Pathfinder Society - Scenario 2.14 - The Chasm of Screams.pdf

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A PAthfinder Society ScenAr io for tier 7–11
The Chasm of Scr eams
™
By Tim Hitchcock
The Chasm of sCreams
Pathfinder Society Scenario 2–14
Design:
Tim Hitchcock
Development:
Mark Moreland
Editing:
Vic Wertz
Senior Art Director:
Sarah Robinson
Layout:
Andrew Vallas
Interior Artist:
Christophe Swal, Joe Wilson, Kieran Yanner
Cartographers:
Robert Lazzaretti, Corey Macourek, and Christopher West
Vice President of Operations:
Jeffrey Alvarez
Marketing Manager:
Hyrum Savage
Editorial Intern:
Michael Kenway
Paizo CEO:
Lisa Stevens
Finance Manager:
Chris Self
Staff Accountant:
Kunji Sedo
Technical Director:
Vic Wertz
Publisher:
Erik Mona
This product makes use of the
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Player’s
Guide,
and
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary.
These rules can be found online as part of the
Pathfinder Roleplaying
Game Reference Document
at
paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd.
Pathfinder Society Scenario 2–14: The Chasm of Screams
is a Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for 7th- to 11th-level
characters (Tiers 7–8 and 10–11). This scenario is designed for play in Pathfinder Society Organized Play, but can easily
be adapted for use with any world. This scenario is compliant with the Open Game License (OGL) and is suitable for
use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
The OGL can be found on page 19 of this product.
Paizo Publishing, LLC
7120 185th Ave NE, Ste 120
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paizo.com/pathfindersociety
Product Identity: The following items are hereby identified as Product Identity, as defined in the Open Game License
version 1.0a, Section 1(e), and are not Open Content: All trademarks, registered trademarks, proper names (characters,
deities, etc.), dialogue, plots, storylines, locations, characters, artwork, and trade dress. (Elements that have previously
been designated as Open Game Content or are in the public domain are not included in this declaration.)
Open Content: Except for material designated as Product Identity (see above), the game mechanics of this Paizo Publishing
game product are Open Game Content, as defined in the Open Gaming License version 1.0a Section 1(d). No portion of this work
other than the material designated as Open Game Content may be reproduced in any form without written permission.
Pathfinder Society Scenarios are published by Paizo Publishing, LLC under the Open Game License version 1.0a
Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc. Paizo Publishing, LLC, the Paizo golem logo, Pathfinder, and GameMastery
are registered trademarks of Paizo Publishing, LLC; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder Campaign Setting,
Pathfinder Player Companion, Pathfinder Module, and Pathfinder Society are trademarks of Paizo Publishing, LLC.
© 2011 Paizo Publishing, LLC.
®
™
The Chasm of sCreams
By tim hitchcock
hen Venture-Captain Kyalla was cursed with a
terrible transformation into a raving, simian beast-
woman, the Pathfinder Society’s best healers and
arcanists toiled around the clock to find a cure. The
enigmatic druid known only as Osprey, however, believes
he’s stumbled upon a solution. Among the remnants of
the ritual that left Kyalla balefully transformed were
four candles, each crafted from a different humor, and
the fluid-drained corpse of an ape; Osprey believes that
replacing Kyalla’s humors with those from shapeshifting
creatures could reverse her condition.
Over the course of several months, Osprey has traveled
throughout the Inner Sea region, researching the strange
Angazhani ritual and procuring what he believes will
serve as powerful arcane reagents, including the black
bile from a lycanthrope and the blood of an ancient
blue dragon. He also attained the yellow bile of a
powerful doppelganger, which he discovered needed to
be properly prepared for the upcoming ritual. Knowing
few members of the Society capable of carrying out the
strange preparation, he traveled deep into the Mindspin
Mountains where a mysterious arcanist known as the
Phitoness of Axioms, who is an old acquaintance of
his—a woman with whom he had a tumultuous past as
colleague, and at times, lover—lived the life of a hermit
high in a mountain valley.
Osprey met with the phitoness, whose proper name
is Eya Uygroulis, at her isolated hermitage high in the
Mindspin Mountains between Molthune and Nidal.
His sudden arrival was hardly appreciated, and the two
ex-lovers quarreled for a bit on personal matters. After
placating the tempestuous seer by conceding to her
on matters of his shiftless romances, her disposition
softened enough for the two of them to speak at length on
the subject of the curse afflicting his friend and superior,
Venture-Captain Kyalla. Despite the curse being the
primary reason for his visit, Osprey deliberately brought
up the matter last, for in the past, Kyalla had been a
sore subject between the two. Still, Eya obliged Osprey,
telling him what she knew of such curses as well as the
preparatory incantations and reagents needed to perform
their undoing. Eya agreed to perform the preparatory
W
Where on Golarion?
This scenario takes place high in the Mindspin Mountains
between Nidal and Molthune. A remote and largely
uninhabited portion of the world, the Mindspin Mountains
offer little in the way of resources for adventuring PCs.
Be sure to allow players the opportunity to prepare for a
wilderness trek high in the cold mountains before setting off
on the adventure.
M
in
d
sp
i
Molthune
C
hasm of
s
Creams
•
n
M
s
in
ta
un
o
Nidal
incantations on his primary reagent, the yellow bile of
a doppelganger. It was agreed that while she prepared
the solution, Osprey would set off to collect the rest of
reagents and she would meet him with the bile in Absalom
in six days’ time.
Unfortunately, Eya never set out on her trek to the
City at the Center of the World. As she was preparing to
leave, a group of Kellid barbarians native to the isolated
mountains came across her hermitage and attacked,
catching her by surprise. The barbarians absconded with
Eya, taking her to the aptly named Chasm of Screams, an
ancient cavern once sacred to the region’s ancient Kellid
tribes and now inhabited by a wretched and capricious
winter hag named Cailleach, to whom the barbarians are
eternally enthralled. Beaten senseless, Eya now lies deep
within the strange chasm, on the very cusp of undergoing
the last part of a grueling and painful process that will
end with theft and destruction of her very soul.
3
PAthfinder Society ScenAr io
GM Tip
This scenario takes place mostly within a high-altitude ice
cave with strange, howling wind effects. Be sure to familiarize
yourself with the rules on adventuring in harsh environments
and wind effects on pages 439 and 442 of the
Pathfinder RPG
Core Rulebook.
Summary
Summoned by the impatient demands of Osprey to
investigate the mysterious and sudden disappearance of an
enigmatic ally of his, the PCs are sent to the Mindspin
Mountains to track down one of his former
associates, a powerful seer named Eya Uygroulis.
After a long journey, the PCs arrive at Eya’s
hermitage only to discover it seemingly
abandoned. Exploring the hermitage
triggers a deadly trap left behind by
barbarian kidnappers to dissuade
those who might try to interfere with
their plans. Following a thorough
investigation of the surrounding
area, PCs find an abandoned
campsite. At the site, they rescue
Eya’s dying raven familiar, who
informs them that barbarians have
abducted her mistress and taken her to a
place known as the Chasm of Screams.
Once the PCs arrive at the perilous
screaming caverns, they face the barbarian
warriors responsible for Eya’s kidnapping.
Making matters worse, navigating the chasm’s passages
is difficult and requires climbing, moving through icy
passages and coping with screaming winds, not to mention
the morlock guardians that inhabit the frigid caverns.
The PCs finally reach a labyrinthine cave where they
face off against the capricious and malevolent winter hag
who has taken Eya prisoner and left her to die within the
cave. Among the hag’s belongings, they also recover a
strange reagent Eya prepared for Osprey. Eya then fills
in the PCs a little bit concerning Osprey’s plot to collect
more reagents as well as her mission to deliver the reagent
to Absalom.
Osprey
“I’ve summoned you here to perform a task of dire necessity.
An influential, uh, venture-captain has been afflicted with a
terrible curse, and we can’t seem to break it. I’ve done extensive
research and believe I know what needs to be done, however.
I’ve collected humors from a number of vile creatures, all with
supernatural shape-shifting properties, and hope they can be
utilized to revert our dear associate to her rightful form. One of
these reagents—the yellow bile of a doppelganger—I entrusted
to an old... let’s call her an ‘acquaintance,’ shall we? Her name is
Eya Uygroulis, though she is often better known as the Phitoness
of Axioms, and she’s an extremely powerful seer. She was to
prepare the reagent for the forthcoming
reversion ritual and deliver it here
three days hence; I have heard nothing
from her and the prepared reagent is
nowhere to be found.
“Eya lives alone in a sacred hermitage
high in the Mindspin Mountains, along
the border between Nidal and Molthune.
I need you to travel there immediately
to speak with her, but be subtle with
your investigations. She’s a wily one, and
quite powerful. Find out why she hasn’t
sent the reagent and what I must do to
earn her cooperation. She and I have a
‘history,’ and I fear she may ask more
than I can deliver. You are authorized
to do whatever you may do within your
own means to persuade her to cooperate.
If something’s happened to her, of course,
I ask that you do your best to ensure her
safety, but your priority is the reagent.”
GETTING STarTED
Read the following to get the adventure underway:
Having responded to his supercilious summons, you now sit in
a private conference room at the Grand Lodge across from the
enigmatic druid known only as Osprey.
If the PCs question Osprey about the afflicted venture-
captain, he offers no further information, stating that
the venture-captain’s identity is confidential and none of
their concern. Some PCs may inquire about the Phitoness
of Axioms and Osprey’s relationship with her. He is
hesitant to admit that the two were once lovers, but hints
that they were more than just working associates. He
reminds them that she is an ally of the Pathfinder Society,
and may need convincing to cooperate, but that she is not
the PCs’ enemy. If anyone asks about the environment in
the Mindspin Mountains, Osprey simply suggests they
dress warmly and be prepared to climb.
How PCs get to Eya’s hermitage is up to them, though
they may find that overland travel is incredibly time-
consuming. If a member of the party has the ability to
teleport the group closer to her hovel, if not directly
there, Osprey may suggest they take this course of action,
as time is of the essence. Should PCs lack this capability,
they may get a member of their respective faction or the
Pathfinder Society to cast teleport for them for 4 PA.
4
the chASm of Scr eA mS
One square = 5 feet
The Hovel
N
T
GameMastery Map Pack: Farmstead
The PCs begin the adventure at the edge of Eya
Uygroulis’s grove.
The mountain trail widens here, and glints of sunlight dart through
the clutching, skeletal branches of the towering yellow pines. The
incline softens into a small dell, set against the backdrop of the
gray, toothy peaks of the Mindspin Mountains. Near the center
of the clearing stands a small hovel of rough basalt stones, neatly
covered with sod to protect it from the mountain’s wintery chill.
According to Osprey’s map, this is the sacred hermitage of Eya
Uygroulis—his former associate and estranged lover—better
known as the Phitoness of Axioms.
Upon their arrival, any PCs succeeding in a DC 10
Perception check quickly note an uneasy stillness within
the dell. Nothing stirs within its perimeter, not even
the wind. Nearly a week earlier, Cailleach’s barbarian
thralls raided Eya’s small hovel and seized her for
interrogation. When they departed, the barbarians left
behind both a deadly trap and a talented spy to sabotage
the investigations of anyone meddling in Eya’s affairs
who might come looking for her.
aCT 1: ThE PhIToNESS
of axIomS
The Hovel (CR 8 or CR 10)
Any PCs who examine the hovel immediately notice its
unlocked door sitting slightly ajar. If the PCs peer into
or enters the hovel, read or paraphrase the following
description.
A sickly yellow glow emanates from the grease-smeared
windows, leaving the room dim and shadowy, while a beam
of direct light slips in from the open door. The illumination
highlights a small table of rough-cut pine. A note rests atop
the table, weighted in place by a small soapstone figurine
carved to resemble a seahawk.
Traps:
Before leaving, the barbarians rigged the main
room of Eya’s hovel to function as a trap. A concealed
string covertly attaches the f igurine to the trap’s
release pin. Anyone who moves the f igurine pulls the
release pin, causing the entire room to collapse upon
its occupants. The barbarians attempted to make the
soapstone f igurine more enticing by casting
magic aura
on it. Similarly, the note beneath the f igurine is a hoax.
Anyone making a DC 12 Linguistics check quickly
determines the cryptic writing of incomprehensible
origin is complete gibberish.
5

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