Pathfinder 2e remaster beginner box session report/ review

Our current GM was ill this week so I rummaged out myS Starter Box collection for something to run and we decided to try Pathfinder 2e.

To save time my players picked from the pre-gens provided so Valeros the Fighter, Kyra the Cleric and Ezra the Wizard prepared for their first adventure.

The basement of the fishery in Otari had been broken into and the owner sought out the help of some adventurers. The party, suspecting bees were the culprits, readily agreed to help for some gold and ventured into the basement.

The session ran for a couple of hours or so and in that time a couple of obstacles were overcome and three battles were fought.

The beginner box contains lots of useful material- a complete map of the dungeon below, standees representing all the PCs and monsters, cards showing all the actions covered in the rulebook, pre-gen sheets, dice etc. all of it seemed quite well constructed.

The box also contained a players rulebook and a gm’s rule book. The players book has a choose-your-own style solo adventure at the start and the GM book has the dungeon crawl we started.

The books cover a fairly complete set of rules for running a game and also generating characters (albeit from a limited selection). In many ways this is much like the D&D basic set from the 1980s. 

The adventure itself is a bit basic… literally starting with rats in the basement. It’s no Lost Mines of Phandelver. On the other hand it meant I could run it with no real prep - I had only skimmed the scenario hook and first room before starting.

There were a few clunky bits - the fighter didn’t have a shield listed on their character sheet even though they clearly used one. The party tried a couple of obvious things that would have tripped up a novice GM trying to run it from the text.

There is also the issue that one of my players had the older 2e books which aren’t totally compatible with the remaster rules.

However, we all seemed fairly impressed with the system and want to try some more. However, I probably wouldn’t continue the adventure for my group and dig something else out for some PCs made with the full rules. Unless they really want to find those bees.

So on the whole I think this is a really good product. It’s almost up there with the Call of Cthulhu starter set for me. The pathfinder box is a bit more expensive than other starter sets but is packed with a lot of good stuff.

As for the pathfinder 2e rule system - it seems good to me. I suspect I may like it more than D&D 5e.

2026 plans

Firstly, a recap

So last year I said I would learn Pathfinder 2e and/or Warhammer Imperium Maledictum. Well that didn’t happen (although I did buy stuff and played through the PF beginner box solo scenario).
I also said I would finish my reading pile before starting anything else, which lasted around 3 months and then I just bought loads more books.

I did run some modern-setting horror-related sessions, except it was Brindlewood Bay which was not in my plans at all at the start of the year.

So seein as though my 2025 plans were so accurate (cough) it’s time to talk some plans for this year.

Gaming

Most anticipated game is Warhammer The Old World. Unlike last year’s game, it should actually arrive this year (I’ve already preordered the books). Will it finally be the wfrp game that’s actually got good (as opposed to sort of ok) rules?

Other games of interest include The Lands Remaining, which is Jason Cordova’s Carved from Brindlewood version of Elden Ring. An idea so mad it might just work…

There’s also Cörk Børd, the scandi-noir game from Just Crunch, which, if I recall correctly, has a “what kind of knitwear does your detective wear” table.

As to what I’ll play - probably the same as last year. I may run some more Brindlewood Bay but might try something else… but probably not 5e. 

I do have ideas percolating… I keep looking from the pile of pathfinder books to the pile of Enemy Within books and pondering… can it be done? Should it be done? Can I be arsed to do it?

Other stuff

I’ve already started my first book of the year (Mercy aka The Keeper of List Causes aka Dept Q off of Netflix by Jussi Adler-Olsen). I’m not going to keep count but hope to make a decent dent in the reading pile that is and the reading pile that will be.

Podcasts I’m looking forward to include The Lovecraft Investigation’s Crowley kickstarter which I’m assuming will appear this year (it’s most been recorded) and also Our Wars have Ended by the Silt Verses people.

As to everything else? Who knows. Any recommendations welcome.