Welcome to the Feywood

Ages ago, the Creator of Worlds - as he had done countless times before and would do countless times again - reached out his hands into the void. He willed to his fingertips bits of essence from each of the Elements: Earth, Fire, Air, Water, Light, and Darkness. He shaped those bits of essence, putting each in its proper place, and when he was done, Cartyrion was born.

The Creator of Worlds then pulled back his hands and, pondering his work proclaimed…
Meh… It’ll do.

The World of Cartyrion

The World of Cartyrion is a campaign setting for use in high fantasy role-playing games. It is a complete world, with continents, seas and islands with climates ranging from polar to equatorial tropical. A number of major sentient races call the world home, but for the purposes of this adventure, we'll be concerned with at most six of these: Dwarves, Elves, Gnomes, Goblins, Halflings, and Humans. The setting for this adventure will be a relatively unsettled region of mostly forest known as the Feywood - part of a larger region called simply the Frontier Lands. The Feywood is, as the name implies, home to a large variety and quantity of Fey creatures, but these will not figure heavily into this adventure. (Other adventures written for the world do introduce the fey into the story lines.)

Below, a very brief history of the world is given - providing information that every inhabitant of the world would have been told in stories during their childhood. Some brief geographical information about the region of interest is also given. These are by no means the full extent of the known history and geography of Cartyrion, but they'll do for the purposes of this adventure.

History

Creation and the Awakenings

Cartyrion was brought into existence by a deity known simply as the "Creator of Worlds". This god/goddess (nobody is really sure) is not actively worshipped on Cartyrion because he/she is no longer concerned with influencing the world in any degree. The Creator of Worlds does just what the title implies. A physical world is created - a framework or scaffolding for other deities to fill out in whatever means they choose.

After the Creator of Worlds was finished and departed, other deific beings arrived to take dominion over Cartyrion. These are the Astralar - several races of deities, each of which have contributed to the creation of life in the World, and which continue to interact with that life in various ways. Each of the major races of beings on Cartyrion can look to a particular race of Astralar for their origins, and for their continued influence.

The Alevar were the first to arrive. Having essentially a blank slate to work with, Berdea and Atezana of the Alevar created first all of the plant and common animal life of the world's land and seas. They then created the Fey to watch over those creations, but also to revel in their beauty. Finally, they created the Elves - the first of the major races to be "Awakened" upon Cartyrion.

The Duagnar and Orokar were not far behing in arriving; they created the Dwarves and the Orcs, respectively. While the Dwarves were, for the most part underground and not interacting much with the surface world, the Orcs came into conflict with the Elves almost immediately. Hostilities between these two have been common ever since, and to this day, they do not trust each other very much. The Gnomes were also awakened after the arrival of the Duagnar, but this awakening was the result of a unique collaboration between the goddess Atezana of the Alevar and ?? of the Duagnar.

Soon, the Goblinar (goblins), Jotunar (giants), and a number of other races of Astralar arrived, and most of these awakened beings reminiscent of themselves. A few - the Primalar and Mysticar - did not create sentient races, instead they sought worshippers from among all of the races of the world. These offered "special insight" into the magical workings of the world.

So... in a nutshell, the World of Cartyrion is a world of many deities. And those deities do not always get along. Which brings us to...

The Great Strife

Twenty-two hundred years ago, the minor hostilities and altercations among the various deities of Cartyrion exploded into all-out war. And of course, when the gods go to war, the impacts are felt not just in the heavens, but across the world as well. It is not important to know what this was was all about at this time, but it is important to be aware that it happened -- and that its effects are still being felt in various places around the world, including the Frontier Lands where this adventure will be played out.

The Great Strife resulted in many physical changes to the World. Hundreds of square miles of the great ancient forests were destroyed - and many fey and elves along with them. Deserts came into being where there were none before. Whole mountains were brought down in some places. Cities were destroyed, and some civilizations that had once flourished were wiped out. Parts of the world is still recovering, and the Frontier's Feywood is one such place. Before the Great Strife (or, simply, the God-War), human kingdoms claimed much of the northern part of what is now the Frontier - these lands were reduced to ruin and are only recently being repopulated. Much of the land still suffers from the Blight - a curse inflicted by priests of the warring deities; this land is only grudgingly beginning to yield crops to the farmers that are trying to make a living there.

Geography

The Frontier Lands

The larger region that encompasses the "field of play" for this adventure is simply called the Frontier Lands. The northern part of this region was once claimed by the First Kingdom of Man, and was reasonably well populated. The southern part consisted of the Feywood - one of the Seven Great Forests of Cartyrion - in which Elves have existed since shortly after they were first Awakened. Dwarves are common; three of their great citadels (called Delves) can be found - Ironhills Delve to the west, the Glitterhold to the east, and the Lonely Delve to the south. Goblins and Gnomes can be found anywhere the other races are settled.

After the Great Strife, the Human and Halfling population in the region was reduced to a handful of survivors in the the ruins of the City of Endmere on the Farsea coast. But in the past few hundred years, humans and halfings have returned to the area - most looking for a fresh start and opporunities to pursue dreams that weren't possible in the more civilized portions of the world. For some, this meant the promise of a plot of land to farm, for others the chance to tend herds in vast meadows. Still others sought riches that may be found in rivers and streams, or in the mountains near the edges of the forests.

The City of Endmere itself has been rebuilt and is more powerful and opulent than it ever was. The region just south of the Farsea coast is heavily farmed. The Oakwood forms a barrier of sorts between this more settled area of the frontier and the "true frontier" to its south. (The Oakwood is populated by many of the fell creatures created by the gods and their minions during the Great Strife.)

But enough souls have braved the Oakwood to establish settlements south of it. The plains between the Oakwood and Feywood are a difficult, but not impossible place to make a living at farming; much of this land is still feeling the effects of the Blight. But especially around Meadow's End, farmers and animal herdsmen have been able to make enough of a living to sustain a community.

The Feywood

For many that dared to head south of the Oakwood, life in the plains proved difficult. But a life in the forests further south seemed much more appealing. The lands were clearly more fertile, and if cleared, could be expected to be superior farmland. There was an abundance of wildlife as well, so food was not a problem. And of course, a forest that stretched for hundreds of miles meant all the trees one would need to build a comfortable home. The Elves and Fey already living in the forest, though, were not quite so thrilled with the sudden influx of humans and others appearing in the Feywood and proceeding to chop it down.

In the past hundred years or so, though, the Elves, Fey, and "newcomers" have reached agreements of sorts. Farmers are tolerated as long as they respect the lands they are claiming - especially when it comes to preserving the tree-homes of the many Dryads that live in the forest. The Elves and Fey have come to view the farms as simply a different form of "growing things in nature", and in some cases even work with the farmers to tend and improve their crops.

There are not many major settlements within the Feywood, and the farms tend to be clustered around those few settlements that exist. Two of you hail from towns at the northern edge of the forest (The Goblin Alchemist was raised outside of the town of Laketon, and the Human Fighter was born and raised in Dryad Falls.) This adventure focuses on a stretch within the Feywood along a trade road that connects two much smaller settlements in a region deeper into the forest than any of you have been before.

The Bugbear's Head Inn is a roadside establishment situated on this road. It is a week's journey from the Inn to the village of Feybridge Crossing to the northeast, and another week's journey to reach the halfling village of Spudbarrow to the southwest. There are farms situated along the road, but these tend to be within a few days of the villages - it is at least a full day's journey from the Inn to any sign of settlement or civilization. The road is fairly well traveled, though - there are merchants and minstrels traveling between the towns, and the Inn itself is a known gathering spot for folk from the nearby region looking to begin life as an adventurer. It is this last reputation that convinced each of you to make your way there.

If You're New to Pathfinder 2nd Edition...

Most of the rules and gameplay in PF2 is essentially identical to that in DD5E. The spells are pretty much the same... even the Feats are pretty much the same, though they may have different names. The types of things you can and can't do are pretty much the same... and of course, role-playing is more or less system agnostic. The differences do get more noticeable as you advance in level as well (with different class abilities, for example), but at first level, there really aren't too many significant differences. But there are a few, and you should at least be aware of them. The most important of these are described below.

Encounter (Combat) Mode

Initiative

Initiative works pretty much the same way it does in DD5E. You roll a D20 with a modifier - that's your initiative score. Highest goes first. The modifier will almost ALWAYS be your Perception modifier -- your "situational awareness modifier". There are a few exceptions if you're in the middle of something (e.g. somebody using Stealth to sneak past someone will use their Stealth modifier). Your Game Master will make it clear what modifier applies in any situation.

Your Combat Turn

The biggest immediate difference between PF2 and DD5E that you will experience is the difference in the "Combat Turn". In DD5E, you get "one movement and one action... and maybe a bonus action... sometimes...". In Pathfinder, it's much more direct, and much more flexible:

An Action could be...

• Stride -- move a distance indicated by your maximum speed (terrain permitting)
• Step -- carefully moving so as not to invoke an attack of opportunity (often called "Disengage" in DD5E)
• Strike -- make an attack (either melee or ranged). If you choose to STRIKE more than once in a single round, the second (or third) STRIKES have penalties assessed.
• Cast a Spell -- Spell or Cantrip. Most spells actually require 2 or even 3 of your Actions to complete - the spell descriptions make this clear.
• Manipulate an Item -- this includes drawing a weapon, retrieving something from your pack, readying your shield, opening an unlocked door, etc.
• Take Cover -- this is an attempt to Conceal yourself so that future actions may make use of your Stealth ability, or to avoid ranged attackts. Cover may be Complete (ducking behind a building or stone wall), or Partial (hiding behind a bush or tree trunk).
• Sneak -- if you are Concealed, you may attempt to move without detection. You can move up to half your listed speed. Depending on the nature of your cover, there is a chance an opponent may detect you.
• Lie Prone -- as it sounds - this is putting yourself flat on the ground (perhaps to hide behind something very low.
• Stand Up -- this assumes you are Prone before you take this action. (You may be getting up after being healed after being unconscious or near death.)
• Recall Knowledge -- this is a conscious attempt to recall information about an enemy or situation that you may have once acquired - whether in training, or tavern conversation, or whatever. Recall Knowledge is more extensively discussed below.[/section]

There are many other Actions possible, but the ones mentioned above will account for 99% of what you do in combat as a 1st level character, so we'll keep it simple. If situations arise when you want to do something creative, you will be informed as to how many actions it would take, and what other requirements, bonuses, or penalties will apply.

You can do your three chosen actions in any order (except that any activity that says it needs multiple actions - like spellcasting - must use consecutive actions, and you can't carry an action over from one turn to another. You can't start casting a 2-action spell using your third action of turn 1 and finish it in the first action of turn 2.

Free Actions

LIke DD5E, the concepts of Free Action and Reaction do exist. A Free action is something you can do that doesn't cost any of your three Actions. In general, you can perform multiple Free Actions during your turn, but don't get silly. Your GM may decide that too many free actions eventually constitutes an Action.

Examples of Free Actions include (but are not limited to)...

• yelling a warning to another party member. (But Pointing Out with a gesture requires an action!)
• barking a quick command to a party member (But not "directing traffic"... that would require actions.)
• Dropping a weapon, perhaps so you can draw another one. (But Sheathing a weapon requires an action.)

You should keep in mind that a Combat Round represents approximately 6 seconds of elapsed time. This means that each one of your Actions takes about 2 seconds. You are doing your Free Actions while you're doing the other things in your turn. When considering how detailed you can be in shouting out orders, for example, consider how much you can say in a few seconds. It's not much.

Reactions

Reactions work like they do in DD5E - if some specific Trigger occurs, and you have the ability to perform some form of reaction, you may interrupt the turn in progress to do so. Some reactions have very specific triggers. The Fighter, for example, has a Shield Block feat that grants a reaction usable once per round to actually reduce damage from an incoming strike. You can only ever perform one Reaction in a Combat Round.

Critical Successes and Critical Failures

The rules on what constituted a Critical Success or Failure are a bit different in PF2. Whether it is an Attack roll (against opponent's Armor Class or AC), or a skill check or saving thrown against some DC stated by either spell effect, or other rule description, or GM discretion, the results of the roll fall into one of four categories:

• If your modified die roll result is 10 or more greater than the specified DC (or AC), then the result is a Critical Success. If it is a combat attack, this is also called a Critical Hit.)
• If your modified die roll result is equal to or greater than the specified DC (or AC), but not 10 or more greater, then the result is a Success, or a "Hit" in combat.
• If your modified die roll result is less than the specified DC (or AC), but not 11 or more less, then the result is a Failure, or a "Miss" in combat.
• If your modified die roll result is 11 or more less than the specified DC (or AC), the result is a Critical Failure, or a "Critical Miss", or "Critical Fumble" in combat.

In addition, for combat rolls only, if the die roll itself is a natural 20, the result is a Critical Hit. Some GMs may also apply a "natural 1 is a Critical Miss" rule, but this is not Rules-As-Written. (For that matter, there is some discussion by the game developers themselves as to whether the natural 20 should be a critical hit - it is generally accepted that it was accidentally left in the rules after beta playtesting. But since it was not removed when errata were published, it remains Rules-As-Written.)

Your GM will explain the consequences of Critical Successes and Failures as they arise. But it is worth noting that in combat, the Critical Hit calculations for "Double damage" are far, far more generous in PF2 than they are in DD5E.

Attributes, Skills, and Dice Rolls

Both DD55 and PF2 have the concept of Attributes and Skills. Attributes are your "raw abilities" (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma). Skills are special collections of abilities that a character may be more or less proficient in (Stealth, Medicine, etc.) In DD5E, your Game Master may require you to make a check using one of your skills, and the bonus available will depend on your proficiency in that skill. But other times, you will be asked to "do a Dex check" -- roll for a check using only the bonus generated by your raw attribute score.

PF2 never requires the latter to be done -- every check is a Skill Check. The bonus that you get for the check is a combination of bonus that derived from the raw ability score that is associated with the check plus an additional bonus based on your level of proficiency. For example, an Acrobatics Check will use your DEX bonus plus a bonus based on your training level in Acrobatics. Even if you are untrained, you get your DEX bonus. As Level 1 characters, your proficiency bonuses will either be 0 (Untrained) or 3 (Trained). We don't need to go into what they'll look like at higher levels... this is a one-shot!

Recall Knowledge

PF2 provides an excellent mechanism to manage the issue of player knowledge vs character knowledge -- it's a Skill Check called "Recall Knowledge". A DM can require a Recall Knowledge skill check associated with ANY skill in the event that a player suddenly comes up with some sort of plan or bit of information that the character most likely could not have. The most common use of this - and the method you will experience in the one-shot - has to do with identifying an opponent and knowing its abilities. Consider this example:

As first level characters on your first ever adventure, it is highly unlikely, for example, that you have ever experienced a Troll. You will probably not know they regenerate, nor are you likely to know that fire or acid will negate this regeneration. Every PLAYER knows this, but the characters? Then again, maybe... just maybe... your character heard an adventurer telling a tale in a tavern somewhere...

When your Game Master asks for a Recall Knowledge roll, a particular Skill will be specified. For "normal" forest creatures, the Nature skill may be used. If the creature is inherently magical, Arcana or Occultism may be used. Undead would require a Religion skill check. The Game Master will set a DC that must be met or beat with the roll, and if the roll is successful, one piece of information will be revealed. The specific information is at the discretion of the Game Master. It is not permissible to simply stand around and "Recall Knowledge" indefinitely until you learn everything there is to learn -- in fact the GM may increase the DC after a successful attempt. That said, a smart group of players will ask for Recall Knowledge checks at the beginning of every encounter if the characters have even a moment or two to prepare for battle.

Tactical Awareness

PF2 combat is designed to reward cooperative tactics. Two players can Flank or three players can Surround an opponent - this effectively reduces the opponents Armor Class by 2 points. Striking from Concealment also has bonuses. You should try to keep this in mind during combat - especially if you have a melee combat character. Two melee characters attacking from opposite sides of an opponent have an advantage over two attackers standing side-by-side.