Pathfinder Society Scenario # 0-20: "King Xeros of Old Azlant" [RPG]

 

NO SPOILERS

I ran King Xeros of Old Azlant via play-by-post at subtier 7-8.  It's a memorable scenario that successfully puts the PCs in an unsettling situation where they have no idea what to expect.  It's also one of the few Season Zero scenarios that plays with the gloves off, and parts of it can be challenging even for a modern PFS group.  From the GM's perspective, there are some issues that make it  challenging to run, so additional prep time is a must to ensure a smooth session.  It's not a flawless scenario, but it is an intriguing one, and has stuck in my mind long after I've forgotten many others.  I'll note there's a spiritual sequel in Starfinder Society Scenario # 1-27 ('King Xeros of Star Azlant').

SPOILERS!

It seems that in the final days of ancient Azlant prior to Earthfall (the cataclysmic event that reshaped Golarion), some powerful mystics and seers gained a sense of impending danger.  As part of a program to research worlds and realms far and wide, a special ship called the King Xeros was commissioned--a ship capable of travelling to and from the Ethereal Plane!  But once launched, the ship never returned, and its very existence has since fallen into mere legend.  But as the scenario starts, the King Xeros has returned and is floating in Absalom's harbor!  A strong backstory and classic adventure hook makes for a compelling start to the scenario, as the PCs are requested to explore the ship and glean answers to the many mysteries surrounding it.

In Act 1 ("Boarding Action"), the PCs arrive at the ship and learn it has already been boarded by Absalom's Harbor Guard.  But some sort of automatic defenses have been accidentally triggered, as flame projectors and defense constructs are slaughtering the seamen!  The faster the PCs manage to intervene, the more lives they can save.  Topside, King Xeros should immediately strike the group as strange.  For one thing, it's seemingly carved out of a single piece of crystal, and for another, there are no obvious entrance below decks.

Act 2 ("Breaching the Hulk") starts with the group trying to gain entry below decks through the only means possible: a magical doorway called a ghost portal.  It has a mechanic I've never seen before (involving opposed ability scores) to gain passage, and if the PCs do it the wrong way, the doorway disgorges the ghost of (of all things!) a tiefling barbarian!  The ghost doesn't stand up well in light of the PFRPG (it only has 32 hit points, for example, and doesn't pump out much damage), but it's another taste of this ship's innate weirdness--whatever happened to it in the thousands of years since it was launched hasn't been kind.

Act 3 ("Hunters from Beyond") has the PCs beginning to explore the interior of the ship.  The layout of the ship is frankly pretty confusing (in terms of the connections between rooms and between decks), and the way the scenario itself is laid out doesn't help (a GM has to keep switching back and forth between a general description of rooms and decks to later where the encounters in those areas are detailed).  There are some threads in the forums that can help GMs with this.  From the PCs' perspective, they quickly encourage strange, phantasmic plant-life laced throughout the ship before being ambushed by the xill who have taken over the ship and are using it to enslave creatures for their home plane.  The xill are a real threat because their tactics are to paralyse a PC and then try to planewalk with them to the Ethereal Plane for imprisonment in another part of the ship.  PCs who succumb here are effectively out of action until (hopefully) rescued at the end of the scenario.  It led to a really exciting battle when I ran it, as the PCs *just* managed to stop one of their own from being kidnapped.

Act 4 ("Riddle of the Navigator") is rather confusing to run.  The idea is that the ship's helm acts as a sort of giant puzzle box.  Instead of being a "real" riddle, the PCs can make skill checks to solve it and accomplish one of two things: 1) open a secret door or 2) release a creature who has been trapped in the helm to fuel it.  I found it hard to describe this because the skill checks depend on what the PCs are trying to do, but the PCs don't know (in advance) what their options are: the secret door has a DC of 50  (the highest I've ever seen!) to discover, and they won't know in advance that there's a trapped creature.  And anytime one of the checks is failed, a random roll can release something as minor as a phase spider or as scary as a 24d6 disintegrate ray!  The main inhabitant of the helm is a night hag named Skarja, and she can be negotiated with because she's relieved to finally be free.

Act 5 ("The Ether Fly Trap") is kind of fun, as the PCs face a handful of xill including one who controls a giant plant monster that functions a bit like the "claw" in an arcade claw drop game.  It's here that previously-captured PCs can be recovered.  But even if the group is successful in overcoming this encounter, the danger's not over--destroying the xill's plant creature starts a 10 round countdown for the group to escape before the King Xeros transfers to the Deep Ethereal with the PCs still on it!  It should be plenty of time for most groups to escape, but if several members are paralysed or otherwise out of action, there'd be a real race against time to get everyone off.

Although mysterious "ghost ships" are a staple of fantasy RPGs, they're usually filled with various sorts of undead.  King Xeros of Old Azlant presents an original twist on the trope and effectively maintains an atmosphere of the uncanny.  It's a scenario that definitely keeps the PCs on their toes as they explore, and the ending is exciting and cinematic.  GMs need to do extra prep before running it, but this one is worth the extra time.