Pathfinder Society Introductory Scenario: "First Steps, Part I: In Service to Lore" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

First Steps, Part I: In Service to Lore is the beginning of a trilogy of “Pathfinder Society Introductory Scenarios” meant for new players.  Although Parts II & III have been officially retired, Part I is still sanctioned for play.  The goal of these scenarios is to introduce new players to the concept of the Pathfinder Society, its tenets, and, especially, its factions.  The idea is that, after playing all three scenarios and meeting all the faction heads in-game, a player could then choose a faction for their character.  Because these scenarios were released in 2011, and there’s been a *lot* of evolution of PFS factions since then, some of the material in the trilogy is outdated.  Still, I really like the premise of slowly introducing players to PFS and getting them familiar with the factions in an organic way.  As for In Service to Lore in particular, I thought it did a solid job of introducing a few faction leaders (in a broad brushstrokes sort of way) and has a good mix of role-playing, combat, and even some puzzle-solving.  But although it’s introductory, that doesn’t mean it’s easy—with one encounter in particular holding the possibility of a swift end for a PC if a dice roll goes awry.  I roll this for a group that consisted of one brand-new player to Pathfinder and four experienced players.

SPOILERS

In Service to Lore begins with the premise that the PCs are relatively new recruits to the Society who have just finished their training and graduated.  Ambrus Valsin, brisk as always, tells the PCs that he needs to know that the PCs can handle simple tasks before he sends them off exploring ancient ruins and recovering lost treasures.  He explains that he has a “to-do” list for the PCs that they can complete in any order; each task starts with them meeting with an ally of the Society for instructions.  The list has four tasks on it that require travel between various districts of Absalom, and this is a good opportunity for the GM to add some character to this important setting.

The first task is a favour of Guaril Karela, the then-head of the Sczarni faction (and later co-founder of the Exchange).  PCs should get the impression that Guaril is involved in some shady business, but understand that he’s a valuable ally for the Society because he can get things in and out of Absalom that might be officially illegal.  What Guaril wants from the PCs is that they travel to the warehouse of a departed “business associate” of his and recover a particular crate.  There’s some good description of this decrepit warehouse in the docks, and, once inside, the PCs will have no trouble finding what the crate they’re supposed to get.  But the problem is that the warehouse floor is starting to give way, and the crate is resting precariously on some broken planks, with 15’ feet of water below.  A clumsy attempt to retrieve it could lead to it sinking underwater. In effect, this is a cooperative problem-solving exercise for the players to solve, and the scenario is good about seeding various solutions.  There’s the de riguer fight against some dire rats as well.

The second task sends the PCs to the Temple of the Shining Star in the Ascendant Court to meet with Ollysta Zadrain, the paladin leader of the Silver Crusade.  Ollysta has an interesting mission for the PCs: she wants them to essentially conduct an inspection of a local orphanage to ensure that its headmistress is treating the children well.  This is a really good role-playing exercise that brings skills like Diplomacy, Bluff, and Sense Motive to the forefront.  The headmistress is, actually, skimming medicine given to the orphanage and reselling it, but she’s pretty wily and PCs won’t uncover this easily (the group I ran it for didn’t, even though they had suspicions that something shady was going on).  I thought the challenge was a very fair one.

The third task is under the direction of Amenopheus, then-leader of the Osirion faction (and later head of the Scarab Sages).  He sends them into the vault under the manor to retrieve some maps from a chest.  It’s essentially a puzzle-solving exercise.  It’s one of those puzzles that can be solved relatively quickly even through trial-and-error, and thus won’t frustrate players.  There is a fun bit where PCs who don’t notice a trap get their skin turned blue for several minutes, a visible marker for Amenopheus to identify less-cautious PCs.

The final task is with Zarta Dralneen, then-leader of the Cheliax faction (and later head of the Dark Archive).  I didn’t really like Zarta’s personality here, as the “overly-flirtatious seductress” is a bit clichéd and certainly sexist.  Zarta wants the PCs to retrieve a mysterious box from her bedroom, but its currently in the hands of an enraged imp that’s wrecking the joint.  The imp has damage reduction, fast healing, and some resistances and immunities, so it might be harder to groups to defeat then it seems at first glance.  It’s not a dangerous fight for the PCs, but could be a frustrating or time-consuming one.  Overall, I thought this was the least successful of the tasks.

As they’ve travelled around Absalom completing the tasks, the PCs will have had a couple of opportunities to notice that they’re being followed.  They might think this is someone from the Society sent to observe how they’ve handled the test Ambrus Valsin has assigned, but in fact it’s a criminal gang planning to ambush and rob the PCs!  There are four members in the gang (a cleric, a sorcerer, a rogue, and a barbarian), and it’s essentially like battling a rival adventuring party.  Things could easily go wrong for the PCs here, especially if that barbarian (wielding a greataxe!) lands a x3 power attack insta-kill crit.  I know that possibility in particular has led to a lot of complaints on the forums, though fortunately it didn’t happen when I ran it.

Assuming the PCs survive the ambush, they can return to the Grand Lodge where Ambrus Valsin promises them that they next assignment will take them beyond Absalom’s walls.

Overall, I thought In Service to Lore was a solid introduction.  The variety of tasks was a good way for players to see that PFS isn’t all about combat, and they got a brief introduction to four different faction leaders with the Society.  I do think Zarta Dralneed could have been handled more subtly, and that the encounter against the criminal gang was probably more deadly than necessary—a fighter with a longsword would have been better than a barbarian with a greataxe.  With those objections in mind, I can still see this as a useful way to start new players off in Society play.