Pathfinder 66: The dead city of Xin

Ho hum, here we come to the end of another Pathfinder Adventure Path and we have the usual difficulty of finding a good crescendo to the campaign, something that is inherently difficult unless you've kept the game on rails because by this point there is a massive possibility space been created.

The goal of this scenario is quite admirably it basically wants to create a valid epilogue to a Rod of the Seven Parts quest. What happens when the characters reassemble the artefact?

Well in this case it's an ill-omened artefact with warnings of great danger should it be assembled so we open with a discussion on how to make the players want to do the thing that seems very stupid to do.

Interestingly I can't think of many scenarios where reassembling the rod of seven parts has a happy ending. Maybe the Crook of Rao in Greyhawk.

So really the scenario isn't about the consequences of assembling the Silhedron it is about an ancient clockwork city rising from the depths of the ocean and an invading army of clockwork automatons rushing forth from it to destroy all before them.

I actually like clockwork monsters but ultimately this feels like a dial down from the blue dragon boss fight in the last adventure. Xin is curiously diminished in his portrayal here, duped by the Runelords, assassinated and demented in exile, ultimately just a box of bones in an automaton.

There also seems to be little won by defeating him, just the status quo and the ability to use the artefact without further harm.

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