What do you think?
Rate this book
Pathfinder Tales #4
The Worldwound Gambit
Thieves and Madmen
In the foreboding north, the demonic hordes of the magic-twisted hellscape known as the Worldwound encroach upon the southern kingdoms of Golarion. Their latest escalation embroils a preternaturally handsome and coolly charismatic swindler named Gad, who decides to assemble a team of thieves, cutthroats, and con-men to take the fight into the demon lands and strike directly at the fiendish leader responsible for the latest raids—the demon Yath, the Shimmering Putrescence. Can Gad hold his team together long enough to pull off the ultimate con, or will trouble from within his own organization lead to an untimely end for them all?
From gaming legend and popular author Robin D. Laws comes a fantastic new adventure of swords and sorcery, set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
In the foreboding north, the demonic hordes of the magic-twisted hellscape known as the Worldwound encroach upon the southern kingdoms of Golarion. Their latest escalation embroils a preternaturally handsome and coolly charismatic swindler named Gad, who decides to assemble a team of thieves, cutthroats, and con-men to take the fight into the demon lands and strike directly at the fiendish leader responsible for the latest raids—the demon Yath, the Shimmering Putrescence. Can Gad hold his team together long enough to pull off the ultimate con, or will trouble from within his own organization lead to an untimely end for them all?
From gaming legend and popular author Robin D. Laws comes a fantastic new adventure of swords and sorcery, set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
415 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 2011
16 people are currently reading
320 people want to read
About the author
Robin D. Laws
146 books196 followersWriter and game designer Robin D. Laws brought you such roleplaying games as Ashen Stars, The Esoterrorists, The Dying Earth, Heroquest and Feng Shui. He is the author of seven novels, most recently The Worldwound Gambit from Paizo. For Robin's much-praised works of gaming history and analysis, see Hamlet's Hit Points, Robin's Laws of Game Mastering and 40 Years of Gen Con.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
February 5, 2014
I didn't like this one as much as I did the other Pathfinder Tales book by Robin D Laws. Part of this is that Gad simply isn't that sympathetic as a protagonist. He's a con man and his companions come across as more tools of his trade than friends or compatriots. A bigger part, though, is that the central story--of hacking a nest of demons to save his favorite hunting grounds, er, country--is simply not as engaging (for me). Demons are dark and gruesome and an entire story set in environs overrun by the things is going to be gross and perverted. There's just no way around that, really.
So not a favorite, though at least the story was well-told and interesting enough I never thought to just stop reading.
So not a favorite, though at least the story was well-told and interesting enough I never thought to just stop reading.
September 25, 2016
3.5 stars for me, rounded up to 4. Probably my 2nd-favorite Pathfinder Tale so far, and definitely not your average RPG tie-in novel.
Based in Mendev, our location for this trip to Golarion is the Worldwound, the massive chasm in the world that opened when the god Aroden died. Demons have been crawling out of the Worldwound ever since, battled by the crusaders in Mendev. Usually held back by wardstones, the demons have become far more aggressive and numerous. When his partner dies due to a demon attack, the main protagonist of this novel, the rather stoic Gad who is a thief and scoundrel, decides that he will set out to destroy the demon in charge of this influx, with his band of misfits.
This is kinda Ocean's Eleven meets Diablo demons. This is a dark novel, and demons are properly described as horrible and fairly disgusting. The plot is not always captivating, but I thought all the very flawed characters in Gad's gang were really interesting. Gad himself is probably the least interesting of the band.
Unlike the previous Pathfinder Tale, I thought this one really oozes the setting, which is something I want to see about these novels, to get a better feeling for the world of Golarion. That said, I think I would give the Worldwound Adventure Path a miss, too much ichory demon-darkness.
Based in Mendev, our location for this trip to Golarion is the Worldwound, the massive chasm in the world that opened when the god Aroden died. Demons have been crawling out of the Worldwound ever since, battled by the crusaders in Mendev. Usually held back by wardstones, the demons have become far more aggressive and numerous. When his partner dies due to a demon attack, the main protagonist of this novel, the rather stoic Gad who is a thief and scoundrel, decides that he will set out to destroy the demon in charge of this influx, with his band of misfits.
This is kinda Ocean's Eleven meets Diablo demons. This is a dark novel, and demons are properly described as horrible and fairly disgusting. The plot is not always captivating, but I thought all the very flawed characters in Gad's gang were really interesting. Gad himself is probably the least interesting of the band.
Unlike the previous Pathfinder Tale, I thought this one really oozes the setting, which is something I want to see about these novels, to get a better feeling for the world of Golarion. That said, I think I would give the Worldwound Adventure Path a miss, too much ichory demon-darkness.
October 16, 2012
In this Pathfinder Tales novel, Robin D. Laws has accomplished an interesting twist on RPG-based fiction. Not only is it in present tense, something that takes a little getting used to, but works nicely once you acclimate, but the protagonists are not "good guys" much less, conventional heroes. In fact, they end up butting heads with the typical heroic types.
Without giving too much away, the primary character is a con-artist extraordinaire. This con, however, is a little different. It seems nothing is worse for a good old con-artist than a plague of demons, so the bad guys are out to con the badder guys to return the world to a status quo where they can ply their grafty craft.
The story works well, and the characters are well portrayed and realistic in their motivations. They are also wonderfully varied and original; no cookie cutter fantasy types here. The plot is straight forward, with few real surprises, but it is not the rip that is the real story, but the people involved, their faults, foibles, addictions, loves, hates and personal madnesses.
My only real problem with reading The Worldwound Gambit was not anything to do with the writing, the plot, the characters or Robin's wonderful story. The problem was with me...as a writer, not a reader. I had just finished editing a manuscript that was present tense, so reading a present tense novel was no great effort. The problem was, I switched over to another project, which was past tense, and I really got confused. I would find myself writing my past tense story in present tense, and would have to go back and edit... It was a bit of a struggle to keep my brain in one tense, since I usually write and read alternately to give my mind a little relaxation. In this case, all it did was get me frustrated when I sat back down to write.
The Worldwound Gambit is, as I said, a nice twist off of the conventional fantasy RPG road, and I'll be looking forward to reading more from Robin D. Laws!
Without giving too much away, the primary character is a con-artist extraordinaire. This con, however, is a little different. It seems nothing is worse for a good old con-artist than a plague of demons, so the bad guys are out to con the badder guys to return the world to a status quo where they can ply their grafty craft.
The story works well, and the characters are well portrayed and realistic in their motivations. They are also wonderfully varied and original; no cookie cutter fantasy types here. The plot is straight forward, with few real surprises, but it is not the rip that is the real story, but the people involved, their faults, foibles, addictions, loves, hates and personal madnesses.
My only real problem with reading The Worldwound Gambit was not anything to do with the writing, the plot, the characters or Robin's wonderful story. The problem was with me...as a writer, not a reader. I had just finished editing a manuscript that was present tense, so reading a present tense novel was no great effort. The problem was, I switched over to another project, which was past tense, and I really got confused. I would find myself writing my past tense story in present tense, and would have to go back and edit... It was a bit of a struggle to keep my brain in one tense, since I usually write and read alternately to give my mind a little relaxation. In this case, all it did was get me frustrated when I sat back down to write.
The Worldwound Gambit is, as I said, a nice twist off of the conventional fantasy RPG road, and I'll be looking forward to reading more from Robin D. Laws!
March 12, 2016
Another entertaining Pathfinder novel. This one falls somewhere between a caper story and one of those "team of commandos sent behind enemy lines" stories a la The Guns of Navarone. Gad is a scoundrel and a con man; at the beginning of the book, a carefully-crafted swindle goes awry due to a bloody assault on the town by demons from the nearby Worldwound (a place where the Abyss itself is erupting from the world's surface, giving demons easy access; naturally, the region is surrounded by many orders of militant demon-fighters; naturally, some of those orders also don't take kindly to non-demonic con men and swindlers). So, after a chance encounter with cultists of Yath (during which it's learned that Yath's presence will make things Much, Much Worse), there's nothing to do but recruit former compatriots (the Halfling locksmith; the insane fire wizard; the half-orc muscle; the trained killer) to head into the Worldwound to Yath's stronghold to stop him.
Tight plotting, interesting characters, and the trek across the Worldwound (honestly, just into its margins) is suitably nightmarish and horrific. And does Gad have a cunning plan? Well ...
Tight plotting, interesting characters, and the trek across the Worldwound (honestly, just into its margins) is suitably nightmarish and horrific. And does Gad have a cunning plan? Well ...
October 12, 2023
I shouldn't have read this series while watching leverage, because it makes the weakness of this "caper" story stand out. Its a horror story and it is good for information on the worldwound geography for Pathfinder E1... but as a story its so bland and linear that it was just boring.
August 11, 2011
The plot was pretty interesting and had some surprising twists, but the book gets downgraded for being written completely in present tense. It may not be fair, but that's one of my big pet peeves.
February 29, 2024
The story is essentially that of a heist --albeit one about a band of con-men and murderers coming together to save the nation of Mendev from a demonic invasion for less-than-altruistic reasons. I initially dropped this book around the halfway mark due to other things taking my interest at the time, but I'm honestly glad I picked it back up.
I enjoyed the story well enough; while many of the characters feel tropey, this serves the conceit of the story well, and it really fits the types of characters one would expect to find in a tabletop roleplaying game. The author also did a fantastic job capturing what the reality of living in a place as blasted and terrible as Mendev and the Worldwound would be. I think this serves as an excellent inspirational tool for aspiring GM, and I will definitely take some notes from this the next time this area of Golarion comes up in my home games.
I enjoyed the story well enough; while many of the characters feel tropey, this serves the conceit of the story well, and it really fits the types of characters one would expect to find in a tabletop roleplaying game. The author also did a fantastic job capturing what the reality of living in a place as blasted and terrible as Mendev and the Worldwound would be. I think this serves as an excellent inspirational tool for aspiring GM, and I will definitely take some notes from this the next time this area of Golarion comes up in my home games.
July 26, 2025
Comme d'habitude, un plaisir de trouver un roman dans un de mes univers préféré. Petit bémol, le personnage principal est trop principal ! On a plutôt un roman type "bande de bras cassés sauvent le monde" et 2/3 des femmes mentionnées (oui c'est un peu dans le sexisme ordinaire) veulent coucher avec le héros, il est parfait et génial quasi tout le long ... Dommage car les autres personnages sont tout aussi, voire plus intéressants que lui ! Le scénario n'est pas d'une immense originalité, mais il fait le travail, et j'ai trouvé que pas mal de vocabulaire spécifique à la Worldwound était bien amené pour qu'on ait pas besoin de consulter le glossaire en fin de livre (super idée d'ailleurs).
August 15, 2025
The Wouldwound is a a really interesting setting that is unique to the Pathfinder world. Sadly, that is the only thing unique or interesting in this book.
The characters. Flat. The plot. Flat and predictable. This tiny little book took me a month to read because I was just so uninterested in it. But it wasn't actively bad enough to make me want to stop reading. Instead I would just find something else to read for a while.
Finally finished. Not an accomplishment. Not sure how much of a hurry I am to jump into the next Pathfinder Tales book even knowing it has the characters from the first novel, The Prince of Wolves, whom I really liked.
The characters. Flat. The plot. Flat and predictable. This tiny little book took me a month to read because I was just so uninterested in it. But it wasn't actively bad enough to make me want to stop reading. Instead I would just find something else to read for a while.
Finally finished. Not an accomplishment. Not sure how much of a hurry I am to jump into the next Pathfinder Tales book even knowing it has the characters from the first novel, The Prince of Wolves, whom I really liked.
August 27, 2023
I believe this is the first tie-in novel I've read. It felt a bit heavy on the demonic taxonomy to me; I'm not sure if this was publisher driven or perhaps what most readers want out of Pathfinder novel set in the middle of a demonic invasion.
Picked it up because I was intrigued by the heist framing idea and, while I had my doubts it was really going to be a good con (as opposed to an adventure with a con man), I have to say I was wrong to doubt Robin Laws knowledge of the genre. It really stuck the landing.
Picked it up because I was intrigued by the heist framing idea and, while I had my doubts it was really going to be a good con (as opposed to an adventure with a con man), I have to say I was wrong to doubt Robin Laws knowledge of the genre. It really stuck the landing.
February 25, 2017
I could rate this 4 stars based on some of the implausibility (yes, I know world with demons is implausible in and of itself, but implausibility within the rules of the setting) of things working out according to plan. However, the author did an excellent job in describing the indescribable and the thought process around the plot was very tight. It's very different than other Pathfinder books, but different is fun in this case. I hope to see some of the characters in future books.
August 6, 2020
Really enjoyed the "gathering the crew" section of the book but felt it lost momentum a bit after that, spending more time wallowing in the awfulness of demons and cultists than in exploring the until-then interesting dynamics within the group. Also, I am not a fan of the particular heist job trope the whole endgame hinges on.
Some readers may also be annoyed that it is all in present tense: that's not particularly an issue to me personally, though.
Some readers may also be annoyed that it is all in present tense: that's not particularly an issue to me personally, though.
December 10, 2020
I thought this book was going to be better than it was. I love me a good heist, but the pacing was ponderous, finally really only picking up in the last hour or so (I was "ear reading" this one). I have enjoyed the majority of the Pathfinder books, given a realistic expectation of what to expect, but this one had a lot of unfulfilled potential.
February 23, 2025
A caper so massive, I don't think Danny Ocean and his crew would be able to pull it off (or maybe they would, but they'd have to cast for a wet work person or two), with legions of demons and legions of paladins, corrupted and not, getting in the way. Present-tense narration makes for a propulsive tale. Good stuff.
March 11, 2018
Not quite an ocean's eleven for golarion, but that was how I thought of it. The obvious thing, I think, would have been to do a story about paladins being strong and noble and brave at the Worldwound, so I enjoyed that it was the rogue's who got to shine there instead.
September 25, 2021
Good read all the way through. I loved the whole section of setting up the rip and gathering the team, and the whole thing had a nice kind of medieval Oceans 11 vibe. I'd love to read more books with Gad and his team.
June 27, 2022
This was a fine sword and board adventure. Very much a neutral party - reluctant heros at best, and they showed throughout that the interest of the party came first when weighing various moral options along the way.
March 8, 2018
Mostly a straightforward fantasy heist. Wasn't entirely fond of use of present tense throughout the story.
March 23, 2018
Good, fun read. Very distinctive writing style, well-developed characters.
July 24, 2018
Lots of loose ends, poorly developed characters.
March 4, 2019
This was really great! A bunch of these con demons and cultists, a very interesting mix of ideas.
June 13, 2020
My God, this is not a good book!
August 11, 2020
Ocean's Six: To Hell and Back Again, A Pathfinder's Tale
November 14, 2020
One of the best Pathfinder books. Great for inspiration if you play the table top.
November 27, 2021
I agree with another review. Given that the characters aren’t v likeable, it’s harder to stay with it. But I did. Not related to the Wrath of the Righteous AP.
June 21, 2022
One of the very few readings I abandoned in my life!
The narrative style is a nightmare, the plot and many characters are not so interesting.
This book just casts Sleep spell on you. :(
The narrative style is a nightmare, the plot and many characters are not so interesting.
This book just casts Sleep spell on you. :(
January 20, 2023
The characters are mostly forgettable. The plot is mostly action and very little world building and lore. Not the worst in the series but easily skipable.
November 15, 2023
Good, standard fantasy. Nothing terrible, nothing great.
July 12, 2024
It's...an ok book. I think it has a strong start, but it gets a bit long in the middle and I started to lose interest. Really only for those who want to learn more about the Pathfinder setting.
October 19, 2025
I like the RPG setting but, so far, I am not taken with the tie-in novels
Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews