B12 Queen's Harvest

I wish I had a scan of King's Festival to post before this one but I inventoried it back in the day using a digital camera before I figured out scans would be better and most of those images are fairly bad. These are two modules I have never had the chance to play but I have been told by a number of people that they are both excellent additions to the B module line.


Published : 1989
Pages: 32

From the publisher:

"The wizard Kavorquian is dead. But certain items belonging to his adopted son were in the wizard's keeping at the time of his demise. Now someone must venture into the silent vaults of Kavorquian's stronghold and recover the missing property.

Queen's Harvest picks up its story where B11, King's Festival, left off. It can be played as a sequel to that adventure or as a complete adventure in itself. It is tailored for beginning Dungeon masters and players and contains helpful hints on adenturing and the land of Karameikos. The story develops simply, but ultimately leads the player characters into the nether reaches of Penhaligon's politics to confront Ilyana Penhaligon, mad pretender to the throne!"

B10 - Night's Dark Terror

B10 is a module that I am not sure why it is in the B line and not the X line. I guess the intent is to give players something that they can cross over with. I am just of the opinion that if it is a B module it should really be a module designed for the levels the set was written for.

The module is rare enough that I did not get it when it originally came out and I when I did get around to buying it I paid more for it than I should have had to. The module is not bad from what I can tell it is just something that is priced based on rarity rather than value. I am sure the Australian copy of G1 that sold for a hundred plus dollars a few months ago is just as good as an American monochrome copy of but the prices are a little different.

I would say buy the module if you can get it for a fair price but don't over pay like I did. In the end it is a module that was well worth the cover price but not what one would have to pay for it today.


Published: 1986
Pages: 64

From the publisher:

"Barely one day's march from Kelven, the uncharted tracts of the Dymrak forest conceal horrors enough to freeze the blood of civilized folk. Those who have ventured there tell how death comes quick to the unwary - for the woods at niht are far worse than any dungeon.

But you are adventurers, veterans of many battles, and the call of the wild is strong. Will you answer the call, or are you afraid of the dark terrors of the night?

This campaign adventure is for characters just beginning Expert play (levels 2-4) and hurls them into the exciting outdoor world which awaits in the Expert rulebook.

With a 64-page booklet, 2 double-panel covers, a double-sided fold-out mapsheet and 120 die-cut counters, this super module provides all you need for epic wilderness and dungeon adventuring. Journey across the Grand Duchy of Karameikos in a desperate race against time and the forces of evil."

B9 Castle Caldwell and Beyond

I am a big fan of the B line of modules. I have been fairly vocal about that in a recent post and I think my comments on the previous entries have put that forward. There is almost always one that does not live up to the others though. I am here to say that B9 Castle Caldwell and Beyond is the culprit in the B series.

The module is not patently bad and it does serve a purpose though not what it was meant for perhaps. It is merely not up to the level of the previous eight modules. Even B8 (Journey to the Rock) which I have expressed some concerns about runs laps about this baby. There are a number of reasons why this is the weakest offering in the line and then some that can make more useful than others. These reasons are often one and the same.

The module is actually more than a single scenario. It is actually five individual scenarios that are in some cases linked together better than others. The first two of these are tied together fairly well and I would suggest playing them apart from the others. The remaining three can be tied to the first two but the hold is tenuous at best.

One of the most glaring issues for me is the cartography in the module. There are many modules where the maps alone are worth the price of the module. That is a phrase that will never be sued about Castle Caldwell. The maps are so bad that there is a blog out there where the castle map was redrawn so that the author thought it was usable. I can't recall the blog but the map redo was actually really well done. The other issue I have is the actual material. There are DM blocks here and the same phrase is often repeated. Ever wonder how many times you could tell players "There is a sword hanging on a rack on the wall" before they revolted....this module will allow you that opportunity.

The module as a said though does have a role in life other than to be the whipping post of the B series. Judges Guild released a number of products early on that were mini-adventures. This was later perhaps brought to perfection by TSR in the Lairs products. This module if taken as a fledgling attempt at this by TSR is in that situation use and that is how I would suggest it be used.

I would be negligent if I did not make a final note or two on the module, which I do suggest owning, before I close up this post. The first is the cover art. I know there have been negative comments made on this but I like Caldwell art and this is one of the pieces I remember most from all of them. This means i most likely did not date enough in high school but that aside I like the art and it invokes a definite "Creature from the Black Lagoon" feel. The other is the name of the author. I never for the longest time saw Harry Nuckols as "Harry Knuckles" and so never saw that as a detractor. In the end it is funny but not high on the professionalism ladder. For the record the actual author is a Mr. Ron Charulsky according to a post by Frank Metzner.

　

Published: 1985
Pages: 32

From the publisher:

"Five exciting short adventures to make your Basic campaign come alive!

The Clearing of Castle Caldwell - A local merchant has recently purchased a small castle...but when he tried to move in, he discovered that the castle was already inhabited!

Dungeons of Terror - A strange trapdoor in the floor of Castle Caldwell leads to a terrifying challenge!

The Abduction of Princess Sylvia - On the eve of her wedding, the beautiful princess has been kidnapped! Can you save her in time?

The Great Escape - Imprisoned in an enemy fortress, without armor or weapons, your situation seems hopeless. yet there may be a way to freedom...

The Sanctuary of Elwyn the Ardent - A mystical chime of great power has been stolen - but by whom? In the wrong hands, the chime can cause untold harm! But can you find and defeat this mysterious and powerful creature?"

B5 Horror on the Hill

The Horror on the Hill is a module I have used a few times for starting groups at  first level. I prefer some other modules more but this is one that allows for a lot of  adventure in one small package. I have often though of locating the Keep from B2 here  and mashing the two up losing or changing the Caves of Chaos.

The adventure has some outdoor aspects which can be role played more than some of the  encounters provided in the fist three of the B modules. These can be played seriously  or with a little bit of whimsy depending on the group you are playing with. Once the  players get to the meet of the module there is a sizable dungeon for them to make  their way through.

The ecology of any dungeon is a hard thing to allow for. The one here is a little  better than some of the others in early modules but it still has some concerns. This  module does have a ending that the players will appreciate though. Nothing like living  up to ones name sake in my mind.

Overall I think this is a module that it would not hurt one to spend money on. There  are much worse ways to spend ones money. I think if I were to ever sue it again I  would make it more of a mash up with B2 as I mentioned earlier. I can actually see a  situation where I might take B1, B2 and B4 and make them all part of the same starting  area though it would take some beefing up of some of the material as the party would  be too high by the time the third adventure was used.


Published: 1983
Pages: 32

Description:

The end of the road. A lonely fort stands on the banks of a mighty river. It is here  the hardy bands of adventurers gather to plan their conquests of The Hill, the hulking  mass that looms over this tiny settlement.

The Hill is filled with monsters, they say, and an evil witch makes her home there.  Still, no visitor to The Hill has ever returned to prove the rumors true or false. The  thrill of discovery is too great to pass up, and only the river stands in the way. The  adventurers' boat is waiting!

This module is designed for use with the D&D Basic Rules. A trip through the  wilderness begins a unique challenge for the novice player and Dungeon Master.

Included in the module are:
11 maps
3 new monsters
a complete set of prerolled characters.

B4 - The Lost City

Yesterday I wrote about B2 the #7 module in Dungeons all time list. Today I will write  a little bit about #28 which is B4 The Lost City. I will also try to not go off on  tangents and slander anyone's reviews or their life's work. I said try so lets see how  that works out for me.

The Lost City is written by Tom Moldvay and I think most everyone will recognize the  name and as a result what they have contributed to the game. I remember reading a Blog  some time ago where the author of the blog was going to sue this as the basis for a  sandbox campaign. This module more than any of the other B series would be suited for  this purpose though B7 could be used as the foundation for a campaign as well with  very little work.

This is a module where actually only a portion of the entire area is written out in  any detail. The reminder has suggestions and broad strokes laid out but the specifics  are left to the discretion of the DM. The module also featured information on how the  DM might get the characters to interact with the NPC and suggestions on how that might  work out. All of these make it very well suited as the foundation for a campaign where  the DM can place their take on it.

There will be those that will suggest that I am partial to the older material. To  argue with that assumption would be sill as I will go on record that in this case  older is better. I think technology improves with time but as far as gaming material  is concerned once you get into the later 80's and early 90's I think things had gone  down hill. If you don't own this module pick it up I will think that those who are  disappointed in the investment will be few and far between.

Published: 1982
Pages: 32

From the cover:

Lost in the desert! The only hope for survival lies in a ruined city rising out of the  sands. Food, water, and wealth await heroic adventurers inside an ancient pyramid  ruled by a strange race of masked beings.

The module includes a cover folder with maps, and a descriptive booklet with a ready- made adventure for the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Basic game. It also includes enough  information to continue the adventure beyond level 3, using the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS  Expert game rules.

AC2 Combat Shield & Mini-adventure, Summon Lesser Elemental

AC2 is a game shield designed for the second edition of the Basic and Expert editions. It is hard to tell the players without a program so I am guessing you can't really call that B/X but it would be BECMI though only working for the B and E portions.It may or may not work with the earlier editions as I have not compared the tables.

In addition to the Combat Shield there is also the mini-adventure. The adventure is an eight page module titled "The Treasure of the Hideous One". It is a fairly straight forward adventure where the players find information suggesting that there is a long hidden treasure in a near by bog. There has been at least one expedition to locate it that ended badly.

After going through a serious of encounters the party can find out the fate of the previous expedition and secure the treasure. The actual treasure is picked by the DM from a list of possible options.  Though not a very elaborate adventure the final encounter might be considered over powered by some.

This was released in 1984 as a stand alone product but it was also included in the 10th Anniversary product that was released at GenCon 17 that was held that year. There were only 1,000 of the 10th Anniversary  Dungeons & Dragons Collector's Sets produced but the print run of the shield alone is unknown. I find it odd that the AD&D game had a screen as early as 1979 but this as far as I can tell is the first TSR published screen for any of the other editions.

Spell:

Summon Lesser Elemental

Level: Third
Range: 6"
Duration: Concentration
Ares Effect: One Creature
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 1 Round
Saving Throw: None

By means of this spell the magic user summons to the Prime Material Plane a lesser elemental from one of the four primary elemental planes. The creatures summoned will be true elementals though they will be weaker versions than those summoned by the high level spell.

The creature summoned will will have a base armor class of six though the armor class of the creature summoned will be one better for every three levels the caster has over fifth. The elemental will have three hit dice with a bonus of two hit points per level of the caster. They will have two attacks per round with each doing 1d6.

The summoned elemental will be under the complete control of the summoner and will do anything it is told to do to the best of it's abilities. The control will last as long as the magic user maintains concentration on controlling the elemental. This will preclude the magic user from casting any other spells.

Should the caster lose their concentration the elemental will either immediately return to their native plane or stay for an additional 5-8 rounds under no form of control (50/50 chance of either). Uncontrolled elementals will 50% of the time wander away doing something to further their own end. Another 25% of the time the elemental will continue performing the last action the caster assigned it to do. The final 25% of the time the elemental goes berserk, attacking first the caster and then each round the closest living being until such time the elemental is destroyed or the additional time it was determined to stay elapses.

The material component for this spell will vary based on the type of elemental to be summoned. Summoning of a Fire Elemental will require the caster to have a special combination of sulfur and phosphorus which is ignited during the summoning. Summoning a Water Elemental will require a vial  of purified water which is used up in the summoning. Air Elementals will require the burning of a unique combination of incense. Finally summoning an Earth Elemental will require a quantity of crushed and powdered precious stones which is used up in the summoning process. The cost for any of the above material components will be no less than 50 gold pieces.

Disclaimer: The spells that you will see, for how ever long the write ups last, were all written up back in the 80's so the terminology may not appropriate for anything other than 1e and depending on how well I did back then it may be slightly off for that as well. If there is any duplication of spells that exist now it is most likely I wrote mine first :) Please feel free to comment on them but try not to be too hard on me. If anyone wishes to use these in anything they print please let me know in advance and all I ask is proper credit.

XL-1 Quest for the Heartstone, Spell Resistance

I think this may have been the first time that TSR created a module just to help sell another licensed product. It was released in 1984. The purpose of this module was to spotlight the action figures that were being sold at that time. The action figures were produced by TSR and LJN. LJN  was an American toy manufacturer who made licensed products from movies and TV shows.

This module was not well received and has gotten some bad reviews in White Dwarf and Heroic Worlds. If you don't have a copy of Heroic Worlds and can find a copy by all means do so. Most of it is dry but he does throw some barbs out there on occasion.There are comments through out the module telling you what plastic bendable figure can be used here. The advertising is somewhat rampant. We even get the following from the back of the module:

Quest for the Heartstone is a combined wilderness/dungeon adventure designed to be compatible with the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Action Toys from LJN Toys, Ltd. and the ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Fantasy Adventure Figures from TSR, Inc. The adventure also includes complete maps, new monsters, and players' illustrations.

Jeff over at Jeff's Gameblog gives us a great story from his youth regarding this module. I am not sure my parents would have helped me out like his did but it is a great story. I have not read this all the way through in years and have never ran it so I had to skim through it. In the end I did not find it to be as bad as it was made out to be. It was rated a 4/10 in White Dwarf. I would gone 5/10 which put it middle of the road. The story is a little contrived but many modules are. If you overlook the advertising the module really is not the piece of crap it is made out to be and the art is actually pretty good. You should be able to find a copy fairly cheap if you wait so grab one and judge for yourself.

Spell:

Spell Resistance (R)

Level: Fifth
Range: None
Duration: Special
Ares Effect: Creature Touched
Components: V,S,M
Casting Time: 1 Round + Other Casting Time
Saving Throw: None

When the magic user casts this spell the recipient becomes immune to the affects of a single spell that is specified when the spell is being cast. There are a few limitation on what spell the caster can specify. The spell must be no higher than a third level spell. Next the spell must be one that the magic user has in their repertoire and they must be able to cast it at the time of this spells casting. Lastly the spell must be one that would normally be detrimental to the recipient.

The casting of this spell will require the magic user also cast the spell that the recipient will be immune to. The spell will not have any effect but the caster has lost that memorization of the spell for the day. Once the spell is cast the recipient will now be immune to that spell the next three times it is cast on them or they would be affected by it or for a period of one day whichever occurs first.

This only protects against real spells and not spell like affects from wands and other items. The protection will be carried over to any items that the recipient has on their possession when they would be affected but not those around them including familiars.

The reverse of this spell is Spell Vulnerability and it will entitle the intended victim to a saving throw. If the save is successful then the spell has not effect though they will now need to save versus the other spell connected with the casting which takes full effect. If the save fails then then the secondary spell has no effect but the recipient will suffer double the effect the next three times the spell is cast at them or for a period of one day. The victim will also not be entitles to any saving throws even if one would normally be allowed. This effect can be removed by a casting of Dispel Magic or Remove Curse.

The material component for both versions of this spell are a small steel figure and the material components for the secondary spell. In the fist version of the spell the figure is not destroyed but in the reverse casting it is.

Disclaimer: The spells that you will see, for how ever long the write ups last, were all written up back in the 80's so the terminology may not appropriate for anything other than 1e and depending on how well I did back then it may be slightly off for that as well. If there is any duplication of spells that exist now it is most likely I wrote mine first :) Please feel free to comment on them but try not to be too hard on me. If anyone wishes to use these in anything they print please let me know in advance and all I ask is proper credit.

X1 - The Isle of Dread, Cassandra's Spell Recollection

I am not sure if more people have been run through the Keep or the Isle. I strongly suspect the Isle but it would be a close call regardless. This has to rank as one of the more iconic modules from the early days of TSR. I know that this was #16 on the Dungeon "30 Greatest D&D Adventures of All Time". I know the list was flawed as it only included one non TSR product, albeit a great one, and it has some early 3.x clunkers but this they got right though to low IMHO.

The module is another one that is intended to aid a fledgling DM. This time it is with wilderness adventures. This takes now your third plus level adventures to sea and then to possibly their first wilderness adventure. This module is specifically said to be the first published wilderness adventure. This is our first introduction to the Known World which later becomes Mystara. Included in the module are 13 maps of isle and 16 new monsters. A special continent map, complete with background information, is also included.

The premise for this adventure is that a scroll describing a journey to a mysterious island and the treasures on the island including a great black pearl in the center of the island. The map does not contain many details other than the coastline because the crew was so depleted they could not fully explore the island. The players can do some legwork and find out who the writer was, their eventual fate and why they may not have returned.

The module serves the purpose of introducing players and the DM to wilderness adventures well. Cook and Moldvay make a point of throwing a laundry list of outdoor monsters into the module as well as adding some that become canon monsters in the later iterations of the game. The version I used is the later fourth printing. This one switches out some monsters and brings it more in line the Mentzer editions of the game. The story is all but the same though this version has what I feel is lower quality art. It also has some issues with the map that the DM may have troubles with. The module was later reprinted in Dungeon 114 and brought into line under the 3.x version of the game. The magazine did include a large poster map of the island and makes it worthwhile for that reason alone.

For reference the Top 30 Greatest D&D Adventures of All Time, as ranked by Dungeon Magazine 116 are listed below. Grognardia did a write up on his feelings about this list and is worth reading.

   1. Queen of Spiders, 1986 (G1-3, D1-3, Q1)
   2. Ravenloft, 1983 (I6)
   3. Tomb of Horrors, 1978 (S1)
   4. The Temple of Elemental Evil, 1985 (T1-4)
   5. Expedition to the Barrier Peaks, 1980 (S3)
   6. The Desert of Desolation, 1987 (I3-5)
   7. The Keep on the Borderlands, 1979 (B1)
   8. Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, 2001
   9. White Plume Mountain, 1979 (S2)
  10. Return to the Tomb of Horrors, 1998
  11. The Gates of Firestorm Peak, 1996
  12. The Forge of Fury, 2000
  13. Dwellers of the Forbidden City, 1981 (I1)
  14. Dead Gods, 1997
  15. Castle Amber, 1981 (X2)
  16. Isle of Dread, 1980 (X1)
  17. Ruins of Undermountain, 1991
  18. The Hidden Shrine of Tamochan, 1980 (C1)
  19. Against the Cult of the Reptile God, 1982 (N1)
  20. Scourge of the Slave Lords, 1986 (A1-4)
  21. Dark Tower, 1980 (from Judge’s Guild)
  22. The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth, 1982 (S4)
  23. The Forgotten Temple of Tharzidun, 1982 (WG4)
  24. City of the Spider Queen, 2002
  25. Dragons of Despair, 1984 (DL1)
  26. City of Skulls, 1993 (WGR6)
  27. The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh, 1981 (U1)
  28. The Lost City, 1982 (B4)
  29. The Assassin’s Knot, 1983 (L2)
  30. The Ghost Tower of Inverness, 1980 (C2)

Spell:

Cassandra's Spell Recollection

Level: Fifth
Range: None
Duration: Instantaneous
Ares Effect: Self
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 2 Rounds
Saving Throw: None

Through use of this spell the magic user is able to recall any two spells of up to third level. The spells that are recalled must be ones that were previously memorized for that particular day. The recalled spells must also have already been cast for that particular day.

Use of this spell will not allow a greater number of spells to be memorized for a level than what would normally be allowed. If the caster does not have spells that can be be replaced by the recalled spells then the casting of this spell fails and it is lost.

Disclaimer: The spells that you will see, for how ever long the write ups last, were all written up back in the 80's so the terminology may not appropriate for anything other than 1e and depending on how well I did back then it may be slightly off for that as well. If there is any duplication of spells that exist now it is most likely I wrote mine first :) Please feel free to comment on them but try not to be too hard on me. If anyone wishes to use these in anything they print please let me know in advance and all I ask is proper credit.

B1-9 In Search of Adventure

In the wake of the success of T1-4 "The Temple of Elemental Evil" TSR began to publish what were marketed as super-modules. These were almost all 128 page (or so) perfect bound compilations of older modules. There were a few that were compilation of shorter new material which were designed to be one or two session adventures used a filler between other modules or inserted into home brew campaigns. None of these super modules met with the same success as TEE except for the GDQ1 which surpassed it and this one. This is perhaps my favorite other than TEE. This gives the DM a combined source of starter modules and these span the entire range of Holmes, B/X and BECMI. I can't recall if any of the included modules were published after the Rules Cyclopedia was. Regardless this is my second favorite and what I feel to be the third best of all the super modules. It won't take your characters from 1- 8 (or higher level) and it is not the world/plane spanning epic of GDQ but it does give the sometime novice or sometime lazy DM a nice selection of kick off points for a campaign.