Heist/Break-In Scenario/Module

[FrogInATopHat]

I'm looking for a scenario or module where the players have to break in somewhere. I generally play PF1, but PFS, older D&D editions and 3PP are all fine for recommendations.

I'll be converting it to my homebrew PF game so basically just need something with a good building map that has some of the defences outlined and could believably be the place where something that the party need to steal is stored.

Level isn't an issue.

Any good suggestions?

[Zarvistic]

Perhaps the Aundairian Job? It's in dungeon magazine 147.

[FrogInATopHat]

Perhaps the Aundairian Job? It's in dungeon magazine 147.

Good maps? Good character development? Gnomes in a bank?

I'll definitely be stealing some elements from this.

Thanks you.

[Efrate]

Ultimate Intrigue has a whole section on this is you want to homebrew or get inspired. Ran one recently over 3 or so sessions, was a blast. Ours was.a high profile extraction (heist of a prisoner can still be a heist).

Make sure you tailor it to your PCs so they all get a time to shine using the skills they are proficient at.

Usually you recruit a team of specialists, but your PCs are there already, so tailor it to suit them. IE have things for BSF to fight like guardian monsters or something, have theif style things for your rogue that you cannot easily magically bypass, etc.

You have your team, now what are you stealing? Determine this and work backwards. How is it secured? What guards it? Who knows about it? etc.

Recon is next step. Have ways to get I formation. Maybe the priest who likes to get drunk has the bypass for a nasty magical trap, and you can play him with drinks and tales to get it put of him. Or maybe he has nightmares about a fearsome guardian and you can sneak in his room at night to hear him mumble its name.

Social skills are great here, but you can get creative. Knowledge check, perform checks, even survival to figure out things like food for guardians or something. Have several pieces of information, true and false, discoverable by PCs. Let them share ideas then vet them for veracity however they want. I highly recommend the section in ultimate Intrigue for.dealing with divinations to stop the I win buttons. A thing sheet of lead lining a room is a good base to work with.


Once you have information, now you go towards physical skills. Things like climb, balance, sleight of hand, swim, jump can all play a part on getting to or near your heist object. Magic can cover a fair few of these as well.

With those previous parts in mind, set up your obstacles and challenges, again playing to your PCs talents. Make sure each PC has several problems they are adept at solving here, including just straight combat as an option.

Causing a distractions somehow works very well to integrate the less sneaky folks.

Split the party. Have stuff in group Xs route that plays to them, but let each one shine by not having the full team but smaller groups working independently and concurrently to do what they need.

Next figure out the complications that happen when they mess up. Also make sure they mess up a few times, most pcs will without intervention but be sure it's not a total smooth ride. That one guard makes his save vs. sleep raises the alarm causing that team's to have a rougher time or changing an easy route for the other team into a much more perilous one they have to improvise a solution to.

Make any NPCs quirky and memorable. My heist took place from the basement of a high society party. Lot of neat characters.

Spoiler

Show

Notables were the head chef who has a super fine attention to detail and gets progressively more irritated and attentive when the PC who got in as a chef messes up increasingly difficult craft cooking checks. He was however anti-anyting not human descended (found out before hand though diplo) so a random halfling or gnome was a great distraction. Gordan Ramsey turned to condescending jerk if he saw a gnome.

The lady of the houses butler who had a series of illicit relationships with all manners of nobles whenever he could slip away but was the MC so timing was essential.

Leader of the acrobat troupe would do anything for money, always took best offer. Jolly chap. Usually cut his troupe in for a cut.

The noblewoman whose house it was at was addicted to various substances and whatever she last took colored her mood.

Guards were all old family retainers with family's just trying to get to retirement. Nice guys, competent but not great, and needed to be dealt with non lethally.

Then figure out your way out and how and where to rendezvous with the rest of your team.

When running try to cut between teams quickly to keep pace up and have them progress at the same pace so they act within a reasonable in game time frame simultaneously, or as close as you can get. Try also to keep spotlight time as far as real world time close between groups.

Wheh, longer than I wanted. Hope it helps.