Setting is similar to Forgotten Realms but not the same world and takes a couple of ideas from Planescape.
Gameplay Length
7+ Hours.
Language
English
Races
All
Tricks & Traps
Medium
Roleplay
Medium
Hack & Slash
Medium
Classes
All
Scope
Medium
DMNeeded
No DM Required
Single or Multiplayer
Single Player
Max Character Level
05
Max # Players
01
Min # Players
01
Min Character Level
01
Content Rating
Mature
Gameplay Hours
07
Description
You have hired yourself out as a guard to a wandering magical supplies merchant called Herent Aylomeigers. The arrangement with Herent is a little unusual.
Recommended for levels 1-5. Herent will give you level 3 if you ask him. You should be around level 9-10 by the end of the module.
Tested with Paladin, Fighter and Wizard characters. Henchmen will be available to balance gameplay.
Rated mature for a small amount of partial nudity and some themes that may not be appropriate for children.
Features:
A varied subterranean world to explore designed by me using crayons and graph paper.
Some dialog that is meant to be humorous, and some that isn't.
Henchmen made using the Module Builders Henchman Kit for people who don't want to go it alone.
Implementation of David Corrales Anti-Theft script for would be ne'er-do-well.
A fair amount of scripting by myself, including puzzles and combat encounters.
Highly Unbalanced and/or biased towards fighters like 95% of the modules out there. The module was clearly not for a level 1 character. Tried at level 4 (monk/cleric) but got smashed (and quickly bored) by single or group of creatures that could take my lvl 4 character down in 2-3 rounds (mostly because they use great swords/axes).
Posted by Razide0506 at on02/21/07
Although this was a generally fun, challenging, and nicely varied dungeon crawl, it had two major weaknesses which brought the score down for me. The first was dialogue: although it's good in some places, it's sorely lacking in others. For instance, when I approach the adventurers in the camp, the first thing they say is "Want me to join you." They don't introduce themselves, they don't ask who I am, what I want, or what I'm doing, and so on. In short, not only do they not have personalities, they don't even behave in a believable manner. This kind of thing crops up throughout the module, along with a lot of instances where the dialog loops back on itself, forcing you to have the same conversation several times in order to get all the information. The other major weakness is the story. I got the impression that there's a really interesting story here, what with the underground pub, the temple, the drow, the undead, and Logos Brin, but I never really got a sense of what it was all about. I sort of had to piece it all together, and it still left a lot of unanswered questions. For instance, not only do the people underground not believe in the surface world, but mentioning it is tantamount to heresy. But why is this the case? And how did all these people get here? And when I did bring back proof of the surface world, the person I brought it to just seemed to take it in stride. All in all the storytelling just felt very muddled. There was also a bit too much backtracking, and the puzzle with the goo was really annoying. More specifically, trying to get the door open to do the puzzle was really annoying, and that's aside from the constantly respawning zombies. I couldn't figure out what combination of chains and control panels I was supposed to use in which order, and finally I got pissed off and just killed Hank and took his key. The module needed a lot more documentation. Also, the ending was pretty abrupt, and kind of a letdown. The main villain didn't even have any interesting gear. In the end, I felt like this could have been a great module, but the flaws were such that I could only call it good.
Posted by Caedmon at on12/31/06
***Minor Spoilers*** I just finished this module. I had a great time with it. Plenty of combat and traps and it has a good plot twist at the end. Thanks so much for all your hard work you put into the module. The henchman system was fantastic, as well. I must say, I really liked the Tiefling mage. A couple things that I found frustrating was how long it took to get back to the surface until I found the stairs. That, along with some of the map layouts being a bit too large were really my only complaints. Thanks for the great dungeon crawl! -Caedmon
Posted by frankie at 2006-10-1112:50:27
So where are these shortcuts people mention? I haven't found any and instead use DebugMode Goto commands. Quite annoying.
Posted by kalle at on07/24/06
Excellent module! It's the first one I've downloaded from the Vault that really made me motivated to finish it. I didn't get to bed until 5 AM this morning. I agree with some of the other comments that there may be a little bit too much running up and down, even with the shortcut. On the other hand I totally dig the setting, and the plot was just right on the linear/non-linear scale. Great work!
Posted by mattd at 2006-06-2205:14:05
v1.0.3 changes Wizard henchwoman now checks to see if she can join the players group. Changed end area. Expanded dialog, re balanced fight and fixed a fault where an event was not occurring. Added a bit more content and re balanced some encounters. Updated hints in readme.
Posted by Alabore at on06/19/06
>I don't really mind negative feedback unless it's someone just trying to get under my skin. Not me. :) When you post new mods, I'll be there to play them. Hopefully...
Posted by mattd at 2006-06-1916:20:57
I don't really mind negative feedback unless it's someone just trying to get under my skin, and I haven't had any of that here. I had a bug on my "known issues" list about henchmen that I never got around to fixing. The Wizard character shouldn't have checked your party size and refused to join. Can't say that you wouldn't have had any other problems if this was working. I have this fix in a version I'm testing at the moment. As it is, I'm not going to make major changes to this module. Just fixing problems and adding a bit here and there. Things like backstory and resolution for the monks go in a sequel, if I ever get round to putting serious work into it.
Posted by Alabore at on06/19/06
-> Mattd Not frustrating at all. :) I had fun, despite that one weird bug. Besides, I should be blaming myself: I rarely read the f'ing manual, and my override folder is bursting at the seams with custom stuff. Some minor probs are not welcome, but not unexpected either. For instance, I wasn't even aware of the 2-henchs cap; OHS effectively circumvented it, and allowed me a full party of 4, until the bug kicked in. ... When script-related probs arise, I try and turn them into "role-playing" opportunities. In this case, I assumed the deserting henchies got charmed by the bad guys. Maybe they were traitors to begin with... sneaking elven thieves, up to no goood. ;) I rarely blame the mod-authors at all. I just report bugs so mod-writers can script haks together to work as smoothly as possible. ... As I said, I liked this module, but I found a couple of weak spots in the plot. I would suggest breaking it down into several modules, and link them into a larger overarching campaign. I don't like the "from lev 1 to 10 in a week" syndrome much. I see you don't mind modifying your own modules at a later date, so you might consider the idea. :) * SPOILERS * The monks plot-line for example might deserve a more detailed finale, while the in-citadel part, after the party enters the pub, could become a single stand-alone module. After all, they feel like stand-alone adventures already; you might want to actually split them up. It would make sense, since players have little reason to walk back to the monk level, once the coast is clear. Sure, you'd have to rework some of the linking stairs and create a direct portal to the surface, but it would add a further challenge: players find themselves stuck down in the pub, and they need to find a way up. Just an idea. :) ... My vote reflects the fact I had fun, but the plot-line had some weak points. I didn't like the finale too much either. Besides, I like end-game shops, so most end sequences feel abrupt to me in this regard. ... Oh, don't let my words put you down, though. I had fun and I raise my thumbs to you. :)
Posted by mattd at 2006-06-1901:04:40
@Tropico Sorry that the module dissapointed you after your original good opinion ;) Everyone has different opinions on what makes a game fun and I did do a couple of things that may not be for everyone. I like to think that I had good reasons for doing them. 1. Lack of teleportation and henchman respawn. The decisions I made were mainly risk/reward decisions. The module isn't huge, I wanted players to feel rewarded for planning and managing their sorties into the dungeon. Nothing forces you to backtrack to the surface more than a couple of times, by which time you should have found a shortcut or 2. Most people save before a fight. If a henchman dies in a tough fight, and they normally don't die outright, I think the decision on wether to continue or re-load is a cool one. 2. The puzzle you mentioned is actually documented in the readme and is optional. Again, quicksave for teh win. It can be a test of patience and resource management as well as a normal puzzle, not for everyone!
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