Life is either a great adventure or nothing
"Life is either a great adventure or nothing."
Introduction
The Adventure begins near the small town of
Otari on the southern shore of the Isle of
Kortos. The heroes might or might not know each other, but all of them should have a friend in common: the town’s eccentric oddities merchant,
Wrin Sivinxi. Wrin’s mixture of tiefling and elven ancestry is impossible to miss: her eyes are devoid of pupils, small ram horns curl around her elven ears, and her fingertips sparkle with motes of glittering light. Wrin is more than a collector of unusual items and occult lore; she’s a scholar of the stars who possesses curious foresight about strange events (perhaps this foresight drove her to build a friendship with the heroes in the first place).
Alignments
There isn’t any restriction on character alignments in the Abomination Vaults Adventure Path. The heroes aren’t likely to be evil, as they should care about the fate of Otari and its people, but characters of any alignment could investigate strange clues and seek their fortunes in dungeons.
Ancestries
For being a small town, Otari has an exceptionally open-minded view of people from elsewhere. In part, this attitude is due to the town’s proximity to the cosmopolitan metropolis of Absalom, only a few days’ travel away. Townspeople in Otari might consider other people strange—certainly, Wrin Sivinxi is considered a good-natured eccentric by most—but that’s due to personal behavior, not ancestry. As the characters spend a lot of time delving into dark dungeons, an ancestry with darkvision has advantages but isn’t necessary. In short, any ancestry makes a good fit for the Abomination Vaults Adventure Path.
Classes
New archetypes that heroes might find useful, may become available, but discovering some of these archetypes and unlocking access to them are parts of the adventure!
Languages
Although Common (Taldane) will likely suffice for most heroes, certain other languages might prove useful to know. Aklo, Elven, and Undercommon all have some use during this Adventure Path.
Backgrounds
BIBLIOPHILE
You love few things more than a good book, and as a result,
Odd Stories is your favorite shop in Otari. The bookseller Morlibint supplies you with fiction, anthologies, and other delightful reads, and he’s always eager to discuss his latest finds with you. You know that imagination is the greatest magic, but a working knowledge of actual magic helps, too.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Intelligence or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in the Arcana skill and the Library Lore skill. You gain the Arcane Sense skill feat.
ELDRITCH ANATOMIST
You’re a trained physician who can ably tend wounds of many kinds. But more than a practitioner, you’re a scholar. Some cultures shape flesh to extreme degrees, creating aberrations from humanoid forms. The fleshforges of distant Nex practice this fleshwarping, as do certain subterranean societies you hope to one day study- preferably from a safe and clinical distance.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Intelligence or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
You’re trained in the Medicine skill and the Fleshwarp Lore skill. You gain the Assurance skill feat with Medicine.
FOGFEN TALE-TELLER
You know there are monstrous things out in the swamp known as Fogfen; you’ve seen these things through the mist, gliding through the murky water and heaving themselves over sodden bits of land. No one in Otari believes your tales of swamp monsters from the depths, even when you embellish the creatures of your stories with fangs, wings, or tentacles. You’ll just have to prove to them that there are truly monsters out there, and that they were wrong to doubt you.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Strength or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in Athletics and the Swamp Lore skill. You gain the Titan Wrestler skill feat.
MARKET RUNNER
Keeleno Lathenar, the proprietor of
Otari Market, is a grim and bitter man. A werewolf named
Jaul Mezmin mauled his wife, Ayla, to death 30 years ago. Keeleno has never forgotten nor forgiven this attack, and he believes against all odds that Jaul has evaded justice and is alive and well. Running errands for Keeleno around town, you’ve gotten to know him almost as well as you know Otari. Keeleno’s suspicions have rubbed off on you a bit, so you keep a wary eye on other people- particularly around the full moon.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Constitution or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in the Diplomacy skill and the Otari Lore skill. You gain the Hobnobber skill feat.
RUIN DELVER
You’ve looked through some of the smaller ruins in the Otari hinterlands but have never quite built up the courage to check out the creepy lighthouse called
Gauntlight. You’ve heard that these ruins are pretty well picked over, and mostly collapsed, but you always planned to some day explore them and perhaps find some bauble left behind from the centuries-old battle where the Roseguard slew an evil sorcerer. You know that the crumbled stone of old ruins has a tendency to shift, so you’d better step lightly if you get the chance to explore Gauntlight.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Intelligence, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in Acrobatics and the Roseguard Lore skill. You gain the Cat Fall skill feat.
STARWATCHER
You’re one of Wrin Sivinxi’s closest confidantes. You’ve spent many long nights with her under the stars, learning the tales associated with the
Cosmic Caravan and how the heavens can predict the future. You know that Wrin has paralyzing claustrophobia; she sees menace in angles and danger in confined spaces, which is why her shop is an all domed canvas that opens to the sky. If Wrin thinks there’s trouble, you’ll be the first to offer to help.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Constitution or Intelligence, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in the Occultism skill and the Astrology Lore skill. You gain the Dubious Knowledge skill feat.
WITCHLIGHT FOLLOWER
While in a dismal forest or remote swamp, you caught sight of a string of lights bobbing through the trees. You stepped forward for a closer look, and then still further when the lights retreated a few paces. Then you remembered the rumors.
Will-o’-Wisps , rushlights, corpse lanterns—whatever they’re called—such evil creatures lead people to their doom. With a supreme effort of will, you broke free from the alluring enchantment, and you’ve resolved to never let the strange lights of remote wildernesses claim you again.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost. You’re trained in Survival and the Wisp Lore skill. You gain the Terrain Expertise skill feat with both terrain and subterranean bodies of water.
