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Not the Greatest but not the Worst… Pathfinder Adventure Path #192: Worst of All Possible Worlds Reviewed

Aug 15, 2023

Title: Pathfinder Adventure Path #192 – Worst of All Possible Worlds (Stolen Fate 3 of 3)

Authors: Luis Loza, with James Jacobs and Jason Tondro

Artists: Loïc Canavaggia, Shafi Adams, Nicholas DeLuca, Rael Dionisio, Dariusz Kieliszek, Rob Lazzaretti, Christoph Peters, and Brooklyn Smith

Year: 2023

Genre: The finale of the Stolen Fate adventure path for the Pathfinder RPG

Pages: 94 pages

MSRP: $26.99 in softcover or $19.99 in PDF

After recovering from a pitched battle, the party has almost reassembled the Deck of Destiny, but things take a turn for the unexpected as the cards literally take on a mind of their own in Worst of All Worlds, the final chapter in the Stolen Fate Adventure Path.

Despite the grim title, the Adventure Path’s final act is tipped towards potential feel good moments rather than dire ones. Helping a performing troupe put on a successful show or stumbling through a magical romp in the desert aren’t especially tragic or fraught occurrences. Likewise, the party’s confrontation with the Norns, while pivotal, isn’t exactly a desperate last stand for free will and is full of potential for a positive, even productive, outcome. Even the final battle, compared to the onslaught of the previous chapter, feels relatively manageable. The grimmest outcomes -the worst of all possible worlds- tend to result from the player characters choosing violence as their preferred solution, rather than from any endemic narrative tension.

It’s in this final act that the pacing of the overall Adventure Path becomes a contentious point. While some will enjoy the comparatively leisurely opener and relatively unhurried second act, others may find the lack of pressing urgency strange after the all-out battles the party previously endured. Though the player characters do put a stop to the Unmatched and successfully reassemble the Deck of Destiny, the “Beyond the Campaign” sections calls into question to the decision to end the Adventure Path, as the Norns still expect the deck to be returned and are prepared to fight the party in pursuit of that goal; the note even suggests such a confrontation “could make for an exciting climactic battle” — the kind one might have expected in the adventure itself. There is also the question of what this fight would mean for Svaryr as, if the Norns fall in battle over the course of the adventure, the tree’s connection to the First World is lost and its fate, ironically, is sealed.

None of this, however, detracts from the fun to be had in the adventure. The decision to flip the script by transmuting the remaining cards into “living” harrowkin offers some standout storytelling moments and sets up a Chekov’s Gun that feels both natural and still satisfying to see in execution. Diverse skillsets once again shine here, as does impassioned, embodied roleplaying. In a rare twists, Worst of All Possible Worlds even opens the door for outside player knowledge to assist, allowing GMs to reward their table’s resident loremasters.

There is also something to be said for opening the door for the player characters to not only perform the reading themselves, but to stack the deck in favor of their preferred outcome. What this means is for individual groups to decide —should the option even be taken— but it’s a great final nod to the themes that have dominated the path’s metanarrative.

Worst of All Possible Worlds may not be the strongest conclusion, but it’s a delightful entry all the same. With plentiful opportunities for players to shine in unique ways and with a fidelity of vision to its core premise, plenty of fun remains to be had.

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Sami Yuhas

Writer, gamer, and necromancer bard (at least in D&D). Sami focuses primarily on board and tabletop gaming, with a focus on sci-fi and fantasy, as well as worker-placements and co-op titles. She prides herself on the ability to overthink world building in games, and cites a three post manifesto on the costuming of XCOM 2 as among her greatest nerd achievements.