Dungeon magazine adventures 4E Reviews

[Band2]

There was not a lot of support for Ravenloft during the 4E era. However, there were some adventures published in the online version of Dungeon magazine that I think work well in Ravenloft. I will post my reviews of some of these adventures in this thread.

Dead by Dawn 2nd level
By Aeryn “Blackdirge” Rudel
Dungeon 176

A "night of the living dead" adventure
Set up: An abandoned temple used first by Erathis and then by Orcus contains a necroshard that is growing in power.
Summary: After exploring the temple and defeating the undead guardians, night falls, and when it does an army of undead rises up. The party is trapped in the temple by the undead horde and must survive the night.
The most interesting aspect of the adventure is the skill challenges. First there is one for zombie proofing the temple – barricading themselves inside the temple. Later when zombies break in and there is another skill challenge for shoring up the defenses to repair the damage while at the same time fighting the zombies that have gotten inside, with failure meaning more zombies are allowed inside. An interesting use of the mechanic.
The Bad: There are mentions of undead t-rex and dragons waiting outside the temple that need to be removed. They are only there to prevent the characters from leaving the temple and thinking they can outrun the zombie horde. These can easily be removed from the adventure without changing anything.
3 out of 5

[Band2]

Lord of the White Field 6-8th level
By Daniel Marthaler
Dungeon 184

Zombie/ ghoul apocalypse
Set up: A farmer finds a relic from Doresain, the Ghoul King of the White Kingdom in the Abyss and unleashes a ghoul apocalypse.
Summary: The party is hired to discover why all contact with a town has been cut off. They have to infiltrate the town overrun with ghouls and investigate the cause.
Good: There are some great scenes in this adventure – the first encounter in the woods at an abandon campsite; trapped in a farmhouse surrounded by ghouls; a surprise in the basement.
There is a skill challenge to sneak through the town overrun by ghouls and the adventure has a despair feature to show the effects of the mounting overwhelming feeling of despair, as the party see the size of the disaster.
Bad: The only bad aspect of the adventure is a magical recording device that malfunctions and plays its sound recording too loud. This is a modern cliché that the adventure can do without.
5 out of 5

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

thanks for doing this! I'm always on the lookout for adventures that aren't really Ravenloft but could be.

[Band2]

Legacy of Ghere Thau 9-10th level
By David Noonan
Dungeon 218

Ghosts of Mars
Set Up: Ghere Thau is a fortress on an important caravan route through the desert. It has been fought over many time throughout the years, but a previous battle between knights and a necromancer left its mark on the place.
Summary: A band of mercenaries/ bandits has taken the fortress of Ghere Thau and demands protection money from caravans using the trade route. The PCs are hired to remove the mercenaries.
Good: The adventure seems pretty straight forward until the legacy kicks in. See when any humanoid dies in the fortress they immediately rise as undead and attacks. The previous battle between knights and necromancer ended in a release of necrotic energy that killed many of the knights and left their spirits anchored to Ghere Thau. Now if someone dies at Ghere Thau these spirits can possess the body. The type of undead varies. Though wights are the most common, there are mummies, and vampires as well. This creates some difficult situations with the 4E minions mechanic. The PCs can chop down a half-dozen minions with one hit each only to have them rise as non-minion wights.
My favorite aspect of the adventure is that there is no way to stop this from happening. There is no ritual the PCs have to interrupt. No magic object that can just turn the effect off. Their goal remains the same, clear out the mercenaries. At the end of the adventure the legacy is still in place.
Bad: The biggest problem with setting this adventure in Ravenloft is the mercenaries. Most are monstrous humanoids or just monsters outright. Ogres, ettins, foulspawn, dragonborn, cambions, devils, medusas, gorgons, a dragon. I would want to replace all of these with more human mercenaries, though I suppose a few ogres and an ettin or two would not be too out of place in Ravenloft.
3.5 out of 5

[Band2]

The Last Breaths of Ashenport 8th level
By Ari Marmell
Dungeon 156

HP Lovecraft
Set Up: A horrible storm forces the party and a few other travelers to seek shelter at a small seaside village.
Summary: A mysterious Call effects the town visitors in the night making those effected seek to drown themselves in the sea. The next morning the town appears deserted but the storm continues. The party investigates and after attacks by strange creatures from the sea they eventually discover a cult of Dagon. But destroying the cult does not stop the storm or the mysterious Call. Only exploring the source of the Call can end it. As a note, this adventure was first published as a 3E adventure in one of the last Dragon magazines online before the changeover to 4E.
Good: I loved this adventure and ran it more times than any other 4E adventure. The atmosphere, the mysterious cult, the strange monsters, and interesting combat encounters. The adventure could easily be set on the shore of the Nocturnal Sea.
Bad: The only thing I could say is there are a couple conversion problems with 3E mechanics still mentioned (see troubleshooting on page 79, mentioning saving throws “3E” instead of attack rolls “4E”). One change I made whenever I ran the adventure is to one of the monsters. There is a creature called “The Wrath of Dagon.” It is an incredible powerful creature, but is only sized Medium. I always pictured it as a massive monstrosity, so every time I have changed its size to Huge.
5 out of 5

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

The Last Breaths of Ashenport 8th level
By Ari Marmell

I'll have to check this one out. Of note: Ari Marmell is an olde school RL fan/writer, having contributed to the Book of Shadows, and also written a chapter of Dark Tales & Disturbing Legends, as well as Black Crusade, Before I Wake, and the Endless Road Domain of Dread.

[Band2]

Children of Ardore 10-12th level
By Christopher Perkins
Dungeon 220

Set Up: Adventurers were called in to kill a coven of demon-worshiping witches near the village of Ardore. Months later a curse falls on the town and all the children are killed by a disease. One of the adventurers settled in the town, and over the next few years he develops clockwork children to replace those who had died. Secretly, one of the witches had survived. When she sees the clockwork children she attacks the town along with ghosts of those witches killed years before. She wants to kill the creator of the clockwork children so the villages will have no joy in their lives. Oh and the clockwork children are powered by demons trapped inside them by their creator.
Summary: The party are sent to investigate the town and stop the witch and her minions.
Good: Wow, the adventure certainly has a lot of horror ingredients, witches, ghost witches, demons, and golems.
Bad: The problem is the adventure seems too stuffed with these ingredients that all cannot be fully explored. There is no moral dilemma of the clockwork children. So much of the story takes place before the PCs are even involved, such as the ghosts of the dead witches were caused by other adventures. It seems as if the adventure could be developed into a good Ravenloft adventure, but it will take some work by the DM.
1 out of 5.