Season of Ghosts
A calm archive for your campaign: rules references, maps, session recaps, and helpful links — all in one place and easy to skim before game night.
Pathfinder 2e · Adventure Path · Levels 1–12
Season of Ghosts
Willowshore, Shenmen, Tian Xia · Year 7108 · Horror Campaign
Willowshore — Shenmen, Tian Xia · Deep in the Specterwood, on the banks of the Ceiba River
Southbank
W1Eternal Blaze IronworksBlacksmith. Cold iron & silver weapons available if you're friendly with Yong Wu-Xiu.
W2Willowshore StablesHorses, mounts, and animal boarding.
W3Treesparrow's RestInn & lodging on the west bank.
W4Thrice-Blessed InnSecond inn in Southbank — food, rooms, local gossip.
W5Silvermist LodgesTraditional ranger gathering halls. Two buildings — one south, one far south.
W6Nine Ear ShrineSmall roadside shrine. Local spiritual landmark.
W7Her Fluvial Lady of SoulsTemple of Pharasma. Matters of death, burial, and undead are handled here.
W8Graveside MannersHerbalist & alchemist shop — You So-Jin. Best source of healing supplies.
W9Matsuki EstateNoble family manor on the south bank.
W10Milling HousesChoe Chun-hu's grain mills. Hub of the town's food economy.
Downtown Willowshore
W11Happy KappaMain tavern. Best place for rumors, drinks, and meeting townsfolk.
W12Sanmi HouseholdNotable family residence in central Willowshore.
W13Seven-Colored Songbird TheaterPerformance venue run by director Kazuma Oono. Bards audition here.
W14Eternal LanternFamous magical lantern landmark — never goes out. Central to Willowshore identity.
W15Mother's CoilWizard Igawa Jubei's home & school. Best ally for magical research.
W16Daikitsu TempleTemple of the fox goddess. One of the town's two main temples.
W17Second BestSmithy run by inventor Huo Tian-Zhe. Gadgets, tools, weapons.
W18The Hands of SpringHealing shrine in the center of town.
W19The Leshy's SaloonSaloon run by a small group of leshies. Unique spot.
Northridge
W20The Ceiba-Duyu ExchangeMain trading post & market. Buy/sell goods here.
W21DockRiver dock on the Duyue River — east bank.
W22FisheriesFish farming & preservation ponds. Important food source.
W23Luo and LawsLegal office. Handles disputes and official town matters.
W24Abandoned EstatesFormer lumber lord manors. Empty, eerie, picked clean — avoid at night.
W25Cloud Paper HousePaper & document crafting. Part of the industrial district.
W26Jadeite EssentialsGeneral goods & supplies shop. Industrial district.
W27Rebel's LeatherworksLeather armor, bags, straps. Industrial district.
W28The Cerulean TeahouseRetired tea house (Mai-Lai stepped down). Far west, north bank.
W29The Great WillowAncient willow tree on the hill north of town. A kodama kami named Great Willow lives here.
W30Spider GateStone spider shrine on the eastern road. Traditional guardian of Willowshore's eastern edge.
Rules & PDFs
📖
Player's Guide (2026 Remaster)
Official free PDF — backgrounds, character tips, Willowshore gazetteer, starting heirlooms, local superstitions. Read this before making your character.
↓ Download PDF
🗂
Archives of Nethys — Full Rules Index
All Season of Ghosts content online: monsters, spells, feats, conditions, campaign-specific backgrounds. Best for mid-session lookups.
↗ Open AoN
⚔️
Conditions Reference
Quick lookup for every condition — Frightened, Drained, Stunned, Slowed, Doomed and more.
↗ Open
🎲
Actions & Activities
The full 3-action economy — Strike, Stride, Cast, Aid, Recall Knowledge and all the rest.
↗ Open
🔮
SoG Spells & Monsters
Campaign-specific spells, rituals, and creatures unique to Season of Ghosts.
↗ Open
Useful Links
📄 Player's Guide PDF
Free download — character creation, backgrounds, Willowshore map & gazetteer
downloads.paizo.com
📚 Archives of Nethys
Full SoG rules, monsters, spells, magic items, conditions
2e.aonprd.com
🏘 Willowshore Wiki
Lore, history, NPCs, town locations — player-safe
pathfinderwiki.com
🌲 Shenmen Wiki
The haunted region your campaign takes place in
pathfinderwiki.com
Adventure Arc
☀ Summer
The Summer That Never Was
Levels 1–4
Wake up in the woods. Willowshore is cursed and invaded. Survive and uncover what happened.
🍂 Fall
Let the Leaves Fall
Levels 5–8
Prepare for winter. Investigate the curse. Travel to the ruined Tan Sugi Monastery.
❄ Winter
No Breath to Cry
Levels 9–10
Brutal winter hits hard. Ancient secrets emerge. The tools to break the curse are within reach.
🌸 Spring
To Bloom Below the Web
Levels 11–12
Spring returns. Final revelations. Save Willowshore or watch it become another haunted ruin.
Seasonal Boons — Campaign Rule
Each campaign background grants a Seasonal Boon — a free action you can use once per season (Summer / Fall / Winter / Spring). If you don't use it before the season ends, it's lost. It does not carry over.
| Background | Boon Trigger / Effect | Best Skills |
|---|---|---|
| Farmer | Reroll a failed Survival or Crafting check once per season | Survival, Crafting |
| Fisher | Reroll a failed Athletics or Nature check once per season | Athletics, Nature |
| Hunter | Reroll a failed Stealth or Tracking Perception check once per season | Stealth, Survival |
| Lumberjack | Reroll a failed Athletics or Intimidation check once per season | Athletics, Intimidation |
| Merchant | Reroll a failed Diplomacy or Society check once per season | Diplomacy, Society |
| Pilgrim | Reroll a failed Religion or Medicine check once per season | Religion, Medicine |
💡 Outgoing adjustment: Once per week, if you fail a skill check on a downtime activity that benefits Willowshore, you succeed instead. If you critically fail, you just fail.
Starting Heirlooms — Pick One Each (No Duplicates)
Choose your family treasure at character creation. Each player must pick a different option. Your items are at home — you'll retrieve them early in Book 1.
- A2× Minor Healing Potions + one common adventuring gear item worth 2 gp or less of your choice
- B1× Predictable Silver Piece + a vial of Oil of Potency
- CAlarm Snare supplies + 10 sp + 2× Lesser Ghost Charge
- DCold Iron Chunk worth 10 gp
Willowshore Ghost Rules — Local Superstitions (Real Ones)
⚠ Follow these — the locals do for a reason
Do not call a ghost a ghost. Refer to them as "visitors" or "the restless."
Do not pat people on the head or shoulders. Leaves them vulnerable to possession.
Avoid entering water when a ghost is nearby. Water traps the soul.
Do not eat food with two stick-like objects protruding from it. Resembles burial rites.
Do not lean against walls during the day. Invites spirits dwelling within.
Do not whistle at night. Calls spirits to your location.
Do not leave laundry outside at night. Spirits can inhabit clothing left unattended.
If someone calls your name from behind you at night — do not turn around.
Conditions Quick Reference — Most Common in This Campaign
Frightened X
–X to all checks and DCs. Reduces by 1 at end of each of your turns.
Very common in horror encounters. Fleeing triggers at Frightened 4+.
Drained X
–X to saves, checks. Max HP –4×X. Reduces by 1 per full rest.
Common from undead attacks. Full rest only partially helps.
Doomed X
Your dying threshold is reduced by X. Dying 4 normally = dead; Doomed 1 = dead at Dying 3.
Very dangerous. Reduces by 1 only after a full rest.
Stunned X
Lose X actions at the start of your turn, then reduce by 1 each turn.
Can completely skip your turn. Watch for this on bosses.
Slowed X
Lose X actions each turn for the duration. Different from Stunned — it persists.
Duration-based. Read the source that applied it for how long.
Fleeing
Must spend each action to move away from the source. Can't approach it willingly.
Has a duration. Moving closer requires an action and a check.
Dying X
Unconscious and making Recovery checks. Dying 4 = dead. Increases on failed saves or attacks.
Allies can Stabilize you (DC 15 Medicine) to stop the bleed-out.
Wounded X
After going unconscious, start Dying at X+1 next time you go down.
Stacks up. Heal or rest to clear it. Easy to die fast with Wounded 2+.
Downtime — Between Sessions
Between adventures, the campaign has structured Downtime activities to help Willowshore survive. These matter — a stronger town means better resources and more NPC support when things get bad.
| Activity | Skill | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Gather Food | Survival | Builds food stockpiles for winter. Critical success = extra stores. |
| Craft Goods | Crafting | Produce useful items or trade goods for the town. |
| Diplomacy Work | Diplomacy | Improve NPC relations, resolve disputes, gather info. |
| Research | Society / Occultism / Religion | Uncover lore about the curse, spirits, local history. |
| Train / Heal | Medicine | Clear Wounded / Drained conditions on allies. |
| Earn Income | Any trained skill | Generate gp based on your level and skill rank. |
💡 Certain downtime checks that benefit Willowshore allow the Outgoing adjustment bonus — a failed check becomes a success once per week.
Combat Tips — Specific to This Campaign
🔮 Incorporeal Enemies
Ghosts and spirits are immune to physical damage unless your weapon is cold iron, silver, or magical. Spirit Instinct Barbarians ignore this. Always carry at least one magical or cold iron weapon.
🌲 Primary Terrain: Forest
Most encounters are in temperate forest. Difficult terrain is common. Ranger's Favored Terrain: Forest gives real benefits here. Large creatures and mounts will struggle in dense woods.
💀 Dying & Recovery
Going unconscious in a haunted zone can trigger extra effects. Stabilize an ally fast — DC 15 Medicine check. Don't let Wounded stack. Rest to clear it between sessions.
🕯 Horror Save DCs
Many supernatural effects target Will saves first. Build Will where you can. Frightened stacks fast in group encounters — share action economy to help the most affected ally.
Recall Knowledge — What Skill for What
| Creature / Topic | Skill to Use | What You Learn |
|---|---|---|
| Undead / Ghosts | Religion | Weaknesses, immunities, how to permanently destroy them |
| Aberrations | Occultism | Abilities, vulnerabilities, behaviors |
| Animals / Beasts | Nature | Attack patterns, habitat, special senses |
| Humanoid NPCs | Society | Motivations, affiliations, how to influence them |
| Spirits / Haunt | Occultism or Religion | How to interact with, appease, or destroy them |
| Local Lore / History | Society or Willowshore Lore | Town history, regional facts, rumours, context |
| Curses / Magic | Arcana or Occultism | How it works, how to break it, what created it |
| Plants / Fungi | Nature | Hazards, uses, poisons, healing properties |