Beacon’s Adversity Challenge for PF2e

I took the Adversity Challenge from the TTRPG Beacon and used it in my pf2e game – a conversion of Descent to the Depths of the Earth. The PCs must face off against Lolth to save the sacrifices. Needs some refinement, but worked very well.

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🕸️ Adversity Challenge: The Web of Betrayal

Goal: Reach the Temple of Lolth without drawing the full wrath of the drow city and disrupt the Spider Queen’s ascension ritual.

Difficulty: Moderate (equal to the number of PCs in Consequences).

Scene Summary:

The heroes descend through Erelhei-Cinlu — a hive of treachery, spies, and zealots. They must pass through the city’s political web, dodge the attention of noble houses, and breach the obsidian temple itself.

Each adversity represents a distinct phase of this infiltration and leads directly into the final confrontation with Lolth.

⚔️ Adversities

1. Web of Lies (City Intrigue)

Description: The drow city outside the temple seethes with suspicion and shifting alliances. Spymasters and priestesses loyal to rival houses are everywhere, hunting for intruders. The heroes must pass through this nest of deceit without sparking open war or alerting Lolth’s temple guard.

Possible Approaches: Sway, Infiltrate, or Prepare.

Consequence: Discovered — If failed, all PCs start the Lolth combat MARKED, representing that her divine awareness has already turned toward them.

Consequence: Captured – The GM gets to deploy one of the PCs in any free space that isn’t dangerous terrain. That PC is immobilized by a set of chains, which are locked (DC 15 to pick, or DC 20 to burst). Once the chains are unlocked, they are no longer immobilized.

2. Silken Gauntlet (Temple Defenses)

Description: Gargantuan spiders, living traps, and venomous webs guard the approach to the sanctum. Every corridor pulses with Lolth’s presence.

Possible Approaches: Infiltrate, Whittle, or Scout.

Consequence: Hurt — PCs can’t have more HP than their BLOODIED value in the final battle, reflecting poison and exhaustion.

Consequence: Bumps and Bruises. You start the battle with only half your healing surges.

3. The Heart of the Web (Ritual Nexus)

Description: The high priestess channels Lolth’s power through a blood-woven web that connects to the Queen’s avatar. The heroes can try to sabotage it before it fully manifests.

Possible Approaches: Prepare, Endure, or Sway.

Consequence: Mana-Tapped — PCs start the final combat mana drained – until the end of Round 2, treat their DCs and spell attack rolls as –2 lower.

Consequence: Weave Disruption — The first time a PC casts a spell/manifests a power, the PC takes psychic feedback equal to their level in d6 divided by 2 (so level 10 would be 5d6).

Consequence: Delayed – you have a disadvantage on initiative rolls for this battle.

 

🕯️ Resolution Summary

PCs will start the combat with Lolth with all listed consequences. Each PC rolls one skill check using their chosen Approach (Endure, Infiltrate, Prepare, Scout, Sway, Whittle). Level 15 challenge – DC 23.

• Fail: Miss – no progress.
• Success: Hit – choose one Hit option from the selected approach.
• Critical Success: Crit – choose from Hit or Crit list.

Each success can either:

• Overcome a Consequence (preventing its penalty), or
• Gain a tactical advantage (e.g., Ambush, Plan [Team], Weak Point, etc.) for the upcoming fight.

For a Moderate Challenge, there are as many Consequences as PCs — so the group must decide which to nullify and which penalties they will endure.

🎭 Approach Summary

Each hero chooses one Approach. They describe their action and roll a relevant skill check (typically a level based DC).

Approach	Skill Examples	Example Actions	On Success	On Critical Success
Endure	Athletics, Fortitude-based	Pushing through poison, holding collapsing web-bridges	May remove 1 Consequence or gain Bolstered Resolve	Remove 1 Consequence and gain Bolstered Resolve and one extra benefit
Infiltrate	Stealth, Thievery	Sneaking through noble estates, bypassing sentries	Remove 1 Consequence or gain Ambush Setup	Remove 1 Consequence and gain both Ambush Setup and Forward Position
Prepare	Arcana, Religion, Crafting	Studying wards, crafting wards, praying for insight	Remove 1 Consequence or gain Plan [Team]	Remove 1 Consequence and gain both Plan [Team] and Identify Enemy
Scout	Perception, Survival	Observing the temple layout or enemy patrols	Remove 1 Consequence or gain Tactical Positioning	Remove 1 Consequence and gain Weak Point as well
Sway	Deception, Diplomacy, Intimidation	Bargaining, impersonating priestesses, sowing dissent	Remove 1 Consequence or gain False Reports	Remove 1 Consequence and gain Turncoat
Whittle	Attack roll, Intimidation, Athletics	Cutting through enemies or barriers	Remove 1 Consequence or gain Wounded Foes	Remove 1 Consequence and gain Critical Momentum

 

🕯️ Benefit Translations for PF2e

Benefit	Effect
Ambush Setup	PCs roll Stealth for initiative; if they succeed vs. enemy Perception DC, they start Hidden. Lolth’s forces are Off-guard in the first round.
Forward Position	PCs can deploy anywhere within 25 ft of the temple’s center, representing striking from unexpected angles.
Bolstered Resolve	PCs gain temporary HP = ½ level × Con mod (min 10) until end of round 1.
Plan [Team]	PCs gain a +1 status bonus to attack rolls and saving throws.
Identify Enemy	PCs know Lolth’s highest-damage ability, immunities, and resistances before combat begins.
Tactical Positioning	Before initiative, the party can place up to four 5-ft squares of cover or difficult terrain anywhere on the map (e.g., collapsed pillars or webs).
Weak Point	One non-minion enemy in the encounter (e.g., a priestess or phase-spider) begins Off-guard and takes +50% damage from the first hit against him/her.
False Reports	Any enemy reinforcements (summons, spider swarms, clones) arrive 1d4 rounds later.
Turncoat	One minor NPC or summon (e.g., a spider or priestess) begins combat controlled by the PCs for 1 minute (or until reduced to 0 HP).
Wounded Foes	Choose one elite guard or drider lieutenant; they start the fight Enfeebled 3.
Critical Momentum	The PC who earned this benefit gains a +2 status bonus to their first attack roll of the battle.

🕸 Example Flow for a 4-PC Party

 

• The rogue uses Infiltrate to slip through the Web of Lies, rolling high enough to remove Discovered.
• The fighter uses Whittle against the Silken Gauntlet, cutting down spider sentinels but taking light wounds (accepting Hurt).
• The cleric uses Prepare on The Heart of the Web to weaken the ritual circle and reduce its backlash.
• The bard scores a Crit (Sway) on Web of Lies, choosing Turncoat, convincing a drow informant to mislead the priestesses about their route.

The group enters the final battle with Lolth mostly undetected, though still wounded and spiritually drained — a hard-won advantage that keeps the encounter deadly but fair.