Product– Starfinder Society Scenario #1-01: Invasion’s Edge
System- Starfinder 2nd Ed
Producer– Paizo
Price– $5.99 here https://paizo.com/products/btq0cn3f?Starfinder-Society-Scenario-101-Invasions-Edge
TL; DR– A change I can belive in. 100%
Basics– What did they do? Starfinders! The society calls, and so did those who call! And SOMEONE answered! Your job is to help set up the base, explore around it, and then explore an unknown starship. Who did the crazy robots call last season?
Mechanics or Crunch– FIRST THINGS FIRST! This is a level 1 adventure and an intro adventure for a season. The formula is pretty simple. You do a skill check, a second skill check that turns into combat, and then this one does a short dungeon exploration. And that’s a lot. It covers lots of things in three hours, and it does it well. 5/5
Theme or Fluff– This one has a lot going on, but it balances it well. The story is fun. I enjoyed it a bunch. My players and I enjoyed the world building in this one. Now we can get onto the next steps of what else is happening this season with a bit more information. 5/5
Execution– I don’t like what Paizo has done, but they have made it up in a few ways. The monsters are inline or just referred to somewhere else. Not my favorite, but now there is only exactly one level band. Players can elect to play up or play down for a challenge. I love that. I prefer the players saying I want more or less challenge today. Some days I want crunchy DnD and other days I want a story. Paizo is now doing both in the same adventure, so I’m happy there. Monsters have pictures I have to clean up, so I don’t love that. But, the kicker is the price. This adventure is three hours long. That’s a change. But the price is much lower. I like that. You want less play time and more, shorter adventures. Ok, but you adjusted the price to reflect that. You are not greedy. Good job paizo. 5/5
Summary– I wasn’t sure I would like the changes that Paizo said they would do. But I am a bit of a believer now. I like the choice of challenge. I like short play times. I’m old. I LOVE 12 hour multitable battle interactives. But I spend my Saturdays mowing the lawn now and working on my hunny do list (I’ve worked on it now to the point where my wife schedules dates because if it’s not on the list I forgot!). The point is, I’m older. And I think the target audience is too. A solid three hours of games is a great way to spend an afternoon. And if you get an hour every four to go to the bathroom and grab a snack at Gencon, then it’s even better. I would prefer if pictures were provided clean, but I can work with that. It’s a change, but not a bad one. 100%
Throat Punch Games 