Pathfinder Tales: "Forge of Ashes" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

A bloodthirsty dwarf and a kick-ass oread who’s taken a vow of silence walk into a bar.  That’s not the start of a joke, but of a surprisingly compelling Pathfinder Tales novel, Forge of Ashes.  An interesting plot, excellent characters, exciting action scenes, and a strong understanding of Golarion’s lore make for a strong addition to the line.  This one is worth taking a shot on even if the subject matter doesn’t initially seem appealing.

SPOILERS!

Forge of Ashes starts in the dwarven city of Taggoret in the Five Kings Mountains.  A dwarf bloodrager named Akina is returning home after years away adventuring, and has brought for company an oread monk named Ondorum.  But instead of a happy family reunion, Akina learns that her mother went missing years ago and is presumed dead, and her brother, a former cleric of Torag, has been essentially excommunicated for inexplicably spouting stuff about Droskar and the “Ashen Forge”.  But an old suitor named Gromir, who’s long held a torch for Akina, tries to rekindle things.  Only, Gromir hates Ondorum (interesting to see dwarf vs oread antipathy; it makes a certain kind of sense!) and, far worse, is secretly working for a powerful group of duergar in the Darklands!  Gromir kidnaps Akina’s brother, and to get him back, Akina and Ondorum have to give chase.  Along the way, they befriend a caligni named Izthuri, deal with xulgath raids and (really funny) chatty ropers, and eventually uncover a duergar plot to use a magical artifact called the Ashen Forge for nefarious means.

That’s a lot of detail, but the story isn’t hard to follow.  Some really interesting setting lore is incorporated into the book, and I walked away having learned a lot more about Taggoret, duergar, oreads, and the Darklands.  (and I liked seeing the forge-spurned from an ages-ago module)  The action scenes are top-notch, with some thrilling monk vs monk fights.  Nor does the book pull any punches when it comes to killing off characters; the stakes are certainly dire, which really ramps up the tension near the end.  Forge of Ashes isn’t a book I’d be naturally drawn to (I don’t have a particularly strong interest in dwarves), but I ended up really enjoying it.