The introduction and background set the scene - and the mood. For this is intended as a 'dark' chapter in the adventure path and ought to be presented in quite a creepy way, with footsteps heard in empty rooms and candles which blow out when there is no draft.

Working for an elven wizard, the party is sent to find components and information required for his work, sent to an isolated and insular area under the thumb of a less than savory cult. They do not care for visitors, or wizards, or people who worship strange gods... and it's foggy and the locals are coming down with a strange disease. All the elements are in place for a claustrophobic and scary time.

This adventure works best if you are following the Plight of the Tuatha adventure path and have already played part 1, Feast Hall of Ash. If you do not wish to do this, provision is made for the hiring wizard to explain more background to ensure that the party know the importance of the quest on which they are being sent - if they have played it, they already know him. However, as matters are so entwined in the background of the world in which the whole adventure path is set - a mature world in which the author has been running his own games for years - it's recommended that you go and run Feast Hall of Ash first, then play this adventure. It can be run as a plain creepy quest on its own, and will make a good adventure on that level, but you'll be missing out on the depth of background that's here.

The adventure itself begins with the journey to the target area, arriving at a nearby harbour before travelling overland. Things have been pretty quiet up until now since they left their wizard employer (although a few events are provided should you wish to have at least something happen on the way) but this is soon to change! Whatever does go on, you are provided with a variety of options - including all necessary game mechanics - which the party may use to resolve the situation, and there are usually helpful NPCs to make suggestions should the characters not think of the right things to do.

Whatever the party decides to do - even within the constraints of a mission that's basically "Go there and fetch this" - there's plenty to keep them occupied, opportunities for both interactions and combat being provided. Each person or creature met comes with complete stat block and plenty of notes to aid you in running them to effect, whether in negotiation or combat. Background notes expand on this, giving motivations and overall depth, often linking back to the overall background of the rich tapestry of the setting. Whilst it's all there at your fingertips, reading it through thoroughly in advance of play will repay the effort as you will understand the why of their behaviour and attitudes as well as the what.

Throughout, ominous little orange boxes entitled 'Up the Ante' provide details of how you can make the adventure harder. It may be that your players are particularly competent, or that you are running the adventure for more than the four characters it is written for... or you may just be feeling a bit mean!

There is plenty to investigate and find out - characters who meet everything with a drawn sword and offensive spell will be at a disadvantage. By exploring the village and finding out what is going on, the characters will be able to help them as well as recover the item they have been sent to find. The village is mapped out and just about anywhere the party chooses to go there are people to talk to and things to find out. If you run the adventure from the PDF on a computer, the map locations are hyperlinked to the apposite notes (and backlinked so you can flip straight to the map again), a very nice touch.

And, well, we have been talking about 'spooky' right? What better climax than a spooky manor house to investigate... and yes, there is one. Cue up your creepy music and lower the lights. There is plenty of scope to scare the players, never mind their characters, here. However, this is not actually the climax, there is more...

Appendices cover notable NPCs and additional rules and mechanics including that of Emergence. This is an effect somewhere between a feat and an item that you can acquire as a result of your actions, actions that reveal the nature of your soul. Instances where you can gain one are highlighted in the adventure text, and here the rules covering them are explained. Some of them are beneficial, others are not. Each also has conditions under which they are lost - so if you do gain an unpleasant Emergence there is a chance that you can get rid of it (although this may be at a cost). This is a neat addition to the rules, provided it is used sparingly. Lore, items of note and a bestiary of new creatures encountered during the adventure are also included along with full details of the religions practised in this isolated area and some pre-generated characters (developed from the ones presented in the first part) should you need them.

An excellent creepy and claustrophobic adventure in its own right, this fits well with its predecessor and promises much for future episodes.

Return to Vasily's Woe page.

Reviewed: 8 June 2014