TEXT: PLAYER’S GUIDE
  
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  REFERENCE
  This book refers to several other Pathfinder Roleplaying Game products using the following abbreviations, yet these additional 
  supplements are not required to make use of this book. Readers interested in references to Pathfinder RPG hardcovers can 
  find the complete rules of these books available online for free at paizo.com/prd.
  This product makes use of the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook, Pathfinder RPG Advanced Class Guide, Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player’s Guide, Pathfinder RPG Advanced Race Guide, Pathfinder RPG 
  Ultimate Combat, and Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic. These rules can be found online as part of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Reference Document at paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd.
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  1
  
  T
  he Giantslayer Adventure Path begins in 
  the besieged town of Trunau, a stubbornly 
  independent town within the orc-held land of 
  Belkzen. The adventure begins on the eve of a Hopeknife 
  Festival, an important ceremony held for local youths when 
  they come of age. The PCs arrive in town and get to know 
  the townsfolk, but then disaster strikes!
  COMING TOGETHER
  Since this Adventure Path starts in the small town of Trunau, 
  it’s best for at least one character to be from Trunau, or at 
  least a regular visitor of the town. One of the campaign 
  traits in this player’s guide helps root characters who select 
  it in Trunau, and the rest of the traits also make sense 
  for characters from that region. To help players of local 
  characters familiarize themselves with Trunau, a gazetteer 
  of the town is provided starting on page 7 of this guide. 
  This gazetteer can help you figure out what growing up 
  in Trunau would be like and introduce you to some of the 
  town’s most important people.
  If your character is not from Trunau, but is familiar with 
  the town, she could still gain this familiarity from frequent 
  visits. Your character could be part of a caravan that regularly 
  supplies the town, or belong to a group of scouts who patrol 
  southern Belkzen and stop by the town to rest and resupply. 
  For characters with no previous association with 
  Trunau, it could be that your character is part of a 
  merchant caravan that just arrived in town the same day 
  that the adventure begins, or perhaps the party formed 
  in another bordering nation and started its adventuring 
  by setting off through southern Belkzen. Your character 
  could be a half-orc cast out of a nearby tribe and looking 
  GIANTSLAYER PLAYER’S GUIDE
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  2
  
  for civilized company, or an envoy from Lastwall who’s is 
  part of a group charged with checking in on the besieged 
  town. It also wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for your 
  character to be a Shoanti wanderer who came across the 
  town and has been enjoying the safety of its walls and the 
  townsfolk’s hospitality.
  Whatever the case, the Adventure Path works best if you 
  plan for your character to visit the brave and independent 
  town of Trunau. For more information on neighboring 
  nations and nearby settlements, as well as advice for a 
  personal backstory, see the Origins section on page 4.
  CHARACTER TIPS
  You’re starting the Giantslayer Adventure Path, but what 
  kind of character should you play? What’s the best way to 
  make a character who will fit with the theme of fighting 
  giants in the mountains and be well prepared to survive 
  the campaign? The following hints, suggestions, and 
  character options are designed to help you create characters 
  perfectly suited to conquering the threats and challenges 
  the Adventure Path has in store for you and your party. The 
  following suggestions are not exhaustive, and there are 
  thousands of viable character 
  concepts that can shine in 
  this campaign. For more 
  discussions of characters in the 
  Giantslayer Adventure Path, visit the 
  messageboards at paizo.com and share 
  your experiences with others who are playing 
  through this campaign.
  Archetypes And clAss OptiOns
  The majority of the Giantslayer Adventure Path involves 
  trekking through the Mindspin Mountains, fighting 
  giants in their lairs, investigating powerful artifacts, 
  and encountering dragons and other dangerous beasts 
  along the way. All character classes are suitable for the 
  Adventure Path, but some classes have more thematically 
  appropriate options a player could choose. Also, since 
  most of the campaign deals with fighting giants on their 
  home turf, character classes that gain mounts might have 
  an easier time navigating the many giant-sized corridors 
  of this campaign than they would dungeons made by 
  smaller humanoids. 
  Some potentially useful archetypes are listed below.
  • Beast rider (cavalier) from Ultimate Combat
  • Goliath druid (druid) from Pathfinder Player Companion: 
  Giant Hunter’s Handbook
  • Infiltrator (ranger) from Advanced Player’s Guide
  • Mountain druid (druid) from Advanced Player’s Guide
  • Mountain Witch (witch) from Advanced Class Guide
  • Mouser (swashbuckler) from Advanced Class Guide
  • Titan fighter (fighter) from Pathfinder Player Companion: 
  Giant Hunter’s Handbook
  • Titan mauler (barbarian) from Ultimate Combat
  • Underfoot adept (half ling monk) from Advanced 
  Race Guide
  • Vexing dodger (rogue) from Pathfinder Player Companion: 
  Giant Hunter’s Handbook
  Advanced Race Guide also includes the order of the paw, 
  a cavalier order made specifically for halfling cavaliers. 
  Those playing druids who use the animal and terrain 
  domains from Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic should consider 
  the mountain domain if they want to make characters with 
  strong ties to the mountains.
  3
  
  Characters interested in pursuing a prestige class have 
  many options. The following suggestions are among the 
  most thematic for the Giantslayer Adventure Path: halfling 
  opportunist (Pathfinder Player Companion: Halflings of Golarion), 
  horizon walker (Advanced Player’s Guide), Pathfinder delver 
  (Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Seeker of Secrets), and skyseeker 
  (Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Paths of Prestige).
  BlOOdlines And Mysteries
  While most bloodlines are good choices, the following 
  suggestions fit the themes of the Giantslayer Adventure Path: 
  deep earth (Advanced Player’s Guide), draconic, elemental, orc 
  (Pathfinder Player Companion: Orcs of Golarion), or stormborn 
  (Advanced Player’s Guide).
  The oracle mysteries with the strongest ties to the 
  themes of the Adventure Path are battle and stone, and 
  shamans can select the spirits of the same name for fitting 
  character options.
  Of course, these limited suggestions aren’t the only ones 
  a player can choose—most bloodlines, mysteries, and spirits 
  would work well in the Giantslayer Adventure Path.
  FAMiliArs And AniMAl cOMpAniOns
  Since characters can come into this Adventure Path from 
  many different backgrounds and far-off locations, they 
  can bring along exotic animal companions and familiars. 
  However, characters from the region or who want to pick 
  an animal that fits the environment well might want to be a 
  bit more selective. The following familiars are good choices 
  given the terrain and climate of this Adventure Path: batB1, 
  catB1, giant fleaB4, goatB3, hawkB1, house centipedeUM, lizardB1, 
  owlB1, ravenB1, scarlet spiderB4, and weaselB1. 
  The following animals can be found in the Mindspin 
  Mountains and Belkzen and would be good choices for 
  companions (or even mounts in some cases): aurochsB1, 
  bearB1, bird (eagleB1, hawkB1, or owlB1), small cat (mountain 
  lionB1), dire batB1, dogB1, elkB3, horseB1, lizard (giant geckoB3), 
  lizard (monitor lizardB1 or cave lizardB1), llamaAA, ponyB1, 
  ramB2, rocB1, stagB4, giant vultureB3, giant weaselB4, and wolf B1.
  In addition to the animals mentioned here, the bestiary 
  of Pathfinder Adventure Path#91: The Battle of Bloodmarch 
  Hill features a selection of animals native to Belkzen and 
  the Mindspin Mountains that PCs could take as animal 
  companions. Talk to your GM about these possibilities.
  FAvOred eneMies And FAvOred terrAins
  The majority of the Giantslayer Adventure Path takes place 
  in the Mindspin Mountains, though a few adventures take 
  the PCs into underground, hilly, and marshy environments. 
  The best first choice for favored terrain is mountains (which 
  includes hills), and a strong second choice of terrain is 
  underground. Solid favored enemy choices include humanoid 
  (giant), dragon, humanoid (orc), and magical beast.
  WAnt tO reAd MOre?
  A number of other books can help enhance your Giantslayer 
  Adventure Path experience. Listed below are other sources 
  that, while not necessary, may prove useful or inspiring 
  while playing through this campaign.
  FOr GAMe MAsters
  To learn more about the wild and dangerous lands of southern 
  Belkzen (where the first part of the Adventure Path takes 
  place), check out Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Belkzen, 
  Hold of the Orc Hordes. To bolster your giant lore, read 
  Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Giants Revisited. For use in 
  visualizing encounters with giants, check out Pathfinder 
  Flip-Mat: Giant Lairs.
  FOr plAyers
  For a primer on fighting giants, pick up the invaluable 
  Pathfinder Player Companion: Giant Hunter’s Handbook. 
  Since player characters are also going to be involved in 
  all manner of exploration, check out Pathfinder Player 
  Companion: Dungeoneer’s Handbook for tips on survival 
  while out adventuring.
  Players who want to find more options for half-orc 
  characters in this Adventure Path should look to Pathfinder 
  Player Companion: Bastards of Golarion, while players who 
  want to play dwarves should check out Pathfinder Player 
  Companion: Dwarves of Golarion.
  OriGins
  For the purposes of the Giantslayer Adventure Path, it 
  doesn’t matter where your character originated. The 
  Mindspin Mountains stretch through the Hold of Belkzen, 
  Varisia, Nirmathas, Nidal, and Molthune, and Lastwall’s 
  western border is less than 50 miles from them. All of 
  these nations could make great homelands for characters 
  in this campaign.
  The Mindspin Mountains attract visitors from all across 
  the Inner Sea, and many of these have founded settlements 
  either in the mountain range or only a few days’ travel from 
  the foothills. The orc-dominated city of Urglin in Varisia is 
  nearby and could be the hometown of a half-orc character. 
  While not necessary, it is strongly advised that at least 
  one member of the party be from Trunau, or at least be a 
  regular visitor who’s familiar with the town. Packed full of 
  criminals, Freedom Town could be a great hometown for a 
  character with a checkered past. Dwarves in this campaign 
  could hail from Janderhoff, Glimmerhold, or Kraggodan. 
  On either side of the Bloodsworn Vale sit the lumber and 
  mining settlement of Skelt and the Varisian city-state 
  of Korvosa, both of which make good hometowns for 
  characters in this Adventure Path. A little over a hundred 
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  4
  
  miles west of the northern end of the Mindspin Mountains 
  sits Kaer Maga—home to easily the strangest mix of people 
  in the Inner Sea and a perfect point of origin for unusual 
  characters—and just south of Kaer Maga lies the Korvosan-
  held hamlet of Sirathu. In the Nidalese portion of the 
  mountains, Brimstone Springs, a small town famous for 
  its strange mineral hot springs, which reportedly provide 
  magical benefits to those who bathe in them. Molthuni 
  characters could come from Braganza, a small city ruled 
  by a priest of Abadar.
  While all of these nearby settlements make good places for 
  characters to come from, they can also serve as locations for 
  characters in this campaign to rest, sell treasure, and resupply.
  rAces
  Western Avistan is still a thinly inhabited frontier in many 
  places. While it is home to humanoids of all types, humans 
  are the most common race found in this region. Half-
  orcs are also fairly common, as are dwarves, halflings, 
  gnomes, elves, and half-elves. Dwarves’ and gnomes’ 
  defensive training racial trait makes both of these races 
  strong choices for this Adventure Path. In addition, players 
  making half ling characters for this campaign should 
  check out the underfoot alternate racial trait, which gives 
  them bonuses when fighting foes larger than themselves.
  Among the humans, Varisians, Chelaxians, and Taldans 
  are the most common ethnic groups in the region. However, 
  it wouldn’t be out of place to find Kellids or Ulfens who have 
  followed adventure south and made their way to Trunau 
  on their journey. Likewise, characters can come to this 
  campaign from anywhere in the Inner Sea region.
  reliGiOn
  Religion doesn’t play a huge part in this Adventure Path, 
  but that doesn’t mean you should go adventuring without a 
  cleric. If your character is from Trunau, he might worship 
  Iomedae or Abadar, as both of those faiths have a presence 
  in town. Since hunting is important to Trunau (and the wild 
  lands of western Avistan as a whole), followers of Erastil 
  would also be common in the region. Because of the travel 
  element in this Adventure Path, Desna is an excellent deity to 
  worship, and Gorum is a good choice for a cleric concerned 
  with warfare. Torag is a good option not only for dwarves, 
  but also for any righteous characters who value protection, 
  strategy, and creation. 
  skills And FeAts
  There is no single skill that comes into play more often than 
  others in this Adventure Path, so PCs should select skills 
  that generally help with adventuring, especially adventuring 
  in the mountains. Acrobatics not only helps a character 
  move about unscathed while in a giant’s extended reach, but 
  also helps in jumping across wide gaps, navigating narrow 
  mountain paths, and remaining upright when moving 
  through rubble or scree. Climb is useful for ascending 
  mountains, and also comes into play when moving about 
  within a giant’s lair. Being informed in the field is important, 
  and a few Knowledge skills stand out as good choices to focus 
  on: Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (dungeoneering), and 
  Knowledge (local). Survival is a strong choice for helping 
  the party deal with the wild and navigate the mountainous 
  terrain found in this Adventure Path, and Perception is 
  always a good skill to prioritize in any adventure.
  Hundreds of feats are available in Pathfinder, and a 
  number of those can really give a character an edge when 
  fighting giants. The greatest wealth of such feats can 
  be found in Pathfinder Player’s Companion: Giant Hunter’s 
  Handbook, which includes 15 feats designed specifically for 
  fighting large foes. In addition to that resource, Ultimate 
  Combat includes two chains of style feats specifically 
  designed to give dwarves and gnomes even more of an 
  edge against giants. These include Earth Child Binder, 
  Earth Child Style, and Earth Child Topple, as well as Twin 
  Thunders, Twin Thunders Flurry, and Twin Thunders 
  Master. Advanced Player’s Guide includes a pair of feats 
  for Small or smaller characters—Under and Over, and 
  Underfoot—and both are helpful defenses when fighting 
  giants. Finally, Spring Attack and Strike Back both help 
  combatants deal with a giant’s long reach.
  trAits
  In addition to the campaign traits below and those found in 
  Giant Hunter’s Handbook, many other traits are also suitable 
  for characters in the Giantslayer Adventure Path. Dwarves 
  of Golarion includes two regional traits for characters from 
  the Mindspin Mountains: blooded and coin hoarder. 
  The highlander regional feat from the Advanced Player’s 
  Guide helps a character stay stealthy in rocky areas, and 
  the Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Edition Player’s Guide 
  includes the giant slayer trait—because this is a campaign 
  trait from another Adventure Path, see how your GM feels 
  about allowing this trait in the Giantslayer Adventure Path. 
  Characters from Varisia could also choose the regional 
  recluse trait from Pathfinder Player Companion: Varisia, 
  Birthplace of Legends.
  CAMPAIGN TRAITS
  Although the Giantslayer Adventure Path takes characters 
  to a variety of locations within the Mindspin Mountains, it 
  begins in the human town of Trunau in the orc- controlled 
  Hold of Belkzen. Player characters created for this campaign 
  should be residents of Trunau or recent arrivals to the town. 
  It would be helpful if at least one player picks the Trunau 
  Native trait for her character, but regardless of which 
  campaign traits the PCs have, all should be interested in 
  battling giants and their allies wherever they may be found!
  5
  
  Artifact Hunter: You’ve always had an interest in magic, 
  but you’re fascinated with those legendary magic items 
  known as artifacts. You’ve spent years researching these 
  mythical relics and committed the stories and legends about 
  them to memory, making you something of an expert on 
  the subject. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Spellcraft checks to 
  identify the properties of magic items and a +1 trait bonus 
  on Use Magic Device checks, and one of these skills (your 
  choice) becomes a class skill for you. In addition, whenever 
  you first encounter an artifact, there is a 50% chance (+1% 
  per level) that you recognize the artifact and know its name, 
  origin, and something of that artifact’s powers, abilities, or 
  dangers. Exactly how much knowledge you possess is left 
  to the GM’s discretion.
  Dragonfoe: You’ve always hated dragons. Perhaps one 
  of your ancestors was a well-known dragonslayer, or a 
  rampaging dragon killed your family or friends. Maybe the 
  stories you grew up hearing about knights rescuing captive 
  princes and princesses from the clutches of evil dragons 
  inspired you to slay dragons. Whatever the reason for your 
  obsession, it has driven you to study how to fight dragons 
  and defend yourself against their fearsome attacks. 
  You gain a +1 dodge bonus to AC against creatures 
  with the dragon type and a +2 trait bonus on Reflex 
  saves against breath weapon attacks.
  Dwarf-Trained: Dwarves are well acquainted 
  with the threats posed by giants and orcs, and 
  they have spent centuries honing their 
  techniques for fighting these foes. You have 
  trained with the dwarves and have learned 
  some of the tactics they use against their 
  hated enemies. You gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC 
  against creatures with the giant subtype (this 
  does not stack with the bonus granted by the 
  defensive training racial trait of dwarves and 
  gnomes) and a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls against 
  creatures with the orc subtype (this does not stack 
  with the bonus granted by the dwarf hatred racial 
  trait). Dwarves and gnomes can’t choose this trait.
  Giant-Blooded: Your family has always been 
  dogged by rumors that a bit of giant blood got into 
  the family’s veins at some point. Whether this was 
  through alchemical or magical experimentation, or 
  because your great-great-grandfather married a giant, it 
  has made you big for your race, and may have given you 
  other minor cosmetic features of giants, such as f laming red 
  hair, a bluish tinge to your skin, or oversized hands. When 
  you wield a weapon that is larger than your size, the penalty 
  on attack rolls for using inappropriately sized weapons is 
  reduced by half. In addition, you gain a +2 trait bonus to 
  your CMD against awesome blow combat maneuvers. If 
  you’re a dwarf, your stability racial trait applies to awesome 
  blow combat maneuvers as well.
  Giantslayer Scion: You grew up listening to tales of a 
  famed ancestor’s mighty battles against giant foes. Just the 
  mention of your ancestor’s name is enough to strike fear 
  into the heart of the most stalwart giant warrior, and you’ve 
  resolved to follow in your forebear’s footsteps. You take no 
  penalty on Intimidate checks against creatures with the 
  giant subtype that are larger than you, and you gain a +1 
  trait bonus to the DC of any fear-based effect you use against 
  a creature with the giant subtype.
  Orphaned by Giants: You grew up in a tranquil, happy home 
  near the mountains, but that peace was shattered when giants 
  came down from the mountains to raid your settlement. The 
  giants killed your parents and left you a young orphan, and 
  since that day, you’ve sworn to avenge the deaths of your kin. 
  You gain a +1 trait bonus on attack rolls against creatures with 
  the giant subtype, and a +2 trait bonus on rolls to confirm 
  critical hits against creatures with the giant subtype.
  Roll With It: You’ve trained with some of the best 
  giantslayers out there,  and have learned how to avoid the 
  worst effects of a giant’s powerful attacks. You gain a +1 
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  6
  
  trait bonus on Reflex saves. In addition, once per day, when 
  a creature with the giant subtype successfully confirms a 
  critical hit against you with a weapon or a slam attack (not 
  a spell or special ability), you can roll with the attack. You 
  take normal damage from the blow, as if the critical had not 
  been confirmed. You must be aware of the attack and able 
  to react to it—if you are denied your Dexterity bonus to AC, 
  you can’t use this ability. If you are a dwarf or a gnome, you 
  can use this ability twice per day.
  Student of Giantkind: You’ve always been fascinated by 
  the giant races, and have devoted a considerable amount of 
  time to studying their history and societies, gaining insight 
  into the way they think and use their abilities. You gain a 
  +1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks against creatures with 
  the giant subtype and a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (local) 
  checks regarding creatures with the giant subtype, and one 
  of these skills (your choice) becomes a class skill for you. In 
  addition, you know the Giant language (this does not count 
  toward your number of languages).
  Trunau Native: You were born and raised in the town 
  of Trunau, one of the few human settlements in the orc- 
  dominated Hold of Belkzen. Orc attacks are an ever-present 
  threat, and like all Trunauans, you have made the Standing 
  Vow: to hold Trunau against all attackers, orc or otherwise, to 
  stand your ground, and to live free or die trying. Upon coming 
  of age, you were given a hopeknife—a small, sheathed dagger, 
  usually worn on a chain under your clothes—and taught how 
  to use it to take your own life to avoid capture by orcs, or to 
  grant the mercy of a quick death to the wounded. As a native, 
  you have served in Trunau’s militia, and fought alongside 
  Patrol Captains Kurst and Rodrik Grath. You begin play with 
  a hopeknife (a masterwork dagger), and your tenacity in the 
  face of adversity grants you a +1 trait bonus on Will saves.
  Vexing Defender: You’re trained in fighting opponents 
  that are larger than you, and you are skilled at keeping them 
  on their toes, pestering them from all directions. You gain a 
  +1 trait bonus on Acrobatics checks, and Acrobatics becomes 
  a class skill for you. In addition, you gain a +4 trait bonus 
  on Acrobatics checks to move through an enemy’s space 
  without provoking an attack of opportunity, provided that 
  enemy is larger than you.
  TRUNAU GAZETTEER
  The Giantslayer Adventure Path begins in the town 
  of Trunau. A gazetteer of the town is presented below, 
  reprinted from Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Towns of the 
  Inner Sea.
  trunAu
  One of only two non-orc settlements in Belkzen, Trunau is 
  a predominantly human community of sturdy farmers and 
  resolute warriors adrift in a monstrous sea of orcs who would 
  as soon kill them as trade with them. Its people survive 
  through the grace of the gods, the remarkable tenacity and 
  ingenuity of their leaders, and a simple, soul-deep refusal 
  to be driven from the land of their ancestors.
  Trunauans know sacrifice in all its forms. Though their 
  lives are far from easy, this band of idealists, scoundrels, 
  and outcasts takes great pride in the independence that 
  comes from being all on their own in hostile territory. For 
  them, every day of the town’s continued existence is an 
  enduring example of civilization’s unconquerable spirit 
  and the prodigious strength of hope. 
  histOry OF trunAu
  Since its border was first established after the defeat of 
  the Whispering Tyrant in 3828 ar, the Hold of Belkzen 
  has steadily expanded south into Lastwall, pushing back 
  line after line of crusaders and leaving countless miles 
  of shattered border fortresses to rot within the orc-held 
  territory. In 4515, beleaguered soldiers and farmers pushed 
  to the limit by nearly 300 years of active war since the 
  fall of Harchist’s Blockade crafted a new border dubbed 
  the Hordeline, a sad affair consisting of little more than 
  earthen ramparts and wooden palisades, and made their 
  stand along the Kestrel River. Still, it held long enough for 
  those communities behind it to feel some measure of hope 
  that the orc menace had finally been halted.
  It was not to be. Shortly after the Hordeline’s construction, 
  its western stretch fell, and orcs flooded south into Lastwall. 
  The commanders of Lastwall reluctantly ordered yet another 
  general evacuation, pulling back to a new border farther east, 
  and leaving those residents in the relinquished territory to 
  flee to safety with whatever they could carry, desperate to 
  stay one step ahead of the rampaging orcs.
  Yet not everyone fled. Enraged by what they saw as 
  Lastwall’s cowardly betrayal, the farmers and retired 
  crusaders in the placid settlement of Trunau refused to run. 
  Positioned on top of a rocky, naturally defensible plateau 
  called Bloodmarch Hill, the community dug in, sharpening 
  stakes and digging pits, their numbers swelling with refugees 
  and soldiers unwilling to retreat and abandon their friends. 
  When the orcs inevitably arrived, they found their ferocity 
  more than matched by that of Trunau’s defenders, and after 
  taking heavy losses assaulting the cliffs and log palisades, 
  the invaders retreated south to loot vacated settlements.
  Heady with victory, the surviving residents made a pact, 
  known today as the Standing Vow (or simply “the Vow”): to 
  hold their land against all comers, paying tribute neither to 
  raiding orcs nor to the armies of neighboring nations. They 
  would stand their ground and live free, no matter the cost.
  For the last couple centuries, the people of Trunau have 
  held to this oath, and it’s a matter of great pride that despite 
  catastrophic raids and the rigors required by life in hostile 
  territory, the town has never fallen. Even more important to 
  some, however, is that unlike Freedom Town to the north—a 
  7
  
  town of criminals and exiles settled just inside the Hold of 
  Belkzen in order to avoid Lastwall’s strict laws—the people 
  of Trunau have never lost their fundamentally civilized 
  nature, nor have they resorted to paying for protection from 
  an outside entity.
  While many have come to Trunau over the years looking 
  to escape shadowy pasts, Trunau accepts no dead weight; 
  only those who are willing to work and contribute to the 
  community can share the safety of the town walls. When 
  the orcs come, every man and woman, regardless of wealth 
  or profession, is expected to aid in the defense. Those who 
  acquit themselves well and conduct themselves with honor 
  find that Trunau’s residents care little about who newcomers 
  may have been in their lives before—only who they seek 
  to be now.
  liFe in trunAu
  Living under constant threat, the people of Trunau have 
  come to embrace death as simply another part of life. This 
  doesn’t mean that all of the inhabitants are totally at peace 
  with their own mortality, but simply that they recognize 
  theirs is a dangerous existence, and thus strive to live their 
  lives to the fullest without worrying unduly about which 
  raid or unfortunate accident may finally claim them.
  Perhaps the best symbol of this—and certainly the one 
  that most captures the imagination or outsiders—is the 
  tradition of the hopeknife. Carried by every resident of 
  Trunau, a hopeknife is a small sheathed dagger, usually 
  worn on a chain underneath one’s clothes, though 
  young adults recently come of age often display theirs 
  ostentatiously. The tradition of the hopeknife comes out 
  of Trunau’s understanding that capture by orcs is often 
  far worse than a quick death, and thus all residents need 
  to be prepared to take their own lives or offer mercy to 
  the wounded in the event of capture. Ironically, what 
  was originally a grim necessity has become a symbol of 
  adulthood and independence, and many children wait 
  impatiently for their twelfth birthdays, on which they’re 
  presented with their own hopeknives and shown which 
  arteries to cut should they or their loved ones fall into 
  enemy hands. Hopeknives are always kept well sharpened, 
  and never used for anything but their intended purpose, 
  though spouses often trade knives as part of a marriage 
  ceremony.
  After defense, and with water already handled by the 
  Hopespring, food is the biggest issue in Trunau. The town 
  maintains many fields, with border patrols and guards 
  posted in temporary watchtowers at their edges, and focuses 
  on crops that can be stored for long periods, allowing them 
  to maintain extensive stores so as to be ready in case of a 
  siege. Since fields are easily burned, however, the town also 
  relies heavily on its hunters and trappers—during periods 
  of more active conflict with the orcs, these often join with 
  more traditional fighters to counter-raid and steal food 
  and livestock from the orcs themselves.
  Perhaps most important to the town’s survival is the 
  siegestone. Early on after Trunau’s decision to stand and 
  fight, the town leaders recognized their vulnerability to 
  starvation and made a decision to pool resources in order 
  to find a magical solution. A trading group was sent east 
  to Ustalav with most of the town’s easily carried valuables, 
  and they returned with the siegestone, a huge cauldronlike 
  altar that in times of trouble can produce gallon upon gallon 
  of tasteless porridge, keeping the residents from starving 
  completely. The stone resides in the Longhouse and is never 
  used except in direst need— both out of fear of exhausting 
  its magic, and because no one in town is eager to taste the 
  flavor of desperation during peacetime.
  Folk in Trunau are independent by nature, yet all bow to 
  the wisdom of the Council of Defenders. Chosen from the 
  people’s own ranks every 2 years, these six individuals devote 
  themselves to managing the town’s logistics and defense, 
  making sure that laws are obeyed and no one endangers the 
  community. One of the six councilors holds the title of Chief 
  Defender, who has the final say in all matters relating to 
  the town’s safety and is commander of the people in times 
  of crisis. Outside of that, the six councilors are theoretically 
  of equal power in matters of the town’s prosperity, laws, 
  arbitration, and so on.
  For the last 20 years, the position of Chief Defender has 
  been held by Halgra of the Blackened Blades. A Trunau 
  native, Halgra left the town at a young age to become 
  an adventurer, fighting and raiding her way from the 
  Skittermounds to the Broken Shore and beyond, up into 
  the Realm of the Mammoth Lords. She finally returned at 
  the age of 42 with a veritable throng of children in tow, all 
  from different fathers, and settled in to spend the rest of her 
  life defending her home. Though Jagrin Grath now guides 
  the patrols and raiding parties, Halgra is still a mountain 
  nOtABle peOple in trunAu
  The following are some of the more well-known 
  citizens of Trunau.
  • Chief Defender Halgra of the Blackened Blades
  • Councilor and Banker Lessie Crumkin
  • Councilor Agrit Staginsdar
  • Councilor Sara Morninghawk
  • High Priestess Tyari Varvatos
  • Hopespring Warden Silvermane
  • Master of Stores Kessen Plumb
  • Patrol Captain Kurst Grath
  • Patrol Captain Rodrik Grath
  • Patrol Leader Jagrin Grath
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
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  TRUNAU
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  SARA MORNINGHAWK
  of a woman and quick with her trademark lamp-blackened 
  swords, and her deft politics and tactical acumen mean that 
  no one can honestly challenge her fitness to lead.
  Trade is a crucial part of life in Trunau. Though far 
  from most established trade routes, Trunau still receives 
  the occasional merchant from Lastwall or Nirmathas 
  eager for the valuable salvage the townsfolk still pull from 
  abandoned settlements (as well as the inflated prices 
  the merchants know they can demand from such 
  an isolated community). Most common among 
  these traders are caravans of ethnic Varisians 
  attempting to cross the Hold of Belkzen, or Shoanti 
  raiding parties come east from Varisia to prove 
  themselves against the orcs or the chitinous 
  horrors of the Skittermounds. Trunau 
  also sends its own caravans to Lastwall, 
  trading valuable information on orc 
  movements to the crusaders in Castle 
  Everstand in exchange for supplies. 
  The town even maintains ties with 
  a select few orc traders from Urgir, 
  though the common wisdom is that 
  Grask Uldeth’s current infatuation 
  with trade and civilization won’t last 
  for long.
  Orcs are naturally despised in Trunau, 
  yet ironically, half-orcs bear less stigma here than in most 
  places. As Trunau knows what horrors orcs perpetrate on 
  those they capture, and with Halgra herself having two 
  children from half-orc lovers during her adventuring years, 
  half- orcs are viewed with sympathy, and more than one 
  half- orc raised in orc captivity has escaped to earn a place 
  within Trunau’s walls.
  Trunau is a hardworking community, but also one that 
  understands the value of celebration and taking comfort 
  wherever it can be found. Families are tightly knit, with most 
  families at least mildly related by marriage at some point 
  over the generations. Residents are encouraged to find love 
  wherever they can, and there are few social or sexual taboos 
  as long as residents respect the freedoms of others. Perhaps 
  the best example of Trunau’s philosophy is the holiday of 
  Holdfast, commemorating the town’s first victory over the 
  orcs, which begins with a solemn recitation of remembrance 
  and the burning of a wicker sword, followed by games, 
  dancing, ale, and more than a few romantic liaisons.
  trunAu At A GlAnce
  The most immediately visible feature of the town of 
  Trunau is its palisade. Originally, the palisade was a hastily 
  constructed fence of sharpened branches, but over decades 
  of strife, the Trunauans have built it into something 
  considerably more lasting and deadly. Ten-foot-high tree 
  trunks, their tops sharpened into wicked points, surround 
  the lower portion of the village, fitted so tightly that not 
  even light passes between them. Their bases are driven 
  another 5 feet into the earth, and the bottom half of the 
  wall is encased in a rough but sturdy stone foundation. 
  Trenches filled with smaller spikes create a deadly briar 
  patch guarding the wall from assault. Also incorporated 
  into the palisade are several rock outcroppings that rise 
  even higher, forming the bases for several wooden 
  watchtowers, including those on both sides of the gate.
  Past the gate, the town rises up a steep switchback 
  in the cliff face to an exposed stone plateau 40 
  feet above the rest of the hill. These cliffs are the 
  town’s true defense, as even a handful of defenders 
  can easily pick off any invaders attempting 
  to scale the sheer cliffs, allowing the 
  townsfolk to concentrate the bulk of 
  their defense on the lower palisades. 
  Stone watchtowers stand in the town’s 
  higher levels as well, with fortified 
  structures crowding between normal 
  houses and shops. While the barns 
  and other working structures are kept 
  outside the walls, and many of the residents 
  spend their days and even nights in those 
  buildings, all residents must either maintain 
  personal quarters in the town or pay a “siege 
  fee” to rent a room or a patch of floor in someone’s house 
  inside the walls, to be used only during orc attacks. The siege 
  fee is a set rate established by the Council of Defenders in 
  order to discourage profiteering.
  Below are a few of the more noteworthy locations in the 
  town of Trunau.
  1. Main Gate: Trunau has only a single gate, as anyone 
  needing to exit or enter during a siege could simply use 
  a rope ladder dropped down from the cliffs at the town’s 
  higher end. The gate is built to overlap the stones to either 
  side, allowing the rock of the hill to reinforce it against 
  battering rams. Atop each rock stands a wooden watchtower 
  large enough for a dozen defenders to fire bows or pour 
  boiling water down on attackers from relative safety. Both 
  to intimidate the orcs and to guard against fiery arrows, 
  the towers’ sides and roofs are armored with the shields 
  and breastplates of orcs who’ve assaulted the walls and died, 
  their various clan symbols prominently displayed. The 
  town council sets a precise watch schedule to make sure 
  that plenty of eyes are on the wall both day and night, and 
  all adults in the village are required to take regular shifts.
  2. Ivory Hall: The seat of power in Trunau, the Ivory 
  Hall was originally festooned with the skulls of the most 
  ferocious orc champions and chieftains felled in Trunau’s 
  first siege, their hollow eye sockets mute testimony to both 
  the constant threat under which Trunau exists, and to the 
  residents’ unwavering commitment to surviving it. Later 
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  10
  
  HALGRA
  generations of councilors found the display too grisly and 
  similar to the orcs’ own trophy-keeping traditions, however, 
  and discarded the bones. Today, the hall gets its name from 
  the brilliant white of its walls, and serves as the home of 
  whoever is Chief Defender. Halgra puts the manor to good 
  use, allowing several of her grown children to house 
  their own families in its many rooms. The only part 
  off-limits to the rest of her rough-and-tumble 
  clan is the Meeting Room—with commanding 
  views of the surrounding countryside, she uses 
  it to host war councils and entertain visitors 
  such as traders, emissaries from Vigil or Castle 
  Firrine, or the Pathfinders who often use 
  Trunau as a launching point for expeditions 
  into Belkzen.
  3. Flame of the Fallen: Trunauans are 
  all too familiar with the orc practice of 
  gathering the bones of slain foes and 
  creating grisly monuments out of the 
  remains. To honor the fallen dead and 
  deny their enemies the opportunity 
  to turn them into skeletal mockeries, 
  Trunauans go to great lengths to retrieve 
  the body of any citizen slain in battle. Those 
  recovered are burned in a great pyre along the cliff at 
  the town’s crest, their light and smoke traveling up into the 
  endless freedom of the sky. During times of siege, the beacon 
  is kept burning day and night to hearten the defenders and 
  challenge to the orcs—though some cynics say that it’s kept 
  lit to keep townsfolk from noticing and despairing every 
  time a new corpse is added.
  4. Commons: The central feature of Trunau’s community 
  is a wide amphitheater with a stone floor and a raised 
  stage at one end. By day, the Commons serves as Trunau’s 
  training ground, upon which its residents engage in 
  martial training under Jagrin Grath—depending on 
  their primary role in town, some dedicated warriors train 
  nearly every day, but even those more valuable in other 
  capacities are expected to train at least 1 day per month. 
  By night, however, the Commons transforms into a place 
  of relaxation and celebration as townsfolk meet to conduct 
  hopeknife ceremonies for their youth or indulge in any 
  other cause for festivity. Children’s school lessons are often 
  conducted on the rows of tiered seating, the stage is used for 
  announcements and the occasional theatrical performance, 
  and in general the Commons represents a pleasant outdoor 
  meeting point for all residents.
  5. Barterstones: While Trunau hosts some more 
  established shops within its walls, most of its general trading 
  is conducted at an open-air market held atop several low, 
  broad slabs of flat rock just east of town. Originally, the 
  market was only used for trading with orcs and suspicious 
  outsiders who hadn’t yet earned the people’s trust enough 
  to be allowed inside the community’s walls, but over time 
  the town’s farmers and herders found it easier to meet here 
  than to try and guide wagons and livestock through the 
  town’s steep and narrow streets, and now the vast majority 
  of local trade occurs at the Barterstones as well, with 
  market days coming twice a week (and more often 
  when traders arrive).
  6. Plague House: Before the fall of the 
  Hordeline, this was a small church of Iomedae 
  serving the local farming communities. 
  When Lastwall’s forces retreated and Trunau 
  decided to stand and fight, the priests of 
  Iomedae joined them—yet unlike the other 
  residents, head priest Arthuris Bain and his 
  two assistants refused to retreat within the 
  fortified walls, confident that Iomedae’s 
  wrath would strike down any raiders who 
  dared to come for them.
  Though the priests fought valiantly, the 
  church was burned to the ground almost 
  immediately by the rampaging orcs, and all 
  three of its residents were slain. The church 
  stood as a burned-out husk for decades, then 
  50 years ago was hastily reconstructed as a place 
  to hold those afflicted by a plague sweeping the 
  town. Though removing the sick from inside the town walls 
  doubtlessly saved many, the plague house burned down in 
  a mysterious fire only a few nights after its completion, 
  taking with it a score of patients and healers. Whether the 
  fire was an accident or the work of an arsonist attempting 
  to stop the plague for good, no one knows, but no one ever 
  proposed building on the site again.
  Today, the site—known as both the Burned Church and 
  the Plague House—is left alone, save for the occasional 
  children’s dare to stand in the center of the blackened beams 
  at sunset. However, lights have recently been seen moving 
  about in the church at night, but even the best trackers 
  unable to find any evidence of tracks there the following 
  morning. The whole town buzzes with wild speculation 
  after each new sighting.
  7. Sanctuary: A year after the loss of Trunau’s old church, 
  missionaries from the church of Iomedae arrived and began 
  constructing a new house of worship to honor their goddess 
  and minister to the people of Trunau—this time wisely 
  building it inside the town’s walls. The new sanctuary houses 
  half a dozen clerics and paladins who, in addition to helping 
  with the town’s defense, staff a large prayer hall and a hall 
  of respite where the wounded can be tended after battle. 
  Though some citizen look askance at the Iomedaeans—all 
  of whom still officially claim allegiance to Lastwall, and 
  see their presence here as helping maintaining diplomatic 
  ties with the outpost until the border can be expanded 
  once more—no one is willing to actually turn away such 
  11
  
  hardworking and valuable residents, especially as they refuse 
  to serve in any governmental capacity.
  The current matron of the sanctuary is a young cleric 
  named Tyari Varvatos, the younger sister of the Second Sword 
  Knight of the Sancta Iomedae in Vigil. Speculation abounds 
  as to why she toils here in Trunau instead of alongside her 
  prominent sister, with most presuming she’s out to create 
  her own name rather than live in her sister’s shadow. Her 
  staunchest ally is an errant paladin named Brantos Calderon, 
  formerly stationed at Castle Firrine, who forsook his post 
  to pledge his blade (and, rumormongers claim, his heart) 
  to the resolute young cleric who toils on this harsh frontier.
  The sanctuary’s longest-standing resident (and patient) 
  is a gnarled old half-orc named Katrezra. Raised among the 
  Empty Hand tribe, he suffers from a terrible affliction of the 
  lungs and weeping sores on his face and arms, gained when 
  his jealous chieftain sent him to the Brimstone Haruspex 
  to experience painful visions of the future. Fed up with the 
  barbarity of the orcs, he managed to convince Halgra to grant 
  him sanctuary, and has since found rebirth in the light of 
  Iomedae, and proven his loyalty time and again on the town’s 
  walls. He still occasionally has visions, and though many 
  write them off as hallucinations or attention- grabbing, Tyari 
  has begun privately recording them on the chance that they 
  may point toward some important revelation.
  8. Ramblehouse: Before its founding as an independent 
  town, Trunau had little call for an inn, and for many 
  generations after, the town’s rare visitors would stay wherever 
  there was space. Nearly 30 years ago, however, a handful of 
  escaped halfling slaves from Molthune fled north all the 
  way to Trunau, determined to start new lives. One of them, 
  Cham Larringfass, decided to build not just a place for 
  herself and her friends, but an entire inn and boardinghouse. 
  She got the rest of her crew in on the endeavor, and before 
  long a sprawling, eccentric manor packed with rooms of all 
  shapes and sizes sprang up in the town’s lower end. Though 
  guests are still rare, the aptly named Ramblehouse now 
  houses a sizable chunk of the town’s halfling population, as 
  well as many boarders of other races. Cham, still the head 
  innkeeper, also makes a good living off siege fees, and is 
  thus fond of cutting deals to other halflings and members 
  of “right-sized” races— with the only annoyance being her 
  tendency to play matchmaker for available guests.
  9. Longhouse: The largest structure in town, the 
  Longhouse is the central meeting house of Trunau, hosting 
  both council meetings and, on days when the weather is foul, 
  all of the various training sessions and celebrations normally 
  held in the Commons. In addition to its great common room 
  for feasts and meetings, the structure also contains several 
  barracks where young unmarried warriors of either gender 
  can live in order to focus more on their militia training. 
  Chief among these is Jagrin Grath, who despite his simple 
  chosen title of Patrol Leader is the councilor in charge of 
  training and leading the town’s militia. After the death 
  of his wife— also a talented ranger and warrior—at the 
  hands of an orc raiding party, he and his sons moved into 
  the Longhouse and devoted themselves to protecting the 
  town, counter- raiding the orcs who would victimize them, 
  and training all Trunau residents in the soldiering arts, to 
  ensure that no more families are sundered. In addition to 
  personally leading patrols, he’s in charge of organizing and 
  posting the watchtower rotations and helping Councilor 
  Kessen Plumb make sure that the vast stores of siege rations, 
  weapons, and potions in the longhouse’s extensive basement 
  remain viable. With the exception of the siegestone, which is 
  far too heavy to be moved without a block and tackle, all of 
  the stores beneath the Longhouse are kept under lock and 
  key, with only the six councilors having copies of that key.
  10. Trunau Countinghouse: When Lastwall first 
  abandoned Trunau, an Abadaran tax collector in the region 
  named Barran Crumkin decided to go rogue and cast his lot 
  with the Trunau residents, whom he saw as epitomizing his 
  faith’s struggle to promote civilization in the face of barbarity. 
  He gathered other like-minded merchants in the town and 
  founded the Trunau Countinghouse, a bank where the locals 
  could safely deposit their wealth and earn interest instead of 
  hiding it in their houses and potentially losing it to orc raids.
  Today, the Trunau Countinghouse has grown into a 
  large, stately building that sees to both the banking and 
  spiritual needs of locals and traveling merchants alike. 
  Its proprietor, town council member and banker Lessie 
  Crumkin, can proudly trace her lineage all the way back 
  to the bank’s founder, and takes to her job well enough, 
  though several people have noted not only that her skill at 
  arms in the training arena, but also the way she sometimes 
  Belkzen dAtes
  The Hold of Belkzen, where the Giantslayer Adventure Path 
  begins, has a long and storied history, and the orc hordes 
  have on several occasions pushed the knights of Lastwall 
  southward, forcing the humans to repeatedly redraw their 
  nation’s borders. Unfortunately, the multiple retreats have also 
  resulted in some contradictory dates across multiple products.
  In particular, Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Belkzen, Hold 
  of the Orc Hordes lists an erroneous date for the fall of the 
  Hordeline. The correct date for the fall of the Hordeline is 
  4517 ar, not 4524 ar, as listed in the print volume. The pdf of 
  that product has been updated to incorporate the correct date, 
  and the Giantslayer Adventure Path uses that date as well.
  The dates in the updated Pathfinder Campaign Setting: 
  Belkzen, Hold of the Orc Hordes pdf also supercede those 
  originally given in “The Hold of Belkzen” article in Pathfinder 
  Adventure Path #11.
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  12
  
  longingly watches the patrols leaving— particularly their 
  leader, Jagrin Grath.
  11. Hopespring: Originally named simply “Hillspring,” 
  this trickle of fresh water is the reason the town was founded 
  in this spot, and the key to its existence. Welling up from 
  deep within the stone, this astonishingly prolific stream 
  provides the town with a waterfall of pure water, filling 
  the town reservoir before filtering down through cracks 
  in the stone once more and running underground before 
  resurfacing in a creek miles away.
  Whether the spring is natural or magical, none can 
  say—yet that doesn’t mean no one knows. A mute elven 
  druid, whose weathered features mark his age as venerable 
  even for his timeless race, quietly watches over the 
  spring and its reservoir, though what purpose his quiet 
  contemplation serves is anyone’s guess. Dubbed Silvermane 
  by the townsfolk, he has resided on this hill and slept near 
  the spring since before the town was settled. He rarely 
  communicates with anyone, but on occasion has been seen 
  conversing with Halgra via some form of sign language. He 
  generally holds himself aloof from the town’s proceedings, 
  yet the few occasions upon which he performs magic—
  healing a dying child or calling lightning down on raiders—
  earn him respect from most residents, albeit mixed with 
  questions regarding his inscrutable motives. The most 
  common rumor is that he’s the only survivor of the Council 
  of Thorns, a fierce druidic circle whose members ended their 
  lives with the prodigious blood rite that gave Ghostlight 
  Marsh its name.
  12. Inner Quarter: Trunau has two stone inner walls 
  blocking off the sloping area leading up to the top of the 
  plateau. These inner walls are designed to allow citizens 
  to retreat to the higher town in the event that the main 
  palisade is breached, and having a gate at either end of the 
  slope allows defenders to better choke the invaders and turn 
  the whole ramp into a killing ground, firing arrows down 
  from the walls and cliff above.
  13. House of Wonders: Most visitors looking to purchase 
  spellcasting or trade in magical items are surprised to be 
  introduced to Agrit Staginsdar. The only daughter of a long 
  line of warriors who left Janderhoff and came to Trunau for 
  undisclosed reasons, she disappointed her family greatly 
  when, after only a few years of studying the arts of war, she 
  insisted on turning her attentions to arcane magic.
  Though she’s built quite a fine business for herself, her 
  family still feels strongly that her place is on patrols outside 
  the town—and her relations are none too pleased that her 
  childless marriage to Sara Morninghawk has ended the 
  Staginsdar line. Agrit tends to be violently defensive about 
  her life choices, but lights up when talking about her work 
  or teaching the town’s other burgeoning arcane casters. 
  She’s always eager to examine unfamiliar magic items, and 
  anyone who appeals to her sense of wonder and mystery (and 
  succeeds at a DC 15 Diplomacy check) can convince Agrit to 
  identify a magic item for free.
  14. Clamor: Though technically Morninghawk’s Fine 
  Steel, this smithy is better known by its nickname “Clamor” 
  due to the constant pounding of hammers that thunders 
  from it during the daylight hours. Its owner, Councilor 
  Sara Morninghawk, is the daughter of a Shoanti woman 
  who arrived in the town already pregnant and uninterested 
  in talking about her past. Sara cares little about her mixed 
  heritage, save to note that it gives her “proper shoulders to 
  work the forge.”
  Morninghawk oversees all of the metalwork for the town, 
  including several apprentices specializing in different 
  aspects of the trade. She also never goes anywhere without 
  her mother’s axe, which she generally keeps strapped to her 
  back. Sara’s well aware of the eyebrows some folks raise about 
  her marriage to Agrit, but she cheerfully responds with a 
  flexed biceps and the question of who else but a dwarf would 
  be equipped to handle her.
  15. The Killin’ Ground: Named for its position on the 
  sloped ascent between the town’s two inner gates, this 
  bar started as a way for Rabus Clarenston to finance the 
  production of his beloved moonshine. Despite the vocal 
  disapproval of Tyari and some of the town’s more straight-
  laced residents, Rabus does a brisk business—with the only 
  law governing his trade being that, should someone show for 
  a patrol or watch duty drunk on his product, Rabus himself 
  must share in the punishment. As a result, Rabus knows 
  the shift schedule better than anyone, and despite his own 
  near-constant inebriation, he never allows anyone to drink 
  in his bar within 4 hours of his or her next shift (or 6 or 
  even 8 hours, for those he knows can’t handle their drink).
  The Killin’ Ground itself is a strange structure, with walls 
  that begin a foot off the ground and a roof made entirely of 
  canvas. When the furious local storms roll in, Rabus pulls 
  back the canvas and lets the rain and the slope of the hill 
  wash the filth of the bar’s constant partying away—which 
  greatly annoys his downhill neighbors.
  16. That ’n’ Such: Yet another business known by its 
  nickname rather than its official name—Meeson’s Goods 
  & Salvage—That ’n’ Such is the closest thing Trunau has to 
  a general store. Its proprietor, Jess “Crazy Jess” Meeson, is 
  a shrewd businessperson in most matters, but unreserved 
  in her passion for salvage from the days before Lastwall’s 
  border retreated, and her shop is a clutter of both mundane 
  goods useful to townsfolk and “treasures” purchased from 
  patrols and adventurers.
  Her husband, Gorkis Meeson, is equally obsessed with his 
  own pursuits as the town’s only resident apothecary. From 
  his workshop in the back of the store, he crafts potions and 
  curatives both magical and mundane for those residents 
  too embarrassed or ornery to seek out the town’s religious 
  healers with their ailments.
  13
  
  ENVIRONMENTAL 
  CONSIDERATIONS
  The Giantslayer Adventure Path will take your characters 
  deep into the Mindspin Mountains. When traveling 
  through the mountains, keep in mind the dangerous 
  conditions you might encounter. Hone your skills, 
  bring the right gear, keep your eyes open, and consider 
  the following environmental rules—reprinted here to 
  provide quick and easy reference, but originally found in 
  the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. 
  hills terrAin
  A hill can exist in most other types of terrain, but hills can 
  also dominate the landscape. Hills terrain is divided into 
  two categories: gentle hills and rugged hills. Hills terrain 
  often serves as a transition zone between rugged terrain 
  such as mountains and flat terrain such as plains.
  Gradual Slope: This incline isn’t steep enough to affect 
  movement, but characters gain a +1 bonus on melee attacks 
  against foes downhill from them.
  Steep Slope: Characters moving uphill (to an adjacent 
  square of higher elevation) must spend 2 squares of 
  movement to enter each square of steep slope. Characters 
  running or charging downhill (moving to an adjacent 
  square of lower elevation) must succeed on a DC 10 
  Acrobatics check upon entering the first steep slope 
  square. Mounted characters make a DC 10 Ride check 
  instead. Characters who fail this check stumble and must 
  end their movement 1d2 × 5 feet later. Characters who fail 
  by 5 or more fall prone in the square where they end their 
  movement. A steep slope increases the DC of Acrobatics 
  checks by 2.
  Cliff: A cliff typically requires a DC 15 Climb check to 
  scale and is 1d4 × 10 feet tall, although the needs of your map 
  might mandate a taller cliff. A cliff isn’t perfectly vertical, 
  taking up 5-foot squares if it’s less than 30 feet tall and 10-
  foot squares if it’s 30 feet or taller.
  Light Undergrowth: Sagebrush and other scrubby bushes 
  grow on hills, although they rarely cover the landscape. Light 
  undergrowth provides concealment and increases the DC 
  of Acrobatics and Stealth checks by 2.
  Other Hills Terrain Elements: Trees aren’t out of place in 
  hills terrain, and valleys often have active streams (5 to 10 feet 
  wide and no more than 5 feet deep) or dry streambeds (treat 
  as a trench 5 to 10 feet across) in them. If you add a stream 
  or streambed, remember that water always flows downhill.
  Stealth and Detection in Hills: In gentle hills, the 
  maximum distance at which a Perception check for detecting 
  the nearby presence of others can succeed is 2d10 × 10 feet. 
  In rugged hills, this distance is 2d6 × 10 feet.
  Hiding in hills terrain can be difficult if there isn’t 
  undergrowth around. A hilltop or ridge provides enough 
  cover to hide from anyone below the hilltop or ridge
  MOuntAin terrAin
  The three mountain terrain categories are alpine meadows, 
  rugged mountains, and forbidding mountains. As characters 
  ascend into a mountainous area, they’re likely to face each 
  terrain category in turn, beginning with alpine meadows, 
  extending through rugged mountains, and reaching 
  forbidding mountains near the summit.
  Mountains have an important terrain element, the rock 
  wall, that is marked on the border between squares rather 
  than taking up squares itself.
  Gradual and Steep Slopes: These function as described 
  in Hills Terrain.
  Cliff: These terrain elements also function like their hills 
  terrain counterparts, but they’re typically 2d6 × 10 feet tall. 
  Cliffs taller than 80 feet take up 20 feet of horizontal space.
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  14
  
  Chasm: Usually formed by natural geological processes, 
  chasms function like pits in a dungeon setting. Chasms 
  aren’t hidden, so characters won’t fall into them by accident 
  (although bull rushes are another story). A typical chasm is 
  2d4 × 10 feet deep, at least 20 feet long, and anywhere from 
  5 feet to 20 feet wide. It takes a DC 15 Climb check to climb 
  out of a chasm. In forbidding mountain terrain, chasms 
  are typically 2d8 × 10 feet deep.
  Light Undergrowth: This functions as described in 
  Forest Terrain.
  Scree: A field of shifting gravel, scree doesn’t affect speed, 
  but it can be treacherous on a slope. The DC of Acrobatics 
  checks increases by 2 if there’s scree on a gradual slope 
  and by 5 if there’s scree on a steep slope. The DC of Stealth 
  checks increases by 2 if the scree is on a slope of any kind.
  Dense Rubble: The ground is covered with rocks of all 
  sizes. It costs 2 squares of movement to enter a square with 
  dense rubble. The DC of Acrobatics checks on dense rubble 
  increases by 5, and the DC of Stealth checks increases by 2.
  Rock Wall: A vertical plane of stone, rock walls require 
  DC 25 Climb checks to ascend. A typical rock wall is 2d4 × 
  10 feet tall in rugged mountains and 2d8 × 10 feet tall in 
  forbidding mountains. Rock walls are drawn on the edges 
  of squares, not in the squares themselves.
  Cave Entrance: Found in cliff and steep slope squares and 
  next to rock walls, cave entrances are typically between 5 and 
  20 feet wide and 5 feet deep. A cave could be anything from 
  a simple chamber to the entrance to an elaborate dungeon. 
  Caves used as monster lairs typically have 1d3 rooms that 
  are 1d4 × 10 feet across.
  Other Mountain Terrain Features: Most alpine meadows 
  begin above the treeline, so trees and other forest elements 
  are rare in the mountains. Mountain terrain can include 
  active streams (5 to 10 feet wide and no more than 5 feet 
  deep) and dry streambeds (treat as a trench 5 to 10 feet 
  across). Particularly high-altitude areas tend to be colder 
  than the lowland areas that surround them, so they might 
  be covered in ice sheets.
  Stealth and Detection in Mountains: As a guideline, the 
  maximum distance in mountain terrain at which a 
  Perception check for detecting the nearby presence 
  of others can succeed is 4d10 × 10 feet. Certain peaks 
  and ridgelines afford much better vantage points, of 
  course, and twisting valleys and canyons have much 
  shorter spotting distances. Because there’s little 
  vegetation to obstruct line of sight, the specifics on 
  your map are your best guide for the range at which 
  an encounter could begin. As in hills terrain, a ridge 
  or peak provides enough cover to hide from anyone 
  below the high point.
  It’s easier to hear faraway sounds in the mountains. 
  The DC of Perception checks that rely on sound 
  increase by 1 per 20 feet between listener and source, 
  not per 10 feet.
  MOuntAin trAvel
  High altitude travel can be extremely fatiguing—and 
  sometimes deadly—to creatures that aren’t used to it. Cold 
  becomes extreme, and the lack of oxygen in the air can wear 
  down even the most hardy of warriors.
  Acclimated Characters: Creatures accustomed to high 
  altitude generally fare better than lowlanders. Any creature 
  with an Environment entry that includes mountains 
  is considered native to the area and acclimated to the 
  high altitude. Characters can also acclimate themselves 
  by living at high altitude for a month. Characters who 
  spend more than two months away from the mountains 
  must reacclimate themselves when they return. Undead, 
  constructs, and other creatures that do not breathe are 
  immune to altitude effects.
  15
  
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  15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE
  Open Game License v 1.0a © 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
  System Reference Document © 2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc; Authors: 
  Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, based on material by E. Gary Gygax 
  and Dave Arneson.
  Giantslayer Player’s Guide © 2015, Paizo Inc.; Authors: Adam Daigle and Rob 
  McCreary.
  Altitude Zones: In general, mountains present three 
  possible altitude bands: low pass, low peak/high pass, and 
  high peak.
  Low Pass (lower than 5,000 feet): Most travel in low 
  mountains takes place in low passes, a zone consisting 
  largely of alpine meadows and forests. Travelers might find 
  the going difficult (which is reflected in the movement 
  modifiers for traveling through mountains), but the altitude 
  itself has no game effect.
  Low Peak or High Pass (5,000 to 15,000 feet): Ascending to 
  the highest slopes of low mountains, or most normal travel 
  through high mountains, falls into this category. All non-
  acclimated creatures labor to breathe in the thin air at this 
  altitude. Characters must succeed on a Fortitude save each 
  hour (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or be fatigued. The 
  fatigue ends when the character descends to an altitude 
  with more air. Acclimated characters do not have to attempt 
  the Fortitude save.
  High Peak (more than 15,000 feet): The highest mountains 
  exceed 15,000 feet in height. At these elevations, creatures 
  are subject to both high altitude fatigue (as described above) 
  and altitude sickness, whether or not they’re acclimated 
  to high altitudes. Altitude sickness represents long-term 
  oxygen deprivation, and affects mental and physical ability 
  scores. After each 6-hour period a character spends at an 
  altitude of over 15,000 feet, he must succeed on a Fortitude 
  save (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or take 1 point of damage 
  to all ability scores. Creatures acclimated to high altitude 
  receive a +4 competence bonus on their saving throws 
  to resist high altitude effects and altitude sickness, but 
  eventually even seasoned mountaineers must abandon 
  these dangerous elevations.
  PLAYER’S GUIDE
  16
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Pathfinder/1st Edition/Adventure Paths/PF91-96 Giantslayer/Giantslayer - Player's Guide.pdf