Pathfinder Module: "Hollow's Last Hope" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

Hollow's Last Hope is a 16-page module for first-level PCs that was released as part of Free RPG Day in 2017.  It can be run as a standalone adventure or as a prelude to the first full adventure released in Paizo's module line, Crown of the Kobold King (the two adventures use the same setting, but have different plotlines).  I ran this as part of my "Roots of Golarion" campaign and thought it was a solid adventure in the classic "quest through the wilderness" vein.  The writing is really good, though the interior artwork is more of a mixed bag.  There are hundreds and hundreds of modules out there for first-level groups, and I can't say Hollow's Last Hope is necessarily among the best of the lot.  On the other hand, it has the advantages of being completely free, is set in Golarion, and serves as a perfect introduction to several other Pathfinder modules.  It's definitely worth a look.

SPOILERS

It's a bit weird to be writing this review during the coronavirus pandemic, as the premise of Hollow's Last Hope is about a disease known as the "wheezing death".  Also called blackscour, the disease has infected dozens of people in the small logging town of Falcon's Hollow.  The PCs will have to undertake a quest for ingredients necessary to cure the disease, and this will take them into the depths of the dangerous forest known as Darkmoon Vale.

The module gives the GM several suggestions on why PCs might have come to Falcon's Hollow and how to get them generally interested in seeking a cure for the plague.  The adventure proper begins with the PCs waiting in line to visit a local healer and herbalist named Laurel.  Laurel's shop, Roots and Remedies, is nearly overrun with people seeking folk remedies to help deal with blackscour.  The module contains a good description of the shop and of Laurel's personality.  After some conversation, she'll reveal that her grandmother's herbal recipe book contains a purported cure for blackscour--but the ingredients are incredibly rare.  The curing brew would require Elderwood moss which only grows on the oldest tree in the forest, a specially pickled root called rat's tail which might be in an old witch's hut in the forest, and ironbloom mushrooms which are most likely found in an abandoned dwarven monastery on the far side of the forest.  The "find three ingredients to cure a disease" is a bit video-gamey as a plot device, but otherwise the writing is strong in the opening scene.

The town of Falcon's Hollow is not mapped or really described here, so having Crown of the Kobold King or Towns of the Inner Sea is helpful in case the PCs decide to buy supplies or try to gather more information about these places before departing.  The module does make provision for the PCs to find an experienced woodsman named Milon Rhoddam who can give them more specific advice on where to find the cure ingredients in Darkmoon Vale.  The little scene also serves to introduce the Lumber Consortium, which is good if the GM plans to run other adventures in Falcon's Hollow.

The PCs will need to plot their own course through Darkmoon Vale, and paying attention to overland speed and terrain modifiers is crucial because the group is on a time limit: every day, a randomly-determined number of residents of Falcon Hollow die from the disease (until it "runs its course")!  The three destinations can be approached in any order, and the module includes a good section on random encounters--only a couple of the encounters are combat-based, which I like.  There's also one fixed encounter as the group travels through the forest--a fight against a hobgoblin ambusher.

The first ingredient, Elderwood moss, is found in a clearing deep in Darkmoon Vale.  A new monster called a tatzlwyrm guards the tree.  The back of the module contains a bestiary entry for the tatzlwyrm; it's a sort of wingless drakonkin that looks like a snake except for the fact that it has arms.  The idea comes from real-world mythology, but I didn't find it particularly interesting and a standard constrictor snake would have worked just as well.

The second ingredient, pickled rat's tail, requires finding the hut of a witch named Ulizmila.  Ulizmila isn't home when the PCs arrive, but it's good for the GM to play up her legend as she's further developed in other descriptions of the region.  Once the PCs start snooping around, they'll be the victim of a surprise attack by the hut's guardian: an animated object in the form of a cauldron, complete with the swallow whole special ability!  It could come across a little cheesy, admittedly, but I liked it anyway.  There's a unique magical item to be found in the hut called a soulspeaker, and I particularly like the (ghastly) artwork for it.

The third and final ingredient, an ironbloom mushroom, is the hardest to obtain.  This requires searching the grounds of a ruined dwarven monastery.  There's really nice exterior shot of the monastery that perfectly fits the gridded map on the inside front cover.  Several encounters are here, including wolves, a monstrous spider, a kobold rogue, darkmantles, a bat swarm, some traps and hazards, skeletons, and the "boss" of the module, a worg named Graypelt.  Honestly, I think it's probably too many encounters in too quick of succession.  This is a module designed for first-level characters, so it's very possible some of these PCs will be walking around with just 6 or 7 hit points as a maximum.  Smart and cautious groups will explore the monastery over a period of days so they can heal overnight, but the fact that there's a disease raging in Falcon's Hollow could pressure groups to press on.  In general, I really like tough decisions in gaming and external time constraints to keep the tension high--but I think for an introductory adventure like this, it's probably too much.  I do like how much lore about Torag and Droskar the monastery subtly introduces.  As a side note, the GM will have to decide how to address the connection between the monastery and Crown of the Kobold King, as the monastery has the entrance to the subterranean dungeons in that adventure.

Hollow's Last Hope is an adventure in the classic mode.  As a standalone module, it's a solid product and would work well to introduce new gamers to the genre (with perhaps some subtle guidance from the GM about the need to heal in the final section).  And as a free product, you can't beat the price!  The module works even better as a prelude to the multiple other Paizo modules that use Falcon's Hollow and Darkmoon Vale as a setting.  With those adventures as the skeleton of a homebrew campaign, a budding GM could tell some great stories and introduce players to their own little piece of Golarion.