Consignments of artefacts and magical items belonging to the Pathfinder Society have been going missing in transit in the Isle of Jalmeray, something calculated to annoy the Pathfinders (even before the local venture-captain was murdered)... The backstory for the GM explains all, and a party of Pathfinders is now needed to deal with the situation.

The adventure opens with the party being given their task: to travel across the island with a fake legendary item - the sceptre of the arclords - with the intention of having it stolen by one Zamir, the bandit lord (and, it is thought, agent of the Aspis Consortium) believed responsible for the thefts. The sceptre has been attuned to a special Wayfinder, which will point towards it wherever it goes, and the party are to follow to Zamir's lair and put a stop to his antics either by recruiting him or in a more terminal manner. Zamir has been getting information from a spy within the Pathfinders. This individual has been identified but left unmolested for now, and he has been given information about the proposed shipment. How does it feel to be bait?"

So begins a tightly-plotted adventure with some interesting aspects - for a start, the party is supposed to let the sceptre be stolen so they have to LOSE the fight with the bandits... not an easy thing to do, it's hard to manage without giving the game away, and who likes losing a fight anyway? The eventualities of their not managing to lose the fight or not have the sceptre stolen are covered reasonably well with other options of finding out where Zahir's lair might be provided. - it's nice to see a scenario author remembering that most plots don't survive contact with the players. Zamir's base and the operation he's running there are well-described and there are various ways in which the party can infiltrate the place and meet him. It is interesting to have a potential diplomatic solution as opposed to a final brawl, options are open.

Possibly the most disappointing thing about this adventure is that the exotic nature of Jalmeray doesn't really feature - it's up to the GM to add their own flavour to proceedings to achieve the right feel for the place. Other than that, it's a well-crafted and slightly unusual adventure that can be fun for players and GM alike.

Return to Assault on the Kingdom of the Impossible page.

Reviewed: 27 March 2016