Happy Halloween, everyone!
We carved pumpkins last week with my sister. My daughter carved a rabbit, and my son a cat. Or, more accurately, I carved a rabbit, and my sister carved a cat while my children bossed us around. Both of my kids shrieked when they had to put their hands inside and scoop out the pumpkin’s innards. Mostly they poked at it with a spoon. In fact, my kids didn’t do much at all. But, we had fun! We drew on some more pumpkins at home yesterday. Again, my daughter made a rabbit. My son went with a classic jack-o-lantern face.
This morning I packed up my kids costumes, and sent them off to school. They’ll have a party this morning, change into their costumes after lunch, and spend the afternoon at a school dance and haunted house. They’re absolutely over the moon. My son’s going to be a red dragon for Halloween. And my daughter? One guess.
Yup. A rabbit.
She might be obsessed.
My kids can’t wait to head out trick or treating.
And me?
To celebrate I’m taking a look at my five favourite Horror Adventures!
Ooooooh!
*cue the ominous theme music*
We’re starting off small with Starfinder Society Scenario #1-04: Cries from the Drift by Joe Pasini! This delightful little adventure is intended for Tier 1-4, features one starship battle, and tasks the player’s characters with exploring a derelict ship, uncovering what became of it’s crew (Spoiler Alert: NOTHING GOOD), and collecting the valuable intel they were carrying. This scenario does a great job of setting an ominous atmosphere right from the moment you step foot on the ship, and, with a solid GM, can be quite suspenseful. It’s got some surprises, so I won’t go into too much detail, but I will say that this adventures features some body horror, so it’s not for the faint of heart!
Up Next? The Strange Aeons Adventure Path! Strange Aeons is a six part series of adventures that will have your characters questioning their past, their allies, and their sanity! Strongly inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft, it’s spooky, macabre, and downright strange. With alien, unknowable entities, crazed cultists, and a whole heck of a lot of weird! I LOVE this adventure path. Seriously. Love it.
Strange Aeons begins with your characters waking up in an insane asylum with no idea who they are or how they got there. Oh, also, there’s some strange monster performing invasive surgery on someone else right outside your cell. Not the way you want to wake up! After your daring breakout you’ll have to explore the asylum, battle strange, shape-changing creatures, and find a way to escape — without being devoured by the… things outside. From there? Well, let’s just keep that under wraps for now. This is one of those campaigns where being in the dark is half the fun!
Strange Aeons begins with Pathfinder Adventure Path 109: In Search of Sanity (Strange Aeons Part 1 of 6)
Next we leave behind the psychological terror, and head into some classic gothic horror! Curse of Strahd
From Dungeons and Dragons, we skip back over to Pathfinder, with the Carrion Crown Adventure Path! Carrion Crown is a six part gothic horror campaign that is like a tour de force of classic horror beasts! The first volume, Haunting of Harrowstone, tasks the players with investigating a haunted prison, while later volumes feature carrion golems, werewolves, foul cults, strange beings, vampires, undead, liches, and more! The best part? You don’t always have to kill these beasts. Some have the potential to be allies (if you’re brave enough)! The plot? Stop the Whispering Way from freeing the Lich King Tar-Baphon! I ADORE this campaign!
Carrion Crown begins with Pathfinder Adventure Path 43: The Haunting of Harrowstone (Carrion Crown 1 of 6)
So what’s my very favourite horror adventure? Carnival of Tears
And that’s it!
Or is it..?
There’s one last thing I want to talk about: the future! The horror adventure I most want to play (and read), but haven’t.
Signal of Screams!
Signal of Screams is a three-part adventure path for the Starfinder Roleplaying Game that starts at level seven. It begins with your PCs on vacation at a luxury resort on an asteroid when suddenly the staff and guests begin to get violent! They’ll need to protect themselves and the uninfected guests. But, what if they’re not immune to the madness? I can’t wait to find out!
Signal of Screams begins with Starfinder Adventure Path 10: The Diaspora Strain (Signal of Screams Part 1 of 3)
Got a favourite horror adventure? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to hear about it.
Happy Halloween!
Jessica
, 
, and two books I thought he’d like: 
by Ernest Cline (which is also an 
, by the way), and the first three books in The Legend of Drizzt series (
, 
, and 
) by R. A. Salvatore. Drizzt’s origins are actually my favourite books he’s in, and my brother’s never read them. (Blasphemy! Haha). I think he’ll really like them. While we were shopping I found an awesome 
adventure 
, and I’ve just started mine. I got a lot of reading done, and have a few extra blog posts underway already. Be on the lookout for posts about 
(I know, I’m slow, haha) and 
in the coming days.
for the PlayStation. I was a kid when I played it the first time, and it literally blew my mind. Twist after twist I was just… Stunned. It’s got time travel, alternate dimensions, death, life, fate, a ton of NPCs you can get to join your party (many of which you meet well before you can convince them to join you), and (perhaps the coolest part) halfway through the game, after rallying friends and allies to help you defeat the villain, you have an epic confrontation which culminates with the villain using a magical ritual to swap your minds around. Your mind goes into his body and his goes into yours. All of a sudden those friends and allies are hanging around with the villain, trying to fight you. And you? Well, at least you don’t have to worry about fighting all those minions of the villain anymore. Cause they’re yours now. Sort of. Haha. So, if all your good friends are doing the work of the bad guy now, and they think they’re still doing good, but you and the other villains are working to stop them, are they still good guys? As a kid, I was amazed. Haha. Anyway, I started the game, which made my kids want to try, so we each started our own file. They’ve already reached the first big twist in the game, and were so shocked. They concocted a whole lot of crazy theories in an effort to figure out what’s going on. It’s adorable to watch. It’s been fun. I definitely owe fellow play-by-poster PaleDim a shout out for getting the music from Chrono Cross stuck in my head the other day. (Thanks!)
written by Jason Keeley; and ‘
, written by Crystal Frasier. But the other two? We had no idea. Something new.
. Those of you who follow this blog will know that I’ve been dying to get my hands on this awesome new release, so we were very pleased with his decision. Haha.
, 
and 
which is a lovely clear purple colour.
.
, which uses the Cypher System and is published by 
‘
The last book we got out hands on was ‘
) on Netflix. For those of you who don’t know, it’s a show about zombies that is currently starting its fifth season. Now, this isn’t some depressing ‘Walking Dead’ 
type show (although I also love that…). It’s more like a funny cop/murder mystery show. Except if one of the main characters was a zombie who needed to feast on brains in order to retain her humanity. Oh, and she works in a morgue. It’s loosely based on the comics (
) that were written by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, and published by Vertigo.
). But where else have I seen good d20 references? I know there’s others out there, but I couldn’t recall any specific instances.
in a bookstore and flipped through it. I wanted the book so bad, but had no idea what it was. I must have looked at it over the next twenty trips. Passing by, browsing, but never buying. Flash forward a few years and I suddenly went ‘A-ha! That’s how you use that book!’ I made myself a dual-wielding elven ranger with long red hair named Meloriel. We went to the store and browsed minis until I found the perfect one. And then…. Nothing. We never played.
which can double as any large ferocious looking dog. Considering how often we come across wolves, dire wolves, and barghest in adventures, we knew this guy was going to get a ton of use, plus he was a steal of a deal. Way cheaper than any of the actual wolf or dog minis. The second is a 
. It looks sort of like a green dragon mixed with a grasshopper. Very cool! Plus, once again, the price was right. Easily able to be any kind of large draconic creature from dragons and wyverns, as well as a good substitute for any large sized dinosaurs, it’s actually quite versatile. Everything else we picked up was medium or small humanoids. Now, there were a TON of cool ones. My particular favourite was Raistlin from Dragonlance, and that 
with the black robes and rainbow cloak which came right out of the 
. But, alas! Both were far more expensive than I wanted to spend. Haha. It was tough to narrow down the humanoids. We had a massive pile of them on the counter to go through, so we really had to prioritize. What did I need most?
which my son could immediately use as a grippli miniature for his character Hopwil, in our 
), and one male that could be played as either (
). With some strong suggestions from my husband we picked out five amazing dwarf miniatures, none of which I had seen before. One is a wicked female fighter (
), one is a male warrior which could also be used as a female and has an awesome helmet that the Shredder would be jealous of (
), The last three were all male dwarves: two warriors and a spellcaster (
, 
, and the 
, which was my husband’s favourite. We also picked up am amazing pirate mini called a 
which look so cool. Just… Awesome. My favourite mini was the 
, a female warrior with short hair, wicked armour, a big sword and a bow. She looks superb. In fact, the moment I saw it I exclaimed: “I don’t care what else we have on that counter, this one is my favourite!”
Adventure Path, I can guarantee he’ll see more than his fair share of use. Unsurprisingly, that campaign has mummies. Lots of them.
, which made her day.
So we crossed the street and walked back that way, until we found the place. And WOW, moving was a great idea! The space is much bigger than their old one–really, really, big, actually. It’s no longer crowded or cluttered. You can move around easily. There’s a lot of room to expand and carry more product. They have a vast area for unpainted minis and paints, another big area for card singles, and associated products, and a nice open gaming area behind which is an awesome mural that looks like you’re in a medieval or fantasy marketplace. It’s actually awesome! I’m so glad we popped in!
, which I don’t own. Or perhaps pick up the 
both of which were in stock and on sale for a good price. But, how could I say no to the start of the War for the Crown Adventure Path?! 
looks so amazing! They also had the 
, which I would LOVE to get my hands on and I know would see a lot of use. But, when it came down to it, I ended up deciding on the 
. I don’t have many Starfinder minis, and there are just so many cool playable races inside–many of which my family and I are already creating characters with–that I knew it would see immediate play.
. It’s a complicated looking game, but she learned how to play the 
, two wonderful puzzle games: 
and 
, and a kids game called 
. She plays them all the time, and frankly, I could use a new one to play with her. Unfortunately, I had no excuse to purchase her a new, expensive board game. But, I showed it to my husband and we decided to pick it up for her anyway. I’ve hidden it in my closet until the next gift-giving holiday comes. She’ll get it for Christmas, at the latest. Haha. Maybe for an end of the school-year treat. She’s going to love it.
As we were waiting in line, my husband picked up some new dice (clear and quite snazzy looking) and passed me a 
pack, which is a single random mini. It’s quite pricey in my opinion, at $4.49 Canadian retail, but we’d never picked one up before, and we wanted to see what the quality was like. The mini we got inside is quite sturdy (stronger than most of the Pathfinder Battles medium humanoid miniatures, but not as sturdy as the old Dungeons and Dragons ones by Wizards of the Coast). It looks awesome, too! We got the half-elf cleric, which is a short haired female warrior, holding a holy symbol and a longsword. She’s got practical looking armour, with a red tabard overtop emblazoned with Iomedae’s holy symbol. It’s a versatile looking mini. She can be a cleric, paladin, warpriest, knight, or occultist. She’s make an awesome knight, or guard, and the symbol is generic enough that is could be a knight’s heraldry, or a sigil of a town or mercenary company. She’s very cool. And, even though it’s still more expensive than I’d like, it was a nice treat.
by 
movie (which was awesome!).
alongside a ton of other animals and archetypes.
), my husband’s character befriended a sleazy scumbag named Bojask, and made him his cohort. Later, Bojask got a horribly stupid and overly friendly swamp barracuda, named Gulper, for his animal companion. This dopy thing was hilarious and a total blast to have in the party, especially as he licked and tried to ‘hug’ his grumpy, cussing owner. Half-way through the campaign, poor Gulper died. So heartbroken was the party we used resources to have the goof reincarnated, only to have him come back as a ram. As lovable as he was before, Gulper was even funnier trapped in the body of a completely different animal. He kept trying to bite when he should headbutt and swim when he couldn’t. But the best part? The first time the poor thing found himself in water and had no idea he couldn’t breathe water. HILARIOUS. In time, he died again, and this time was brought back as a spider. Admittedly, that didn’t last long. The poor thing kept trying to lick people with a non-existent tongue, and only ended up poisoning them with his mandibles. In the end, we paid a ton of money to have him returned to his proper form, only to have poor Gulper–who had finally gotten used to being a spider–adjust all over again! You haven’t laughed until you’ve seen a swamp barracuda try to figure out why he can’t shoot webs and climb up walls. Priceless!
releases some great new familiar and animal companions, as well as archetypes for both!
) a jilted, jaded loner like the 
), or a parent who would do anything for their children like 
), we’ve got you covered! So slip on your sleeves of many garments (
) to get that perfect look and get ready to celebrate Valentine’s Day in style!
) tailored just for them! Or skip the effort completely and invest in a staff of charming, or eyes of charming.
), or a harp of charming.
) or a true love’s locket (
) as a token of your affection. Always keep an eye out for them with kinsight goggles.
). For a less obvious faith, take a look at Hembad, the Wise Grandfather, an empyreal lord of connections, matchmaking and synergy. Contrariwise, Naderi is the heartbroken goddess of love, romantic tragedy, suicide and drowning (
, 
).
and 
). Take a walk on the darker side of sex with Ardad Lili, the infernal Whore Queen of seduction, snakes and women (
) or with the Green Mother, a divine fey interested in carnivorous plants, intrigue and seduction (
).
). Orcs can pay homage to Dretha, goddess of birth, fertility and tribes. Feronia is a lesser known demi-goddess of flame and fertility. Svarozic is an empyreal lord interested in parenthood, ingenuity and progress. And lastly, Shei is an empyreal lord interested in life and self-actualization.
); Zaigasnar, a daemonic harbinger interested in body modification, destructive vanity and pins (
, 
); her brother Socothbenoth, demon lord of perversion, pride, sexual gratification and taboos (
), satyrs (
), pairaka (
), incubus (
). Clerics and other classes with access to domains can check out the charm, community and good domains (
). Spiritualists can make phantoms with the dedication, despair or jealousy focus (all from 
), as well as the kindness focus (
) or lust focus (
). Bards can add the ‘dance of captivating desire’ (
) or ‘at the heart of it all’ (
) masterpieces to their repertoires. Characters of all classes can benefit from the feats: Cursed Love (
) and True Love (
).
), dream dalliance (
), matchmaker (
), seducer’s eyes (
My personal favourite is 
! This Pathfinder adventure module is intended for level seven characters and was written by Neil Spicer as his winning entry in RPG Superstar 2009. This wonderfully written adventure begins as the players attend a wedding ceremony for a friend. The wedding itself is a blast, with activities for the players to participate in, a great cast of colourful NPCs for them to interact with, and a feast in addition to the wedding. But soon a love-spurned gnome crashes the wedding with his beloved bees at the behest of his mistress, Queen Rhoswen. The players will have to save not only the wedding, but the entire town from the Fellnight Queen’s machinations by heading deep into the forest and entering her extra-planar realm! This adventure is just a blast to play! I highly recommend it!
or 
)! With rules for how to befriend and woo each member of the caravan, and updates in every volume for what items, events and places have meaning to each NPC, this adventure path is the first (and only) one that pays loving attention to the side characters right from the start of the campaign, to the end. If you want to get in on a game where relationships matter, give Jade Regent a try. The player’s guide is available as a free download, 
. The tick swarm is from 
and 
. Rafolk and the pipes of the warren guardian are from the 
. And the vomit swarm spell is from the 
. Moth familiars and giant cockroach companions are from 
.
The Quest for Perfection
Scenario 
The third adventure we’re taking a look at is the Palace of Plenty, a 3.5 Dungeons and Dragons adventure written to complement the 
book. This adventure was written by Tito Leati, and was published in 
The fourth adventure we’re looking at is 
, a Pathfinder adventure written by Tim Hitchcock and intended for 11th level characters. This adventure brings us back to the Wall of Heaven on the continent of Tian Xia. Here, on the island of Xielan, a prestigious fighting tournament takes place, which allows the winners to claim any one object from the treasury of Hao Jin, the Ruby Pheonix. This tournament attracts combatants from all over the world, including from nations inspired by real-world Japan, China, India and many more. The matches the players are going to engage in are varied, with the terrain often playing an important part in the battles. Some places the players might find themselves fighting in are: flooded mud pools, hot coals, atop multiple towers and rope bridges, and even fighting horizontally on the side of a cliff (literally standing on the cliff face with slippers of spider-climb)! Your players are bound to be continually surprised. In addition to the tournament battles, the players can join in extra matches and challenges. But as the tournament proceeds it becomes clear that something is wrong. From entrants being poisoned and assassins attacking, the players will have to work fast to figure out who’s trying to put an end to the Ruby Pheonix Tournament and stop them, before it’s too late!
The final adventure we’re talking about today is my very, very favourite. 
by Tito Leati. Now, the Jade Regent is a Pathfinder campaign where the last three books take place in Minkai, Paizo’s Japanese inspired nation in Tian Xia, but volume five of the series is my all time favourite. This adventure was clearly written with such LOVE and RESPECT. It’s honestly astounding how clearly that shows in the final product. But enough about the writing, what about the adventure?!
d20 Diaries 