I want to thank Legendary Games for sending us a review copy of Aegis of Empires. It is an Adventure Path (AP), a fantasy campaign for PF2 which, in more than 550 pages, takes 4/6 characters from the second to the seventeenth level.
In case you are interested in purchasing, you can find this manual in a physical hardcover version on the official Legendary Games store at a price of $ 89.99 (currently around 85 euros). If you prefer the digital version, you can buy it for $49.99 (about 45 euros); the bundle that includes both costs $ 99.99 (about 95 euros). I also point out that, at the same price, this product is also available for PF1 and D&D5e. Don’t forget to use code NDU10 to get 10% off!
In order to start the adventure, it is necessary to have the PF2 Core Rulebook; in case you need more information, I suggest you read my review about it.
Before discovering the intrigues among the empires involved in this campaign, let’s find out how it was born!
A Long Genesis
The author of Aegis of Empires (or rather the creator and in this review you will understand the reasons) is Greg A. Vaughan. For years he had the idea of this huge adventure in mind (which was even born with Greyhawk), but he had not yet had the opportunity to publish it. When Frog God Games acquired Necromancer Games, he was involved in the project; these circumstances allowed him to give shape to his ideas, leaning on an already solid foundation.
Frog God Games owns the Lost Lands setting and Greg set the story based right here. This detail is important because, as I will explain in more detail later in this review, Aegis of Empires is not intended as a “complete” campaign. Some levels of character progression are not covered in this manual; the narrator can freely insert other short adventures to connect the narrative arcs. Having an already established setting definitely helps for this purpose. Greg in fact, within this manual, recommends various short adventures already written to be played in the Lost Lands. However, I must point out that the recommended adventures are not designed for PF2 (but often for PF1) and therefore require a conversion work.
On the other hand, however, it must be said that it is not absolutely necessary to set the campaign in those lands. Facts can be transposed effortlessly elsewhere, be it homebrew or ready-made settings. A very valid alternative can also be Golarion, the world presented in the official PF2 manuals. After all, two key elements of the narrative are an ancient lost empire and a famous explorer and on Golarion there are the Azlanti and the Pathfinders…
Once you’ve chosen the right setting for your players, you need to introduce them to this adventure with the right tools.
How to Prepare the Campaign
As we will see in this review, Aegis of Empires has a very similar structure to a classic Pathfinder AP; for this reason it is provided with a useful Players Guide. This is a separate manual that explains the context as far as players need to know it, so they can create a party that fits the story.
Unlike Paizo‘s official products, this Players Guide is not free (although it is reasonably priced). It can be purchased on the official store for $5 (just over €4.50) in its digital version. If you want the physical copy, then you’ll need to spend $15. It must also be said, however, that it has about fifty pages and has a much greater level of detail as regards the lore. There are accurate descriptions of the most important places, of the timeline with the historical events that led to the current context and of the worshipped deities (including mechanics for PF2, PF1 and D&D5e). Although this campaign gives players great freedom of choice, I would have liked specific backgrounds with which to introduce the characters and a summary table of recommended classes, ancestries and alignments.
For the narrator, on the other hand, there is the GM’s Guide, a free manual in digital format which, in its 7 pages, explores the connections between the various modules of Aegis of Empires. In particular, it focuses on providing advice on filler adventures to complete the campaign which can be found directly on the Legendary Games store.
There are still two other useful tools left; the first is a collection of illustrations and maps that can be easily shown to players. The second is instead a summary of the main events of the whole campaign, in order to have a general idea of the plot.
Aegis of Empires Plot Review
The main themes are political intrigues among kingdoms, urban mysteries to investigate, wild lands to explore and powerful artifacts to fear; I find this campaign very balanced in terms of themes and the Lovecraftian touch that distinguishes it is a valuable added value.
The characters meet a knight on the road to redemption, but intrigue soon begins to intertwine this narrative arc with a much larger macro-plot. A famous explorer, with a precious tome, sets out in search of a remarkable source of power. An ancient empire, a dangerous wizard and many other elements that will attract the attention of ever more powerful personalities will be introduced.
In my opinion, the plot manages to be both classic and charming, without ever falling into banality. I really appreciated the fact that some elements become recurring and in doing so they manage to amaze the players. The characters are very well defined and it is easy for players to get interested about their stories, turning them into an important plot engine.
Considering all this, I thought about having to insert filler adventures in some points of the plot. Honestly, using milestones instead of experience points, in my opinion this need is not essential. PF2 has excellent mechanics which, in Downtime Mode, allow you to pass the time between two modules without necessarily having to play those moments; the important thing will obviously be to justify the change of location. This does not mean that inserting additional adventures is a bad thing, on the contrary; but my approach seems to me an excellent alternative to keep attention high on the specific facts narrated in this manual.
To facilitate preparation, each module offers a general introduction with a summary of the events, a map, the timeline, any unique mechanics and possible conclusions.
The Subdivision into Modules
Like many official campaigns for PF2, Aegis of Empires is divided into 6 modules; they are written by different authors who have followed the guidelines of Greg A. Vaughan, but they do not cover all levels from 1 to 17. Now I will tell you more about them in detail, always trying to avoid spoilers.
The first module is The Book in the Old House, written by Alistair Rigg for level 2 characters; it is a great introduction to the storyline of the campaign and places them alongside a knight who wants to redeem his family name by facing the forbidden and heretical knowledge of a wizard.
Then follows Ebon Soul, by Jeffrey Swank, designed for the fifth level; in this narrative arc the characters are first summoned by a noblewoman, and then they have to go to a temple in search of news concerning a powerful artifact.
In When the Moon Comes (by Matthew Goodall) the scene moves to a monastery closely related to the moon and its influence on the world, and begins with eighth-level characters.
The fourth module is Legend of the Burning Star, an adventure by Steven T. Helt that begins at level 10 and sees a tome and the indications it contains as central elements of the plot to achieve something very precious .
The AP continues with Race for Shataakh-Uulm, by Tom Knauss; level 12 characters, among wild nature and betrayals, reach the expedition they were looking for but a sinister threat has already started its plans.
The last module is Knightfall in Old Curgantium (by Anthony Pryor) and here level 15 characters will have to stop an ancient evil.
The Appendices of the Manual
This massive tome also offers us three appendices, very useful to enrich the game sessions.
Appendix A is a rich bestiary containing the creatures that can be encountered during the campaign. They are very varied and interesting, so as to entice them to be used in other adventures as well. The stats are balanced quite well, but I ran into a few issues. Compared to the official bestiaries, there are many creatures that don’t specialize in any Skills, making them difficult to be used without some tweaking. A slime or giant untrained in Athletics will never be able to grab or hold a target, even the weakest. The solution is simple: give each creature that doesn’t have it the Skills it is good at. Another fault that can be easily fixed is, for some entries in the bestiary, the lack of size; size matters!
Appendix B instead contains new equipment and new spells, obviously linked to the themes proposed in the previous modules. The items are many and both magical (worn, held, grimoires and artifacts) and not (alchemical consumables, special materials and weapons). There is a weapon classified as “exotic”, although this term is no longer used in PF2; it will be sufficient to consider it Uncommon and the problem will be solved. The spells are much less: we find three normal and three rituals. They are in line with those of the official manuals; I just noticed a small flaw: a spell that deals damage doesn’t scale with higher level slots, risking making it obsolete at high levels.
Finally, Appendix C is the shortest and contains four deities featured in the campaign events. If you use a different setting, you can obviously and easily replace them with others that can play a similar role within their pantheon.
Aegis of Empires Aesthetic Review
The contents of this manual are really many, but thanks to the classic index and an alternative one dedicated exclusively to maps, it is simple and fast to navigate.
The layout of the text is in two columns, the classic font is on a parchment-coloured background; excellent features to make it even easier to browse. The parts to be read to the players are in italics and green; the explanations are instead enclosed in elegant boxes and the notes are at the bottom of the relevant pages. Overall, the layout recalls the one used by Paizo over the years, resulting very spot on.
The hard cover frames Aegis of Empires, while remarkable images abound inside, as you can see from the examples shown in this review. The style is classic and genre-appropriate, accompanying the text perfectly. Also the maps are nice although some of them are slightly dark.
Conclusions of the Aegis of Empires Review
This AP was not born for PF2 and this could have been a problem; the product that I had the pleasure of trying, on the other hand, is by no means a soulless transposition, but shows how a good story can also be experienced through a different game system. The balancing of the encounters is done expertly; moreover the new mechanics made available by PF2 fit very well with the plot. There are some technical flaws, but they don’t affect the fun and emotions offered. The experience of Legendary Games is noticeable and the result is truly remarkable.
To conclude this review, I would recommend Aegis of Empires to anyone who wants to experience a varied, balanced, classic adventure full of memorable moments and characters. I can’t wait for more legendary adventures!