, or does fate have another surprise in store for the survivors?
-----------------------------------------------------------
Director's Commentary (23/9/18)

Jinkatsyu, a Kitsune Swashbuckler, was the new PC for the player who previously ran Goragar.  I was wary of Swashbucklers based on what I had read on the forums beforehand, and unfortunately, actual play has borne out the problems: I loathe the parry and riposte mechanics.  The introduction of the PC was fun, as I used an old trick (frozen in a block of ice) but was not expecting him to get a pick lodged in his back!

The assault on the Kreeg Clanhold was a disaster, and the closest thing the campaign has had to a true TPK so far.  Crits by the monsters were part of it, but just as much was the staggered approach and the  lack of a true front-liner like Goragar.  Kang's player had a plot twist card that allowed him and Jinkatsyu to escape, but losing three PCs in just a matter of rounds (including Artemis, the group's stalwart leader) was a real blow.  I think the players were as demoralized as the fictional survivors.  I gave a bit of a GM pep talk afterwards as we debriefed, including some discussion about tactics, the firepower that magic can bring, etc.  One of the unintended consequences is that two of the new PCs next session were full casters (one arcane, one divine) and that turned most encounters into cakewalks.  Ah, Pathfinder--you are a difficult beast to manage!

Next Recap

Starfinder Society Scenario # 1-17: "Reclaiming the Time-Lost Tear" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

This is primarily a combat- and dungeon-exploration scenario that doesn't have much to offer in terms of role-playing. Although the dungeon layout is clever and there's some interesting background that ties well into the present, it's not exactly what I was hoping for from the first high-tier (5-8) Starfinder scenario, especially one that involves the major season meta-plot.  I ran it at high sub-tier using the four-player adjustment, and, except for one hiccup near the beginning, it was also much easier for the PCs than I thought it would be.  All in all, I'd mark Reclaiming the Time-Lost Tear as average.

SPOILERS

As a sequel to # 1-13 ("On the Trail of History"), this scenario picks up with the Starfinder Society having entered into negotiations with the izalguun (alien inhabitants of a planet in the Vast) over the mysterious golden obelisk that seems linked to the mysteries of the Scoured Stars debacle.  The deal is a simple, mutually-beneficial one: the izalguun will provide the Society with the location of the remote repository where the aliens have stored the obelisk and give SFS agents permission to recover it, in exchange for the Society taking it far, far away.  The mission briefing is primarily a long (probably over-long) speech by an izalguun about the history of the people, their eventual escape from a planet covered in a golden shield, their re-settlement and conscious choice to put aside technology, and the arrival of the golden obelisk.  However, the izalguun representative explains, it has been several years since there was any contact with the repository, and dangers may very well lurk within.

The scenario then jumps to the PCs arriving at the entrance to the repository, which is essentially an inverted silo-like storehouse embedded deep in the surface of a heat blasted moon ("Izal-4").  Once the PCs breach the outer airlock, they follow a long, winding ramp downwards several hundred feet before reaching a small platform that ends with the jagged metal struts of a bridge that has obviously collapsed.  To make progress, the PCs have to figure out how to span a 75' gulf to an airlock door on the far side of the circular chamber.  Ironically, this first challenge proved to be the hardest thing for the PCs I ran it for.  None of them had jet-packs, grapple guns, enough skill in Athletics to climb around, etc.  Fortunately, after about a half-hour in real-time and a near-decision to just call it quits, one of the players remembered his PC could cast Flight and, by exhausting all his character's second-level spells, shepherd the rest of the group across.  I should also mention that the trap (linked turrets) is pretty nasty here and hurt the group worse than anything else in the scenario!

Once the PCs get into the complex proper (which consists of an upper and lower level), they're exposed to massive doses of "devolution radiation".  GMs should review the radiation rules carefully (especially the benefits of armor and how the damage goes straight to hp), as this is a major aspect of the scenario likely to occur multiple times (hint: keep track of how long the PCs spend on various activities!).  The devolution radiation starts to slowly turn the PCs into ancestral genetic precursors, and I thought it was a fun idea that foreshadows the rest of the scenario nicely.

Investigation shows that the repository has obviously been neglected, and that the izalguun who are supposed to be its two caretakers are missing.  One turns up dead in the bathtub(!), and some hacking into the computer mainframe shows that the caretakers were suffering from the devolution radiation.  One of the caretakers concocted a cure, but was slain by the other before it could be used.  After fighting some security robots with a cool trample ability (I liked how they're activated by the PCs accessing the mainframe), the Starfinders might start to suspect they'll be dealing with something quite monstrous soon.  The remainder of the upper level has a still-running conveyor belt that leads to a great, classic trap: a garbage compactor that deals up to 32d6 of damage!  I never got to enjoy it because of the usual Starfinder problem of the Operative who never fails anything (which makes for a cranky Jhaeman), but I liked the idea of it anyway.

There are some other traps and monsters on the lower level, but the highlight is the big battle against a massive (Huge-sized) izalguun that has been regressed into a frog-like form.  I appreciated how large the room for the battle is here (around 150' long) as it makes range increments for weapons more meaningful.  In addition, the aquatic environment is interesting.  I would have liked more information on where the monster starts and a better discussion of her tactics.  This behemoth (and her fellows depending on subtier and adjustments) can be returned to normal if the PCs think to use the cure that they'll have found elsewhere.  After the encounter, the golden obelisk is there for the taking and the scenario essentially ends.  As I've written about with some other scenarios, the MacGuffin here is disappointingly bland, and the conclusion seems rushed.  If as much time and effort went into the conclusion as went into the mission briefing, the story-telling would improve dramatically.

I think Reclaiming the Time-Lost Tear is a solid scenario for GMs interested in a Starfinder dungeon-crawl.  The regressed-izalguun subplot is original and ties in nicely to the PCs potentially suffering from similar effects.  In addition, the boons are pretty cool.  I'm probably being a bit harsher than the scenario deserves, and it's one in which I acknowledge the limitations of reviewing a scenario after GMing it just once and for a particular group of players.

Pathfinder Society "Year of the Demon" T-Shirt [RPG]

One might say, "PFS Season 5 was the Year of the Demon and that was like five years ago, so why are you reviewing this shirt now?"  To which, I would reply "a cool shirt is a cool shirt."  And this shirt is very cool!  You have a four-horned bony demon with glowing eyes bursting out of the center, the Pathfinder Society logo on the top, and the season logo at the bottom.  Of the Pathfinder shirts I own, it's probably my favourite.  There's not a lot else to review about t-shirts: it's got that "Fruit of the Loom" quality and hasn't faded or fallen apart after several washings, so that's good.  In sum: cool shirt--buy it now while it's on clearance!

* To answer Murdock Muckeater's question from January of 2016: Yes, the back is blank.

Starfinder Alien Archive Pawn Box [RPG]

The Starfinder Alien Archive Pawn Box is a shoebox-sized box of strong cardboard containing more than 300 pawns (thick cardboard cut-outs of creatures that fit into plastic bases, included in the set, for tactical combat on a grid).  All of the creatures (and most of the artwork) come from the first Alien Archive book for the game, and because that book is about half the size of a Pathfinder Bestiary, there's not as many different creatures included as there would be in a similar set for Starfinder's cousin.  However, the total number of pawns hasn't decreased, and this is reflected in the high number of multiples for most creatures: pawns come in either groups of six (space goblins, aeon guards, etc.), four (security robots, barathu, etc.), or two (necrovites, hespers, etc.).  This means it's easy to have large battles without having to scramble for stand-in pawns.  A little symbol in different colours on each duplicate makes it easy to tell duplicates on the battlefield apart--at least if you're not partially colour-blind like me.

Two positive things that stuck out to me about the set were that there's a *lot* of Huge-sized creatures included (always impressive to plink down on the table) and there is full coverage of core elementals, including four each for small/medium/large/huge elementals of the air/fire/water/earth varieties.  This is *really* useful for Pathfinder as well.

My major critique of the set is that, unlike the Pathfinder pawn sets, the pawns in the Starfinder Alien Archive Pawn Box are not numbered and (a greater sin in my book) there's no set indicator.  This makes clean-up a chore and mis-filing them a greater possibility, especially as more of these sets are released.

A couple of miscellaneous notes:

* If you're new to Starfinder, this isn't the box you want for PCs (unless you're playing something from the Alien Archive)

* This box is almost all creatures, but there are a few starship pawns.

Overall, I think it's a good set--the artwork is attractive and colorful, and the multiples of every pawn are really handy.  But it does have flaws, and I hope those are addressed by Paizo in future sets.

Pathfinder Society Scenario # 10-01: "Oathbreakers Die"

NO SPOILERS

I ran this at Subtier 1-2, using the four-player adjustment.  I thought it was a strong start to the season, as the scenario has an excellent mix of role-playing, investigation, and combat. Daggermark is a great setting for an adventure like this.  Oathbreakers Die is one of those rare scenarios with a complicated backstory that actually makes its way to the players and helps enrich their understanding of what's going on and why.  It is a scenario that's complex to prep and run for GMs, and one that falls on the longer side (duration-wise).  In other words, this isn't one I'd recommend anyone try to run cold or haphazardly, but it's definitely worth the investment of time and effort to do right.

SPOILERS

The premise behind Oathbreakers Die is that a secret cabal of former members of the Daggermark Assassins Guild have hatched a scheme to take over the country's military and become a force unto themselves.  But when a member of the Pathfinder Society in Daggermark learns of the plot, all of the Society's agents in the city are targeted for death.  The PCs have to try to protect the agents from assassination while simultaneously figuring out who is behind the plot so that the Society has a future in the city.

The scenario starts with one of my favourite briefings ever, as Venture-Captain Istivil Bosk dies mid-way through his explanation of the PCs' mission!  Bosk has been poisoned, and PCs who give him the antitoxin sitting on his desk will be shocked to learn that they've made things worse--the poison has an added ingredient (a new formula called arcane amplex) that interacts with antitoxin to create a thick foam that suffocates the victim's airways.  At the levels the PCs are at, the best they can do is delay Bosk's death for a couple of rounds, but his death is inevitable.

However, a search of Bosk's office (with a nice array of skill checks being useful and important for various aspects of the search) turns up the name of another Pathfinder who is in danger--a gnome named Timinic who has been mapping Daggermark's sewers.  Timinic has been placed in a hidden safe house, but PCs can head to where he often started his mapping expeditions (a tavern called the Dripping Wall Distillery) or follow up on other leads involving either the last man seen alive with Bosk (a dwarf named Brandur) or where the arcane amplex was invented (a local alchemist shop named Pemak's Tinctures).  This part of the scenario can proceed in any order.

From this point, the GM has to keep careful track of how much time is being taken by everything the PCs are doing.  The reason is that Bosk's assassin (a doppelganger) is at large and will be murdering a list of individuals based on a set timeline.  There's a handy graphic showing how long it will take the PCs to travel between each location in the scenario, as well as a stated shortcut for estimating how long conversations with various NPCs will take.  The fun part of all of this is that the PCs may be behind the assassin the whole time, may arrive at a location while he's in disguise and stalking a victim, or may arrive at a location first.  There's a lot of permutations on how/whether/if/where the assassin will be fought, making it a fun scenario to GM.  I kept the time-keeping stuff all "behind the screen" when I GM'd it, and just left it up to the players to realize that time was of the essence--it worked out quite organically that way.

The locations and NPCs that the Pathfinders will encounter during their investigation are all interesting and well-described.  One of the things I thought the writer did quite skilfully was to ensure that the PCs could still get the clues they needed to proceed even if they got to a location too late to save a particular NPC from being murdered (but that getting there sooner would make getting the information easier and result in more complete information).  It's a delicate balance that was pulled off beautifully here.  I think the only quibble I had with this part of the scenario is with the half-orc alchemist, Pemak (who originally invented the arcane amplex).  There's a sort of rules sub-system that GMs familiar with PFS scenarios will be familiar with: PCs' interaction with Pemak is gauged and tracked with "Approval Points," and one of the success conditions (as well as some in-scenario events) are dependent on how many Approval Points the PCs earn.  However, I didn't think this system was set up well in the scenario and it didn't run smoothly when I ran it;  the PCs were primarily concerned with quickly tracking down the assassin and their allies, and didn't naturally engage in the lengthy conversation on various topics that the Approval Points sub-system seem to envision here.  Tracking systems like these need to implemented organically and for goals that the PCs will be clearly motivated to achieve.

The final third of the scenario sees the PCs uncovering the identity of the cabal: a group called the Ghostknives, which is made up of rejects and dissidents from Daggermark's official Assassins Guild.  The Ghostknives are led by an alchemist named Cladara, and they've set up their headquarters (as thieves and assassins are wont to do) in the city's sewers.  The "Thieves Guild" flip-mat is put to excellent effect here.  The PCs' have to contend with a violet fungus (a plant creature capable of some nasty poison effects), several lesser assassins, and then Cladara herself.  The violet fungus was pretty easy to beat when using the four-player adjustment and the lesser assassins were the generic "rogues with sneak attack" variety, but the encounter with Cladara was pretty fun as her stinking cloud bomb made things tough for the PCs (until one got close enough to put her down with a single swing!).

I'm not sure a conventional dungeon crawl was the right way (thematically) to conclude a scenario that had so much interesting intrigue and detective-work in the first two-thirds, but I do understand the need to have a certain amount of combat in every adventure.

All in all, I really enjoyed Oathbreakers Die.  As I said in the "No Spoilers" section above, it's definitely much more of a challenge to prepare and run than some conventional "five rooms and five encounters in the museum" scenarios.  There's a lot of careful tracking and attention to detail that's necessary to make everything flow together smoothly.  Still, I admire the writing that went into it, and at this stage in PFS Organized Play, we should be able to handle complex scenarios.  It's one I'd happily run again just to see the different permutations of what could happen with different groups.

Rise of the Runelords Recap # 55 [RPG]

[26 Kuthona 4707 continued]

Dire wolves looks scary, but experienced
adventurers know how to handle them.

Camped at the base of Hook Mountain, the adventurers ready themselves quickly when they hear howling nearby.  Kang unfolds his dragonfly wings and takes to the sky, spotting a pair of massive dire wolves on a ledge overlooking the camp.  Katzumi rushes to the ledge and draws her katana, ready to do battle.  The wolves jump towards her but land awkwardly in the snow drifts, providing an opportunity for the adventurers to pounce.  Katzumi kills one before it can even recover, while Artemis’ arrows and Kang’s explosives combine to kill the other.  The battle is over so quickly that Yap doesn’t even bother getting out of bed!

[27 Kuthona 4707]

The adventurers huddle in their tents to keep warm and survive until morning.  But the howling of the wind outside and the heavy snow that falls continuously brings warning of a dangerous, dismal day ahead.  A blizzard has hit the Hook Mountain region!  Rather than risking trying to climb the exposed mountain face in such dangerous weather, the group decide to wait out the storm.  Vier suggests building a makeshift igloo, and, with the others’ help, creates a crude but effective shelter.  Yap stays snuggled up tightly inside Katzumi’s backpack and the others squeeze themselves inside the dome for warmth.  In such close quarters, the others can’t help but notice an odd lump moving around underneath Kang’s clothes.  The master alchemist explains that it showed up after a failed experiment one day, and that they should be glad they can’t hear it talk!

[28 Kuthona 4707]

Although Vier’s idea has allowed the adventurers to survive the storm, they’re not surprised to discover that their mounts, left outside and exposed to the worst of the cold and wind, have perished overnight.  Katzumi says prayers to Shizuru, the Tian-Min goddess of the sun, honor, swordplay, and ancestors, for their spirits’ safe passage in the afterworld.  The mounts are stripped of much of the gear that had been stowed on them, with Kang taking the bulk of it in a magical haversack.  Yap offers to stay behind and “guard the campsite”, but Katzumi persuades him to come along on the day’s planned climb.

In their first foray, the adventurers agree to climb together and stay close to one another.  The mountain isn’t particular steep in most parts, but after an hour, Katzumi and Vier have hardly made any progress at all.  Kang says it’s an exercise in futility, but everyone tries again.  Vier does better this time, but Katzumi only scales a few dozen feet, and the adventurers know that the longer they’re out in the cold, the more likely frostbite or even hypothermia will set in.  Artemis, who is able to scale the side of the mountain easily thanks to his kobold ancestors, offers to scout ahead while the others wait below.

After about four hours of climbing, the watchman from Magnimar crests the last craggy outcrop about a half-mile from Hook Mountain’s 10,000-foot peak and sees a gaping cave belching forth foul black smoke.  He’s reached the entrance to the Kreeg’s clanhold, but two guards stand at the cave entrance, swathed in furs and leathers.  They give an immediate shout and advance!  Artemis, thinking quickly out of self-preservation, jumps off the cliff, trusting his ring of feather falling to save his life.  He lands on a slope about thirty feet below the outcrop and starts to run to safety, but a pair of javelins imbed themselves in his thigh and back.  The ogres don’t intend to let an intruder escape!  But Artemis has one last trick up his sleeve, and drinks an elixir given to him by Kang weeks ago: it turns him as invisible as the wind, and the ogres are forced to give up the search.  With the sun setting rapidly, Artemis climbs partially down the mountain, descending to an altitude where his lungs no longer burn from the lack of oxygen.  He sets up a tent on the side of the mountain and settles in for the night. 

Meanwhile, far down below, the others worry about their missing ally.  Kang spends the time with his bottles and powders, and his whispered discussions with Vier about furnishing the newcomer poison are easily overheard by Katzumi and Yap.  Yap tells Katzumi that Kang is evil, but the alchemist defends himself, saying that everyone’s done something bad in their lives.  Vier says Katzumi could use toughening up in a place like her hometown of Riddleport.

[29 Kuthona 4707]

Artemis climbs down to the base of the mountain.  Tired and shivering, he explains to the others what he saw.  This time, the heroes decide on a new plan.  They’ll each climb at their own pace, but those who reach certain landmarks will set up a temporary camp and wait for the others to catch up before everyone advances.  The plan is a good one, as it allows the group to make progress (even if intermittent) while lessening the time they’re separated from one another in case they’re attacked.  After several hours of climbing, with the sun setting again, the adventurers set up camp.  They’ve made it about halfway to where Artemis remembers stumbling upon the entrance to the clanhold. 

Flame drakes hate the cold, and these ones resent
leaving the warmth of the Kreeg Clanhold!

 The experienced adventurers keep watch, despite the cold, but this time their precautions aren’t enough to give them advance warning of attack.  Gliding silently down the mountain, a foursome of flame drakes allied with the Kreeg ogres have followed Artemis’ scent!  Once the drakes spot the adventurers’ tents, they breathe fire in unison!  Vier’s uncanny instincts protect him from the worst of the attack, but the others, especially Katzumi, are badly burned.  Even worse is a fact that won’t be realized this night: Yap has been killed instantly!

Kang takes to the air to duel one of the cowardly attackers, while another lands to menace Kat and a third turns its attention to Vier.  The last drake follows its original prey, chasing Artemis from the campsite and the sole source of light, Katzumi’s everburning torch.  Unfortunately, the flame drakes can see in the dark and Artemis can’t! 

Kang duels his opponent in the sky and unveils a new invention for the first time: bombs that explode with waves of concussive force!  His attacker is knocked to the ground and then crushed by the bombs’ force.  Katzumi dodges claws and tail sweeps to kill her foe with an impressive display of swordsmanship.  Vier takes the most surprisingly tack, bribing her greedy attacker to leave!  Meanwhile, dozens of feet away, Artemis scrambles to stay alive in a one-on-one battle against his unseen draconic enemy.  The archer suffers a terrible bite wound, but once Katzumi gets close enough with her torch to reveal the attacker, Artemis swings his enchanted pick desperately and connects, killing the drake instantly!

Unprepared for the extreme cold and treacherous ascent, the adventurers have found Hook Mountain more than they bargained for.  But their determination has kept them in good stead, and another day’s climb may just bring them all to the lair of the Kreeg ogres.  Will they vanquish the degenerate monsters who have destroyed Fort Rannick and Turtleback Ferry for unknown reasons, or will they realize, too late, that bearding the lion in his den could be a fatal mistake?
--------------------------------------------
Director's Commentary (16/9/18)

This scenario really tested the PCs' endurance.  Players often ignore things like being good at climbing or resisting the elements in favour of chasing yet another +1 on attacks, so I love it when the full spectrum of the game's hazards come into play.  Getting up that mountain was grueling work that wore down the PCs' hit points (and gave them the fatigued/exhausted conditions), and although they did great in the random encounters in this session, the cumulative toll will bite quite hard next session.

I felt bad for poor Yap, burned to death instantly, and even worse for the poor horses (who slowly froze to death).

Pathfinder Flip-Mat: Pathfinder Lodge [RPG]

The Pathfinder Lodge flip-mat actually game out back before Paizo had released the Pathfinder RPG, when its game aids were marketed under the GameMastery rubric.  The flip-mat is long out of print and cost a bit to order from the secondary market, but I think it's definitely worth it.  I could draw some rooms and doors, but there's no way I'm going to be able to match every torch sconce, chair, or rug. Each side presents one level of a gorgeous mansion.  The first floor side includes exterior details like the path, front steps, and some landscaping along with interior rooms like a library, a large conference table, a weapons-training room, storage rooms, and more.  The other side presents the second story that includes several bedrooms; it's confusing at first glance because the main lounge, back garden, front steps, and other features that could extend "vertically" are represented as well.  In other words, it's not immediately apparent what features are at ground level and which are on the second level without careful attention to where the stairs open up, where doors are, etc.  That issue aside, the amount of detail and attractive artistry is really impressive, and I think exceeds what Paizo puts out these days.   I've used Pathfinder Lodge in a couple of sessions, and it's been impressive each time.  Hopefully this will eventually get reprinted in the Flip-Mat Classics line.

Pathfinder Society Scenario # 2-01: "Before the Dawn, Part 1: The Bloodcove Disguise"

NO SPOILERS

The title is a mouthful, but Before the Dawn, Part I: The Bloodcove Disguise is a heaping handful of high-quality adventuring.  It has it all: a memorable location, high stakes, multiple types of encounters, and an ending that will leave you wanting more.  The scenario is an early example of Crystal Frasier's work, and it's clear why she quickly became a rising star in Paizo's ranks.  The scenario gives the PCs a lot of flexibility in how they approach their mission, and it's a sterling example of a non-railroading structure.  I played through it and then read the scenario, and I'd definitely recommend it (and its sequel).

SPOILERS

The backstory and premise for this scenario is great.  In the remote jungles of the Mwangi Expanse, the Pathfinder Society has set up an excavation of one of the few known Azlanti settlements in the region.  But now the camp is under siege (by the half-mad soldiers of the gorilla king Ruthazek) and in desperate need of food and medical supplies.  Enter the PCs.  The scenario starts fast with their arrival at the outskirts of Bloodcove, a city of cutthroats, pirates, and smugglers dominated by the Society's rival organization, the amoral Aspis Consortium.  The mission for the PCs is to disguise themselves, slip into Bloodcove, organize supplies for a relief caravan, and then lead it to the dig site.  It's not going to be easy!

I really like a hidden sub-system in the scenario to evaluate how well the PCs do with disguising themselves while in Bloodcove.  It's based around the concept of "Awareness Points," and periodically during the scenario different skill checks are required depending on the type of disguise the PCs adopted.  Other actions (including faction missions) can lead the PCs to accumulating Awareness Points, and the consequences are meaningful: different tiers can lead to an extra encounter or even the PCs being forced out of Bloodcove early.  The scenario includes a little tracking sheet as well.  It's an elegant mechanic that gives PCs flexibility for different approaches and strengths, while holding them accountable for their choices (and rolls).

The scenario is divided into five acts, each with at least one encounter.

In Act 1, the PCs track down the man who has organised the relief caravan but is waiting for directions on where to go.  However, Raimondo Scevola has just lost his pack mules to a pirate captain while gambling at a tavern, and the PCs have to sweet talk, bribe, or force their new owner into giving them back.  A lot of groups (including mine) approached this with violence, but there are other ways to handle the matter, which is the sign of a well-conceived encounter.

In Act 2, the PCs head to a local trading post to purchase food for the relief mission only to find it closed because giant ants have broken into the basement of the place and are eating everything!  I confess that giant ants are a bit cheesy, so this was probably my least favorite encounter in the scenario.

In Act 3, the adventurers visit a local alchemist to find out why he hasn't been producing healing potions as promised for the relief caravan.  It turns out that his son is deathly ill, but that a local gangster has access to a brew that temporarily halts the boy's disease.  Forced to work purely for the gangster, the alchemist is constantly under watch--which is why the PCs probably find themselves in a knife fight in a cramped shop against murderous thugs!  In order to get the alchemist's help, the PCs have to retrieve the curative elixir from the gangster, who is currently running a pit fighting ring.  What's really clever here is that the gangster is a Summoner, and uses her abilities to conjure all sorts of monsters as a natural draw for her business.  The PCs will have to defeat the gangster and her Amazon-like eidolon in order to succeed here.  The encounter has an interesting setting and some interesting tactics, as the Summoner turns invisible and aids her eidolon through spellcasting.

Act 4 is the optional encounter that occurs only if the PCs' Awareness Points have escalated to the point where they've been discovered as Pathfinders.  The Aspis Consortium sends a gang of toughs and a special agent to kidnap and interrogate them.  Failure in this encounter (probably) doesn't leave the PCs dead, but instead they get tortured for two weeks, automatically fail the scenario, and end up with a permanent negative boon on their Chronicle!  You don't see much in the way of negative boons on Chronicles these days, but I like the story potential they open up.

Act 5 finds the PCs on their way to the dig site when they're ambushed by more agents of the Aspis Consortium: a Witch and several guards.  It's a solid if unspectacular encounter, boosted by a clever attempt by the witch's familiar to steal something from the PCs but let down by the fact that the text talks about it taking place "on the edge of a "large river gorge" but the encounter grid just has it on a trail in the middle of the jungle.  Setting it in a location where falling into raging waters below was a possibility would add to the cinematic feel of the encounter.

The scenario ends with the PCs realizing that a *large* force of Aspis mercenaries are hot on their trail, and their only chance of survival is to make it to the relative safety of the Pathfinder camp first.  It leads in smoothly to the next scenario, and is a solid cliffhanger.

All in all, this one's a winner.  The scenario makes good use of some classes that aren't seen all that often in PFS Scenarios (the Summoner and the Witch), the Awareness mechanic is great, and the general setting and premise of the mission is interesting and flavourful.  It's a job well done.

Starfinder Core Rulebook Pawn Collection [RPG]

The Core Rulebook Pawn Collection was the first set of pawns released for Starfinder.  If you're new to the pawns concept, they're thick flat double-sided cardboard tokens that slot into plastic bases that are sized appropriately for the size of the creature in tactical combat on a 5-inch grid.  This collection relies on images from the Core Rulebook and includes about 100 different creature pawns and 15 different starship pawns.  Multiples of most pawns are included--usually 2 of each, though some creatures only get 1 and one (space goblins) get 4.  Starships tend to come in groups of 3 or 4.  I've used the set for about a year now, and I'm happy with the coverage of options it provides for PCs and NPCs of the core races; there's eight different Lashuntas, for example, and sixteen different humans.  Beyond the core races, however, coverage drops significantly: there's only one type of elf, one type of dwarf, and a few others like a single haan, sarcesian, etc.  Some other drawbacks:

* The set does not come in a box; once you punch out the pawns, you'll have to come up with a custom storage solution to keep them organized.

*  The set does not include bases; you'll need to purchase those separately or use the ones included with another set.

*  Inexplicably (and unlike the Pathfinder pawn sets), there is no set indicator symbol.  This means that once you start bringing in Starfinder pawns from other sets, separating what belongs to any given set can get very time-consuming.

The drawbacks aren't so major that I regret buying the set; I use it more than any other, as it's the default product I put out when players need to choose tokens for their characters.  But I would suggest going in with your eyes open about the pros and cons here.

Pathfinder Module: "The Midnight Mirror" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

I ran The Midnight Mirror recently for three friends using PFS characters and I loved it.  It’s a dark module (in more ways than one) that has an excellent and evocative setting, memorable NPCs, and a “boss” fight that’s finally worthy of the concept.  There’s loads of role-playing and investigation available, but the combats don’t hold back: the PCs I ran it for were along the low range of levels (and fighting ability), and there were several points I thought a TPK was on its way before they managed to just barely escape or emerge victorious.  If you’re looking for a challenging but well-written module that will prove satisfying on all of the various joys Pathfinder has to offer, I would definitely recommend this one.  Even the cover is awesome!

SPOILERS

The Midnight Mirror takes place entirely in Karpad, a small village in Nidal.  If you don’t know much about Nidal (and there are not a lot of adventures set there), it’s the country where, thousands of years ago, the people swore to follow the tenets of Zon-Kuthon (the god of pain and darkness) in exchange for protection from the cataclysmic events of Earthfall.  Although the residents of Karpad are some distance removed from the most zealous worshippers of Zon-Kuthon, the religion’s influence still has influence there.  Two pages of the module are an appendix that provides an overview of the village, and it’s important because what’s happening in the village (particularly strains between its human and fetchling inhabitants) are a key part of the story.  In my game, the Temple of Zon-Kuthon was particularly memorable, as the priest offers healing in exchange for the infliction of pain!  (I should say as a general note that GMs should know their players’ tastes before getting too detailed in the S&M practiced by worshippers of Zon-Kuthon).

The PCs have been enlisted by a wealthy family in another city to look into why their daughter, who married the baron of Karpad, hasn’t written in several weeks.  The adventure hook requires some massaging for Pathfinders, and some ideas for that can be found in the forums (this part could have been developed more in general, as outsiders are generally forbidden in Nidal except in the port city of Nisroch).  Anyway, once the PCs reach the baron’s manor, they’ll quickly get the scoop.  The village is under quarantine due to the spread of a mysterious ailment the locals are calling Tallowthroat; it causes the swelling of the throat until it explodes and shadowy figures emerge!  The PCs obviously need to get to the heart of the matter and investigate the origin of the disease and how to stop it (especially if they catch it themselves, a real possibility!).

The NPCs who reside in the manor are a key part of the story, and all are well-drawn with strong characterization.  There’s Stepan Boroi, the Baron of Karpad, who is paranoid and withdrawn; Anya Boroi, his wife, who earnestly wants the best for the village and her husband; a creepy ghost tied to an iron maiden in the basement (who could be an ally for the PCs!), and more.  I would really play up the manor’s gothic vibe, as it’s a key location in the module and PCs will probably spend a lot of time there, especially if they make it their home base while conducting exploration elsewhere.

In the village itself, the PCs will witness a lynch mob about to hang three fetchlings on suspicion that they’re responsible not only for the Tallowthroat but also for the recent disappearances of some humans.  I like how this encounter was structured, as the PCs can do nothing and just watch, intervene with violence, or make a series of Diplomacy/Intimidate checks to try to get the mob to stand down.  (one of the PCs in my game was terrible at combat but a master negotiator, and was rocking out on these skill checks!)

The encounter leads to the PCs meeting the captain of the village watch, a man named Lucian Groy, whose daughter is among the missing townspeople.  He’s desperate and willing to get help from anyone, even strangers like the PCs.  If they agree to take part in the search, clues will lead them to a chandlery (candle-making shop) where the PCs have to fight through a wax golem and some nasty strength-draining shadows before confronting the villain responsible for the disappearances: a Lurker in Light (a sort of crazy evil fey) who is using his kidnapped captives to enact a strange ritual to bring more of his kind into Karpad.  It’s actually a tougher fight than it first appears, as the fey can fly, has DR, may be able to turn invisible, and may be able to blind and poison multiple PCs.  On the other hand, he doesn’t pump out much damage, so if the PCs can survive the first few rounds and have some ranged weapons, they should be able to tackle him.  The PCs I ran this for nearly TPK’d the first time  and were starting to flee just before they triggered the fey’s morale condition and it flew away first.  It was an exciting, edge-of-your-seat encounter.

However, the Lurker in Light didn’t bring the Tallowthroat to Karpad, and his presence in the village to begin with requires explanation.  More poking around various avenues will lead the PCs to reveal that Baron Boroi has a major part to play in everything that’s happening in the village.  He’s not evil, but desperate, and his backstory is essential to the plot of the module.  In the manor’s basement is a midnight mirror, a magical device that allows passage to the Shadow Plane.  Almost 900 years ago, the Baron’s ancestors used the mirror to imprison several fetchlings and shae (natives of the Shadow Plane) in a mystical demiplane within the mirror because they were planning a revolution to liberate the subjugated shadow peoples in Nidal.  A decade ago, Baron Boroi made contact with the leader of the rebels, a shae named Nicasor, who still remains trapped on the other side of the mirror: Nicasor offered to help Boroi gain power in Karpad by providing a convenient place to dispose of rivals to his leadership (his brothers) in exchange for trading places with him once a year every decade.  Nicasor fulfilled his end of the bargain but now, ten years later, Baron Boroi refuses to fulfil his end!  The shadowy essence leaking out of the mirror stems from Nicasor’s cold anger, and it’s what is causing the Tallowthroat.  In other words, there’s no clear “good guy” to this story—just innocents being affected by the schemes of others.  It’s a type of grim realism that suits the story (and the Nidalese setting) perfectly.

The PCs will realize that the only way they can stop the disease is to go through the midnight mirror and destroy it from within.  This is the final third of the module and offers a great introduction to the characteristics of the Shadow Plane (and since it’s a fairly low-level module, may be the first time the PCs involved have ever visited another plane).  The particular demiplane on the other side of the mirror is a dark and distorted reflection of Boroi Manor.  Again, the flavour fits the tone perfectly.  There are threats within the demiplane, but what I really liked about the module is how it also allows more thoughtful PCs to form alliances with Nicasor and the other shae (and fetchlings) trapped there (depending on how good they are at Diplomacy, of course).  Indeed, I think the module is hard enough with just the absolutely necessary combat encounters, and groups that try to kill everything will have a *really* hard time unless they’re optimized combat machines. 

Anyway, in order to destroy the mirror from within, the PCs have to destroy its semi-sentient “heart.”  This is essentially a battle against a CR 8 shadow-infused tendriculos (a Huge-sized plantlike monster) that can paralyze PCs and swallow them whole!  In other words, it is *not* a pushover.  PCs will need a lot of luck or clever tactics in order to survive; my players used some fantastic teamwork, but even then one PC died.  After the heart is destroyed, the PCs need to leave relatively quickly because the deteriorating demiplane can be even more dangerous.  And when it’s completely destroyed (and every living thing within is expelled), the danger isn’t necessarily over!  Nicasor is bound and determined to kill Baron Boroi for his treachery, so depending on whether the PCs are inclined to intervene, they may think they’ve triumphed only to have another difficult battle on their hands.  It’s a module that really tests the morality and personalities of the PCs in a good way; there are no easy answers on what to do in this one.

It may be the coffee buzz, but I really can’t praise The Midnight Mirror enough.  I would love a sequel to return to Karpad.  It’s a hard module, and success for the PCs is definitely not guaranteed.  But great heroes can only emerge from great challenges, and this is definitely one worth experiencing whether the result is victory or defeat.