1Review of N2 - The Forest Oracle module:
Well, it is definately a pretty thrown-together module. I have to say it pales in comparison to the prior Module in the series, The Cult of the Reptile God. This Module is quite linear and is rather difficult for the DM if the party deviates (Thinks) a bit at all. Also, with the creation of Unearthed Arcana and all of its wares/bonuses, one must adjust the monsters in the module to compensate the use of field and full plate armor combined with dexterity bonuses, weapon proficiencies, and class changes.
I changed the Ogre, Olot, into a Hill Giant. I have to say, it should have been a Frost Giant because a well armed ranger and Barbarian on the 3rd level really waxed him, big time. Well, it wasnt all fun and games for the party, a Pertyon impaled the party's Paladin to the ground by rolling a natural 20 , +2 to hit, then a 01 on a critical hit % dice, which resulted in triple damage, thus death. Luckily the party was able to kill the peryton before it ate out the fallen hero's heart.
When I say that the module is linear, I mean that the the plot and adventure is really simple and straight forward; Let me point out the case of the Gypsies late in the Module. Why would any Lawful Good Character help a little old bitch that cursed a bloody village?! This is something that must be taken into consideration when playing this module.......I finally coaxed the party into doing what the Gypsy-bitch wanted, slaying Olot.
I think what made the module fun for me was adding a whole new, different adventure to the existing Module. It seemed to me the players really responded well to it; the new material was rich, creative and extremely fun to do. This was my first ever attempt at DMing. If Modules persist in being like N2, The Forest Oracle, there is no doubt that I will continue creating completely new and different additions to each of them played, or perhaps I will phase the modules out all together.
Cheers,
Andy K. 11/14/01
2I can picture your Dorito-orange-stained fingers, a Twins jersey, a plastic cup of Strawberry Quick, a boombox playing "Jungle Love" by Morris Day and the Time, 2 or 3 pasty-faced nerds huddled around a candle rolling die. Too real - can we bring back those days? Only at The Gamehole.com.
Mike 12/13/01
3Review of I2 - The Tomb of the Lizard King:
Well, the members of the gamehole just finished playing this module. Or, more properly, this module just finished playing the members of the gamehole. In the intro of the module, there is a "special warning" to the DM stating that this module is "extremely hazardous" and is a "severe test" for characters. No shit. For the first time in the history of the gamehole, we had an entire party killed off during an adventure. This module is very punishing. There are tons of nasty nasties as well as a plethora of insidious traps. Onto the module itself.
The module starts out at the Palace of the Count of Eor. The Count has assembled a band of adventures to explore a troubled part of his realm around the village of Waycombe near the Great Swamp. The party is not with the Count for more than a few minutes before being struck with a Flame Strike spell from some unknown assailant. Singed but undeterred, the party presses south toward Waycombe and the swamp. On the way, the party is fed a steady diet of rumors about Waycombe, the swamp and a long dead "lizard king." After surving a couple of ambushes, (several of them off the cuff), the party arrives at Waycombe to find it mostly deserted. Except of course for the Black Dragon that serves as a welcoming committee.
The party quickly realizes that they must quest into the swamp to find out what is going on. The party then just so happens to come across the only remaing denizen of Waycombe, a clearly insane lunatic that is willing to take the party deep into the swamp to meet his buddy, Sakatha, the Lizard King. Like lambs to the slaughter, the party piles aboard the freak's boat and sets of into the swamp. The swamp is an utter horror. It is constantly raining, hot and stinky. After three days aboard the raft and after fighting off every sort of horrid creature, the party arrives at an island temple of sorts. There they are greated by their friend the black dragon and a series of pools containing Water Wierds. The party is eventually able to find the entrance to the dungeon level below.
The first dungeon level is called the "brigand" level. This is because this level is inhabited mostly by the human servant to the Lizard King. They are the instruments which have been primarily responsible for harrying the Lands of Eor. This level is full of all kinds of nasty surprises for the party. There are several cursed items and deadly traps set to catch the unwarry. And catch the unwarry they did. Please check the "eulogies for the fallen" page for more details. Included on this level are a series of encounters involving evil clerics in the service of Sakatha. Also, there is a great encounter with a minor treasure room gaurded by a Shambling Mound.
The next level goes from bad to worse for the would be party. The stairs down to the next level are trapped so that when someone steps on the fifth step, the stairs retract creating a massive slide which leads to a 60' deep pit of fire. If the party can navigate that hazard they must then contend with an illusory river which conceals a series of acid pits to trap the foolish. If a party can survive those pitfalls, (as did ours), then they are confronted with a massive underground temple. After gaining entrance the party is confronted with a series of the nastiest traps I have ever seen. This is another opportunity for the DM to kill off a couple of party members. This part of the tomb also has a couple of encounters for the party which involve long ago set magical dwoemers which cause enemies to step out of the very walls. The more the party fights, the more antogonists they face.
If by some miracle, there are still some surviving members of the party, they face the final level of the module. They are first confronted with their original assailant from the Count of Eor's Palace. If they can fight off this most evil cleric they can then confront Sakatha himself. Little does the party know that not only is Sakatha a Lizard King, but is also a powerful magic user in his own right and is a vampire. What was left of our party was quickly dispatched by Sakatha. Again, check out our "eulogies" page.
Overall, this was the best module that I ever DMed. It has a good plot and is well put together. It also leaves enough fexability for the DM to add his or her own touches. However, it is in fact extremely hazardous and only a powerful and well equiped party should even attempt it. Because it is an early 80's TSR product, there are the usual spelling mistakes and transposition errors. For any serious gamer, this is just part of the charm.
Alex 04/24/02
4An e-mail from a concerned fan:
Are you f&cking kidding me? Not only did you go to GenCon, not only did you wear matching t-shirts with your own gaming web site on it, not only did you take pictures and write about it, you then busted out an email telling all your boys about it? Dude, if you're going to do something like that it should be one of those things you do and not tell anyone about, like if you got so drunk you started peeing in your own fridge. In that case you break out the kitchen cleaner, clean the fridge, chuck any food item within a 30 foot radius, call Duggan and have him steam your kitchen carpet (twice), and go about your business. That's the type of stuff you just bury and don't repeat. To anyone. Ever. But not Kammer, he whips it out, whizzes all over his kitchen, then calls his friends over to check out the stains. I don't get it...
Steve Manley 08/15/02
5Review of Marco Volo - Departure, Journey and Arrival:
To date, this has been the best series of modules I have ever had the privilege of running. In my opinion, this product represents the high point of TSR in the 1990's.
These modules star a very well conceived N.P.C., Marcus Wands, a/k/a Marco Volo. The story starts out in Waterdeep with the player characters being invited to the Adventurer's Ball, an A-list event in the highest social circles of Waterdeep. After enjoying a bit of the hospitality, the evening is interupted by the entrance of Marco Volo, a dashing, talkative, self-aggrandizing womanizer who immediately begins to annoy the party. Before the party has an opportunity to evict the obnoxious Marco, the City Watch marches in and attempts to arrest Marco. Before escaping, he unwittingly implicates the party in whatever he was mixed up in. The party is immediately arrested.
After spending a few days mouldering in jail in the depths of Mount Waterdeep, the party is suddenly freed and rushed before their unknown benefactor. Their rescuer is none other than Marco's uncle, Maskar Wands. He has a proposition for the party. He wants to hire the party to hire Marcus as a guide to lead them to Shadowdale, far to the east of Waterdeep. The purpose of this deception is to get Marcus out of Waterdeep so he will not be apprehened by the authorities. Naturally, there is more to this than meets the eye. Having no choice, the party accepts and off they go.
Unknown to the party, there are several other powerful forces at work here. After a series of imaginative encounters across the length and breadth of Faerun, the party eventually faces the here-to-fore unknown enemy in a final battle deep in the Spiderhaunt woods near Shadowdale.
The modules are full of intrigue and genuine adventure. The story is in essence a mystery with a series of clues that lead to a final conclusion. Several of those types of adventures have been attempted before by TSR and not one pulled off as masterfully as this one.
Alex 01/09/03
