Pathfinder 2E - Running ghosts in PF2
I don't know how curses work, necessarily, in PF2, but the Ju-on (grudge) curse is a nasty curse (-10 Save against, even to break the enchantment). The anchor of the ghost transfers from the place it haunts, onto the cursed PC. So whenever it rejuvenates, it arrives where ever that PC is, even if 1000 miles away. Like the ghost in the grudge, when you enounter it, now it haunts you. You had to solve a murder mystery to lift the curse and lay the ghost to rest... would that work in PF2?
There is no pre-existing power in PF2 that corresponds to this description, but it would be simple to homebrew. The "difficult to break" side of the curse would function by defining a high level and DC to the curse. Here's an example.Let's say that a group of 7th-level PCs is facing an elite Mummy Pharaoh, level 10. After the fight, a couple of them are cursed with Insidious Mummy Rot (level 5, DC 28). By default, the DC of the curse is half the creature's level, rounded up.
The PC cleric just got access to a 4th-level remove curse. He's probably got a +15 spell attack bonus with divine spells and he needs at least a success with his 4th-level remove curse against a 5th-level curse (a failure would only allow him to remove a 3rd-level effect). He needs to roll a 13 or better to get there. If his dice aren't hot enough, he may need to try several times over successive days to remove this nasty curse.
Gamer, I like your idea. Even though this ghost directs his special hatred towards his murderer (a former ally in the Aspis Consortium), he is currently tied to the location of his murder. Once the PCs defeat him and go on with their adventure, he would normally respawn in the same location, a place the PCs would probably never return to. But if his soul were linked, say, to a magic item (perhaps a magic dagger used to murder him) then his respawning would be linked to the PCs, wherever they end up when the timer dings. (evil DM cackle)
Now, what if the curse is higher level than that? A success on a counteract check lets you counteract effects up to one level higher than your spell, while a critical success lets you counteract effects up to 3 levels higher. Also, the DC will be higher. As things stand, the 7th-level cleric needs a natural 20 to counteract a 6th or 7th-level curse. And he has zero chance against an 8th-level or higher curse - in that case, the PCs would have to find a higher level cleric NPC and convince him to save them from the mummy's curse.
For my ghost Ifrit wizard, I chose not to focus on curse effects, but more of phantom and fear-based spells, like Mask of Terror, Tempest of shades (one of the "incarnate" spells), Phantasmal Calamity, Phantasmal killer and Crushing despair. The PCs will suffer the drained and frightened conditions, as well as mental damage and even the risk of instant death, from Phantasmal killer. I also kept a couple fire-based spells, to link up with the ghost's origins as an Ifrit.
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