Pathfinder Society Scenario # 3-03: "The Ghenett Manor Gauntlet" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

The Ghenett Manor Gauntlet is a really good example to me of how different we might judge a scenario from a player perspective vs a reader/GM's perspective.  I played it via play-by-post with my Oracle of Grossness/Groetus, Makras Vekker, and thought it was a lot of just wandering around, waiting for something to happen.  But a lot of that negative experience may be attributed to an unmotivated character, the time dilation of play-by-post, or the GM's style.  When I read the scenario for the purposes of this review, it looked great!  A bit sandboxy, which is unusual for PFS, a great backstory, some good role-playing opportunities, interesting NPCs, and more.  Plus, it contributes nicely to the Season 3 "Year of the Ruby Phoenix" theme.  

One of my biggest regrets about PFS is having been unable to start it from the beginning and keep up with scenarios as they were released, as playing them in essentially random order (based on whatever someone offers) means I don't get to appreciate story arcs and NPC development over time.  I got to experience that with Season 1 of Starfinder Society, and it was great (but then my gaming got derailed in Season 2).  Anyway, that's all an aside.  My verdict is that this scenario has a lot of potential for the right GM and the right group.

SPOILERS!

The backstory to The Ghenett Manor Gauntlet feels like it could have been a short story or fun scenario in itself!  As the Pathfinder Society gears up to compete in a world-class martial arts competition (the Ruby Phoenix Tournament), it decides it could use an edge in the form of the Mutani Manual of Martial Mastery, an extraordinarily rare and exhaustive compendium of the fighting styles of distant Tian Xia.  The problem is that the only known copy in the Inner Sea region is owned by Temel Passad, a prickly Druman merchant (and Prophet of Kalistrade).  The Society sent envoys to Passad to negotiate the book's purchase, but various missteps led to them grossly insulting the man!  Passad detained the worst of the ham-fisted negotiators (a scholar named Harmidio Besai, who unwittingly compared Passad's wife to a prostitute) and kicked out the others, angrily vowing that the Pathfinder Society would never get the Mutani Manual unless they could prove their worth by taking it from him.  Because Passad owns extensive holdings throughout the Inner Sea, the Society has sent teams to twelve different locations to find the book and rescue Besai.  And the PCs just so happen to draw the lucky straw sending them to Katapesh . . .

At Farseer Tower in Katapesh, Venture-Captain Wulessa Yuul gives the briefing.  Wulessa sums up the backstory and tells the PCs they're going to Ghenett Manor, a luxurious property owned by Passad that lies about 50 miles west of the city.  She emphasizes that the Pathfinders are *only* to retrieve the book and Besai if either or both are there, and are not to steal anything else--after all, the Society doesn't want to offend the powerful Kalistocrat any further.  This bit is important, as during the adventure, the PCs will come across an awfully tempting array of treasures, but if any are pocketed, they face severe reprimands (including the potential of negative boons) when the mission is over.

The journey to Ghenett Manor is uneventful.  The map of the place is excellent, and could certainly be used for other purposes (it could be a flip-mat, but I think the grounds would be too large to be accurately reflected).  The scenario also provides excellent details about mundane but important-in-gameplay details like walls, windows, etc.  Upon arrival, the Pathfinders will face their first surprise: they're welcomed inside by a very friendly caretaker!  Gamaradim Po, and his demure wife Domitilla, have strict orders from Passad to be courteous to all visitors, even Pathfinders who have come intent on violence or theft.  The scenario does an excellent job portraying the scope of information Gamaradim will provide as he and his wife serve tea to the Pathfinders.  I was going to write about how there will surely be paranoid players who refuse to have their characters drink the perfectly-innocuous tea, but it turns out the tea is indeed drugged with a sleeping draught!  It doesn't lead to harmful consequences at all, but is apparently Passad's way of making a point.  It would be interesting to see how many groups try to bully and threaten the perfectly-nice and innocent caretaker and his wife.

From this point (or really even prior to this point, if the PCs decided to sneak over the wall and enter the manor stealthily) the adventure is open-ended.  The manor is large, and the PCs are unlikely to visit every chamber.  There are some clever traps that might catch-out even experienced dungeon-crawlers, and an assortment of guardians like hell hounds, flesh golems, and chaos beasts.  The kidnapped envoy, Besai, is indeed being detained here, in a secret room under the kitchen (the trapdoor has a stinking cloud trap whose soul purpose is to heap a little more indignity upon the rude man).  Besai is extremely cantankerous and verbally abusive towards the PCs, no matter how efficient they are, and I think many groups might regret having rescued him!

As for the Mutani Manual, an unpredictable factor in the scenario is that the Pathfinders aren't the only group who have come to steal it!  A team of Aspis Consortium agents breached the manor some hours prior to the PCs, and have lost two of their number in scouring the place.  They've found what they think is the real book (though it's actually only a decoy) and will encounter the Pathfinders at some point depending on how events proceed.  The PCs might think the Aspis agents have the real book and attack them (which might lead to a running battle as they try to escape with it), the two groups might just stumble into each other, or the Aspis agents might overhear the PCs' discovery of the real book and attack them (leading to a pitched battle).  The Aspis agents are interesting and well-characterised, which is good (though makes me feel sorry for them when they're inevitably dispatched in a single encounter). It's also perfectly possible that the PCs will get the decoy book from the Aspis agents, assume it's the real one, and travel all the way back to Katapesh for certain mission failure! I appreciate that it treats the players as grown-ups and is willing to levy some consequences for their actions, as I hate scenarios that feel obliged to ensure everything is happy ending all of the time.

As a scenario that's a bit more open-ended and could resolve in various ways, The Ghenett Manor Gauntlet is best for a GM who is flexible and can improvise, and a group that doesn't need to be led around by the nose.  Assuming those two conditions are met, I think this excellent scenario should provide a fun experience.