This adventure is designed to serve as an introduction to the game, and does this well with plenty of background material woven into it so that players new to the setting will find that they soon know quite a lot about their new alternate reality, without having to settle down and wade through reams of material before they start play.

The adventure itself is quite straightforward, involving a native town under attack, with plenty of opportunities for the characters to lend their assistance and save the day. It would be quite good for a novice GM, as options are presented clearly depending on how events fall out, all the GM has to do is select the most appropriate one to continue the narrative flow with.

Both combatants and those who prefer to talk will find themselves with plenty to do in order to complete the adventure successfully. There are moments of terror, opportunities to do good or ill, and generally plenty going on - with a feeling that the characters have just happened by on the right (or is that wrong?) day rather than events taking place merely because they are there.

The township of Chisca is well-detailed with some interesting inhabitants, and could serve as a base or recurring location in future campaigning. The caves of the title, which are located nearby and are the source of the trouble that needs to be dealt with in this adventure are also described in excellent detail, which should make their exploration a memorable experience for those characters brave enough to venture in. There are also some ideas for further adventures.

The book ends with full information on all NPCs and creatures to be encountered (with excellent background to help the GM make them come alive) and 4 pre-generated characters for those starting the game who want to dive straight in.

Overall, it is a very well presented adventure that serves as a good introduction to Northern Crown and leaves me wanting to explore the world further - & I speak as someone who has played in this adventure before settling down to read it for the review!

Return to The Caves of Chisca page.

Reviewed: 26 March 2006