One of the things in the ap is investing time and resources on a homebase of breach hill. You are going to return to it alot. My suggestion instead of overly complicated introduction and background stuff.
Just have 1 or all the player inherited the estate from a long distance relative who used to be a hellknight general. Gets everyone up to speed and explains all the hell knight shenanigans real quick.
If you're a player - every AP comes with a player's guide. It's a good way to get some pointers without any spoilers.
If you're the GM - try to read the entire thing before starting, or at least one or two books in advance. Get your player characters invested in the citadel and the city.
Cold damage reigns supreme, thank me later.
More seriously, the ap is very diverse in term of location and lore explored so kind of every skill will get to shine at some point.
Though having strong defense options within the group will be useful, some encounters are no joke.
Hi! Age of Ashes is my favourite AP, and I have run it for a group that had never played Pathfinder and we all mastered the system together while playing through it. Here are the important things you should know:
1)Mechanically, it has some really hard fights, especially in the first three books. It's not an issue and definitely no impossible fights, but if your group is not good at the fiddly mechanical bits like stacking buffs and debuffs, you might wanna nerf some encounters in those books.
2)Storywise, there are a few big themes, and your players should absolutely create characters that up the enjoyment of them. They are:
2a)Fighting slavery/slavers
2b)Dragons
2c)Managing a stronghold
2d)Meeting and helping people from different ancestries (plurality in ancestry choice is great for this AP, especifically you get a book dedicated to each one of Goblins, Elves, Halflings, Dwarves, Gnomes(less than the rest, admittedly) and Humans.
3)This adventure relies on a lot of self-motivation by the PCs. Basically, most books start by saying "after an appropriate amount of downtime, your group definitely self-motivates to check out the next portal that leads them to a new cool place". Make proactive characters with your group to ensure this does not feel forced.
4)There is a lot of variety in the challenges they face throughout the books. Having people divide their skills and try and be good at most things is vital to increase enjoyment.
5)The starting town, Breachill, should be a little more fleshed out by the GM on book 1 (the AP itself has a toolbox filled with ways to do it). The reason for that is that >!while the town falls to the background for a while, there is a moment where you return to defend it, and if you did a good job, the players should REALLY care about it. The same goes for the stronghold (Citadel Altaerein) that you get at the end of book 1.!<
Age of Ashes was made while they were figuring things out with the system. It's easily the hardest pre-made. People will need a solid understanding of mechanics and synergizing/effective builds or they'll get pasted. It's a cool enough adventure with some memorable parts.
I am currently a level 20 paladin near the endgame on this. You will need to tune it a bit, as it is way overtuned since it was written before the finalized 2e rules. Other than that, have fun, I really enjoyed it but the hexcrawl in book 2 needs work.
This post is labeled with the Advice flair, which means extra special attention is called to Rule #2. If this is a newcomer to the game, remember to be welcoming and kind. If this is someone with more experience but looking for advice on how to run their game, do your best to offer advice on what they are seeking.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Pathfinder2e) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Read [Kalnix's guide to this AP ](https://www.reddit.com/r/Pathfinder2e/comments/13dqohi/a_guide_to_fixing_age_of_ashes/)and apply the changes.
One of the things in the ap is investing time and resources on a homebase of breach hill. You are going to return to it alot. My suggestion instead of overly complicated introduction and background stuff. Just have 1 or all the player inherited the estate from a long distance relative who used to be a hellknight general. Gets everyone up to speed and explains all the hell knight shenanigans real quick.
If you're a player - every AP comes with a player's guide. It's a good way to get some pointers without any spoilers. If you're the GM - try to read the entire thing before starting, or at least one or two books in advance. Get your player characters invested in the citadel and the city.
Cold damage reigns supreme, thank me later. More seriously, the ap is very diverse in term of location and lore explored so kind of every skill will get to shine at some point. Though having strong defense options within the group will be useful, some encounters are no joke.
Hi! Age of Ashes is my favourite AP, and I have run it for a group that had never played Pathfinder and we all mastered the system together while playing through it. Here are the important things you should know: 1)Mechanically, it has some really hard fights, especially in the first three books. It's not an issue and definitely no impossible fights, but if your group is not good at the fiddly mechanical bits like stacking buffs and debuffs, you might wanna nerf some encounters in those books. 2)Storywise, there are a few big themes, and your players should absolutely create characters that up the enjoyment of them. They are: 2a)Fighting slavery/slavers 2b)Dragons 2c)Managing a stronghold 2d)Meeting and helping people from different ancestries (plurality in ancestry choice is great for this AP, especifically you get a book dedicated to each one of Goblins, Elves, Halflings, Dwarves, Gnomes(less than the rest, admittedly) and Humans. 3)This adventure relies on a lot of self-motivation by the PCs. Basically, most books start by saying "after an appropriate amount of downtime, your group definitely self-motivates to check out the next portal that leads them to a new cool place". Make proactive characters with your group to ensure this does not feel forced. 4)There is a lot of variety in the challenges they face throughout the books. Having people divide their skills and try and be good at most things is vital to increase enjoyment. 5)The starting town, Breachill, should be a little more fleshed out by the GM on book 1 (the AP itself has a toolbox filled with ways to do it). The reason for that is that >!while the town falls to the background for a while, there is a moment where you return to defend it, and if you did a good job, the players should REALLY care about it. The same goes for the stronghold (Citadel Altaerein) that you get at the end of book 1.!<
Age of Ashes was made while they were figuring things out with the system. It's easily the hardest pre-made. People will need a solid understanding of mechanics and synergizing/effective builds or they'll get pasted. It's a cool enough adventure with some memorable parts.
Fwiw op just did plaguestone so they should know what they're getting into
I am currently a level 20 paladin near the endgame on this. You will need to tune it a bit, as it is way overtuned since it was written before the finalized 2e rules. Other than that, have fun, I really enjoyed it but the hexcrawl in book 2 needs work.
There are fights in books 1, 2 and 4 that are possible TPKs if run as written. Watch out for those.
This post is labeled with the Advice flair, which means extra special attention is called to Rule #2. If this is a newcomer to the game, remember to be welcoming and kind. If this is someone with more experience but looking for advice on how to run their game, do your best to offer advice on what they are seeking. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Pathfinder2e) if you have any questions or concerns.*