How Not To Kill Your Players In The Fall Of Plaguestone

The Fall of Plaguestone cover art

Hey folks!

I freakin love The Fall of Plaguestone! It's a beautiful adventure with complex themes about loss, betrayal, and societal guilt, and I wish more people got to experience that! Unfortunately, it is plagued (heh) by overly tough encounters that have lead to many TPKs. One person I talked to said their three groups had all TPKd, once to the wolves, once to the chapter 1 boss, and once to the chapter 2 boss! While I never had a TPK in the two times I ran it, I did lose 2 players the first time through, and there were definitely a few other close calls.

Today, we'll be going through my advice for toning down some of the rougher aspects of the module and bringing out what's really beautiful!

Conveying Themes

Before we get into mechanics, I want to include a quote from the adventure writer, Jason Bulmahn, from a reddit thread that I think every prospective GM should read:

The adventure evolved a lot as I was writing and playtesting it with a local group and to be honest, I wish I would have had a chance to run it a few more times. Building a solid connection between the PCs, the caravan members, and the town is critical. I wanted the PCs have their own reasons for wanted to save this tiny place, beyond just "that is what adventurer's do", but I also wanted some nuance in that telling.

The town is a complex place, with a troubled past, but the people there today, for the most part, are just looking to have a good life for them and their kids. Getting the players to feel that, to see that it is not as simple as good versus evil, is a central pillar to this tale. I hope you and your group have a good time with it.

Thanks Jason! I love how involved Paizo folks are in the community.

The only piece of general narrative advice I'd add is to foreshadow each chapter as early as possible (have the townsfolk set up Noala early as someone to talk to about wolves but have her be away, for example), but here are some links with some broader discussion/advice!

Adjusting Difficulty

So! What seems to be the problem? In essence, this module is from the very early stages of PF2, and a lot has been learned since then about balancing adventures. This has led to a lot of folks having a tougher time than is typical of PF2 adventures, and has the potential to turn people away from this really cool system! There's some discussion of this online, but I haven't found a cohesive guide to tuning it down.

Today we'll be going through two options - tuning up the party, or tuning down the adventure - as well as talking about the one encounter that probably needs both!

Adjusting Party Strength

The first (and in my opinion, easiest) way to tone down this adventure is to beef the party up! For my second run through of The Fall of Plaguestone, I did not tone down any encounters. Instead, I used the following house-rules (taken from the Rules Lawyer, though I now can't find the specific video):

Beginner's Luck

Level 1 PCs start the HP of a level 2 character. To compensate, they only gain half a level of HP on levels 2 and 3, and so should be back to the normal curve by level 3.

This reduces the swinginess of low-level PF2, which is unique to low-level characters (as HP scales faster than damage) and is therefore not a good representation of the system for new players.

If you use this variant, I would actually make the Hallod fight slightly harder, by increasing his HP as well or adding some low-level minions, like dogs. The fight was over far too quickly, since the champion did not go down when he would've normally and there wasn't as much pressure to heal when they could just do damage.

With this variant and 5 players instead of 4, Chapters 1-2 felt really good! The only changes I made were replacing the orcs in Chapter 2 with hobgoblin soldiers to better account for the 5th player and to better connect to better connect FoP to the Red Hand of Doom, plus adding the odd creature here or there to account for the 5th player. For beginners, this difficulty felt really good, though for a more experienced group I'd either want 4 players or to not use this homebrew.

Magical Restoration

Once per day, spellcasters can spend 1 hour to regain their rank 1 spell slots (and re-prepare spells, if applicable).

There are a lot of decently chunky dungeons in this adventure, and low-level spellcasters have terrible staying power! Especially when new players are really likely to want to use their cool powers and not be thinking too tactically about it.

This variant has worked really well for this group so far - it gives spellcasters a little more longevity in a module that demands it, but as they level up its impact gets smaller and smaller. It gives them training wheels for learning to conserve/manage spell slots, basically. If you have an alchemist, probably consider something similar for them (1/day regain x reagents [int?], maybe, which can only be used for quick alchemy).

Again, having 5 players helped too.

The Hardest Encounter

I'm not sure if I have seen a tougher encounter printed in an AP than the fight with the Blood Ooze. Both times I ran this AP, I had 5 players, and they barely made it through alive. The first time, 1 PC actually died. The second time, I also had Noala come help them, and that was with an extra 1/2 level of HP and full spell slots from the variant rules above! If I hadn't, there definitely would've been character deaths, though probably not a TPK. This is the only encounter I would recommend toning down even if you both use the house-rules above and have 5 players. See the next section for my suggestions for if you use only one or neither.

On paper, this is an Extreme encounter for 2nd level PCs. Both the Sculptor and the Blood Ooze are level 4, for 80 XP each, 160 XP Total. Even for 5 players, this is beyond the Severe threshold by 10 XP. Even more than that, there is a ton of persistent damage in this fight, which is the number one way to kill Pathfinder 2e character. Even with the modules attempt at toning this down (making the Sculptor spend an action hitting a DC 19 Crafting check to command the Ooze, which is a 55% chance per action), this encounter is too tough for most parties!

I have a few potential solutions. I'd pick your favorite, rather than doing all of them, unless you have a particularly small or un-tactical party.

1. Add the weak template to both creatures, bringing them down to Level 3 (60 XP each), to make the encounter Severe (120 XP) instead of Extreme. If you have 5 players, you could only give the Sculptor the weak template, but the Blood Ooze's +15 to hit paired with the bleed damage is rough so I would definitely tone that down.
2. Make the Blood Ooze a Minion of the Sculptor! This means that he has to spend an action commanding it, and that it only gets 2 actions when he does. You might even keep the Crafting check in there, wasting actions on a fail. I'd still give the Blood Ooze 1-2 actions on a fail, but have it randomize who it attacks (potentially targeting the Sculptor as well in this case if he's close enough, which maybe he has to be if he was trying to command it).
3. Have Noala help them! Especially if you give her good medicine and battle medicine, or a staff of healing or something. Even if she just runs around stopping the bleed damage and doing minor healing, it'll be a big help.
4. Tone down the abilities! Unless you have a huge party, I'd also do one of the others. Remove the Ooze's bleed damage on a hit, and reduce Siphon Vitality to 1d6-2d6. Without the bleed damage the blood pool also goes away, which was nice flavor but very strong, but you could also remove Clot too if you want the ooze to die faster.

Other Tough Encounters

If you don't want to implement house-rules, here are the changes I'd make for balance purposes throughout the module.

Mangy Pack (p5-7). I think this is probably fine if you follow the guidance in the "First Fight" sidebar (don't flank or single-out weak PCs, be careful with the caustic wolf, have Olf and Ulf show up to draw enemies if things get rough), but lots of folks have had trouble with it, so here are some more options!

• Make sure there's not a lot of overlap between the Mangy Wolves and the Caustic Wolf. This should be a waves-encounter, not a big brawl with everyone. If you don't want to be restricted like that, give the Caustic Wolf the weak template and just have it arrive after 1 round.
• Avoid using the acid breath one more than 2 PCs. If you don't want to be restricted like that, reduce the damage dice to 2d6, the DC to 15, and the area to a 15-foot cone.
• If Olf and Ulf do have to show up, I'd make them dockhands and have them actually fight! Fits the vibe, but they're weaker than the PCs (though likely with more HP).

Bar Brawl (p7-8). I've only seen a couple people say they had problems with this, and it seemed they might've been treating it like a fight with all 12 drunken farmers. No wonder, that'd be like 240 XP worth of fighting! Yikes! The module calls this a Moderate encounter, though, so that's clearly not the intent.

• I recommend running this theatre-of-the-mind! Focus on the sights and smells, rather than the mechanics. I might even do a Shadowdark-esque 1 "Action" per round (e.g. describe what you wanna do and give it a go) for an even more streamlined system, with Blades in the Dark esque complications on failed rolls, rather than active baddies making their own checks.
• You can use the "pacify 3 farmers" approach in the book, or use a victory points system where the PCs have to get 1 VP per character (or 1-2 more? depends on how hard you want this to be), and they can approach things non-violently. In my games, I've had folks try to intimidate farmers into backing off, plead with them diplomatically, physically pull them apart, take out Farmer Eallom as the instigator, and even create a little mini-earthquake using some kineticist shennanigans!

Rosemary Bushes (p13). I saw one person say their party woke the grizzly bear and got destroyed! Yikes!

• Make clear to the PCs that this is a spooky scary situation, but that the bear is asleep and so might not notice them. Remember too that while unconscious, the bears Perception DC is only 16, and it relies on smell so any attempt to disguise scent will likely give a cover bonus.
• A failed stealth check from the party needn't mean combat! The bear will likely be slow to wake, and quick thinking or hiding in cover might be enough to either get it back to sleep or drive/distract it away from the bushes! If not, that sluggishness might give the PCs an advantage in a fight (it starts prone and slowed 1, and rolls initiative with a -4).

Hallod's Hideout: Front Door (p17). The spear launcher is pretty deadly! It does an average of 13 damage on a hit, and with a +14 has a decent change to crit, especially against the squishy casters that are also likely to die from overkill damage!

• Make sure you are being extra clear about signposting how weird this setup is! The door is just, dangling open? With a rope leading back into nowhere? That's pretty sus! And very easy to clock if the PCs just, look.
• Reward clever ideas! If the PCs open the door while next to it instead of in front of it, the spear can't hit them. My second group has someone standing behind the door as they opened it, so I gave her greater cover (+4 to AC) against the spear's attack. 
• Consider reducing the attack bonus to +10, or reducing the damage from 2d6+6 to 3d6 or 1d6+6.

Quick note that the Snake Pool (p20-21) will likely feel like more of a Moderate encounter than a Low one due to high stats - probably fine, but make sure your PCs are at full HP (or close) before moving on!

Hallod's Ambush (p21-22). This is a tough one! Hallod himself hits very hard - a +12 has a 20% chance of critting even the most heavily armored level 1 PCs, which only increases against squishies, and 2d6+12 (average 19) damage is almost guaranteed to down a 1st level PC. Even two hits (average 1d6+1d4+12) will likely down one! And that's before getting into the spear traps!

• Definitely give Hallod the weak template so he's less likely to one-shot a PC. He's still scary (60 XP), but much less likely to crit and less likely to down a PC when he does. If you add minions, have him use his crossbow at first, which is less accurate, less damage, and requires reloading - this way he will stay out of the fight and survive longer, and have to spend an action to switch weapons.
• If you really want this to be a Severe fight instead of moderate, consider adding some more guard dogs (1 for a 4-player party, or 2-3 for a 5-player party), though honestly I think it's okay if it's this fight isn't the scariest in the world, especially for a group of beginners.
• Consider reducing the Spear Launcher damage as above, especially if you add guard dogs.

The Rotten Corpse (p26-27). The big problem here is the bleed damage, which can get pretty nasty.

• I recommend not having the bleed damage stack. I think I did this accidentally just because I didn't read carefully last time, and (with 5 players/extra HP/Noala's help but an extra plant) it felt good. If you really don't like bleed you can remove it altogether, though that's a big part of the flavor of these guys.
• If you are a 4-person party with (the default) 2 levels of HP, you could either add a weakness to slashing or remove the bludgeoning/piercing weaknesses to help them go down faster! Or up the fire weakness to 10 if you really want spellcasters (or torches!) to shine.

Foul Den (p27). This is just an honorable mention, I think the fight is fine - the first time I ran this module, I made one of the wolves Elite to account for a 5-person party, and it killed a PC! Do Not Do This! It makes it way too tough haha. I think this encounter works as written, but feel free to have Noala on standby in case things get rough. Maybe give her battle medicine too.

The Yard (p30-31). Another honorable mention - make sure that the orcs (or hobgoblins for my 5 player party) have to spend time freeing the animals before they join the fight! It's pretty manageable if you do that, but potentially rough otherwise.

Lair of the Sculptor/The True Experiment (p33-35). See above ("The Hardest Encounter"). Note that if the PCs fight the Sculptor and Blood Ooze separately, this is probably fine as written, but that's unlikely.

Spites Cradle Entrance (p36-39). The danger here is not the individual encounters, but how likely they are to string together. It's a very small encounter space, and playing the baddies with any intelligence at all (which you should!) can make things very dangerous very fast. This is especially tough since the front gate is virtually impossible to open unnoticed, and Graytusk should realistically be able to see the whole yard! If all the orcs are assembled, that's 10 baddies (lv. 4 Lord Nar, lv. 3 Graytusk, and 8 lv. 0 nerds) for a total of 230 XP! Here are a few options - I wouldn't do all of them.

• Give the mooks a weak adjustment - they are so addled by Vilree's drugs, or something. This is still 190 XP all told, but only if they all fight at once.
• Play down reaction times! This is tougher to justify if you use hobgoblins like I did, but the orcs might basically just jump into the fray without thinking of the odds! If they do flee for help later, the PCs might have time to cut them down first...
• You might also have the orcs in the cave be asleep and slow to respond (maybe a full round or more to get up and grab their stuff, and they'll still be at -2 AC since they're not wearing armor)
• Lord Nar probably isn't asleep, but might be used to hearing sounds of the orcs fighting out front. With Hobgoblins, I'd probably reverse this and have him (as a bladebearer) charge in ASAP, and if the PCs cut him down the other hobgoblins will temporarily flee, giving them space to retreat somewhere inside and heal up for a bit.
• You could even have Greytusk dozing off if you want to be really nice, but whenever those arrows start flying it should be scary!
• Create better ways in (or reward clever play for a blitz)! Maybe there's a platform on the mountainside where the PCs could fire down on the foes below (gaining cover, and making the baddies off-guard to them due to the angle). Maybe the back wall isn't as well guarded, and reasonable to climb over. Maybe there's a secret entrance to deeper into the dungeon. This way they can plan their attack / pick their battles better!
• Use morale! You don't have to use formal morale rules (though I often use rolling Will vs. the highest Intimidation among PCs), but I would definitely have the guards flee when things get tough, especially if the PCs are also doing bad (the PCs might be crazy enough to fight to the death, but the guards probably don't want to!).

It's worth noting though for that last encounter that even with upgrading orc warriors to hobgoblin soldiers, with 5 players, playing the hobgoblins reactively, both my parties prevailed! They had a tough time, but they did it! And I wouldn't call either overly tactical.

I think that all the encounters that either my players or people on the internet had trouble with, but please let me know if there are other encounters you'd like me to touch on. This is a gorgeous adventure that I wish more people got to experience - hopefully this post helps you feel comfortable doing so!