WotBS Running WotBS under Pathfinder and considering slow level progression

humannumber1 · Sep 21, 2016

I am converting and running WoTBS under Pathfinder.

I haven't used XP with my group for years and have just milestone leveling. I am considering just having the characters level after each module, meaning that would finish around level 11 or 12, assuming we make it all the way through.

I'd obviously modify encounters to be level appropriate. I have six players and need to adjust everything anyways. But, I wanted to know if anyone could think of anything in the later chapters that would be an issue with the PCs not having the abilities of a higher level character?

For example the PCs would not have access to spells above 6th level. Is there anything in the later chapters that would be impossible without access to spells higher than 6th level?

Thanks for any opinion on this matter.

Joe

RangerWickett · Sep 22, 2016

I mean, you could change things, but the intention of WotBS was to go all the way and use pretty much every tool in the box. The bad guys definitely use things like Gates and greater planar binding to power some of their schemes, and from adventure 9 onward we assume the PCs are capable of leading the charge into a horde of soldiers and taking on a mundane hundred foes apiece.

It would be more realistic and down-to-earth to reduce some of that, which would change the tone a bit from nigh-mythical to merely grandiose. In the final module we assume the PCs have an ally who can teleport them around a battlefield so they can respond to a half dozen threats in one day. Adventure 10 and 11 are fairly dependent on having reliable flight magic. And there's at least one noteworthy Prismatic Sphere that you'd need to tweak if you want the PCs to be able to bypass it readily.

I mean, go for it. If you're already converting to PF, I bet it's easier to make Leska a Cleric 3/Wizard 7/Mystic Theurge 10 than the bizarre epic level madness we made her in 3.5 D&D. Just don't be afraid to bend or break the rules to keep things flavorful and smooth.

Trillith, in particular, are mechanically wonky. The main intention is that they're incorporeal normally, but when exposed to the song of forms they become solid. They also can choose to animate matter and gain a physical body so they can attack.

Inquisitors and counterspelling are pretty key, though how prominent they are depends on what classes your PCs pick. Some new things in PF are magical but aren't technically spells (like witch hexes), and you might need to tweak inquisitors because they ought to be able to counter that stuff too.

Good luck.

humannumber1 · Sep 23, 2016

I really appreciate the insight.

I realize the best thing to do is to read the last adventure or two and get an idea of the power level and the challenges that the PCs will face.

thekwp · Oct 11, 2016

One of the things I like about the War of the Burning Sky is the multiple approach choice for which ending scenario the party will go through. The adventure is supposed to be structured such that the last three adventures could be done in any order, and depends on which theme and which plot line makes the most sense to be the climax for your player, or which story lines they follow. So, really, you do not want to read just the last two, but the last three.

I am also running War of the Burning Sky under Pathfinder, though I am using a lot of optional and variant rules as well (See thekwp's War of the Burning Sky Unchained thread). So far, for strict experience point tracking I am finding the Fast Track of experience to be the closest track to the progression planned for the players in the first adventure, and that matches my experience with doing other conversions.

However, since you are considering milestone leveling, and if you are comfortable with that, I think you will find that a really good choice to follow. There are guidelines throughout the adventures of about what level the party should be. The general rule of the thumb for the adventure looks like that the players will advance once midway through an adventure, and once at the end of the adventure, until the climaxes starting around adventure 8, where they will advance only one level an adventure, such that the final adventure is at level 20.