Pathfinder Module: "Blood of Dragonscar" [RPG]

 NO SPOILERS

 

I ran Blood of Dragonscar a couple of years back as part of my Magic Mirror/Roots of Golarion campaign of 3.5-era Pathfinder adventures.  The adventure is designed for fairly high-level PCs (15^th level) and does a pretty good job of planning for the impressive array of abilities they may have at that level (teleportation, divination magic, and so forth).  It’s an adventure that contains really good atmosphere and a fair amount of role-playing, with relatively few encounters compared to many of Paizo’s 32-page modules.  The end sequence will scratch an itch among many old-school gamers looking to tick off a classic element of the game in its oldest form.  The main challenge I had in GMing it is that the adventure text is laid out in a counter-intuitive order and was a bit cumbersome to run despite my unusual preparation.  It also doesn’t make the best use of the space available, being rather wordy on inessential topics.  That being said, I can’t quite put my finger on why it didn’t really land well—not every adventure fits every group, of course, and it might have just been a question of timing or our mood.

 

I’m not a big fan of the cover; it has classic D&D elements that *should* work (a big red dragon immolating adventurers charging towards it), but the dragon and figures are a bit too cartoonish and I prefer Wayne Reynold’s hyper-realistic art when I think of Pathfinder.  The inside front cover is divided into two maps.  The first is of a city in Taldor called Dalaston; the map is nicely drawn, though there are few noted locations (which, I guess, could make it more useful as a player handout).  The other map is the interior of a Temple of Abadar; I found it way too large with way too much unused space, and very bland, with nothing in particular that seemed to make it a Temple of Abadar as opposed to any other temple.  The inside back cover is the reproduction of a particular flip-map that I won’t name in this section as I suppose it could be a spoiler if one weren’t paying attention to the title and cover art for the module.  The interior art is, as I often say for 3.5-era modules, a real mixed bag; the NPC headshots are strong, but a lot of the other art is pretty mediocre.

 

In terms of back-matter, the module essentially has three appendices.  Appendix 1 is a new magic item, a minor artifact called the Necropyre Crystal.  It’s honestly pretty forgettable as artifacts go, having neither an interesting history nor interesting powers.  It makes a bad guy tougher, but not even in an interesting way, and can’t be used by the good guys.  Even what it takes to destroy it is pretty bland (a bit of old-fashioned smashing).  Although not labeled as such, what we’ll call Appendix 2 is the bestiary.  A new type of undead, “bloodless vessels”, are introduced.  They have a host of spelllike abilities (depending on variation) and the ability to take an extra standard action each round!  For those of you, like me, running the module under PFRPG rules, note that the Host to Many ability is premised on a 3.5 understanding of turning undead that no longer applies.  (I also have to call out the awesome artwork for the bloodless on page 7—one of the best things in the module!).  The section also introduces a new monster template: “necropyre”, that essentially just adds a flaming aura to an incorporeal undead.  Last, what I’ll call Appendix 3 is a collection of four Level 15 Iconics—Harsk, Ezren, Seelah, and Kyra.  Always handy to have these in a pinch.

 

Now, on to the show!

 

SPOILERS!

 

We’ll start, like the module, with Background.  About 225 years ago, legend claims a massive dragon named Horranath burst out of Blackpeak Mountain.  Molten lava rained down on the nearby Taldan city of Talamir, and those residents not burned to ash had their souls consumed by the dragon before it returned to its slumber, leaving only ruins in its wake.  But recently, more danger has come to the region.  In the nearby industrial town of Dalaston, the selfish and hedonistic Count Saleno Dalassenos made a very bad bargain.  Desperate to secure his rule in the face of a rival family (the Irinis), Saleno accepted the offer of a mysterious stranger named Eldran Tesh.  Tesh claimed he could create what looked like a dire threat to Dalaston to rally everyone around Saleno, but then dismiss it before any harm was actually done.  And in return, all Tesh would need is blood: specifically, human sacrifices!  Saleno paid in the form of drunkards, beggars, and other undesirables.  Tesh, who in reality is a powerful undead necromancer spawned with the destruction of Talamir, proceeded to wake the dragon Horranath.  At first, the plan worked well: Horranath swooped down and destroyed the mines near Dalaston, and everyone turned to Saleno for help.  But then Tesh told Saleno he wouldn’t banish Horranath unless another blood price was paid: 24 virgins!  Saleno made the necessary orders, and the townspeople felt they had no choice but to go along with it.  Unfortunately, only 23 of the 24 were actual virgins, so not only did Tesh say the ritual would not work, but he had the 23 transformed into undead (“Bloodless”) and told Saleno he would need to do the whole ritual again with 24 more victims!  As the adventure begins, black smoke fills the sky, people huddle terrified, Saleno drinks, Tesh works blood magic, and Horranath plans further attacks.

 

All of that just to get to the Introduction!  The adventure hook is pretty feeble.  The GM needs to have one of the PCs receive a wedding invitation from an NPC named Marita who is marrying Baydon Irini in Dalaston.  Obviously, it’d be great if the GM was able to plan ahead enough to plant this NPC in a PC’s backstory earlier, as otherwise Marita’s entire existence will come out of nowhere.

 

Part One (“A Town of Ash”) is laid out in a pretty confusing way that I found made it challenging to run.  There’s a bit of general flavour text about Dalaston (good for what it is), then some description for the GM about how the townsfolk are under a strict curfew and will be very reluctant to talk to strangers like the PCs (and worried about attracting the attention of the Bloodless), then there’s two pages about the “Secrets” of Dalaston that the PCs won’t initially know to even ask about (the dragon, Count Saleno, the Bloodless, Tesh, and so forth), and *then* there’s the actual initial flavour text and encounter when the PCs arrive in Dalaston—which assumes they arrive at the front gates instead of flying in, windwalking, or doing whatever high-level PCs might do.  The initial encounter is solid (it introduces the Bloodless, which are pretty cool).  The module then proceeds to introduce a sort-of gazetteer of Dalaston.  In sum, the material isn’t bad per se—just arranged in a really unhelpful order.

 

Anyway, the major thrust of Part One is for the PCs to gather information and start piecing together what’s happening in Dalaston.  The location descriptions do an excellent job of giving concise summaries of various NPCs, including the DCs for different types of influence checks to get information.  When they go to the Day’s Inn where the wedding is supposed to take place, they’ll learn that Marita was taken by the Bloodless earlier in the day (she’s slated to be one of the second set of 24 sacrifices!).  Other important locations the PCs might enter include a brothel called The Blind Eye (where Count Saleno is busy neglecting his people), a ruined quarter of the city from Horranath’s last attack (where the PCs can learn about the dragon), and more.  The module does a smart job of realizing that high-level PCs may have divinations like legend lore, and includes sidebars to help the GM resolve them.  Three siteless encounters, which need a different font or layout to better differentiate them from the location descriptions, include “The Harvesters” (three Bloodless try to kidnap a virgin off the street; the description of who each of the undead was when they were alive is nice), “The Mad Priest” (Jolar Loran, a former priest of Abadar driven insane by being blamed by Saleno for the dragon’s awakening, spouts cryptic but genuinely useful information), and “The Worried Patriarch” (Gath Morian, influential head of a prominent dwarf family, gives the PCs magical treasures from his vault to help stop Tesh and the dragon).

 

When the PCs enter the Temple of Abadar (having learned that Marita has been taken there or that that’s where Tesh is), Part Two (“The Blood Cult”) begins.  Despite the huge map, it’s a straight shot from the entrance to the only two encounters in the building: versus a hungry fog and versus Tesh himself.  When I ran it, things turned out pretty funny because Tesh failed on his Knowledge check to realise that one of the lead PCs was a dhampir, so following his listed tactics to channel negative energy royally backfired!  Speaking of Tesh, as far as I can tell neither this part of the module or any other part really explains his relationship to Horranath or what his motivations are (or where he’s been lurking for two+ centuries).

 

Part Three (“The Dragon Strikes”) begins with Horranath returning and making another pass at Dalaston to wreak flaming destruction.  It’s intended to be about the PCs dealing with the fallout, as the module describes how the key locations and notable NPCs from Part One are affected (or destroyed) from the dragon attack.  It’s not meant to be a direct confrontation against Horranath, but I can’t really imagine high-level PCs not at least *trying* to intervene.  If they do, however, they’ll realise that Horranath is almost invincible.  This is because the dragon has swallowed the Necropyre Crystal (the artifact discussed above) and gains tremendous powers when flying.  The point is for the PCs to realise they need to track the dragon to its lair: classic dragonslaying!  Well, it *is* called Dungeons & Dragons, after all.  Just before immolating, the Mad Priest from Part One will return to provide the PCs with clues about the crystal and how to find the dragon.

 

Part Four (“The Dragonscar”) has the PCs tracking Horranath to the burnt and barren wasteland that is all that remains of Talamir today.  I appreciated the comprehensive discussion of the various ways high-level PCs might travel to the area and how it may affect the dangers and timing of what happens next.  There’s also two pages on the interesting natural hazards of the area, as well as some necropyre undead, but the module doesn’t really give any advice on when, where, or how often to deploy these threats.  A map of the Dragonscar would have been great too.  Horranath’s underground lair is best reached through a series of lava tubes, and there’s a chance (if the PCs are careful) that they can catch the dragon asleep.  The module has an excellent description of her lair and the various tactics Horranath will employ in each area of it.  It was neat that the adventure has Tesh (if he survived the temple attack earlier) intervening in this big final battle to try to get the Necropyre Crystal for himself, as that’s exactly what happened when I ran it.

 

The Conclusion assumes that Count Saleno died in the second dragon attack and that the citizens of Dalaston will be hard pressed to rebuild.  I liked the suggestion that the PCs could at least contribute the tens of thousands of copper and silver pieces in the dragon’s hoard towards the reconstruction effort.  It also mentions Dalaston as a potential retirement town for the PCs if they’re ready to settle down.  I frankly think Golarion offers a lot nicer places to enjoy one’s golden years, but to each their own.

Curse of the Crimson Throne Recap # 95 [RPG]

[Wealday, 12 Arodus 4708 A.R. continued]

 

At the Grand Cathedral of Pharasma, the Harrowed Heroes have just given the word to Bishop d’Bear to begin the formal process to legally banish King’s Widow Ileosa Arabasti from Castle Korvosa.  While in the temple, The Reckoner checks on Potter Minehan, recent victim to evil blood magick, and learns he’s much improved.  As the group make their way outside, they witness a contingent of Pharasmin priests arrive via magical teleportation—and from their faces, they’re prepared for a confrontation.  Bishop d’Bear is summoned, and it turns out she’s been recalled to Osirion (and effectively fired from her post in Korvosa) for throwing the power of the church into what those outside Varisia see as mere internal politics!  The Reckoner hastily changes into Ralph Blackfeather and tries to intervene on behalf of d’Bear, but it appears the decision is irreversible.  Not only has Kroft’s resistance faction lost a stalwart ally and powerful cleric, it has also lost its (very formidable) headquarters!  Later, Ralph explains to Goldcape that it was really only a matter of time—d’Bear had put herself out on a limb for the resistance.  And her departure is all the more reason to hurry to oust Ileosa before the resistance loses anymore of its key elements.

 

Still planning for an imminent raid on Castle Korvosa, the group stop in again at Hedge Wizardry for more supplies.  While the others queue up for a word with Phaeton, Lorien is idly browsing the shelves when he comes across a strange hemispherical crystal that glows dimly.  When he touches it, his mind fills with a flickering vision of deep water and something just under the surface!  He brings it over to Protosilaus, who examines it carefully and pronounces it to be a damaged memory crystal.  Additional attempts to activate it help pinpoint the image to Lake Encarthan, and the submerged figure as a massive sea serpent!  Yraelzin mysteriously refuses to say what he sees in the crystal, but is it a coincidence that Razmiran stands on the shores of Lake Encarthan?

On the way back to the Reckoner’s safehouse, the group see something they haven’t witnessed since the King’s death: Acadamae students out on the streets!  Escorted by a contingent of tiefling guards, the students explain that Headmaster Ornelos has determined it’s safe to reopen.  When asked if that means the school will throw its support behind the resistance, the student just shrugs, and says that’s really up to the Headmaster and professors.  A roar of voices from the southwest interrupts the conversation, doubtless indicating that Neolandus Kalepopolis has formally proclaimed that Ileosa must leave the Castle within one hour.

Once back inside their safehouse, the group tries various means to improve the likelihood of success in their attack plan.  Protosilaus uses magical scrolls in a bid to foretell the future, asking “When we attack the Queen’s bedroom, will the Queen be in her bedroom?”  The somewhat cryptic response, “As a shadow at night, you will not find what you seek” leads to much discussion before a consensus view is that it means the attack must occur before nightfall.  The Reckoner is able to make contact with one of his many sources of information in the city: the house drake Majenko.  Majenko says he’s learned three things of interest since last they met:  the giant statue of Ileosa erected months ago on Jeggare Isle is not really a statue, and has been enchanted; a devil resides on the highest tower of Castle Korvosa, invisible and watching for intruders; and Grau Soldado is communicating with a member of the Gray Maidens. 

 

Meanwhile, Goldcape uses a magical scroll to do some scrying—but her target isn’t Ileosa, it’s Rolth Lamm.  Using some (dried) blood recovered after a previous fight to strengthen the spell, she gets a clear image of the notorious necromancer and serial murderer: the man is standing in a big, domed room doing touch-ups to what must be carrion golems.  Oddly, the room only has two windows—both long, tube-like shafts of glass at somewhat askew angles.  Goldcape is even able to make out that the room must be at a great height, and is overlooking water.  After revealing this information to the others, Yraelzin says he could be hiding in a lighthouse—but Ralph says that the statue of Ileosa could be hollow, and the shafts of glass could be its eyes, meaning Lamm is hiding in its head!  Goldcape is keen to attack right away, but is persuaded to wait until after the attack on Ileosa.

 

The group find an abandoned storefront just outside the rebel siege lines around Castle Korvosa and begin their final round of preparations for the attack, casting spell after spell on themselves.  “Let slip the dogs of war!” shouts The Reckoner.  The time has come for the rebellion to be taken to Ileosa’s doorstep and beyond, and if she has any sense, she’d be trembling at the might arrayed against her!

--------------------------------

GM Commentary

This session was all preparation for the big attack on Castle Korvosa, which the players thought would be the location of the final campaign showdown between themselves and Ileosa.  I thought the " . . .you will not find what you seek" divination was clear enough, but they talked themselves into thinking it was a question of timing.

The AP has Bishop d'Bear has as a supporter of the resistance and providing the catacombs for their HQ.  I always found it fascinating that it was the leader of a "Neutral" faith, and priest of the goddess of the dead, that provided the resistance the most tangible support in Korvosa (compared to Sarenrae and others that are effectively "off-screen" for the AP).  I wanted to draw attention to the idea that this may have been more of d'Bear's personal support than the church's as a whole by having her be withdrawn.  This would ratchet up the pressure on the resistance/PCs.  (there was a chance for the PCs to persuade her superiors she should stay, but they didn't make the Diplomacy DC).

I'm not sure what I had in mind for the crystal showing images of a sea serprent in Hedge Wizardry.  It might have just been an off-the-cuff invention to add a bit of intrigue to the scene, knowing I would have time to flesh it out if the PCs seriously investigated it. (they didn't)

As written, the AP has the Acadamae closed for the duration of the adventure.  I thought it might be interesting that, with as much progress as the PCs and resistance had made, to reopen its doors.  I took with one hand (d'Bear) and gave with the other (the Acadamae).  I don't think the PCs were particularly interested, however.

I was impressed that the players put two-and-two together to realise Rolth Lamm was in the hollow head of the giant statue of Ileosa!  There's a fun and exciting scene in a later session where we see a raid on that statue.

Pathfinder Society Scenario # 1-08 (# 36) "Echoes of the Everwar, Part I: The Prisoner of Skull Hill" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

 

I played Echoes of the Everwar, Part I: The Prisoner of Skull Hill with Makras, my dwarf oracle of Groetus.  The Echoes of the Everwar is a four-part series of Tier 7-11 scenarios from back in Season 1 of PFS1, and (I think) Paizo’s first real attempt at a major connected series of adventures in organized play.  I appreciate the attempt, but I don’t think this one (a forgettable and overlong series of battles) got the series off to a very good start.  Cool cover though!

 

SPOILERS!

 

Before getting started, there’s a hefty amount of backstory to cover, both for this individual scenario and for the Echoes of the Everwar series as a whole. 

 

About 500 years ago, just at the beginning of the Everwar, a very wealthy Osirian merchant named Khalfani Zhuberi decided to extend his trading empire by sending forth three concubines to three separate points on the frontier.  In order to keep track of them, each was given a special magical ring.  One of the concubines, Akila, had established a trading post in a fortress known as Skull Hill in what was, at the time, part of the nation of Lastwall.  As the decades passed, Zuberi became obsessed with immortality and begin drinking the infamous sun orchid elixir.  But, this brought the attention of a death cult that cursed Zuberi: he would have eternal life, but only as an old man!  Zuberi eventually faked his death, hid his treasure in Sothis, and lived out the succeeding centuries in his own tomb.  Meanwhile, the three concubines were slain instantly when the death cult’s curse severed the connection between their magic rings and Zuberi.

 

Recently, Zuberi realized the curse was finally waning.  For the first time in centuries, he started to sense the connection with the three magical rings and realized they contained enough power that they could be used in a ritual to restore his youth!  But how to get the rings?  Somehow, Zuberi has managed to get Pathfinder Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir of the Sothis Lodge to send out expeditions to retrieve them.  One such group (the one in The Prisoner of Skull Hill) will be sent in search of Akila’s ring.  However, Skull Hill is a very different place than it was five centuries ago.  The area of Lastwall where Skull Hull is located long ago became overrun with orcs and is now deeply in the Hold of Belkzen.  Skull Hill remained a hidden Chelish spy post to keep an eye on the orcs for (dubiously!) centuries, but an even worse disaster has befallen it just weeks prior to the scenario’s start.  The Skittering Ravagers orc tribe (led by a chief/shaman named Krug) located the fort and overran it, slaughtering all of the inhabitants.  But the orcs then suffered karma in the form of strange rocks crashing down from the skies that wrecked much of the fort and left craters in their wake.  A strange wave of necromantic energy pulsed from the rocks, instantly transforming many of the orcs to undead warriors!  But somewhere far below the fort, in a vault recently-unearthed by the devastation, still lies the corpse of the concubine Akila and her magic ring.

 

Whew, that’s two long paragraphs of backstory and even then I’ve condensed it down pretty well!  As you might surmise from the description above, tracking down the other two concubines’ rings are the focus of Parts II and III of the series, which is why the first three parts can be played in any order before Part IV finishes things off.  There’s a lot of details that even the lengthy backstory doesn’t really explain: what these rings are, what this death cult was, how V-C Balentiir got persuaded/manipulated/entranced to send out teams, how an active Chelish fort could remain unnoticed in the Hold of Belkzen for centuries, whether the rocks crashing from the sky is related to the magic of the ring, and so forth.  In lieu of answers, let’s get into the scenario itself.

 

From the players’ perspective, the scenario starts with their characters on a ridge overlooking the ruins of Skull Hill, with their PCs having received a “flashback” briefing in Sothis and then a hand-waved six weeks’ of travel to get from there to here.  In the briefing, the PCs aren’t given any of the backstory above.  Instead, they’re sent on two tasks.  First, to find a Pathfinder named Heralt who had infiltrated the Chelish forces in Skull Hill but who hadn’t reported in lately.  Second, to investigate claims in an old edition of the Pathfinder Chronicles that the body of a legendary Osirian sorceress named Akila had a magic ring and is buried under Skull Hill.  The “flashback briefing” (always a bit weird) does have a nice array of Knowledge checks to get some more details.

 

Act I of the scenario has the PCs exploring the settlement around Skull Hill.  They see it bears signs of recent attack, heavily cratered, and has no signs of habitation.   However, as they approach the inn, they’re attacked by a pair of orcs (who survived the necromantic wave and have been living off stockpiled food for weeks).  Near the cornfield, orc barbarians-turned-skeletal champions attack.  Some piece of the puzzle (an orc attack) start coming into focus for the players, but there’s clearly more to uncover.  I should mention that the map of the exterior of Skull Hill is really well-done.  It’s a sizable location (especially since there’s only a couple of encounters), so a GM shouldn’t try to draw it all out on a flip-mat and should instead be prepared to “zoom in” only where needed.

 

Act II starts when the PCs enter the fortress itself.  There’s a lot of rooms here, most of them uninhabited.  This is realistic, but definitely adds to the running time of the session as players understandably feel they need to cautiously go through each one.  There are, however, three (maybe four) things of note.  First, another skeletal champion disguised as a corpse in the mess hall.  Second, the body of the Pathfinder Heralt—he’s been strangled to death.  Third, the orc shaman-chief Krug is still alive, clearly entranced, boiling heads in the kitchen!  In an interesting twist, Krug doesn’t want to fight and can actually be a key source of exposition on what’s been happening in Skull Hill.  Last, there’s an optional encounter (time-permitting) with more skeletal champions.

 

Act III sees the PCs make their way down into the lost caves and burial chambers under the fort.  I remember, as a player, being surprised at just how much content was in the module—we had explored 11 locations on the surface, 16 more locations in the fort, and were now headed into a who-knows-how-big series of caverns underneath?  Kinda crazy for one PFS session.  Fortunately, there’s only one location left, and it helps to answer what’s been going on: the spores of a Moonflower (an alien plant monster) were on the rocks that crashed into Skull Hill.  Once the PCs destroy the Moonflower, they can search Akila’s tomb.  Refreshingly, Akila’s corpse is just a corpse—not a mummy or something predictable.  Perhaps oddly, the ring cannot be removed from her hand, so the PCs have to take her entire skeleton (or, at least, her hand).  There’s also a mysterious non-magical wand that the scenario insists be tracked on the Chronicle but whose function won’t become apparent until Part IV of the series.

 

The Conclusion is only two sentences long: a hand-waved return to Sothis and another mission, this time to Varisia (presumably, in Part II of the series).

 

I don’t remember being particular enthralled by The Prisoner of Skull Hill when I played it.  It felt like stumbling around mostly-empty rooms, occasionally battling orcs or undead orcs, and eventually locating a big plant monster in the basement.  It’s one of those scenarios, especially common in early PFS, where there’s a ton of material in the backstory that the players will never get exposed to.  And from the players’ perspective, the encounters are pretty generic and forgettable, there’s only one opportunity for role-playing (with Krug), and not a lot of room for creative storytelling.  All in all, not a propitious beginning to the series.

Pathfinder Campaign Setting: "Andoran, Birthplace of Freedom" [RPG]

Andoran, Birthplace of Freedom is a 64-page, full-colour sourcebook in the Pathfinder Campaign Setting line.  Andoran is a fantasy pastiche of post-Revolutionary War era America, and is very idealised in its focus on freedom, democracy, and egalitarianism.  The book is divided into four main sections: Gazetteer (24 pages), Anodren Factions (10 pages), Adventures in Andoran (10 pages), and Bestiary (16 pages).

The cool cover art depicts a very patriotic Eagle Knight holding the banner of Andoran high while a hobgoblin raider is about to bring a very painful weapon down.  The inside front cover is a map of the country that does a good job noting geographical terrain features (rivers, mountains, forests, etc.) and settlements, though it'd be handy to have roads or trails depicted (if any) that connect the settlements.  The inside back cover is the cover image sans text.  The interior art design is solid, and the artwork is excellent when it comes to monsters but only a little better than average when humans are depicted.

The Gazetteer establishes that Andoran is the Inner Sea's first republic, and contains an interesting history of the country, along with a detailed description of how its government operates.  I especially appreciate the incorporation of material from some classic 3.5-era modules involving Falcon's Hollow, material from adventure paths, and even Pathfinder Society scenarios.  In short, I love it when authors do their homework and make a seamless web of lore across various lines!  The section devotes four pages each to various important cities or areas: Almas, Arthfell, Carpenden Plains, Darkmoon Vale, and the Verduran Forest.  The material provides a nice general overview (Bellis, for example, seems like a great "home town" for a low-level campaign), though some more adventure hooks would have been nice.

The Andoren Factions section focusses on the Eagle Knights (and their various sub-units), with a handy sidebar noting other Paizo books that include additional details. The Lumber Consortium, Primordial Ones, and Seven Houses get about a page each (I've never heard of the last two).  New feats are included for each faction, and they look pretty solid.  The writing and artwork remain strong in this section.

Adventures in Andoran provide 5-6 paragraphs of information each on various adventure sites: Arthfell Forest, Black Forks, Candlestone Caverns, Claes Redoubt, The Colony, Crystal Falls, Diggen's Rest, Droskar's Crag, Nogortha Necropolis, Occarin, The Portside Strangler. and Selian's Watch.  There's a lot of great leads here for an enterprising GM to build on.

Last up is the Bestiary.  Random encounter tables are provided for each of the cities/areas covered in the Gazetteer, but I find them way too broadly spread in terms of CR to be really feasible in play.  One-page entries are then provided for either new creature types or individuals:  Cervapral Agathion's (antelope-men!), the Bee-Man of Bellis (a super-cool guy with swarm-like powers and a neat story premise), Candlestone Courtiers (fey emissaries), Corrupt Politicians (very useful for stories with lots of role-playing), Eagle Knights (having generic stat blocks are great for NPCs), Fellsigs (undead who arise from molten rock deaths), Erinat Gremlins (proprietors of discord--good for very low level stories), Lumber Consortium Enforcers (very useful for the Darkmoon Vale modules), Ragewright (raging undead barbarians!), Sawdust Slough (kinda silly supernatural cloud of sawdust), Silverblood Lycanthrope (power wanes with the moon), and Talmandor (avoral agathion and non-divine patron of Andoran).  I think it's one of the best and most extensive bestiaries I've ever found in the Campaign Setting Line, and something I should make more use of.

And that's the book!  Andoran is a major aspect of many adventures and PC options in Golarion, so having a copy of Andoran, Birthplace of Freedom on hand would be a wise option.

Starfinder Flip-Mat: "Ice World" [RPG]

I've had a few opportunities now to pull out the Ice World flip-mat, most recently when the PCs discovered the existence of izalguun on the remote planet Izalraan.  One side features a frozen lake mostly covered by snow, overlooked by some rocky outcroppings.  It's very attractive, though the landscape contours aren't easy to discern.  And I'll repeat, to no effect, my ancient plea that these flip-mats would be of better value if the inside of the sleeves came with some suggested game effects for the terrain depicted--for example, maybe some DCs to move across the ice?  The other side of the flip-mat depicts a series of subterranean icy caves and passages.  There's three entrances/exits, several side chambers for smaller encounters, and a big cavern for a big showdown.  I like how icy steps are depicted to show different aspects of elevation.  A plus is that both sides are generic enough that they can be reused without drawing attention to themselves.  I'm far more likely to use the icy lake side, as it can stand in for any fantasy or science-fiction scene as long the weather is right, whereas cave networks are a dime a dozen in flip-mats and map packs.  Overall, a solid, usable flip-mat that's a smart addition to one's library.

Curse of the Crimson Throne Recap # 94 [RPG]

 [Toilday, 11 Arodus 4708 A.R. continued]

 

Near the semi-circle of shops known as Eodred’s Walk, Protosilaus and Ralph discuss whether the former could teleport the latter all the way to Absalom!  Interested in some magical items that just aren’t available in a city the size of Korvosa—especially after the recent unrest—the prospect is a tantalising one.  Protosilaus says it’d be easy for him to do; all he needs is a good description of a location within the city.  He enters Basha’s, the small bookstore and map shop, just before closing time.  The ever-cranky Basha is quick to confirm he has just what Protosilaus is looking for.  But when the proprietor returns from a backroom after several minutes’ absence, Protosilaus notices the scroll looks brand new and the ink is still wet on it! He leaves in disgust at the attempted scam, smashing an inkpot on the way.  Meanwhile, Ralph gets Phaeton Skoda to agree to let him know if House Arkona makes any large or unusual purchases of magical items.

 

When the two return to Ralph’s safehouse, they see the others are there.  Protosilaus talks Goldcape into accepting a magical brand (which he puts in the shape of a roc) that will, ostensibly, hardly hurt at all and will allow him to heal her even from a great distance.  Hearing Goldcape’s shout of pain, Ralph inquires what’s going on and is also persuaded to accept a brand.  But when he’s not quick to specify what he wants it to look like, Protosilaus chooses an outline of The Reckoner wearing a dunce hat!  Ralph punches him hard in the nose for it, and Goldcape decides to add a sap blow to the back of the head for good measure.  Ralph seems serious when he tells Protosilaus he better figure out a way to remove it soon or Korvosa’s dockworkers will find the half-orc’s body floating in the river.

 

After everyone’s asleep, Goldcape slips on the distinctive mask, cowl, and cloak of . . . Blackjack!  It’s time for Korvosa’s famed hero to make a return, and it doesn’t take long for them to find trouble—or for trouble to find them!  Up on the Shingles—the shantytown of huts, tents, and plank bridges crossing from rooftop to rooftop across the city—a fire has started!  Blackjack races in the direction of the flames, only to slip on a loose tile and land ignominiously in an alleyway below.  Fortunately, no was watching, and they’re able to scale back up just in time to see a band of thieves, arms filled with potions and wands, emerging from a rebel storehouse.  Clearly having set the fire as a distraction, the thieves seemingly have the perfect plan, but there’s one thing they didn’t count on: vigilante justice!  The thieves spread out, some drinking magical potions to turn invisible and escape while others, determined to make a name for themselves by being the ones to defeat the legendary Blackjack, come forward to fight.  Heavily outnumbered, Blackjack fights rapier to rapier against the thieves, suffering severe wounds but giving as good as they get.  Forced at one point to cast an uncharacteristic healing spell, Blackjack manages to triumph over four of the thieves—but others manage to escape.  A quick interrogation reveals that they’re full members of Korvosa’s only thieves’ guild: the semi-legitimate Cerulean Society. 

 

After turning over the prisoners and recovered items to Grau’s forces, Blackjack slips back into The Reckoner’s hideout and becomes Goldcape once more.  Wounded and still smelling of smoke from the nearby flames, she explains to Ralph what just happened.  He says the Cerulean Society is secretly run by Glorio Arkona, and it’s surely a plot against Grau.  What neither realise, however, is that a third person is listening in to their conversation . . .

 

[Wealday, 12 Arodus 4708 A.R. continued]

 

Over breakfast, Ralph suggests that today is the day to have the proclamation read because it would be best if some time passed between that event and the actual assassination attempt so that the castle’s defenders are exhausted by being on high-alert for so long.  But Lorien is much more interested in drama closer to home: he explains that he overheard some of Goldcape’s and Ralph’s conversation last night!  He says Goldcape shouldn’t be going on adventures without the rest of the group, but she replies that she’s known Ralph for a long time and shares some confidences with him that she doesn’t yet feel comfortable sharing with Lorien and Protosilaus.  Since the cat’s out of the bag about a run-in with thieves, Ralph shares his suspicions that the Cerulean Society has been directed by Glorio Arkona (whom he believes is their real leader) to steal from Grau’s army to weaken it for a potential post-Ileosa clash.  He says that directly after assassinating Ileosa, the group should teleport and try to take out Glorio too, before the aristocrat has time to react.  Yraelzin, however, is outraged by the idea, and says the group can’t start killing people just to shape the city the city to their own ends, and assassinating a rebel leader would completely undermine the rebels’ cause of furthering lawful transitions of power.  Ralph ripostes by reminding the group that Glorio is surely evil, and that he’s having his xill army implant captured Gray Maidens.  Yraelzin’s not so sure that Xoza’s intelligence is reliable.  Goldcape brokers a temporary truce by turning the focus back to the more immediate matters at hand: getting the proclamation read.

 

With Protosilaus taking the form of a crow, the others fly on Rocky’s back to the Grand Cathedral of Pharasma.  Keliathrothe, a xenophobic elven priestess who insulted members of the group previously, passes by the group in the corridors, and this time, she doesn’t say the word.  Could it be because she has somehow been cursed to appear as a disfigured intermix of elf and human?  Protosilaus smiles as she passes.  When they find Bishop d’Bear, she immediately agrees to send a messenger to the three faction leaders and to Seneschal Neolandus Kalepopolis.  After months of resistance the final step is about to begin: a formal proclamation evicting Ileosa Arabasti from Castle Korvosa will be read at noon, giving the self-styled Queen sixty minutes to depart.  And if she doesn’t . . . her life is forfeit!

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GM Commentary

I liked the concept (drawn from the Korvosa sourcebook) that the city's major retailer of maps is more than happy to sell items of dubious provenance (or, to put it plainly, forged himself!).  As an aside, I really love the "in-universe" map of Varisia that came with that region's Player Companion.  It was (perhaps unintentionally) different in distances and layout of geographical features compared to the "real" map of Varisia, which is exactly what one would expect.  After all, if maps were perfect and easy to read, people wouldn't get lost so much :)

We got to see Goldcape foil a robbery as Blackjack in this session.  As the vigilante is a big subplot in Curse of the Crimson Throne, I'm glad I could improv a scene where the new incarnation gets some action.  Trying to win combats while restricted to Blackjack's rapier was a sometimes-frustrating challenge for the player, but important for preserving the illusion.

Curse of the Crimson Throne Recap # 93 [RPG]

[Moonday, 10 Arodus 4708 A.R. continued]

 

Secure in The Reckoner’s safehouse, the Harrowed Heroes plan long into the night.

 

[Toilday, 11 Arodus 4708 A.R.]

 

The ringing of handbells in the street outside wakens everyone at dawn.  Goldcape sneaks out, invisibly, to see what all the clanging is about and learns it’s a horse-drawn cart to collect the bodies of those killed overnight by the terrible blood magic curse still striking down victims across the city!  Sadly, Mifeg—the homeless woman the group had some contact with months ago—is one of the deceased.  Goldcape returns to fill the others in on what she’s seen.  But although bodies may continue to accumulate as long as Ileosa lives, the group agree to plan their strike on Castle Korvosa carefully instead of acting rashly.

 

Goldcape decides to walk to Old Korvosa to check on Sergeant Clenkins and the other members of the rebel cell she organised there.  The vanara is recognised by friendly House Arkona soldiers at the bridge and waved across.  Although the perpetual gloom of the nearby Black Tower puts a damper on things, she’s surprised to see how much the city’s most notorious slums have improved in recent weeks!  Rubbish has been hauled away, no gangs roam the street, and there’s even early signs of new construction.  But curiously, her rebel cell is nowhere to be found.  There’s no sign of violence or disorder in the abandoned building, but it looks like everything other than Goldcape’s personal gear has been packed up and moved out. 

 

She decides to learn the rebels’ fate by directly asking the most important man in Old Korvosa: Glorio Arkona himself!  In Arkona Palace, after having her identity confirmed through a quiz from Glorio’s majordomo (apparently shapechanging assassins are a risk), Goldcape is immediately brought to meet the artistocrat in a well-appointed salon.  Glorio is welcoming and flattering, and explains that Sergeant Clenkins and his troops found it “unnecessary” to maintain their protection of the Black Tower after the forces of House Arkona arrived.  Instead, Glorio explains, they’ve joined the siege of Castle Korvosa.  Along with refreshments and a gift of platinum coins, Glorio hints that, should he become leader of post-war Korvosa, he would offer her a major position of responsibility: Commandant of the Sable Company Marines!

 

After leaving the palace, Goldcape realises she’s near Vencarlo Orisini’s old fencing academy and decides to pay a visit to her mentor.  The two speak carefully in case spies for the Queen are listening in, but Goldcape subtly confirms that the mission to Scarwall was a success while Vencarlo talks about rebuilding the academy with the aid of a wealthy student.  He welcomes Goldcape to stop by for lessons anytime.  Goldcape says her farewells and makes it back to The Reckoner’s safehouse in the early afternoon.

 

Meanwhile, Protosilaus and The Reckoner haven’t been sitting idle!  Leaving Lorien and Yraelzin behind, the two walk to a particular alleyway not far from the safehouse to meet with one of The Reckoner’s informants.  In this case, that informant is Xoza, a dandasuka in the employ of House Arkona who is magically-bound to spy for The Reckoner!  Xoza reports progress on the three tasks assigned to him by The Reckoner before the Harrowed Heroes left the city for Scarwall.  First, Xoza reports a (not-so-stunning) revelation: the vigilante Trifaccia was an efreeti agent of The Queen!  Given that Grau Soldado took care of that problem some time ago, the information is now of little value.  Second, Xoza was charged with learning what House Arkona was planning, and again the little spy has information that may be too late to be of much value: the aristocratic family has entered into an alliance with the queen of the xill from the Black Tower.  In exchange for military support, House Arkona lets the xill implant their spawn in the bodies of captured Ileosan loyalists!  Third, Xoza says his third task (to find out Glorio Arkona’s weaknesses) faltered due to the man’s security and that, as far as he knows, Glorio is just a human.  But The Reckoner gets a hunch that Xoza has doubts about that, and presses him to reveal not just what he knows, but what he suspects: that Glorio is a rakshasa!  Xoza doesn’t seem able to articulate exactly what that means or what the differences are between different kinds of rakshasa, but insists the only weakness of a “true rakshasa” is a blessed  crossbow bolt.  The Reckoner asks Xoza to next look into finding information about the Queen and her new seneschal, the bloodmage Togomor.

But as Protosilaus and The Reckoner leave the alleyway, they hear angry shouting nearby to the south.  It seems that the rebel forces loyal to Kroft (the “New Korvosan Guard”) and the forces loyal to Glorio Arkona (his enlarged “Palace Guards”) are pushing, shoving, and yelling.  And watching ominously, just behind the Arkonan side, are a contingent of the four-armed, flame-red insect-like xill, surely ready to intervene with lethal force at the least invitation!  The Reckoner pulls the leaders of the two sides away from each other and learns that they’re arguing about a boundary dispute stemming from an ambiguously-drawn map.  He’s able to calm the situation enough that the leader of the Arkonan forces agrees to return to the palace and verify the map with the majordomo.  On the walk back to the safehouse, The Reckoner says that immediately after taking out Ileosa, they should go after Glorio Arkona!  Protosilaus grins disturbingly at the notion, and The Reckoner continues by explaining that they can’t give the man any chance to seize power, and that allowing the xill to implant their eggs in captured loyalists is surely a sign he’s evil.  Protosilaus shrugs and replies, “or just pragmatic.”

Once everyone is back together, they plan their next steps: Yraelzin and Goldcape will visit Jeggare Library to check the castle blueprints (stashed there long ago by Goldcape) against the maps provided by Sabina to see if the latter are indeed accurate; meanwhile, Protosilaus and The Reckoner will do some long-range reconnaissance on the castle to determine if their current plan for entry is viable. 

The research part of the plan goes off without a hitch, as the blueprints are exactly where Goldcape left them (in the “Fungi of the Mwangi Expanse” shelf) and, after an afternoon’s comparison, seem to support Sabina’s veracity.  On the way back from the library, Yraelzin and Goldcape run into a strike organised by the city’s dockworkers.  Seizing on a rare opportunity provided by the rebellion (trade unionism is illegal in Korvosa), the dockworkers are threatening to stop unloading grain shipments for the rebels unless they’re guaranteed bargaining rights in whatever regime follows Ileosa’s!  Goldcape tries to explain to the strike’s apparent leader just how important the grain shipments are, but has no luck, even when she name-drops The Reckoner (it seems like Blackjack is the “people’s champion” to this particular dockworker).  Eventually, Goldcape sends a message to the rebels camped around Castle Korvosa about the situation, and their commander, Sir Gyrad Tolgrith, comes himself!  Tolgrith’s reputation precedes him, and, after Goldcape explains the situation, he’s able to give the needed assurances to get the ships unloaded.  Interestingly, the well-respected leader pointedly refused to answer Goldcape’s question about which of the three rebel faction leaders he supports.

The surveillance part of the plan also provides valuable intelligence.  Protosilaus conjures a magical invisible flying eye that he can somehow see through, and sends it on multiple journeys in and around the castle.  The witch-doctor learns that the group’s originally-planned incursion site (a salon on the fourth floor) is the barracks for a contingent of Red Mantis assassins—one of whom spots the eye and sounds the alarm so another can dispel it!  But Protosilaus always has another spell, and is able to conjure more eyes to continue the reconnaissance.  He’s unable to see into the throne room or the queen’s bedroom due to the stained-glass windows, but is able to discern the shape of  . . . something . . . in the latter.  A look into the armory and Sabina’s room doesn’t provide confirmation that there really are secret doors as Sabina said, but the sight of a corpulent imp raiding the kitchen and barbed monsters in the mess hall support her story about Ileosa consorting with devils. 

 

Still, the crucial question remains: has Sabina provided the group with everything they need for a surgical assault or instead simply set the bait for an irresistible trap?

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GM Commentary

I liked the idea that sanitation and safety in Old Korvosa was much improved under Glorio's control.  I wanted each of the three potential leaders to have positives associated with them, and (apart from being charming and generous) Glorio was good at keeping order.  Yes, he's an evil rakhasa, but he "keeps the trains running on time" as the phrase goes.

In regards to Xoza, I think I've talked before that it's hard as the GM to decide how much to have a spy reveal; it has to be enough for the players to feel like their efforts are being rewarded, but not so much that it undermines the campaign.  Here, it worked pretty well because I was able to draw links to a couple of subtle story elements that the PCs might not otherwise have put together.

Sir Tolgrith appears in Conquest of Bloodsworn Vale, one of the best 3.5-era Pathfinder modules.  Since Bloodsworn Vale is an area under Korvosan control, I thought it made sense to have him make a cameo.

I always find it a bit uncomfortable as the GM to handle reconnaisance like magical scrying eyes, gaseous form, etc., where the PCs aren't interacting with the rooms directly.  The issue is that if I go through the full room description it takes ages and they're not going to do anything apart from moving on to the next room to see what's there--so it's a huge exposition dump.  But, it can also be hard to concisely summarise flavour text in the moment.