A desperate request for help launches you into the unknown, sending you to strange lands far from home. As you fight your way back, you discover the truth behind the mystery, and are confronted with an epic decision in your final confrontation!
The Red Prison is a single-player module for characters of level 11 to level 13 (Level 12 is optimal). It can be characterized as a linear hack and slash with some role-playing options. The companion encountered at the start of the module is mandatory, as it is a plot-essential role.
Set in the Forgotten Realms, this module begins in Scornubel, the Caravan City.
This module does NOT have a level-up feature to bring your PC to Level 12. I recommend using the FRW Character Creator for this purpose Link
Please note: If you like to adventure without any companions, or if you hate linear modules without tons of sidequests, this module is NOT for you.
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TECHNICAL DETAILS:
Uses FRW Base Rules
Designed to be played on 'Normal' and 'D&D Hardcore Rules' settings
No PC respawn: On PC death, load your last saved game or autosave (autosave triggers are present throughout module)
Crafting components and workbenches are available
If you tell a companion to leave your party, they CANNOT rejoin at a later time.
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INSTALLATION:
Unzip the 7z download file and place the extracted module file into your My Documents\Neverwinter Nights 2\modules folder.
Crashing problems and other undesirable behavior can occur with files in the override folder. To play it safe, REMOVE ALL FILES FROM THE OVERRIDE FOLDER. NO OVERRIDE PACKAGES OR HAKS ARE SUPPORTED BY THIS MODULE!
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KNOWN ISSUE:
1. In the "Giant Sector" area, a camera zoom problem with the Sunken Ruins tileset can occur. Essentially, it causes unintended zooming. This problem has been documented on the NW boards, but at the time of module completion, I could find no documented way of fixing it.
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IN-GAME HELP:
Out-of-Character (OOC) Help Item (Courtesy of the Module Testing Toolkit Widget by Barry The Hatchet)
The OOC Helper can be found in the inventory of the first companion who joins your party at the start of the module. It's icon is a red question mark "?"
This item can get out of a jam if you find yourself in a game-stopping situation. It is an OOC item to help you finish the module if you cannot otherwise proceed. It is essentially a cheat to use at your own discression. It has a limited number of uses, so do not use unless truly needed.
I have included this item because I cannot test the module with every available race and class of character, and inevitably, situations may arise that I never intended as a module designer. As a workaround, I am including this item to be used to help avoid these game-stopping situations and allow a player to "get over the hump" and continue the module, as opposed to quitting or starting over.
TO USE:
Place in your PC's inventory and drag into a Quick Bar slot.
When needed, click on the item and then your PC. A dialogue box will pop up with choices allowing your PC to become immortal, move at fast speed, unlock chests, disable traps, teleport to the module starting area and other helpful "cheats."
If you need to kill a monster, click on the item in the quickbar, and then select the creature for an "instant kill.'
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CREDITS & THANKS:
Special thanks to the following, whose generous support and community contributions helped make this module:
The Forgotten Realms Weave (FRW) for testing, reference, and support.
Dwarvendervish for beta testing
Dirtywick for beta testing, scripts, & Masterwork Weapons
Lariam for beta testing & support
Obsidian, for several template areas from the OC and MotB.
Barry The Hatchet's Module Testing Toolkit
Lord Niah's FRW Base Module scripts
SGK73 for 'Just Add Encounters' - Swamp Paths and Plains
Wild Bill's Monster Manual Series Creatures
Patcha's No Hak Monsters
Chaos_Theocrat's Infernal Kingdom
Zach le Bon's Generic interior from Simaon
Wyrin's Warehouse
Plane Walker's 'The Prison'
Lilac Soul's Script Generator
****NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: This module is no longer supported. As of March 2010, the module still works as-is, but it will not be updated to fix any bugs or problems related to any future patch or game change. It was NOT updated in 2011 as shown above. Not sure why that popped up.
BTW, thanks TikiHat! I only check this very occasionally, but it is nice to see posts like yours. Darant, however, not so much ;-)
Posted by TikiHat at 2011-07-04 15:59:52 Voted 9.25 on 07/04/11
Absolutely outstanding! I'm not usually a fan of pure hack-n-slash, but this was superbly done. Like Alucarde, I found myself wondering if I was ever going to escape these Hells, but I wondered in-character. I just wanted to go home, and wondered if I was ever going to be able to get there.
Since Combat plays a major part in this Module, I'll start with it. I started as a 12th Level Aasimar Swashbuckler, expecting a city adventure in Scornubel. Oddly enough, this character worked extremely well in the unexpected place I found myself. You did a very good job of mixing up opponents and settings, ranging from the lowliest vermin to the most terrible beasts in(or out of) Faerun. No endlessly repeating waves of zombies here, that's for sure. The types of combat challenges were also nicely varied between ranged fire, freewheeling movement friendly, and having to suck it up and take a pounding. There were several instances when I was watching my hitpoints with growing alarm, and not all were where I expected them to happen. Oddly, my misadventure in the woods from my previous post was not one of these times. Scariest yes, but not the deadliest. The only place where the combat seemed to lag was in the last rescue mission. There was a pattern to it that made the thing drag once I figured out the easiest way to deal with the encounters. The Boss Fight right after the rescue and the Grande Finale made up for it, though.
Your World. I have already rhapsodised over my love for the way you presented the Caravan City. You definitely have an artist's eye and attention for detail. Without totally spoiling anyone else's pleasure, I will just say that you kept up that level of perfection pretty much throughout the game. I never saw any mismatches or sloppiness in fit-and-finish or polish throughout. Nor did I notice any weird walk-routes, a rather common annoyance. The only surprise was recognizing that one dungeon layout was lifted directly from the OC. This caused a minor immersion-break for me in what was an otherwise masterpiece of world creating.
Role Play. You warned that roleplay was light, and you were correct. What you did provide, however, was enough for me to fill in the blanks in my immagination as I played along. It provided satisfactory context to explain why I was suffering the trials and tribulations that were befalling me. It wasn't groundbreaking in the 200,000+ words of dialog that some others have labored to create, but it got the job done. As a side note, others have commented on spelling. I can honestly say that I was too engrossed in playing to notice any.
Overall Impression: The Red Prison is an Outstanding Module, a Must Have. Had you gone for a little more roll-play, I would call it a masterpiece. Even with this slight area of room for improvement, I still consider it to be one of the best modules I have played. Thank you.
Posted by TikiHat at 2011-07-04 11:44:26 Voted 9.25 on 07/04/11
I'm hoping that this module being re-posted means that Seryn will be around. I'll vote when I'm finished, but am really enjoying myself so far.
A few quick impressions with spoiling anything too much. Scornubel is amazingly well done. The Walk was a fascinating area to explore, full of the sounds and chaos of a real flea market. There were levels of detail to enjoy at each stall, even the non-interactive ones. I loved the way you provided a unique and detailed description of each beverage at the outdoor bar. I'm a sucker for eye candy, and you provided it in spades. So much so, that I circled the perimeter twice looking for ways to enjoy more of the city. Your backdrops did an excellent job of making it clear that Scornubel was a fully developed city, with enough size and housing to support its supposed population. Most cities in NWN2 are just big enough to support the adventure, in the Red Prison it is clear that the adventure is just one of many things taking place in the City. While my character might be doing something that will impact the very realms, the character is by no means the center of the world's existence. Kudos for achieving this bit of realism.
***Spoiler***
I also had a unique experience. Never in all my years of playing p-n-p, Baldur's Gate, IWD, NWN or NWN2 have I ever had the experience of walking through some woods, turning a corner and quite literally and physically bumping into a Dragon before!!! Talk about being surprised. I was in character mode and zoomed in a little tight, so I had no idea what I reflexively attacked when the music changed before I zoomed out. Caused quite a string of salty language once I realized what I got myself into, I can assure you. Hope you get as much of a chuckle out of that misadventure as I did... once it was over.
Posted by Alucarde at 2011-05-28 01:10:17 Voted 2.00 on 05/28/11
The story was captivating at the start, but it got boring really quickly. After landing in Avernus, I was wondering to myself when the adventure is going to end. Far too many repetitive fights. Several mispells here and there.
Posted by petrikorn at 2011-04-28 02:30:01 Voted 9.00 on 04/28/11
Strange.. I found the final battle just too easy. I liked the module, the design, the atmosphere, the dialogs were very good. My only problem was the performance. It stutters every few seconds and I think it's a bug. I had a wizard/eldrith knight/duelist.
Posted by darant at 2011-01-17 04:34:55 Voted 2.00 on 01/17/11
As an addendum to clarify why I'm so irate as a player, it's not even the hardness of the enemies in the final battle I complain about--merely the fact that there's no exit from the room. It's warehouse--f**k--there's a door out. That unrealistic trick ruins so many modules because the writer wants to control the player--very unprofessional. If a character wants to run to regroup or escape a fight he doesn't think he can win--so be it. D&D is supposed to be about the player's experience, not passing through the writer's ego gauntlet. I know now not to play another submission by Seryn.
Posted by darant at 2011-01-17 03:00:35 Voted 2.00 on 01/17/11
You know, I'd like to rate this the proper 8 it would've deserved, but really a punishing vote is what is deserves. So much of it is great but the end battle is so grossly unfair it makes all the hours played a complete waste of time--leaving a very sour taste in your mouth. I sincerely recommend anyone who doesn't respawn not to play this one or your character has a 90 plus percentage chance of dying. In the end battle your trapped in a space against virtually impossible enemeies with no door to escape. My 15th level warrior was buffered by a dozen magics with endless potions but once my 15th level companions were butchered seemingly in a few rounds, the enemies set upon me giving no chance. The one character you assume you need to focus on killing heals enough to last until her companions set upon you. No escape from the room? That's the worst trick I see in so many adventures that always ruins the whole experience. And whoever wants to suck up to the writer and slag this vote, remember how many hours you put into an otherwise survivable adventure only to wind up in the writer's ego deathtrap at the end.
Posted by PaulBlay at 2010-11-15 14:32:39 Voted 9.50 on 11/15/10
Good module, but a little glitchy in places.
Posted by Fanos at 2010-09-11 13:51:29 Voted 10.00 on 09/11/10
Solid FR
Posted by Avo at 2010-09-05 12:36:27 Voted 8.00 on 09/05/10
Solid hack'n' slash. The enemies were a bit repetetive and some of the areas dragged a bit but overall a good experience.
Posted by rross28 at 2010-07-20 12:33:53 Voted 9.00 on 07/20/10
Decent module. It is definately a Hack and Slash module. Lots of action. VERY nice graphics.
I never did find out what the frozen banana was for.
IT was pretty nice and fun... until Avernus. First there was a unkillable Horned Devil (at least for my rogue - 10 damagfe reduction and insane regeneration), so I had to edit and and some better weapons myself.
And just after that I got stuck completely, because I cannot open doors to skeleton temple (even with the key).
****NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: This module is no longer supported. As of March 2010, the module still works as-is, but it will not be updated to fix any bugs or problems related to any future patch or game change. I thank everyone who played and provided feedback.
Posted by Lonpone at 2010-03-28 06:11:54 Voted 7.50 on 03/28/10
Tolerable. Nice atmosphere, interesting areas to fight through. Story was predictable up to the end, but we were warned ahead of time, so it's okay. Only beef would be in...
~*Spoiler alert*~
That one area with the "rescue mission" where there's just room after room of just hacking, and cutting, and slashing in the dark and it takes near forever to finally find your objective with next to no awards to really tease the player or keep them going in it.
Posted by Sumguy at 2010-03-24 14:30:22 Voted 9.25 on 03/24/10
Very nice hack'n'slash mod with an innovative story. Plus it's fairly high level compared to the rest of the mods, which is another plus.
Only a few minor issues in my opinion. That tiefling rogue could use more useful feats. It's also somewhat annoying that most chests are locked. Bashing them was faster than switching to the rogue and picking them. And the story conversations got a bit thin in the second half. Then again I usually prefer story-heavy mods and the varied scenery made up for it.
Started with a lvl 11 halfling fighter on hardcore and finished at lvl 16. Difficulty varied between "I just killed 10 monsters in two rounds" and "good I still had those heal potions and resurrection scrolls" (always keep of few of those around). So, combat balance was quite good I guess. Items were balanced, too, i.e. none of that excessive "+5 + haste + 6 stats" stuff you find in other mods.
Didn't run into any bugs.
It's a good recommendation for anyone as it fills a niche (lvl 10+ mods) and a very good one for hack'n'slash fans.
Thanks E.C.! I apprecaite the feedback and I'm glad you enjoyed it. Still not sure what happened with the missing journal entries, but i't been a long time since I've worked on this module. Probably a patch issue or something. Take care!
Posted by E.C.Patterson at 2010-01-23 21:20:05 Voted 8.25 on 01/23/10
A good pure hack and slasher heavy on loot. Some good area design (Scornubel, the red Carceri planes, Baator) and good variety of novel monsters overall. Some interesting tactical situations. The mobs do get a little repetitive however, but my greatsword wielding barb had fun plowing through them most of the time. My version was a little buggy but not critically so (no journal entries - but did not seem to impede the game; and companions that would not rise after combat - thankfully bought a resurrection rod along the way).
Thanks Seryn for making and sharing. _________________________ E.C.Patterson Gaming Parents Studios
Just a quick question. Do your companions interact with you or are they just following you like robots? I mean no offense, but this is just important for me to know in order to decide if I will play or not. Thank you in advance. _________________________ Needles in the eyes!
Thanks jeum37! Glad you enjoyed it. I appreciate the feedback.
Posted by jeum37 at 2009-11-09 16:46:28 Voted 7.75 on 11/09/09
Hello !
I saw in the previous messages that another player had suffered the same bug as me. I used the OCC, like him, and everything went well ! :-)
I just finished your module. I found it very fun to play ! The starting idea is excellent, the various environments have a strong ambiance, and it offers a long time playing ! It must have taken a lot of work to do !
I was in the mood for a heavy hack-and-slash mod so I had a good time playing it but usually, I would say that all the good ideas, the terrific level design and the wide variety of monsters encountered could have been very much enhanced with a more developped scenario. I mean: more roleplaying could have made this mod an exceptional one !!! For this reason, I would rate it as: "Very very good module which could have been more than excellent by developping the story and the roleplay".
Thank you for your work on this module and don't hesitate if you feel like building another one ! ;-)
Bye,
Jeum.
Posted by jeum37 at 2009-11-08 15:00:46 Voted 7.75 on 11/09/09
Hello !
Good module ! I needed some hack and slash entertainement, and you did it very well !
The ambiance is terrific and the level design good and immersive.
But I'm confronted to a bug, I think.
SPOILERS !!!
With the key, given by the concubine, I go to the skeleton temple. I open the door. When I enter, I'm teleported to Scornubel - The Walk. I arrive between 2 houses, in a little garden surrounded by a wood closing. I cannot go out of this garden ! Talking to my companion (the sorcerer) doesn't bring any solution either. How can I go out of this little pens (or enclosure, maybe ? I don't know the english word, sorry...) ?
If the dead companion is Striel (the one from the module start), you need this companion to advance the story, so I'm afraid you'll have to reload. The odd thing is, Striel is not supposed to stay dead . . .
It's been a long time since I've worked on this mod, so things aren't real fresh in my memory. Let me know if you have more problems.
Posted by E.C.Patterson at 2009-09-08 18:22:36 Voted 8.25 on 01/23/10
Hi Seryn, Does the no PC respawn apply to companions? That first cleric companion died and she was taken out of the party, and now stays dead on the floor. Do I need to reload if I want her back? _________________________ E.C.Patterson Gaming Parents Studios
Thanks for the kind words aienas! I'm glad you enjoyed it. It's hard to believe this module is already over a year old! Man, how time flies . . .
Posted by aienas at 2009-08-18 14:33:30 Voted 9.50 on 08/18/09
Very nicely done module. A lot of seamlessly presented Forgotten Realms lore, most of the environments were beautiful in a strange, alien way. Felt like another world, with some intelligent dialogs that reinforced immersion.
Combat was fun. Would be less fun for wizards which I often like to play (uh, resting...), but this time I used my Swashbuckler/Duelist which worked incredibly fine here. Nice choice of companions, with some interesting dialogs and information they can provide.
A story I liked, spirit of exploration, fun combat, breathtaking landscape, plus the market of Scornubel I really liked (teeming with people and secondary named NPC vendors) accounted for a very well spent day for me. Thanks for this module!
10 - A Masterpiece, Genuinely Groundbreaking 9 - Outstanding, a Must Have 8 - Excellent, Recommended to Anyone 7 - Very Good, Deserves a Look 6 - Good, Qualified Recommendation 5 - Fair, Solid yet Unremarkable 4 - Some Merit, Requires Improvements 3 - Poor Execution, Potential Unrealized 2 - Very Little Appeal 1 - Not Recommended to Anyone
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