Pathfinder Society Scenario # 2-23: "Shadow's Last Stand, Part I: At Shadow's Door" [RPG]

NO SPOILERS

I played At Shadow's Door via play-by-post with my chaotic, randomly-generated PC, Jilla!.  I'm a little bit of two minds about the scenario.  The background plot has some big holes in it.  But, the actual writing and premise of the scenario is interesting, and some of the encounters are more than meets the eye.  I think I'm going to give it a tick of approval, even if I wish the Season 2 metaplot (which this is a part of) had been held for later years in PFS1, when writers were able to better make use of deeper and more sophisticated storylines.

SPOILERS!

If you know anything about the early seasons of PFS1, the title of this scenario alone is probably a giveaway that it will involve the Shadow Lodge.  I really love the idea of the Shadow Lodge--a "group within the group" that wants wants to move it out of the control of the Decemvirate and improve the treatment of field agents and then . . . well, that last bit seems to vary dramatically between different members of the Shadow Lodge.  I think maybe around Year 8 or 9, this would have been a fantastic storyline to explore the morality of the Pathfinder Society and the effects it has had on various places in Golarion.  Here, unfortunately, it all becomes too black and white, with the Shadow Lodge portrayed as obvious villains and the PCs having to stop them.

Anyway, At Shadow's Door takes place in Almas (capital of Andoran) and involves a plot by a member of the Shadow Lodge named Spider who has a big plan involving the capture of the PFS lodge (including Venture-Captain Brackett) in the city so she can "weaken" the Society and then . . . something.  I couldn't really grasp what the Spider thought would happen next to help her achieve her ulterior motives (which isn't the destruction of the Society per se). The Spider has allied with a hobgoblin general Hagla to pull off the capture of the Almas lodge, but unbeknownst to her, Hagla has a plan of her own: the hobgoblin plans to ring the building's bells (it's an old cathedral to Aroden) to signal an invasion of the city!  I'm similarly not persuaded that a hobgoblin army could sneak into  Almas, poised to attack, without folks noticing.  But all my plot nit-picking aside, it does make for big stakes, which can be a nice change of pace from the usual goal of "retrieve this magical item that you'll never hear about again".

The briefing is held aboard the Hornet's Nest in Almas' harbor.  The rarely-seen Venture-Captain Hamshanks explains that, during a big gala at the Lodge, kidnappers dressed as servants attacked from the inside.  Some are dead and some have been held hostage, and the only individual to escape and bring word of what happened is Fillian, a young apprentice of the Lodge's resident wizard/librarian Wystorn Telfyr.  The dialogue for Fillian is really funny (a nice touch for briefings, which can often be fairly dry), and he explains that the only way to sneak into the cathedral is the same way he snuck out: through the belfry!  Having recently prepped # 2-16, The Flesh Collector, which starts in the Almas lodge and features Brackett and Telfyr, I really enjoyed the continuity displayed in this scenario (down to Telfyr's interest in homunculi).  The scenario here provides an excellent and thorough description of the cathedral, something an enterprising GM could use in the future for adventures whether formally PFS or not.

Trying to get into the building from the top down is a fun twist, and my favourite part is a context-dependent trap that makes perfect sense.  After hearing Fillian's escape from the belfry, the hostage-takers have rigged the cathedral's bells with a tripwire.  In the (very likely) event the PCs set off the trap, the bells ring loud and long for everyone in the whole building to hear and prepare for intruders.  For each of the bad guys, tactics are provided for whether they're on alert or not.  Alas, when I played, the GM gave all the PCs automatic Perception checks to notice the trap (as if we all had the coveted Trapspotting ability!), rendering the clever idea essentially moot.

The first combat encounter takes place under the cathedral's main dome and is against some air elementals.  They can make good use of fly-by attack and whirlwind abilities in such a large space, and so may be harder than they first appear.  There's some very interesting lore about Aroden on the walls of the dome for those (like me) who love to see such things.

Next up is a battle against an animated stained glass window!  Also much tougher than one might think, as we struggled to get past its hardness and immunity to magic.

There's then an optional (time dependent) encounter with Wystorn Telfyr's homunculi.  This can be handled diplomatically as well as through combat means, which is a good option to see once in a while.

An ambush by a couple of hobgoblin rogues follows, but I imagine pretty much any group of PFS PCs should be able to handle them with little difficulty.

And then it's on to the chapel for the big finish.  If the PCs did set off the bell trap, this is a pretty confronting scene as the hobgoblin general Hagla has Brackett and Telfyr strung up on a makeshift gallows and threatens to hang them unless allowed to escape unharmed!  She's serious too, which could very well lead to an encounter of trying to defeat her while simultaneously keeping NPCs from strangling in the nooses.

As the scenario wraps up, the PCs will learn the true identity of The Spider and be in a good position to tackle Part II.

Thinking it through, apart from some plot holes which probably won't be noticed by players, the scenario has some creative twists and should provide an exciting session of adventuring.  I'm looking forward to trying out the sequel.