(Illustration by Darren Calvert)

The patrons and designers have completed the first drafts of the The Lost City of Kadralhu patronage project, and now is a great time to jump on if you’re curious but haven’t yet signed up. Today and next week, we present a few pages from Logan Bonner, Michael Furlanetto, Tracy Hurley, and Quinn Murphy. (Our fifth author, Jobe Bittman, just has too many spoilers in his section. Can’t give it all away!)

We tried to choose sections that were as spoiler-free as possible, but if you’re planning on playing this adventure, you should probably not peek.

Next week, we’ll show you the  trignotarb monster entry, themes for the new oklu race, and the section about the tainted plant Malsalix. Now, though, we present part of the location entry for the Forbidden Archive.

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Beneath the Corpse Commons lies a strange combination of library, laboratory, and former chapels. Guarded by a deadly trap and imprisoned adversaries of the giants, the Forbidden Archive doesn’t give up its treasures easily…

I received a request for a sneak peek of one of the 30 feats from Advanced Feats: Secrets of the Alchemist, and I’m more than happy to oblige with Sundering Bomb.

Sundering Bomb

You can use bombs to destroy your opponent’s equipment.
Prerequisite: Bomb class feature, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot.
Benefit: You can use one of your bombs to make a ranged sunder attempt. Your opponent takes only the splash damage from the bomb.
Normal: Sunder can only be performed with a melee attack.

Commentary—The inspiration for this feat was simply the notion that bombs could be used to blow up things as well as foes, and the game rules don’t really support that unless the item is unattended.  It’s great for softening up opponents before they hunt you down or for disabling rival ranged weapon users.  If you are using mutagens for close combat, this could be a means of weakening up your target’s offense or defense before charging in for the kill.  It is probably best taken at mid level when your bombs have enough oomph to be a real threat to typical equipment.

Advanced Feats: Secrets of the Alchemist contains a mix of feats specific to the alchemist’s abilities, like this one, as well as feats that, while useful for alchemist builds, are applicable to a wide range of characters.  Feats like Chug Potion or Fast Item Creation await your mad experimentations in character building.

What’s that looming out of the misty waters of the arctic sea? Icebergs? A maelstrom? The World Serpent? No, it’s… the commission goal!

That’s right folks, we’re about to sail over the rainbow bridge and cross into the greenlit fields of Asgard—Frozen Empires is almost commissioned. True, there’s always room for another strong back heaving on the oars of our longship, but Odin’s glory will surely fall on those who were first to set forth.

Hopefully, you’ve seen a few pieces of crunch and some setting material in our previews, but there’s still more feats, magic, and monsters than you could bury in an epic level avalanche to come. Once we hit the greenlight, prices go up. Don’t miss out on your chance to shape the project and its contents!

This project includes monsters to develop and playtest, local feats for the various Viking cultures, an ass-kicking skaldic variation on the bard, and runic magic. The dark and dangerous power of revenge is manifesting in a suite of vendetta-finishing spells, incantations, and magic items (we can always use more!), and an expansion of the survival rules will cover white-outs and snow blindness, hyperthermia, spellcasting with frostbitten fingers, combat on sledges and skis, and whatever else the cruel and inventive minds of patrons can dream up…

We’ve nearly hit the greenlight for Streets of Zobeck!

What does this mean?

It means this might be your last chance to get in before the price goes up and the brainstorming starts in earnest. That’s right, our brainstorming has been pretty light up until now. We’ve limited ourselves to a few preview items and practice pitches in an attempt to keep the big cut for the big crowd.

So what can you look forward to?

As a patron, you’ll be able to participate in the brainstorming and review, as well as playtesting, and there will be a lot of all of those things because…

We’ll be doing a lot of rounds of pitching material: 1–2 rounds of spells and items, 2–3 rounds of NPCs, 1–2 rounds of urban locations, and then 3 rounds of adventure pitches. Yeah, you read that right. This project will have at least seven opportunities for a senior patron, major donor, or sponsor to contribute their material and get feedback from the patrons, who include 2010 RPG Superstar finalist Jim Groves and Aruneus designer Ben Gerber (Troll in the Corner), and let’s not forget Wolfgang Baur and Richard Pett. It’s a great opportunity to sharpen your designer chops and help make a fantastic project even better through your involvement.

So what sorts of things can you look forward to? How about feats like these, spun up by senior patron, Chad Middleton (aka Doomedpaladin)…

The Streets of Zobeck are calling you…

Danger lurks in the back streets of Zobeck. Places where you’re just as likely to find a knife in the back as the fence you sought to hire. Places where you might just want to remain unnoticed when you see who’s waiting for you.

Like the scoundrels in those dark alleyways, Zobeck’s stories are gore spattered, flush with the blood, loot, and secrets of the Clockwork City’s citizens. What kind of secrets? What might you find? What might you need?

Perhaps you committed an indiscretion while enjoying a night of celebration? That thug had it coming, we’re sure! Perhaps it was just one brief dalliance? No need to explain it! We know a priest who’ll sort you out before sunrise…