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Murder on the
Silken Caravan
by GreG A . VAuGhAn
Murder on the
Silken Caravan
™
PAthfinder Society ScenArio 03
Design: Greg A. Vaughan
Development: Nicolas Logue and Sean K Reynolds
Additional Development: Joshua J. Frost
Editing: Joshua J. Frost
Art Director: Drew Pocza
Interior Artist: Ben Wooten
Cartographer: Rob Lazzaretti
Managing Art Director: James Davis
Vice President of Operations: Jeff Alvarez
Director of Marketing: Joshua J. Frost
Organized Play Coordinator: Nicolas Logue
Paizo CEO: Lisa Stevens
Corporate Accountant: Dave Erickson
Staff Accountant: Chris Self
Technical Director: Vic Wertz
Publisher: Erik Mona
Pathfinder Society Scenario 03: Murder on the Silken Caravan
is a Pathfinder Society Scenario designed for Tiers 1–2 (1st
and 2nd level characters) and 4–5 (4th and 5th level characters.) This scenario is designed for play in Pathfinder Society
Organized Play, but can easily be adapted for use with any world. This scenario is compliant with the Open Game
License (OGL) and is suitable for use with the 3.5 edition of the world’s most popular fantasy roleplaying game.
The OGL can be found on page 14 of this product.
Paizo Publishing, LLC
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paizo.com/pathfindersociety
Product Identity: The following items are hereby identified as Product Identity, as defined in the Open Game License
version 1.0a, Section 1(e), and are not Open Content: All trademarks, registered trademarks, proper names (characters,
deities, artifacts, places, etc.), dialogue, plots, storylines, language, incidents, locations, characters, artwork, and trade dress.
Open Content: Except for material designated as Product Identity (see above), the contents of this Paizo Publishing
game product are Open Game Content, as defined in the Open Gaming License version 1.0a Section 1(d). No portion of
this work other than the material designated as Open Game Content may be reproduced in any form without written
permission. To learn more about the Open Game License and the d20 System License, please visit wizards.com/d20.
Pathfinder Society Scenarios are published by Paizo Publishing, LLC under the Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright
2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc. All other trademarks are property of Paizo Publishing, LLC. ©2008 Paizo Publishing.
All Rights Reserved.
2
Murder on the
Silken Caravan
by GreG A . VAuGhn
Qadira, on the verge of the known lands, marks the near
end of the fabled Silken Way, the ancient conduit of trade
connecting the West across the mysterious expanse of
the Kelesh Empire to the almost-mythical, exotic lands
and markets of distant Vudra. Despite wars, famines, and
natural disasters, the Silken Way remained open to those
far realms, bringing gold into the coffers of merchant-
lords from Varisia to Katapesh. It is said that eventually
anything traded will find itself crossing the paths trod by
the silken caravans.
The famous Venture-Captain Targos Min-Katheer has
at last succumbed to the rigors of his long and adventurous
life. Much experienced in the intrigues and discoveries
found along the Silken Way, Targos has personally
written more than two dozen entries of the
Pathfinder
Chronicles—annually
released by the Decemvirate of the
Grand Lodge to record his own exploits—and his name
is something of a legend in the Pathfinder Society. His
passing has caused a ripple of shock and sorrow to pass
throughout the entire Society. Of mixed Keleshite and
Taldan descent, Targos originally hailed from the city
of Katheer, and the Ten have issued an edict to honor
the last wishes of this vaunted venture-captain and have
him interred with full honors in his family vaults in his
home city. This call has been answered by a group of
Pathfinders, new to the region, who have traveled to the
caravan-city of Lopul, on the Silken Way at the eastern
edge of Qadira, to gather the mortal remains of Venture-
Captain Min-Katheer from his adopted home and bring
him with dignity to lie with the bones of his ancestors.
the body and defile it. After throwing down with the
cultists and claiming the dead venture-captain’s corpse,
the PCs join a silken caravan led by a mysterious Qadiran
woman (actually a janni, and the former lover of Targos).
A trio of other travelers have also signed on, one of whom
is a Taldan knight named Gaspar Du Mar, a dangerous
double-dealing snake of a man who is masterminding
ambushes of local caravans and robbing them for his own
personal gain.
As they brave the desert, the PCs runs afoul of a
sandstorm and a band of goblinoid raiders under Gaspar’s
command attacks under the cover of the swirling sands.
Separated from the rest of the caravan, the PCs must
catch up after repelling the bandits, and they discover the
corpse of one of their travel-mates lying in the wake of
the silken caravan—a merchant murdered by Gaspar and
left behind in the chaos of the sandstorm.
Next the party enters a canyon and discovers a shrine to
Irori carved into one of its walls. Deadly harpies, waiting
in the shrine’s cave on orders from Gaspar, attack the
party as soon as they approach the ancient monument.
Finally, after braving harpies, goblins, and desert winds,
the party catches up with the caravan just in time to see
a large band of goblins in the service of Gaspar lay siege.
They battle the goblins and Gaspar, learn a little bit about
their Lady of the Caravan, and finally bring the venture-
captain’s bones to their final resting place in Katheer.
GettinG Started
SuMMary
To get this adventure underway, read or paraphrase the
following:
“One of our number has fallen.” Venture-Captain Adril Hestram
lets the grave words hang in the air before continuing. It’s
difficult to imagine a large man like Adril defeated, but in light of
The PCs venture to Lopul, the oasis city, to pick up
Targos Min-Katheer’s remains. There they find his hated
enemies, members of a cult of Lamashtu, about to steal
3
Pathfinder Society Scenario
this grim news his shoulders slump; he is a man who suffered a
loss. “Targos Min-Katheer, esteemed venture-captain, is dead.
His last wishes are simple: he wants his mortal remains to take
one last trip along the Silken Way to his home city of Katheer,
there to rest with his ancestors. He was one of our finest and
we aim to honor his request. It is for this reason I’ve called you
all together.” Adril points one sausage-thick finger at the map
on the table, tracing a line from Absalom to the mouth of the
Pashman River, then snaking up the river to the oasis city of
Lopul. “Here is where you can gather up his remains and join
the silken caravan, one of the only caravans daring the harsh
journey across the desert from Lopul to Katheer. This mission
is simple, joyride really, but we insist you give it the attention
it deserves. A few weeks in the sun, seeing the sights of the
desert. A dream assignment.”
Adril has a way of making every assignment sound like
a sweet deal, but the last few weeks traveling by boat up the
Pashman River and then hiking the short distance to the oasis
city have been grueling to the extreme. A poisonous river snake
claimed one of your guides; you remember his last gasps well,
and how his face bloated to twice its usual size within seconds
of the bite.
Before you now lies Lopul, the great caravan city, erected
around the crystal life-giving waters of the Pool of Sihbon, the
largest oasis for over one hundred miles. Mud brick houses
baking in the sun and great canvas tents crowd the central
copse of palm and date trees.
Lopul is a caravan-city ruled by the Sheikh Samraf Al-
Hadari, humble servant to the padishah emperor of Kelesh. The
settlement’s population fluctuates wildly with the comings and
goings of trade caravans, but usually has at least a thousand
locals and travelers in residence at any one time. Most of the
city is comprised of tents and temporary dwellings erected by
merchants and caravan masters, with only about a quarter of
the city’s structures being permanently built around the Pool
of Sihbon itself. Among these permanent structures are a half-
dozen caravanserai, the fortress of the sheikh, and twoscore
domed dwellings constructed of mud brick. One such dwelling
is the former residence of Targos Min-Katheer. All that remains
is to collect his body and join the silken caravan.
It should be noted for any members of the Andoran
Faction wanting to complete their faction mission (see
the faction handouts at the end of this scenario) that the
most prominent places to hang a subversive decree are
the gates to the fortress of the sheikh, one of the plinth
stones that mark the boundary of the Pool of Sihbon, the
gates of one of the prominent caravanserai, or above the
lintel of Venture-Captain Targos Min-Katheer’s house.
Other locations are simply too out of the way or busy to
be noticed in all the hustle and bustle of the oasis town.
Attempting to nail the decree to the gates of the sheikh’s
fortress require DC 25 Hide and Move Silently checks
day or night. Attaching it to a plinth or caravanserai gate
requires a DC 15 Sleight of Hand check during the day
or a DC 15 Hide check at night. Attaching it to the lintel
of Min-Katheer’s dwelling requires no skill check but
is only possible after Act 1 has been completed. A failed
attempt results in capture by a large patrol of the sheikh’s
mameluk guards (male human warrior 2) and 10 lashes
dealing 1d6 points of damage (ending if the damage
knocks the PC unconscious) before being released with a
warning against seditious vandalism.
aCt 1: diSputed probate (el 5
or 6)
After arriving in Lopul, the PCs can locate the former
residence of the well-known Pathfinder with a DC 10
Gather Information or Knowledge (local) check. When
they arrive, read or paraphrase the following:
A small mud-brick, domed dwelling lies at the end of a
humble, sandy street here in the heart of the caravan city.
The scent of the nearby oasis still reaches you, and a hive of
bees, attracted by the nearby water, hangs from a date palm
next to the house. The wails of mourners and cries of women
and children reach your ears, and you can see a small crowd
gathered outside the house’s single door, its members crying
and tearing their garments. Whether professionally hired
mourners or sorrow-filled residents outpouring legitimate
grief for the loss of a local hero is unclear, but the emotion
seems genuine enough.
Knocking at the front door brings an answer in the form
of a man in sackcloth with ashes poured over his freshly
shaved head. His face is sickly pale under the coating of
ashes, and part of one ear if missing. His hands are wrapped
in dirty bandages. A DC 5 Heal check or DC 8 Intelligence
check is sufficient to determine that this man is a leper.
However, Targos was known for his generosity to the poor
and afflicted, so his appearance here is not that surprising.
He allows the PCs to enter without a word after respectfully
moving out of their way to avoid any accidental contact.
The front room of the house holds more leper mourners,
and a curtained doorway blocks access to the house’s lone
bedroom. Shortly after the PCs enter, a man wearing priestly
robes and a black jackal death mask emerges from behind
the curtain. A DC 15 Spot check notices ashen patches on
his hands and a couple missing fingers, indicating that
this man also suffers from leprosy, and a DC 15 Knowledge
(religion) check identifies the mask as being associated
with a cult of the deity Lamashtu, demon goddess of
madness and monsters. His voice muffled by the mask,
the man introduces himself as Ben-Garri and explains
that the honored venture-captain’s body is receiving its
funeral preparations and that the PCs will need to return
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Murder on the Silken Caravan
at nightfall to claim it. A successful Sense Motive check
opposed to his Bluff check reveals deception in his words.
The PCs have arrived at Targos’s dwelling just as a sect
of Lamashtu disguised as mourners prepares to steal the
venture-captain’s body in order to exact revenge against
their life-long enemy. The cultists are led by Ben-Garri the
Scarred, a leper whose face is a pallid mask of scar tissue
with few discernable features. With him are a number of
fellow cultists culled from the dregs of society who are
likewise afflicted with leprosy. If the PCs leave and come
back at nightfall, they find Targos’s body already gone and
must make appropriate Spot or Gather Information checks
to track down the body-snatchers before they leave the city. If
they enter before then, they find additional lepers wrapping
the body in winding cloth for immediate transport.
Unfortunately once the PCs enter, Ben-Garri assumes the
jig is up and orders his cultists to attack. All the mourners
and lepers outside the bedroom flee at the sound of combat;
only those inside are members of Ben-Garri’s group.
Morale
Ben-Garri is a fanatic and fights to the death.
STATISTICS
Str
13,
Dex
8,
Con
14,
Int
10,
Wis
15,
Cha
9
Base Atk
+2;
Grp
+3 plus disease
Feats
Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Martial Weapon
Proficiency (kukri)
B
Skills
Bluff +2, Concentration +8, Knowledge (religion) +4
Languages
Common, Kelish
Gear
masterwork kukri, heavy steel shield, iron holy symbol of
Lamashtu, ebony jackal death mask worth 25 gp (infected with
leprosy, touching to bare skin constitutes contact—see below)
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Disease
(Ex) When making an unarmed attack or grapple check in
melee or when struck by an unarmed attack or grapple, there is
a chance that leprosy is contracted by the opponent. Leprosy—
contact, Fortitude DC 12, incubation 2d4 weeks, damage 1d2
Charisma. See
Pathfinder
#8 for further details.
LEPER CULTISTS (3)
Male or Female human commoner 1
NE Medium humanoid (human)
Init
+1;
Senses
Listen +3, Spot +3
CR 1/2
TIER 1-2
BEN-GARRI THE SCARRED
Male human cleric 3 (Lamashtu)
NE Medium humanoid (human)
Init
+3;
Senses
Listen +2, Spot +2
DEFENSE
CR 3
DEFENSE
AC
11, touch 11, flat-footed 10
(+1 Dex)
hp
5 (1d4+1)
Fort
+1,
Ref
+1,
Will
–1
OFFENSE
AC
12, touch 9, flat-footed 13
(–1 Dex, +2 shield)
hp
23 (3d8+6)
Fort
+7,
Ref
+0,
Will
+5
OFFENSE
Spd
30 ft.
Melee
unarmed strike +1 (1d3 plus disease)
Special Attacks
disease
TACTICS
Spd
30 ft.
Melee
mwk kukri +4 (1d4+1/18–20) or
unarmed strike +3 (1d3+1/nonlethal plus disease)
Special Attacks
feat of strength 1/day (free action, +3 bonus to
Strength for 1 round), disease, rebuke undead
Spells Prepared
(CL 3rd):
2nd—bull’s
strength
D
(2),
gentle repose
(already cast)
1st—command,
endure elements, protection from good
,
sanctuary
(DC 13)
0—create
water, detect poison, light, virtue
D*
During Combat
These lepers attempt to keep anyone from
reaching their leader, Ben-Garri. They rely solely on unarmed
attacks, hoping to scare opponents away with the prospect of
contracting their hideous disease.
Morale
These fatalistic cultists fight to the death.
STATISTICS
Str
11,
Dex
12,
Con
12,
Int
10,
Wis
9,
Cha
6
Base Atk
+0;
Grp
+0 plus disease
Feats
Improved Unarmed Strike
B
, Weapon Focus (unarmed strike)
Skills
Listen +3, Profession (beggar) +3, Spot +3
Languages
Kelish
SPECIAL ABILITIES
D
domain spell;
Domains
evil, strength
*
Evil spell, +1 caster level
TACTICS
Disease
(Ex) Leprosy; As “Ben-Garri the Scarred” above.
Before Combat
Once Ben-Garri is aware of hostile intent, he
moves behind his cultists and casts
sanctuary.
He follows this
with
protection from good
and
deathwatch.
During Combat
Ben-Garri casts
bull’s strength
on other cultists
while his
sanctuary
spell remains active. He uses
command
(“fall!”) on the most dangerous-looking opponent. Otherwise
he fights with his kukri, taking cover behind his minions as
much as possible.
TIER 4-5
As above, but increase the number of leper cultists to 8.
Development:
The beehive in the nearby tree can be
used as a weapon by cutting it down (it is 10 feet above the
ground) and throwing it in through the door or a window.
5

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