The Underdark, a snowy, celestial region, an undead dungeon, ect.
Gameplay Length
Probably around 4 hours for all three, though it's hard to keep track of time while playing.
Number Players
It's been played successfully in single and multiplayer.
Language
English
Level Range
15-25 (Starting at lvl 15, you should reach somewhere around lvl 25 at the end)
Races
Svirfneblin, Drow, or Duergar (or anything else, as long as he/she was brought up or spent time in a svirfneblin monastery in the Underdark, for whatever reason)
Tricks & Traps
Medium
Roleplay
Medium
Hack & Slash
Heavy
Classes
Any, though there will be some monk-specific equipment; more options will open up later.
Scope
Dependant on Module
DMNeeded
No DM Required
Single or Multiplayer
Single Player or Multiplayer
Max Character Level
17
Max # Players
Any
Min # Players
01
Min Character Level
15
Content Rating
Teen
Alignments
All alignment paths supported.
Gameplay Hours
04
Description
I've been sorely disappointed with the boring, lifeless battles in various modules, so instead of complaining, I tried to make a decent combat-focused adventure of my own tastes. Originally, it started as a pure hack 'n' slash, but I decided to make a story revolving around my main character with a fair amount of role-playing, because there hasn't been a single module available where my character could comfortably fit into the storyline. Also, when I say 'hack 'n' slash', I don't mean 'large amounts of identical melee creatures' that seems to be the case in many modules. Every battle you encounter in this duo has been put together by a true lover of combat, not by someone who creates a single creature and spawns them in massive amounts.
Preferably, you play as a Svirfneblin monk or cleric who has lived on the surface, but recently recieved a letter from his old sensei/religious leader begging him to return to the Underdark and come to the monastery's aid, though hardly any details were given. You could also play as a drow or duergar (or something else with half-baked justification), but a deep gnome would fit the role perfectly. In parts two and three, the fact that you are an Underdark race doesn't really matter, so you can choose to ignore the fact that you don't quite fit into the first one if toting a surface race. Also, I would recommend against playing as a pure monk, because the Perfect Self feat will significantly reduce the difficulty of some of the battles.
I thought about including the character I created this module for, but decided that with all the customizers/level-uppers available, it would be best to just let anyone take a few minutes to level one up or use one of their own, since any character can instantly be created and leveled up nowadays.
I've always thought that unique henchmen could make a mediocre module good and vice versa, so I tried to make the available henchmen unique, instead of the standard 'fighter with longsword' type of thing.
Parts 2 and 3 are much, much better than part one, IMO, in terms of combat, henchmen, and story, so hang in there if you start. Part 2 contains many well-crafted, epic battles and a deeper storyline with two endings (and two different end-boss skirmishes), while part 3 was fashioned to have fun and challenging encounters without making them so 'epic' (except for the final battle, of course :-3). Every fight in this trilogy has been hand-crafted, and there are no silly, random spawns with pre-generated creatures.
This package contains the final release of all three modules, and a couple of minor things have been fixed; you should gain about 10 levels by the end. If you download and take the time to play, please leave a comment. In fact, if you decide you're not the commenting type, I'd prefer if you didn't even play. Seriously guys, it takes module-builders oodles upon oodles of wasted time to build things like this for you, so would it really hurt to take the 2-3 minutes required to tell him/her what you enjoyed and disliked?
Posted by eggerfry at 2011-04-17 05:12:52 Voted 3.00 on 04/17/11
Lame. A whole cupboard full of +4 items just given away for free, a room of undead 18-27th-level, one of which does 100+ damage per shot, clerics armed with +5 weapons +elemental damage, 3000xp for a single opponent, etc. -- for a 15th-level character? C'mon! Ridiculous.
Posted by Delf at 2010-12-20 13:09:57 Voted 8.50 on 12/20/10
This module series is not too bad for a straightforward hack & slash adventure. It lacks the the polish and attention to detail of a first-class mod, and doesn't offer much in the way of story or roleplaying. However, the combats (which seem to be the main focus) are reasonably well-designed and I found they achieved the intended effect: quite difficult if one rushed in recklessly, but quite manageable with the use of some thought and tactical finesse. And while as mentioned story or role-playing is not the focus here, the dialogue that is present was pretty well-written.
I did find the XP rewards to be rather excessive. I started with a 16th level character and ended at 27th level, which means that in these short modules I obtained almost as much XP as in the much longer Hordes of the Underdark campaign.
While not perfect, there's not too much to choose from among modules in this level range (as Mirgalen notes below), so this series probably deserves better than the relative obscurity in which it apparently languishes.
It's been ages since I've played NWN, and I'm pleasantly surprised both that my campaign popped up while browsing the overlooked modules list and that someone enjoyed it enough for a recommendation.
@Vaftrudner: Thanks for the two thumbs up; sure beats the middle finger I'm now accustomed to! My character(s) are usually a bit unconventional as well in their combat strategies, and my methodology is that so long as there's some simple character motivation, decoration here and there, and custom monsters/battles, then the module is golden. That's all players like me ask for, so that's what I tried to do, which I think got much better starting with the second mod.
@Mirgalen: Thanks for the list recommendation and glad you enjoyed it; the last battle did have a small problem of bugbears still going gung-ho after the two bosses were put out of business, which I could see getting endless if you were running around for loot-gathering afterwards.
1. The cyric temple was mainly for decoration as a level of the zikkurat; the tileset is basically a crypt with large skull decorations and a more ruddy brick, though the set is called "cyric temple."
2. Sorry about that; I originally didn't even include the heads override in the downloads (being oblivious that I was even using a head from said override) until someone pointed out that the first boss in the first mod was headless.
3. Not sure what that was; the final battle in the third mod is heavily scripted (can't even remember all the scripts of teleporting, death-spawned revenge killers, etc.), so it could have been something left over that misfired from the battle. I'm pretty sure the exit gate just requires a key. *Shrugs*
Posted by Mirgalen at 2009-08-09 00:59:04 Voted 7.50 on 08/09/09
A fairly good module IMHO given the lack of content created for that specific level range or for near epic monks. Can you believe that I could only find 5 modules in that level range (excluding this serie) for SoU and Hotu ("Angel Falls", "Aren", "The Night Marshes", "Some distant Shore" and "Vis and Virtus"). I know the vault search engine is probably one of the worst in the universe but still.
My vote is more like temporary. I think this is an overlooked module that is certainly worth a try. Sadly, I played part I and II back in 2007 and have little memory of that. Whatever comments I believe I made back then seems to have vanished (probably eaten by the web Gremlins).
It was vaguely challenging or perhaps a bit easy for my character (started as pure monk and finished M20/SD3/F2) but I did go around solo most of the time and planned all my battles. Only left some bugbears behind as they were respawning forever it seems.
Issues/Bugs:
1. What was the cyric temple for?
2. I could not see the elf head without installing the override
3. I got some script error in the swamp before or after opening the exit gate
Posted by Vaftrudner at 2009-03-31 12:53:25 Voted 9.75 on 03/31/09
Hi Muniir Bin Alan.
I really loved your trilogy. There's just too few good Underdark adventures around, so it was a pure blessing when I tried your WOT mods; that totally took me by surprise and left me with a lust for more...
Great work and breathtaking story, good fighting balance, though my bard/assassin did have a rough time, but that just made it that much sweeter, when surviving yet another deadly ambush.
Thanks for the great experience; the WOT-trilogy is a real gem. Two thumbs up!!!
Posted by gaser2.0 at 2007-04-29 19:04:05 Voted 10.00 on 04/29/07
i LOVED IT :) :) :) :) :) :)
Posted by idunnopj at 2007-03-19 15:57:51 Voted 9.00 on 03/11/07
Thanks! Sort of feel like an idiot for not noticing it before... maybe you should make it slightly less obvious so people like me don't overlook it? haha...
Well I'm glad you're enjoying them, pj, and I'm glad you like some of the character aspects and writing in addition to the combat. When I was making these, I wasn't really planning a 3 part series, so the story doesn't really span over all three modules, and they're more like 3 indivudual short stories, so you're right, they don't exactly begin where they left off :-). As for how you get out of the cell, there should be a clearly visible trap door in the middle of the room that you can go spelunking in. It isn't hidden, other than the cell being pretty dark, but maybe it's so obvious that you overlooked it :-). Thanks for the comments and the vote.
Posted by idunnopj at 2007-03-11 10:45:17 Voted 9.00 on 03/11/07
Finished through part two, and I have to say... these are quite an enjoyable quick romp. I found the battles in chapter 2 to be significantly less challenging than in chapter 1, but that doesn't mean they were easy, per se. And I like the green monk... it's fun to see a bit of poetry in a game like this. I just started chapter three... and the only thing I've found that I can really complain about through the mods so far... I kind of rolled my eyes when I found out I was stuck somewhere and didn't know where or how I got there, again. But, other than that, it's a blast. And I truly did start laughing after talking to Agatha...
one question though. how do I open that damn door to get out of my cell???
Thanks for the input, Kenrae, and you're right, the first mod has no henchmen dialogue, because I was completely script illiterate at the time (it was my first module, after all). And I'm glad you liked the godly monk; my wife really liked him, too :-).
Posted by Kenrae at 2007-03-02 13:33:39 Voted 8.00 on 02/28/07
Sorry I didn't have time to write more, I didn't have time at the moment and just wanted to be sure to vote.
The battles themselves are well designed, the level of dificulty was ok for my character. I found them a little repetitive, though, if we take into account that these are some pure hack&slash mods were the fights are the most important design decision. In another type of mods I wouldn't mind it. But since the mods are short it doesn't become too much of a problem anyway.
The characters... the best one I found to be the companion in part 2. It has an original personality different from what I've seen in other mods. The part 1 is the worse in this regard, the dialogue doesn't make sense. I mean, they have exactly the same dialogue even after joining you as henchmen.
None of the henchmen in any part acknowledge your advancement throughout the mod, not even the end of it. This static dialogue makes them look as computers, not characters. Just adding a couple of new lines in the middle of a mod and some comments at the end would improve them a lot, IMHO. Speaking of the end, I hate the end of chapter 3, sorry, I don't fin it amusing at all :P.
The area are well designed. Maybe the last chapter is a bit repetitive, but it makes sense to be this way, so no complains. You could add some more sounds to make the areas a bit more immersive, but other than that I don't think you can do a lot more. They are already well designed.
Oh, I nearly forgot. I liked the "riddles" in chapter 2. That godly monk kept me hooked until the end, I just wanted to advance.
You know, this module series is obviously focused as a linear-type hack 'n' slash, but there are many other things to comment on besides the battles. What about the area design? Did you like the environments? And what about the interactive characters? I think there are at least a couple tidbits of decent writing in there if you take the time to slow down and read. IMO, combat can't be enjoyable if environemnts are boring, and really suffers if there is no motivation or story behind it. I appreciate the comments, but it would be nice if I got some actual feedback on top of saying 'it's OK.' And whatever happened to playing it through as a fighter?
Posted by Kenrae at 2007-02-28 13:45:18 Voted 8.00 on 02/28/07
As a hack&slash, it's OK. Of course, there's nothing more there.
An the end... sigh... oh well.
It was interesting anyway, and I tested a build I hadn't tried before (monk/rogue/shadowdancer, and I must say it rocks).
Level 10 and maximum difficulty? Well I hope you enjoy slamming your face on the table in frustration... the minimum recommended level is 15, unless you have some obnoxiously powerful equipment on those fighters of yours.
Hmmm Shadow says it cant be tanked? I have been eagerly finding something that can stop me as a tank. I have a nice range of fighters characters that dont remember what its like to have their butts kicked. I think I shall grab a level 10 fighter and use him to run through all three of these. When I am done, I will tell you how it went. And the more difficult it was for me the happier I will be. I shall keep it in mind to set difficulty to maximum and not use henchmen. Ill check back in tommarrow.
Shadow - Well congrats on being the first person to finish it, and as a rogue no less :-). I finished it with my lvl 18 monk/5 barbarian, and I did some sneaking as well; even as a pure melee character, you have to take some thought as to how you're going to attack instead of simply swinging your sword at the first thing you see, so I'm impressed at how skillfully you must have used your rogue to cleverly destroy your foes. And I agree, the last battle can be really tough and requires a lot of planning, especially if you don't have both henchmen with you, or if you're highly deficient in the saving throw department. So sorry about that, but hey, it was a a fitting final battle, right :-)? And by the way, how was the final battle in the second module (and which did you pick)? What did you think of the Green Man? And how was the ending? Was it as ridiculous as I intended :-)? Lord Rosenkrantz - I might update in the future, but I really like the look of the old version for some reason. And RDS - I hope you get them extracted, but I have no experience on a mac. As for how you should be equipped, some moderate things should be fine. Weapon +3 or 4, rings of protection +3 or 4, ect, but it depends on what kind of challenge you're looking for, I suppose.
I'd like to give this module a shot, but I'm having difficulty decompressing the portraits and head overrides. (I'm on a Mac, which could be the problem, but I've never had difficulty using StuffIt 11 to unRAR or unZIP before.) Any suggestions? Also, assuming I do open the head overrides, would they go in the override folder? I'm always a bit hesitant to put stuff in there...
One other non-tech-related question: What kind of gear should I give a character to enjoy this mod? One of the difficulties I have encountered playing higher-level mods is that builders have very different ideas about what kind of gear is appropriate. At level 15, some mods have you running around with +5 everything and 2d6 of elemental damage on your weapon; in others, I can't even find a set of full plate armour. A little note would be great.
Anyway, looking forward to giving this a shot as soon as I figure out how to get at those files...
Posted by ShadowySweetness at 2007-02-23 08:17:38 Voted 9.50 on 02/23/07
ummm. Spell Check..
That is *Like a Tank and not take.. Below;)
Posted by ShadowySweetness at 2007-02-23 08:15:57 Voted 9.50 on 02/23/07
Hiya Muneer,
All I can say is Holy Crap that was Hard!!!!
I was 15-Rogue/8-Fighter and Played as Elf-(Sub-Race)-Drow.
I think the only part I would fix is the End Fight as I think I reloaded about 30 times.. and that is no Joke...
Otherwise I had a lot of fun.. Note.. To All.. Do not think you can just run head on like a take as it won't work..
Strategy and Sneaking work better as this is tough as Heck lol..
ShadowySweetness - Hey, even meanie bashing would be welcome, because when I posted these seperately quite a ways back, the only person that bothered to comment (and play them, for all I know, since the author has no idea what's going on or if people are enjoying them without comments) was Lariam. He never got to part 3 though, so you'll at least be the first person to finish it :-3. Looking forward to the comments. And Gaeldrin, this trilogy isn't fully Underdark-based, and you'll be going to a few other places in the second and third modules, but I agree, the Underdark is probably the best part of Forgotten Realms.
Greetings Muneer,
I just finished downloading your game just this moment and i'm already getting ready to play it, this is the first fully based underdark module, and i'm looking foward to playing since i'm a big fan of this part os the D&D world, when i finish the game i'll post here my comments and any bug i find i'll come here right away, Cheers!
Posted by ShadowySweetness at 2007-02-21 13:14:34 Voted 9.50 on 02/23/07
Ha!!!
As the First Downloader... I feel Honored...
Hiya Muneer,
1. *I PROMISE to Play this right Now!*
2. *I PROMISE to Report any Bugs or Errors I may find
In a Constructive Critism way as only MEANIES Bash
our MOD Builders and I am NO Meany!!*
3. *I PROMISE to Vote Accordingly to my Honest
Experience!*
Glad to see you've put the three modules together! I hope you get some more downloads/comments this time around. I'd encourage you to post an announcement about the modules to the NWN1 Modules forum (if you haven't already) - there's still a bunch of folks hanging out there and hungry for new NWN1 modules. I've moved on to NWN2, but I wish you good luck with your modules. :)
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